Military career: Starting with a recruitment letter

Chapter 146 Departure, A New Beginning
The days passed by.

Aside from the initial excitement when they received the notification, no one mentioned it much afterward.

After all, Chen Mo is attending a military academy, not retiring from the army. It's a happy occasion, so there's no need to make it too sentimental.

Time flew by and it was May 7th. The order to set off was finally given to the company.

Inside the reconnaissance company's mess hall.

Because of Chen Mo's departure, the entire company of soldiers enjoyed another hearty meal of dumplings.

This abundance doesn't refer to the variety of ingredients, but rather to the fact that many veterans in the company personally washed their hands, rolled up their sleeves, kneaded the dough, chopped the filling, and wrapped the mutton and cabbage dumplings.

At the company's dining table.

Cheng Dong, Huo Linshan, Lao Pao, Hou Zhanye, Liang Hongjie, and several others were present.

Watching Chen Mo rummage through the dumplings, stuffing them into his mouth one by one, until his eating speed visibly slowed down and he began to swallow with difficulty.

Old Pao chuckled, patted Chen Mo on the back, and said, "Alright, if you can't eat, then don't. Don't throw up in the car later."

"Remember, when you go to school, don't be so eager to show off. Study hard and acquire knowledge and skills; that's the most important thing."

"Understand?"

"I know, class monitor." Chen Mo swallowed the last dumpling in his bowl with great effort, then wiped his mouth and quickly replied.

It wasn't that he was greedy, but the people in the company were just too hospitable. The company commander and the political instructor each served him a bowl of rice once.

Soldiers are not good at expressing their emotions, especially Cheng Dong, who kept urging Chen Mo to eat more. Chen Mo didn't want to refuse the company commander's kindness.

Seeing that the rice in the bowl was all gone, Cheng Dong looked down at the time on his watch, waved his hand and said, "Alright, is everything packed up?"

"Xiao Liang, you drive Xiucai to the Political Department for the assembly. Someone will take attendance there. The military region will be responsible for arranging vehicles to transport this batch of comrades who are entering the school to Shimen."

"I've said everything that needed to be said these past few days. Damn it, remember to call the company when you get to school. Don't just disappear like that."

"Get lost."

"Let's go." Liang Hongjie stood up first, and Chen Mo followed suit, standing at attention and raising his hand in salute.

This salute is offered to both the officers and the veterans of the company.

He hadn't been in the reconnaissance company for long, but the people there treated him well, especially recently when he was the only private left in the company; the veterans were particularly enthusiastic.

Now it's time to leave, and all farewells are contained in this salute.

The ceremony is over!

Chen Mo picked up his bag and, accompanied by Liang Hongjie, strode out of the canteen.

Everyone in the company quietly followed the company commander to the canteen entrance. They stopped in unison, some waving goodbye, others standing with their hands on their hips, gazing intently.

Some people lowered their heads to light cigarettes, while others stood upright with their hands behind their backs.

Just as Chen Mo had reached the dormitory building in the distance and was about to get into the car, Wang Jianyong, who was closest to him in private, still spoke up loudly: "Scholar, don't forget, the Third Company will always be your home."

"Remember to come back after you finish your studies. If you dare to go anywhere else, I'll catch you and bring you back."

"Haha, Lao Wang, don't brag. The next time you see the scholar, he'll be a platoon leader. Even if you had three times the guts, would you dare to arrest him?"

"Hahahahahaha."

Laughter dispelled the sadness of parting; in truth, it wasn't that no one could wait ten months.

The large-scale demobilization is not over yet, and no one knows who will be removed from the troop ranks in the next round of demobilization orders.

Even Chen Mo didn't know if the reconnaissance company would still be around next year, let alone the others.

"Don't worry, squad leader, I will definitely come back."

Chen Mo smiled and responded to the crowd in the distance, then opened the passenger door and got in.

The vehicle starts.

They drove away from the military camp and also left Kuchi Village.

Liang Hongjie wasn't focused while driving, constantly turning his head to look at Chen Mo, making Chen Mo, who was looking around at the scenery, feel very uncomfortable.

"Platoon leader, is something the matter?"

“There is indeed something to do, Scholar. Why don’t you remove those private’s shoulder insignia? The company commander didn’t ask you to keep them, so you don’t need to keep wearing them.”

"If you wear this to school, you'll probably become a celebrity in the entire major very quickly."

"A private being promoted without notice, do you even know what that means?"

Before Chen Mo could respond, Liang Hongjie continued, "Speaking of which, you really have to thank me for drinking too much that night. Those three spies helped you get a free pass. You're really lucky."

"Do you know our company's quartermaster? That Liu Rengao. I heard from the deputy company commander that in 96, the ZYJW issued an order requiring all quartermasters in the troops to be officers. At that time, Squad Leader Liu should have been able to be recommended for promotion."

"As a result, I don't know if there were enough spots that year or what, but it didn't happen. Squad Leader Liu has been looking at you with envy these past few days. You'd better keep a low profile."

"No wonder," Chen Mo nodded slightly after hearing Liang Hongjie's words.

"What's the wonder?"

"No, no."

Chen Mo didn't continue. He had been wondering why the quartermaster hadn't been very familiar with him.

But in the last few days, they've been quite enthusiastic. These veterans are incredibly energetic; they often stand by his bedside in the morning, waiting for him to wake up.

I'm giving him a good beating.

The most proactive one was the quartermaster, who often talked to him about things to note when entering the school.

Chen Mo had always thought that Liu Rengao was showing concern, but now that he thought about it, it was probably because Liu Rengao hadn't used the things he had prepared himself, and that Liu Rengao was passing on his experience to him.

In 1996, the Kyoto Military Headquarters did indeed issue a document stating that quartermasters throughout the army must be officers.

At the time, it did indeed give a large number of people the opportunity to be promoted.

But how to put it? Some places were filled by others, and there simply weren't enough places available. Plus, there are too many grassroots units, so it's impossible to implement it all in one day.

Even in later generations, many units still have non-commissioned officers serving as quartermasters.

The 7th Armored Brigade's location is not close to the Political Department of the Military Region. The headquarters of the 63rd Army is in Taiyuan, and it takes nearly four hours to get there.

If others need to go to assemble, the company generally won't help; they'll just have to find their own way to get there.

Soldiers, why would they be afraid to go out?

But Chen Mo couldn't. As a private, according to military regulations, he was not allowed to travel alone.

We set off around 8 or 9 a.m. and didn't arrive at Wucheng Road in Taiyusn until noon.

The military region required all personnel who received the notification to assemble at the entrance of the logistics department opposite the main gate of the military headquarters before 3 p.m.

Chen Mo was very familiar with the military headquarters. Along the way, as he looked at the scenery of Wucheng Road, memories from his past life flooded into his mind like a burst dam.

Chen Mo was sitting in the car, gazing out the window, when they passed the west side of the military compound, near the military communications station. He quickly patted Liang Hongjie and said, "Platoon leader, let's stop here."

"This? Have we arrived?"

Old Liang stepped on the brake, picked up the map in his hand, and carefully compared it. In this era, there was no navigation. When traveling long distances, one relied entirely on a paper map and road signs to determine the route.

"Not there yet." Chen Mo pointed to the left side of the road: "This is the military communications station. I remember there's a noodle restaurant here that's pretty good."

"Let's go, I'll treat you to noodles."

"I can walk to the meeting place by myself later."

After Chen Mo finished speaking, he pushed open the door and got out of the car.

This left Liang Hongjie completely bewildered. Damn! This scholar knows this place too?

Completely confused.

After Chen Mo got out of the car, Lao Liang parked his car on the side of the road and got out as well.

After walking for a short while, we actually saw a restaurant selling oil-splashed noodles.

Even after they sat down at the dinner table, when Chen Mo opened two bottles of soda and handed them to Liang Hongjie, Old Liang still looked completely bewildered: "Scholar, how do you know this place so well?"

"I heard it from someone." Seeing the familiar street scene and sitting in the small noodle shop he had visited before, Chen Mo was clearly in a good mood.

With a straw in his mouth, he pointed east and said, "If we walk another 300 meters or so, we'll reach the south gate of the military headquarters. Diagonally opposite the south gate is the entrance to the logistics department, the place where we're required to assemble."

"Don't worry, platoon leader. I'm a scout too, I definitely won't get lost. You can go back after you finish eating."

"The return trip will take several hours."

Upon hearing this, Liang Hongjie nodded with a hint of doubt, but he didn't ask any further questions.

Anyway, the scholar always manages to come up with some unbelievable theories. He learns everything very quickly, and sometimes he even knows more about things than I, a platoon leader with five years of military service.

Old Liang himself has gotten used to it.

While eating the noodles, Chen Mo couldn't help but get excited. He wasn't hungry, but the platoon leader had gone to great lengths to bring him here.

We definitely need to express our gratitude.

To be honest, even he himself did not expect that his path to promotion in this life would be so smooth.

The dreams I made before entering the camp will soon come true.

After a meal.

Chen Mo repeatedly declined Liang Pai's offer to accompany him, assuring him that he wouldn't get lost, before carrying his bag and strolling to the entrance of the logistics department.

Promotion is probably a big deal.

At this time, there were still two hours left before the time required by the military region, and there were already twenty or thirty people standing in front of the logistics department.

Most of them were first-class sergeants, with a few privates first class and a few second-class sergeants, who were either standing or squatting nearby waiting.

These were all people from the 63rd Army, but Chen Mo wasn't familiar with them. This group from May was not the same group he had met in November of his previous life.

Adhering to the principle of not showing off when traveling, Chen Mo found a spot against a wall where the sun wouldn't shine, threw his bag on the ground, and sat down to wait.

Occasionally, people nearby would glance over, but seeing that it was just a private, no one came up to greet him.

No one would think a private could be promoted to officer.

As time went on, the number of people gathered grew to fifty or sixty.

Chen Mo had been observing the newcomers.

You should know that, frankly, very few of those who are standing here actually earned their positions through exams; most are high-achieving individuals who rose through the ranks by merit.

Among them were even those who received first-class merit awards.

Chen Mo's experience, including his second-class merit award, is something to be proud of, but it is nothing compared to these people.

The value of a first-class merit is far greater than that of a second-class merit; to survive it means one has crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood.

But Chen Mo has one advantage.

He is not one to give up easily; the more challenging the environment, the more it fuels his fighting spirit.

When I go to the military academy this time, I can't just compete with these shirtless guys in terms of physical strength. I need to find a way to enrich my resume and figure out how to make a name for myself.

He had been trying to build a relationship with the political commissar, but before he could, he was sent to the school.

If you want to go far and stand tall in the future, the thicker your personnel file, the better.

Of course, this level of sophistication requires genuine talent; the kind of sophistication achieved through mere disciplinary notices doesn't count.

As Chen Mo was engrossed in his own plan, two buses slowly drove out of the military compound diagonally opposite, circled around, and stopped in the open space in front of the logistics department.

The car door opens.

A lieutenant colonel, holding a whistle, glanced around the crowd, put the whistle in his mouth, and blew it.

"Beep-beep!!"

"Everyone assemble!!"

With a loud shout, the people who had been sitting idly nearby, including Chen Mo, immediately stood up and began to line up.

Seeing that the line was in order, the lieutenant colonel turned around, went back to the car, and got a roster. He said, "Next, I will call roll. Comrades whose names are called, please respond loudly, 'Here!' and then come to me to sign and get on the car."

"I will only reiterate this once before I set off."

"My name is Zhai Hongtao. I am the team leader responsible for taking you to Shimen Army Academy. It will take about four hours to get there."

"The bus will only stop once along the way and will depart in ten minutes. I hope you won't make me wait. If anyone misses the bus, don't tell me. Find your own way to get there."

"Since you are not my soldiers and I don't know you, in order to reduce the time wasted by constantly calling roll along the way, please consciously maintain discipline."

"Let's begin taking attendance."

"Yu Guowei!"

"To!"

"Pang Xiaojie!"

"To!"

"."

"Chen Mo!"

"To!"

Upon hearing his name called, Chen Mo, who was at the back of the line, responded and strode to the front of the line.

Zhai Hongtao, who had been looking serious, smiled slightly when he saw Chen Mo approaching. He handed over the autograph book and said with a smile, "Congratulations, scholar!"

"Thank you, chief!"

Chen Mo was taken aback; the person in front of him looked completely unfamiliar.

It seemed she could sense his confusion.

Zhai Hongtao smiled and said, "Do you remember when Director Tao went to your recruit company to award you a second-class merit? I was there at the time."

"I remember, I definitely remember."

Chen Mo chuckled. He didn't remember a thing.

When he was awarded the second-class merit, it was personally awarded by Tao Ruichang, the director of the political department of the military region. There was a large group of cadres behind him at the time, and he wasn't a computer.

How could I possibly remember them all?

But in these situations, you have to pretend you know them even if you don't.

After signing his name, Chen Mo returned the roster, stood at attention, and said, "Commander, I'm getting on the bus now."

"Go."

Zhai Hongtao waved his hand. He remembered Chen Mo because the spy he caught that time had even alarmed the Nationalist government.

It was Director Tao who suggested this promotion, which allowed Xiucai to be included on the list almost without any obstacles.

Otherwise, given that we are currently in a period of major military downsizing, there are countless people who would like to borrow this quota.

Without someone with a star on their shoulder speaking up, it's really hard to say.

Chen Mo had no idea that Old Tao was so loyal. He picked up his bag and sat down on the bus.

Watching as the people whose names were called boarded the bus one by one.

After waiting for about ten minutes, and with no one coming, the two buses finally started moving.

They drove straight towards Shimen.

As Chen Mo watched the buildings receding outside the car window, his mood began to fluctuate.

Shimen Army Academy, located in the western suburbs at the foot of the Taihang Mountains, is a place known locally as the "Military Academy City".

This will be his next new starting point.

(End of this chapter)