Military career: Starting with a recruitment letter

Chapter 317 The Chen Family is About to Produce a Dragon

You seem to be in a good mood.

Chen Mo noticed that Xu Dong was actually smiling, so he glanced at him and asked.

"No, I was just thinking about some happy things," Xu Dong replied, turning and walking in another direction from the crowd.

This guy's clothes are too eye-catching.

Chen Mo didn't want to stand with him either, so he simply carried Chen Jing back into the house.

I moved a small stool into the main room and let my younger sister sit there to eat canned food.

He took some money out of his pocket and went back into the house to look for Chen Feng, only to find that the kid was no longer there.

Liu Fenglan was busy cooking over a fire, while Chen Xuejun stood in the yard chatting with a group of people, beaming with pride. Even his honest and simple father couldn't resist the praise.

Chen Mo smiled.

At that moment, he understood what it meant to return home in glory.

"mom!"

"Eh."

"You're up?" Liu Fenglan was cooking when she heard the shout and came out of the kitchen. "Did Xiaojing wake you up? Niu Niu woke up and kept asking for you. She was afraid you would leave again, so she sat down next to you and kept an eye on you."

"No matter what I say, she won't listen."

"It's alright, Mom. It's time to get up. Where's Xiaofeng?" Chen Mo asked casually. Seeing that his aunt from next door was helping out in the kitchen, he quickly greeted her, "Auntie, good morning."

"You kid, you're just a soldier, why are you being so polite? What's with all the talk about early or late? It's our own kid coming back, we have to come no matter how early it is. Wait a minute, the food will be ready soon."

After the aunt next door finished speaking, Liu Fenglan continued, "Xiao Feng went to town to buy meat and vegetables."

"The village chief said that people from the county have come to our village entrance to plant trees, do landscaping, and clean up the sanitation, etc. He also said that some leaders will be coming to your house at noon to see you."

"trouble."

Chen Mo muttered to himself.

Hearing her son's words, Liu Fenglan couldn't help but laugh and said, "Our hometown is not like your army. There are only so many things to do and so few people here. Now that you've suddenly become a leader, people will definitely want to come and see you."

"It's alright. We've hosted many leaders before, so we're not afraid."

Offer a few words of comfort.

Chen's mother continued to busy herself in the kitchen.

Chen Mo offered cigarettes to the neighbors in the yard, explaining that he had brought money to buy some groceries and wanted Chen Feng to come along.

His family had all thought of things ahead of him, leaving him with nothing to do.

Breakfast was simple.

It's just boiled rice porridge, served with some stir-fried meat and vegetables from a large pot, and steamed buns.

Not only do family members and Xu Dong eat there, but in the countryside, as long as neighbors come to help early in the morning, whether it's cleaning the yard or helping to sweep the floor or cook when they hear that leaders are coming, they will stay at the host's house for a meal.

In rural areas, good neighborly relations always lead to a lively and cheerful atmosphere.

Around 8 or 9 a.m.

Chen Mo was sitting in the courtyard chatting with some elders when two people approached cautiously through the gate, their dogs craning their necks and peering into the yard.

At first, nobody cared.

Even Chen Mo didn't notice, since there were many people coming and going. It wasn't until Chen Feng saw it that he ran over to remind him, "Brother, your classmates are here."

"My classmate?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Mo was stunned for a moment, subconsciously thinking it was Ding Zeliang and Lai Wei from dormitory 402 of the Shicheng Army Academy.

But this thought only flashed through my mind. If I count the time, those people who were promoted to officers in dormitory 402 still haven't graduated.

The earliest it will be is the Chinese New Year.

The other party is unlikely to come to the house, nor will they.

If the Blue Army battalion is approved for last year's military exercise again this year, it's estimated that Xie Yong and Ding Zeliang from the Night Tiger Reconnaissance Company of the 182nd Regiment will be among the officers promoted in the 61st Division.

But apart from those few, Chen Mo couldn't recall anyone else who could be considered a "classmate".

When he followed Chen Feng's gaze, he saw Dong Keyang, his senior classmate, and Liu Shaopei, a junior from the next village.

Chen Mo suddenly realized.

It wasn't that he had forgotten high school, but rather that it was too far removed from his past life. In his previous life, he had graduated more than twenty years ago, but in this life, he had only attended one class and was constantly distracted.

There's no concept of classmates here.

"Silly boy, those are Dong Keyang from the west end of our village, and Liu Shaopei from Wangmingzhai. Don't you recognize them?"

After correcting Chen Feng's statement, Chen Mo quickly got up and walked to the front door with a smile on his face.

"You're here, why don't you come in? What are you standing at the door looking at?"

Dong Keyang, Chen Mo's deskmate, has now graduated from high school three or four months ago.

In those days, it was difficult to get into university, and even if you did, the tuition fees were beyond the reach of ordinary families.

Therefore, many people start working after finishing high school, or even before finishing, to find another way out.

He had already discussed it with his family and decided to go to work in the south after the New Year. Even Liu Shaopei, who was in his second year of high school, did not plan to continue to his third year. The two planned to go to the south together after the New Year.

This morning, I heard that my childhood friend Chen Mo, who had joined the army, had returned as a leader, so the two of us came to visit him.

Seeing the car parked at the gate and the whole yard surrounded by his comrade in military uniform, Dong Keyang, who had never known what a difference was, experienced it firsthand for the first time.

"Um, how are you doing in the army?" Dong Keyang's expression was slightly restrained and somewhat unfamiliar.

The main problem was that the Chen Mo in front of him was completely different from the person he remembered.

"What do you mean by good or bad? Come in and sit down."

Chen Mo was delighted to run into his childhood friends and casually led them into the main room.

Find two porcelain cups, brew some tea leaves, and even put a few pieces of rock sugar at the bottom of the cups to enhance the sweetness of the tea.

After all, times have changed, and people in later generations would definitely not be used to drinking it like this, but at this time, sugar was still a very valuable commodity.

It's sweet; it's only served when important guests come over.

Place the brewed tea in front of the two of them.

Chen Mo casually opened a can of food, a bag of candy, and grabbed two packs of cigarettes, tossing them on the table.

"You, you've even learned to smoke?" Dong Keyang was shocked to see his old classmate so casually placing cigarettes on the table in his own home, with so many elders in the yard.

"Yes, I learned a little bit in the army."

Chen Mo smiled and offered the cigarette to the two of them, but they both waved their hands and said they didn't want one, so he simply lit one for himself.

Inside the main room, wisps of smoke rose, mingling with the billowing steam from the tea, creating a rather pleasant atmosphere.

When old classmates reunited, all three felt very close, including Chen Mo. They were childhood friends who used to play naked together, so it was a rare treat to see each other again, how could they not feel warm and fuzzy?

But we no longer had anything in common to talk about.

"Um, I heard from people at the west end of the village that you became a leader in the army?"

Liu Shaopei broke the silence first, speaking with some curiosity.

"What leader? Don't listen to the nonsense from the people back home. I'm just a battalion commander, not a leader."

"Come on, open the can and eat it. These are local specialties from where I was in the army. Try them and see how they are."

Chen Mo unwrapped the candy and pushed it in front of the two of them.

"How high is the rank of battalion commander? How many people can he manage?" Dong Keyang asked.

"There weren't many people, just a battalion of one or two hundred."

"By the way, Lao Dong, you've graduated, right? Any plans?"

Chen Mo didn't want to talk too much about things in the military.

Although the one or two hundred people he mentioned were four-fifths less than the size of the Blue Army camp, it was still a significant number for recent graduates.

That's already impressive, especially leading two hundred men in a fighting force; it's even more impressive.

Dong Keyang scratched his head and looked at Chen Mo, who was dressed in military uniform. He exuded a domineering and confident aura, and his every move was different from theirs.

He chuckled dryly, "What plans could I possibly have? I'll go work in the south, I guess. I've heard from people in the village who've left that things are great out there now. They even have those handheld phone phones that you can make calls with, something like 'Tong'."

"Little Smart," Chen Mo reminded him.

“Yes, yes, it’s a PHS phone.” Dong Keyang laughed. “I plan to go out after the New Year and make some money to buy a PHS phone. I’m different from you.”

"I'm not cut out to be a leader, but when I make money and come back, any of you who want to call don't need to go to the village chief's house, just come to me."

"I'm pretty much the same. I'm going to the south with Ke Yang to work hard, hoping to earn more money in a few years, build a few bungalows in my hometown, get married, and start a family."

Liu Shaopei explained his plans.

During this time, Chen Mo simply listened attentively without interrupting or offering any opinions.

Everyone has their own ambitions. Dong Keyang's pursuit of fashion is similar to his previous life.

In the end, he stayed in a big city to work hard and was unwilling to come back. His life was not great, but it wasn't bad either. He just made do and lived an ordinary life.

Liu Shaopei was more pragmatic. In his previous life, he also got married early and later explored doing some small business on his own. He developed his business in his hometown and had a happy family.

Of the three childhood friends, in their previous life, he was the only one who was all alone, in his twilight years. He was old, but not yet fifty; young, but without any ambition.

Listening to their plans now, I estimate their trajectories will still overlap, so there will be almost no impact.

But he's different. This time, he brought his family to Jinyang, and he also found a temporary solution to his old boss's problem.

Next.

With no more worries about what will happen afterward, I will stride forward and write a magnificent chapter in my military career.

As they chatted, the conversation flowed more freely, and Dong Keyang and Liu Shaopei became less reserved, laughing heartily as they talked about their childhood.

When talking about school, he became even more animated, while Chen Mo mostly listened, occasionally chiming in with a few words.

Because so much time has passed, his memory of many things has become blurred. He can't even remember people's names, he only has a general impression of them.

After recounting their childhood and school experiences, the three of them essentially went through their entire lives of the past ten years or so.

It was around 11 a.m. at this time.

Just as the atmosphere became somewhat somber.

Chen Xuejun strode into the main room and saw his classmates there. His father greeted them with a smile, "Yangyang, Shaopei, you two sit down and have some tea."

"Xiao Mo, hurry up! The county leaders' convoy is almost at the village entrance. The village chief and the others are waiting. You should go and take a look too."

"The leader is here to see you, you can't stay here."

"Okay, I'll go over now."

Chen Mo stood up, quickly straightened his casual clothes, picked up a hat from the side and put it on his head, and said, "You guys sit down for a while, and have some lunch here. I brought back some sorghum liquor, so we'll have it this afternoon."

"It's alright, it's alright, you go ahead with your work, we'll take a look too."

Dong Keyang quickly pulled Liu Shaopei up, and as they watched Chen Mo walk out of the courtyard, they followed.

If they only heard from their family members in the morning that their old classmate had become a leader and was very single, they wouldn't have a very direct understanding of it.

So now.

Good guy.

Around noon, almost all the villagers who had nothing to do had gathered at the east end of the village.

Many people were also carrying shovels, with red ribbons tied to the top of the shovel handles; they were clearly workers from government offices who had been cleaning and planting trees that morning.

"Xiao Mo is back? Wow, he looks really handsome in that military uniform."

"Isn't this the eldest son of the Chen family? I almost didn't recognize him."

"It's really different after joining the army. People look much more energetic now. Xiao Mo, is your army still recruiting? Let my Xiao Tao join the army with you."

"Xiao Mo, have you found a girlfriend in the army? Let me introduce you to one. My older sister's niece is the same age as you, and she's very plump. She'll give birth to a chubby boy."

"What? Xiao Mo, don't listen to your Aunt Zhen's nonsense. Her sister's niece is several years older than you. How about I tell you about my Wenwen? You used to always follow Wenwen around when you were little, remember?"

When greeted by onlookers, Chen Mo just laughed it off and grinned foolishly in response.

I didn't dare say another word.

People from my hometown often speak without thinking, and they dare to say anything when teasing young people.

Knowing that saying more would only lead to more mistakes, Chen Mo quickened his pace and arrived at the village entrance.

Dong Keyang and Liu Shaopei also ran into the crowd to stand and see who the county leaders were.

By this time, even more people had gathered at the village entrance. Village Chief Zheng had arrived long ago. Seeing Chen's eldest son coming over, the village chief grinned and patted Chen Mo on the shoulder: "Good boy, you've brought honor to our village and allowed me to show my face in front of the leaders."

"When the leaders come over, be generous. They're here to see us. Being sweet-talking won't hurt. If they leave the military, they can come back here and be assigned to a good department."

"Don't worry, Uncle, there won't be any problems."

Chen Mo smiled and assured him that he was very grateful to the village chief who often ran to his house to inform him after a phone call.

Anyway.

As a village official, he always helps people sincerely.

"That's good, we can't be intimidated."

The village chief added another instruction.

Less than a minute later, the SUV that I saw from the Armed Forces Department yesterday arrived again, followed by three old Volkswagen Santanas.

We arrived at the village entrance.

Cao Deming and Dong Guoqiang from the Armed Forces Department were the first to get out of the car. Not only the two of them, Chen Mo also saw Dou Wei, the former principal of the county's No. 1 High School.

And Liu Wenhua, the number one figure in Feng County.

"Yo!"

"Welcome, leaders, to our village to show your concern for the people! Everyone applauds. Welcome, leaders!"

Bang bang bang.
The surrounding villagers followed the village chief's lead, clapping and laughing. The sound wasn't loud, but the atmosphere was quite cheerful.

Chen Mo reached out and tugged at his military uniform, strode up to the leaders, stood at attention, and saluted.

"Welcome, leaders."

"Heh heh, this must be Chen Mo? Good lad, you've brought honor to our Feng County."

Liu Wenhua smiled as he looked at the young man in front of him. He was no stranger to Chen Mo; Chen Mo had even been awarded a second-class merit last year during the Spring Festival.

Even local authorities will pay appropriate attention to families who have received military merit.

When Liu Wenhua learned that the recipient of the Second-Class Merit Award was a young comrade who had only recently joined the army, he was quite surprised.

Now, when we hear news of this young comrade again, he has been promoted to battalion commander. When he returns to his hometown, he not only takes his family to Jinyang, but also has guards accompanying him.

Although he didn't know why battalion-level officers would be assigned guards, the news had been confirmed by the Jinyang Military Headquarters and also received a notification from the municipal military sub-district.

He should come down and take a look too.

"Old Dou, your school has really helped our county cultivate a great talent, haha."

Liu Wenhua looked at Dou Wei, the principal of a high school.

Principal Dou also looked quite emotional.

Families willing to send their children to high school are generally those that recognize the importance of education and usually won't drop out halfway through their senior year to join the army.

Back then, it was already considered rare for Chen Mo to drop out of high school midway through his senior year.

The armed forces department went to the college to change the application from dropping out to graduating early, but not taking the college entrance examination. He personally signed and stamped the application.

Therefore, he was also deeply impressed.

At that time, Principal Dou never expected that his school would produce such a military talent.

"Yes, Chen Mo, well done! I knew you would achieve great things in the army. This not only brings honor to Feng County, but also to our school."

"Principal Xie praised it."

Chen Mo responded with a smile.

Seeing that the eldest son of the Chen family could chat with county leaders and the principal, while the village chief stood aside and couldn't say a word.

Many villagers looked at each other in bewilderment.

Rumors are circulating that Chen's son has become a leader, but many people have no idea how high a position he holds.

Now we finally have a benchmark. Anyway, he's older than the village head, and he can chat and laugh with the principal and county leaders. That's quite remarkable.

"Oh my, if I had known that being a soldier was such a promising career, I should have let my son Chaozi wear a military uniform too. My son Chaozi is five or six years older than Xiaomo. If he had joined the army, he would be the leader now."

"That's all nonsense. You're decades older than the Chen family's son, so why haven't you become a village chief?"

"That's right. Few people from our village join the army, while quite a few from the other brigades do. But none of them have become leaders since they came back. It's all about fate. Chen's kid is just lucky."

"You're all spouting nonsense. You call yourself a leader? Your son Chaozi can't even herd sheep properly. He'll take three out and only two will come back. With a brain like that, how can he be a leader in the military? What kind of place is the military? It's a place where you fight. Can someone who isn't capable be a leader?"

Many of the younger elders around were talking about it.

The older folks would carry stools and sit in the sunlight, watching with smiles on their faces.

"The Chen family is about to produce a dragon!"

An old man with a cane, his cloudy eyes seeing the military vehicles parked in front of the Chen family's house, and several guards standing in the crowd.

His voice carried a hint of laughter.

The village entrance is becoming increasingly lively.

Led by the village chief, the group walked toward Chen Mo's home.

Mr. and Mrs. Chen, along with some relatives and neighbors, were all at the door to greet them.

Watching Chen Mo accompany the principal, the county leaders went home chatting and laughing.

Standing in the crowd, Dong Keyang sighed. Seeing his old classmates again this time was quite a shock to him.

He didn't join in the fun. After seeing Chen Mo return home, he quietly called Liu Shaopei, and the two prepared to go home.

I originally planned to rest for a few more months, then go to work in the south after the New Year to help my family with some responsibilities and broaden my horizons.

Now that they see Chen Mo doing so well after being away for a while, they can't stay any longer.

The military is not a good fit for them.

But there's always a vast world outside where you can put your abilities to good use.

The two looked forward to seeing their old classmate again, hoping that they would be doing better so they could sit down and have a drink together.

That's possible.

It's just youthful spirit, always believing that human will can conquer nature, full of vigor.

(End of this chapter)