Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 685 Yanchuan Special Forces Recruitment and Assessment in Progress

The dirt road outside Yanchuan City was still muddy after the rain, and it made a squelching sound when you stepped on it, splashing mud onto your trouser legs.

Unlike the soldiers who charged headfirst into the fray, Fang Wen maintained a steady breathing rhythm, his arms swung with minimal amplitude, but his steps were springy, each one solid and powerful, the muddy road seemingly having no effect on his speed.

He had just run out of the east gate of the county town when he caught up with the running team, but instead of speeding up, he lagged behind to follow, so that he could better observe the situation of the selected soldiers.

Behind him were Qiu Shanhe and Gong Xiuneng.

The soldiers in front began to accelerate.

To get a better view, Fang Wen also sped up and ran diagonally to the roadside to observe.

The one at the very front, Fang Wen remembered, was a soldier from North China named Wang Dashan. He ran in front because of his height and long legs. He was very strong, with beads of sweat on his bronze muscles. His belt was tightly tied around his waist, and you could see the rise and fall of his muscles with every step he took.

Two thin soldiers followed closely behind Wang Dashan, moving at a remarkable pace.

Behind them were more than twenty people chasing after them with all their might.

This is the first echelon.

There was a second wave of soldiers behind them. These soldiers did not speed up their pursuit, but maintained their own pace and frequency, running at a leisurely pace.

Clearly, these soldiers all had their own strategies; some wanted to prove themselves with an absolute advantage, while others chose to conserve their energy for a later burst of power.

Fang Wen paid special attention to the student soldier wearing glasses. To his surprise, the student soldier's physical fitness was not bad. Although he was in the second echelon, he was in good condition.

Meanwhile, the two people at the back of the line were talking.

"Mr. Fang... how can you run so fast!" Qiu Shanhe panted heavily, sweat streaming down his face. Although he felt that his physical fitness was good, it was still inferior to that of the elite soldiers on the front line. However, he did not expect that Fang Wen could be on par with the elite soldiers.

Gong Xiuneng, however, was used to it and laughed, saying, "Comrade Qiu, our regimental commander is in excellent physical condition. He just hasn't shown it to everyone yet. Believe it or not, our regimental commander was the first one to get up the mountain."

Qiu Shanhe recalled what Fang Wen had said earlier and was surprised. Was this pilot really that physically strong?

At this moment, Fang Wen suddenly accelerated, rushing from the middle of the line to the front like a gust of wind.

Seeing that the examiner had surpassed them, the soldiers increased their speed.

Fang Wen continued running with long strides; it had been a long time since he had run in such a completely unrestrained manner.

His powerful mental strength allows him to better control the coordinated operation of his body, while also giving him physical qualities far superior to those of ordinary people.

Gradually, he overtook more soldiers and was only ten meters away from Wang Dashan, who was leading the group.

Wang Dashan caught a glimpse of someone chasing after him out of the corner of his eye. Thinking it was one of his comrades who had sped up, he roared and increased his speed.

When he was fighting as a guerrilla in North China, he once carried his wounded political instructor for twenty miles, and endurance had always been his pride. But the footsteps behind him grew closer and closer, and he couldn't help but turn around to look. He was immediately shocked and his eyes widened – it was the examiner who had just been speaking in front of the formation!

A competitive spirit rose within him, and Wang Dashan shouted, putting all his strength into running.

Fang Wen maintained steady breathing, but his speed increased, and he even surpassed Wang Dashan, who was running hard.

The running team had already reached the foot of the mountain. The mountain path ahead was slippery due to yesterday's rain, and it wouldn't be easy to climb.

Wang Dashan lost his footing and slipped, falling to the ground.

Fang Wen maintained his speed and ran up the mountain path, tossing a message behind him: "I'll be waiting for you on the ridge."

The soldiers were now focused on tackling the muddy path up the mountain, with no time to worry about anything else.

But the higher you go, the more difficult the muddy road becomes to traverse.

Many soldiers slipped and fell, and began to climb up using their hands and feet, which slowed them down considerably.

Meanwhile, the soldiers in the second echelon, who were trailing behind, took the opportunity to take the lead.

They not only maintained their physical strength to climb the mountain, but they were also very accustomed to the mountain paths, choosing only the easy parts and climbing at a slow pace, thus steadily ascending the mountain.

Qiu Shanhe and Gong Xiuneng, who were at the very back of the group, were responsible for cleaning up after the soldiers. If any soldiers slid down the slope, the two of them would go to help them.

Time passed little by little.

No matter how difficult the mountain path was, it could not stop these soldiers. The first group of people to reach the mountain ridge appeared.

Fang Wen, who was already waiting on the mountain ridge, took out the list and began the registration.

The first one to appear at the mountain pass was not Wang Dashan.

Instead, it was the tall, thin soldier who had previously stayed in the second echelon, having steadily built up his strength.

Although his face was covered in mud, his breathing was steady, and he did not seem to have completely exhausted himself from winning.

Upon seeing Fang Wen, he jogged over, stood at attention, and said, "Reporting to the examiner, Liu Hu has arrived!"

Fang Wen circled his name on the roster, and the note next to the name read: 'Service Class: Reconnaissance'

Being a scout isn't something anyone can do casually. You need to have excellent physical fitness and reflexes, as well as be proficient in a variety of individual combat skills to take on the important task of infiltrating behind enemy lines for reconnaissance.

Fang Wen smiled and asked, "The mountain road is slippery. How come you were the first one to arrive? Did you often travel in the mountains before?"

“When the Japanese were sweeping through the mountains, I led the villagers around, and that’s how I developed my legs,” Liu Hu replied.

Looking at the young soldier, Fang Wen couldn't help but recall meeting Shu Zhitao and his Red Army soldiers in western Hunan a few years ago.

The Red Army was very strong at that time, just like this young soldier. Unfortunately, many such brave and skilled soldiers sacrificed their lives during the encirclement and suppression campaigns and the Long March.

The remaining Red Army soldiers who completed the Long March have all become officers.

Shaking off his thoughts, Fang Wen continued registering.

People came up one after another after Liu Hu.

The second one was Wang Dashan. He ran up carrying his mud-covered military shoes, his trouser legs were torn in several places, and his knees were bleeding.

"Wang Dashan reporting for duty!"

Fang Wen circled his name, and added a note after it: Guerrilla fighter.

"After registering, go wash in the spring over there. Note that you should scoop out the water to wash, so as not to pollute the water source."

As the soldiers arrived one after another, Fang Wen's pen moved incessantly across the roster, registering them while also learning about their situation.

The registered soldiers went to the spring and used wooden ladles by the spring to wash themselves, then poured the dirty water outside.

Lin Xiaofeng, the student soldier who wore glasses, was the twenty-second to arrive.

His glasses were soaked with sweat and had slid down to the tip of his nose.

"Lin Xiaofeng reporting for duty!"

Fang Wen circled his name and added a note after it: 'Soldier Engineer'

Why did you decide to sign up for the selection?

"Reporting to the examiner, I originally wanted to be a pilot, but I wasn't selected last time. After learning about this recruitment, I thought it was an opportunity, so I signed up." So that's how it is. Both military pilot selections had extremely low pass rates; they were selecting the best of the best, and many who weren't quite up to par were eliminated. But no one expected Lin Xiaofeng to choose this route.

Fang Wen commented that he was physically fit and quick-witted.

Special forces not only need elite soldiers, but also mechanics who can maintain equipment and weapons. Lin Xiaofeng is a suitable soldier for this role.

"Go wash up," Fang Wen said.

There are only 8 spots left.

The competition for these eight spots is the fiercest.

Every soldier who appeared on the ridge was greeted with cheers.

When all thirty slots were filled, the mountain ridge was already filled with panting soldiers. Fang Wen closed the roster, walked to the middle of the crowd, and glanced at each person: "The five-kilometer cross-country run tests your physical condition, but it doesn't mean you'll definitely pass the next assessment. I'm going to select the top 30 soldiers overall, who meet all the requirements."

His words rekindled hope in the soldiers who arrived late.

The group came down from the mountain and returned to Yanchuan City.

I had lunch at the assembly plant's canteen.

Then the second assessment began.

Assessment of individual soldier's ability to use weapons in combat.

The test site was a shooting range outside the city.

After everyone arrived at the firing range, Fang Wen stood at the front of the group and announced, "As special forces members, you need to be proficient in using various individual weapons. Today's tests will cover rifles, submachine guns, grenade throwers, grenade launchers, and individual rocket launchers. For rifles, three live rounds will be used, with the passing standard being hitting an 8-ring target on a stationary target at 200 meters. For submachine guns, one magazine will be used, and the assessment will focus on multi-target moving assault shooting; high accuracy is not required, only a high level of completion is necessary. Grenade throws require a distance exceeding 40 meters. For grenade launchers and individual rocket launchers, the assessment requires the ability to fire live rounds. For any weapons you are not familiar with, except for rifles and grenades, please inform me; you may be exempt from these assessments."

The soldiers found it strange, yet they were also excited.

They were all elite soldiers, most of whom had experience with submachine guns and had even received specialized training in the military on how to use grenade launchers and individual rocket launchers produced by Taishan.

They also wanted to prove themselves in this military skills competition.

Then, following the order on the list, the soldiers began.

At the target position, Qiu Shanhe was responsible for the assessment and registration, while the soldiers at the shooting range helped with the target verification.

The soldiers held Mosin-Nagant rifles, which had just been produced at the Yan'an Arsenal, loaded them with 7.62mm bullets, and aimed them while standing.

One shot from a standing position, one shot from a semi-squatting position, and one shot from a prone position. All three shots must be within the 8-ring to be considered passing and counted in the score.

After firing their rifles, the soldiers went to Gong Xiuneng's side to test their submachine guns.

The submachine gun firing target was changed to a multi-target combination target 50 meters away—three humanoid targets arranged horizontally with a spacing of 1.5 meters.

Soldiers were required to change magazines independently and then fire at three target positions while running.

The Thompson submachine gun was rarely used on the Chinese battlefield. To prevent mistakes due to a lack of understanding of this weapon, Gong Xiu explained it to each soldier.

After explaining the structure of the Thompson submachine gun, Gong Xiuneng then talked about the submachine gun tactics that Fang Wen had taught him:

"This firing technique is a close-quarters combat fire suppression tactic. It requires rapidly approaching the target while firing, using the high rate of fire of the submachine gun to suppress and eliminate the enemy. There are three haystacks on your advance path, which represent temporary cover for taking cover. You can use these cover to fire. Okay, that's all I have to say. Now, let's begin in the order of rifle testing."

The first soldier took the Thompson submachine gun handed to him by Gong Xiuneng, loaded the magazine, released the safety, took a deep breath, and rushed out.

As he charged, he fired at the target ahead. Due to his unfamiliarity with automatic weapons, he was firing in burst mode, which resulted in half a magazine of bullets being fired at the target on the left.

He realized in time that the test required shooting at three targets while moving, so he quickly adjusted the fire selector on the left side of the gun to burst fire mode and fired the remaining bullets at the other two targets.

His mistake also served as a wake-up call for the other soldiers.

In the subsequent assessment, the soldiers all adjusted their fire selectors to burst fire mode.

An hour and a half later.

After the submachine gun assessment, some soldiers used haystacks as cover to fire. Fang Wen specifically noted that these soldiers had "strong battlefield awareness".

In the next grenade test, everyone passed the 40-meter throwing distance test.

Next came the assessment of grenade launchers and individual rocket launchers.

Ammunition for both weapons is very precious, and it is not enough to supply 50 people for the assessment. Therefore, the assessment only needs to be a demonstration.

The soldiers who participated in the assessment had all learned how to operate two weapons, so they were able to complete the demonstration during the assessment.

With that, the physical fitness and skills assessments were complete, and it was time for the sun to set.

Fang Wen announced.

"That concludes today's assessment. Tomorrow, we will continue with the final assessment and announce the selected candidates. Now, everyone return to your units and head back to the city."

The soldiers lined up and left the firing range under Qiu Shanhe's leadership.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng walked at the back of the group.

Gong Xiuneng asked in a low voice, "Commander, are you satisfied with these people?"

"They're all good. I can't make a decision right now. I'll have to wait and see what tomorrow's assessment brings."

"How is the response test conducted?" Gong Xiuneng asked, puzzled.

"It's hard to explain here. I'll tell you when we get back."

Qiu Shanhe led his team to spend the night at the military cooperative in the county town.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng returned to the assembly plant.

How should we conduct tomorrow's response assessment?

Unlike people of this era, he has his own methods.

Therefore, he sought out Qiu Shanhe.

"Comrade Qiu, here's my plan for tomorrow's assessment. Tomorrow's assessment will evaluate their comprehensive responsiveness, with three questions: 1. Information processing ability; 2. Rapid decision-making ability; 3. Resource integration ability."

"Information? What information?" Qiu Shanhe didn't understand.

The vocabulary of the future is difficult for people in this era to understand, so Fang Wen began to explain it.

"To put it simply, the first question is: I will provide 10 pieces of intelligence, and they need to identify 3 key pieces of intelligence from them. This is to test their ability to assess changes in the situation. The second question is: based on their assessment of the intelligence, they need to formulate an action plan. The third question is: I will provide some available resources, and they need to use these resources to complete the mission."

After hearing Fang Wen's explanation, Qiu Shanhe understood.

“That’s a good method. Based on their behavior, we can determine the general situation of their actions. I have a suggestion: let’s take a more practical approach. I can have the troops in Yanchuan coordinate with them.”

Fang Wen had a sudden thought: if the military cooperated, the assessment would be even more effective.

(End of this chapter)