Su An silently took the magazine and put it into his own ammunition pouch.

Gao Kai wasn't satisfied yet, so he ran to the pile of weapons, picked up the Type 56 semi-automatic rifle that Su An had personally modified, and carefully wiped the gun body with his sleeve before presenting it to Su An like a precious treasure.

"Teacher Su, look at this gun. I just cleaned it for you again, and I guarantee it will be shiny and bright!"

His overly attentive and fawning manner was so conspicuous that even Zhuo Yue, who had just stepped out of the tent, couldn't bear to watch.

Zhuoyue slapped Gao Kai on the back of the head and teased him, "Hey Kai, you're handing me water and wiping my gun like this. Anyone who didn't know better would think you're trying to win over your girlfriend. What, are you trying to become Teacher Su's bodyguard?"

Gao Kai blushed at the words and retorted, "Go away! What do you know!"

He lowered his voice, but couldn't hide the reverence in his tone, "Teacher Su is the hope of our entire battalion! He's a miracle worker who can lead us to victory! This is... this is concern for our revolutionary comrades! It's respect! Do you understand? Respect!"

The commotion attracted the attention of Wang Xiaoya and Chen Xiaocao, who were helping to distribute the dry rations nearby.

Wang Xiaoya covered her mouth, her eyes smiling like crescent moons.

“Brother Gao Kai, Squad Leader Zhuo is right. You’ve been serving tea and water, it’s like you have ‘I want to marry Su An’ written all over your face.”

"That's right, that's right," Chen Xiaocao chimed in, her courage growing considerably. "Brother Gao Kai, the whole camp knows what you're thinking!"

Wang Jin, one of Gao Kai's buddies, came up and put his arm around his neck, winking and teasing, "Brother Kai, don't underestimate yourself. With your height and looks, back in the police force, quite a few girls were eyeing you!"

Gao Kai's face turned bright red as he was being talked about by the female soldiers and his brothers, and he waved his hands anxiously.

"Nonsense! Don't talk nonsense and ruin Teacher Su's reputation!" he argued anxiously, but his voice lowered at the end, carrying a sense of shame that he himself did not realize.

"I... I'm not worthy of Teacher Su... She's like a fairy from heaven, and I'm just a roughneck... Being able to fight alongside Teacher Su is the greatest blessing I've ever had..."

His voice was soft, yet it conveyed a heartfelt sincerity.

Su An, who had been silent all along, finally reacted.

She loaded the last magazine, pulled the bolt to check it, then raised her eyes, her clear gaze sweeping over the crowd.

Her gaze lingered on Gao Kai's flushed face for a second, and a barely perceptible smile seemed to appear at the corners of her lips.

"Check your equipment and magazines, let's go."

She left a message and turned to walk towards the swamp.

Gao Kai and the soldiers of the first and fourth platoons immediately became serious as if they had received a royal decree, picked up their weapons, and quickly followed.

Their conversation, without any attempt to lower their voices, reached the ears of Bai Wei and Qiao Lin, who were being punished by doing some unskilled manual labor not far away.

"Clang!"

Qiao Lin slammed a heavy ammunition box onto the ground with a loud, piercing crash.

She looked up at the slender figure surrounded by Gao Kai, Zhuo Yue, Wang Xiaoya and others like a star, and heard the harsh words "surprise attack", "Teacher Su leading the team" and "decapitation" coming from her ears. The anger and jealousy in her chest almost burned her reason to ashes.

"Hmph, vixen." Qiao Lin bit her lip and spat under her breath. "Besides seducing men, what else can she do? It's one thing for that idiot Gao Kai to be completely infatuated with her, but now even Jiang Yan listens to her every word! Does she really think she's a savior? Leading a surprise attack? I think she's leading people to their deaths."

Bai Wei silently arranged another ammunition box neatly, her movements very light, but her lowered eyes churned with a gloom even more venomous than Qiao Lin's.

...