First real combat confrontation
When Lu Chen woke up again, he was already lying on a hospital bed in the infirmary. His right leg was elevated, and he felt a cool sensation at his knee, which meant that medicine had been applied.
He tried to move and sit up, but found that his whole body ached as if it had been taken apart and put back together.
"Don't move." A familiar female voice came.
Lu Chen turned his head and saw the military doctor in a white coat. She was a very gentle woman surnamed Li.
"Dr. Li," he said, his throat parched.
"Awake?" Dr. Li handed over a glass of water. "Drink some water first. You're a little dehydrated."
Lu Chen took the water glass and drank it all in one gulp.
How long did I sleep?
"It's been from a little after six in the morning until now, almost noon," Dr. Li said while examining his leg. "Your father is really heartless. This knee injury is a recurrence of an old one. If it gets any worse, the ligaments will tear. At that point, forget about joining the army, you won't even be able to walk properly."
Lu Chen's heart tightened: "Is it that serious?"
"This time it was alright, it was dealt with in time. But he needs to rest and can't do high-intensity training for at least a week." Dr. Li wrote out a prescription. "I've already spoken to your instructor, Mr. Lu, and he agreed."
A week?
Lu Chen frowned. This was a crucial period for recruit training; missing even a day would leave them behind, let alone a week.
"Dr. Li, could you..."
"No," Dr. Li interrupted him. "This is an order. If you do anything wrong again, I'll report it directly to the college leadership and say that Instructor Lu is abusing new recruits, and that he's even abusing his own son."
Lu Chen was speechless.
Just then, the ward door was pushed open, and Wang Lei peeked in.
"Brother Chen, you're awake?" He saw that Lu Chen was awake and immediately ran over, carrying a lunchbox in his hand.
"Why are you here? Isn't it training time now?"
"It's lunch break." Wang Lei placed the lunchbox on the bedside table. "I got you some food. You didn't eat this morning, you must be starving."
Lu Chen felt a warmth in his heart as he looked at the lunchbox full of food.
Thanks.
"Don't mention it." Wang Lei scratched his head. "I heard this morning that you were given extra training by Instructor Lu and even got injured. He... is too ruthless, isn't he? You're his own son."
Lu Chen smiled and said, "He was my instructor in the military."
“That’s true, but this also…” Wang Lei wanted to say something, but then swallowed his words back. “Never mind, you eat first. By the way, there’s the first live-fire exercise this afternoon, and our dorm has been assigned to a group. Given your situation, you definitely won’t be able to participate.”
"Real combat?" Lu Chen's eyes lit up.
"Yeah, we're split into red and blue teams for a simulated attack and defense exercise on the back hill. I heard the results of this exercise will directly affect our new recruits' assignments to their units," Wang Lei said excitedly. "Our blue team is responsible for defending the high ground. Qin Feng is the captain of the red team, in charge of the attack. I heard he's boasting that he'll take us down in three hours."
Qin Feng, another outstanding recruit, is extremely capable, but he is arrogant and always prefers to fight alone.
Lu Chen frowned.
Defensive battles are the ultimate test of teamwork and tactical planning. These greenhorns have no combat experience whatsoever, and they'll likely be at a disadvantage against Qin Feng, who excels individually.
"Who is our captain?" Lu Chen asked.
"It's not decided yet. Everyone wanted to push you, but now..." Wang Lei sighed.
Lu Chen fell silent. He lay on the bed, but his mind began to race, and the topographical map of the back mountain gradually became clearer in his mind.
Although he can't go physically, his mind is still functioning.
“Wang Lei,” Lu Chen suddenly spoke.
"Huh? What's wrong, Brother Chen?"
“Go back to your dorm now and call the rest of us here.” Lu Chen’s eyes sharpened. “I have something to say.”
Wang Lei was stunned for a moment, then looked at Lu Chen's unquestionable gaze and instinctively stood at attention: "Yes, sir!"
Ten minutes later, the other four new recruits in the dormitory gathered around Lu Chen's bedside.
"Brother Chen, you were looking for us?"
"Hmm." Lu Chen propped himself up and sat up, picking up a piece of paper and a pen from the side. "In this afternoon's scrimmage, our Blue Team is on the defensive, right?"
"right."
“You are all familiar with the terrain of the back mountain. Our defensive point is on Hill 3.” Lu Chen quickly drew a simple topographical map of the hill on the paper. “Hill 3 is easy to defend and difficult to attack. There are only two routes to get up there. One is the main road in front, which is wide but exposed. The other is the cliff path on the west side, which is steep but hidden.”
As he spoke, he marked the figures on the map.
"Qin Feng is an arrogant person who likes to win by surprise. He definitely won't take the main road and launch a direct attack. There's a 90% chance he'll choose to launch a sneak attack from the western cliff."
A new recruit asked, "Then let's ambush them on the west side and catch them off guard?"
“No.” Lu Chen shook his head. “It’s too obvious. Qin Feng isn’t stupid; he’ll realize that we can think of this too. So, he’ll use a feint.”
Lu Chen drew a circle on the map with his pen: "He will send a small group to launch a feint attack from the main road to attract most of our attention, and then he will personally lead the main force to quickly advance from the western cliff."
"Then what should we do?" Wang Lei asked anxiously.
"Let's turn the tables on him." Lu Chen's lips curled into a smile just like his father's. "We'll divide our defensive forces into three parts."
He pointed to the main road on the map: "The first part, two people, set up defenses right in front of the main road, but don't fight too fiercely. Show the enemy weakness and let them think that our defensive focus is not here."
He then pointed to the cliff to the west: "The second group consists of three people, who will ambush from the top of the cliff. They will launch a surprise attack when Qin Feng's main force has climbed halfway up. Remember, do not linger in battle; attack once and then retreat immediately."
"What about the rest of us?"
“The rest of you, including those in our dorm, follow me down the third route.” Lu Chen drew a dotted line on the east side of the map with his pen.
"A third way?" Wang Lei and the others were stunned. "Brother Chen, there's a primeval jungle to the east; there's no road at all!"
“If there’s no road, we’ll make one.” Lu Chen’s eyes gleamed. “Qin Feng thinks his cliff-climbing is a clever tactic, so let’s be even more unconventional. We’ll all go around from the eastern jungle and abandon the high ground.”
"No more defense?" Everyone was shocked. "Then aren't we going to lose outright?"
"Who says defense means staying put?" Lu Chen retorted. "The best defense is offense. Let's abandon the high ground, circle around to the Red Team's rear, and take out their command post!"
The entire ward fell silent instantly.
Everyone was stunned by Lu Chen's audacious, almost insane plan.
Abandon the position and launch a surprise attack on the enemy's main camp?
This...this is simply unbelievable!
"Brother Chen, this is too risky!" Wang Lei was the first to react. "None of us have been through the jungle on the east side, and we don't know anything about what's inside. Besides, we don't even know where the Red Team's command post is!"
“I know,” Lu Chen said confidently. “According to the exercise rules, the attacking side’s command post must be located in a safe area three kilometers away from the target. The only place in the back mountain that meets this condition is that abandoned quarry to the south.”
Looking at the stunned crowd, he said, word by word, "Fortune favors the bold. We are new recruits, and it's not shameful to lose. But if we can win, we can win spectacularly."
"Do you guys dare to make a bet with me?"
Lu Chen's gaze swept over everyone.
In the ward, only his steady breathing could be heard.
After a long pause, Wang Lei gritted his teeth and nodded firmly: "Let's do it! Brother Chen, we'll all listen to you!"
"Yes, let's do it!" The others echoed.
Looking at the trusting eyes of his comrades, Lu Chen smiled.
He picked up a pen and quickly laid out the tasks on the paper, clearly outlining every detail and every step.
"Remember, act quickly and discreetly. We only have one chance."
After arranging everything, Lu Chen leaned back on the bed and let out a long sigh of relief.
The injury on his leg was still throbbing, but a fire was burning in his heart.
The battlefield—this was the battlefield he longed for.
Even now, lying in his hospital bed, he is still strategizing and planning.
Meanwhile, in the command center on the other side, Lu Zhanting and several other instructors were sitting in front of the monitoring screen.
One of the instructors pointed at the screen and laughed, "Old Lu, your son won't be able to show off now. I heard that Qin Feng said he'll finish the battle in three hours."
Lu Zhanting held his teacup, staring blankly at the screen without saying a word.
Another instructor said, "Qin Feng is indeed a promising talent. He has outstanding individual abilities and flexible tactical thinking. Without Lu Chen, the Blue Team is really in trouble this time."
"That's not necessarily true," Lu Zhanting suddenly said calmly.
"Oh?" Several instructors looked at him curiously.
Lu Zhanting's gaze fell on a corner of the screen, where Wang Lei was leading several Blue Team members, quietly leaving the main position and disappearing into the jungle on the east side.
The corners of his mouth turned up almost imperceptibly.
“My son is not the kind of person who would obediently lie in a hospital bed and admit defeat.”
The exercise has officially begun.
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