Chapter 374 Do Push-ups Obediently "Every word I said is true!" Bai Wei was almost crying. She rushed forward desperately, trying to grab Qin Ye's sleeve for protection. "Instructor, you must believe me! I..."
Her words came to an abrupt end.
Qin Ye sidestepped Bai Wei's hand, his gaze as tangible as a wall of invisible force, instantly pinning her to the spot.
Bai Wei shuddered in fright, her outstretched hand froze in mid-air, and the words she was about to say were stuck in her throat.
Qin Ye's gaze fell coldly on her.
"You mean, my eyes, and Instructor Lei's eyes, are both blind?"
His voice was calm, but it made Bai Wei's heart sink. She could feel the gazes from the surrounding students no longer simply watching the show, but mixed with a hint of suspicion.
She instinctively wanted to retort, but her throat felt like it was blocked by something, and she couldn't make a sound.
What do you mean? How could she have fallen on her own!
Qin Ye continued:
“We all saw what just happened. After you climbed to the top of the wall, instead of immediately vaulting over, you turned back to provoke the students behind you. Because of this distraction, your arm strength weakened, your core became unstable, and you ultimately lost your grip and fell.”
He paused, "Throughout the entire process, your movements were distorted, and you made one mistake after another. As a soldier, instead of feeling ashamed of your mistakes, you refused to admit them, shirked responsibility, and even disobeyed the instructor's orders. Bai Wei, do you think this is your home?"
A suppressed chuckle rose from the crowd. Someone muttered, "What's she looking back for? Is she worried she's not pretty enough and wants the people behind her to see?"
"That's right, she just climbed up and turned back, who would have thought she would fall down herself?"
"Now look what you've done, trying to blame others? You've got no shame!"
Bai Wei's face turned bright red, from her neck all the way to her ears.
She could feel the harsh comments pricking her like needles. She wanted to retort, but didn't know where to begin.
Qin Ye's words were like a dull knife, grinding all her sophistry to dust.
"I...I..." Bai Wei stammered, knowing that once she admitted it, she would have lost completely. She suddenly raised her head, her gaze turning desperately to Instructor Zhang Ruobing, who was in charge of taking notes.
"Reporting, Instructor Zhang!" She cried out as if grasping at a straw, "Just now... just now someone deliberately tripped me! Right behind the wall! She... she... it must be Su An, she was the only one behind me just now!" Bai Wei's gaze flickered toward Su An.
She knew that only Su An, that "young girl," could do such a thing; she had just been following behind her.
Zhang Ruobing frowned, looking at Bai Wei's disheveled appearance, then at Su An, who was almost swallowed up by the crowd in the distance. She knew that Bai Wei was the kind of student who liked to cause trouble, and now that she had fallen, she was probably trying to find a scapegoat. But now that Qin Ye had spoken, she couldn't directly refute him.
“Comrade Bai Wei,” Zhang Ruobing said in a businesslike tone, “on the training field, everything is based on the actual results. Instructor Qin’s words are the final decision. If you made a mistake, it’s because you are not skilled enough, and you can’t blame anyone else.”
"Instructor...I..." Bai Wei still wanted to argue.
But Qin Ye's voice rang out again, this time with a hint of impatience, "Comrade Bai Wei, military orders are absolute. My word is final. If you still have objections, you can write to the command headquarters after training to appeal to Deputy Minister Zheng."
Qin Ye's implication couldn't be clearer. Go find Vice Minister Zheng? Wouldn't that just make things worse?
Bai Wei instantly dismissed the idea of complaining. She looked at Qin Ye's face, which seemed to be covered by an icy demeanor, then glanced at the students around her who were watching the show, and finally, her gaze fell on Su An, who was not far away and still looked calm, as if nothing had happened.
A complex mix of humiliation, anger, and resentment erupted in her chest like a volcano.
But there was nothing she could do.
In the latter half of the obstacle course, Bai Wei became the laughingstock of everyone.
Covered in mud, she gritted her teeth and did twenty push-ups under Instructor Zhang's personal supervision.
By the time she caught up with the main group, she was already panting heavily and exhausted, falling to the very back of the line.
Whenever she ran past a group of people, they would instinctively scatter as if avoiding a plague, while making rude comments.
"Stay away from her, or she'll blame us for tripping her if she falls..."
Bai Wei was furious at these harsh comments, but she was helpless and could only vent all her resentment on Su Tang.
Su Tang maintained her own pace throughout, neither too fast nor too slow, and remained in the upper-middle range of the team.
She allocated her energy in an extremely scientific way. After running the entire five-kilometer course, although she was tired, she was far from reaching her limit and even had the energy to observe others.
Gao Kai immediately followed like a loyal guard, asking in a low voice as he ran, "Comrade Su An, are you alright? Don't let that kind of person affect your mood."
Su Tang shook her head.
She was in a very good mood.
...
The obstacle course ended at 10:00 AM.
After a brief ten-minute break, the second training exercise—mud pit combat—officially began.
In the center of the training field was a giant mud pit, ten times larger than the previous one.
Qin Ye stood at the edge of the mud pit, holding a stack of red cloth strips in his hand, and loudly announced the rules: "The rules are very simple. Two people per group, free pairing."
"Once you enter the mud, what you need to do is try your best to protect the strips of cloth on your own heads, and at the same time, snatch the strips of cloth from the heads of the other side. If you snatch the strips of cloth, or beat the other side until they beg for mercy and admit defeat, that counts as a victory. Any questions?"
"No!" the trainees answered listlessly.
"Speak louder! Haven't you eaten?!" Lei Kuan roared.
"No!" This time, the voice was much louder.
"Very good! Now, form your own groups! You have one minute!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the trainees immediately began looking for their teammates.
Male soldiers mostly seek out brothers of similar strength, while female soldiers subconsciously gather together.
"Sister Su An, we're in the same group!" Chen Xiaocao ran to Su Tang's side without hesitation. After the last mountain assessment, she had an almost blind trust in Su Tang.
Su Tang glanced at Chen Xiaocao, but before she could speak, Bai Wei also found her teammates on the other side.
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