Fang Yang was taken aback. Was it a bit of an overreaction to invite the military region's leadership to dinner? "Uncle, isn't this inappropriate? I'm just a small entertainment company owner. How could I be qualified to dine at the same table with all these big shots from the military region?"
Zhou Lujun had his orderly pour tea for Fang Yang. "What are you thinking? This is a military region, not a government. There's no need for all this fuss. I'm just introducing my nephew to you. We're all colleagues, isn't it normal to have a meal together?"
Fang Yang sighed, realizing that this was the reason. This made sense. "Then let's do as Uncle says. I brought two cases of wine with me. I'll toast the leaders when the time comes."
Zhou Lujun laughed and said, "Xiao Fang really knows me, but one cup is not enough. In our army, only those who can drink can show their manly spirit and are more favored by the leaders. What kind of talk is it to be swayed and hesitant? So drink as much as you can, but don't try to hide it."
Fang Yang paused, realizing he'd gotten himself into trouble. He was now facing a group of people alone; he was going to be crawling under a table that night.
Seeing the bitter look on Fang Yang's face, Qi Minghua secretly wanted to laugh. "General Fang, the people in our army are all quite straightforward, especially at the dinner table. In different places, the requirement is that military orders are as solid as mountains. Over time, whether it's doing things or drinking, we are all straightforward. This is also a kind of protection for the soldiers."
Fang Yang blinked. "Let's drink. How did this turn into protecting the soldiers?"
"President Fang, let's take an example. Suppose one day we need to carry out a mission, and there are three groups of people who can do it. However, the three groups have different abilities. It would be a waste of their talents to send Group A. Group B would have no problem completing the mission, but it would be very dangerous for Group C. In this situation, if Group C insists on carrying out the mission, in civilian life, it might be because of personal relationships and not wanting to lose face. But in the military, it's different. Group B would be directly assigned. Compared to saving face, the safety of the soldiers is more important."
Fang Yang nodded, "What you said makes sense. Face is worthless in the face of life. So the best way is to directly reject Group C's request. Moreover, issuing a direct order will better motivate the unselected soldiers to train. If their level is not good enough, they should train more. Otherwise, they will still not be qualified next time."
Zhou Lujun chuckled and slapped Fang Yang on the back. "You're a true scholar. You understand right away. In our army, pretending to know what you don't can get you killed. That's why we need to be straightforward in the army. First, military orders are absolute, and second, pretending to be confused while carrying out a mission can easily lead to accidents. Xiao Qi is right. When you drink tonight, don't hold back. Just do your best, but make sure you're really good."
Fang Yang is no longer afraid. He's like Qin Yaojin with his three axes. He has to go head-to-head with the enemy at the beginning. If he's not good at drinking in the end, that's a matter of his own ability, not his personal character. He's not asking for a favor. At most, he'll just get drunk.
After chatting for a while, Qi Minghua took Fang Yang out. Zhou Lujun was busy with affairs and couldn't spend the whole afternoon chatting with Fang Yang. Fang Yang also took the opportunity to go back to the camp to check on everyone's food and lodging arrangements. He brought back two cases of wine, and Qi Minghua naturally took Fang Yang to visit the camp.
Qi Minghua parked his car in the front yard of a three-story building. "President Fang, this place was specially cleared out for you. Considering that there are both men and women here, male soldiers are arranged on the first floor and female soldiers on the second floor. Separating them makes it safer."
Fang Yang was surprised by Qi Minghua's thoughtfulness. "Director Qi, thank you so much. You've been very considerate."
Upon hearing Fang Yang's voice, Zhang Ze and the others who were chatting in the room came out to greet him. "President Fang, you've arrived. It's quite clean here, but the bed is too hard. I'm not used to it yet."
Fang Yang laughed and said, "Brother Zhang, this isn't home. You'll get used to it. Besides, people your age should sleep on a hard bed. It's good for your health."
Zhang Ze rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me you sleep on a hard bed."
"That's true. I've slept on a hard bed since I was a child. I really can't get used to sleeping on a soft bed. And when you go out to shoot on location, do you always have a soft bed to sleep on?"
Zhang Ze pursed his lips, "I was just saying it, and I didn't say I wouldn't sleep. Why are you making such a fuss? Besides, what do you mean by 'someone my age'? I'm not old yet!"
Qi Minghua laughed and said, "It's all my fault. I didn't consider your situation. But that's how it is in the army. Please bear with it. The army has prepared a welcome dinner tonight. I'll have someone take you there later. Starting tomorrow, you will begin basic training. Although it will only last for half a month, the intensity will be no different from that of a regular recruit. I hope you will abide by the army's discipline and be strict with yourselves."
Tan Xinlan, who had just run downstairs, exclaimed, "President Fang, no way, we're going to have to undergo formal military training?"
"Otherwise, do you think this is just a game? Let me tell you, you'll be trained the same way as new recruits. They train for three months, unlike you who only have half a month. That's a very short time, you know? Besides, the company has spent so much time and effort sending you to the military for training, not for you to play around, but to receive formal military training and master basic military skills. The company will conduct military training for a period of time every year. You're getting a head start on receiving formal training now, you're really making a huge profit!"
Tan Xinlan had never heard that being the first to receive military training was a good thing, or even a great deal. Thinking about the training period, during which she would be exposed to wind and rain in the wild every day, if Fang Yang wasn't the boss, she would really want to give him a good beating!
Qi Minghua chuckled and said, "The weather is fine now, neither too hot nor too cold, and the sun isn't too strong, so it won't irritate your skin too much. Look at our soldiers, aren't they all tanned dark by the sun? But let me make this clear from the start: since you're here to receive formal military training, you must listen to your instructors. Here, no matter what the instructors say, no arguments will be accepted. If you can't accept this, you can leave now."
At this point, Qi Minghua became serious. "In the military, orders are strictly enforced. No matter what your status was before you came here, once you enter the barracks, you only have one identity: a new recruit. And you have only one obligation to your superiors: obedience, absolute obedience!"
Fang Hai and the others were already used to all of this, and simply listened quietly from the outside. The others felt a little uncomfortable, but considering that they had already joined the film crew, this opportunity was very hard to come by. They could only endure it for half a month at most, and after that, they would have free rein to do as they pleased. Could they really train people to death?
Zhang Ze, the most prominent figure present, stepped forward and said with a smile, "Since we are already standing here, we must have been mentally prepared. Besides, this is just a military movie, so we should just treat it as a practice run. Obeying the instructor's orders is what we should do."
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