Cen Huaian’s military training took place at a camp in the suburbs of the capital.

They were not allowed to bring any snacks, electronic devices, or other such items.

Having trained before in the northwest, Cen Huaian was well aware of the strictness of military training and the consequences of violating discipline.

As a result, he followed the handbook to the letter.

“Cen Huaian, you’re seriously not bringing any snacks?” one of his roommates asked.

“No, they’ll just confiscate them,” Cen Huaian replied.

His roommate was doubtful. “If I hide them well, they definitely won’t find them.”

Cen Huaian glanced at him, his expression unreadable.

“What does that mean?” his roommate asked.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” Cen Huaian said.

On the first day of training, the soldiers went through everyone’s belongings and confiscated all the snacks, including the ones hidden under blankets.

As soon as the inspection was over, Cen Huaian’s roommate wailed dramatically, “My life! That was my lifeline! How am I supposed to survive the next month without it?”

With tears in his eyes, he turned to Cen Huaian, “You knew this would happen, didn’t you?”

“I told you,” Cen Huaian said, “they’ll take it if you bring it.”

His roommate groaned in despair. “Will they give them back to us?”

Cen Huaian looked at him quietly, and his roommate immediately understood.

He groaned even louder.

The other roommates also had things confiscated—mostly snacks, but also beepers, cassette tapes, and extracurricular books.

They finally remembered Cen Huaian’s early warning: “It’s best not to bring prohibited items.”

None of them had listened.

Now they were paying the price.

They weren’t sure if they’d get their stuff back after the training ended.

“They’ll return the beepers,” Cen Huaian said, “but I can’t guarantee the rest.” Beepers were valuable, and the military wouldn’t keep those, but if the cassette tapes or books had inappropriate content, it was uncertain if they’d be returned.

A lot of the students breathed a sigh of relief.

Their main concern had been the beepers.

If their families found out that their things had been confiscated by the military, there’d be trouble.

Confiscating prohibited items was just the first show of authority.

The real challenge came with the training itself.

Most of the students were in decent physical shape, so apart from a few weaker individuals, everyone was able to endure the tough training.

In Cen Huaian’s unit, he stood out as the best trainee.

Like a model recruit, his actions were flawless, and even the instructor couldn’t find any faults in his movements.

He showed great endurance too.

“Ten-minute break,” the instructor announced.

Cen Huaian relaxed from his standing posture, walked to a tree, and took out his water bottle, sipping the tea prepared by Chuxia to help him stay cool.

“Cen Huaian,” the instructor called.

“Yes, sir,” Cen Huaian replied calmly, showing no signs of tension as he drank his tea.

“Do you have family in the military?”

Cen Huaian nodded. “Yes,” he replied without elaborating.

Both his grandparents had served, and his father was currently in the military, though as a researcher.

The instructor gave him a knowing look. “No wonder your movements are so precise.”

Cen Huaian responded with a simple “I’ve trained before.”

Not only had he learned the drills, but he’d also trained with actual soldiers.

The instructor called him to the front to demonstrate.

Whenever he couldn’t personally correct all the students’ mistakes, he had Cen Huaian assist.

Soon, Cen Huaian became the leader of the platoon, responsible for ensuring everyone performed their movements correctly during training.

“I can’t do it,” Cen Huaian protested to the instructor.

“You can,” the instructor said, patting his shoulder. “This will develop your skills. You’re a soldier now—follow orders and obey commands.”

Cen Huaian had no choice but to accept.

Surprisingly, the other students were very supportive of him in this role, with some even asking if he would give them extra training, which they were willing to cooperate with.

Cen Huaian didn’t understand why they were so eager for more training.

After a day of tough drills, they should have been exhausted.

His roommate overheard his confusion and laughed. “It seems you’re really not paying attention to the rumors going around.”

Cen Huaian frowned. “What rumors?”

His roommate grinned, “That you can break steel bars with your bare hands.”

Cen Huaian was stunned.

He never imagined such an outrageous story about him would spread.

“I’ve never broken a steel bar,” he said.

His roommate urged him to think back. “Have you ever saved someone near our school?”

Cen Huaian suddenly remembered.

He hadn’t given it much thought at the time.

One day, after a class meeting, he had gone out to buy something when he noticed a middle-aged man following a girl.

The girl was terrified, so Cen Huaian stepped in to protect her.

The man tried to attack, even attempting to grab the girl, but Cen Huaian kicked him away and sent him to the police.

The man struggled on the way, so in frustration, Cen Huaian grabbed a steel bar lying by the roadside, snapped it in half, and warned, “This is what will happen to you if you act out. Behave.”

At the police station, the man remained docile and confessed everything when questioned, admitting to stalking multiple girls, stealing their belongings, and even engaging in inappropriate behavior.

The authorities detained him for indecent conduct, and given the ongoing crackdown on crime, his fate was likely severe.

He was terrified, repeatedly asking the police if he would be executed.

“We can’t decide that,” they replied.

After returning the girl to school, Cen Huaian had forgotten all about the incident.

But hearing his roommate’s account, he realized that the girl had exaggerated the story, painting him as an invincible hero who protected the weak.

With his righteous actions and undeniable strength on display during training, it seemed everyone believed in his abilities.

The girls especially admired him.

There were many rumors about Cen Huai’an, and he couldn’t correct them one by one.

Besides, they weren’t bad rumors.

People would forget them once new topics came up, so Cen Huai’an didn’t care much.

In fact, these rumors made it easier for him to manage his class, so he had no intention of correcting them.

One part of their military training was learning how to shoot, which was introduced in the first week.

This excited many students who were eagerly looking forward to it.

Cen Huai’an’s roommates even counted down the days until they would learn how to shoot, and they loudly discussed it in the dormitory.

Only Cen Huai’an sat on his bed reading, not joining the conversation.

He had shot before and had handled guns, so he didn’t share the same level of curiosity and excitement as his roommates.

But to say he wasn’t happy at all wouldn’t be true—after all, it had been a long time since he last held a gun, so he was looking forward to it too.

On the day they learned how to shoot, even the girls couldn’t hide their excitement.

The instructor was accompanied by two soldiers, each holding a gun.

The instructor first taught them how to hold the gun properly, stressing that their posture had to be correct.

Then, he used the two soldiers to demonstrate how to operate the safety switch.

Everyone had a chance to practice aiming at a target lying on the ground.

They had to hit the target for it to count as a success.

Each group of ten students got three bullets, and once they finished, the next group would take their turn.

At first, the students were all over the place—some missed the target, while others struggled with the gun’s recoil and couldn’t hold it steady.

Still, everyone had fun and rubbed their sore shoulders, eager for another try.

Some even regretted not performing better, thinking they would do much better if given another chance.

When it was Cen Huai’an’s turn, his posture was noticeably different from the others—more skilled and confident.

The instructor, who had been watching him closely, seemed to have a hint of expectation in his eyes.

Cen Huai’an got down on the ground with his gun, his movements perfectly standard.

The instructor was even more impressed with him.

“Ready?” the instructor asked.

“Ready!” the ten students shouted in unison.

“Start!” the instructor ordered.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound of gunfire echoed.

While most students’ bodies shifted with each shot, needing help from nearby soldiers to adjust, Cen Huai’an stayed steady.

He fired all three shots without his body or the gun moving out of place.

“9.0, 9.4, 10!” the scores were called out.

The instructor was shocked.

Some of their best soldiers had better scores, but Cen Huai’an wasn’t far off.

The other students looked at him with admiration, thinking, “He’s amazing!”

Cen Huai’an, however, showed no expression.

He hadn’t practiced in a long time and thought he could have done better if he hadn’t been rusty.

His martial arts training had helped him with his shooting skills as well.

Cen Huai’an’s outstanding performance caught everyone’s attention.

The instructor couldn’t help but ask him privately, “Have you ever thought about becoming a soldier?”

Without hesitation, Cen Huai’an shook his head. “No.”

The instructor felt it was a pity.

Especially during the final drills, when Cen Huai’an demonstrated great leadership skills, ensuring no one was left behind and leading his entire squad to win first place.

The instructor regretted it even more.