Chapter 28: The Price of Wasting Food!

The First and Second Companies of recruits soon regrouped. Unusually, however, once they gathered, the officers of both companies acted as if the other did not exist. There was no silence, no competitiveness, and no internal friction; they simply led everyone forward. Within minutes, the two companies were marched back to the entrance of the mess hall.

There, Chu An and the others saw the battalion commander and the instructor standing before the mess hall doors with dark, stern expressions.

"Did someone cause trouble during dinner?" Chu An wondered inwardly. Having just finished eating and returned to their quarters, only to be brought back like this—and with the company commanders, battalion commander, and other officers all looking so grim—it was not hard to guess that something had gone wrong during the meal. But while the cause was clear, he couldn't guess who had committed the offense or what exactly had happened.

Just then, the instructor, who had been maintaining a stony silence, stepped forward and shouted, "During dinner this evening, an incident occurred in our battalion that has caused me profound grief!"

He scanned the crowd. Beside him, the battalion commander turned back and muttered, "Bring it out!"

Immediately, four veteran soldiers from the kitchen squad emerged from the mess hall, carrying two swill barrels.

"Bring them before them and show them!" the battalion commander ordered. The veterans carried the barrels down the steps and stopped in front of the assembled companies, tilting the containers forward.

Chu An was in the fourth row of the First Company, but as soon as the barrels were tilted, he saw it clearly. The swill barrels were filled with leftover rice and potatoes.

At that moment, Chu An’s heart went cold. He didn't need to be a pig to know what happened when pigs ran. Waste of food in the military—he had seen in dramas and short videos before his rebirth exactly what the consequences of such behavior were.

"It's over!" Chu An thought, a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Open your eyes and look clearly at the good deed you've done! Don't you know how many people outside struggle to guarantee three meals a day, or even have to ration their two daily meals?" The instructor roared like a furious tiger.

After a brief pause, as if to compose himself, he stared at them again. "As your instructor, I admit it is my dereliction of duty. I failed to teach you to cherish food, so..."

He walked down the steps and stood directly before the swill barrels held by the veterans. To the utter shock of all the recruits, he rolled up his sleeves and reached his hand right into the barrel. He pulled out a handful of rice and potatoes that had turned yellow. He looked at the crowd for a second, then lowered his head and opened his mouth.

"Ah... this..." The recruits were stunned. But before their shock could even register, the battalion commander walked down as well.

"A single bowl of porridge or a grain of rice is not easily come by. Comrades, today I am teaching you a lesson, and I hope this is the last lesson regarding food you will ever need!" After speaking, the battalion commander also reached into the swill barrel.

Following them, the two company commanders, the instructors, and the deputy company commanders all walked to the barrels in front of their respective companies. No one spoke; they reached in one by one and shoved a handful into their mouths. Then, it was the turn of the squad leaders. They stepped forward in unison.

The scene left the recruits of both companies completely dazed.

"This..." "How can we eat this?" Whispers of disbelief and suppressed murmurs rippled through the ranks. He Weimin, standing next to Chu An, turned his head and whispered, "We aren't going to have to eat this too, are we?"

Chu An rolled his eyes. He didn't want to answer; he just wanted to curse whoever the bastards were who had dumped their food. If you couldn't finish it, couldn't you have taken less? Why take so much if you didn't have the capacity to eat it? Now, everything was ruined.

Did they have to eat it? That was a rhetorical question. With the instructor and battalion commander leading the way, and every officer and squad leader having eaten, how could they possibly escape it?

Sure enough, once the squad leaders had finished their handfuls and the company commanders had quickly consumed theirs, Tong Lianzhong looked at the troops.

"What are you standing there for? First Squad, you’re up first. One handful each. This barrel must be finished today!"

Instantly, the faces of all the recruits contorted. The men of the First Squad stood as if their feet had taken root. Their squad leader glared at them and roared, "What are you waiting for? Didn't you hear the company commander?"

Only then did the soldiers of the First Squad shuffle forward. "First one, reach in and grab a handful!" "Second one..."

By the third soldier, the recruit hesitated, refusing to reach in.

"What are you stalling for?" the squad leader, who had already finished his share, roared at the sight of the recruit hesitating.

"Report, I... I can't eat this. And... I finished my food, I didn't dump anything, I don't want to eat this!" The recruit mustered the courage to object. He truly couldn't bring himself to do it. After the officers and squad leaders had dug in, the solid food was mostly gone, leaving behind a yellowed mixture of broth, scraps, and even bits of bone. He couldn't force his hand into it.

The squad leader stepped closer, face-to-face with him. "Is this a matter of whether you want to or not? Reach in and grab it, or I swear I will feed it to you myself!"

Chu An saw the squad leader's spit landing on the recruit's face.

"I..." The recruit wanted to say more, but the squad leader had already acted, scooping a handful of soggy scraps from the barrel.

"Open your mouth!" The squad leader’s expression was deadly serious. "I’m telling you, even if you decide to desert today, you’re eating this mouthful before you run!"

"I... I'm not a deserter!" The recruit stepped back as the squad leader thrust the dripping mess toward his face.

"If you aren't a deserter, then eat it!" the squad leader roared. "I'll count to three. If you don't eat, I’ll feed it to you myself, and once you're done, you can pack your bags and get out! I don't want a soldier like you!"

"I..." The recruit was torn, but the squad leader didn't hesitate.

"One!"

"Two!" By the count of two, the squad leader's face was visibly distorted with rage.

At that moment, the recruit finally broke. He closed his eyes, lowered his head, and opened his mouth to eat the food the squad leader had forced upon him.

"Hmph!" Seeing the recruit start to eat, the squad leader's fury eased slightly, though not by much. He turned to the rest of the First Squad: "What are you waiting for?"

At that moment, the sight made the hearts of all the remaining recruits sink to the bottom of their stomachs. Chu An’s face was bitter; he was already bracing himself for his turn. There was no running away. He could only hope that the people in front would eat enough to empty the barrel—though he knew that was impossible. The instructor and the others had already anticipated this and had added more to the barrels after the soldiers left the mess hall, fearing there wouldn't be enough to go around.

"Second Squad, come forward!"

"Third Squad..."

One by one, as recruits finished, some tried to gag, only to be silenced by their squad leaders, who warned them that if they vomited once, they would be forced to eat three times as much. It was helpless, and it was infuriating, but there was no other way.

Finally, it was the Fourth Squad's turn. As the lead soldier of the Fourth Squad, Chu An was the first to step up. He glanced at the barrel, then closed his eyes and turned his head away. It was too much to bear.