Chapter 65: Selection Criteria for the Artillery Reconnaissance Training Class

"Brothers, what's going on with us? Weren't we supposed to go to the Guard and Security Company? How did we end up back in the barracks?"

Inside the First Company's recruit dormitory—specifically, the former First Squad's room.

All five of Chu An's group were currently looking somewhat bewildered.

Especially one of them, who originally belonged to First Squad, was now utterly dumbfounded.

They had been promised assignment to their respective companies!

They had been assured that once they left this place, they would never return!

Yet look at them now.

The others had all left, but these few had been led right back to the recruit dormitory by that officer.

The crucial part was that he had just walked out of this exact same room carrying his duffel bag only a moment ago!

"Squad Leader Chu, do you know what's going on?" someone asked, looking at Chu An as he set down his gear.

"Heh, beats me!"

Chu An smiled and shook his head.

Although he already had an inkling, he preferred not to speak rashly until things were certain.

Even with his suspicions, however, Chu An felt a slight sense of speechlessness inside.

He had thought he was leaving the recruit training company at last, only to find out he had merely changed dormitories.

Of course, the moment he glanced at the soldier from the former First Squad, that speechless feeling instantly vanished.

At least he got a different room; this poor fellow probably only got a different bed, or perhaps didn't even need to change beds at all.

"Give you one minute to get inside and stow your gear!" a voice suddenly echoed from outside.

Shortly after, four recruits walked through the doorway.

Clearly, these four recruits were just as bewildered.

They were from the Second Company and had just been brought over!

Upon entering the room and seeing the five occupants inside, they froze for a moment before someone blurted out, "Hey, Ma Guoliang, why are you here?!"

"Hey, Chu An!"

As the four stepped inside, some greeted the others in the room while others called out to Chu An.

Right then, Chu An was stunned as well.

Among the four newcomers, two turned out to be old acquaintances from his hometown.

What was going on here?

Chu An was puzzled.

When the five of them had walked in earlier, Chu An learned from their brief chat that the other four were paired up as fellow townsmen.

And now, would you look at that.

Two more hometown acquaintances had arrived for him personally, and to top it off, the remaining two newcomers also matched up with the other groups.

Nine people, forming three pairs of fellow townsmen.

What was this supposed to be?

"Hurry up, what are you dawdling for?"

However, before Chu An and the others could exchange many words, a veteran appeared behind the four newcomers. He was about one meter seventy tall, with a lean build and a face even darker than Old Wang's.

Staring them down with a glare, he barked an order, and the newly arrived four hurriedly grabbed empty bunks to set down their luggage and rucksacks.

Chu An's group of five also stood at attention neatly beside their beds.

"Move out, fall in for formation!"

Without any nonsense, the veteran stood by the doorway, waiting until the four finished putting away their gear before giving the turning order.

For a moment, no matter how full of doubts the recruits were, none dared to ask any more questions.

Soon, Chu An and the others were standing in a single file line once again at the exact spot where the First Company had previously formed up for company assignments.

The officer who had led Chu An's group earlier stood facing them, while the veteran who had brought over the Second Company's four recruits stood right behind him.

"Must be wondering why you're still here, right?"

The officer looked to be around thirty years old, and he spoke with a smile.

Chu An remained silent, but someone couldn't hold back.

"Report, Chief! Weren't we supposed to go to the Guard and Security Company? Why have we been assigned back to the First Company's dormitory?"

This came from a soldier originally from the Second Company.

"Heh, it's very simple!" The officer chuckled. After sweeping his gaze across the nine of them, he offered an explanation: "Because you aren't going to the Guard and Security Company!"

"Ah?!"

"Report, Chief! Then where are we going?"

"That's right, Chief! Surely we aren't staying behind in the recruit company to keep training, are we?"

At this, everyone except Chu An lost their composure.

After three grueling months, they all believed they had performed quite well.

Although their squad leaders had mentioned previously that failing evaluations would result in staying behind for remedial training, nobody had actually seen anyone left behind today due to poor test results.

Furthermore, none of them had failed their evaluations.

"Silence! How did you spend your time in the recruit company? Is this what your discipline looks like?" Suddenly, the veteran standing behind the officer stepped forward and roared with a dark expression!

Instantly, the restless eight quieted down immediately.

After three months of training, certain habits had already been forged deep into their bones.

Yet while the veteran maintained his stern face, the officer remained mild-tempered.

He smiled and said, "That's right, you don't need to go to the Guard and Security Company anymore. However, that's because you've been selected to join the artillery reconnaissance study class!"

At this, he glanced at Chu An.

Of course, it was just a passing glance before he shifted his attention back to the other recruits who wore expressions of doubt or bewilderment.

They knew nothing about the artillery training class.

"Report!"

Someone couldn't help speaking up again.

"Speak!"

"Chief, what is an artillery reconnaissance study class?"

The officer smiled. "It's very simple. It means working hard to study and become a qualified artillery scout!"

At this, Chu An noticed out of the corner of his eye that the expressions of those around him became even more stunned.

They might not have immediately understood what the artillery reconnaissance study class was at first mention.

But they understood "artillery scout."

Scouts!

That was a renowned and prestigious title within the military. Long before enlisting, many people already knew how formidable army scouts were.

To think they had actually been selected for it.

Naturally, alongside the pleasant surprise, some felt a wave of doubt.

Most of them knew their own training scores weren't particularly outstanding.

They mostly hovered around the middle to upper tier of their squads, still lagging a bit behind the top-tier trainees.

Why was it them chosen instead of those top performers?

They couldn't help but wonder.

Right on cue, the officer in front of them spoke up. "Wondering why you were chosen?"

Without waiting for anyone to answer, he directly revealed the answer: "Actually, it's very simple. Artillery scouts are different from ordinary infantry scouts.

Artillery reconnaissance requires, first!"

He raised a single finger.

"First, artillery scouts need good math skills, especially trigonometry!"

Instantly, the other eight had an epiphany.

Because three nights ago, an unannounced theory evaluation had suddenly been added out of nowhere. What made this test different from usual was that several trigonometry calculation problems had been included.

After that test, it had sent all the academic slackers into a panic...

Yet afterward, the test seemed to have never happened—no scores were posted, and no action was taken against the recruits who didn't do well.

Everyone had been puzzled back then, but now they understood the root cause.

It was this study class selecting its candidates.

Seeing the expressions on their faces, the officer didn't elaborate further. Instead, he raised a second finger and said, "Second, artillery reconnaissance requires sharp wits. On this point, we consulted your squad leaders and company commanders!"

Hearing this, the recruits couldn't help straightening their backs slightly and lifting their chins just a fraction.

Sharp wits—wasn't that precisely describing them?

The officer smiled.

He raised a third finger. "Third, your native dialects need to be a bit complex and difficult to understand."

The moment he said those words, everyone present was struck dumbfounded once more, this time including Chu An.

What did that mean?

Even a soldier's hometown dialect mattered now?