Chapter 194: Chapter 191: Three Years, Pinky Swear (2)

“Captain Ling, take a look at this. Can it be used?” Da Liu from the first squad called out with a smile.

Ling Chengyan didn’t stand on ceremony. She took it over, directly cut two slingshot rubber bands, tried them with her hand, thought for a moment, and then gave one to the little Wang Wenzhang to try.

Wang Wenzhang saw his mother pulling two bands effortlessly. Carelessly pulling one band with all his might, he didn’t manage to stretch it much, and then one hand slipped, and the band snapped back, hitting his other hand—ouch, it hurt!

With a loud wail, he cried.

Ling Chengyan found it amusing but also felt sorry, quickly took the band, lifted his little hand to check, and saw a red mark on the chubby white little paw. Fortunately, because he didn’t pull it much, the strength of the band’s recoil was small, and the back of the little paw was only reddened, not swollen.

Ling Chengyan blew on his little paw and said casually, “Blow it, it’s all better, doesn’t hurt anymore.”

After that, she looked at the finger-width band in hand, gave up on it, and cut two half-finger-width bands. She also found a piece of old leather and cut a small piece to make the slingshot pouch, the part to hold the projectile.

With the materials all prepared, little Wang Wenzhang stopped crying.

“Let’s go home and put it together,” Ling Chengyan waved her hand, and little Wang Wenzhang perked up, forgot the pain in his hand, and vigorously waved his small paw, “Let’s go, let’s go home to make the slingshot!”

The veterans from the Automobile Company watched the big and small pairs and couldn’t help but laugh.

Da Liu came up and patted little Shi Tou’s head, laughing, “Captain Ling is a famous sharpshooter, you little one, better train well and not tarnish your mother’s reputation.”

Little Shi Tou was not to be outdone, stuck out his little chest, and said, “I’ll be better than my mom.”

Everyone laughed, and someone said, “We’ll remember your words for you, don’t say things you won’t keep.”

Da Liu mischievously asked, “How many years do you plan to train to surpass your mom?”

Little Shi Tou stretched out his small hand and counted one, two, three, four, five several times, then pressed down his pinky and thumb, held up his little paw, and loudly said, “One, two, three, three years!”

Three years seemed a lot; he had grown for several years and was not yet four. So, he was convinced that by training for three years, he could definitely surpass his mother.

A group of people watched the boisterous little fellow with amusement, all saying they’d remember his words, and Da Liu extended his hand to pinky promise with little Shi Tou.

Little Shi Tou didn’t feel intimidated, proudly pinky promised with his chubby little finger. Then, feeling as if he had accomplished some significant task, he held his mom’s hand and walked home with head held high, not to train, but to make slingshots.

Casual words were taken to heart, and little Wang Wenzhang didn’t know that his bold words were taken to heart by Ling Chengyan, who silently made a training plan for him, seeing that the boy, strong like a young calf, had grown considerably over three years.

Whether the Ling Family or other families with traditions, children start martial training even earlier than academics, some even conditioned while still in the womb. Once born, they undergo herbal baths to toughen tendons and bones, laying the groundwork.

The Ling Family’s traditional skills were for the battlefield, following a path of fierce and vigorous martial prowess. There was no need to start too early; children with strong physiques were chosen for foundational training starting from two or three years old, and by four or five, they began to learn archery and horseback riding…

Little Shi Tou, seeing that he was almost four, was not too early to start learning.

The mother and son returned home to find Wang Liansheng had already prepared the meal. After dinner, when Wang Liansheng saw Ling Chengyan had taken over making the slingshot, he simply left it to her and went to supervise the children’s homework while reading.

Wang Liansheng was recently teaching himself English. This idea surfaced after meeting Old Master Lian and especially Jenny. Jenny spoke fluent Chinese, but when talking to the accompanying staff, they sometimes used foreign languages or mixed in foreign words. There was no interpreter arranged, and no one understood.

Facing someone without understanding what they said felt really uncomfortable.

Even a few senior cadres grumbled quietly more than once, saying when they heard those people babbling foreign languages, it always felt like they were plotting some kind of scheme.

Wang Liansheng saw further ahead. The country had explicitly stated that economic development would be the primary task moving forward. Old Master Lian’s return made Wang Liansheng realize that the country was poor and urgently needed economic growth, inevitably inviting more and more overseas Chinese and even foreigners to invest and build domestically. Contacting overseas Chinese who might speak Chinese was probable, but what about completely foreign devils? They certainly wouldn’t cooperate by speaking Chinese.

To communicate with them, learning their language was the fundamental prerequisite.

At night, once the children were asleep, Ling Chengyan finished washing her feet, and Wang Liansheng took the water outside to dispose of it, then returned to bed.

Upon entering, he saw his wife holding a middle school English book he had been reading. Wang Liansheng was momentarily stunned, then laughed, “Do you want to learn too?”

Ling Chengyan nodded and then shook her head, saying, “This is English. Do you have a book to learn Vietnamese?”

“Vietnamese?” Wang Liansheng was surprised.

Ling Chengyan leaned against the headboard, her gaze unfocused, and said softly, “Yes, if I can learn Vietnamese, it would be quite convenient on the battlefield.”

When she was deployed, she had seen people from Vietnam. Their features were similar to nationals, and if she could speak fluent Vietnamese, it could potentially be useful on missions… for reconnaissance, infiltration…

Wang Liansheng’s heart pounded wildly; he involuntarily grasped his wife’s hand, his voice low as he asked, “Are you going to…”

Ling Chengyan snapped back to reality, turning her gaze back to the person beside her. After a silent moment, she laughed gently, “No, don’t scare yourself.”

To be deployed, one needed to receive orders, after all. It’s not like anyone could just go up there!

Such a minor country was not worth such trouble, was it?!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep