Chapter 28: Chapter 28: The Trump Card, First Round Elimination

Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The Zhang brothers have been militia members for over three years. They regularly patrol in the village with rifles, hunting wild chickens and rabbits. With enough practice, their marksmanship is indeed decent. They might not hit the bullseye every time, but they are confident in hitting the eighth ring on a static target.

“Pah, a bunch of old-timers bragging about their skills. If it were me, I’d be embarrassed to make a sound if I didn’t hit five tens.” As soon as Li Qingqun said this, Ling Chengyan almost burst into laughter.

She raised her hand and gave the cocky young lad a playful slap, teasingly scolding him, “Veterans have rich experience worth our humble learning. Don’t judge the whole sack of grains just because you spot one bad apple.”

Li Qingqun realized that his words were too broad, affecting everyone. He quickly clasped his hands together, asking for forgiveness from the surrounding veterans, “I wasn’t talking about you guys, just can’t stand those few…”

An old militiaman behind him kicked him, making him stagger, then laughed, cursing, “You little monkey, behave yourself. Watch how others shoot, speak through your results, that’s talent, not just lip service.”

Li Qingqun grinned, dusted off his pants, and focused intently on the training field. The Zhang brothers from Longsheng Village began shooting. After the first shot, among the five from Longsheng Village, the best the Zhang brothers managed was five rings, with two others hitting the target twice, one missing completely, and Liu Wenjie managed a respectable seven rings.

With sharp eyes, Ling Chengyan noticed where the shots landed and smirked subtly. Her preparations two days ago paid off.

After five shots, the scores were announced, and the Zhang brothers from Longsheng Village were dumbfounded. Among the four brothers, Zhang Qinghuai had the best score with only twenty-two rings, while Zhang Qingbiao had the worst with just nine rings!

However, Liu Wenjie did fairly well with thirty-two rings.

Li Qingqun directly jeered, “Forty-two rings is nothing. Turns out they can hit nine rings! So impressive!”

Zhang Qingbiao, humiliated and furious, charged at Li Qingqun with red eyes. There were too many witnesses; no one would let him succeed, and someone immediately stepped forward to restrain him.

The second company commander also found his soldiers embarrassing. Not only did they lose to a female soldier from the first company, but they couldn’t take the loss gracefully, which was even more disgraceful!

“Zhang Qingbiao, if you continue to stir up trouble, just pack your bags and get out!”

Scolded harshly by the commander, the group from Longsheng Village finally calmed down, swallowed their anger, and returned to their ranks.

After the ninth squad finished, it was time for the first squad’s second round of training.

Zhang Qinghu glanced at Ling Chengyan and Li Qingqun, “It’s only the first round; we’re not familiar with the guns yet. Let’s determine positions in the second round.”

“You guys have already shot nine rings; are you expecting tens? I’m so scared!” Li Qingqun, the young lad, really had a way with irritating words. Zhang Qingbiao almost lost his mind again, barely kept in check by his brothers.

Ling Chengyan calmly replied, “Not familiar with guns… it seems some in your team have secretly practiced.”

After saying this, she pulled Li Qingqun, who was eager to speak, into the field.

In the second round, Ling Chengyan finished five shots, scoring forty-five rings with one eight-ring, one ten-ring, and three nine-rings.

After this round, the person who had earlier scored forty-two rings only managed forty rings, while Ling Chengyan widened the gap with a solid five-ring lead.

The Longsheng Village team continued to trail in scores, with Liu Wenjie scoring thirty-six rings, the Zhang brothers topping at twenty-five rings, and Zhang Qingbiao still scoring the least with eleven rings.

In the afternoon’s three rounds of training, Ling Chengyan consistently scored forty-two, forty-five, and forty-seven rings, ranking first in overall score.

Unsurprisingly, Zhang Qingbiao was at the bottom, with the Zhang brothers collectively occupying the bottom four spots.

The commune battalion leader Wu Xiangyang and political commissar Xu Dong came to observe the final round, satisfied with Ling Chengyan’s steady performance and noticeable improvement. Wu Xiangyang immediately announced that Ling Chengyan should focus on shooting practice and strive for good results in the county competition.

This statement made it clear that unless something unexpected happens, Ling Chengyan would be participating in the overall county competition.

Li Qingqun, the young man, though sharp-tongued, wasn’t stupid. Ling Chengyan gave him a few tips, leading to improvements in the second and third rounds, eventually achieving thirty-six rings in the third round—a slightly above-average score.

On the fourth day, Ling Chengyan practiced grenade throwing in the morning and trained shooting with the third squad in the afternoon. Her three-round scores remained steady above forty-five rings, with the best in the second round, achieving forty-nine rings.

Wu Xiangyang and Xu Dong were very excited. With these scores, placing in the top three in the county shouldn’t be an issue. Performing a bit better might even secure a first place in the county competition, earning the ’Sharpshooter’ title.

By the fourth day’s evening, after completing the first round of project training, the third squad gathered on the training field. Political Commissar Xu Dong, holding a folder, came to the front of the group, “Step forward if your name is called.”

Ling Chengyan and two female soldiers beside her, along with a few from the Nanli Team, were called by name. These individuals received orders, regrouped, and headed to the dining hall for a meal.

Around forty percent of the remaining members had somewhat guessed the reason; some started tearing up, some stood firm with defiance, while most felt a bit embarrassed and naturally lowered their heads.

Sure enough, not long after, Ling Chengyan and others eating in the dining hall received the accurate news that those not called by name had ended their training early and were packing up to go home.

After dinner, the squads regrouped, and the captain announced seriously, “Everyone knows that the first round eliminated forty percent. In the next few days, we’ll conduct project training based on training scores. Two days later, another batch will be eliminated based on their performance. Only those remaining will attend the final selection competition.”

Zhang Yuyan and Li Huaihua were a bit apprehensive, especially Zhang Yuyan, whose scores were okay but not outstanding. Ling Chengyan was even more composed than them, pointing out that Zhang Yuyan’s scores were actually valuable, ranking in the upper level for all three items. With some good practice and improvement, entering the final selection competition shouldn’t be a big issue.

Li Huaihua, being strong and agile, should choose between the throwing and assassination items for focus training to improve her scores and potentially pass the selection to the county competition.

As for the Nanli Team members, Wang Lianqi and Jiang Shenglin both performed well and should have no problem entering the final selection. Wu Qingyun’s arm injury affected his throwing, but his shooting and assassination were decent. Zhang Wanxiang is a powerhouse, excelling in both throwing and assassination.

Ling Chengyan and the few from the Nanli Team gathered to discuss and ultimately decided that Wu Qingyun would focus on assassination, while Zhang Wanxiang would concentrate on throwing, dedicating their energy to these focal points, ensuring their entry into the final selection was secure, with a fair chance to compete in the county.

In the second round of training, changes occurred. Instead of rotating through three items, participants now registered for individual items, focusing their training. Everyone could register for two items or just one without any restrictions.

Ling Chengyan registered for shooting and assassination.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep