Free Web NovelChapter 180: Chapter 132: Where is My Limit Strength?
Instructor Liu cursed the personnel with special relationships internally, while Hao Chengbin took the opportunity to cut him off.
Fang Huai said promotion depended on the Martial Arts Competition; the old soldiers jeered that it was just empty talk.
In front of the pull-up bars, they talked about strengthening; their arms, legs, and waists progressed sequentially. frёewebηovel.cѳm
Squad Leader Wen acted tough as if he owned the place, while Boss Han followed with measured praise.
Continuing from last time, let’s talk about Wen Jingsong who shouted out loud:
"Get on the bar!"
Easier said than done, in that moment, a young recruit from the First Squadron burst forth in camouflage, dressed in yellow from head to toe, waving a yellow flag. As he grasped the bar, it was as if the mountains and rivers themselves shook, he was truly a brave warrior...
(Let’s stop there, just kidding, don’t scold me.)
...
"Yang Gaobing, 15! Last time... 13, right? You’ve improved over the past two days! But your base level is still too weak!"
Yang Gaobing had struggled to reach 15 pull-ups, and as he got off the bar, he felt a twinge of happiness inside. After all, he had improved by 4 compared to his first attempt.
This was the result of using up his last bit of strength in every training session.
But a casually delivered "base too weak" from Squad Leader Wen left him feeling disheartened.
Perhaps only someone like Yang Libing, who had reached over 20 pull-ups in the first test, was worthy of note.
Being both meticulous and sensitive, Fang Huai was well aware of how much effort was needed to improve by two in such a short time.
Seeing the dejected expression of his fellow same-year soldier, he wanted to say something encouraging, but it wouldn’t be right to directly contradict Wen Jingsong, so instead he initiated a round of applause and said,
"Keep it up!"
All three new recruits from the Second Squadron also began clapping.
Yang Gaobing looked over and realized that Fang Huai had spoken up. His eyes flickered, reviving a spark of enthusiasm.
A hint of distaste flashed in Wen Jingsong’s eyes. He glanced at Yang Gaobing’s expression but said nothing, mentally removing him from the list of trusted followers. freēwēbnovel.com
In the future, when rewarding new recruits, Wen Jingsong wouldn’t include him.
As for the promised seafood for improvement... wait for the Second Squadron to treat you to beef instead.
Fang Huai... keep boasting, let’s see if you fail to reach 40 pull-ups and whether you can afford to treat everyone.
Aside from Yang Libing with 24, the new recruits from the First Squadron were all between 11 and 18; none were exceptionally outstanding.
Actually, when the new recruit group was initially divided up, the Provincial Brigade was customarily given some preferential treatment, and the Chief of Staff responsible for assigning personnel according to the scores made sure to allocate Yang Libing and Song Lin, the two with the highest pull-up scores, to the Special Duty Squad.
The others assigned to special duty were also among the top performers.
In the Big Team, aside from Song Lin and Yang Libing being sent to different Squadrons, the rest were randomly distributed among the two Squadrons.
As for Fang Huai, he was an exception. His pull-up performance at the end of his training wasn’t high, and it was not counted in the "strongest new recruit" allocation quota.
Han Yong was also an exception.
Sure, there were recruits with special relationships; there were quite a few, but most went to government agencies or were assigned to Detachments and Brigades where their relationships were, like Cao Peng, who went to Liupanshui.
For the Provincial Special Duty Team, that’s not something you can get into with just any connection. To have that kind of powerful backing and still actively choose to endure the hardship of joining the Provincial Special Duty Team, this batch had only Han Yong.
Thus, in Special Service Squadron 2, only Xiao Haishan was randomly assigned.
After the special duty allocation, sometimes the City Brigade would also pick recruits.
As a result, the County Squadrons mostly got what was left after the special duty and City Brigade had made their choices. At this point, many County Squadrons were still dealing with new recruits struggling to achieve their initial pull-ups.
For people like Peng Yingqirui, Sun Lianhai, Lu Zexian, their daily training consisted mostly of push-ups and attempting to hold onto the bar for 20 seconds; try as they might, they couldn’t pull themselves up and ended up getting severely scolded by their squad leaders and punished with half an hour of holding the push-up position.
Fang Huai was very aware of this situation.
No need to ask why he knew.
As each new recruit from the First Squadron finished their pull-ups, Wen Jingsong gave his critique with hands clasped behind his back. Last in line, Qiao Xin only managed 11 pull-ups, barely one more than his previous score, and was berated as someone unfit to show his face.
When Wen Jingsong insulted people, he didn’t use dirty language, but the disdain in his tone was filled to the brim. Once done, he wouldn’t even deign to give another glance, employing a cold and ruthless approach.
After the scolding, Wen Jingsong stretched his limbs briefly, hopped on the bar, and pulled off an impressive 48.
After finishing, he looked down on the others present with a superior air.
Finally, Zhang Yang couldn’t help but let out a laugh, audible enough for all to hear:
"40 pull-ups last evaluation, 48 in the second year. You struggled so much in the first year just for this minor improvement, living off old achievements; what’s there to be proud of?"
Wen Jingsong really didn’t want to deal with him but noticed all the new recruits were looking at Zhang Yang, so he scoffed:
"Heh, some people have never even managed to pull off 35 in their entire lives, right? Of course, they wouldn’t understand what ultimate strength is, always thinking improving is so easy! Trash!"
"Who the fuck are you calling trash?"
Zhang Yang was immediately enraged, ready to pick a fight, pointing at Wen Jingsong and stepping forward.
Fang Huai quickly held him back and asked Wen Jingsong with a smile:
"Squad Leader, may I ask what ultimate strength is? When I joined the new recruit group, I managed 11 pull-ups, 23 at the end-of-training assessment, 28 after that, and the other day, 31.
I’d like to know, where should my limit be?"
Wow.
The members of the First Squadron were a bit stunned.
Including those two second-year soldiers.
to 31 pull-ups? Isn’t that a bit exaggerated?
Aren’t these new recruits supposed to have hardly trained in the new recruit group?
Wen Jingsong, however, didn’t believe a word, thinking it was all just a show of faux modesty to grab attention. Without even lifting his eyes, he replied:
"31 pull-ups? I did 40 during my new recruit evaluation. When you reach 40, you’ll understand what ultimate strength is."
Upon hearing this, Fang Huai clenched his fist, feeling a surge of energy. It was as if every cell in his arms was calling out for him to show off.
If this strength increase was anything like the last time, his arm strength had already far surpassed the limitations of his body weight.
His strength had increased significantly, yet his weight remained the same.
Ideally speaking, at this moment if he were to do pull-ups again, the strength of the 100 kg category should easily conquer the bodyweight of the 70 kg category.
"Okay, squad leader, shall I give it a try?" Fang Huai brought out a shy smile that he hadn’t used in a long time.
Wen Jingsong didn’t reply, just folded his arms, looking on with disdain.
You think doing 40 is too easy.
Fang Huai didn’t speak either, and simply walked under the bar.
Han Yong and Xiao Haishan hurried over as well, gripping the bar tightly.
Fang Huai raised his hand and signaled ready, taking a glance at Zhang Yang.
At this moment, Zhang Yang desperately hoped that Fang Huai could slap Wen Jingsong’s face hard, just like slapping his own; he even went over to the bar, pushed Han Yong aside, firmly held the bar for him, and shouted:
"Come on! Get on the bar!"
Fang Huai couldn’t help but chuckle, "The squad leader is personally holding the bar for me, I should give you a few."
He leaped up, grabbed the bar, paused for three seconds, quietly feeling the pull on his arms, to see if it had weakened.
After three seconds, Fang Huai smiled confidently.
If I haven’t guessed wrong, then I’ve guessed correctly.
At first, Fang Huai competed with his breathing for time, stubbornly holding his first breath, he did a fierce 25 reps before stopping – every one pristine!
Only then did he take a deep breath and pause for a moment.
The new recruits from First Squadron were all stunned.
Even the strongest, Yang Libing, was surpassed in one breath!
Damn, his first breath is our squadron’s limit!
Yang Gaobing felt even more inspired and shouted loudly, "Come on!"
The second-year soldiers remained silent, their expressions somber.
From Fang Huai’s first attempt, there weren’t many in the second-year soldiers who could take him on.
Fang Huai took another breath and pulled himself up again.
He only did six, but he paused at the top.
Fang Huai’s head went over the bar, looking at Zhang Yang with a relaxed expression, "Squad leader, that’s 31, I’m approaching my maximum strength. How many do you want?"
Zhang Yang was stunned.
You’re at your limit and still you can hang up there and talk?!
Conserve energy, surpass him!
Zhang Yang urged somewhat frantically, "You... hurry up and do it! However many you can do!"
Sheesh, totally not cooperative.
Fang Huai pursed his lips, let his body down slowly, and started pulling again.
Han Yong had already run to the front of Fang Huai, shouting, "40! If he does 40, I’ll treat the whole squadron to beef!"
Song Lin and Xiao Haishan also began to count loudly:
"Thirty-two! Thirty-three! Thirty-four..."
This time, Fang Huai finally felt his back muscles starting to give in; as he pulled up, they couldn’t coordinate with his arms, and the sense of full strength began to fade.
However, the scorn on Wen Jingsong’s face gradually disappeared.
"Thirty-eight!"
"Thirty-nine!!"
"Fang Huai, awesome!"
His peers’ minds went numb; thirty-nine reps and still the movements were no slower! Wasn’t he going to get to the forties?
Just when everyone thought he would break 40, Fang Huai stopped again, a smile on his face, and said loudly:
"Ah, Squad Leader Wen’s maximum strength has limited me! I can’t pull up anymore!
General Han, I’ve thought about it, and I might as well treat everyone! So nobody says I’m deliberately fleecing you!"
Having said that, Fang Huai did not come down from the bar, and in everyone’s stunned gaze, he proceeded to do the second pull-up exercise - pulling oneself over the bar in a roll.
The second exercise, you could pull up and then roll, requiring enough waist and core strength, or you could roll directly.
If you just lift your legs and roll up, it doesn’t overly exhaust the back muscles; it’s mainly supported by the arms, consuming waist strength and body endurance.
Rolling over the bar and coming down is a complete second exercise, not the kind where Xu Sanduo could do over 300 rolling over the bar while leaning on it continuously.
A standard second exercise movement is something many old soldiers cannot perform over 30 times.
"I’m at my limit, at my limit."
"Ah, I can’t pull any further!"
Fang Huai howled while rolling himself up.
He rolled everyone with him.
Not until his abdominal strength turned sour and his arms a bit weak, did he gracefully come down from the bar.
The first exercise, 39 reps. The second exercise, 24 reps.
"Good!"
The three new recruits from the Special Service Squadron 2 clapped loudly.
Everyone could see that Fang Huai’s strength was not limited to just 39 reps.
Fang Huai merely treated this weekend’s evaluation as regular training, distributing his energy evenly, working his hands, back, and waist until they were tired before stopping.
Fang Huai turned his head to look at Wen Jingsong, whose face was full of grimness, and showed a trace of disdain.
"Squad Leader Wen, for the first exercise, I don’t even know where your maximum strength is, so you don’t need to teach me anymore.
However, if you add the first and second exercises without coming down from the bar, that’s a total of 63 reps. Do you want to challenge my maximum strength?"
