Chapter 25: Do We Really Have to Learn Prenatal Care for Sows?

The vehicle arrived at the destination quickly.

The moment it stopped, a First Lieutenant came sprinting over with two soldiers in tow.

The First Lieutenant greeted them warmly: "Staff Officer Li, what brings you out here to us?"

Staff Officer Li smiled and gestured toward the three men beside him: "Old Fan, I'm delivering three new recruits to you. These three — from now on, they'll be under your care."

"Yes, sir."

The three of them snapped to attention and saluted.

Quartermaster Fan Ming looked the three up and down.

One looked sharp, one looked arrogant, and the third had the guileless, dopey look of a big friendly oaf.

He smiled and said, "Wonderful, Staff Officer Li — your timing couldn't be better. We're short-handed right now, and a few of the veterans are about to muster out any day."

"You've really come to our rescue here. Come on, have a smoke, have a smoke."

Fan Ming quickly fished out half a pack of Hongtashan cigarettes from his pocket and moved to press them into Staff Officer Li's hands as a gesture of thanks.

Staff Officer Li waved them off immediately: "No need to be so formal — this is just my job. And besides, smoking isn't permitted inside the production base. You know that."

Fan Ming stuffed the cigarettes back into his pocket and glanced awkwardly at the three newcomers, laughing sheepishly: "Of course I know the rules. I was saving those to offer to visiting brass."

Staff Officer Li's face went blank. Same old Fan Ming, never changes.

He turned to face the three recruits: "You'll be stationed here from now on. Stay out of trouble and don't cause any problems. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!"

The three saluted.

Staff Officer Li gave them one last look and shook his head.

He couldn't explain it, but he had a nagging feeling of unease.

As if these three were bound to stir something up sooner or later.

Still, he didn't dwell on it. After all, they'd been sent to the logistics unit to raise pigs — even if they couldn't behave, how much trouble could they really cause?

Without another word, Staff Officer Li got back in the vehicle and drove off.

Fan Ming watched the car disappear, then cleared his throat and waved the three over: "You three, come here."

"Yes, sir!"

The three jogged over.

Fan Ming smiled and asked, "What are your names? Go ahead and introduce yourselves."

"Lin Hui!"

"Wang Yong!"

"My name's Chen Erhu, Squad Leader — just call me Erhu!"

Chen Erhu flashed a wide grin, showing two rows of bright white teeth. He had an immediately likable look about him.

Fan Ming chuckled: "Easy enough to remember — two short names and one long one. Alright, let me fill you in on how things work around here."

"This is our military's livestock base. In addition to growing all kinds of fruits and vegetables, we raise chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs, as well as various fish and aquatic products."

"Don't you dare underestimate this livestock base. In wartime, we are the most vital logistics support the troops have."

"As the saying goes, before the army moves, provisions must go first — we are those provisions. Do you understand how important that makes us?"

"Yes, sir!"

Chen Erhu's eyes were practically sparkling.

So this place was that important.

Looks like they'd come to the right spot after all!

Fan Ming continued: "Let me make one thing clear. Everything here is military property — whether it's a single chicken, a radish, or a head of cabbage."

"We're different from the combat units. They get punished for poor training scores; we get punished if there are problems with our livestock output. Same principle."

"Absolutely no stealing food or taking things for personal use. And you are strictly forbidden from sneaking chickens, ducks, or geese out of the coops to sell down the mountain. Anyone caught will be dealt with severely."

Lin Hui immediately straightened up: "Please rest assured, sir. We will be devoted to our duties and never forget our mission!"

"We will not let a single pig down, nor let a single goose shed a tear!"

The other two chimed in: "Same goes for us!"

Fan Ming's mouth twitched.

What a trio of characters. No wonder they'd been sent here.

He shouted toward the distance: "Old Ma!"

"Coming!"

A moment later, a man in an apron and rubber boots came trotting over.

Fan Ming said: "These three are yours now."

He leaned in and murmured quietly to Old Ma: "It's been a long time since anyone new was sent up here. Keep an eye on them — these three are either troublemaker soldiers or mediocre soldiers."

Old Ma gave a good-natured smile: "Don't worry. There's no soldier Old Ma can't whip into shape."

Fan Ming nodded, then headed off with the other veterans.

Old Ma grinned and circled the three men once: "Let me introduce myself — I'm Ma Zhengyang, and I'll be your squad leader from here on out."

"I've been here twelve years. I'm about as old-hand as it gets."

"I don't care how you ended up assigned here. Just remember what you said: devoted to your duties, never forget your mission. Do your work and do it right."

"Yes, sir!"

He waved a hand with a smile: "Relax, all of you. We don't stand on ceremony much here. Work hard when there's work to do, and rest however you like when it's done."

Lin Hui took one look at Old Ma's easygoing manner and could tell right away he'd be easy to get along with.

He quietly let out a breath of relief. Finally, a comfortable place to land.

Sure, it was logistics and livestock work, but compared to a combat unit, it had to be a lot more relaxed.

Spend a comfortable year or so here, coast through until discharge — perfect.

"Yes, Squad Leader!"

The three saluted.

Old Ma laughed heartily: "Look at you, already looking the part. Come on, come on — let me show you around."

The three shouldered their packs and followed behind Old Ma.

They hadn't gone far before a pungent smell hit them, and Lin Hui's brow furrowed.

"What is that smell?"

Wang Yong immediately pinched his nose shut.

Chen Erhu was unfazed — his family had a pigsty back home, so this was all very familiar.

Old Ma looked at the three of them and chuckled: "Those flat-roofed buildings all connected up ahead — that's the pig pens. We've got over two thousand pigs in there."

"Used to be we'd haul the manure out by hand and sweep the pens ourselves. Things are different now — machines handle the waste cleanup."

"All you need to do is feed the pigs and hose them down every now and then."

He pointed ahead: "That section over there is for poultry — chickens on the left, ducks and geese on the right. And at the very back is a fish pond, covering over two hundred acres."

"Now, keep in mind…"

Wang Yong frowned and leaned toward Lin Hui, whispering: "This doesn't look like easy work at all. Busy all day long — won't we break our backs?"

Lin Hui murmured back: "Still beats running five kilometers and doing drills."

"The training load in a regular unit is nothing like recruit training — it doubles. Count yourself lucky you ended up here."

Chen Erhu nodded: "Honestly, I think this place is great. It's just like back in my village — feeding chickens, ducks, and pigs every day. The moment I walked in, it felt like coming home."

Wang Yong rolled his eyes. So you're like Zhu Bajie returning to Gao Village — finally found where you belong.

Ma Zhengyang finished the tour: "That's the lay of the land. For now, your main responsibility will be the pigs. This afternoon I'll teach you how to mix the feed."

He pointed to one section: "This group here are all sows. They're close to farrowing, so not only do their nutrition levels need to be kept up, you'll need to watch them carefully."

"If anything goes wrong, it won't just be you in trouble — I'll be going down with you."

Wang Yong stared blankly.

We have to do prenatal care for sows?

Lin Hui just smiled faintly, completely unbothered.

His System meant that learning anything made him stronger. No matter where he was or what he was doing, a few rounds of practice and he'd be more skilled than anyone.

Besides, raising pigs was a whole lot more comfortable than military drills.

At the very least, the days ahead wouldn't be a grind.

Ma Zhengyang told the three of them to wander around and get familiar with the place on their own, then headed back to the barracks himself.

Inside the dormitory, a group of veterans had already huddled together.

They were whispering among themselves about something, looking conspiratorial.

Ma Zhengyang spotted their shifty behavior and immediately frowned: "What are you lot scheming now?"