N-A-A Chapter 1: Instructor, you have to call me Uncle 3!
Chapter 1: Instructor, you have to call me Uncle 3!
Iron Fist Regiment, Sharpshooter Fourth Company, Cookhouse Kitchen.
The spatula flew, and sparks flew everywhere.
The air was filled with the mouthwatering aroma of braised pork.
"Erniu! Turn the heat up a bit! Reduce the sauce!"
Sergeant Ma shouted earnestly to Li Erniu:
"Today's meal is no small matter. The instructor's elderly mother has come all the way from her hometown to see him. This is a top priority for our Fourth Company! Only if the old lady eats well can the instructor work with peace of mind. If we mess it up, the instructor's stern face will be enough to devour our entire cooking squad!"
"Alright, squad leader! Just you wait and see!"
In front of the stove, a dark-skinned, broad-shouldered soldier was skillfully flipping a large ladle.
Who else could it be but Li Erniu?
But at this very moment, inside this unassuming body dwells a soul from a parallel world.
Although he didn't start out as a top soldier like the protagonist in the novel next door, and instead became a cook, he had a good attitude.
"In this world, a soldier who doesn't want to be a cook isn't a good special forces soldier."
Li Erniu thought to himself, "This spatula of mine will eventually become a deadly weapon... Hmm, maybe."
After half an hour.
"Out of the pot!"
With a shout, a plate of braised pork, bright red in color and rich but not greasy, was served.
Sergeant Ma urged impatiently, "Erniu, hurry up! Take it up yourself! The messenger has called three times already. Remember, don't just grin like an idiot when you go up. Put the food down, salute, and leave. Don't embarrass our mess hall! Especially be respectful to the elderly!"
"Yes! I'll go right away!"
Li Erniu wiped his hands, picked up the tray, straightened his training cap, and ran out with the braised pork.
……
At this moment, a subtle "warmth" atmosphere filled the fourth canteen.
At a table in the center of the canteen, instructor Gong Jian stood ramrod straight, dressed in a crisp military uniform.
The usually stern and intimidating political instructor, who struck fear into the hearts of the entire company, was now all smiles, sitting there like a well-behaved child, fanning himself with a fan.
Sitting opposite him was a sprightly old woman from the countryside, dressed in a simple floral dress and with gray hair.
Li Guifang, Gong Jian's biological mother, is a typical rural woman who worked hard to send Gong Jian to military school.
At the surrounding tables, He Chenguang, Wang Yanbing, and their gang of troublemakers were eating while glancing furtively in their direction.
"Hey, Yanbing, look at how filial our instructor is. He's a completely different person from when he's scolding us," He Chenguang muttered under his breath.
Wang Yanbing took a bite of his steamed bun and sighed, "This is what they mean by filial piety being the most important virtue. Although the instructor is strict, in front of his mother, he's just a child who hasn't grown up yet. This scene is quite touching."
"Shh! They're here! That idiot Erniu is serving the food!"
"It smells so good! It's Erniu's specialty—braised pork! The old folks will definitely love it!"
All eyes immediately focused on them.
Walking to the table, Li Erniu made a perfect right-angle turn and placed the braised pork steadily in the center of the table.
"Reporting, Instructor! Auntie! This is our cookhouse's specialty—Dongpo Pork! It's fatty but not greasy, melts in your mouth, please enjoy!"
Li Erniu had a loud voice and a signature simple, honest smile on his face.
Gong Jian nodded in satisfaction, just about to praise the soldier to his mother, saying that although he was simple-minded, he was an excellent cook and a good-natured boy.
Sudden.
Li Guifang, who was sitting opposite, dropped her chopsticks on the table with a "clatter".
Her once kind and cloudy old eyes were now fixed on Li Erniu's face, her body began to tremble violently, and her face was filled with shock, astonishment, and even a hint of... fear of seeing an elder.
Gong Jian was startled and terrified: "Mother, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Or did this soldier's dark complexion frighten you?"
"Shut up! Kneel down!"
Li Guifang suddenly let out a sharp shout, her voice trembling.
The entire cafeteria fell silent instantly.
Suddenly, Li Guifang stood up, knocking over her chair.
She didn't even bother to hold onto the chair, and walked unsteadily around the table to Li Erniu, who was covered in the smell of cooking oil.
Then, under the jaws of the entire company, the woman in her fifties bowed deeply to Li Erniu, who was in his early twenties, her tone extremely respectful:
"Guifang... greets Third Uncle!"
Quiet.
A deathly silence.
The sound of the wind blowing through the cafeteria windows could be clearly heard.
Gong Jian froze, his hand holding the fan stiffening, completely petrified.
He Chenguang spat out a mouthful of soup, spraying it all over Wang Yanbing's face.
Wang Yanbing's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he looked at Li Guifang and then at Li Erniu.
Third Uncle?
The instructor's mother called Erniu "Third Uncle"?
Wouldn't that mean the instructor...?
Li Erniu was also completely bewildered at this moment.
"Third Uncle, don't you recognize me? I'm Guifang, the eldest daughter of the Li family, your eldest brother! I even held you at your one-month celebration when you were little!"
Li Guifang was so excited that tears welled up in her eyes.
Gong Jian, who was standing to the side, finally came to his senses and rushed over to support his mother, saying urgently, "Mother! Are you getting senile? This is one of my cooks, he's only twenty years old! You're over fifty, how can you call him Third Uncle?"
"Snapped!"
Li Guifang slapped Gong Jian on the forehead with her backhand. Although she didn't use much force, the action was extremely insulting.
"You insolent brat! How dare you speak like that! That's your own great-uncle!"
"My Li family is a large clan, with a strict family genealogy! Our village has a long lineage, and although your third great-uncle is young, he was the late-born son of your great-grandfather!!"
"By seniority, he's my third uncle! Your great-uncle!"
"When you were little, I took you back home quite a few times. But you were young then, and your third great-uncle had just been born, so you probably don't remember. As you got older, you were busy with your studies, and your mother married far away, so I rarely took you back to see your maternal grandparents. That's why you two, even though you were in the same unit, didn't know each other."
"It's Mom's fault."
The memories in Li Erniu's mind began to churn rapidly.
After confirming the information, he was completely stunned!
The original owner, Li Erniu, was indeed from Li Family Village, and his seniority was exceptionally high.
In my hometown, it's common to see the strange sight of elderly men in their seventies or eighties calling young children "grandpa."
Although Li Guifang is more than 30 years older than him, according to the family genealogy, she is indeed his junior and should call him uncle!
As for Gong Jian... as Li Guifang's son, although he took his father's surname, in this kind of clan relationship, he was definitely a grandson!
In other words, Gong Jiande called him—Third Uncle, or simply Third Uncle!
This relationship was something that Li Erniu found a little hard to process.
After all, Gong Jian was his direct superior, his devilish instructor!
If they recognized it, the scene would be too beautiful...
【Ding! 】
At that very moment, a crisp electronic voice suddenly exploded in Li Erniu's mind.
[A stark contrast between the host's identity and the current environment has been detected; the 'Contrast Shock System' has officially awakened!]
[System Description: Whether in daily life or training, as long as the host's behavior, identity, or strength shocks the audience, 'Shock Value' points will be awarded!]
[Points can be used to redeem items in the system shop such as 'God-Level Fighting Skills', 'Perfect Sniping Skills', 'Gene Modification Potion', and 'Future Individual Combat Exoskeleton'!]
[Current Triggered Event: Super Promotion! Host, seize the opportunity and reap the rewards of everyone's astonishment!]
Li Erniu's body trembled!
System? Cheat Code?
Or is it a system that allows you to change combat skills and use cutting-edge technology?
Li Erniu glanced at Gong Jian, who looked bewildered and desperate, and his confusion and anxiety subsided.
Instead, they were overjoyed.
"Hey, Instructor, you've always called me stupid and even tried to kick me out of the Fourth Company. But today, for the sake of the system's points, I can't save face for you!"
The more shocking you are, the more points you get!
Then why be so polite?
Seeing Li Guifang's respectful expression, which was almost on the verge of tears, Li Erniu's back suddenly straightened involuntarily, becoming straighter than a javelin.
A kind and benevolent aura emanating from an elder instantly enveloped my entire body.
"Cough cough..."
Li Erniu put his hands behind his back, his originally honest eyes instantly becoming deep and dignified. He nodded slightly and said in an old-fashioned tone:
"It's... Guifang? It's been years since you came back to the village to pay respects to your ancestors, hasn't it? You've got white hair now. Your third uncle didn't even recognize you just now."
Upon hearing this, Li Guifang not only didn't sense anything amiss, but instead felt as if she had found a pillar of support, and tears streamed down her face.
"Third Uncle! It's all Guifang's fault! These past years, supporting this boy's education and military service has kept her so busy that she hasn't had a moment to spare. It's been several years since she's gone back to kowtow to the ancestors!"
"Third Uncle, what happened to you? You ended up in the army? And... how did you become a cook? This... this is such a waste of your talent! You're the respected elder in our village!"
Li Erniu had now fully immersed himself in the role.
Just kidding, the number in his mind, the "shock value," was jumping wildly, like winning the jackpot on a slot machine, the "ding ding ding" sound making his scalp tingle with excitement.
[Shock level from He Chenguang +99!]
[Shock level from Wang Yanbing +100!]
[Shock level from Gong Jian +999 (critical hit)!]
[Shock level from the entire company +5000!]
A series of system notification sounds flooded Li Erniu's mind, a feeling even more refreshing than drinking ice-cold soda on a hot summer day!
These points are too easy to earn!
Li Erniu immediately straightened his back even more, and his "kindness" was almost overflowing from his face.
On the other side, Gong Jian's face had completely changed from "a loving and filial son" to "questioning life," his entire face as black as the bottom of a pot, even with a hint of green.
He glanced at his usually decisive and efficient mother, then at the simple-minded soldier in front of him, reeking of cooking oil and who had just been tossing a wok. Only one thought crossed his mind:
Has the world gone mad?!
Should I even continue playing in the Fourth Company?!
While wiping the soup off his face, He Chenguang slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Holy crap... Erniu... Third Uncle?"
"What the hell kind of family drama is this?"
Wang Yanbing was also dumbfounded: "The instructor calls Erniu 'Third Uncle'? Does that mean we've become Erniu's great-great-grandchildren?"
"Shh! Don't talk! Watch the show! This is a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle!"
Although the crowd lowered their voices, the stares they cast at Gong Jian as if he were an alien were still fixed on him.
Gong Jian's expression was quite a sight to behold.
He wanted to explain, to refute, to say that this was feudal superstition and unacceptable.
But that was his own mother!
His own mother who raised him with great hardship!
Would he dare to contradict me in public?