readbooksol Chapter 60 Personnel Preparation
Chapter 60 Personnel Preparation
The headquarters building of the Jinghua Military Region.
Zhang Dajiang's office was filled with smoke. Political Commissar Zhao Gang, Lin Zhe, and another man were gathered around an open map of Jinghua City, on which several circles were drawn in red pen.
"We definitely need to go to the National Defense University," Zhao Gang said, pointing to the circle on the map. "That's our 'talent pool,' teeming with master's and doctoral graduates, with expertise ranging from communications and electronics to aerospace, from psychological warfare to international relations—you name it. The question is—how do we recruit them?"
Zhang Dajiang took a drag of his cigarette and looked at Lin Zhe: "You graduated from the National University of Defense Technology, so you should know what the students there are like. Most of them want to pursue a technical career, go to research institutes, and do scientific research. Getting them to come to the front-line combat units, especially special forces... I'm afraid that won't be easy."
Lin Zhe twirled a pencil in his hand, pondering for a moment: "Two points. First, after this war, young people are very enthusiastic about joining the army, and many top students have volunteered. Second, we need to make them understand that 'technical soldiers' in modern warfare are not those who sit in offices doing research; they are those who go to the front lines."
He paused for a moment, then said, "As for how to dig... the best reason to convince you is that I came from there."
"That's right, you are the biggest provocation to them."
Zhang Dajiang and Zhao Gang exchanged a glance. Lin Zhe was indeed a force to be reckoned with. A 25-year-old senior colonel and a recipient of the Guardian Medal—these two qualities alone were enough to inspire awe in anyone. Soldiers admire the strong, especially young soldiers.
"Okay, let's do it this way." Zhang Dajiang made the decision. "I'll assign you a few people to help you. Gao Cheng, the captain of the Canglang Special Forces, a major, he'll take two key members with him. Also, if you need any equipment or facilities, just let us know, the military region will provide full support."
Lin Zhe nodded: "I've already chosen the location, the abandoned armored training ground on the west side of the military region. It's big enough and secluded enough, suitable for secret training. I've already drawn up the blueprints, I'll give them to Gao Cheng in a bit."
"You're quick, kid," Zhao Gang laughed.
"Time is of the essence." Lin Zhe put away the map. "People from the other four military regions are also on their way. If we're late, all the good candidates will be snatched up."
Half an hour later, at the military region's special operations training base.
Upon receiving the order, Gao Cheng, along with two key members of the Canglang team—demolition expert Lao Wei and sniper Xiao Wang—hurriedly arrived at the designated location. All three were puzzled, wondering what urgent matter the commander had summoned them for.
At the edge of the training field, a man stood with his back to them, looking at the obstacle course in the distance. He was wearing ordinary training clothes, but his posture was as upright as a javelin.
Gao Cheng approached, about to speak, when the man turned around.
The moment Gao Cheng saw the face clearly, he was stunned.
"Lin... Captain Lin?"
The face before him was all too familiar. The former deputy captain of the Southwest Military Region's Hunter Blade Special Forces Team, the champion of the all-army special forces competition, the young man who had created countless legends. But… how could he be here? And what was that on his shoulder insignia… a senior colonel?
Lin Zhe looked at Gao Cheng and smiled slightly: "Captain Gao, it's been a long time."
"You...you've been transferred to the Jinghua Military Region?" Gao Cheng stammered. He recalled the last exercise, the "ghost" who single-handedly wiped out their entire Canglang Squad, and those cold eyes...that sense of familiarity surged into his heart again.
"A temporary mission." Lin Zhe didn't explain further. "The commander should have told you that the higher-ups are forming a new special operations unit and need manpower. The three of you will be working with me for the next year."
Old Wei and Little Wang exchanged a glance, their eyes flashing with excitement.
"Team Leader Lin, no, Colonel Lin." Gao Cheng stood at attention. "Gao Cheng of the Azure Wolf Special Forces, obeying orders!"
"No need for such formalities." Lin Zhe waved his hand and pulled three documents from his bag. "These are the blueprints for the training ground renovation. Take a look. Lao Wei, you're the demolition expert, so you're in charge of this demolition training area. Xiao Wang, the sniper training ground is yours. Gao Cheng, you oversee the overall operation; I need to see the site meet the requirements within a week."
The three of them took the blueprints, glanced at them, and their eyes widened in surprise.
The blueprints were extremely professional, clearly indicating the locations of various training facilities, as well as their dimensions, materials, and safety requirements. What shocked them even more was that they had never seen many of these facilities before—such as the one labeled "Holographic Simulation Combat Training Room" and the "Individual Soldier Drone Combat Field."
"Colonel Lin, these..." Gao Cheng pointed to the blueprints, "Do we have this kind of equipment in our country?"
"It will be ready soon," Lin Zhe said. "The final assembly department is already working on it. You guys get the site ready first, and we'll install it as soon as the equipment arrives."
He then took out a USB drive: "This contains the preliminary training outline and selection criteria. Familiarize yourselves with it first. Starting tomorrow, come with me to select people."
"yes!"
After handing over the mission, Lin Zhe prepared to leave. Gao Cheng suddenly called out to him, "Colonel Lin, there's a question...I don't know if I can ask it."
"explain."
"The last exercise... that one from the Northwest Military Region..." Gao Cheng hesitated for a moment, "Was it you?"
Lin Zhe glanced at him, neither admitting nor denying, and simply said, "Focus on the present; the past is unimportant."
After saying that, he turned and left.
Gao Cheng stood there, watching Lin Zhe's departing figure, his suspicions confirmed. It really was him! The "ghost" who had single-handedly turned the Northwest Military Region upside down was Lin Zhe!
"Captain, Colonel Lin's aura..." Old Wei leaned closer and whispered, "Why do I feel like he's even more intimidating than the Commander?"
"You don't understand." Gao Cheng took a deep breath. "Some people have truly crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Colonel Lin... we special forces soldiers who have been on the battlefield all have that smell about him, but none of us have it as strong as his."
Xiao Wang swallowed hard: "Then from now on..."
"From now on?" Gao Cheng's eyes blazed with excitement. "Work hard with us! This is our chance! Being able to learn from someone of this caliber is something many people could only dream of!"
The next morning, at the Jinghua Military Region recruit training base.
On the training ground, more than a thousand new recruits, who had been in the army for less than two months, were standing at attention. The September sun was still scorching, and sweat streamed down their young faces, but no one dared to move.
The base director stood with Lin Zhe and Gao Cheng on the reviewing stand. The director was a lieutenant colonel, and looking at the excessively young senior colonel beside him, his heart pounded—he had never seen such a young senior colonel, much less someone with such a strong aura.
"Colonel Lin, these are the new recruits enlisted by the Jinghua Military Region this year, a total of 1,237," the director introduced. "They are all promising candidates, having passed the physical fitness and political vetting processes."
Lin Zhe held a list in his hand, which he had initially selected from the recruits' files last night. Of the more than one thousand recruits, only twenty-three met the requirement of "bachelor's degree or above." Among these twenty-three were graduates of the National University of Defense Technology and top students from prestigious universities.
"Let these twenty-three people step forward," Lin Zhe said.
The director immediately gave the order through the loudspeaker. Soon, twenty-three young men ran out and stood in a row in front of the reviewing stand. They were wearing the same training uniforms as the other recruits, but their demeanor was noticeably different—their eyes were more lively, and while their posture still carried a youthful naiveté, they also possessed a more scholarly air.
Lin Zhe stepped down from the reviewing stand and walked to the row of new recruits. Gao Cheng followed behind him.
"Let me introduce myself," Lin Zhe began, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears. "Lin Zhe, I'm going to be building a brand new special operations force and I need to recruit members. You twenty-three people are the initial candidates who meet the requirements."
The recruits' eyes lit up. Special forces! That's the place every soldier dreams of!
"However," Lin Zhe changed the subject, "the special forces soldiers I want are different from what you imagine. It's not just about being able to run, jump, and fight. What I need are special forces soldiers with the physical abilities of a special forces soldier, the mind of a scientist, the fighting spirit of a soldier, and the meticulousness of an engineer."
He scanned the twenty-three young faces: "You have high levels of education, which is both an advantage and a disadvantage. The advantage is that you learn quickly and have strong comprehension skills. The disadvantage is that you may not be able to endure hardship, you may think that being a soldier is just about carrying a gun and running, and you may not be able to withstand real special forces training."
"Report!" a new recruit suddenly shouted.
"explain."
"Commander, we can endure hardship! We joined the army not expecting comfort!"
The other recruits nodded in agreement, their eyes filled with determination.
Lin Zhe looked at them and nodded: "Talk is cheap. There will be selection training coming up, it'll be tough, so tough you might regret standing here today. Now, does anyone want to quit?"
Nobody moved.
"Okay." Lin Zhe turned to Gao Cheng and said, "Arrange for them to move to the new dormitory. They'll participate in the preliminary selection tomorrow."
"yes!"
Lin Zhe then looked at the new recruits: "Remember, this isn't the official selection, it's just the preliminary round. If you can't even pass the preliminary round, you'll go back to being ordinary soldiers. Do you understand?"
"clear!"
After giving their instructions, Lin Zhe and Gao Cheng left the recruit training base. In the car, Gao Cheng couldn't help but ask, "Colonel Lin, are these twenty-three people enough, plus some more selected from the National Defense University?"
"That's enough." Lin Zhe looked out the window. "I don't need a lot of people, I need quality. If ten people can stay in the end, that will be enough."
"Ten people?" Gao Cheng exclaimed in surprise. "A special operations team should have at least twelve to fifteen people, right?"
"That's a conventional special operations team," Lin Zhe said. "What I want to build is unconventional. Ten people, each capable of working independently, each a jack-of-all-trades. In certain missions, ten such people are more useful than a whole company."
Gao Cheng seemed lost in thought. He recalled the last exercise, how Lin Zhe single-handedly disrupted the entire Northwest Military Region. What if there really were ten people…
He dared not think any further.
"Next, we'll go to the National Defense University," Lin Zhe said. "That's where the main event begins."
The car drove out of the military region and headed towards the city of Jinghua.
Lin Zhe leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. In his mind, the prototype of that future force had already emerged—ten young people, ten highly educated, intelligent, and highly capable super soldiers, ten war machines capable of changing the battlefield.
The first step is to find the right person.