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墨書 Inktalez
"The scale is too large; it's impossible to keep it confidential." Prince Banan frowned, feeling troubled after a brief moment of happiness. His experiences abroad and the current dilemma made him acutely aware that reform was urgent. Prince Banan resolved to lead the entire kingdom out of its impoverished state.
Azure Hawk stepped forward and said, "The selection of personnel can be kept non-confidential, but can we ensure the training location remains secret?"
Prince Banan pondered and called for the Chief Administrator. As soon as the Chief Administrator entered, he said, "Your Highness, I have conveyed your instructions as requested."
"Very good," Banan replied before immediately asking, "Is there a place suitable for troop training that can also maintain strict confidentiality?"
The White-Bearded Man sighed, thinking about whether such a place existed. Suddenly, he recalled an excellent location and exclaimed, "Yes!"
"Where?" Prince Banan asked eagerly.
"The airport!"
"The airport?" Zhang Qiu expressed doubt. "With people coming and going and flights taking off and landing, how could it be suitable for troop training?"
"Since the outbreak of civil war, flight frequencies have drastically reduced, and there are almost no foreigners entering the country. Those who could afford to fly left during the division between the North and South Parties. In other words, the airport is nearly deserted now. Additionally, due to incidents like explosions, strict controls have been implemented at the airport. If there’s anywhere suitable for secret troop training, it must be the airport."
After the White-Bearded Man's explanation, everyone agreed that the airport was indeed a good place for training. Azure Hawk concurred with conducting training at the airport and added, "To ensure confidentiality, please extend the control period indefinitely."
Prince Banan immediately agreed to this request and then asked, "So what kind of soldiers can participate in the training?"
"The specific plan is that we will set the standards; your people will handle the selection and publicly claim they are choosing elites for palace guard duty. Once you select qualified soldiers, we will reveal the true situation and sign a confidentiality agreement." Azure Hawk directly adapted his approach from special forces to fit the current circumstances.
Upon hearing Azure Hawk's plan, Prince Banan praised it repeatedly. Azure Hawk added, "We must ensure that those responsible for selection are absolutely impartial."
"Rest assured, I will arrange for my bodyguards to supervise personally; they will not deceive me!"
"Azure Hawk," Zhang Qiu suddenly said, "I want to participate in the training too."
"You?" Azure Hawk did not expect Zhang Qiu to make such a request.
"That's right, I want to join the training."
"No way. Participants must go through strict selection; there can't be any connections, not even for you. You promised that everything would be decided by me!" Azure Hawk firmly rejected Zhang Qiu's request, showing no signs of compromise.
"I can participate in the selection. If I pass, I will train with you all. If I don't pass, then I have nothing to say."
"As long as you pass the selection, it's fine." Azure Hawk nodded slightly; he did not believe that Zhang Qiu could pass the selection.
When Azure Hawk submitted a set of selection criteria to Prince Banan, everything was already in his mind; he just made slight adjustments based on the actual situation. Prince Banan immediately announced the establishment of the Palace Defense Guard, stating that the salary for Guard members would be double that of the New Army, and the food standards would be three times that of the New Army. In no time, the entire defensive force surrounding the palace eagerly signed up, and even soldiers from other regions reported wanting to participate in the selection.
The grand selection began in an open area outside the palace, with armored vehicles and tanks moving in to form a semicircle, separating the selection area from the alert troops. Even so, cheers could still be heard from within the alert troops. The candidates were elite members stationed outside the palace for several days, and veteran Brothers were cheering them on. Seeing this scene, Prince Banan ordered the armored vehicles and tank units to clear their line of sight, which earned loud cheers from the soldiers as they shouted "Long live Your Highness," boosting morale to unprecedented heights.
At the same time, trucks continuously shuttled between the military zone next to the palace and the airport, delivering batches of training facilities and various supplies requested by Azure Hawk. The airport had been placed under military control with strict security measures in place, no less than that of the palace. Armed soldiers did not allow any non-military vehicles or personnel to approach; even they did not know what was loaded in the trucks coming in and out.
Zhang Qiu participated in the selection, running, jumping, and shooting alongside a group of tall and strong Black soldiers outside the palace. It had to be said that Black soldiers indeed had a natural advantage in sports. Physically, many soldiers met Azure Hawk's standards, but Zhang Qiu did not. Just in terms of armed cross-country running over ten kilometers within a specified time, Zhang Qiu's performance fell short.
At the finish line outside the palace, Prince Banan's bodyguards stood by the red line closely watching their stopwatches. Each time a soldier arrived on time, cheers erupted from within the defensive troops. After timing ended, Zhang Qiu finally emerged from the forest in the northwest direction with an exhausted body. Lucia rushed towards Zhang Qiu without hesitation and reached out to support him but was stopped by Zhang Qiu.
Lucia anxiously shouted, "It's over; timing has ended."
Zhang Qiu smiled faintly and shook his head, gritting his teeth as he said, "The timing is over, but I am not finished. Regardless of whether I am selected or not, I will persist until I reach the finish line."
Lucia could not persuade Zhang Qiu and nervously stayed by his side as he walked. Each step Zhang Qiu took was exceptionally difficult; his whole body swayed as if he could be toppled over by his backpack at any moment. Lucia clenched her fists tightly to support him. Suddenly, she heard Zhang Qiu shout; it was as if he had been re-energized as he sprinted straight toward the finish line. The entire venue fell silent at that moment as nearly all soldiers turned their gazes toward Zhang Qiu, watching this tenacious Asian boy before them.
Lucia was momentarily stunned before quickly catching up. She saw Zhang Qiu just cross the finish line and then collapse to the ground. The doctors and nurses who had been waiting nearby rushed over, removing his backpack and tearing open Zhang Qiu's shirt to begin their examination. Lucia dashed to Zhang Qiu's side like a whirlwind, shaking him and shouting, "Zhang Qiu, Zhang Qiu, are you okay..."
A doctor nearby stopped Lucia and said, "His physical condition is good; he just fainted from exhaustion. He'll be fine."
Hearing this from the doctor, Lucia felt somewhat relieved. However, seeing the bloody abrasions on Zhang Qiu's shoulder made her heart ache. She patted him and scolded, "Why did you do this?"
Zhang Qiu, who had fainted, showed no reaction to Lucia's patting. The medical staff carried him inside the palace to rest. During this time, Prince Banan and Azure Hawk both came by. Not only was Zhang Qiu's shoulder injured, but he also had blisters on the soles of his feet. The doctor treated his wounds before leaving. Lucia stayed by the bedside without leaving until Zhang Qiu woke up.
When Zhang Qiu finally woke up, the sun had already set, and the room was dark as no lights were on. His first sight was Lucia's beautiful golden hair; following it down, he saw her surprised expression. But soon after, he noticed Lucia's face change as she began to scold him.
"Are you stupid? Was it necessary to do this? Look at what you've done to yourself—covered in injuries! If Sister Xue knew about this, she would be heartbroken!"
Zhang Qiu suddenly asked, "Do you care?"
Lucia was taken aback; her hand that was about to hit Zhang Qiu froze in mid-air. Zhang Qiu smiled and said, "I just wanted to take this opportunity to train myself. Not everyone gets the chance to receive special forces training. There won't always be someone to help me in the future; I need to become strong enough to protect those I love and who love me."
"Including me?"
Lucia unexpectedly asked a question that left Zhang Qiu stunned. They stared at each other for over ten seconds before Zhang Qiu replied, "Of course, you are my best friend of the opposite sex."
"What about Jiang Xue?"
Zhang Qiu smiled and said, "She is the one I love."
Despite Lucia's complaints about Zhang Qiu, she still took care of him attentively after his injury. That night, Prince Banan brought his personal doctor to check on Zhang Qiu. After examining him, the doctor informed the prince that Zhang Qiu was in great shape and only had some superficial injuries. Prince Banan sat by the bed and advised Zhang Qiu, "You need to rest well these days. I really don't understand why you did this; what was the point?"
Zhang Qiu smiled but didn't explain further. Prince Banan continued, "Make sure you rest well; don't get up or move around with your foot injury. I've instructed the servant to bring your meals to your room tomorrow."
Zhang Qiu thanked Prince Banan, and the two chatted about the selection of the Special Operations Team. After Prince Banan left, Azure Hawk came to find Zhang Qiu alone.
Zhang Qiu looked at Azure Hawk and shook his head helplessly, saying, "I failed; I couldn't pass the selection."
Azure Hawk approached and patted Zhang Qiu on the shoulder, smiling, "You did well; you're a man, and I saw that."
"With your words, I feel much better," Zhang Qiu said with a bitter smile. Having practiced martial arts since childhood, he believed his physical fitness was good. Now, after the assessment, he realized he was far from enough.
"Your spirit is enough to impress me, but I can't make exceptions. This is war, and the training ahead will only become more brutal. With your current physical condition, you won't be able to endure it; I hope you understand." Azure Hawk raised a stack of papers in his hand. "Here are the results from today's training; I've looked them over carefully. Your shooting score is the best, even surpassing many New Soldiers. You've trained before, right?"
Zhang Qiu nodded. Azure Hawk continued, "Although I can't let you participate in training, you can come to the training ground to observe. Additionally, I will grant you special permission to join them for shooting practice."
"Really?" The exhausted Zhang Qiu instantly perked up.
"I never lie except for specific missions. Take care of your injury; I'll be waiting for you at the training ground."
"Look at you; hurry up and lie down. The doctor told you to rest," Lucia insisted as she pushed Zhang Qiu back onto the bed.
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