Chapter 37: A Small Test
PS: Today's extra update is gone, and the regular update has arrived. A new month has quietly arrived, and I'm here to ask for everyone's support and encouragement.
"Soldiers must have the spirit of soldiers, generals must have the majesty of generals! Today is a rare opportunity for everyone to compete on the same stage, so we should exchange and understand each other's temperament and style. Whether you are an officer or a soldier, once you step onto the arena, you must follow the rules and be courteous. Only then can we make friends through martial arts. I hope all participating athletes today will perform at their best level, show off the ferocity of their unit, and display their own iron-blooded spirit! Now, I declare that the First People's Military Combat Championship officially begins!"
In a certain military base in Baise, with the People's Army First Division as the host, the other six divisions of the People's Army all sent their strongest boxers to participate in the competition. The first combat tournament of the People's Army was officially opened in the grand auditorium of the base amidst applause from the numerous soldier spectators.
Each team has its own characteristics, but as for the military forces of other countries, in terms of combat effectiveness, it is often just looking at where the main division of each unit is stationed and what tasks they are responsible for to know the level of this unit. However, unfortunately, they are people's army, and currently within the autonomous region, it is not clear which area is the focus that needs strong control.
The first division, which is mainly stationed in Beihai, is obviously aimed at the main force of Tang Jiyao in Yunnan. The second and third divisions, which are divided into Hechi and Guilin respectively to target Guizhou and Hunan, the fourth division alone on Hainan Island, the fifth division deep in Zhaoqing, Guangdong, the sixth division stationed in important port cities, and a non-division rapid reaction division in Liuzhou, they all have their own tasks, and there is no big regional distinction.
So the seven major divisions, in fact, each has similar strength, but just like the opening speech of the first division commander at the boxing championship opening ceremony, soldiers have their own personality, and each division leader has his own style of commanding troops. In the long run, it's like the proverb says "one general is one den", each division will still have its own characteristics. However, for now, in terms of collective combat effectiveness, I estimate that each division is not much different, but in terms of individual soldiers' fighting ability, we'll have to wait and see the results of this championship.
"Hey, buddy, you don't look like an infantryman, but more like a sniper? Your eyes are precious, I advise you to quit the competition! If you end up with panda eyes later on, don't blame me!" The host's soldier was indeed different from the moment he opened his mouth, starting to advise his opponent to retreat as soon as he stepped onto the stage. His thick and sturdy arms were not made of fat, but were packed with explosive muscles that would make the impact force extremely terrifying later on.
"Don't think that just because we're using sniper rifles, it's all about the looks. Personally, my fists are harder than bullets. You'll get a taste of it soon, but with your strong physique, the more you get beaten, the harder it is to recover. Lying in bed isn't going to be pleasant! Looking at his opponent's robust body, I reckon he must have been a machine gunner in the army. Sniper duels never lack time accumulation, but snipers vs machine gunners are all about high accuracy and quick shooting - one shot, one kill is enough. But that's on the battlefield; who knows what the outcome will be in this martial arts competition?"
The two of them were chatting non-stop, taking turns poking fun at each other's weaknesses, the atmosphere was extremely relaxed. Before long, the judge for their match walked onto the stage, and as soon as he saw the "sniper", he paused for a moment before slowly walking over with a smile on his face, patting him on the shoulder and saying: "Little soldier, do you still recognize me? Last time at your place, I was fined to eat quite a few coconuts!"
The judge was clearly touched by a nerve just now, and immediately thought of the last time he went to Hainan with other military officers from his unit to form an observation team to observe the fourth division's self-created landing operation. As a result, everyone became very interested and said they wanted to have some kind of technical competition, and those who lost would be punished by eating a lot of Hainan specialties.
The judge who was speaking at the time was very unfortunate. At that time, he was still confident in his marksmanship and was pulled by the crowd to shoot at targets floating on the sea. As a result, he encountered this little dwarf sniper. The targets floating on the surface of the sea were shaking with the waves, and at that time, the shooting was purely for show. Therefore, everyone required him to take a comfortable shooting position. He chose his most skilled prone position, aimed for a long time, and still had a good shot. However, he didn't eat dinner, and later was "forced" to finish many fruits, especially coconuts. So much food in his stomach made it impossible for him to eat anything else.
"This lifetime will not be able to forget, after the preliminary round, let's go to the shooting range and try again? We have a better shooting training ground here, of course, there are more fruits! But this time, it's not me who eats." The referee smiled and said, gesturing to the observers below, then began to announce.
"Let's do this, but I've got to finish off this machine gunner first!" With that said, the guy known as Little Soldier gave a slight smile towards his defeated opponent from before and then saluted his opponent in preparation for their match.
"Indeed, there's a strong aura about him. Good! I like soldiers like that." The referee checked his watch again and then called the two contestants over once more. "Both sides know the rules, but let me remind you: friendship first, competition second! Begin!" With that, the referee gestured for them to start and quickly stepped aside, watching from a distance as the two equally imposing figures clashed, waiting to see who would be the first to fall. However, victory must be won fairly; he had to pay attention to every detail of the match and make the best judgment call.
The entire venue soon echoed with the sound of pounding, and the referee's voice shouting "stop" was not uncommon. Of course, there were also the cheers and shouts of the surrounding audience! In a military camp composed of men, except for training every day, it was rare to have a platform for "release", and the hormones that had been accumulated for a long time finally burst out wildly in the championship, although they did not go on stage to participate in the competition. , just witnessing the frenzied and violent match with their own eyes was enough to satisfy them.
"Shall we just forget about competing? Is your right eye really okay?"
After the first round, the meaningful referee soon waited for the sniper to arrive at the shooting range as scheduled. However, he was slightly uncomfortable at this time. Although he knocked down his strong opponent with great effort, he also took a lot of iron fists. Especially when the machine gunner's powerful left hook hit his right face, the main area that was hit was around his right eyebrow bone. Although there was cushioning from the boxing gloves, the strong impact still caused swelling and bruising to appear quickly on the injured area. Of course, it is estimated that the opponent also held back, otherwise his eyebrow bone would have been finished, and he would have fallen down on the spot.
"I can use my left eye, originally our last competition was unfair. I am a professionally trained sniper who has undergone systematic training, while you are just a self-taught officer, sniping is your hobby but not your specialty. Of course, there must be better snipers in your camp than me, but you chose me, which can only be said to be my good fortune." As he spoke, he stroked his right cheek again, although the burning sensation was gone, the numbness still made him feel uncomfortable.
"Let's have a contest with our left eyes, and if I win, that's what I call awesome! The feelings between our 4th Division and your 1st Division run deep. We should have a good exchange today." Grabbing the rifle that had already been placed on the ground, he finished speaking and quickly checked the loading without showing any weakness, starting to estimate the distance to the target with his only left eye.
The shooting range of the First Division is indeed different from that of the Fourth Division stationed on Hainan Island. The climate and temperature difference on the island are relatively large, and the air humidity is also different from inland areas. At this time, the training ground did not have a standard distance setting, which means that the entire training ground was just an uncultivated land, and the standard shooting distances of 30 meters, 50 meters, 100 meters, 400 meters, 600 meters, etc. were not marked out, all relying on oneself to grasp the distance.
"If you can defeat me with your left eye, I'll not only treat you to a fruit feast again, but also give you this dagger!" The officer who was the referee earlier pulled out a sharp dagger and tossed it to the injured sniper. "This dagger was custom-made by someone I found, it's not that it can cut through iron, but it's definitely very suitable for you. It cost me a month's worth of salary, do you have the guts to take it?"
"Not bad knife! I've got it!" The sharp blade and the skin's tactile sensation are so refreshing, the feeling of almost cutting through the skin is always so comfortable. He inserted the dagger into the empty space between the two people, and the wounded sniper quickly picked up the 15-style sniper rifle, nicknamed "sharp shield", which allowed him to smoothly aim at the target with an unusual sideways posture, his left eye still a bit uncomfortable for aiming, but soon adjusted.
Across the firing range, several soldiers quickly set up targets. The young soldier quickly used a four-fold magnifying aiming mirror to estimate the distance of the target, but the carefully disturbing soldiers of the first company made a strange and weird target, 436 meters away, and not far from the two targets, the disturbing soldiers also ignited the waste tires, and the thick black smoke quickly made the target in the aiming mirror become blurred under the gentle breeze.
"With a posture like that, isn't it disadvantageous for 400-meter shooting?" All along, the sitting posture has been an extremely uncomfortable one. Many people like to set up a good position and quietly lie there, waiting for targets or shooting through the scope, but I guess this time the "sniper" who got punched in the chest especially the upper body will find it a bit difficult to get up from the ground."
The two were loading their guns when a sudden explosion was heard from the opposite side, and the disturbed soldiers took advantage of the two's concentrated attention to use a loud hand grenade to disrupt the peaceful atmosphere. People with poor psychological quality would probably be scared out of their wits by this sudden shock, and the action of looking up to see what happened was enough to reveal that they were not easily frightened.
As soon as the bullet was loaded, the little soldier said: "When we were training before, our comrade's back was also a good shooting platform." After saying that, he relaxed his body and the wounded sniper fired. With a loud bang, the bullet flew towards the target at high speed, rotating rapidly. The force of gravity and air resistance gradually made its trajectory curve, and after flying out in an arc, it hit the center of the target's forehead. The bullet penetrated about one centimeter below the eyebrow. Of course, the strong recoil also shook him, who was already injured, making him grit his teeth and almost fall over due to the rearward force.
"Not bad, 400 meters side pose and it's the left eye, I can actually hit that position. I think I can only win this round if I hit the center of my eyebrow!" After finishing speaking, the officer also fired his gun, but as "Sniper" said, he was just an "amateur", unable to create a miracle, and simply repeated the previous scene, with both sides ending in a tie.
It's clear that the poor wind speed in the shooting range and the damned smoke made it impossible for both of them to hit the bullseye, but this segment was just a warm-up after all. What comes next will be even more challenging.
The two men stood facing each other at a distance of about 120 meters, where the ten names had placed two bricks, each with an ink bottle on its edge, but it was not the shooting target. Instead, it was the 12.7mm machine gun bullets carefully placed by the soldiers on the ink bottle caps that shone brightly in the sunlight, and they were the targets of the judges and the little soldier.
"Is this the good topic you gave me?" After watching several soldiers on the opposite side busy setting up a special target, "Sniper" could only smile wryly and say: "Last time we let you shoot at coconut shells, and what you ate was also coconut. I wonder if this time you're determined to make me drink ink?" After finishing speaking, the injured "Sniper" had no choice but to lie down and shoot, and the side posture was not the most suitable choice for shooting this kind of target. However, after lying down and looking through the scope for a while, he still felt it was not feasible.
"Drink ink? I don't have that habit. Shooting machine gun bullets is indeed a bit difficult, but I've heard someone can complete it, and many people are trying. Today, you're in the right state of mind, so let's challenge each other to see who can hit that small bullet."
The officer didn't use a sniper rifle's scope, trying to take a look at the shooting target from far away. With the naked eye, he could hardly see the machine gun bullet he was about to hit, just like standing at the finish line or even further back on a 100-meter standard track and looking at the starting line to see how big the thumb of the person in the starting position is when they touch the ground, extremely difficult.
After two gunshots, the ink bottle on the opposite side was not shattered and splashed with thick black ink, but the machine gun bullets standing on it did not fall either. "Number one missed, number two missed!" Not long after, the loudspeaker on the opposite side transmitted a disheartening voice, of course, the bullets flying out of the barrel didn't need to report the target, and the two shooters also knew whether they hit or not.
"If you have the chance, you must see for yourself someone who can hit a bullet with another bullet. Although this standard rifle bullet is also 7.62mm, it's not a specialized sniper bullet after all. If someone can really hit a machine gun bullet from over 100 meters away using a sniper rifle, their level of skill goes without saying - a great person is just that."
The wounded sniper once again heard the unpleasant sound of gunfire, but he didn't get angry. Instead, he became more interested. A small soldier in a remote island, apart from reading newspapers and listening to the casual conversations of his superiors, how would he know about these interesting events happening inland? Although his spirit was somewhat displeased after being hit once, the idea of continuing to challenge soon took over his entire mind. Of course, he deeply knew why he could only be a sniper in his unit - there must be areas where he wasn't skilled enough.
"We've tied again!" The officer picked up the shell and turned to the little soldier, "No one in our division has tried shooting at such a special target, I'm sure no one in your unit has either. I heard rumors about this bullet target from my division commander, who mentioned it casually after our martial arts competition meeting. He said that someone in the Liu Zhou division could achieve such results with the same rifle and sniper rifle. Anyway, we've tied again, why don't we try other projects? You're definitely fine at 600 meters, but have you tried 800 meters?"
"Why don't you let the soldiers in your camp try it out? If our people knew about this trick, they would have tried it long ago!" After finishing speaking, the little soldier tried to see if he could clearly hit a target around 800 meters away with the four-fold magnification scope. However, after trying again and again, he still felt that it was not just a general blur, especially since the burning tire was now burning even more fiercely due to the increasing wind power. The dense black smoke, although gradually dispersing, still greatly affected his shooting line of sight. "I can try, but it looks like I'll have to be punished with eating fruit?"
As expected, he lost as predicted, but the next project won a game back, and the two people who didn't give in to each other continued to fight until they finished 20 rounds of bullets. Not long after, there was a boxing match, and I didn't have the leisure to continue trying out my marksmanship there.
The two men used a sniper rifle that was first widely equipped by the People's Army in early 1915, abandoning traditional design concepts. This gun inherited Zhang Yu's plagiaristic tradition, so the entire gun is almost a 20th-century version of some later sniper rifle. It has green and black finishes and is called "Sharp Shield" due to its excellent accuracy, referring to its use of sharp bullets to build a strong shield for class soldiers. Of course, this shield is also lethal and can be called the direct "cannon" and rapid precise firepower support tool of the class troops. In several live-fire exercises, it achieved considerable results.
This rifle can hit a head-sized target at 400 meters, and a chest-sized target at 600 meters. The accuracy of the sniper is also very high at distances over 800 meters. He's just an infantryman with a slightly higher level of marksmanship, but his skills are definitely not the lowest. Even after being injured, he can still hit a head-sized target at 400 meters and a target at 800 meters. Of course, he can't be compared to a "judge officer" who has reached their peak state.
The semi-automatic sniper rifle gives the shooter a higher rate of fire, while the cold-forged barrel has excellent bore finish, dimensional accuracy and surface strength, and its service life is extremely long. The 650mm-long barrel is completely free-floating on the stock, only connected to the barrel sleeve, with no contact points with the handguard, and uses an extended receiver, the length of the barrel seat reaches 51mm, making the barrel and receiver combination very solid, thus greatly improving shooting accuracy. In addition, the 7.62mm standard high-power cartridge used by this rifle has a very high probability of instant death for the target hit. Therefore, although the "official nickname" of this rifle is elegantly called "Sharp Shield", it is actually jokingly referred to as "Death God" by the soldiers.
Of course, the People's Army and some of the weapons they are equipped with have not undergone sufficient war testing, and whether they can adapt to the needs of future wars is definitely an unknown question that no one can answer. But why worry about future things now, grasping the present is the most important thing, especially for the players on the battlefield and the soldiers who vent their emotions through competition.
"Great!!"
As the competition progresses, the scenes of strong dialogue emerge one after another. Characters who were previously just small soldiers can now reasonably use rules to "beat up" officers with higher military ranks than themselves, even if they are not from their own unit. Of course, it's not just the contestants who are excited, but also the audience, mostly made up of soldiers, who see this as a rare opportunity to vent their frustrations. Watching their usual strict and demanding superiors being defeated by ordinary soldiers is incredibly satisfying. However, seeing the "big-headed" soldiers get beaten up also evokes feelings of regret. Nevertheless, they still shout "good luck" to both sides and applaud enthusiastically, unsure who they are cheering for.
The lively competition lasted for three weeks before it came to an end. Under the special hospitality of the host, many officials and soldiers who came to participate in the competition stayed for a month before returning to their units. The extra week was mostly used to hold various friendly matches, including football, basketball, shooting, physical fitness tests, etc., both military and sports events were brought out to compete with each other, and chess also became a way of communication.
"If we really expand this competition, turning it into a sports gala covering the entire military or even the entire autonomous region, the effect might be better than now. At that time, the promotion of sports such as continuous struggle and mutual assistance will not only have an impact on the military but also on society, which needs such galas to let more people participate in them, share the joy and fun of competition, and enhance friendship."
The officers and men in the troops need a suitable way to relieve their tense emotions, especially for the long-term dull life, they need proper adjustment. For the people's army who are always ready to fight, they have heavy responsibilities on their shoulders, and they need necessary time to relax. After finishing reading the final report of the first military combat championship, closing the file folder, rubbing his sour eyes, drinking a big cup of strong bitter tea, and then opening another file report. Of course, the idea that suddenly flashed in his mind just now was deeply remembered in his heart.
A thrilling match can bring a lot of significance. A small competition can also give rise to different wonderful moments.
