89: Chapter 89 The children of the Su family certainly deserve 'special care'

The female soldiers' screams rose and fell; some even slumped to the ground, scrambling backward with their hands and feet.

"Blegh—"

Lin Yu covered her mouth and dry-heaved, her face as pale as paper. Since she was a child, she had been most afraid of cockroaches. Now, seeing two large boxes filled with the lively, scurrying insects, her stomach churned.

"This... this isn't real..." Li Xue tremblingly pushed her non-existent glasses—she had lost them during the thorn bush training. Her high myopia meant she could only see a blur of dense black dots in the boxes, but this only intensified her fear.

Su Han casually grabbed a handful of cockroaches, letting them crawl between his fingers. "What? Scared already?"

He walked up to a shivering female soldier and held out the cockroaches in his hand. "Want a taste? Their protein content is six times that of beef."

"No... no!" the female soldier screamed, backing away and nearly knocking over the comrade behind her.

Su Han smiled, his fingers lightly toying with the cockroaches in the glass box, letting them crawl over his hand.

"Comrades, quiet!"

His voice wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced the chaotic scene. The female soldiers looked at him in horror, as if they were looking at a terrifying demon.

"I know what you're thinking." Su Han casually picked up a few cockroaches and toyed with them in his palm. "You think I'm intentionally torturing you? You think this isn't something humans should eat?"

He shook his head slightly, the smile on his face gradually fading. "But I'm telling you, on a real battlefield, when you're lurking behind enemy lines, being able to have such high-protein food is a stroke of incredible luck!"

The female soldiers looked at each other; no one dared to respond.

Su Han walked to the long table and lightly tapped the glass box. "A cockroach has six times the protein content of an equal weight of beef, but only one-third the fat. In a wilderness survival situation, they are the most easily accessible source of nutrition."

His gaze swept across every pale face. "Imagine you've been lurking behind enemy lines for three days and nights, out of ammunition and food. At that time, would you choose to starve to death, or eat these 'delicacies'?"

Lin Yu suppressed her nausea, her voice trembling. "Report... Chief Instructor... do Special Forces Soldiers really have to eat this?"

"Of course!" Su Han nodded without hesitation. "Not just cockroaches, but earthworms, ants, and even rats! As long as it can sustain life, you can eat anything!"

As he spoke, he suddenly grabbed a handful of cockroaches, stuffed them directly into his mouth, and began to chew.

"Crunch— crunch—"

The crisp sound of chewing was exceptionally piercing in the silent training ground. The female soldiers' eyes widened, and several could no longer hold back their dry heaves.

Su Han swallowed without changing his expression, even licking his lips. "Tastes pretty good. A bit salty, with a nutty aroma."

"Report!" Lin Yu raised her hand, suppressing her nausea. "Chief Instructor, we clearly smelled the scent of braised pork!"

The other female soldiers also realized. "Yes! And the smell of sweet and sour ribs!"

The corners of Su Han's mouth curled up as he pointed to another table covered with a white cloth. "Are you talking about that?"

The female soldiers looked at each other, but no one dared to step forward to check.

"Go on," Su Han encouraged. "Lift it and see."

Lin Yu summoned her courage and walked tremblingly toward the table, suddenly whipping off the tablecloth—

"Wow!"

On the table were genuine delicacies: braised pork, sweet and sour ribs, steamed fish, poached shrimp... The aroma was mouth-watering.

The female soldiers' eyes widened, unable to process the sight for a moment.

Su Han walked to the food table with his hands behind his back. "The instructors have been training with you all day and are tired. This is their reward."

As he spoke, he beckoned to Zhou Mo and the others nearby. "Come, come, time to eat!"

The members of the War Eagle Squad walked over grinning, sat down ostentatiously, and began to enjoy the feast.

"Mmm! This braised pork is stewed so tenderly!" Monkey exaggeratedly chewed.

"The fish is fresh too!" Big Bear picked up a large piece of fish and stuffed it into his mouth.

The female soldiers stood to the side, watching eagerly, their mouths almost watering.

"Want some?" Su Han picked up a piece of braised pork and waved it in front of the female soldiers. "You can. As long as you quit, you can come over and enjoy it with us."

The female soldiers: "..."

"Now, everyone must eat at least twenty. Those who don't can immediately withdraw from the selection!"

The female soldiers: "..."

The air seemed to freeze.

Su Qingcheng stood at the front of the line, her face as pale as paper.

As a member of the Su Family, although she had received strict training since childhood, eating live insects was a first for her.

"T-Chief Instructor," her voice wavered, "can we... cook them before eating?"

Su Han raised an eyebrow. "When you're lurking behind enemy lines, can you still start a fire and cook?"

Su Qingcheng: "..."

"I'll count to three," Su Han said with his hands behind his back. "Those who don't eat will be immediately eliminated!"

"One—"

The female soldiers looked at each other, and some had already begun to cry.

"Two—"

Lin Yu suddenly took a step forward, her hand trembling. "I... I'll do it!"

She closed her eyes, quickly grabbed a cockroach from the box, and without even daring to look, threw it directly into her mouth.

"Blegh—"

After just one chew, she couldn't help dry-heaving, but she forced herself to swallow it.

"Very good!" Su Han nodded approvingly. "Nine more to go."

Lin Yu's tears flowed freely, but she continued to reach out and grab more.

With the first person having started, the other female soldiers also stepped forward one after another.

Zhang Meng had an expression of facing death, grabbing cockroaches and stuffing them into her mouth, swallowing them whole without even chewing.

Su Qingcheng looked at the dense mass of cockroaches in the box, her stomach churning.

But thinking of the Su Family's rules and the oath she had made, she gritted her teeth and reached out—

"Wait."

Su Han suddenly stopped her and pulled a small cloth bag from his pocket. "Yours are in here."

Su Qingcheng took it in confusion and opened it, nearly fainting—the bag contained over a dozen even larger cockroaches, still wriggling incessantly!

"T-Chief Instructor!" Her voice went up an octave.

Su Han smiled slightly. "Children of the Su Family, of course, need 'special care'."

The female soldiers: "..."