93: Chapter 93 100 Push-ups

"Take a ten-minute break now."

It was past three in the afternoon, and the group, having trained for an hour, could finally catch their breath.

As soon as the words fell, the formation scattered; some headed straight for the shade to collapse, some ran to get water, and others pulled out their phones to scroll.

Chen Fan also took out his phone and discovered a missed call from the company's accountant.

His phone had been on silent during military training, so he hadn't heard it.

Under normal circumstances, practically no one from the company would call him directly. Since they had, it must be something important.

He stood up and walked toward the bleachers at the northernmost end of the field. It was quieter there, making it easier to talk.

He called the accountant back, and she answered immediately.

"Manager Chen."

"Sister Fang, what did you need me for?"

"It's like this, tomorrow is payday. The bank's payroll system needs the submission before work ends today. I just sent the payroll sheet to your email. Would you like to take a look at it now?"

Hearing the accountant's words, Chen Fan remembered that it was already the 9th, and tomorrow, the 10th, was payday.

"Let me take a look first, and I'll get back to you once I've confirmed it."

"Alright, Manager Chen."

Hanging up, he opened Safari, entered the login URL for QQ Mail, and logged into the mobile version. In this day and age, QQ Mail didn't have an app yet, so it could only be accessed via the web version.

The screen was small, and loading was slow. He swiped a few times, found the email the accountant had sent, and opened the attached image.

The image detailed everyone's name, position, attendance days, base salary, gross salary, personal portion of social insurance and housing fund, net pay, and so on.

Including Chen Fan himself. As the boss, he had set his own salary at 20,000 yuan per month.

He scanned it column by column, confirming there were no issues.

After confirming, Chen Fan called the accountant back.

"Hello, Manager Chen."

"I've reviewed the payroll details you sent; there are no issues."

"Alright, alright. Shall I submit it to online banking then? After submission, you'll receive an authorization notification on your phone; just approve it."

"Okay, go ahead and submit it."

Shortly after hanging up, his phone vibrated.

It was a text message: [China Merchants Bank] You have a pending authorization: payroll distribution, amount 52,772.00 yuan. Please log in to your corporate mobile banking to process it in a timely manner.

The reason the company chose China Merchants Bank for its account was that in July of this year, the bank officially launched its corporate mobile banking. It didn't require downloading a client; it could be used by accessing it through a browser, including payroll authorization.

He opened Safari, entered the URL, clicked, and entered his password. After a series of complicated operations, the authorization was successful.

After authorizing, Chen Fan checked the time.

His eyes widened instantly.

Over twenty minutes had passed since he left the formation.

The instructor had said to take a ten-minute break; he was already over ten minutes late.

He hurried back toward the formation as fast as he could.

When he reached the company, he found that training had already started. The formation was neat, the chants were deafening, and everyone was goose-stepping from one end to the other.

Chen Fan stood to the side and waited for a moment. Once that row had finished passing, he stepped forward.

"Reporting," he said, his expression unchanged.

Liu Qiong turned around, glanced at him, and then lifted her wrist to check the time.

"Thirteen minutes late. Where did you go?"

"Reporting, nothing much, just late."

Chen Fan didn't want to make excuses. Being late wasn't a huge deal; usually, the instructor would just scold you a bit and let it go. In more serious cases, there might be corporal punishment, but to Chen Fan, none of it mattered.

"Fine, you've got guts," Liu Qiong nodded. "One hundred pushups."

Chen Fan didn't show any expression on his face. He replied, "Yes," and immediately dropped to the ground where he stood.

One. Two. Three.

His movements were neither fast nor slow, but every one was done with perfect form. When he went down, his chest almost touched the ground, and when he came up, his arms fully extended. He didn't slack off in the slightest.

People nearby were secretly counting. When he reached ten or twenty, some were sweating for him, but by the time he hit thirty-something, they noticed his breathing hadn't even become ragged.

...

Ninety-two. Ninety-three. Ninety-four.

Ninety-nine. One hundred.

After finishing the one hundred pushups, Chen Fan stood up, brushed the dust off his hands, and his chest rose and fell slightly.

A thin layer of sweat had beaded on his forehead, but his breathing remained steady, and his face hadn't flushed much.

A flash of surprise crossed Liu Qiong's eyes.

When she said one hundred, she hadn't expected him to be able to complete one hundred standard pushups, nor had she even expected him to finish half.

According to her thinking, he should have been unable to hold on around forty or fifty. At that point, she would have taken the opportunity to call a stop, let him return to the ranks, and that would have been enough to make the point.

She had been a soldier for many years and had served as a student military training instructor several times. Not to mention college students, many new recruits who had been training for months didn't have Chen Fan's level of physical fitness.

"Have you trained before?" Liu Qiong looked at him.

"Reporting, I work out regularly." Chen Fan stood straight.

Liu Qiong looked him up and down, then nodded without pressing further.

"Return to your unit."

"Yes."

...

Seven in the evening, the sky was gradually darkening.

The lights on the sports field turned on one by one, illuminating the training grounds brightly.

The company Chen Fan was in was very quiet.

Everyone was sitting on the ground in unison, arranged in neat rows and columns.

Although they were resting, their posture remained rigid and upright. After a tiring day, being able to sit down was the greatest happiness; no one dared to slump around.

In front of the formation, Liu Qiong was also sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"We won't be training tonight."

Some people in the crowd's eyes lit up, but they didn't dare make a sound.

Liu Qiong scanned the entire group. Once the slight commotion died down, she continued, "However—"

As soon as those two words came out, some people's hearts skipped a beat.

"However, not training doesn't mean we have nothing to do," Liu Qiong paused. "Tonight, we're having an activity."

An activity?

Some people exchanged glances.

"Those who can sing, those who can tell jokes, those who can do flips—whatever talents you have, show them off."

Liu Qiong's tone was rarely this relaxed. "Tonight, there are no instructors, only an audience. You perform, I watch."

"Is there anyone who wants to volunteer?"

It was quiet for a few seconds.

Then someone in the back row shouted, "The instructor first!"

The formation burst into laughter.

Liu Qiong looked up in that direction, her face showing no anger.

She smiled slightly, and then, amidst the expectant gazes of everyone, she said, "Fine, then I'll go first. But if no one comes up after I'm done, then it's a group five-kilometer run for everyone."

Having said that, she stood up, brushed the dirt off her pants, and took a step forward. The lights shone on her tanned face, and her eyes beneath her military cap were bright.

"I'll sing a song."

Liu Qiong cleared her throat, not being coy at all, and began directly:

"If pride hadn't been coldly slapped down by the ocean of reality"