Chapter 81

On New Year's Eve at noon, Liu Handong finally returned to his home in Jiangbei. Due to the large number of migrant workers returning home, the city seemed much emptier than usual, and the roads were no longer congested. The air was filled with the scent of the New Year, but for some reason, it felt much less festive than when he was a child.

Liu Handong's family situation was rather special. His mother had remarried many years ago and had little contact with the Liu family. His stepfather, He Jian, was from another place and had no family left. Therefore, during holidays, they always celebrated alone, and his son had to run back and forth between the two families. The New Year's Eve dinner was always at his grandfather's house.

Around four in the afternoon, they started preparing the New Year's Eve dinner. The coal factory dormitory was filled with the aroma of cooking. At six o'clock, the dinner began. The three of them faced a table full of delicious dishes, and his mother smiled and said, "Xiaodong, put on your uniform."

Although he was reluctant, Liu Handong still changed into his police uniform and carefully put on his peaked cap. His mother was overjoyed, "My son is a police officer now, he has a bright future." As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes, just like when Liu Handong first came home in his military uniform eight years ago.

"Stop crying during the New Year, let's drink." He Jian raised his glass and, as the head of the family, gave a few words of encouragement, mostly about moving forward and living a good life. His mother and Liu Handong raised their glasses and began to eat, chatting and laughing, enjoying a warm and harmonious atmosphere.

After the meal, Liu Handong carried the prepared dishes and walked to his grandfather's house in the Binhe neighborhood to spend the New Year with the elderly. The house was cold and quiet, with no preparations made. His uncle's family didn't come, and his grandfather sat alone on a bamboo recliner, watching TV.

As usual, Liu Handong cooked in the kitchen, reheated the dishes he brought, and made a pot of dumplings. He served them steaming hot, and the Spring Festival Gala had already started on TV.

Grandfather took out a bottle of aged Maotai from the cabinet and said, "Xiaodong, let's drink this today."

"This is Maotai from 1982, older than I am. Isn't it too extravagant?" Liu Handong marveled at the bottle. Grandfather had many good things hidden away; when he was a child, he even found a Browning under his pillow. This bottle of Maotai was just one of Grandfather's many treasures.

"Grandfather doesn't have many years left. If not during the New Year, when will I drink it? Open it!" Although old, Grandfather still maintained his military demeanor, decisive and unyielding.

Liu Handong opened the Maotai, and the aroma filled the room. Suddenly, a voice came from outside, "What kind of wine is that, so fragrant!" It turned out to be his uncle's family, who had also finished their dinner and came to spend the New Year with the elderly and watch the gala.

The Liu family gathered around the round table, and Zhu Jun on TV began to stir emotions. They drank and watched TV, but the atmosphere was somewhat somber. After a while, his uncle spoke, "Dad, Hanan has a girlfriend. She's nice, but she complains that Hanan doesn't have a house..."

"Is marriage about having a house? A woman like that is not worth it." Liu Xiaoyong said sternly.

His uncle was silenced and didn't speak again.

His aunt said, "Dad, why do you keep so much money? The interest in the bank is so low. You should lend it out and get a 12.5% interest, paid monthly, it's very safe."

"When did the Communist Party allow private banks?" Liu Xiaoyong asked.

His aunt said, "The Hanwei Financing Company in the provincial capital has a branch in Jiangbei. It's a legitimate company with huge assets, more than any bank."

"I think they're scammers," Grandfather said, though old, he was not confused. "With the current economic situation, there's no way to have such high interest rates. There must be something fishy."

The conversation was not going well, and his uncle's family ate the meal without much enthusiasm. His uncle called his son, who was playing on his phone on the sofa, "Hanan, stop playing. It's late, let's go home."

After his uncle's family left, the house became cold and quiet again. Liu Xiaoyong picked up the wine bottle, "Xiaodong, let's finish this bottle of Maotai."

New Year's Eve passed, and on the morning of New Year's Day, Ma Ling called to wish him a happy New Year. Liu Handong even put the call on speaker so his grandfather could hear the voice of his future granddaughter-in-law. After Ma Ling's call, many friends called to wish him a happy New Year, including a long-distance call from the United States. Shu Fan still remembered this big brother.

The Spring Festival holiday was only six days long. Liu Handong gathered with some fellow veterans from Jiangbei and, following his mother's wishes, wore his police uniform to visit some of her old colleagues and friends. These retired aunts and uncles were envious and offered to introduce Liu Handong to potential partners.

"My son has already found a girlfriend, a driver for the provincial capital's bus company, a permanent employee," his mother said proudly.

Liu Handong was only a three-year contract police officer with no law enforcement authority or official police number, but in his mother's eyes, he was a real police officer. Liu Handong deliberately didn't mention the contract police status, letting the elderly be proud for a while.

The holiday ended quickly, and Liu Handong returned to the provincial capital, leaving his Fukan parked on Tiesha Street. He went to the police academy for a three-month closed training program.

This winter was quite cold. One hundred and fifty cadets, dressed in thin physical training uniforms, stood on the windy parade ground. Zhang Y森, with a whistle around his neck and wearing a dark blue training uniform, stood in front of them and began to speak.

"From today, you are part of the state's law enforcement machinery! For three months of closed training, no leave, no unauthorized departures, no communication devices during training. Those who disobey the rules will be criticized once, reprimanded twice, and expelled on the third offense!"

The cadets were silent, no one dared to whisper.

Zhang Y森, with his temples gray and sharp eyes, scanned the crowd, his tone softening, "I know many of you have connections and will be assigned to good units after training. In a year or two, you'll get a permanent position. But in the training camp, I don't care who you are related to or who recommended you. If you anger me, even the son of the emperor will be kicked out!"

No one spoke, only the wind howled.

"Understood?"

"Understood!" The one hundred and fifty cadets shouted in unison.

The so-called rigorous closed training was not as intense as basic training. The training was within the police academy, and it wasn't really closed. However, the training hours were long, and there was political study after dinner. By the time they went to bed, they were all exhausted, with no energy to go out. Some cadets with weaker willpower even cried while calling home at night.

The daily wake-up call, long-distance running, and training made Liu Handong and Lin Lianan, who were veterans, feel like they were back in the military. They quickly adapted to this life and excelled in physical training, with Liu Handong being the undisputed champion in all subjects.

Chang Jin and Sui Muxin were former soccer players from the sports school who had represented the Jinjiang soccer team. Like most soccer players, they were good at drinking, gambling, chasing girls, and fighting, but not at playing soccer. They were exhausted after a five-kilometer cross-country run.

To facilitate management, Zhang Y森 decided to select cadres from the trainees, one squad leader and five platoon leaders. When the news spread, the cadets called home that night, and various recommendations came in. However, Zhang Y森 was impervious to all of them. The next day, he displayed all the recommendations in class, embarrassing the cadets.

"Before you even enter society, you're already using connections and seeking favors. If you become police officers, how can the people have a good life?" Zhang Y森 scolded the cadets harshly and then announced the appointments.

"Liu Handong!"

"Here!"

"From now on, you are the squad leader of the special police trainees!"

"Yes!"

Liu Handong took the squad leader's armband from Zhang Y森 and saluted confidently.

Zhang Y森 returned the salute, his eyes showing a hint of appreciation.

The one hundred and fifty trainees were divided into five platoons, four male and one female. The platoon leaders were all appointed by Zhang Y森, with no democracy or election. What the instructor said was final, and no one was allowed to argue.

After class, Zhang Y森 called Liu Handong to his office. "Come to my office later."

Five minutes later, Liu Handong entered the office, reporting and entering. The large office was empty except for Zhang Y森, as the police academy was on winter break.

Zhang Y森 lit a cigarette and called Liu Handong to his desk, asking, "Do you know why I made you squad leader?"

Many reasons flashed through Liu Handong's mind. Was it because Song Jianfeng had recommended him, or because he had been awarded in the military, or because he was the top performer in physical training? None of these seemed to fit. He couldn't think of a reason and replied loudly, "Report, I don't know."

Zhang Y森 flicked the ash from his cigarette, "I read your file. You were discharged early and were administratively detained in September. You were even in a group fight the night before you joined the police. Such a person shouldn't even be accepted."

Liu Handong remained silent.

"You are connected to Secretary Shen, who is very measured. His recommendation was likely at the behest of Director Song, but the more such people I see, the more I despise them."

Liu Handong was even more confused, wondering what Zhang Y森 was getting at.

Zhang Y森 continued, "I made you squad leader because I think you are still salvageable. I want to give you a responsibility to see if you can grow. Remember, you are the leader of one hundred and fifty people. If anything happens to the trainees, I will hold you responsible, whether it's an injury or a violation of discipline."

"Yes!" Liu Handong replied loudly.

"Get out."

...

As squad leader, Liu Handong had the support of the trainees and the backing of Zhang Y森. He had everything he wanted. Chang Jin and Sui Muxin, who had planned to be troublemakers, saw the situation and backed down, not daring to challenge Liu Handong.

The long-awaited live-fire training finally began, including training with pistols, submachine guns, and assault rifles. The training started with classroom instruction on the structure of firearms. An old instructor from the police academy held a disassembled Type 54 pistol and gave a slow, detailed lecture. The trainees were restless, eager to handle real guns.

After the theory class, the trainees entered the shooting range and practiced shooting in batches. Each trainee had an old Type 54 pistol and five rounds. The first-time gun handlers were excited. Chang Jin waved his pistol around, aiming it at Sui Muxin.

Suddenly, a strong force came from behind, and Chang Jin was kicked to the ground. Rolling over, he saw Liu Handong standing behind him, looking imposing. Chang Jin was furious, his face red, and he rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight Liu Handong in front of many female classmates.

The range instructor quickly arrived, scolding Chang Jin and ordering him to leave the range.

"How many times have I told you, never point a gun at anyone! Are you stupid or deaf?" the instructor shouted.

"There are no bullets in the gun!" Chang Jin argued.

"Even without bullets, it's dangerous." The instructor took Chang Jin's pistol, removed the magazine, checked the chamber, and fired a blank shot, which left a dent in the concrete floor.

Sui Muxin's face turned pale. If Chang Jin had fired, he would have been hit, and although it wouldn't have been fatal, it would have left a bloody wound.

Chang Jin was speechless but still glared at Liu Handong with hatred. Being kicked in front of everyone was a humiliation he couldn't swallow. He dusted off his pants and left the range, receiving a reprimand.

The first live-fire training session was generally poor, and Liu Handong was no exception. However, the instructor was not angry, as the police academy's guns were worn out and inaccurate.

That night, Chang Jin got out of bed, put on his clothes quietly, and nudged Sui Muxin, "Wake up."

"What's up, Brother Jin?" Sui Muxin opened his small eyes.

"Let's beat up Liu Handong. Wait for him in the toilet. I don't believe he won't go to the toilet." Chang Jin said fiercely.

"Okay!" Sui Muxin got up, put on his training uniform, and took a mop to the toilet, waiting for Liu Handong.

They waited until midnight, but no one came. Sui Muxin was freezing, his nose running. Chang Jin was also impatient, "Let's go out for a drink."

"That's against the rules," Sui Muxin said, timidly.

"Zhang Y森 won't come at night. What are you afraid of?" Chang Jin was bold, having often sneaked out to drink and party when he was in the sports school.

They climbed out of the toilet window and slid down the water pipe. Just as they left, Lin Lianan came in, saw them, but didn't say anything, watching them sneak over the wall and disappear into the night.

Lin Lianan returned to the dormitory and woke Liu Handong, "Squad leader, Chang Jin and Sui Muxin ran away."

Liu Handong jumped up, "Damn, why didn't you stop them? Unauthorized departure from the training camp is grounds for expulsion."

Lin Lianan said with a smirk, "Isn't that good?"

Liu Handong said, "It doesn't matter if they are expelled, but I will be punished as squad leader."