From the 7th Steel Company to the Synthetic Division

Chapter 494 A First-Class Merit is Possible
"Hey~"

Chu Zhangang sighed, put the cup on the table, and said expressionlessly, "It's unlikely that he'll return to the army now. I tried to persuade him, and you tried to persuade him, but we couldn't convince him no matter what we did."

If only he had listened to a single word of advice, he could have waited a little longer. Ding Kai would have been the brigade commander, and he would have been the chief of staff—wouldn't that have been perfect? ​​But he just couldn't hold his temper and kept making a mess of things.”

Chu Zhangang looked at him with a disappointed expression, then picked up his cup and drank some tea.

It seems that tea is needed to cool down.

“Hong Yi is just stubborn. Although we have approved his transfer application and submitted it, Lao Chu, could you see if you could report Hong Yi’s situation again in the name of the brigade’s Party Committee and try to keep him?” Xu Xiaocun suggested.

"Old Xu, is there any precedent for this?" Chu Zhangang looked at Xu Xiaocun seriously.

“There’s no precedent for this.” Xu Xiaocun shook his head and smiled bitterly.

“Political Commissar, my political commissar, our brigade hasn’t finished its demobilization quota for this year. Bringing back someone who’s already slated for demobilization is something we need to be careful about. If we go back on our word, what will the higher-ups think? What if they investigate how our brigade’s Party Committee decided on this? We can’t explain it clearly.” Chu Zhangang said very seriously.

“We said that we didn’t consider everything at the time, but now we realize it and hope to get some remedies,” Xu Xiaocun pleaded.

“Xu Xiaocun, do you think this is child’s play? Hmm, is this a joke? This is a disciplined military unit.”

Chu Zhangang retorted sternly, "Actually, if the Seventh Steel Brigade had this idea earlier, they could have brought it up directly when Chen Jun came last time."

Wouldn't a single order from the theater army solve the problem?
His 7th Steel Brigade is a newly established unit, and it's Chief of Staff Shen's elite force. Is it really that difficult to transfer someone there? If Hong Yi really goes to the 7th Steel Brigade, I think it would be a good place for him to utilize his military talents.”

Chu Zhangang's attitude was very clear: he did not want Hong Yi to return to the 909th Brigade.

No matter how talented Hong Yi is.

"Actually, I know Hong Yi quite well; he doesn't want to leave the army..."

"Yes Yes Yes."

Chu Zhangang impatiently interrupted Xu Xiaocun, saying, "We don't want him to leave, but he insists on leaving. What can we do?"
He's fighting against himself, and in the end, he's the one who suffers. Do you understand?
He's already very lucky to be able to become the captain of the municipal GA bureau; he should be content.

Look at our other demobilized officers, how many of them have such good conditions as him? If he still comes to cause you trouble, advise him to be careful.

The military reform isn't over yet; there will definitely be more adjustments. Several batches of people in our brigade will definitely leave. The position of captain of the Special Police Battalion of the Municipal Public Security Bureau can't be held for him forever; he should seize the opportunity while he can."

Although Chu Zhangang had some reservations about Hong Yi, what he said was indeed true.

If Chen Jun hadn't tried to win him over, staying at the GA Bureau as the captain of the Special J Brigade would indeed have been his best choice, much better than staying in the military.

"Hey, Lao Chu."

Xu Xiaocun sighed and said, "Even though Hong Yi's transfer procedures are in progress, the Municipal Public Security Bureau was afraid that someone as talented as him would be poached by others, so they hastily appointed him as the captain of a special police brigade."

"After the official transfer of your personnel file to the local level, the formal appointment will be issued. There will be a long time in between. Can you guarantee that the formal appointment will be issued?"

"you you you."

Chu Zhangang was annoyed by Xu Xiaocun. He pointed at Xu Xiaocun and said speechlessly, "You're just too sentimental. Do you even know if Hong Yi is willing to come back? Huh? You're already worrying about him here."

Yes, that's right, maybe my leaving was one reason why Hong Yi was willing to come back, but I think things are definitely not that simple.

What Chu Zhangang said is indeed true.

Seeing that Chu Zhangang did not support his idea, Xu Xiaocun had no way to say anything more, and then left after chatting casually.

……

the next day.

Chen Jun contacted Staff Officer Yang of the war zone early in the morning, told him about the situation he had encountered, and hoped that he could help mediate.

Staff Officer Yang was Chief of Staff Shen's "accompanying officer," taking him everywhere he went. Out of respect for Shen, Staff Officer Yang also gained a vast network of connections.

Chen Jun didn't want to bother the top leader directly, so he wanted to see if he could resolve the issue first.

However, Staff Officer Yang replied that the matter was very complicated, and instead of going through the trouble of bringing Hong Yi back, it would be better for Chen Jun to find another special forces officer.

Seeing that Staff Officer Yang couldn't solve the problem on his own, Chen Jun had no choice but to promote him to a higher rank.

I asked Staff Officer Yang to report to Chief of Staff Shen, giving a brief overview of Hong Yi's situation and hoping that Chief of Staff Shen could help resolve it.

Staff Officer Yang was, after all, just a staff officer. When it came to matters involving the next level up, he dared not be negligent in the slightest.

They quickly found Chief of Staff Shen and relayed Chen Jun's words. After listening to them, Chief of Staff Shen gave them a severe dressing-down.

"Isn't he just making trouble for no reason? At this stage of military reform, the transfer of cadres to civilian jobs has become the most difficult task."

They finally got his demobilization approved, and the local government offered him very good conditions. Why would they bring him back? Are they out of their minds?
Besides, why would he choose Hong Yi over everyone else? Aren't there enough people in our war zone for Chen Jun to choose from?

Chief of Staff Shen wasn't blaming Chen Jun, but he simply couldn't understand Chen Jun's frustrated words.

"He believes Hong Yi is the most suitable to be the battalion commander of the special operations battalion, and he has already convinced Hong Yi and agreed to some of Hong Yi's conditions," Staff Officer Yang explained.

"What are the conditions?" Chief of Staff Shen frowned.

"He didn't say that, but he did say he's already come looking for you," Staff Officer Yang said.

"Looking for me? Looking for me won't solve the problem. If he comes over, just tell him I've already left." Chief of Staff Shen both loved and hated Chen Jun. He was constantly adding to Chen Jun's workload, so since he couldn't afford to offend him, he could only avoid him.

"At this hour, they've probably already entered the compound," Chief of Staff Yang said helplessly, glancing at his watch.

"Then tell him I'm not here," Chief of Staff Shen instructed.

Chief of Staff Shen wasn't afraid of Chen Jun; it was just that Chen Jun was too outstanding, and Chief of Staff Shen genuinely liked him. He was afraid that if they met, he wouldn't be able to resist refusing Chen Jun's requests.

"it is good."

Staff Officer Yang nodded and turned to leave, but just as he reached the door, he heard a knock on the door and a very familiar, loud report.

Chief of Staff Shen knew immediately it was Chen Jun. There was no time to leave, so he could only hurry into the inner room.

As a senior commander at the theater command level, his office not only includes the outer office area, but also a small room inside, equipped with a bathroom and a small bedroom.

Seeing Chief of Staff Shen's demeanor, Staff Officer Yang's expression turned strange. A high-ranking officer being afraid of a brigade chief of staff below him.

He then took a few steps forward and opened the door.

As expected, it was Chen Jun standing outside the door. He walked straight in as soon as the door opened, his eyes scanning the office like a scanner.

"The commander is not here?" Chen Jun was a little annoyed when he looked around and did not see Chief of Staff Shen. He had come all this way specifically to see Chief of Staff Shen.

"Yes, the commander isn't here; he's gone out." Staff Officer Yang seemed genuinely guilty about lying.

"Out? Where did they go?" Chen Jun asked, frowning, sensing something was amiss.

"He went, uh, um, he went to SL officer's place," Staff Officer Yang stammered.

"That's not right. The notice came down a long time ago. Wasn't SL officer supposed to be on patrol with the troops?" Chen Jun looked at Staff Officer Yang with a strange expression in his eyes.

"Oh dear, look at my memory! Oh, I think I went to the political commissar's." Staff Officer Yang slapped his forehead, pretending that he had forgotten, but his acting skills were really poor.

"What about the political commissar? Is there a meeting?" Chen Jun became increasingly suspicious, staring intently at Staff Officer Yang.

Although Staff Officer Yang was a close associate of Chief of Staff Shen, his military rank was only that of a major, so Chen Jun really had no reservations about him.

"Uh, no."

Chief of Staff Yang felt extremely uncomfortable under Chen Jun's gaze; for someone who wasn't good at lying, every second felt like an eternity.

“If he’s not in a meeting, he should be back soon. I’ll sit here and wait for him.”

Judging from Yang's demeanor, Chen Jun was 100% certain that something was amiss, so he simply sat down on the sofa.

"Alright then, you sit here first, I'll go to the political commissar to take a look at it for you."

Staff Officer Yang had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue acting, planning to go to the political commissar's office and then come back to find a way to get Chen Jun to leave.

"that."

Chen Jun glanced at the door on the right, his intuition telling him that something was wrong. His eyes darted around, and he immediately had an idea.

She stood up, looking slightly flustered, and said, "I was in such a rush when I came that I drank a lot of water, and now I'm feeling a bit... well, can I use the restroom for a bit?"

After saying that, Chen Jun walked toward the door next to him, which startled Staff Officer Yang, who rushed over to stop him.

"No, no, no, the restroom inside is broken. Besides, Chief of Staff Shen doesn't like people going to his small restroom. If you're in a hurry, there's a public restroom at the end of the corridor outside. I'll take you there myself."

Staff Officer Yang gestured for Chen Jun to follow him to the restroom outside.

"Oh, is that so? Well, I'm not in a rush. What's wrong with the bathroom? Shall I take a look? I'm actually quite good at plumbing and electrical work."

Chen Jun was 100% certain that there was something wrong in the room inside, and that Chief of Staff Shen was most likely inside, which was why he said it on purpose.

Chen Jun found the experience of playing mind games with the war zone commander quite interesting.

"How can that be? You are the chief of staff of a brigade. How can I let you fix water pipes? If the commander finds out, he will criticize me."

Staff Officer Yang persuaded Chen Jun to sit down on the sofa and said warmly, "Please sit down first, I'll go get you a cup of tea."

"No need, I already need to use the restroom. If I drink tea, I'll definitely need to go, which will be inconvenient for you. You should go find the political commissar instead."

Chen Jun said this intentionally to the person inside; he found it quite exciting to tease his superior.

Staff Officer Yang knew very well that Chief of Staff Shen was inside. At this moment, he dared not leave Chen Jun alone. If Chen Jun rushed in, Chief of Staff Shen would be in a very awkward position.

So he had no choice but to stay and grit his teeth and continue the tug-of-war with Chen Jun.

Unfortunately, Chen Jun's intelligence and emotional intelligence completely outclassed Yang, who was no match for him and was soon dragged down to his bare bottom.

Having no other choice, Staff Officer Yang could only force himself to stay calm and pretended to go find the political commissar before leaving the room.

We'll figure something out once we get outside.

However, things just happened to coincide. No sooner had Staff Officer Yang left the office than the office phone rang. Chen Jun hesitated for two seconds before answering it.

"Hello, is this the Chief of Staff?" the person on the other end asked.

"I'm not the chief of staff. The chief of staff went to the political commissar's meeting." Chen Jun recognized the voice, but there was a distorted sound coming from the microphone, so he couldn't confirm who it was.

"I am the political commissar."

The person on the other end was furious when they heard this. These five short words made Chen Jun laugh. He never expected things to be so coincidental.

Chief of Staff Shen, who had been hiding inside listening, couldn't keep up the act any longer when he heard that it was the political commissar making the call.

She could only pull the door open in one go, and under Chen Jun's feigned fear but slightly amused gaze, she hurriedly ran over and snatched the microphone away.

"Hello, Political Commissar, it's me. What's up?"

Chief of Staff Shen couldn't attend to Chen Jun for the time being, so he could only call the political commissar to find out the situation.

Chen Jun knew the proper etiquette, so he immediately stood up and stood aside. After Chief of Staff Shen finished his call, he couldn't help but tease him again: "Commander, there are secret passages in your room, you can just come out in a flash, I didn't even see it."

Chief of Staff Shen glared at Chen Jun speechlessly, completely helpless against this shrewd fellow.

With a blank expression, he walked behind the desk, forcibly suppressing the awkwardness that was about to burst forth, and sat down in the chair, coldly saying, "What are you standing there for? To make yourself look taller?"

"Uh……"

Chen Jun was both amused and exasperated by the choking sound. Knowing that Chief of Staff Shen was in a bad mood, he didn't dare to provoke him any further and obediently sat down with his hands on his knees.

The more upright your posture, the better.

"That brat..."

Chief of Staff Shen's face remained expressionless, but inwardly he was laughing at Chen Jun's antics. One second Chen Jun was playing mind games with him, and the next he was acting like a good student.

Chen Jun is probably the only brigade chief of staff in the entire theater who dares to be so "unscrupulous" in front of him.

However, although Chief of Staff Shen liked Chen Jun more and more the more he looked at him, and truly treasured Chen Jun to the extreme, he was worried that Chen Jun would become arrogant because of this, so he did not show it.

He stared at Chen Jun with a blank expression and said, "Speak, what do you want from me?"

"Sir, it's about Hong Yi. It's a bit special, and I need your help. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come all this way and wasted your time."

After Chen Jun finished speaking, he even opened the bag he had brought and took out a newspaper from Chenghai City, handing it over.

He continued, "The people our army didn't want, the people who were approved for demobilization, earned merit within five days of arriving in their local areas. Even the provincial police department had to report them to the Ministry of Public Security. I heard they were awarded a second-class merit, and it's even possible they'll be awarded a first-class merit."

(End of this chapter)