“Hell Week” refers to extreme training conducted every two months, lasting seven days each cycle. All training takes place in the wilderness.
Upon hearing this, the chatting soldiers immediately shut their mouths.
As soon as the morning training ended, everyone rushed over to Huo Jingyuan. The single subordinates carefully examined the mark on his neck.
They weren’t unfamiliar with such marks—the political commissar would occasionally show off his own.
But the mark on Huo Jingyuan’s neck was something the political commissar couldn’t even compare to.
Huo Jingyuan maintained a calm expression, but inwardly, he was secretly pleased.
…
Wen Ci had just arrived at the hospital.
She overheard her colleagues talking about how cultural performance troupes from other regions would be coming to the Northwest Military Region for a military arts tour. During the event, the Northwest Military Region would also need to send people to perform on stage.
The hospital at the Northwest Military Region was also expected to contribute performers.
The military arts tour was held every six months as a reward for the soldiers stationed in the harsh conditions of the northwest. It was considered a welfare benefit for them.
Everyone’s gaze fell on Wen Ci.
Although Wen Ci’s household registration was from a rural area, she had grown up in the city of Beijing. Even if she didn’t have any special talents, her mere presence on stage would be a beautiful sight.
Wen Ci blinked and said, “I don’t know how to do anything…”
Back in school, she had never enjoyed performing on stage, let alone in the 1980s. She smiled gently and said, “If I go on stage, I’ll just be a decorative vase.”
“What do you mean by decorative vase?”
“Pleasant to look at but useless.”
The group burst into laughter. Su Wanqing walked over and asked, “Will the officers of the Northwest Military Region be watching the military arts tour from the audience?”
“Yes.”
Su Wanqing’s eyes sparkled as she said, “Can I participate? I can play the piano, the guzheng, and the xiao (a traditional Chinese flute). I also know a bit of Western dance.”
“Of course you can.”
Then, the head nurse turned her gaze to Wen Ci, studying her fair skin. She asked, “Comrade Wen Ci, can you perform the water sleeve dance?”
“I don’t know how…”
“You can learn. There’s half a month to prepare.”
Wen Ci frowned slightly, considering whether to agree. The water sleeve dance required a great deal of body flexibility. After a moment, she smiled and said,
“My body isn’t very flexible. If I perform the water sleeve dance on stage, I might embarrass our Northwest Military Region hospital.”
“You won’t be performing alone.”
Wen Ci: “…”
From the head nurse’s tone, it was clear that she was determined to have Wen Ci participate in the military arts performance.
The head nurse then turned her attention to Yu Qing. Among the single women at the Northwest Military Region with decent looks, aside from the newly arrived Su Wanqing, there was only Yu Qing left.
“Dr. Yu, can you participate?”
“I’m fine with it.”
Wen Ci sighed quietly to herself. Since Yu Qing had agreed to the head nurse’s request, it would be disrespectful for her to refuse now.
“Then the two of you will perform the water sleeve dance, okay? You can leave two hours early each day to practice.”
Wen Ci asked, “What about the costumes?”
The water sleeve dance not only required body flexibility but also high-quality costumes. If the materials were poor, the stage effect wouldn’t be good.
“How much funding do you need?” the head nurse asked.
Wen Ci shook her head, “We’ll need to go to Hai City to buy the materials.”
“How about 22 yuan for now?”
It cost 0.5 yuan to take the bus from the Northwest Military Region to Hai City. A round trip for two people would be 2 yuan, leaving 20 yuan, which should be enough.
After everyone dispersed, Wen Ci began thinking about the more visually stunning water sleeve dances from her memories of the future. In the 1980s, the water sleeve dance wasn’t yet standardized.
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