A Foil
Longjing tea had a fresh aroma and a mellow taste. The small pot of tea Xia Fei had brought was harvested before the Grain Rain season, so it was called Pre-Rain Longjing.
Usually, before the Grain Rain, it was the time when the tea tree had its first leaf and bud, which was when Longjing tea was the most fragrant and mellow, more elegant than Pre-Ming Longjing. This small pot only contained one tael of tea leaves, yet it was priced at twenty thousand federal dollars.
Qin Mangs picked up the purple sand teacup and took a sip. He immediately broke into a smile. Great tea! Great tea! The taste is softer than the Snow White Silver Needle. If the Snow White Silver Needle is like a gorgeous woman, then this kind of tea is like a budding young girl. Each has its own merits, and they are all excellent teas. I didn't expect to find such good tea in your hometown. "
Xia Fei smiled. If this tea is brewed with the local Longjing spring water, its taste will be even better. Since you like it so much, I have two more boxes here. Ill give them to you as well.
With that said, Xia Fei took out two small green pots from his spatial ring and placed them on the table. Qin Mangs did not stand on ceremony and kept the tea pots in his drawer.
Youre doing quite well in this hovercar race. A normal hovercar can actually run as fast as a professional hovercar after being modified by you. Who did you learn this from? Qin Mangs asked as he sipped on his tea.
Xia Fei lit a cigarette and said, This is what I learned from an uncle named Porter in the warship graveyard. Actually, Im still a long way off when it comes to modification skills, but Uncle Porter taught me a principle: No matter what machine it is, it has its limits. As long as you can find out where the limits of a machine are, you will be able to bring out its full potential.
Qin Mangs touched the sparse silver hair on his head as if he was trying to recall something.
Porter? That name sounds familiar. How old is he this year, and what does he look like? Qin Mangs asked.
Xia Fei described Porter's appearance to Qin Mangs and told him everything that had happened in the warship graveyard when he modified the ship from afar.
Qin Mangs eyes revealed an almost undetectable glint, appearing very excited.
Uncle Qin, do you know Old Porter? Xia Fei asked.
Qin Mangs shook his head. Nope, but I really want to get to know this person.
Heh, hes running an assembly factory in the warship graveyard. Though hes a little weird, you will realize that hes actually not that hard to get along with once you spend some time with him. If you ever want to buy a warship, Ill bring you to him, Xia Fei very sincerely offered.
Qin Mang laughed heartily. What do I need a warship for? At my age, I don't want to go out into space anymore. As long as I can retire in peace and enjoy a few days of peace, I'll be satisfied.
Xia Fei thought about it. "You should be at home with your grandchildren at your age, enjoying your family. Why are you still working?"
"Sigh!" Qin Mang sighed, scanning the empty library with his eyes. Easy for you to say. What will happen to these treasures when I retire?
"Isn't that easy? You can just get someone else to take over the library after you retire," Xia Fei said.
Qin Mang was silent for a few moments before changing the topic. "The training camp officially opens the day after tomorrow. Which division are you planning on joining?"
Xia Fei stubbed out his cigarette and shook his head. Nope. With so many divisions, it's really hard for me to choose. If there's anything that truly appeals to me, it's the mysterious internal division, but I don't have the right to enter it. As for the outer divisions, I just feel like they're all the same.
"Oh." Qin Mang curiously asked, "Why do you say that?"
Xia Fei sorted out his thoughts and said, "I've checked the rules of the training camp and realized that the training facilities are open to all cadets. That means that I can use the facilities to cultivate no matter which division I choose, so there's no difference.
"Second, not all the divisions will let you learn something useful just by joining. Be it the instructors or the courses, you'll need to pay a certain amount of points. Furthermore, different divisions can also learn from each other, which also means that a cadet from the exotic beast division can pay points to join the command division to learn tactics.
"That means that you'll be able to learn the basic courses of a division for free if you join. If you want to become an expert, just learning the basic courses is far from enough. Once you've decided on your main direction of attack, you'll need to calm down and slowly study it.
"From what I see, the most important thing is to earn points. With points, you can learn whatever you want. As for the free basic courses, to be honest, anyone with a normal mind can learn them after reading a few more times, so they're not attractive at all."
Qin Mang could not help but nod after hearing what Xia Fei had to say, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "Xia Fei, your analysis makes sense. The training camp isn't like a school. All it provides is an excellent training environment. As long as you're willing to put in the effort, you'll be able to succeed no matter which division you join."
Xia Fei nodded. "I've also realized that despite how big Heaven Execution Training Camp is, with so many people here, they're just there to serve as foils."
"What do you mean?" Qin Mang asked in confusion. "Is the training camp's facilities not good enough?"
Xia Fei filled Qin Mang's and his teacup and respectfully handed it to him. "Through my observation of the training camp, I've discovered a secret."
Qin Mang appeared to be very interested, perking up his ears to listen carefully.
"Actually, Heaven Execution Training Camp only refers to the internal division. The rest of the divisions are just there to serve as foils.
"It's like a selection competition. Tens of thousands of cadets are recruited into the training camp as reserve participants, and all of them have one goal: to be selected by the internal division.
"But the internal division will only select the most outstanding talents, so what about the remaining tens of thousands of cadets? These cadets have also been selected after many rounds of selection. Though they're not top-notch geniuses, they can still be considered talents. They can't possibly eliminate this group of people, can they?
"That's why the training camp has set up many divisions outside of the internal division, all to help these cadets who aren't qualified to join the internal division find a way out. After all, though these people can't become top-notch geniuses, they can still shine elsewhere.
"Besides, Heaven Execution Training Camp is the Adjudicator Union's signboard. We can't just destroy our own signboard, can we?" Xia Fei slowly said.
Qin Mang's hand trembled as he held the teacup. Excitement could not accurately describe what he was feeling at the moment. He was extremely shocked by Xia Fei's theory.
"Did you come up with all of this yourself?" Qin Mang asked with a trembling voice.
Xia Fei shrugged. "Yes, but it's a little too cruel to most of the cadets who don't know what's going on. They've put in a lot of effort, fighting their way through thousands of soldiers to get into the training camp. Their parents and family will surely be so excited that they won't be able to sleep for several days.
"Yet, in the end, they're just there to serve as foils, to be eliminated. They'll surely be very upset if they find out."
"Xia Fei, how did you discover all of this?" Qin Mang asked.
Xia Fei smiled. "It's actually very obvious. There are so many divisions in the external division, but there's only one internal division, which only recruits warriors. Logically speaking, if the internal division is truly the elite division, then the internal division should be like the external division, with the same number of divisions, recruiting the best of the various divisions instead of just having one for warriors.
This just happens to confirm my theory, which is that only the inner division is the true Heaven Execution Training Camp. The so-called outer division is just a way for the eliminated cadets to find a way out, so that when they leave the training camp, they'll be able to learn a skill and go to work in the usual positions.
"Furthermore, doing so can increase the training camp's prestige, telling the world that anyone who joins Heaven Execution Training Camp will have a bright future ahead of them."
Qin Mang was stunned when he heard this, and he could not help but applaud. "Brilliant! Brilliant! Thats the most brilliant analysis I've ever heard in my life. "
"You're right. The external division is indeed just a foil for the internal division. The reason why so many outstanding cadets are gathered together is to make it easier for the internal division to slowly pick and choose. After all, the internal division doesn't just need martial prowess; character and intelligence are also very important. Everyone who joins the internal division must go through a long period of observation before they can be confirmed," Qin Mang said honestly.
"This is something that even many of the old instructors who have worked in the training camp their entire lives may not understand. You've only been here for a few days, yet you've already seen through the essence of the training camp. Just this point alone shows that your analytical skills have already reached the standard to join the internal division."
The black cat that had been sleeping soundly had opened its eyes at some point, its golden eyes staring at Xia Fei.
It stood up and walked over to Xia Fei with its lazy cat-like steps, meowing a few times as if it wanted Xia Fei to carry it.
Xia Fei picked it up in his arms. "Wow, you sure are heavy."
The black cat snuggled up in Xia Fei's arms, rubbing its chubby cheeks against him before lowering its head to continue its sleep.
"Seems like Old Black is hungry." Qin Mang smiled, pulling out a silver key and handing it to Xia Fei. "Help me run some errands; go to the basement and get Old Black's cat food. I'm getting on in years and dont wish to walk too much."
"Okay." Xia Fei placed Old Black on the table and headed to the basement. "Which room is the cat food in?"
"The key is with you; you can look for it yourself," Qin Mang said.
Watching Xia Fei disappear around the corner, Qin Mang hugged Old Black and caressed it. "You still know me best. I've already given him a chance; now it all depends on whether Xia Fei is really smart enough or not."
There were two doors in the basement, one on the left and one on the right. They looked exactly the same, both made of silver alloy, and there was nothing special about them.
Xia Fei first went to the door on the right and inserted the key, but the door did not open even after turning it for a long time, so he went to the left.
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