He Yan’s guess was correct. Three days later, during their sandbag-carrying run, Training Instructor Liang called out from the front: “Starting tomorrow, you’ll run five laps around the military camp. The remaining time will be spent on weapons training! So today, you better run well! Those who don’t perform well won’t get lunch!”

Everyone became excited upon hearing this. Compared to running endlessly with sandbags in the scorching summer heat, weapons training sounded much easier and more like what recruits should be doing. Being able to end this hellish phase and enter a new stage perhaps indicated that they were gradually becoming proper Wei soldiers.

However, He Yan understood the hidden meaning in Training Instructor Liang’s words – today would be the final “test.” Those who couldn’t run well or lacked stamina would never qualify for the subsequent weapons training.

As He Yan bent down to pick up her sandbag, someone deliberately bumped into her from behind. Standing up to look, she saw it was Wang Ba, the scarred-faced man who had stolen her meat bun days ago. Wang Ba looked at her with a sinister smile, “Kid, after today, you’ll be assigned as a cook, and your good days will be over.”

He Yan shrugged: “I don’t understand.”

“Your two brothers won’t always be around to protect you. A mere cook…” he lowered his voice, his eyes flashing with cruelty, “Nobody would care if I killed one!”

“Then come and try,” He Yan swung the sandbag onto her back and smiled at him, saying: “By the way, let me tell you – I absolutely won’t become a cook.” Without waiting for Wang Ba’s reaction, she turned and headed to the track.

Xiao Mai nervously followed beside her and asked: “Brother He, did he give you trouble just now?”

“How could he?” He Yan replied with a bright smile, “We just had a casual chat.”

“I see.” Xiao Mai smiled again, “Brother He, you’re amazing! You don’t even pant when running with us now, and you’re so fast!”

Xiao Mai and Shi Tou grew up in the mountains, where hunters spent whole days hunting, naturally building good stamina and running ability. Everyone had witnessed He Yan’s initial weakness and struggle, but now, she grew stronger and more energetic with each passing day, making people wonder if she had taken some magical medicine in secret.

“Really?” He Yan nodded seriously, “I indeed have great potential.”

Meanwhile, the training instructors gathered at the forest track to observe the situation.

The daily long-distance running over the past half-month served not only to train the recruits’ stamina but also to assess their aptitude. They recorded observations daily, and today would be the final assessment. After today, running would become a regular training exercise rather than an aptitude test. Being allowed to proceed to weapons training meant one had qualified as a Wei recruit and wouldn’t die before even reaching the battlefield due to physical limitations.

The military camp had clear distinctions between the strong and the weak. Those with good aptitude stood out from the beginning, while those with poor aptitude were equally noticeable. It was unfair, but natural talent couldn’t be changed.

However, there was one exception.

“Old Liang,” someone patted Training Instructor Liang’s shoulder, “that He Yan kid in your team is quite talented.”

He Yan was that exception.

Her initial aptitude was poor, receiving unanimous low evaluations from the instructors. They worried she might get sick from the smoke even as a cook. Yet day by day, she grew more agile, and now she could steadily keep up with the team, even maintaining a position near the front.

It was a miracle.

“Persistent effort yields results,” Training Instructor Liang said proudly. “I told you I wouldn’t misjudge. This kid’s determination is rare – they won’t fail at anything.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Training Instructor Du Mao countered, being one of the instructors. He disagreed: “You know aptitude is aptitude. The reason he can keep up with the team is purely through effort!”

This was true. Everyone looked at the young person running with the team – of suitable age, optimistic appearance, and quite likable. When running, they were disciplined, rarely talking with others, focusing entirely on the task. Overall, they seemed very serious about what they were doing.

“What he achieves with tremendous effort, others might accomplish with minimal exertion,” Du Mao said. “Right now it’s just running with sandbags, but future weapons training and formation drills will only get more complex. He’ll always need to put in more effort than others. This way, he’ll never excel, only remaining an ordinary soldier.”

“I advise you to focus more energy on the naturally talented recruits in your team, don’t pay too much attention to that kid,” Du Mao shook his head, “It’s meaningless.”

“I can’t argue with you, so I won’t bother,” Liang Ping responded unhappily, walking away with his spear.

But as he walked, he began to doubt. As instructors who had trained many soldiers, those who survived the battlefield or achieved great merit were usually those who showed brilliance from the start, displaying exceptional qualities.

That youth only had effort… but was effort alone really enough?

…

He Yan finished her running quota for the day in one go, received and ate her meal. In the afternoon, Training Instructor Liang suddenly appeared and selected about ten soldiers to go with him.

“Ah, those seem to be the ones assigned as cooks,” Xiao Mai said, “But do they need that many cooks?”

He Yan smiled and shook her head, “It’s just a term, not all of them will actually cook. Some will do other tasks – basically anything that doesn’t involve direct combat on the front lines.”

“That’s not bad,” Hong Shan stretched lazily, “No need to risk your life in battle. Isn’t staying alive good?”

“Well, Brother He must be happy now,” Xiao Mai teased, “Finally won’t have to become a cook!”

He Yan’s reluctance to become a cook was well-known. She didn’t deny it, just smiled and said: “Indeed, cause for celebration.”

“Will you get a chance to show off soon?” Hong Shan glanced at her teasingly, “You can display your skills in the upcoming weapons training, right?”

“Hmm, not exactly,” He Yan replied after some thought.

She was capable of swords, horseback riding, and spear techniques. Long-distance running and mountain climbing weren’t difficult either. The only challenge would be archery.

Bows and crossbows required tremendous arm strength, difficult for anyone who wasn’t physically robust. With Young Lady He’s current physique, it might be challenging.

However, she thought, surely Commander Xiao wouldn’t start with archery training?

She was wrong.