Chapter 307: Pan Pan's Interview

Ruan Xiaowu subsequently received his first official appointment in his naval career, being appointed captain of the special service boat “Yute-04.” The Yute-04 was a 70-ton, two-masted Guangdong-style junk, brought over by the remnants of Zhu Cailao’s forces when they defected. After modification, it was used as a special service boat.

The navy had acquired various Chinese sailing ships of different sizes from this era. Especially after absorbing the remnants of Zhu Cailao’s forces and other small groups of defeated pirates, the number of ships in the Lin’gao navy had increased significantly. Many of the smaller tonnage ships, after appropriate targeted modifications, were all classified as “special service boats,” used for various miscellaneous tasks, and even for fishing—fishing was also one of the important tasks of the Maritime Forces Department.

“Go back to your ship immediately to handle the handover procedures. You have a three-day leave—starting tomorrow. After the leave, go to the shipyard to receive your equipment, personnel, and ammunition, and prepare for departure,” Chen Haiyang directly gave him his orders.

Ruan Xiaowu came out of the cabin with the document bag as if he were walking on clouds, his head spinning. He subconsciously touched the officer’s epaulets he had just put on, felt the officer’s sword at his waist, and looked at the appointment order in his hand. An irrepressible joy welled up in his heart. He was already a naval officer, and he had become the captain of a naval warship—compared to the rank of ensign, the position of captain held more weight in his mind.

He had to tell his brothers immediately and have a good celebration. Ruan Xiaowu thought that he hadn’t had a gathering with his brothers for several months—all three brothers were serving in the navy, but in different units. Except for occasional encounters at the pier, they hardly had time to meet.

However, as soon as he came out of the cabin, he ran into the big-breasted foreign woman who had been taking pictures earlier. Speaking “Newspeak” with a strange accent, she insisted on him posing for a few more pictures. Ruan Xiaowu had no choice but to strike a few stiff poses. The woman seemed very dissatisfied, constantly telling him to “relax, be more natural.”

After finally finishing the photos, the foreign woman requested an “interview.” Ruan Xiaowu didn’t know what an interview was. The woman explained that it was just asking him a few questions. Ruan Xiaowu immediately said that he had to get permission from his superiors before answering any questions, otherwise it might lead to a security leak.

“It won’t be a security leak. I’m a reporter for the Lin’gao Times, and I have authorization to conduct interviews.” She pulled a piece of paper from her bosom.

Ruan Xiaowu hesitated for a moment before taking the warm piece of paper. It was a letter of introduction from the Lin’gao Times, stamped with an official seal, and on the back was Chen Haiyang’s endorsement: “Approved” and a blue anchor seal of the navy.

“Alright, ask away,” Ruan Xiaowu said.

“Don’t be nervous, relax,” Pan Pan said, taking out a notebook. “I’ll just ask some daily life questions.”

The interview lasted for thirty minutes, and she asked many questions that seemed strange to Ruan Xiaowu, including what he liked to eat, what color he liked, and what his views were on being a soldier and killing people… Ruan Xiaowu couldn’t figure out what use these questions were for the newspaper. When she asked about his family background and how he joined the navy, Ruan Xiaowu’s eyes turned red.

The tragic history of Ruan Xiaowu’s family was nothing new to a Chinese person of any era—even for a Chinese person from the 21st century—such stories had happened countless times from generation to generation. But for someone like Pan Pan, it was still very shocking.

“…If it weren’t for the Australian chiefs saving us brothers, my whole family would have been wiped out long ago, and our bodies would have been eaten by wild dogs,” Ruan Xiaowu’s expression was a little emotional. “They not only saved our lives, but also gave us food, clothes, taught us to read, and now I’ve become a naval officer. Such kindness can’t be repaid even with death.”

Pan Pan’s expression was a bit complicated. She didn’t think there was any falsehood in Ruan Xiaowu’s words; this kind of heartfelt gratitude was definitely not feigned. But deep down, she had doubts about such gratitude. In her view, this kind of gratitude would destroy a person’s ability to think independently and make him a blind follower of the Transmigration Group.

Although Pan Pan had followed Ding Ding to this time and place without hesitation for love and adventure, she had, after all, grown up in a Western society that cherished personal freedom. She was imbued with this concept from the inside out. She often had a dangerous premonition about the various actions of the Transmigration Group, including the words and deeds that Ding Ding occasionally revealed in front of her—this new world that was about to be established by modern people through cheating was not what she had imagined.

“Have you ever thought about what you really want to do?” Pan Pan asked.

Ruan Xiaowu looked at her with a strange expression, thinking her question was very strange. If he had to say what he wanted to do, of course, it would be to be a rich man and be served by others every day, eating, drinking, and having fun. But for a child from a poor fishing family like him, not starving to death as a child and not drowning as an adult was already the greatest fortune. Now that he was in such a situation, it was almost like being reborn. What else could he really want to do? If he had to say what he wanted to do, of course, it would be to become a lieutenant, a captain, and so on, and then marry a wife and have a few children to carry on the family line. But he was too embarrassed to say this out loud.

“Not for the time being,” he said.

After the interview, Pan Pan took a few more pictures. She also wanted to take a group photo of Ruan Xiaowu and his brothers together. Ruan Xiaowu said that would have to wait until their brotherly gathering in the evening; right now, he didn’t even know where his brothers were.

Ruan Xiaowu returned to the Linyun 7. The cadets and sailors who knew about his promotion all came to congratulate him. The cadets from the same second class as him looked enviously at the ensign’s epaulets on his shoulders and the officer’s sword. Qian Changshui also said many warm words.

“You’ve made it, kid,” Qian Changshui said. “You haven’t been discharged from the ship yet. Today’s lunch will have extra dishes to celebrate for you—you’re one of our own from the Linyun 7.”

So at noon, all the sailors on the ship were given extra rum and fried fish fillets. The captain hosted a luncheon for all the cadets in the captain’s cabin in the sterncastle to bid farewell to Ruan Xiaowu. The table was fully set with tableware, and everyone had a pretentious fine white cloth napkin tucked into their collar. The orderlies served the meal with white towels draped over their sleeves.

“There’s one bad thing about being an officer: you have to pay for your own meals from now on,” Qian Changshui said as he tucked the napkin that had slipped from his collar back into his neck for the tenth time. Since it was a farewell banquet, Qian Changshui paid out of his own pocket and instructed the ship’s steward to buy some extra food from the naval canteen in Bopu.

Officers had to pay for their meals. If they wanted to eat better at the base, the naval canteen could provide it within its means, but it all had to be paid for. Ruan Xiaowu used to eat the same rationed meals as the sailors, served in tin lunch boxes, and enjoyed the supply system where meals were free. In terms of content, the standard of food was already far superior to that of most civilians in this era, and also superior to that of most employees under the Australians. But when compared to the officers’ meals, the difference was still quite large.

The meals for cadets and sailors were mainly rice and dry-fried rice noodles, with side dishes of only fish, shrimp, shellfish, and a little bit of vegetables or pickles, plus a large pot of tofu and kelp soup. The captain’s table was different. Although the side dishes were also mainly seafood, they were more elaborately prepared and there were more varieties. This time, Qian Changshui had specially instructed the orderly to buy chicken.

There was also fruit wine on the table—this was the wine that the chiefs drank, and it had only recently been distributed in small quantities to the officers’ canteen for sale. He took the opportunity to drink a glass of fruit wine and found it sweet and sour, easy to drink, but not very strong. The meal on the table was served individually; each dish was brought out and then served onto each person’s plate by the orderly before being eaten.

Because it was a banquet, lunch was more sumptuous than usual: there were three dishes and one soup, the main course was shrimp and mussel with tomato sauce fried rice noodles, and tea was served at the end.

Ruan Xiaowu drank the bitter and fragrant tea according to the naval etiquette he had learned in the naval cadet training class—he couldn’t help but feel fortunate to have joined the ranks of officers. He had never even dreamed of such a life.

Qian Changshui and the cadets said many complimentary words at the table. At this stage, the number of native officers in the navy was still very limited, and an ensign was worth a lot, especially since his first appointment was as a captain. Qian Changshui had not thought there was anything special about this small cadet before, but now he felt very proud of him—after all, he was from his ship.

After the pleasantries, Ruan Xiaowu quickly took his leave and went back to the barracks on shore. He put down his luggage and went out to find his brothers.

Ruan Xiaowu’s brothers were Ruan Xiaoer and Ruan Xiaoqi. After joining the navy, Ruan Xiaoer, due to his outstanding gunnery skills, did not go to sea and became a member of the coastal fortress artillery, stationed at the Bopu beacon tower. He was now a gun captain.

As for Ruan Xiaoqi, his gunnery skills were no less than his two older brothers, but he was a bit younger, only thirteen. After joining the navy, he was also sent to the military and political school’s naval cadet class—but he was in the junior class, which, in addition to military training, focused on cultural lessons, and the length of study was much longer than the regular class.

Ruan Xiaowu went to great lengths to find his brother and younger brother. Ruan Xiaoer was not on duty that night and could take a few hours off. Ruan Xiaoqi also got leave from the military and political school.

The three brothers walked into the cooperative restaurant in Dongmen City together. They had already developed the capable and upright demeanor of soldiers during their service, and they attracted a lot of attention as soon as they entered the restaurant. A naval sergeant, a naval ensign, and a naval cadet—the three different epaulets and sleeve stripes of the three brothers complemented each other. In addition, Ruan Xiaowu’s officer’s sword made them the focus of everyone in the restaurant. The three Ruan brothers were excited, proud, and a little embarrassed under the gazes of the crowd. The waiter, observing their expressions, led them to a private room.