That day the military base was unusually quiet.
The soldiers stood on the parade ground, lined up in a straight row, awaiting the arrival of the lieutenant colonel.
Each of them knew this man loved power and attention, and demanded absolute obedience.
They feared him — not for his strength, but for his cruelty and arrogance.
He often humiliated subordinates, looked for any excuse to punish, and no one had the courage to oppose him.
A few minutes later, the sound of an engine was heard outside the gates.
A military SUV drove onto the territory, raising a cloud of dust.
The unit commander shouted:
— Attention! Stand at ease! Stand still!
Everyone froze, saluting the senior officer by rank.
But at that moment a young woman in military uniform walked calmly across the parade ground.
Confident, steady, with a light stride.
She held a helmet in her hands and didn’t even look toward the lieutenant colonel.
He immediately noticed her — and felt a sting of rage.
He slammed on the brakes, rolled down the window, leaned out and shouted:
— Hey, soldier! Why aren’t you saluting me? Lost your mind or what? Do you even know who I am?!
The girl looked him straight in the eyes calmly.
— Yes, I know who you are, — she replied without a trace of fear.
Her bold — as he saw it — answer made the lieutenant colonel explode with rage.
He jumped out of the car, started yelling, insulting, throwing out threats and humiliation.
The soldiers tensed — no one dared to interfere.
But at that very moment the unprotected girl did something that left the lieutenant colonel in shock 
Continuation in the first comment 
But suddenly the girl said in an even voice:
— I am not obliged to salute someone who is lower in rank than I am.
— What did you just say?! — the lieutenant colonel choked. — Did you see my insignia? I am a lieutenant colonel!
She took a step closer and clearly said:
— And I am a colonel of internal investigation. And I arrived here by order of the ministry to look into how exactly you “serve.”
Too many complaints have been filed against you. Everyone says the same thing: you torment your soldiers.
The lieutenant colonel’s face turned pale.
He froze, unable to say a word.
The girl crossed her arms over her chest and added with a cold smirk:
— So? Why aren’t you saluting me? Another violation on your part.
A deadly silence hung over the parade ground.
No one dared to move — only the lieutenant colonel stood there, lost, not knowing what to say for the first time.
