Chapter 122: The Best Famous Scene—it’s Here!!
“You just built a road at the entrance. At best, it shows commendable spirit and might earn the regiment a commendation. You’re not expecting a third-class merit, are you?”
The Political Instructor, He Hongtao, sternly admonished everyone, then added with a hint of envy, “I wish you wouldn’t focus on building roads and would instead excel in military training.
Just like Chen Jun from the Seventh Company, who broke the all-army record at the Grand Competition, he can pick and choose between second and third-class merit.
Fine, you can’t compare to Chen Jun. He’s now the pride of our entire regiment. Even if it’s a bit lower, it would be good enough to compare to that new recruit, Cheng Cai.
He’s a new recruit who joined the company this year, yet he shone brightly at the Division Competition Arena. Can you compare to him? Huh?”
“Cheng Cai?”
Xu Sanduo’s head immediately lifted upon hearing the familiar name. He grinned, showing his big front teeth, and said excitedly, “I know him! He’s from my hometown. We’re from the same village, and we’re very close…”
“What’s the use of being close? Can you win an award at the division level like him?” He Hongtao retorted, silencing Xu Sanduo again.
“Uh, Political Instructor.”
Seeing the atmosphere turn slightly awkward, the veteran soldier Li Meng’s eyes darted around.
He said loudly, “The road was managed by our Squad Leader. Earlier, we held a mobilization meeting, and the Squad Leader said that it’s not easy for us to come to the army, so we should leave something behind.
That solemn and sacred feeling penetrated the hearts of every one of us. In order to demonstrate our determination to put down roots for national defense and defend the country and protect the people.
Every road built here is named after a soldier.
This one is Old Ma’s road, that one is Xue Lin’s road…”
Building roads would not incur punishment, and might even earn commendations. Li Meng’s spirit and energy surged. He was indeed someone who wanted to write books; his words flowed so smoothly.
“Li Meng Road? And I’m Marilyn Monroe?”
Old Ma couldn’t stand Li Meng’s boastful nonsense. To beautify their road construction, he was telling lies with his eyes open. Unable to expose him directly, he could only interrupt him with a sarcastic remark.
“Every road has a name. That’s actually quite interesting.”
He Hongtao was fooled by Li Meng and looked happily at the road, saying, “I think this way, I’ll find a way to get the regiment to award you an advanced squad commendation.”
“Political Instructor, using ‘advanced’ to describe our Squad Leader is too simplistic. Our Squad Leader, for us few, has never thought about retiring. Even if he misses home and cries, he’s reluctant to leave because he wants to cultivate us. He even specially led us to build this road.”
Li Meng piled the credit for building the road onto Old Ma, trying to keep Old Ma there by doing so.
Because Old Ma was stimulated by Xu Sanduo, he felt he was no longer a good soldier and that staying in the army just to get by would be a disservice to his military uniform.
In addition, he faced the same problem as Shi Jin: the significant hurdle of transitioning from the fourth level to the fifth level.
And it was even earlier than Shi Jin.
This year was the last year.
Amidst the wave of modernization reforms in the army, the quota for non-commissioned officers in each company was being reduced, making it even harder to transition from the fourth to the fifth level as a professional non-commissioned officer.
Old Ma knew himself well and knew his chances were slim.
Therefore, he had long had the idea of retiring and was already writing his retirement report.
Li Meng and the others didn’t want Old Ma to leave like this. They firmly believed Old Ma was a good Squad Leader and knew that Old Ma needed a better resume to transition to the fifth level.
That’s why they wanted to steal Xu Sanduo’s merit for Old Ma, so that Old Ma could stay.
Old Wei and Xue Lin were also aware of the situation. As soon as Li Meng finished speaking, they quickly chimed in to help, attributing the road construction to Old Ma.
“What nonsense! You’re all just messing around.”
Old Ma knew how the road came about. He didn’t have the face to steal Xu Sanduo’s credit, so he sternly interrupted everyone.
But just as he was about to expose their lies, He Hongtao criticized him with a stern face, “Old Ma, to be honest, you’re good at everything, but that mouth of yours has harmed you.”
Seeing Old Ma being criticized by the Political Instructor, they were afraid of any negative impact.
Li Meng, Xue Lin, and Old Wei spoke up again, babbling and defending Old Ma, using all sorts of flattering words that even Old Ma couldn’t stand.
“I’m telling you, this is not good. There’s a problem with how you conduct yourselves…”
“Old Ma.”
Just as Old Ma was about to say that he didn’t build the road, he was interrupted by the Political Instructor again. He smiled and said, “I understand you. There’s no need to decline further. You did it, so you did it.”
The Political Instructor believed that Old Ma had done it and was happy for him to step up during this critical promotion period. He specifically called Old Ma to the dormitory alone.
He patted his chest and said, “What do you call doing the right thing? This is doing the right thing. This is what the Company Commander and everyone else has been looking forward to.
As the longest-serving Squad Leader in the entire regiment, you never disappoint, no matter where you are.”
As the oldest Political Instructor in the entire regiment, He Hongtao really hoped Old Ma would stay. He also hoped to use this matter to make a significant effort.
If Old Ma had even a little bit of selfishness, pretended to be foolish and kept quiet, it would have been fine. With He Hongtao and the Company Commander finding ways to strive for him at the regiment level, transitioning to the fifth level would have been essentially settled.
But Old Ma was not that kind of person.
“Political Instructor, those brats don’t understand, but don’t you understand either?” Old Ma asked seriously.
“You say I don’t understand?”
He Hongtao smiled, equally serious, “Both publicly and privately, for the Red Third Company and the entire regiment, your contributions are indispensable. You are the best Squad Leader.
The soldiers you’ve trained are now backbones in various companies.
We’ve been looking for an excuse to keep you, and now, with the road you built, everything is resolved.”
The Political Instructor didn’t state it directly, but the implication was clear.
Old Ma also understood the Political Instructor’s good intentions, but he couldn’t get past his own conscience. He lowered his head and said softly, “This road construction has nothing to do with me specifically. I cannot take this credit.”
“Old Ma, Old Ma, I think your heart has already flown elsewhere. The army can’t keep you anymore.”
The Political Instructor’s emotions instantly collapsed. He knew what was going on, but he just wanted to play dumb and help Old Ma overcome this hurdle.
However, Old Ma didn’t appreciate his efforts, which made him feel exceptionally helpless.
“It’s not that, Political Instructor.”
Old Ma opened his heart and said, “Honestly, I don’t want to leave at all. Look at the military uniform I’m wearing. If I take it off, what will I become?
You surely can’t imagine, because even I can’t imagine myself. I…”
Old Ma’s eyes turned red and his nose felt sore as he spoke.
He was on the verge of tears.
“Sigh~”
He Hongtao walked to Old Ma’s front, patted his shoulders heavily with both hands, and said earnestly, “Stop talking. I understand your thoughts and I respect them.
Don’t give up. I will work hard, and everyone else will work hard too. Believe us.”
He Hongtao’s expression was complex. He patted Old Ma’s shoulder again, said nothing more, and left the dormitory to take a car away.
The decision to transition from the fourth to the fifth level was within the division’s authority. The Regiment Commander only had the right to make suggestions, and He Hongtao, as the Political Instructor, had no say at all.
But since Old Ma refused to take credit for building the road, He Hongtao had to find a way to handle it forcefully.
Old Ma’s consent was not needed; he would take care of it.
Old Ma led everyone from the Fifth Squad to salute the departing Political Instructor by the roadside. Afterward, Old Wei, Xue Lin, and Li Meng all approached Xu Sanduo individually.
They asked him to agree on a unified story, saying that Squad Leader Old Ma built the road.
Xu Sanduo grinned and agreed. His mind wasn’t complicated enough to think about such matters, and he didn’t know that this credit was related to Old Ma’s decision to stay or leave.
He built the road to do something meaningful, not to gain any credit.
So, Xu Sanduo had no concept of regimental commendations.
However, he greatly envied Old Ma for having so many friends who cared about him.
As for him, he had no friends here.
His only friend, Cheng Cai, was still in Steel Seventh Company, and it was difficult to even meet him.
…
He Hongtao indeed kept his word. He did his best to help Old Ma and called the regiment’s Propaganda Officer the next day.
This was Officer Zhang, who personally orchestrated the first moment of glory in Xu Sanduo’s life.
He actually wanted to interview Steel Seventh Company the most and had been revising his interview draft recently, hoping to write some beautiful and exciting articles.
However, when he applied to the Regimental Propaganda Section and the regimental duty room contacted Steel Seventh Company.
Gao Cheng refused, citing heavy training missions and no time for interviews, not even half a day.
Everyone in the 702 Regiment knew how close Gao Cheng was to the Regimental Commander and how deep his background was.
If Gao Cheng disagreed with the interview, the Propaganda Section was helpless.
Officer Zhang’s wish was in vain!
Just as Officer Zhang was feeling helpless, He Hongtao, the Political Instructor of Red Third Company, contacted the Regimental Propaganda Section, hoping they could send someone to interview them about building the road.
Building the road was not a major event, and not many people knew about it yet.
It hadn’t even spread within the regiment.
Upon learning that a road, which normally required many people to build, was actually built by a squad from Red Third Company, Officer Zhang, who was short on material, immediately agreed to He Hongtao’s request.
The next day, he got into He Hongtao’s car, and they drove to Grassland Fifth Squad together.
After the Fifth Squad assembled and exchanged pleasantries, Officer Zhang said with a smile, “Today, I have two things. First, I’ll interview everyone about building the road to add some material for the Regimental Newspaper.
The most important point is the second one: I’ll take photos for everyone. Not only will I develop them for you, but you might even have a chance to be featured in the Regimental Newspaper.”
Grassland Fifth Squad was a desolate place where one could get bored to tears from idleness.
Now, hearing Officer Zhang say he would interview them, and more importantly, that there was a chance to be featured in the Regimental Newspaper, appearing in the newspaper was a matter of great honor.
The five members of the Fifth Squad, including Old Ma, were so excited their mouths couldn’t close.
However, while taking photos, someone still needed to stand guard.
As the Squad Leader, Old Ma had to accompany them. Old Wei, Xue Lin, and Li Meng all wanted to be photographed and interviewed, not wanting to miss such a good opportunity.
Especially since Li Meng was on guard duty that morning, he was even more unwilling to miss the chance.
So, he used all sorts of tricks to get Xu Sanduo to cover his guard post.
And the kind-hearted Xu Sanduo, who was simple-minded and didn’t know how to refuse, agreed to Li Meng’s request and decided to cover his guard duty for this shift.
When Xu Sanduo, wearing his military uniform and carrying his rifle, arrived at the road Li Meng had built, standing in the newly constructed guard post.
This was Xu Sanduo’s moment of glory.
From this moment on, it began to be born.
After Officer Zhang took photos of Old Ma and the others, interviewed Old Ma in particular, and took many photos, and was preparing to leave under He Hongtao’s hint.
Old Ma, Xu Sanduo’s second benefactor in life, stepped forward to remind him that Xu Sanduo hadn’t been interviewed yet.
Even though Officer Zhang said his digital camera was out of battery and he couldn’t take any more photos, and indicated he was about to leave, Old Ma insisted on finding Xu Sanduo.
And he spoke from the heart, mentioning the changes Xu Sanduo had brought to the Fifth Squad.
He specifically mentioned that this road actually had little to do with them, and it was Xu Sanduo who persisted and built it alone.
From the information He Hongtao had, Officer Zhang believed that the road was built by Old Ma leading the entire squad.
Now, hearing a different version from Old Ma.
As a professional media person, he immediately sensed something different. He quickly took out his notebook and pen and wrote down what Old Ma said.
Also, because Old Ma voluntarily stepped forward, Officer Zhang became curious about Xu Sanduo.
Mainly, the name Xu Sanduo sounded unusually familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before, but he couldn’t recall it for a moment.
So, he actively asked Old Ma where the new recruit named Xu Sanduo was, and asked Old Ma to take him there.
“Sigh~”
He Hongtao sighed, knowing it was hopeless.
He was very helpless, but there was nothing he could do.
Next, Old Ma led everyone to where Xu Sanduo was on guard duty.
When Officer Zhang saw Xu Sanduo standing alone in the pavilion from dozens of meters away, on the plateau, forming a line with the distant sky, with the red flag fluttering vigorously in the wind behind him, it formed a perfect picture.
As an amateur photography enthusiast, Officer Zhang was captivated by this perfect scene.
Xu Sanduo’s moment of glory erupted just like that.
In his excited and uncontrollable emotions, even though his digital camera was out of battery, it didn’t affect Officer Zhang from using a pen without a tip to sketch, creating what he considered the perfect work.
“It’s so beautiful! So beautiful! A masterpiece, a perfect masterpiece. I haven’t felt this way in a long time.”
Almost deliriously excited, Officer Zhang, holding his perfectly drawn work, lay on the ground and laughed at the sky, creating one of the classic scenes of Soldiers Sortie.
Afterward, Xu Sanduo was invited down by the Fifth Squad to accept a one-on-one interview with Officer Zhang.
The members of the Fifth Squad, burdened by guilt for trying to claim Xu Sanduo’s credit, began to protect Xu Sanduo in the following days.
Li Meng, who had tricked Xu Sanduo into covering his guard duty, was severely reprimanded and criticized.
Xu Sanduo had been in the Fifth Squad for several months, and for the first time, he felt cared for. He knew he finally had his own friends.
This feeling of belonging to the Fifth Squad…
It felt so good!
Thinking about it, Xu Sanduo smiled!
…
After Officer Zhang interviewed Xu Sanduo, he returned to the regiment and began writing an article, adding some artistic “polishing” on top of the factual basis.
Then, the story of Grassland Fifth Squad building the road was published as the front-page headline in the Regimental Newspaper.
The accompanying photo for the front-page headline was Xu Sanduo on guard duty.
However, to increase the readability of the article and highlight his cultural literacy, Officer Zhang primarily focused on the painting and his evaluation of it, along with a large amount of flowery language.
The matter of Grassland Fifth Squad building the road, on the other hand, was only briefly mentioned, and Xu Sanduo, who built the road alone, was not specifically mentioned.
Everyone has their own selfish desires.
Officer Zhang wanted to showcase his talent, so he downplayed other aspects, which was nothing to criticize.
This led the Regimental Commander to believe, after reading the Regimental Newspaper, that the road was built by a squad from the Fifth Squad. Although he was deeply moved, it didn’t impress him.
Regimental Commander Wang had also been stationed in Grassland Fifth Squad for a period when he was a Platoon Leader.
At that time, he also wanted to build a road in the Fifth Squad, but he ultimately failed. Therefore, in his opinion, building a road alone was impossible.
A squad building a road was commendable spirit, but that was all.
He was only curious about why there was a five-pointed star on the ground in front of the soldier in the illustration on the front page. What was the meaning of drawing it?
Also, why was the matter of road construction not elaborated on in the report.
Until two days after the report was published, Regimental Commander Wang personally organized an assessment for the Tank Company. Officer Zhang happened to be present for an interview.
Regimental Commander Wang met Officer Zhang and, to clarify his doubts, called him over.
He expressed the doubts in his heart.
At this time, Officer Zhang did not hide anything and truthfully told Regimental Commander Wang the situation.
It was not a painting he had drawn, but a sketch of a real scene. The sentinel in the picture was a soldier from the 702 Regiment.
When the Regimental Commander heard it was a soldier from his own regiment, his interest immediately increased.
He later inquired which company the soldier belonged to.
Officer Zhang told the Regimental Commander that it was a soldier from the Fifth Squad of the Red Third Company, the squad that built a road in the report. He specifically mentioned that the road was not built by the entire Fifth Squad, but by the soldier in the painting alone.
“Built by one person?”
Hearing that someone had accomplished what he couldn’t, Regimental Commander Wang was shocked, his expression changed, and he said seriously, “Come, tell me in detail.”
