Chapter Thirty-Six

  He leaned his sniper rifle against the tree trunk and sat down on a nearby rock, only to discover that there was a cut on his thigh at some point.

  It's like this on the battlefield, due to intense mental tension, one doesn't feel pain, and sometimes even forgets when they were injured until rest time, then a burning pain is felt.

  "You're hurt!" Chen Yiyiy appeared beside me in time and, without saying a word, took out the bandage and skillfully wrapped it around my wound.

  "Just now... thank you!" I found it strange that in modern Hungary, I actually stuttered.

  "What's there to thank?" Chen Yiyiy's slender eyebrows rose slightly, clearly she was asking with full knowledge.

  "Thank you for saving me!"

  "You saved me once, now we're even!" Chen Yiyang replied without thinking.

  I was speechless, and in my heart, I didn't want things to be so clear-cut between us, but what she said seemed to be the truth.

  。

  "Right!" I thought for a moment and then asked: "You're a big girl... how can you also shoot guns?"

  "Isn't it strange?" Chen Yiyiy replied to me while busy with her hands, "I went to Vietnam at the age of 9 and grew up there. Which Vietnamese doesn't know how to shoot a gun?"

  "Oh!" She said that, and I think it's true. Vietnam is a country where everyone is a soldier, not to mention the dozens of wars they've been through over the years. It's no wonder that ordinary people can not only shoot guns but also rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

  "Class monitor, class monitor..." At this time, I heard Xiaoshi shouting from a distance: "Come and drink soup quickly..."

  "Drink soup?" Upon hearing this, I felt a wave of surprise in my heart. Our unit's food is either canned or compressed biscuits, where would we get soup from?

  But looking at several people surrounding a steaming hot pot... it really doesn't seem like they're cheating.

  Then, Chen Yiyang and the others went up to take a look, and couldn't help but exclaim "wow", these guys had somehow gathered a large pile of mushrooms, which were now being cooked into a fragrant pot of soup.

  It's been a long time since I've had hot food, and I couldn't resist the temptation. As soon as I grabbed the can of rations handed over by the comrade with the bayonet, I was about to dig in when I realized that none of the other soldiers moved.

  "What's going on?" I found it a bit strange, these guys didn't seem like the honest type! Would they really be so kind as to let me eat first?

  "Uh... class monitor..." After a long time, Xiaoshi finally stuttered and said: "We... don't know if this mushroom is poisonous or not..."

  "Son of a bitch!" As soon as I heard this, I got furious: "So you guys are letting me come and try the poison!"

  "Where did you get that from, Monitor!" The bookworms rushed up to flatter him, saying: "How dare we let the Monitor try the poison? This is it! Everyone says that the Monitor has great fortune and a long life... so it's most suitable for you to have the first bite!"

  "That sounds good!" I scolded in a bad temper: "Isn't that just like testing poison?"

  Those few soldiers under me were scolded by me like this and didn't make a sound anymore.

  And I was in a dilemma, whether to eat or not to eat?

  Eat it, just in case something goes wrong, it would be troublesome to deal with.

  Medicines are in short supply on this battlefield... if you're poisoned and sent to the rear, you'll probably be dead by then...

  Don't waste it, this flavor is really mouthwatering, and it's all cooked into a soup. Would you just throw it away?

  At this time, I saw Chen Yiyang wink at me and nod slightly, so I was relieved. Chen Yiyang is a long-term resident of the Vietnamese jungle, and Vietnamese food is scarce, so eating mushrooms is not uncommon, so it's not too easy to distinguish whether they are poisonous or not.

  So I pretended to clear my throat, scooped two mouthfuls into the can with a bamboo spoon, blew on it, and then hastily gulped it down in one breath.

  "How was it?"

  "How is it?"

  ……

  Looking at the warriors' tense expressions, I suddenly had an idea to tease them. So, I suddenly covered my stomach and shouted "Ah yo ah yo"... In a moment, I fell to the ground with eyes rolled back.

  This made the soldiers under my command anxious, they were busy helping me and covering my belly, and someone immediately started blaming: "I said this soup couldn't be drunk, now it's bad, the squad leader has been poisoned!"

  I don't know if it's because I acted too well or what, but this trick actually fooled Chen Yiyang... Then I saw her stretch out her hand as if she wanted me to spit out the soup.

  Good grief... I'm busted now.

  All I could do was bring an end to this play and, pointing at the pot of soup with a weak tone, said: "This soup...this soup..."

  "Class monitor, don't say that!" Xiaoshi said remorsefully: "We know this soup is poisonous!"

  "This soup......" I took advantage of their inattention and shouted loudly: "How fresh......"

  One side was shouting while quickly running to the pot, self-servingly scooping a big serving. With two scoops, the can was filled to the brim. The soldiers below looked at each other in dismay. Then, someone suddenly shouted and they all rushed to the pot, fighting to get some... Unfortunately, the pot wasn't very large, and after I had scooped out a full can, about half of it was gone. What remained was not enough for everyone to have much.

  "Come on..." I walked over to Chen Yiyang with a proud smile and said, "Considering you saved my life again, I'll share half a can with you..."

  Chen Yiyiy looked at me and then at the other warriors who were stomping their feet in frustration, and she couldn't help but cry or laugh.

  。

  Looking at those warriors who were fighting over a bowl of mushroom soup, I couldn't help but smile. In the past, I thought that so-called friends were just people you could drink and have fun with, and if they could help you out in a fight, that was good enough. Now I realize that there's actually another kind of friendship where people can truly share joys and sorrows together without distinction.

  The sun slowly fell behind the mountains, and the slanted rays of light shot through the trees. The leafy clusters all turned into ancient copper colors. Under the trees, patches of sunlight, like golden tablecloths, were spread out on the rooftops of the old street, as if the entire old street was about to catch fire. In the distance, the yellow-green fields gradually became submerged in a vague silence.

  To be honest, if you put aside all distractions, Vietnam's sunset is actually very beautiful. It's just that it can't bring out the beauty in my heart.

  Because dusk means we will soon face countless and inescapable mosquitoes, it means we will soon face the harassment of the Vietcong...

  But tonight, we don't seem to have to worry about the harassment of the Viet Minh. The reason is simple: the underground Great Wall in the old street has been basically cleared by our army, and even if there are still some remnants, each tunnel entrance is under the close surveillance of our army, no matter how much wind and waves they make, they can't stir up any big waves.

  "Squad leader, come here for a moment..." Just as I was still worried about how to deal with the mosquitoes at night, I heard the company commander's call.

  "Yes!" I responded, grabbing the sniper rifle and heading towards the company commander.

  I don't know why, but I suddenly felt that Lian Chang's gaze at me was a bit strange...

  "Deputy Platoon Leader!" The platoon leader glanced at Chen Yiyinot far away and asked in a low voice, "Can you specifically tell me about Comrade Chen Yiyi's situation?"

  "Ah!" Listening to Lian Chang's words, I understood that someone must be suspecting Chen Yiyang's identity.

  But this is not surprising, there are more Vietnamese who can speak Chinese now. Anyone can say they are from which province in China... Although China has a strict household registration system at this time, this household registration system does not count the number of overseas Chinese in Vietnam, right? Besides, this is also a battlefield, who still has the energy to go back to their original registered residence to verify? Back and forth like this, by the time you finish verifying on your side, the battle will be over!

  Report to the company commander

  I dare not hide anything, and I clearly explained the process of meeting Chen Yiyuan in the tunnel. In this regard, I particularly emphasized two points: first, if there was no Chen Yiyuan, we might not have been able to complete the task of destroying the Vietnamese army's ammunition depot; second, Chen Yiyuan successfully prevented the Vietnamese army's internal and external coordination plan to break through.

  Anyone with a clear mind would understand that if Chen Yiyang was a Viet Minh spy, she wouldn't have used the entire underground Great Wall beneath Old Street as the price.

  Li Lianchang naturally understood this point, and after a moment's hesitation, he nodded and said: "Yes, that means Comrade Chen Yiy is trustworthy, so we can use her with confidence!"

  "Huh?" I was taken aback by his words and said: "Commander Lian... aren't we... not recruiting female soldiers?"

  Although I haven't been in this era for long, I know that at this time the troops generally do not recruit female soldiers. Occasionally, you might see a few female soldiers in the cultural troupe or field hospital, but those individuals all have connections and backing, they are not simple characters. Moreover, they usually will not be dispatched to the front lines of the battlefield.

  But now...

  "Hey, Comrade Yang Xuefeng!" The company commander said with a profound tone: "One must learn to be flexible in life, what's wrong with not recruiting female soldiers? Women can hold up half the sky, don't you know?"

  "Oh!" I responded vaguely, thinking to myself that although he looks like a rustic fellow, he's actually quite clever with his words, and after saying so much, it's as if he hasn't said anything at all.

  It wasn't until later that I found out why the superior had accepted Chen Yiyuan, this female soldier. Firstly, it was because she could speak Vietnamese, secondly, she was familiar with Vietnam's terrain and troops, and thirdly...she had previously shown outstanding combat skills, so her superiors believed she was fully capable of protecting herself.

  From this point on, I was still misunderstanding earlier. Not long ago, I thought someone suspected Chen Yiyang, but now it seems that this might just be a necessary political review before joining the troops.

  Before long, Chen Yiy was also called up and asked if she was willing to join the Liberation Army... Without thinking, Chen Yiy agreed without hesitation, but she added a condition that she must be assigned to my class.

  "Listen up! As he was leaving, Lao Zhang pulled me aside and whispered, "Don't you dare mess around with relationships between men and women, got it? Behave yourself!"

  I'm so wronged! In modern times, I've messed with so many and no one cared, but now that I haven't even made a move yet... I get warned!