The First Department of Military School Chapter 66: The Mission of a Soldier

  Since the eighteen martyrs of the third battalion said goodbye to the world, the souls of all officers and soldiers of the third battalion seemed to have been taken away. Every day, the soldiers were either sitting in a daze or working desperately until they fell asleep. During this period, the wounded and sick soldiers of the third battalion came one after another, so many that the medical station was specially moved to the vicinity of the third battalion's camp.

  The head of the regiment and the political commissar almost ran a trip to three battalions every day, but each time they shook their heads and sighed as they walked away, telling the battalion commander to take good care of all the cadres and soldiers in the first battalion, and let them eat well.

  Qu Mingjun was the same, either lying on his campaign bed staring at the top of the tent in a daze, or working hard without sparing any effort, just like everyone else in the company, wanting to use physical exhaustion and pain to forget the heart-wrenching sorrow inside.

  Qu Mingjun often couldn't help but think of a question, what if he had followed the car back then? What if he hadn't suggested switching with Wang Hongsheng to get on the deputy company commander's vehicle? What if Old Squad Leader Guo Xiangyang had stayed with him when they said their goodbyes?

  Often in the dead of night, Qu Mingjun was startled awake by a nightmare and broke out in a cold sweat. He would lie there with his eyes open until dawn. In that nightmare, Deputy Commander Wang Hongsheng asked him why he had to replace him, Little Mao asked if ordinary people could remember that he was a soldier, and Guo Xiangyang asked if he wanted to take his place as the second squad leader in the simulation company when he returned to the academy...

  Wang Hongsheng's deputy company commander still has a wife at home who has just passed the door but hasn't had a wedding night yet, Xiao Mao's golden voice is still waiting to be discovered by some talent scout and become a star from then on, Guo Xiangyang, however, is a first-class godly marksman, he has a very bright future in the army.

  They just left like that, all for a few old men and women in their seventies who shouted that they would rather die than leave the place. Are they worth it?

  They were just doing their duty.

  What if, from the very beginning, I had persisted in returning to the academy and tried my best to persuade everyone to agree? What if I hadn't written that bloody letter on impulse? Wouldn't I have come to participate in the flood relief efforts? Wouldn't the team have agreed to let them take action? Wouldn't this tragedy have been avoided?

  Qu Mingjun himself had no answer, nor did anyone give him an answer. Just like that, he withered away day by day, every day carrying two black eye circles, wandering around the construction site and barracks like a walking corpse.

  No, it can't go on like this. The battalion commander and political commissar saw that the soldiers of the 1st Company of the 3rd Battalion were losing their appetite and sleep, and the cadres in the company were disheartened, while the soldiers were listless. They made a decision. The entire 1st Company of the 3rd Battalion was converted to a reserve unit and rested at its garrison location. The Political Department, led by the director of the Political Department, assembled a team of specially invited experts who had been requested from higher authorities or borrowed from local areas, forming a five-member thought work group that entered the barracks of the 1st Company of the 3rd Battalion. Yan Weidong was also among them.

  ……

  "Qu Mingjun?" Yan Weidong and Feng Shaojun both came over, sitting with Qu Mingjun in a small tent.

  "Huh?" Qu Mingjun looked up dazedly, "What? What did you say?"

  Feng Shaojun felt helpless, it seemed that everything he had just said was in vain.

  "It's nothing, we didn't say anything." Yan Weidong spoke first, "Have you been sleeping poorly lately? I see that your eyes are always dark."

  "It's nothing, I just slept a bit late." Qu Mingjun finally managed to focus a bit.

  "How about it?" Yan Weidong thought for a moment and looked at Feng Shaojun. "Shall we go take a look at Guo Xiangyang?"

  Qu Mingjun was suddenly like a startled rabbit, helplessly looking at the two of them, shaking his head repeatedly.

  "That's it, let's go." Yan Weidong stood up as if he hadn't seen Qu Mingjun's action, and said casually, "He's probably very lonely there now."

  This sentence struck a blow at Qu Mingjun's heart defense, and tears could no longer be held back from his eyes.

  Three people went out, and Yan Weidong borrowed a jeep from their work group, silently driving to the place where the eighteen martyrs died. The local government had already set up a simple marble monument here, planning to build a memorial cemetery after the flood relief was over. Although the eighteen martyrs had all been cremated, and their ashes were ready to be handed over to their relatives, underground here were buried the clothes and flood-fighting tools of the martyrs when they died.

  As soon as the car stopped, Qu Mingjun and the other two were stunned to see a person sitting on the ground with their legs wrapped around them, silently facing the martyr's monument. When they heard the sound of the car, the person turned their head, and it was Zhang Lianzhang from the first company of the third battalion.

  Under Zhang Lian's feet was a brazier, with some yellow paper still burning inside. It turned out that he was using this ancient sacrificial method to sacrifice the eighteen heroes who were once under his command.

  Yan Weidong was the first to walk over, silently squatting beside Zhang Lianchang, picking up the yellow paper that had not been thrown into the fire pit and adding it sheet by sheet.

  Then Qu Mingjun and Feng Shaojun also walked over, Zhang Lianchang silently stood up, stepped aside, and wiped away the tears from his eyes.

  The flames shot up, quickly turning the yellow paper that had been thrown into the fire pit by the three people into gray ash. The ash floated in the air above the flames, like a group of crying spirits, dancing to take their grief and nostalgia to bring to the martyrs of another world.

  "Lao Zhang." Yan Weidong watched as Qu Mingjun and Feng Shaojun threw the yellow papers into the fire pit one by one, stood up and patted Zhang Lianchang's shoulder, "Condolences and accept the change."

  "Uh-huh." Zhang Lianchang took a deep breath and nodded, "I know. They're all my good brothers, I just...just came to see them, hoping they won't be lonely over there."

  "It won't work," Yan Weidong said in a low voice. "There are eighteen of them, they must still be together, forever together."

  "Uh, thank you, Captain Yan." Zhang Lianchang forced a faint smile on his face.

  Qū Míng Jùn suddenly burst into tears, sobbing and stuttering as he spoke, "If it wasn't for me, if I had insisted we go back, if, if I hadn't switched with Deputy Commander Wang, this wouldn't have happened. It's all my fault, all my fault... Waaahhh..."

  "How can they blame you?" Feng Shaonian said softly in Qu Mingjun's ear, "They won't blame you, they died for the people, a glorious death, heavier than Mount Tai. This really isn't your fault, believe me."

  "No, no." Qu Mingjun shook his head, "It's me, it's my fault. It's me... they, they're not worth it..."

  Yan Weidong's face looked very unsightly, he silently pulled out two boxes of cigarettes from his pocket, lit one by one, a total of eighteen, and placed them on the simple tombstone, gazing at them in silence.

  Feng Shaojun sighed and put his arm around Qu Mingjun's shoulder, unsure of what to say...

  Zhang Lianchang had been staring at Qu Mingjun, and as he stared, his face suddenly turned bright red with rage. He grabbed Qu Mingjun's shoulders and lifted him up.

  "What are you blaming me for?" Zhang Lian shouted loudly, "If it's wrong for you to swap with Wang Hongsheng, then what about me? Ah? I'm the one who ordered those eighteen people to carry out this task, shouldn't I die here on the spot to atone for the martyrs?"

  Zhang Lianchang kept pulling Qu Mingjun's clothes, almost pressing him against the tombstone. "Take a good look at them, eighteen people died here, eighteen people who were still thinking about fighting floods and thinking about the common people when they died. What are you doing here? Complaining about heaven and others? Blaming this and that? They left in such a great way, do you need to be hypocritical and bury your grievances here? Are they worthy or not, are you talking nonsense?"

  Qu Mingjun was silently sobbing, not speaking, and letting Zhang Lian shake himself.

  "Are you crying? Are you still crying?" Zhang Lian's mouth was almost stuck to Qu Mingjun's ear, "Can they come back if you cry? If crying can bring them back, I'll cry my eyes blind today, okay?"

  Feng Shaojun was stunned and wanted to go up and pull open Zhang Lianchang, but was stopped by Yan Weidong.

  "I'm telling you, Xiao Qu. Zhang Lianzhang's index finger on his other hand forcefully pointed at Qu Mingjun's forehead. "You've only lost an old squad leader, but I've lost a deputy company commander and sixteen soldiers. They all died for the people, faithfully fulfilling their mission as sons of the people. They don't need you barking like a dog here. Instead of crying, why not put your mind to the next task and think about how to fulfill your old squad leader's last wish!"

  After finishing, Zhang Lianchang viciously pushed Qu Mingjun to the ground in front of the tombstone, panting heavily beside him, staring at Qu Mingjun with a ferocious gaze that seemed to want to devour him whole.

  "Qu Mingjun!" Yan Weidong suddenly shouted loudly.

  "Report!" Half-reclining on the ground, Qu Mingjun subconsciously got up and stood at attention.

  "What about your enlistment oath?" Yan Weidong bellowed loudly, "Recite it again for me!"

  “……is.” Qu Mingjun was shocked by Zhang Lianchang's words and regained some of his senses, holding back tears. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I am a soldier of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. I pledge: to obey the leadership of the Communist Party of China, to serve the people wholeheartedly, to obey orders, to strictly observe discipline, to fight bravely; not to fear sacrifice, to be loyal to duty, to work hard, to diligently practice combat skills, and to resolutely complete tasks; under any circumstances, never to betray the motherland, never to betray the army."

  This oath is stipulated in Article 12 of the latest "Internal Affairs Ordinance" promulgated in 1997. After the new ordinance was promulgated, all trainees including Qu Mingjun underwent a re-study, especially on the parts with changed content, which left a deep impression. This enlistment oath was also included in the examination items of Qu Mingjun's ordinance.

  "Good, you still remember to serve the people and not be afraid of sacrifice." Yan Weidong nodded, "Then when we participated in the flood relief efforts on the dam, what kind of oath did we say?"

  "We are the sons and daughters of the people, please rest assured that the motherland has entrusted us with the task of fighting against floods and ensuring safety. We will defend the dam to the death, we will defend the safety of the masses to the death!" This was the oath taken by Qu Mingjun and his three battalions when they arrived at the dam for the first time, where they persisted for seven days and six nights.

  "They." Yan Weidong pointed to the simple tombstone, on which eighteen incense sticks were almost burnt out. "Tell me, are they afraid of sacrifice? Have they ever regretted it because they thought it was not worth it?"

  "...No." Qu Mingjun said in a low voice.

  "I didn't hear! Do you think they regret it?" Yan Weidong bellowed.

  "They don't regret it!!" Qu Mingjun suddenly raised his head and roared back.

  ……

  Superior orders, three battalions and one company were awarded the title of "Anti-Flood Rescue Hero Company", and collectively awarded first-class merit once; 18 martyrs were awarded the honorary title of "Anti-Flood Rescue Heroes".

  In the third company of a regiment, led by Captain Zhang, they launched an activity of "Learning from Heroes, Not Afraid to Sacrifice, Everything for the People". With positive actions and full enthusiasm, they re-entered various flood control and disaster relief tasks with great momentum.

  Although the task has not been completed, Qu Mingjun and his fellow students have already started their new semester. Yan Weidong led the students on their journey home under the blessings of leaders at all levels and comrades.

  Along the way, local people who heard the news of the students returning to school rushed to the train station to bid farewell to this group of lovely people. Qu Mingjun held Guo Xiangyang's ashes box, covered with the August 1st Army flag and Guo Xiangyang's military medal, bidding a tearful farewell to the enthusiastic crowd, and slowly left this land filled with their memories amidst the long whistle of the train.

  Having cast aside his sorrow, seeing off Guo Xiangyang's parents who had rushed to the academy, Qu Mingjun shouldered the heavy responsibility of becoming the second-in-command of the second company, and restarted his studies at Shimen Military Academy.

  Tense but peaceful study time always passes quickly, the winter vacation of '98 is about to arrive, Qu Mingjun had originally planned to use this opportunity to visit Guo Xiangyang's parents, but unexpectedly learned that they would face another extremely important task. This winter break, probably won't be able to rest...