Chapter Thirty-One: Mobilizing Again

  Lu Xiaosheng was still lying on the 'bed', Hu Zhiyong walked in and glanced at him, saying to himself: "If you're interested, follow me out for a walk."

  "Not interested." Lu Xiaosheng didn't lift his head, his cold tone carrying a hint of disdain.

  "You're not worthy of being a soldier!" Hu Zhiyong sternly looked at Lu Xiaosheng, and rudely pulled him up.

  "What are you doing? I haven't even put on clothes!" Lu Xiaosheng shouted in fright, hugging his arms due to the cold wind.

  "If you want to fight against the Japanese, then practice your military skills well. With a soldier like you, can you defeat the little devils? I'll give you one minute to put on your clothes properly, or I'll throw you out into the courtyard!"

  Lu Xiaosheng would never have thought that this unremarkably thin and short man had an unexpectedly strong grip. The gentleness and kindness of yesterday were gone, now he stood before him like a god of death.

  The clothes were quickly put on, and he didn't want to experience the embarrassment of being thrown out.

  "Follow me!" Hu Zhiyong gave the order without any courtesy, and he was the first to walk out of the ward. In the hospital corridor, he would stop and smile whenever he met a captive, asking them two questions. It took more than two hours for him to walk out of the hospital's main gate like this.

  People rely on clothes and horses rely on saddles. The captives who changed into new military uniforms were one by one, with big waists and round waists, carrying a tiger-like aura. Hu Zhiyong admired the unscathed group of people, carefully calculating that they were enough to form two regiments.

  "Want to 'touch' the guns?" Hu Zhiyong stood in front of everyone, tempting them: "The little devils' grenade launchers, mortars, and the assault rifles and sniper rifles I've developed here. Which soldier doesn't like having good weapons? Hehe."

  "Do you have an arsenal?" Lu Xiaosheng looked at Hu Zhiyong with a puzzled expression: "What's an assault rifle?"

  "Assault rifle, as the name suggests, is a gun that goes 'da-da-da' non-stop during a charge!" Hu Zhiyong started talking nonsense again.

  "It's just a submachine gun, I've seen it before!" Lu Xiaosheng felt that he was being teased, and the 'spirit' he had just raised fell again.

  "Can a submachine gun shoot 7.92mm Mauser bullets? Can it hit targets three hundred meters away?" Hu Zhiyong's mischievous expression suddenly made everyone burst out laughing.

  "Look at this, brother!" Hu Zhiyong 'drew' out the pistol, took out a silencer from his pocket and screwed it on, holding it up to the sky and pulling the trigger. Only to see the bullets flying out one after another, the sound was almost inaudible to the ear.

  "Twenty rounds in a row!" Lu Xiaosheng was astonished. This kind of gun was simply an assault rifle, and it was also convenient to carry and made people defenseless.

  "Hold your fire," Hu Zhiyong said to Hu Da, "Open the city gate and let everyone go out for a stroll!"

  "Yes, young master." Hu Da left, and Lu Xiaosheng smiled slyly: "Aren't you afraid we'll run away?"

  "Suit yourself!" Hu Zhiyong sneered at everyone: "You ran away and I saved money! You should know that voluntary departure from here can be sent out of the Zhuanghe border, and three big silver dollars will be given as a gift!"

  Liang Chengfu was laughing, Li Erzhu was also laughing, and all the old soldiers were laughing. Lu Xiaosheng led the way out of the city, with Hu Zhiyong following behind him shouting: "Hey, hey, remember to come back for lunch, can't let me save on food too!"

  The captives, like a flock of sheep that had been bombed, followed Lu Xiaosheng to the north gate. After leaving the gate, they stopped and turned around to look back. There was no one following behind them, nor were there any armed soldiers or plainclothesmen. The people they saw were all locals who came to do business in the city.

  "Captain, shall we retreat?" A soldier walked up to Lu Xiaosheng and said in a low voice.

  "Idiot! Without money or guns, how far can you run? Haven't you seen how many cars are here? Can we outrun the wheels?" Lu Xiaosheng paced back and forth in frustration, not knowing where to go next.

  "Captain, I think the people of Zhuanghe are genuinely kind to us! Yesterday they treated our wounds and gave us new uniforms. Every meal has meat, and fruit, cigarettes, and liquor are available for everyone to take. Many people in their troops used to be from our same unit, and it's said that even a private gets paid 10 big yuan."

  "You haven't been to their barracks to take a look, the quilts are all high-quality cotton 'flowers', and there are also beautiful sheep's wool blankets. The underclothes are two sets of pure cotton."

  "The officials and soldiers here are equal, all eating in the same cafeteria. If you want to be special, you can go to a restaurant on the street for a big meal. Hehe, I heard that there are also 'women' from Korea who have a really indescribable charm!"

  Thousands of people were chattering and speculating, Lu Xiaosheng was annoyed and shouted: "Shut up!"

  Everyone was silent, but they stared at each other with wide eyes, not knowing what to do. Lu Xiaosheng sighed: "Brothers, whether we eat well or badly is not a big deal, what matters is that they treat us like humans! The little devils originally planned to send us to repair the railway, it was Mr. Hu who brought everyone over. We must live on strongly, and fighting against the little devils is only a matter of time! I have decided to stay behind, to take a look at their military quality, and also to check out their weaponry!"

  "Company Commander, you can't abandon your brothers!" All the soldiers shouted out.

  "If we stay, let's all stay. If we leave, where can we go? The old troops don't know where they've retreated to, and General Shuai has already abandoned us!"

  "Alright, let's stay together, we're still in the same pot, stirring thick and thin, through life and death!"

  "Through thick and thin!"

  On the city wall, the division commander and the defending officers were all watching this scene. The deputy division commander said worriedly: "This group of soldiers is not easy to lead, 'playing' with fire will eventually backfire!"

  "Betrayal?" Hu Zhiyong burst out laughing: "I'll give him the weapons right now, and if he wants to leave, I won't stop him. To be honest, you all know the cost of cultivating a soldier 'flower', I'm not willing for everyone to go die! Deputy Commander Liang, remember our agreement back then, when you want to leave, you can take your weapons with you!"

  Li Er Zhu scratched his head awkwardly: "At that time I didn't understand you, now even if you hit me with a stick, I won't leave!"

  "Alright, you see they're all back now. Let's hurry up and reorganize the troops. Deputy Commander Liang, take a squad of good soldiers from each company to supplement this group as instructors." Hu Zhiyong saw Lu Xiaosheng bring people back and knew his goal had been achieved.

  "Yes, I'll go and do it now!"

  Lu Xiaosheng walked into the city gate, and saw Hu Zhiyong standing in front of him with a set of official clothes in his hands. His heart warmed up, he ran over and tightly hugged Hu Zhiyong in his arms.

  "Brother, don't be gay!" Hu Zhiyong said humorously in modern slang, which made Lu Xiaosheng suddenly stunned.

  "Don't you get it? Hehe, it's not good to do that with a guy, and you're not even a big beauty, why are you hugging me so tightly?"

  "Hahaha!" Everyone burst out laughing, it turned out that Hu Jia San Shao was so humorous and comical.

  "Get out!" Lu Xiaosheng punched out a solid fist, but unexpectedly his arm went numb and his fingers hurt.

  "You - you know kung fu?" Lu Xiaosheng only then understood why he was able to lift himself up in the hospital.

  "My kung fu on the bed is even more beautiful, unfortunately you can't appreciate it." Hu Zhiyong didn't finish speaking before he burst out laughing, causing everyone to laugh uncontrollably.

  "We are all willing to stay!" Lu Xiaosheng looked at Hu Zhiyong, as if he was afraid that this young man would refuse him.

  "Commander Lu, assemble your troops! Advisor Li, issue them their weapons!"

  "Now, you're issuing weapons?" Lu Xiaosheng's eyes widened in surprise, thinking he had misheard. A new recruit was actually receiving a weapon so quickly; this boldness and spirit were something he couldn't help but admire.

  "Wait, your instructor is about to arrive. Let me warn you, any official position must go through military training. If you're not qualified, you can only quit and go up the mountain to cut trees! Deputy Commander, it's up to you now. I have something else to attend to, so I'll take my leave first." Hu Zhiyong smiled and shook hands with them, then hastily returned to the mansion with Huo Feng.

  In his mother's room, Shi Yiping and her sister were both there. Hu Zhiyong seemed to have not noticed, directly sitting in front of his mother asking about her injuries. In the face of San Shao's sudden coldness, the Shi sisters knew they had made a mistake.

  "Third Young Master, I was wrong! You can scold me!" Shi Yin Hua couldn't hold back anymore, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at Hu Zhi Yong.

  "You're wrong!" Shi Yin Hua was taken aback, and then he heard Hu Zhi Yong's words: "Huofeng has been 'serving' me for ten years. In these ten years, a young woman has been selflessly wiping my butt, washing my clothes, and keeping me company at night. Do you think I have the right to criticize her? When disaster strikes, one's true character is revealed. You don't want me to be an ungrateful scoundrel, do you? A woman like her deserves to be called a virtuous wife and loving mother. It's not worth my while to accompany him!"

  Hu Zhiyong's words made the two sisters lower their heads in shame. Hu Zhiyong said calmly, "She is not my maid, but my benefactor! If you are willing to marry me, you must respect her! All these years, I don't remember my father and mother, but in my impression, Feng Jie is the one who is closest to me. Of course, Yin Long is also a benefactor of the Hu family's third son!"

  Hu Feng burst into tears, and Hu Mu lovingly held Hu Zhiyong in her arms, while the other arm also hugged Hu Feng. The Shi family sisters knelt down together and begged Hu Feng: "Sister Feng, it was our fault for being young and ignorant, please forgive us this time!"

  "Miss Shi!" Huo Feng was shocked, hastily breaking free from Hu Mu's arms, and said to the two sisters: "Don't listen to Young Master, I am a maid, should serve you."

  "Nonsense!" Hu Zhiyong stood up fiercely and asked his mother, "No matter which 'daughter-in-law' enters our Hu family, she must listen to Feng Jie's words. If you feel wronged, you can choose another son-in-law! Mother, Feng Jie is the eldest daughter of my son, please allow me!"

  Seeing the golden Buddha in Huo Feng's neck, Hu Mu had already understood her son's intention. Especially with Hu Zhiyong's words just now, she couldn't help but feel a surge of gratitude towards Huo Feng.

  "Third son, how can I acknowledge Fire Phoenix as a 'daughter'?"

  "Mom, are you out of your mind? She's your daughter-in-law!" Hu Zhiyong smiled wryly: "You acknowledge her as a 'daughter', isn't this clearly breaking us up?"

  Hu's mother couldn't help but laugh and shouted at the two "daughters" on the ground: "Da Ya Tou, Er Ya Tou, get up! You are both Mom's good daughters-in-law. Mom hopes you can learn from Ehuang and Nüying to not distinguish between old and young."

  Shi Yinpeng and Shi Yin Hua's faces turned red, and they stood up obediently with the help of Huo Feng. Hu Zhiyong smiled lewdly: "Second sister, have you two discussed what I said?"

  "Shi Yin Hua spat at him and covered her face, shouting to Hu Mu: 'Auntie, he...he...'"

  "What's wrong with him? Tell me, he was wrong and I'll scold him for you!" Hu Mu felt curious and amused, asking Shi Jia Er Niu.

  "Mom, I want to make a big 'bed', after they pass the 'door' lie down together and save our son from running 'legs'!"

  The shameless words finally slipped out of Hu Zhiyong's mouth, and the three girls were so scared that they ran out of the room with their faces covered. Hu Mu was stunned at first, but soon understood what her son meant. She laughed with tears in her eyes, and her fists kept pounding on her son's back.

  "Report! The wounded soldiers in the hospital heard that a new unit is being formed and secretly ran out from inside. The deputy division commander asked for instructions on how to handle it!" The division's communication officer rushed over, reporting what had happened.

  "Get them back, and reward each of them with a cucumber!" Hu Zhiyong stood up, giving the order.

  "Reward... cucumber?" The communication soldier was stunned, having never heard of such a reward before.

  "Idiot, you've eaten the laxative!" Hu Zhiyong burst out laughing, and the communication officer also followed with a silly smile: "Really rewarding cucumbers? In the icy snow, where can you buy them?"

  "Let them rest and recover from their injuries. Once they're healed, we'll form a new unit!" Hu Zhiyong put away his smile and gave the order once again.

  "What... is the cucumber still being rewarded?" The communicator stood there stupidly, unsure of how to respond.

  "Buy it and get a reward, don't buy it and get nothing!" Hu Zhiyong pointed to his head: "Stupid!"

  PS: Today I received ten red 'flowers', so I added a new chapter. Here, I want to remind readers who gave me red 'flowers', collected, and rewarded me that your encouragement should leave footprints for me to thank you. Leave a book review, and I will express my gratitude by replying! I love 123, worship!