Today is a sunny day, and the military flag of Ma Niao Fort is fluttering in the cold north wind of Hainan winter.
Tian Liang got up before dawn and repeated his daily tasks over and over again. Follow the documents and instructions issued and be meticulous. I'm afraid I missed something.
It has been a week since I received the order to "pack your luggage and be ready to go". The preparations for each company and battalion have been completed. Officers from the brigades, battalions, and companies of the combat troops to the general staff and joint logistics took the trouble to check over and over again. The equipment status of each soldier and each company is afraid of missing a detail.
The supplies shipped piled up like mountains. Not only have expedition equipment been supplemented, but weapons have also been updated. The rifles in the hands of soldiers have been updated according to the ordnance inspection. Other personal equipment, large luggage, and small luggage were all checked over and over for fear of being missed. But to ensure everything is safe, you have to be careful not to be overweight. The "three-thirds and four-points" work of each unit was inspected in strict accordance with the regulations. That is, each soldier has regulations on carrying materials and equipment, which clearly clarifies what should be brought and what should not be brought during wartime, peacetime, and training.
This order has been implemented in the past, but never so meticulously as this time. The general staff officer who came to inspect brought a scale and measured the load of each soldier one by one. Even one pound more would not be enough.
Tian Liang was extremely busy. His company was newly built. Although veterans were recruited in proportion when forming the new unit, the proportion of new recruits in the company was still too high, and the new recruits were recruited through the compulsory military service system. The first batch of mobilized soldiers had quite complex ideological conditions.
In the past few years, life in Hainan has become better day by day, and the enthusiasm of the people to serve as soldiers has been greatly reduced. No matter how well treated a soldier is or how high his status is, his life will be in danger once a war breaks out. Therefore, after recruits enter the camp, their emotions are quite ups and downs. As an officer, you not only have to do ideological work, but you also have to ensure that there are no deserters. To this end, each class has designated "help targets" and let the veterans be responsible for "man-to-man". Although the civil affairs system of the Senate has been able to ensure that deserters can be captured as long as they do not flee to the mainland or deep mountains and forests, once a deserter occurs, it will have a great impact on morale.
"It takes time to catch deserters. Before they are caught, your company will be shaken because of a deserter. People who were originally hesitant will make up their mind to escape after seeing the example." In the officer training class Senior Wei Aiwen from the Political Department of the General Staff said this. He specializes in teaching company political and ideological work to newly promoted grassroots officers.
Preventing deserters and boosting morale have become the main tasks of grassroots company officers like Tian Liang. This is for a clumsy tongue. It's a hard job for Tian Liang, who is not good at words. Fortunately, this expansion of the army has added a group of "student officers", who are the first batch of graduates of the army to complete the complete three-year officer training. They all completed two years of junior primary school in Fangcaodi and then transferred to the army training class for three years. The cultural level and military quality are unmatched by previous officers. What is lacking is actual experience in leading troops in combat. Tian Liang's company also added a young officer, and Tian Liang left these things to him.
Since I no longer train, I spend most of my time in meetings, with conferences and small mobilization meetings at all levels taking turns to remember hardships. The new student officer is a eloquent speaker, full of new words, and very good at encouraging. The various propaganda materials issued by the propaganda department are full of information about famine, plague, excessive taxation by the government, victims of disasters selling their children and girls to eat human flesh, the incursions of Eastern invaders, rampant bandits, and the tyranny of the gentry... These do not cost too much. To describe it with all my strength, as long as the refugees have fled from the mainland, they have more or less experienced it personally or heard about it with their own ears.
Except for promotional materials. Organizing soldiers to "remember their sufferings" and sending special "preaching groups" are also important means. The effect of real people's narration is more vivid and touching than dry written materials.
He remembered the numbers that the company secretary had given him yesterday at the meeting to remember the suffering: 95 people who had experienced running away and begging; 100 people who had suffered from hunger; 70 people who had one or both parents deceased; 91 people who had deceased brothers and sisters. 14 people who had been sold into slavery; 31 people who had sold their wives, children, siblings; 9 people who had been sodomized... Finally, there was a cold and terrifying number: 10 people who had eaten human flesh.
His company totaled only 100 men.
The peaceful time in Hainan buried their horrific memories of the past, but now the political mobilization meeting has awakened these horrific memories from the depths of their minds, turning them into incomparable anger and inspiring high morale.
Tian Liang walked past the company's wall newspaper column, which now contained the unshakable "Lingao Times". It is the letter of determination of everyone in the company. Texts written in various handwritings and fonts are all over the walls, including many red ones, which are eye-catching. Tian Liang was about to take a look when he suddenly heard crying in the soldiers' activity room. After a while, two soldiers came out supporting a man, who must have fainted. Tian Liang is already used to this kind of thing. Talk about most of the soldiers here. They all escaped from death, no one has suffered a lot of tragedy! Normally they just hide it, but now when it is brought out, the huge emotional wave often makes their nerves unbearable.
Thinking of his life experience, Tian Liang's eyes became hot and he almost shed tears. Afraid of being seen, he quickly turned around and rubbed his eyes. After controlling his emotions, he walked back to the kitchen in front.
The company's kitchen was busy, and the cooking squad and the soldiers who helped cook were busy preparing lunch. Because they were on the verge of war, each company had handed over the pigs and sheep raised by the company to the Tiandihui in exchange for fresh meat. Lianqin's daily food supplement has also been upgraded to a higher level. Now we not only have chicken, duck, and fish every day, but also every meal.
When Tian Liang saw the steaming dishes on the big plate, he remembered that a soldier said that he had been eating decapitation meals these days, and he couldn't help but feel an indescribable emotion.
Suddenly, a rapid drum beat sounded over the entire camp, and Tian Liang was stunned. This was the drum beat for "emergency gathering". He immediately picked up the whistle hanging around his neck and blew it, shouting at the rushing messenger: "Quick! The whole company must assemble!"
Almost immediately, the sound of military drums for an emergency assembly sounded over the entire camp. The officers and soldiers who had been preparing for the expedition in the barracks for several months couldn't help but feel startled, and a thought flashed through them almost at the same time: "Here we come!"
The four infantry battalions and the directly-affiliated troops at the corps and brigade levels that had been trained in Majiaobao quickly gathered on the large playground.
"Take a break!" the officer on duty gave the command, and then shouted: "Please give the commander of the South China Army a speech!"
"Comrades!" Xi Yazhou stood on the wooden reviewing stand and shouted loudly into the loudspeaker that had just been set up. "I am now reading out the order to everyone." He unfolded a document in his hand and after a brief pause Read: "Order of the Chairman of the Senate!..." When these seven words came out of his mouth, with a "swish" sound, all the officers and soldiers stood at attention solemnly, all eyes focused on his closed lips, waiting for the following content.
"The units of the South China Army, the 1st Infantry Battalion, the 8th Infantry Battalion..." Xi Yazhou read out a long list of unit numbers in one breath, "We are marching in Australia in the Song Dynasty, and the armed forces under the leadership of the Senate are in opposition A great victory has been achieved in the revolutionary war against the counterfeit reactionary government. The enemy's aggression against us has been shamefully destroyed, and the base of the reactionaries who launched the war have also been severely punished. The entire Hainan has been liberated, which is our The result of the heroic efforts of all officers and soldiers. I would like to express my warm congratulations and thanks to you.
But our combat mission is not over yet. The Pseudo-Ming Dynasty still oppresses the vast number of people on the land of China. The incompetent Pseudo-Ming Dynasty regime is not only unable to protect the people, but intensifies its cruelty to the people. The land of China is in dire straits.
I command! All officers and soldiers of the Fubo Army resolutely carried out all the orders of the Senate, crossed the sea and went on the Northern Expedition, eliminated the puppet Ming reactionary troops, liberated the country, and at the same time eliminated bandits, Eastern captives, and rogue bandits, and suppressed all resistance and troublemaking behavior by the reactionaries.
Chairman of the Senate and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Wang Luobin. "
"Long live!" As soon as Xi Yazhou finished speaking, thousands of soldiers gathered on the playground shouted together.
The troops arranged in square formation shouted long live. Everyone knew that the leaders wanted to compete in the Central Plains and conquer the world!
After reading out the order for the Northern Expedition, Xi Yazhou scanned the blue-gray phalanxes below and said loudly:
"Bring out the flag!" the political commissar shouted again, and the flag bearer came up from the back of the team holding an eagle flag high. The flag is very worn, and the bright red flag has turned grayish red, but the iron fist wheat ear gear pattern on the flag and the Latin letters "ssae" below are still clearly visible.
Tian Liang knew that this flag was the military flag that was erected on the embankment during the second anti-encirclement and suppression campaign. He had participated in this battle, and he couldn't help but feel excited when he recalled the scene of the battle on the embankment.
"Please raise your left hand, place it on your left chest, and take an oath facing our military flag." The moment Xi Yazhou finished speaking, Tian Liang's muscles were tense with excitement, and his ears were buzzing, almost Unable to control himself, he followed the oath taker and chanted word by word: "For the sake of the Senate and the people, I am willing to sacrifice myself, move forward bravely, and fight bravely..."
Military music started playing, coming from the loudspeakers in the camp, and the sound of Fubo's military march echoed over the camp. The roars of "Long live" and "Long live" spread throughout the Maya Peninsula. Tian Liang held the handle of the command knife tightly, and his whole body and mind were full of strength. If he could die fighting for the Senate at this time, what a blessing it would be. (To be continued.)
