The joy of surviving, the confusion about the future, the uneasiness about the unknown, all these things, all rolled into my mind and lingered in my heart for a long time.
Sun Shiwan is dead, and the officials who have been arrogant and domineering over us for generations will die and escape. The settlement was also dismantled, and some of the residents in the settlement fled with their families - for them, the settlement was an endless hell from which they could never escape. They did not believe that they could be liberated, and were afraid that one day the court would come back and they would still have to live the dark days of being oppressed.
But for most people, it is gratifying to be free from oppression, but the future is very uncertain. The governor has gone and the government is gone. what should we do?
There are only two ways for the military households to make a living: either farming in the camps or fighting as camp soldiers. When the Australians come, do they still want us to farm and serve as soldiers?
I heard Uncle Chicken say that Australian soldiers are all recruited, and there is no such thing as military households. Now that the military household system is gone, what do we people do to live on? You must know that the land in the settlement is "official land". Not a single point is ours.
If the Australians take over "official land" and don't want us to serve as soldiers, how will we live?
I just wandered along the street with the crowd in a mixture of joy and confusion.
The streets were noisy. Although all the officials in Zhaoqing had fled, there were many young and middle-aged men wearing red armbands with the word "Public Security" written on them. They were holding whistle sticks and scattered at the city gate and in the streets. , shocked Xiao Xiao, and it is said that he also caught many ruffians who tried to take advantage of the chaos to rob. They were all dragged to the gallows at the city gate and hanged.
So although there were many people on the street, there was no riot. I saw Dian Shi, the former Gaoyao County government official, on the street. He was also wearing blue sleeves and shouting to maintain order.
Uncle Chicken has not been at home since last night, and no one knows where he has gone. I wandered the streets to see if I could find him - ask Australians, he was our "Aussie expert". You may be able to find out the answers to many questions if you find him. At that time, I had a vague feeling: Uncle Chicken is actually an Australian creation.
This kind of speculation has been around since the moment I heard that Fu Bo's army regained Guangzhou. From that time on, Uncle Chicken would often stay away from home for several days. When he came back, he would always have a smile on his face - at that time Everyone was in a panic because no one knew whether the war would extend to Zhaoqing. War is not only a heavy burden for the military families who have to send troops, but also a "catastrophe" for the common people that can destroy their families and destroy their lives at all times.
But Uncle Chicken is always calm and unhurried. I advise everyone not to be afraid. It is said that "if there is chaos, the world will soon be at peace." At the time, I thought it was just an empty word with good wishes, but I didn’t expect that there was such a profound meaning behind it! Since then, the land where our ancestors have lived for generations has truly been "peaceful".
Brother Hai and I searched for him on the street for a long time, but Uncle Chicken was nowhere to be seen. On the contrary, Uncle Chicken saw Brother Hai first in the crowd, and then found me next to Brother Hai.
Uncle Chicken also wears this armband and holds a whistle stick - it turns out that Uncle Chicken is really an Australian spy!
I had a lot of questions to ask Uncle Chicken, but he just smiled and shook his hand at me.
When the uneasy Brother Hai saw this "Australia Master", he was like a man who had fallen into the water and found a big log. He quickly pulled Uncle Chicken and asked what the Australians were doing by gathering people here, whether it was money or Latin. ? Uncle Chicken only said three words lightly, "Enter the city style."
Entering the city and military parade are relatively common today. They are an effective and important way to show the military power of our Fubo Army, improve the pride of our Fubo Army soldiers, and educate the people on patriotism. Many comrades from the local government and the army have written to our Political Department, reporting that the military parade has a great educational effect on soldiers and the masses. The people are very enthusiastic about joining the army, and they request that we send even one battalion and one company. Do it more, do it more.
In Pseudo-Ming, there were similar activities. But it was just a few crooked soldiers holding the flag and throwing a pestle there, and then hundreds of soldiers followed the gongs and drums signals to run around the school field and change formations. At most, there were cavalry performing horseback riding skills, which was euphemistically called "school field martial arts performance". ". It’s very lively because there are indispensable tricks such as playing with a machete, breaking rocks on the chest, and shooting arrows. So it’s very attractive to watch. I come from a military household, so of course I have seen these things before. Wang Zunde did it once in Zhaoqing when he invaded Lingao. The scale is huge, so I am looking forward to the Fubo Army's entry into the city.
"Step together—let's go!"
At about 10 o'clock in the morning, like a thunder in the plains, a Fubo army pacesetter was divided into two columns. Under the leadership of a captain holding a command knife, carrying a mini gun, they came down from the city wall and walked Walking in unison at 170 steps per minute, like a dam piercing the river, they separated the crowds jammed on Dongmen Avenue, leaving a gap in the middle. There were some fools in the crowd who wanted to laugh or yell, but were glared at intentionally or unintentionally by the wolf-like Fubo soldiers, who opened their mouths and forgot what they originally wanted to say. The originally lively crowd became as silent as a backwater.
"Settled-"
"Left, right - turn!"
"Shoulder under the gun!"
The captain gave continuous orders, and the Fubo soldiers on both sides did not hesitate. They turned around in unison and put down their rifles in unison. The butts of their rifles hit each other, making a heavy muffled sound.
Not long after, the sound of trumpets, flutes and snare drums could be vaguely heard outside the east gate, and the crowd began to commotion. People stood on tiptoe, pulling on other people's shoulders, and craned their necks to look. A company of grenadiers was divided into three columns, guarding a huge red flag of the Star Fist, and walked in from outside the city gate to the music of "Grenadier March", to the beat of drums and with majestic weapons.
Ah, there are such good soldiers!
The commotion in the crowd is getting louder and louder. Anyone who is used to seeing the arrogant Ming bandit army thinks that all armies in the world are like this. Who will not be shocked when they see the Fubo army? What's more, this is the elite of Fubo's army, a grenadier who is indomitable, tall and straight, with excellent combat effectiveness and temperament!
These soldiers were tall, and with their pointed military caps on their heads, they all looked like giants. The red military uniforms were so gorgeous and neat, with leather belts and sharp bayonets... I was stunned immediately.
I was born a "soldier", and my neighbors are all soldiers, and I work with soldiers every day. I have never known that a soldier or a soldier can have such a majestic appearance!
What did Uncle Chicken wear when he went to fight? It is a large "walking coat" that anyone can wear. It hangs around the body without a belt, just like wearing a pocket. The fit is still there, because Shangguan has a habit of overpaying and his robes are always in tatters. Not to mention the majesty of a soldier, he can't even be an upright person. In the eyes of ordinary people, soldiers are the same type of people as ruffians and bandits.
Just when we were in admiration and shock, a veteran officer walking in front, Commander Zhu Quanxing, the battalion commander of the third battalion of the 1st Brigade, my old superior, just as the "Grenadier March" sounded for the second time, that burst of When the stormy drum beat once again made people tremble in their hearts, it seemed that they were still not satisfied with the effect.
He frowned, took two quick steps to get out of the queue, walked to the front of the team, turned around, waited for the flute player to finish playing, waved to the team and shouted loudly: "We are all here, there is a truth that goes without saying, Get ready to sing!”
The tense faces of the soldiers suddenly broke into laughter, and the flutist and drummer happily began to accompany everyone. The soldiers sang along at the top of their lungs:
"There is a truth that goes without saying.
Soldiers should go to the battlefield
…”
The song was like a torch lighting up the grassland. It was spread from the front to the end of the row by word of mouth, igniting an unstoppable prairie fire that resounded throughout the morning in Zhaoqing. The long gray dragon sang a majestic song. Everyone raised their proud heads and chests. Their medals shone dazzlingly in the sun, illuminating the Zhaoqing city that had been dark for thousands of years. .
I come from a military household. I have seen soldiers and soldiers singing in unison. It was said to be soldiers, but they were just ruffians who only knew how to bully the common people; it was said to be a song, but it was also an "imperial formation song" that the soldiers could not understand, and they could only roar along with it like parrots. How many times have I seen such soldiers with faces filled with pride, soldiers with vitality, soldiers with contempt for the enemy and confidence in themselves, such oppressive soldiers! The Ming army said, "Good iron should not be hammered with nails, and good men should not be soldiers." Fubo army said, "Good steel should be forged into sharp swords, and good soldiers should fight hard battles." "Fame and fame, the title of wife and son"; Fu Bojun said, "As long as the Senate calls out, they will sing a war song and rush to the front", which is a judgment call. I understand, this is an army that is dedicated to showing off its power on the battlefield.
The lively children also lost the fear they had at the beginning. Taking advantage of their small size, they got rid of the control of adults, imitated the soldiers and sang songs, and chased the team through the gaps in the crowd. A seven-year-old boy, who lost his balance or was too excited, slipped in from the pacesetter and bumped into the leg of a little soldier. The little soldier subconsciously picked up the little boy, but this friendly action caused a commotion in the crowd. Everyone believed the hateful fake authorities and thought they were going to arrest the child. The little boy's grandfather wanted to rush in to pick up the child but didn't dare. He stood so anxiously behind the pacesetters that he jumped and cried.
The little soldier saw the old man and understood what had happened. He ran out of the queue and returned the child to the old man's arms. He gave the old man a green smile, touched the child's little face, waved and ran back to the original queue. This behavior, which is common in the Fubo Army, has caused even greater commotion among the people watching. Even if you are pretending to be Ming, if you encounter a good-tempered person, you will be beaten if you collide with the troops; if you encounter a bad-tempered person, you will be beaten on the spot. There's no place to reason with him even if he's beaten to death! . Everyone whispered to each other, completely unable to believe that what was happening in front of them was reality.
What happened next made everyone think it was a dream even more.
After the entrance ceremony began, several women carried baskets, baskets, and large teapots to distribute eggs and tea to the soldiers entering the city. But most of our soldiers declined politely; a handful of those who accepted the eggs also thanked the women in fluent or broken Cantonese. The thirsty soldier took the teacup, drank it while standing, returned the teacup to the women, thanked them, and then rushed back to the team. Later, the women simply stopped distributing eggs. With the help of the people nearby, they picked up the eggs and stuffed them into the pockets of the soldiers.
When I was in private school, I heard about the so-called "Master Wang" who was very popular among the people. People put food in their bamboo baskets and filled their kettles with water, and took to the streets to welcome "Master Wang". But how often have you seen a "Master King" who is not even willing to take the people's food and water! Comrades, how could any of the soldiers of those days, whether they were distant braided soldiers or the puppet Ming army around us, not plunder the people? Like our current enemies, the Spaniards and the Dutch, they are all bandits who harm the people. We had a popular saying at that time, "The bandits are like a comb, and the soldiers are like a grate." It means that when the bandits come, it is like combing them with a comb, and there is still something left behind; but he pretended that the bandits were coming. What's up? Don't think about leaving anything behind. The Fubo Army is a very novel army that neither robs nor kills, treats people kindly, and is not even willing to take gifts from the people. In Brother Hai's words, "I have grown up and seen many armies. How can I not rob the common people? Just go here and the court will never come back!"
After the Fubo Army liberated Zhaoqing, they implemented military control over Zhaoqing. However, for the people, apart from the fact that the Fubo Army's policy of not allowing open urination and defecation made some people uncomfortable and complained, there was no inconvenience to the people. The security here has improved. The officers and soldiers of Fubo were fair in their dealings and spoke kindly, so the rumors spread by the false authorities were self-defeating. The children put some colorful baubles on their chests that served as medals, and the scene of them walking behind the patrolling Fubo Army soldiers has become a scene in Zhaoqing. The catchy military songs of Fubo Army are very popular among the people. You can hear the songs "I am a soldier" and "There is a truth that goes without saying" everywhere. What is interesting is that these military songs were originally only "New I don’t know who made the translation and adaptation of the song, and versions in Cantonese and local dialects appeared. The people understood the meaning of the song and loved our Fubo Army even more.
When you are a soldier, you must be a fubo army! Since then, I have strengthened my belief. Later, when the Fubo Army recruited troops locally, I convinced my parents and went to the military camp with Brother Hai to sign up. When the recruiting officer asked me what my name was, I told him that my name was Liu Xing.
