Having survived the food crisis without any major problems, the independent regiment ushered in a new spring and settled down completely. Political Commissar Ding Deyi, who was also the regiment commander, began to focus on two things: one was recruiting soldiers and expanding the number of soldiers, and the other was to continue to report to the division, demanding that the shortage of political workers be solved.
As long as there was food, conscription was not difficult, especially in the environment where the famine had not yet ended. Within a few days, more than 200 people gathered from all directions. The recruit company was more lively than ever, and the playground of Dabeizhuang was more noisy than ever before.
The Iron First Company, the Red Third Company, the sharp knife is the Second Company, and the fool goes to the Ninth Class.
This is a popular saying among the independent groups nowadays. Class 9 is honored to be on the list. Although the name is not very nice, it is also a thing to be proud of. At least it means that Class 9 has established a sect, everyone recognizes its independence, and has a place in the independent group.
The spring breeze was blowing, the sun was shining, and the sky was blue at noon. We had just finished lunch, and the afternoon training had not yet started. A large group of new recruits were resting in groups on the edge of the playground, telling jokes and chatting.
"Hey, why is it called: Idiots go to Class 9?"
"It means that whoever goes to Class Nine is stupid."
"There's another story. It's said that there was a fool among the last batch of recruits. No one wanted him in the first, second, and third companies, so he was sent to the ninth squad."
"Oh, so this means that Class 9 is a quagmire where you can't even plaster the walls?"
"That must be the case. Have you heard that this morning, the squad leader of Class 9 was put in solitary confinement again? The veterans said that he was a frequent visitor to the confinement room and would go in every few days. Think about it, if the squad leader is like this, how can Class 9 be any better?"
"I see... Listening to your words is worth ten years of service!"
"Hey, you've learned a lot... Hey, speaking of Cao Cao, here comes Cao Cao. That one over here is the idiot from Class 9. I saw him when I was having dinner!"
“What? Which one is it? Let me see…” Several recruits quickly stretched their necks and stared with wide eyes.
He was not tall but solid, with a bulbous nose and small eyes. He was ugly and dark, about the size of a potato. There was no light in his small eyes, which stared straight ahead, not noticing the laughter around him. He was walking across the middle of the playground with a small basket in his hand.
There are all kinds of birds in the forest, and among the new recruits there are troublemakers and idlers who like to talk nonsense. There are a few who have nothing to do and recognize the fool in Class 9, so they wander around and block his way.
"Hey, I've heard a lot about you. You are... a fool, right?"
"Um."
Laughter broke out all around.
"So what are you doing here?"
"Bring food to my squad leader."
"Oh, so you're going to visit the prison!"
"Um."
There was another burst of laughter all around.
The fool had a blank expression on his face and did not react to the laughter around him. He took two slow steps sideways, ready to move on.
Because he was a fool, these new recruits didn't take him seriously as a soldier at all and wanted to play a trick on him, so they stopped him again.
"Hey, don't leave in such a hurry. They laugh at you for being stupid, but I don't think you're stupid at all. Let me help you prove to them that you're not stupid. What do you think?"
"Um."
"Then you learn from me. You do what I do. Watch carefully." After the recruit finished speaking, he raised his right hand to salute, and the fool also saluted. The recruit saluted with both hands at the same time, and the fool also saluted with both hands at the same time.
Crash—the small basket fell to the ground, and two cakes, a bowl of soup and a small plate of pickles were all on the ground.
Everyone around laughed again...
Wu Shitou looked down woodenly at the spilled soup and vegetables on the ground. He didn't think he had done anything wrong, nor did he think the new soldier opposite him had done anything wrong. He didn't mind the ridicule from the people around him. But he wasn't hopelessly stupid. Since the soup had been spilled, he had to find someone to compensate.
Who will pay? One is myself, and the other is the person playing the game with me. I can't cook or make soup, so I can't pay, so I have to ask him for it.
"You pay for it."
"What? Haha, you dropped it yourself, why do you want me to pay for it? I don't..."
With a bang, peach blossoms blossomed. Before the recruit could finish his words, a fist as strong as a hammer had already hit his face, blood streaked, half of his front teeth flew out, and he fell backwards with a thud. The sturdy figure was relentless, sticking to him like a ghost, riding on the chest of the fallen recruit, and continued to swing his fists straight and fast.
The recruits on the playground were dumbfounded. How could they just start fighting? This was the Eighth Route Army Independent Regiment, not a county fair. How could they do this? Where was the discipline
They surrounded him with a loud noise, grabbed his shoulders and arms, and finally pinned him down, but they didn't dare to use force, for fear of violating discipline. A new recruit hurriedly called the instructor, who was a platoon leader of the first company. The training of this batch of new recruits was in charge of the company commander Wu Yan.
The new soldiers all talked about what happened and strongly demanded that the fool who beat people without saying a word be sent to the regiment headquarters to correct military discipline. However, when the instructor platoon leader saw that it was Wu Shitou who beat people, his eyebrows were piled together.
This is a well-known fool in the whole regiment, and everyone in the regiment knows it. First, talk nonsense with a fool, and then bring him to justice? What does the political committee think about this matter? What's wrong with having nothing better to do
"Disperse, disperse, let him go immediately! Wu Shitou, you are not allowed to hit him again, do you hear me? Disperse immediately!" The instructor platoon leader had no choice but to make a big deal out of a small matter.
…
The door to the kitchen yard was open, and the dozen long tables in the yard were basically empty. Wang Xiaosan was cleaning each table with a rag in his hand. Only one table in the middle had four people sitting on it, Xiao Hongying and Luo Fugui on one side, and Ma Liang and Liu Jianqiang on the other.
Xiao Hongying was holding a pair of chopsticks in her hand, dipping them into cold boiled water and drawing on the table in a mess, without saying a word; Luo Fugui was holding a large bowl in both hands, still drinking soup, and the bowls and plates beside him had piled up into a huge pile.
Liu Jianqiang was complaining to Ma Liang beside him: "What's so glorious about this? Isn't it embarrassing enough? Physically punishing soldiers? What kind of thing is this?"
Ma Liang glanced at Liu Jianqiang and said, "What can I do? The squad leader forced me to do it!"
"You did it just because I forced you to? Ma Liang, look down, you are from the Eighth Route Army! Where are your principles? Where is your awareness? Look at how aggrieved you were in the regiment headquarters. Even I believed it. You are amazing!"
Luo Fugui suddenly put down his bowl of soup, burped and said, "Runny Nose, can you please stop nagging? I think this is a good thing. Boss Hu is in jail again, so we can relax. We don't have to get up early to climb the mountain, dig holes and carry stones. Without him urging us, we can even enjoy this lunch."
Liu Jianqiang frowned, looked at Luo Fugui and said, "You are relieved without the squad leader in charge. We are the first to arrive, and now three groups of people have finished eating and left. Do you feel embarrassed? Can you give the kitchen team some peace of mind?"
Wang Xiaosan, who was busy nearby, heard what Liu Jianqiang said, stopped what he was doing, straightened up, and interrupted with a smile: "It's okay, nothing happened, just keep working. If it weren't for your class nine, our whole group would be hungry now. Uncle Niu has said that there is no limit on the number of classes nine. Hehe, mule, don't worry, eat slowly. If you can finish the afternoon, I'll even connect you to dinner!"
Liu Jianqiang was turned into a sculpture by Wang Xiaosan's words, with black lines all over his head and he couldn't move.
"What the hell, what is enlightenment? Huh? Runny nose, see? This is what enlightenment is! I really can't help but admit it, Uncle Niu is awesome!" Luo Fugui finished speaking to Liu Jianqiang with a big grin, then turned around and excitedly gave Wang Xiaosan a thumbs up: "Third brother, good brother!"
Wang Xiaosan scratched the back of his head: "Hey, I'm younger than you."
Chuckling... Xiao Hongying, who was creating art on the table, couldn't help it anymore. She suddenly raised her pair of pigtails back and almost fell off the stool with laughter.
Creaky—the door swayed for a moment, and Wu Shitou walked into the yard. He silently came to Xiao Hongying, put the basket in his hand on the table, and then sat down blankly.
Xiao Hongying stopped laughing and asked Wu Shitou while twisting her pigtails: "The fox finished eating so quickly? Is it enough?"
"He won't compensate." Wu Shitou answered the question irrelevantly.
"What a mess!" Xiao Hongying grabbed the food basket and took a look. Her eyebrows immediately stood up: "Fool! I asked you to deliver food, but you went to catch birds?"
Upon hearing this, Ma Liang and the others looked into the basket. The two cakes were dirty and covered with sand, the soup bowl was empty, and a few pickles were scattered at the bottom of the basket, covered with mud.
"He won't pay."
Although Wu Shitou is a bit stupid, he has been in Class 9 for a long time, and everyone has gradually understood his personality, temper, and behavior. If he really fell while trying to catch a bird on the road, this would definitely not be the answer.
Xiao Hongying couldn't help but lower her raised eyebrows: "Who is he?"
"I don't know him."
"How dare you play house with him when you don't even know him?" The pair of little eyebrows stood up again. Xiao Hongying thought that Wu Shitou was looking for someone to play with mud on the way.
Ma Liang saw Xiao Hongying's careless behavior and waved his hand at her. Then he turned to ask Wu Shitou, "Where is she?"
"playground."
Ma Liang nodded. At this time, the playground was full of new soldiers waiting to start training. He asked again, "How did the basket fall? Do it again."
Wu Shitou stood up and began to salute... After gesturing and repeating, the scene finally reappeared.
With a bang, a white and tender little hand slammed down on the table, and a pair of pigtails stood up, then began to shake her hands with a grin: "I... Ouch... It hurts so much... Even a new recruit bullied me! Fool, take the basket and follow me!"
Xiao Hongying left the table immediately and walked out of the yard. Wu Shitou picked up the basket and followed her silently.
The three people at the table watched Xiao Hongying and Wu Shitou walk out the door. Luo Fugui lowered his head and continued to drink his soup happily; Ma Liang picked up the chopsticks that Xiao Hongying used to paint and began to practice calligraphy by dipping them in water on the table; Liu Jianqiang crossed his arms helplessly, looked up at the blue sky, and sighed in his heart: They are all shameless, they are all gods!
The spring sunshine shines warmly...