Ding Deyi opened the drawer and took out a pocket watch, playing with it in his rough hands. This was the only item found on the deserter. Zhizhizhizhi—he turned the button of the pocket watch and wound it up. He took out his own watch, compared it with the watch, adjusted the time, put it in his pocket, and left the command post.
Wuming Village has hundreds of households, and it is neither big nor small. In addition to the command post renting a courtyard from a villager, the independent regiment has built dozens of new houses and a playground at the west end of the village. At this moment, there are bursts of training sounds coming from them. Ding Deyi walked around various areas and finally walked to the confinement room.
Because he was walking from the side, Ding De could see a girl squatting under the back window of the detention room from a distance. When he got closer, he saw the girl taking out a grenade and immediately shouted, "Stop! Put it down!"
The sentry guarding the gate in front was startled when he heard the voice, and when he saw it was the political commissar, he saluted hurriedly.
"Remove the post."
"Um?"
"I said we should remove this post. There's no need to look after the detention room anymore."
"yes."
The sentry left and Ding Deyi stood in front of the girl.
The girl forced out a harmless smile: "Uncle Ding, I'm playing here, why are you here? Hehe."
Ding Deyi bent down and took the grenade from the girl, weighing it in his hand: "Xiao Hongying, you are really good! Now you dare to call yourself an aunt! Playing? Are you going to destroy my confinement room?"
"No, no, I was just playing house and trying to scare him. Hehehe..."
Ding Deyi's face darkened: "Stop smiling at me. Where did this grenade come from?"
The girl's cunning eyes flickered twice: "I borrowed it from Runny Nose."
Ding Deyi tried hard to keep a stern face, "Comrade Hongying, this is a revolutionary team. Can you please stop giving people nicknames randomly? Borrowed? Stolen? Go to the command post and face the wall now!"
Ding Deyi walked into the confinement room and could hear the conversation outside. Hu Yi knew that the person who came in was a "political commissar". Although he didn't know what kind of cadre a political commissar was, he must be a superior. He instinctively wanted to salute, but suddenly remembered that he was no longer a soldier and had changed into coarse civilian clothes, so he just stood up and looked at the other person quietly.
Ding Deyi had been in the army since the Red Army period. He was not only an old party member, but also a veteran who had seen countless people. Although Hu Yi was wearing ordinary civilian clothes at the moment, he still felt a murderous aura from Hu Yi. This kind of fierce aura could not be faked by blowing a beard and glaring at eyes. It could only be formed by the accumulation of blood and death. A Kuomintang deserter who forgot his loyalty for the sake of profit? It's not that simple!
"Hu Yi, I'm sorry that you have been suffering here for more than ten days. There is nothing we can do. This is the system regulation. The situation has been basically verified. From now on, you are free."
After hearing what Ding Deyi said in person, Hu Yi did not feel the joy of freedom, but suddenly felt lost. This meant that the mission he had set for himself to escort the woman was over, and from now on, he would have to start wandering without roots again. Free? Where to go? I don't know!
After a pause, Ding Deyi added: "Oh, by the way, this is yours." As he spoke, he took out the pocket watch from his pocket and handed it back to Hu Yi.
The silver case reflected the light and was as smooth as a mirror. Hu Yi took it silently. Click - the case jumped up briskly with a crisp and pleasant metallic sound. The dial was crystal clear, reflecting Hu Yi's confused face. It was a quarter to one.
"How is she?" Hu Yi asked without raising his head, looking at the time on the watch.
"Hmm? Oh, Su Qing. She's not here now. The organization may want to assign her a new job, but it hasn't been confirmed yet."
Su Qing! So her name is Su Qing. She is his woman, and she is not his woman. This matter is really as bad as a ball of dough. Snap—Hu Yi closed the watch case and raised his head to look at Ding Deyi again: "Sir, I want to stay, is that okay?"
The regiment commander followed the soldier leading the way and climbed to the top of the mountain east of the village breathlessly. There, Liu Jianqiang was sitting on a rock, with the butt of his rifle poking the ground, the muzzle resting on his chin, and his finger in the trigger hole.
"You **** runny nose bastard, are you fucking done yet? Put your gun down!" The regiment commander yelled at Liu Jianqiang with a sullen face.
"I don't care! My life was saved by the Ninth Company. If the Ninth Company is gone, then I will give my life back to the Ninth Company!"
"You little bastard, I order you to put down your gun now!"
The regiment commander's tough attitude was not responded to. Instead, Liu Jianqiang used his other hand to pull the bolt and load the bullet.
"You—" The regiment commander was so angry that he didn't know what to do, when suddenly a few people ran up from behind. Political Commissar Ding Deyi was originally talking to Hu Yi in the confinement room, when suddenly a soldier reported that Liu Jianqiang was going to commit suicide on Dongshan Mountain, and he immediately rushed over.
"Old Ding, it's a good thing that you're here. Take a look at this bear thing. I can't take care of it anymore. I can't keep it."
Liu Jianqiang has been in the army for a year and is just 18 this year, so he is still a new recruit. In the cruel and bloody battlefield, many new soldiers who are not mentally prepared will be shocked and unable to relieve the psychological pressure, which will lead to changes in personality or becoming paranoid, as if they are possessed. Liu Jianqiang should be in this situation right now.
Political Commissar Ding patted the regiment commander on the shoulder, signaling him not to be impatient, then slowly walked to the opposite side of Liu Jianqiang and asked: "Liu Jianqiang, even if the number of the Ninth Company is not revoked, but without a company commander, how can it be considered the Ninth Company?"
Liu Jianqiang was stunned by the question. After a while, he blurted out, "I am the company commander."
"Well, even if the regiment commander and I agree that you should be the company commander, what kind of company commander are you without soldiers?"
Liu Jianqiang was speechless for a moment, and thought for a while: "I can go and look for them. If I can find soldiers, will you and the regiment commander keep the 9th Company?"
The political commissar smiled and said, "Okay, go find it."
Watching Liu Jianqiang's young back hurried down the mountain, the regiment commander asked the political commissar, "Old Ding, are you really going to let him continue to mess around?"
Ding Deyi sighed, "Poor Company Nine! This kid is upset. We may not have any battles recently, so find him something to do to stop him from making trouble. Besides, he can't be found. Don't you think so?"
A young soldier came to the confinement room. He was not tall but had long legs. He exuded a cleverness from head to toe. He smiled shyly at Hu Yi and said, "Hello, my name is Ma Liang and I'm a communicator. The political commissar left in a hurry and had no time to make any arrangements, so he ordered me to settle you down first." After saying that, he picked up the bedding on the bed in the confinement room and led Hu Yi out the door.
On the way to the dormitory, Hu Yi asked about the little girl. Since they were going to be comrades in arms in the future, Ma Liang had no reservations and answered Hu Yi carefully.
The little girl was twelve years old, nicknamed Hongying, and her parents were both veteran Red Army soldiers. Her father died in the battle against the encirclement and suppression in Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi, and her mother died when she crossed the Xiangjiang River. Before the Long March, the army wanted to foster her in a fellow villager's home like other children, but the eight-year-old Hongying ran away and returned to the army, and arrived in northern Shaanxi after the Long March. After the army was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army, the regiment wanted to keep her in Yan'an to go to school with the orphans of the martyrs, but little Hongying was used to being wild in the army and could not get along with children of the same age. She threw a tantrum and threatened to die, and used all means to follow the army to Taihang Mountains.
After giving a brief account of Hongying's situation, Ma Liang paused and added, "Although little Hongying has no parents, the group leader said that she is the child of our entire group and we must pamper her and spoil her."
Hu Yi smiled helplessly. Yes, this damn girl has been spoiled to the point of being a big shot.
Ma Liang thought Hu Yi didn't believe him, so he continued, "Really? Don't underestimate her because she's young. Sometimes she's better than us recruits. She's so accurate with her gun! If the regiment commander and political commissar hadn't kept a close eye on her, she might have slipped off to the battlefield."
Hu Yi was convinced of this. Over the past ten days, the "turret" in the confinement room had almost been lost several times, and was almost destroyed by that little girl today...