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Benjamin's name was changed to Benjamin.
Chapter 11
September, Garo City in the south-central part of the East Country.
It was light at four in the morning, and the blue-gray mist with a hint of light pink enveloped the dilapidated and dead city.
On the top floor of a four-story building in the city center, the windows were closed and covered with newspapers. The room was dimly lit, with a table, a chair and a bed on the bare cement walls and floor.
A small electric fan was whirring at the head of the bed. Suddenly, the electricity stopped with a hissing sound, and the fan blades lost their power. It spun slower and slower, swaying around for a few circles before finally stopping.
The power is out again.
After just a few minutes, Song Ran woke up on the bed, touched his neck, and saw a thin layer of sweat.
It's September and the weather is still hot.
These days, the temperature in Jialuo City has always been above 35 degrees, and the perceived temperature is over 40. Song Ran has been stationed there for a month, and when he first arrived, the temperature was nearly 50 degrees every day, which was terrible.
More than a month ago, the war in the East Country worsened, and countless civilian casualties occurred. War correspondents, charity organizations, volunteers, Doctors Without Borders, and UN peacekeeping forces from various countries entered the country.
Liangcheng TV also sent reporters over. Several male colleagues went to the front line, and Song Ran stayed in Jialuo, where the UN peacekeeping force was stationed, to report on the situation of the local Dongguo military and civilians and the peacekeeping force.
She spent most of her time recording for her country's military in the Chinese garrison, and occasionally went out with other teams. Today, there happened to be another special operation, and she had to go with a team of foreign soldiers to perform a rescue mission.
She set the alarm for 4:30, and there was still a quarter of an hour left. Song Ran opened the window to get some fresh air and saw that Jialuo City was gray and desolate. She leaned against the window and felt the morning breeze for a while, as if listening to the city's breathing.
After a while, the alarm clock rang. She packed herself up, went out, and ran into Sasin, a local reporter from the East Country, in the old corridor.
"Good morning!" he greeted in English.
"Good morning!" Song Ran said, "The power is out, did you know?"
"I know. There will be more power outages in the future, just get used to it."
"So it seems that the situation is not favorable to the government forces?"
Sahin shrugged and spread his hands: "You know, attack from both sides." Half a month ago, extreme terrorist organizations also got involved, adding fuel to the already bad situation in the East.
"Will Ale fall?" The city of Ale is the closest important town to Garo where the three parties are fighting, and it is also a hub that several forces are fighting for.
"Only God knows." Sassin drew a prayer symbol on his chest and pointed to the sky.
Sasin is younger than his cousin Ranchi, only 20 years old. He is a sophomore at the Gamma Polytechnic University in the capital. When the war broke out, he went to the front with a camera, saying that he wanted to record the truth about his country. He is tall and thin, with deep eye sockets, high brow bones, and a deep face like the locals. But he is a student after all, too young, so he deliberately grew a beard to look more mature.
Today, the two will follow a European and American peacekeeping team to a small town 100 kilometers away to rescue civilians.
Sasin didn't like Americans very much, and he wanted to go to the front line to film the battle scenes of the Eastern Army. But after all, he was not a professional reporter and did not have the qualifications.
The American soldiers traveling with them didn't pay much attention to them and chatted happily with several European and American war reporters along the way.
Song Ran was squeezed into the back of a military truck with a group of soldiers and reporters. Wearing a helmet and a bulletproof vest, she squinted at the clouds of dust rising from the back of the truck and listened to their conversation in English from time to time.
On the way, an American soldier named Benjamin suddenly asked her: "I think I have seen you before."
Song Ran had no impression.
"Next door to us is a Chinese military base, and you go there often. Are you Chinese?"
"yes."
As soon as he finished speaking, a British soldier laughed and said, "How are your soldiers growing vegetables?"
There was laughter all around.
Sasin looked at Song Ran awkwardly, not knowing how to resolve the situation.
The peacekeepers stationed in Garo come from ten countries and are dispatched by the joint command. The command is mostly composed of European and American officers. Even on the battlefield, there is discrimination. They believe that Asians are weak and incapable. Combat matters are usually assigned to European and American troops. China is mainly responsible for road construction, material transportation, medical rescue, and protecting volunteers, doctors and other international rescue workers.
The Chinese officers and soldiers took some time out of their spare time to reclaim some wasteland in the garrison to grow vegetables and raise chickens, which became a beautiful sight.
Song Ran looked at them, waited until they finished laughing, and said, "Thank you for your concern. The cabbages are ripe and the broilers are growing well. Two days ago, our soldiers sent some to the field hospital to supplement the nutrition of the injured American soldiers. Didn't you know?"
The laughter stopped.
Benjamin exchanged glances with his companions and said, "We also want to grow vegetables and raise chickens, but we have to fight on the front line, and the task is heavy."
Song Ran said: "Planting is also a science. Even if you can shoot bullets, you may not be able to plant good seeds."
Benjamin shrugged and curled his lips, and didn't respond.
It was nine o'clock in the morning when the team arrived at the destination.
The town is located in the north of Garo, not far from the city of Ale. The town is remote and not badly damaged by the war, but it is deserted.
Song Ran followed the team and sneaked into the town.
There was laughter and chatter on the way here, but once they entered the town, everyone became extremely alert.
Song Ran was lurking carefully on an empty and quiet street when someone stepped on a discarded can behind her, making a noise. She turned around in surprise and saw that it was Benjamin.
Seeing that she was frightened, he and his companions grinned silently, their eyebrows almost flying off their faces. Song Ran ignored their ridicule, pulled up his helmet and mask, and continued to move forward carefully.
We dived without any accidents and the enemy troops seemed to have withdrawn.
Soon, the peacekeeping team found a group of people taking refuge in a school building in the city center, ranging from the elderly to children, about a hundred people in total.
The soldiers quickly escorted the people to evacuate from the back door of the school. Suddenly, a gunshot was heard from the school playground, and a British soldier shouted: "There are rebels!"
Song Ran ran away in a second.
In an instant, the people rushed to the back door. The army decisively split into two groups, one to escort and the other to reinforce. All the war reporters at the scene rushed to the crossfire point, except for Sahin, who spread his arms to protect several women and children in front of him and walked out quickly.
Song Ran was the first to rush to a classroom on the ground floor of the teaching building, just in time to see the peacekeeping soldiers inside opening fire on the rebels in the opposite teaching building. There was constant gunfire between the two sides.
The outcome will be clear once they get on the battlefield - those who have been on missions for a long time are accustomed to this scene, and are very skilled at loading, shooting, aiming and dodging; the newcomers are a little timid, and are shaking all over when looking for cover.
Song Ran hid behind the wall, aiming at the camera. Several bullets hit the wall on her side, making crackling noises, but the wall was thick and the bullets could not penetrate. One bullet shot in through the window, whizzed past her, and smashed the glass window at the back of the classroom. She was so nervous that she forgot to be afraid.
The other side was short of manpower, and the exchange of fire stopped in less than a quarter of an hour. Twenty rebels were killed or wounded, and the few who were left alive surrendered. It turned out that their team had abandoned the town and headed north.
After it was over, Song Ran realized belatedly that his legs were a little weak.
She had been here for more than a month, and this was not her first time to experience actual combat. The first time was when she was so scared that her heart almost stopped.
When I returned to the back door of the school, I saw Sassin helping the adults carry the children into the car one by one.
Song Ran asked: "You didn't follow him just now?"
"No."
"Don't you want to get closer to the front line? Such a good opportunity."
Sahin scratched his head and laughed, "I didn't react at the time."
The rescued people were quickly sent to refugee camps, and reporters took the opportunity to film the refugee camps.
On the way back to Garo, several reporters discussed today's gunfight and refugees, as well as the footage they had taken. Only Sahin sat in the back of the military vehicle, turning his head to look at the devastated land behind him.
At that moment, Song Ran vaguely realized the difference between Sasin and their group of war correspondents—
This is his country, not theirs.
After entering Garo City, Benjamin asked Song Ran where he was going.
Song Ran looked down the road and said, "I'll get off at the next corner."
"To the Chinese soldiers' station?"
"Um."
Benjamin walked to the front and knocked on the car window, then said to his comrade in the cab, "Turn right ahead and go to the Chinese soldiers' station."
Song Ran didn't know why he suddenly sent her off out of kindness. Benjamin just smiled and said nothing.
After getting off the bus, several European and American soldiers on the bus waved to her enthusiastically: "See you!"
Song Ran was confused: "..."
After returning to the base, Song Ran went straight to Luo Zhan's office, Luo Zhan was the political commissar of this peacekeeping barracks. Song Ran had been here for more than a month and had become familiar with them.
Along the way, many soldiers were training, and Song Ran took a few photos.
When I walked to the end, I saw the vegetable garden was green and lush. After not seeing it for a few days, cucumbers and tomatoes had grown.
Song Ran leaned over to take a look. The cucumber was only as long as a finger, with a big yellow flower hanging on the tail; the small tomato was green and hard, not even as big as a walnut, and round like an angry child.
She couldn't help but lean over and smell it. The scent was fresh, the smell of summer.
When I walked into the office, Luo Zhan was analyzing the battle map.
Song Ran took off his bulletproof vest and helmet and said, "The cucumbers and tomatoes are growing."
Luo Zhan raised his head and smiled: "I'll give you a few when they're ripe. ... How was it going when we went out with them today?"
"We encountered a small group of anti-government forces," Song Ran said. "One French soldier was so scared that he almost peed his pants."
Luo Zhan was delighted: "Did you take a picture of it?"
Song Ran was gulping down water and nodded.
"Our explosion-proof soldiers have been dispatched here, and the joint command has also given us new tasks such as mine clearance and explosion prevention. If you are interested, you can follow along."
"Really? That's great."
"What's wrong? You're bored following us around to build roads and run transportation every day?"
“… Where is it?”
The two chatted for a while, and then there was a noise outside, a few soldiers were preparing to water the fields. Song Ran touched the braids she had braided for a week, and hesitated to speak.
Luo Zhan: "What's wrong?"
"Can I borrow your water to wash my hair? Just rinse it." Song Ran said in a low voice, feeling guilty, "After washing, I can just water the plants."
Luo Zhan laughed: "The area where you live has had water and electricity outages recently."
Song Ran nodded awkwardly.
"The water we use for irrigation is rice washing water."
"I know. It happens that rice water is nutritious and good for hair."
Luo Zhan couldn't help laughing: "Wash it, wash it."
"Thank you, Luo Zheng. I will be very frugal." Song Ran got up and ran out.
As soon as she went out, she untied the rubber band and let down her braids. Her hair was steaming hot and almost cooked.
She was walking across the yard towards the vegetable garden when a group of soldiers marched past, all of them new faces.
Is there a new person coming
She looked back in confusion, and suddenly her heart tightened, as if she saw a familiar figure. She looked again, but it was gone. The team of soldiers passed by her.
She sighed silently, thinking that she must have seen it wrong.
Song Ran stood by the edge of the field, bent over and lowered his head, scooped up a bucket of cold water and poured it over the back of his head. The heat in his body was immediately extinguished, and he felt completely cool.
Several familiar officers and soldiers stood by and watched, teasing her intentionally.
Soldier A: "A bucket of water costs ten dollars!"
Song Ran: "Ten dollars? Do you think this is milk?"
Soldier B: "How about a hundred for the milk?"
Soldier C: "It's still dry next to the ear."
Soldier D: "Would you like some shampoo?"
Someone brought her a small bag of shampoo.
After Song Ran washed off the foam, he reluctantly took another scoop of cold water. It was too hot.
Soldier A: "The water usage has exceeded the limit."
Soldier B: "Wait, there are still bubbles on my neck that haven't been washed off."
A few chickens were walking around in the vegetable patch, and when water splashed over, the chickens would flap their wings and fly away, knocking the cucumbers off the vines and causing them to flutter.
Song Ran tied her hair up and wrung out the water with both hands. Someone behind her smiled faintly, and her voice was like a clear spring: "Do you want a comb?"
Song Ran was stunned, and suddenly straightened up and pushed her wet hair back. She was stunned for two or three seconds, and turned her head away without paying attention to the dripping hair.
Across a vegetable patch, Li Zan, dressed in camouflage uniform, stood sideways, folded his arms, and looked at her with a smile.
Several of his comrades put their hands on his shoulders and smiled at her.