ebookland Chapter 245 Chicken Dinner!
Chapter 245 Chicken Dinner!
They summoned a whole bunch of free laborers, hung backpacks, shoulder bags, and water bottles around their necks, and then made sarcastic remarks.
“Mantun, we’re doing this for your own good. We’re adding more weight to your load. The heavier the burden, the better it will be for your physical and mental development. It will be a good thing for you to stay in the army and become an officer in the future. We’ll definitely support you.”
Mantun was covered in water bottles and bags, his neck was so tight it was uncomfortable, but he still had a simple smile on his face, without any complaints. Zhong Yuemin couldn't stand it anymore. These guys were treating people like fools. He went over and took the water bottles and bags off Mantun and handed them to him.
“Take it yourself, you have hands and feet!”
None of them took it; he simply threw it on the ground.
The other party was unhappy, saying, "Zhong Yuemin, aren't you meddling too much? Man Tun hasn't said anything, so why are you pretending to be a pushover?"
"Exactly, it makes you look bad."
Zhong Yuemin snorted coldly.
"Look at yourselves in that uniform. Don't disgrace the word 'soldier.' Since you've enlisted, don't bring your Beijing playboy ways here. Do you think it's fun to treat people like idiots? If you can't even handle this little bit, why don't you take off those two things in your crotch? Then you can fly to the sky."
Wu Mantun persuaded,
"Yuemin, it's alright. We're all comrades-in-arms, let's support each other."
The company commander shouted, "What are you guys dawdling for? Don't fall behind, keep up, keep up!"
Zhong Yuemin patted Mantun on the shoulder, "Let's go!" The two ran forward.
The few spoiled brats could only pick up their belongings from the ground, put them back on their backs, and one of them said angrily:
"You really think you're something special. All you did was take care of a few Russians. It's a good thing I wasn't on the battlefield back then, otherwise I would be the hero."
Anyway, bragging doesn't cost anything, so brag as much as you want.
“We all listened to Yuan Chao, and we weren’t going to lower ourselves to Zhong Yuemin’s level. Now look what’s happened. We didn’t provoke him, but he came to our door to provoke us. If we don’t show some resistance, he’ll think we’re easy to bully. Or else…”
"This is the military," Li Yuanchao interrupted coldly.
"You think this is Beijing? Playing those underworld games? Don't cause trouble. We're just here to get some experience and build up our grassroots background. We won't be here for long. Don't make a fuss. Zhong Yuemin isn't someone to mess with. Run!"
He wiped the sweat from his brow, glanced at the figure before him, his gaze darkening, and ran forward.
The next one said, "Hey, do you guys think Yuan Chao is scared off by this guy surnamed Zhong?"
"who knows……"
The group grumbled and cursed, clearly unhappy, and staggered after them like a bunch of drunkards.
Three months passed in the blink of an eye. In the company's small canteen, Li Yuanchao and his few cronies sat at a table eating and drinking. They were all well-off and came every few days for a treat. The canteen food wasn't very oily, and they didn't like it. Only these "second-generation officials," with their wealthy families, could afford it. Each of them had several empty liquor bottles at their feet, leaning precariously. Their faces were flushed; they had all drunk quite a bit.
One of them said, talking nonsense:
"Damn it, ever since Zhong Yuemin came, we haven't had a smooth life. He's always going against us, and he's stolen our thunder. In last month's company competition, this guy got first place in the five-kilometer cross-country run with weights, shooting, and hand-to-hand combat. The regimental commander who came down to watch even praised him personally. I think if this continues, we won't even be transferred back to the military region before he gets ahead of us."
Another said:
"There's nothing we can do about it. This Zhong Yuemin is really skilled. If you're not convinced, just go up and fight him."
The person who just cursed pouted.
"I don't have that ability, guys. It's not that I'm unconvinced, it's just that I feel pretty humiliated. We've been here for a year longer than Zhong Yuemin, and we're considered someone important in the regiment, with some reputation. Zhong Yuemin has only been here for less than half a year, and he's already acting so arrogantly. It's a bit like a cuckoo taking over someone else's place."
That's fine, but Wu Mantun from that poor mountain village used to change our blankets and quilts, wash our dirty clothes, and run errands for us. In short, now that kid has a new backer, our words don't carry weight anymore, and we have to wash our own clothes and bedding.
"We don't care about losing face in the Korean War, brothers. Didn't you see? Zhong Yuemin is clearly trying to embarrass you. Zhong Yuemin is not easy to deal with, and Wu Mantun is even harder to handle. Let's make an example of him to deter Zhong from pushing his luck."
"This is the military. Are you planning to beat someone up? You might as well retire early."
"Am I that stupid? I have a plan..."
The group huddled together, plotting amongst themselves. Finally, one of them asked, "Yuan Chao, what do you think?"
Li Yuanchao picked up the wine glass on the table, downed it in one gulp, and then said:
"This meal is on me," he said, pulling a ten-yuan note from his pocket and slamming it on the table as he stood up.
"I have something to attend to, so I'll be leaving now. You guys continue drinking."
left.
The group looked bewildered. "Wait, what does Yuanchao mean? Does he agree or disagree?"
"Is there even a question? Tacit approval is consent."
Three days later, Zhong Yuemin and Zhang Haiyang returned from the regimental headquarters. They had both performed well in the company-wide skills competition the previous month and had been invited to give a speech at the regimental headquarters, sharing their experiences and key elements of daily training. They stayed for three days, during which they were exempt from daily routine training and enjoyed a rare good night's sleep, waking up naturally. When it was time to leave, the two were somewhat reluctant to part.
As soon as I returned to the company, Ning Wei rushed over and said that something had happened to Mantun; he had been caught stealing chickens.
"Stealing chickens?"
Zhang Haiyang looked completely bewildered. "Whose chicken did you steal?"
"The chickens belonging to Deputy Director Yu of the Political Department were found with their bones hidden under a pile of pillows. They were caught red-handed, and the matter has blown up quite a bit. I heard from our company commander that he might be discharged and discharged early."
"That's ridiculous!"
Zhang Haiyang said:
"In our company, I'd believe anyone who steals chickens, but I absolutely refuse to believe that Mantun would do it. You all know how difficult it was for Mantun to get into the army. To stay, he got up at 5 a.m. every day to clean the yard and toilets, and even helped out in the mess hall, washing clothes and blankets for Li Yuanchao and the others without complaint. He did everything with utmost care, afraid of displeasing the leaders. And yet, he would steal chickens? Have the leaders in our company lost their minds?"
"That's what I thought too, but those chicken bones were indeed found under my master's pillow."
"That doesn't necessarily mean that Man Tun stole the chicken. Even if... even if Man Tun did steal the chicken, it's just one chicken. As for being discharged from the army, I'll go find Deputy Director Yu and have a chat with him."
"What are you in a hurry for?"
Zhong Yuemin pulled the man back, saying, "I know who could have done it."
"Who?"
"Who else could it be?" A cold laugh, laced with mockery, rang out. "Who else would resort to such despicable tactics?"