Changjin Lake: From Xinxingli to Seoul

Chapter 3, Warrior No. 677, Wu Wanli
"Clang, clang, clang... Hmm—"

The train carrying the Ninth Army Corps roared forward, belching out long plumes of white steam.

Inside the carriage, dim yellow lights flickered, and weapons and ammunition were neatly displayed in the empty spaces.

In a small room, Wu Qianli looked at the items in Mei Sheng's suitcase and talked to him.

"I thought you weren't coming, but I didn't expect you to make it in time."

Wu Qianli looked at Mei Sheng and said.

"I almost didn't make it back."

"My wife chased me for over a hundred miles on her bicycle, crying and begging me to come home the whole way. Luckily, I didn't give in."

Mei Sheng sighed, and said with a hint of reluctance.

"What? You're not even soft-hearted with your beautiful wife chasing after you?"

"Your daughter is so lovely, how could you bear to leave her behind and come to fight?"

Wu Qianli looked at the photo in his hand and asked with a smile.

"So what if I can't bear to part with it?"

"Only when our generation finishes fighting will our descendants never have to fight again!"

Mei Sheng looked at his daughter's photo and said with a smile.

"Hahahahaha..."

"That's what my brother Wu Baili thought, but unfortunately he died before he could see the day when the whole country was liberated."

"That's what I was thinking too. I had just seen my parents and promised to build a house for my family when I was ordered to rush to the front line."

"Now, my youngest brother has also come to the battlefield, saying he wants to fight the American devils together."

As Wu Qianli spoke, he looked out the small window at Wu Wanli and smiled.

"You're already worried before we've even reached the battlefield?"

"That's true. According to some people's thinking, given your and your elder brother's status as war heroes, it's understandable that your younger brother doesn't go to the battlefield."

Mei Sheng put away the photos and other items and said.

"The instructor is joking. Of course I'm reluctant, after all, war is not child's play, it involves bloodshed and sacrifice."

"But we are all born of the same parents, and many of us went to the battlefield. Why can't my brother go too?"

"The word 'meritorious person' does not exist in the Party's dictionary!"

"The new China was built with great difficulty. Even if my family line ends, I will never allow anyone to destroy it!"

Wu Qianli looked at Wu Wanli outside the window, a resolute glint in his eyes.

At this moment, Wu Wanli was completely unaware of the two men's gazes.

He looked at his khaki Type 50 military uniform, the long belt, and the leg wraps tightened with dark white cloth strips, and nodded with considerable satisfaction.

"No wonder she prefers military uniform to red dresses; she really has an air of elegance."

"Well... all I'm missing is a good gun."

He slumped onto the ammunition box, gently stroking the red five-pointed star on the brim of his hat, sighed, and murmured.

"You little rascal, if you want a gun, go and hand it over on the battlefield!"

"Back then, we had nothing; we relied on robbing the Japanese devils and the White Army!"

Lei Gong heard Wu Wanli's words and, while applying gun oil to the Type 38 rifle for maintenance, said with a smile.

"Lei Gong, there's no chance right now."

"Once we get to the battlefield, let alone guns, we'll capture a batch of cannons for you, Lei Gong, and make you the commander of the artillery regiment. That would be better than giving them to Battalion Commander Yang and the others!"

Wu Wanli laughed heartily as he spoke.

"Hahahahaha..."

"Alright, alright, you all heard that, right? You can all be my witnesses! Wanli said he's going to appoint me as a regimental commander from now on!"

Lei Gong smiled and patted Wu Wanli's head before addressing the crowd.

Hey kid, you're all talk and no action, you're not very capable at all!

"You wanted to touch a gun, didn't you? Don't say you didn't have the chance. You and I will have a go."

"If you win, I'll risk getting beaten up by your brother and give you this Type 38 rifle ahead of schedule!"

Yu Congrong became interested and pointed to the Type 38 rifle in Lei Gong's hand.

"Wanli, be careful, he's bullied a lot of new recruits."

He Changgui, speaking with a Sichuan accent, patted Wu Wanli on the shoulder and reminded him.

"Deputy Company Commander, how can you say that? I was just bored and wanted to bring some fun to the comrades."

Yu Congrong said with an innocent look on his face.

"Great! I'm just bored!"

"Then let's have a spar with Brother Yu!"

Wu Wanli stood up and agreed with a smile.

"Hey kid, if you lose, don't come crying to your brother like a virgin!"

Yu Congrong pointed at Wu Wanli and laughed loudly.

"If you lose, I'll wash your smelly socks for a week!"

Wu Wanli gritted his teeth, thinking of the system's rewards, and decided to verify it, so he made up his mind.

"Yu Congrong's socks are so smelly they could kill mosquitoes. You are the bravest recruit I have ever seen."

Hearing this, Pinghe, who was usually quite quiet, couldn't help but smile and give a thumbs up in praise.

"Wanli, don't go back on your word."

Let's begin now!

Yu Congrong rubbed his hands together, and after saying that, he pounced directly on Wu Wanli.

He didn't intend to use excessive force; he only wanted to teach Wu Wanli a lesson and win, so he held back quite a bit of his strength.

Upon seeing this, Wu Wanli lowered his body and, almost reflexively, performed an over-the-shoulder throw, directly slamming Yu Congrong to the ground.

"thump--"

Yu Congrong fell to the ground in a daze, staring wide-eyed at Wu Wanli in disbelief.

"Brother Yu, are you alright?"

Wu Wanli stepped forward, brushed the dust off Yu Congrong, helped him up, and asked him with concern.

"hiss--"

"You've got some skills, kid!"

"No, no, I underestimated you. Let's go again!"

Yu Congrong rubbed his shoulders and, still unconvinced, pounced on him again.

This time he didn't hold back; he used every means at his disposal to try and regain face in one fell swoop.

However, Wu Wanli only dodged a few times before finding Yu Congrong's weakness and quickly slamming him to the ground.

"Brother Yu, you must be being lenient with me. I'll gladly accept this gun. Thank you so much."

After Wu Wanli finished speaking with a smile, he reached out and snatched the Type 38 rifle.

"Buddy, from now on you'll be fighting the American devils with me!"

He touched the cool surface and felt the heavy gun barrel, and exclaimed with some excitement.

"You little rascal, you must have sparred with your brother a bit!"

"I wasn't in a good mood today, but I'll definitely teach you a lesson another day!"

Yu Congrong's face flushed slightly as he uttered a harsh threat. "Hahahahahahahahaha..."

The passengers in the carriage rarely saw Yu Congrong get the short end of the stick, so they all burst into laughter.

Seeing the commotion inside the carriage, Wu Qianli Meisheng couldn't help but walk over.

"stand at attention!"

Upon seeing the two approaching, Yu Congrong instantly abandoned his previous roguish demeanor, straightened up, and shouted.

"Tell me, where is this place?"

Mei Sheng asked seriously.

"The Seventh Flying Company!"

The soldiers inside the carriage quickly stood at attention and responded in unison.

"In my memory, the Seventh Infiltration Company shouldn't be like this!"

"Did I get into the wrong carriage?"

Mei Sheng frowned, looked at everyone, and continued his lecture.

"Instructor, it was I who sent Yu Congrong to test Wu Wanli's character."

"I didn't expect that this kid's true character wouldn't be tested, but his skills would be revealed."

Seeing that Mei Sheng was a little angry, Lei Gong quickly stepped in to cover for him and also praised Wu Wanli, hoping that Wu Qianli could ease the tension.

"Wanli, you're better than I was when I first joined the army. I admire you."

"But in the future, on the battlefield, you must prioritize survival and not act recklessly!"

Wu Qianli walked over, straightened Wu Wanli's hat brim, and gave him some instructions.

"Brother, I understand."

Wu Wanli nodded, somewhat moved, and stood ramrod straight in response.

"Now we will hold the induction ceremony for Wu Wanli!"

Wu Qianli patted Wu Wanli on the shoulder and said.

Before long, the soldiers of the 7th Infiltration Company surrounded Wu Wanli.

A red cloth was placed in front of Wu Wanli.

On the red cloth lay Lei Gong's newly oiled Type 38 rifle, along with two hand grenades.

"Yu Congrong, you're an old comrade, why don't you tell Wu Wanli how Company Commander Wu Baili was killed in action?"

A trace of sorrow flashed in Wu Qianli's eyes as he spoke.

"Yes!"

"Company Commander Wu Baili, in Huaihai, took the initiative to launch an attack with a small number of troops."

"After capturing the enemy's bunker complex, he fell down to cover his comrades."

Yu Congrong paused, then added with a slight tremor in his lips.

"What did the 7th Flanking Company do after the company commander fell?"

Mei Sheng continued to ask.

"After the old company commander fell, the 7th Infiltration Company annihilated and captured an enemy force six times its own strength!"

"The bunker complex, which was said to be able to withstand our army for a year, only held off the Seventh Company for half a day!"

Yu Congrong straightened his back and said with considerable pride.

"The enemy's rear was the Seventh Company's front line. The Seventh Company sacrificed its own heavy casualties to achieve only minor casualties for the entire army..."

Lei Gong's eyes flickered slightly as he added.

"Casualties are nothing to boast about, holding on is everything!"

Mei Sheng looked at Wu Wanli's youthful face and gave him a reminder.

We must not be careless!

"We are facing the best-equipped U.S. military in the world!"

"They have airplanes, cannons, and iron turtles with machine guns and cannons mounted on them!"

"And we only have a small number of artillery pieces and light weapons!"

"The battle will be extremely difficult, but we must win this war!"

"Do you understand, Comrade Wu Wanli?"

Wu Qianli looked at his younger brother and asked with a hint of heartache.

"Don't worry, Company Commander!"

"No matter how strong the American devils are, no matter how arduous the battle, Wanli will do his best to preserve his strength and fight them to the bitter end!"

Wu Wanli raised his head and responded loudly.

"Okay! Be ambitious!"

"Wu Wanli, you are now officially the 677th soldier of the 7th Infiltration Company!"

You might say, "Where are there so many people? There are only about a hundred people in this carriage."

"We've included all the comrades from the Seventh Company who sacrificed their lives, were wounded, or retired, plus you!"

Looking into Wu Wanli's determined eyes, Wu Qianli spoke passionately.

"I am Meisheng, the 135th soldier of the 7th Infiltration Company!"

"The 221st soldier, Yu Congrong!"

"280th place, Pinghe!"

"The 335th soldier, He Changgui!"

"The 572nd soldier, Li Chizheng!"

"Soldier number 650, Liu Zhiyi!"

"The 533rd warrior, Balong!"

"The 565th soldier, Xuan Qiang!"

"…………………"

Every soldier in the 7th Infiltration Company loudly announced their own number.

Even if they die in battle in the future, these numbers will be remembered forever by the soldiers of the Seventh Company, and the numbers will continue to grow and be passed down!

"The 161st soldier, Wu Baili!"

"The 162nd soldier, Wu Qianli!"

Wu Qianli loudly announced his name and his elder brother's name together.

"The seventeenth soldier, Lei Suisheng."

Lei Gong thought of countless fallen comrades and replied in a somber voice.

"Soldier number 677, Wu Wanli!!"

Wu Wanli's eyes were filled with tears as he shouted with all his might.

He understood what it meant that a company of only a little over a hundred people had nearly seven hundred numbers.

This is a true heroic company!

The Seventh Company had already sacrificed countless predecessors before the founding of the People's Republic of China, and now they are about to enter Korea to accomplish a new feat.

And Wu Wanli will also become one of the heroes!

(End of this chapter)