1978: A Literary Giant Who Began His Military Service

Chapter 40 Marching Performance!

The train goes directly there, at a moderate speed.

Two days later.

A mechanical female voice came over the loudspeaker: "Nanning Station has arrived! Nanning Station has arrived! Passengers, please disembark in an orderly manner!"

After arriving at Nanning Station, we still needed to take a car to the front line.

The Wuhan Military Region was responsible for the operations in which Guangxi entered Vietnam.

This operation involved four of the eleven military regions in the south: Guangzhou Military Region, Kunming Military Region, Chengdu Military Region, and Wuhan Military Region.

Guangzhou and Wuhan entered from Guangxi, while Chengdu and Kunming entered from Yunnan...

Groups of people got off the vehicle.

It is noon now.

Zhou Xu wiped the camera and took the picture at the right time.

Soon, a group of people from the cultural troupe got off the train and assembled. They were used to taking the train because some of the Wuhan Military Region's stations were in Henan, and they needed to travel around to perform for the troops.

Upon arrival, the group of people had all gathered.

The political commissar commanded: "We'll go to the armed forces department to rest for the night and replenish our energy. Tomorrow morning, our cultural troupe will go first to perform for the anti-aircraft artillery units, and then we'll perform along the way all the way to the front lines!"

This scene reminded Zhou Xu of a term: "moonlighting."

In this day and age, storytelling and Yue opera have never declined; a single performance can earn a lot of money!
Of course, they get prize money for their performances, but they don't earn much.

……

While Zhou Xu was still looking around.

Someone patted him on the shoulder from behind.

Upon recognizing the person, Zhou Xu exclaimed, "Brother Cai?" He was even more surprised. "I didn't see you on the train!"

"Maybe I was just unlucky and didn't run into you, but I didn't expect you to be here too!" Zhou Youcai said with a smile.

Zhou Xu didn't sense that Zhou Youcai was afraid. Zhou Youcai was the type who craved military merit. Without Zhou Xu saying anything, he would definitely be the first to fill out an application to go to the front line.

"Company commander, political instructor, squad leader!" Zhou Xu greeted the company he was originally supposed to be assigned to.

"Yes." The class monitor nodded with a smile, a hint of shyness and trepidation in his voice. "Could you take a picture of me?"

“…Yes, I can!” Zhou Xu was stunned for a moment, then immediately nodded.

"Wait a minute!" Zhou Xu opened his camera.

I immediately took a picture of the class monitor with a bright smile on his face.

Upon seeing this action, Zhou Youcai immediately said:
"Xiao Xu, take a picture of me later too. If I die, send the photo and the compensation money to my parents!"

"Huh?...Yeah." Zhou Xu didn't say anything more about you not sacrificing yourself, since most people who came here were already prepared.

"Brother Xu, take a picture of me too! I'm from Maiji Brigade, Xinzheng County, Henan!" Liu Xiang was unusually serious, without his usual joking demeanor.

"Okay, stand still."

"..."

A group of people parted ways here.

Zhou Xu wrote down names in his notebook, not just those few, but also took photos of some comrades who came forward.

About half an hour later.

He left with his camera.

They went to the dormitory arranged by the Revolutionary Committee, where more than ten members of the cultural troupe were crammed into an old warehouse.

Zhou Xu slept with the political commissar and Lei Yuansheng.

Lei Yuansheng rubbed his fingers together, somewhat amazed: "I never expected that after all these decades, there would still be war!"

The political commissar said, "We've spent tens of billions to raise a thankless wretch; he deserves to be punished!"

Zhou Xu nodded: "Yes, we should attack! We should attack their capital, destroy all the factories we've helped them to, and send those monkeys back to being monkeys!"

"Haha! That's spirited! Tomorrow, our cultural troupe will also perform with this kind of momentum. The first song will be your 'Strong Army Battle Song'! Strong army, fight! The name of this song is 'Born to fight'!" the political commissar said.

“I thought that defending the country is a soldier’s destiny, so I wrote this song while preparing for war. I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly…” Zhou Xu said. “Go to sleep quickly, we have to perform after the march tomorrow! Time is tight.” Bai Hua coughed.

The group buried their heads and drifted off to sleep.

After resting for half a day, a group of people hurriedly boarded the bus early the next morning.

Those vehicles driven by soldiers, with passengers sitting in the back.

The political commissar, Bai Hua, Gao Ruxing, Huang Xiaorui, and other elderly people rode in military jeeps.

Zhou Xu climbed onto the bright green military vehicle, and more than a dozen members of the song and dance troupe boarded one after another.

Maisui rubbed her temples.

Zhou Xu asked, "Didn't you sleep well last night?"

"It's alright, just a little worrying."

He Jing said, "There's nothing we can do about it. Comrade Mai Sui started dating a guy in the artillery unit just half a month ago, and then he went to the front lines. It's normal for her to be worried."

The wheat stalks nodded.

"Is the performance going well today? I have some coffee here, you can just mix some with water to perk yourself up!" Zhou Xu was more worried about the performance.

"..." Mai Sui took the small bag of coffee: "I didn't expect Comrade Zhou Xu to carry this with him at all times?"

"Oh! Writing requires a boost of energy. Tea is good, but it's inconvenient because you can't brew it anytime, anywhere. The advantage of coffee is that it's more convenient."

Mai Sui took a cup, poured in some hot water, shook it, and drank it directly into her mouth.

"Ah! It's really bitter, but it's much better now."

"..."

The car wobbled and started moving.

After half a day, they had marched halfway when the car stopped.

The political commissar began by calling out, "Logistics support team, quickly set up the platform! Lei Yuansheng and Huang Xiaorui, begin assembling the team!"

This was a small plain with a forest behind it. The group stopped by the roadside, and the support team quickly used some wooden planks to build a tiered performance stage, the kind used by choirs! It rose up layer by layer.

Lei Yuansheng checked from the side: "Are all the instruments ready?"

"All right!"

Huang Xiaorui said, "Gather up! Gather up! Come on stage in an orderly fashion, following the line order!"

A group of people had prepared early on and walked onto the stage one after another, covered in mud. They had been inspired early on and wanted to contribute their own efforts.

After Lei Yuansheng saw that everyone was ready, he picked up his baton.

More than ten minutes passed.

The marching column slowly approached this direction.

The soldiers walked slowly in a line, looking over with curiosity.

The political commissar nodded to Lei Yuansheng, who then waved his baton.

"...

The battle flag is inscribed with the glory of iron and blood.
Soldiers obey the Party's command

Capable of winning battles and with excellent work style
Fearless of strong enemies, daring to compete

To win the battle for the motherland

......"

Boom boom boom!
As the soldiers marched forward, they seemed to be filled with strength upon hearing the song.

The melodious song floated across the plains, its powerful melody perfectly complementing the soldiers' synchronized footsteps.

The entire group became even more powerful under the influence of the song. The whole area seemed to be filled with righteous energy and magnificent momentum!
"Victory for our motherland on the battlefield! Victory on the battlefield!!"

Our great nation, our great motherland, will surely prevail!

Under this influence, Zhou Xu had this thought come to mind.

(End of this chapter)