It was supposed to be a casual game, but the Long March dungeon brought tears to everyone's eye

After the goods were traded, the group rested for a while and chatted and laughed with their fellow villagers.

The rain has started again.

Rainy days in the south are always like this, raining on and off, raining on and off.

Just then, a series of hurried yet light footsteps broke the rare moment of tenderness.

A soldier, like a nimble raccoon, silently slipped through the rain and ran behind his old squad leader, who was still chatting and laughing with the villagers. He quickly whispered something to the soldier.

"Class monitor, everyone's been counted."

It consists of only five simple words.

One second ago, the old squad leader was bent over, like a friendly uncle, about to reach out and help the woman selling salt straighten her basket.

The next second, he stopped moving.

There was no transition, and no reluctant farewell.

The old squad leader's honest, gentle, and even slightly ingratiating smile vanished completely in that instant.

The old squad leader withdrew his hand, his face as hard as iron, and suddenly straightened his back.

The sheer force that erupted in that instant caused the noisy villagers around to instinctively take a step back.

"Attention, everyone!" a thunderous shout rang out. "Attention!"

"Whoosh—"

Crazy Brother, Eagle Eye, Softie, and the other soldiers who were resting, no matter what they were holding or what they were doing, all quickly returned to their positions.

Under the astonished gazes of their fellow villagers, they stood with their heels together, chests puffed out, and eyes sharp as knives.

The courtyard, which was just a moment ago bustling like a market, is now so quiet that only the sound of rain can be heard.

"Right dress!"

The sounds of their quick, precise steps were perfectly synchronized.

Even the players, such as Crazy Bro, Eagle Eye, and Softie, did not falter at this moment.

Clearly, they also put in a lot of effort offline.

Just now, the vanguard team could be farmers helping villagers dig out mud, or older brothers and sisters playing with little girls.

But now, they are the sharpest knife that can pierce a hole in the sky!

In the Blue Star live stream room, there was even a brief break in the barrage of comments.

"Holy crap... this change in demeanor is giving me goosebumps."

"I was so touched by the scene just now that I wanted to laugh, but now I'm not even daring to breathe."

The old squad leader turned around, glanced at the whole squad, and gave the order directly.

"Target: Luding Bridge."

"Check your gear! Ready to go!"

"yes!"

The soldiers quickly tightened their leg wraps and stuffed the newly purchased dry rations into their food bags.

Before the group could turn around, a small figure suddenly rushed out of the low, dilapidated house.

It was that girl whose leg had just been bandaged and who wasn't yet daring to exert herself much.

She dragged her injured leg and limped along quickly, clutching a small bamboo basket tightly in her hand.

A tattered cloth covered the basket, and steam was seeping out from the gaps in the cloth.

"Big...big brother! Big sister!"

Nier was running too fast and stumbled in the mud, almost falling.

The hunched old man also chased after them, but he couldn't run, so he could only shout from behind.

"Comrade! Don't go! We haven't eaten yet!"

Nier rushed to the front of the group.

She held the bamboo basket high, inside which were several steaming sweet potatoes and two peeled boiled eggs.

"Here...here you can eat..."

Nier's face turned bright red, and rainwater streamed down her hair.

"Hot...sweet..."

The team didn't move.

No one reached out.

Even though they had just bought some sweet potatoes and dry food, they were all raw and hadn't had time to cook them yet.

Even on this rainy day, this hot dish is like the best of the best.

Ruan Ruan glanced at the slightly bleeding bow on Nier's knee, and unconsciously raised her hand, wanting to touch the child's head.

But the instant she raised her hand, she saw the old squad leader standing at the very front.

The old squad leader didn't budge an inch.

His intact right hand rested on the seam of his pants, and not even a tremor was felt in his fingers.

The soft hand abruptly stopped in mid-air.

Then, slowly and forcefully, he clenched his fist and pulled it back.

She was a soldier in the elite squad; if the old squad leader didn't move, she absolutely couldn't move either.

The old man finally caught up, panting heavily.

He snatched the basket from his granddaughter's hand and tried to stuff it into Kuang Ge's arms.

"Here you go, comrade!"

"You gave us so much money, how can our meager possessions possibly be enough to compensate us?"

"This is free! It's a token of our appreciation! Take it and eat it on the way!"

"Take it!"

The old man was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet, trying to stuff the basket into one person's arms, but refusing to take it from the other.

They put it in one hand, but the other person didn't take it.

A dozen or so fierce men dared to fight with bayonets against dozens of enemies.

Faced with this basket of sweet potatoes, they stood there like wooden stakes, letting the rain pelt their faces without even blinking.

"Class monitor..."

It wasn't until one of the soldiers, whose baskets were being stuffed into his hands, seemed somewhat at a loss that the old squad leader finally took action.

He strode over, reached out, and gently, yet undeniably, pushed the basket the old man had offered back.

"Fellow villager."

"Payment and goods are exchanged at a clear settlement; that's the rule."

The old man was stunned.

"Wha...what rules? You've given too much!"

"The extra money you gave me could have bought all the sweet potatoes in my house!"

The old squad leader shook his head.

He reached out and patted the dry food bag at his waist, which contained the coarse rice he had just exchanged for silver dollars; the bag looked bulging.

"This is enough for us."

The old squad leader glanced at the hot eggs in the basket, his throat bobbed, and then he looked away, turning his gaze to Nier, who was shivering in the rain.

"Give these eggs to the child."

We're leaving.

After saying that, the old squad leader took a step back.

He stood still in the rain, feet together, in a standard military posture.

Then, he slowly raised his right hand, his fingertips tracing across his eyebrows.

salute.

Behind him, Madman, Eagle Eye, Softie, and the row of soldiers all raised their hands at the same time.

"brush!"

The sound of more than a dozen arms raised actually drowned out the sound of the rain.

"Take care, fellow villager!" the old squad leader shouted.

After saying that, he turned around abruptly, and the figure carrying a large black pot on his back looked extremely resolute.

"Set off!"

This time, he's really gone.

There was no hesitation, no looking back.

The elite squad plunged headlong into the vast rain and fog and the dark mountains.

Only the old man remained, holding the still-steaming basket, standing in the muddy courtyard, while the little girl in his arms cried out, "Big sister!"

"Grandpa...why don't they want it?" Nier asked, crying.

The old man stared blankly in the direction where the group of people had disappeared, raindrops hitting his face, making it impossible to tell whether they were rain or tears.

He doesn't rob or kill, he doesn't take bribes or demand anything, and he even refuses to eat a hot meal from ordinary people because of his mission...

"Nier..."

The old man held the basket of sweet potatoes tightly to his chest.

"Remember that the older sister only ate a tiny bit of your candy."

"Remember that symbol, that red five-pointed star."

"If I see anyone wearing this hat in the future..."

The old man choked up, his voice trembling.

"Those are family."