Holding the original shares, they fought all the way to the Korean War!

"Commander Zhou!"

At this moment, Village Chief Li walked over carrying two bowls filled with wine.

He squatted down next to Zhou Tianyang and handed him a bowl.

Zhou Tianyang glanced at the wine in the bowl, then looked at Village Chief Li.

"Village Chief Li, what's this?"

Sweet potato fritters.

Village Chief Li smiled and handed the bowl to Zhou Tianyang.

"I've been treasuring this for years, and I haven't been able to bring myself to drink it."

"We're happy today, let's have a drink, just the two of us."

Zhou Tianyang took the bowl and smelled it.

The liquor was strong; the aroma of sweet potatoes mixed with the spiciness of the alcohol hit me right in the head.

"Village Chief Li, please keep this wine, I..."

"What's the point of keeping it?"

Village Chief Li interrupted him, picked up his own bowl, and clinked it against Zhou Tianyang's bowl.

"Today is a good day. How can we not have a drink to honor the soldiers who won the battle?"

"How can you face the villagers who were killed by bandits?"

His eyes reddened again, but this time he didn't shed tears.

"Commander Zhou, this toast is for you."

He tilted his head back and took a big gulp, coughing twice as he choked, but his smile only deepened.

Zhou Tianyang looked at him and did not refuse again.

He picked up the bowl and took a big gulp.

The liquor was very strong, spicy on the palate, and burned all the way down the throat to the stomach.

He coughed and squinted.

"Good wine."

"Of course it's good wine."

Village Chief Li grinned, revealing his gums, which were missing a front tooth.

"This sweet potato liquor is homemade."

"The sweet potatoes are grown by ourselves, and the yeast is made by ourselves. We don't skip any of the steps, so it's much better than the watered-down ones sold outside."

He took another sip, smacked his lips, and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Commander Zhou, let me speak from the bottom of my heart."

Zhou Tianyang looked at him.

"When you first arrived, I had some reservations."

Village Chief Li lowered his voice.

"It's not that I don't trust the Eighth Route Army, it's just that I've seen too many soldiers over the years."

"Whether it was the Nationalist army, warlords, Japanese invaders, or bandits, which one didn't harm the common people?"

"When the soldiers come, the common people suffer; this has been the rule for many years."

He paused, then took another sip of wine.

"But you are different."

"I never would have dared to imagine this before."

"Village Chief Li, this is what we should do."

Zhou Tianyang picked up the bowl and took another sip.

"Is that what we should do?"

Village Chief Li shook his head, his voice somewhat hoarse.

"Those soldiers in the past didn't think this was something they were supposed to do."

"They feel that it's only right for ordinary people to support them."

"It is only right that the common people feed and drink them."

"But what about you?"

"You think that protecting ordinary people is something you should do, and that not taking things from ordinary people is something you should do."

"It is only right to distribute meat to the people after winning a battle."

He looked up at Zhou Tianyang, his eyes reddening again.

"Commander Zhou, let me tell you, the people support a team like this."

"We welcome you to set up camp in our village."

"You are recruiting soldiers, and the young men from our village are signing up."

"If you need food, we'll tighten our belts and gather it for you."

"Village Chief Li, we really need to trouble you with the matter of recruiting soldiers."

Zhou Tianyang put down his bowl, his tone becoming serious.

"Our new Second Regiment is too small right now, we need to expand it as soon as possible."

"We would appreciate it if you could help us spread the word about young people from Lijia Yu and the surrounding villages who are willing to join the army."

"As long as you are healthy and of good character, you are welcome."

"no problem!"

Village Chief Li slapped his thigh and agreed decisively.

"Leave this to me."

"Tomorrow I will visit several villages in the surrounding area and spread the word."

"The Eighth Route Army is here to defend our country and fight the Japanese invaders. Who wouldn't want to join?"

Zhou Tianyang nodded and picked up the bowl.

"Village Chief Li, this cup is for you."

The two clinked their bowls together and drank the rest of their drinks.

The night breeze carried the aroma of horse meat and cooking smoke, drifting through the air above the threshing ground.

The soldiers and villagers gathered around the stove.

They ate meat, drank soup, talked and laughed, and had a lively time.

Zhou Tianyang leaned against the willow tree, watching this scene, and let out a long sigh of relief.

Black Wind Stronghold was destroyed, supplies were seized, the garrison was settled, and the hearts of the people were won over.

The new Second Regiment has finally gained a real foothold.

Next came the expansion, training, and fighting the Japanese.

Take it one step at a time, do it one thing at a time.

……

The night is dark.

The noise from the threshing ground gradually subsided.

The soldiers and villagers went back to rest, and the village returned to tranquility.

Only the sentry post at the village entrance was still on duty at night.

The footsteps were especially clear in the quiet night.

Zhou Tianyang lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), his hands behind his head, his eyes fixed on the rafters of the roof.

He was not sleepy at all.

I was thinking about this evening.

The scene I saw while eating at the threshing ground.

The soldiers squatted beside the stove, eating horse meat from their bowls, smiles on their faces.

But some of their hands, which were holding the bowls, were trembling slightly.

It's not that I'm nervous or scared, it's that my body is too weak.

He remembers it very clearly.

A soldier named Wang Shuanzi was in his early twenties, short and thin.

My hands trembled violently when I picked up the bowl.

He spilled some soup and wiped it up with his sleeve, looking embarrassed.

Zhou Tianyang didn't say anything at the time, he just pretended not to see it.

But he knew in his heart that it was not an isolated case.

The 126 people he brought from the 772nd Regiment were veterans, key personnel who had come all the way from the Red Army period.

But their bodies had long been worn down by years of hardship and frequent battles.

Long-term malnutrition, long-term overwork, and long-term lack of medical care and medicine.

These people survived on the battlefield not because of their physical abilities, but because of their willpower.

Today, he observed the threshing ground for a long time.

The soldiers' physical condition was worse than he had expected.

It's not just one person's problem; it's a widespread problem.

Long-term malnutrition leads to insufficient muscle strength, poor endurance, and low immunity.

Long-term overload combat has resulted in them having old injuries to varying degrees.

Some injuries healed, but left behind aftereffects.

Some injuries haven't fully healed; they're just barely hanging on.

With a body like that, fighting one or two battles wouldn't be a problem. Relying on that fighting spirit and the adrenaline on the battlefield, he could hold on.

However, these bodies simply cannot withstand high-intensity, systematic training.

It's not that they don't want to train, it's that their bodies won't allow it.

Zhou Tianyang had mentally rehearsed it.

If we were to adopt the basic training syllabus of a modern military, even if it were just a simplified version, it would be a good idea.

Given the current physical condition of these soldiers, a large number of them will collapse within three days at most.

It's not that the training method is wrong, it's that the foundation is too poor.

It's like building a house; if the foundation isn't solid, no matter how well the top is constructed, it's useless.

What he needs to do now is not to rush to build upwards, but to first solidify the foundation.

Therefore, he needed a way to improve the soldiers' physical condition.

And in the system store.

It just so happens to be what he wants.

Zhou Tianyang sighed and turned over.

"system."

He meditated in his heart.

"Open the points mall."

The points mall is now open.

Current points: 2150.

Zhou Tianyang began browsing the system's online store.

Scroll down from the weapons and equipment section to the medical supplies section.

I flipped through the medical supplies section to the special items section and looked at each item one by one.

Finally, he found what he needed.

[Physical Enhancement Liquid (100 servings): 500 points.]

[Note: This product is a specially formulated nutritional fortifier containing a variety of essential amino acids, vitamins, trace elements, and active ingredients.]

[Efficacy: It can slowly enhance the user's physical condition, including but not limited to increasing muscle strength, improving cardiopulmonary function, improving the immune system, accelerating metabolism, and repairing old damage.]

[Directions for use: Can be mixed with water or food. It is colorless and tasteless and does not affect the original taste of the food.]

[Effective Time: The improvement in physical condition will begin to appear 15 to 30 days after taking the product. Complete absorption takes 60 days.]

[Precautions: This product is a group-enhancing agent, not a targeted treatment. It has no direct therapeutic effect on serious illnesses or injuries.]