Siheyuan (traditional courtyard house): Starting with the Korean War, returning home to take charge

The division's commendation order and the reinforcements arrived almost simultaneously.

The commendation order had a few more lines added, officially confirming the victory of "destroying the Qingpingchuan Bridge and its associated enemy vehicles and equipment," and awarding He Yuzhu another merit. The handwriting was neat, conveying a sense of official business. He Yuzhu glanced at it and handed it to the clerk for filing—it didn't mean much to him, far less than two more boxes of ammunition.

The new recruits were indeed substantial. Fifteen young men, mostly eighteen or nineteen, stood shivering slightly in the snow, their faces taut. Their eyes held curiosity and excitement, but also the trepidation of being on the battlefield for the first time. Some were rural youths from Northeast China, others were students from the city who had abandoned their studies to join the army; what they had in common was that none of them had ever seen blood. The old platoon leader, Black-faced Li, was still recovering in the hospital. Looking at these youthful faces, and then glancing at the twenty or so veterans whose faces had hardened after the bloody battle at the broken bridge, He Yuzhu knew in his heart: this batch of raw iron had to be forged into steel as quickly as possible.

He didn't hold a welcoming ceremony, nor did he say any pleasantries. At dawn the next day, a whistle tore through the cold silence.

"All platoons! Emergency assembly! Five minutes!"

The shack erupted in chaos. The veterans, grumbling but quick as they threw on their coats and grabbed their rifles; the new recruits were in complete disarray, some unable to find their shoes, others with their backpack straps tangled in knots. Five minutes later, they stood in three crooked rows in the snow. The veterans had largely met the standard, while half the new recruits were still frantically trying to get their hands dirty.

He Yuzhu walked from the front to the back of the line with his hands behind his back, his military boots crunching on the frozen snow. He didn't get angry, but only asked those who were late or improperly dressed to step out and watch.

"See that clearly?" he said to the recruits, whose faces were turning blue from the cold. "This is the distance between you and the battlefield. The enemy won't give you a minute more to put on your shoes."

The training spree continued for the next few days. Daytime training consisted of snowfield runs, cross-country races with heavy loads, and tactical formation changes; nighttime drills included emergency assembly, nighttime location assessment, and wilderness ambush. He Yuzhu incorporated everything taught by Black-faced Li, the system knowledge integration, and the bloody lessons learned from the Battle of Chosin Reservoir and the Broken Bridge. The training grounds were set up in mountain forests and snow ravines, specifically choosing challenging terrain.

He required everyone—regardless of seniority—to master the making and placement of at least three improvised explosive devices, to learn how to navigate obstacles with minimal noise, and to operate weapons by touch in the absence of light. The training was extremely rigorous; falls and bumps were commonplace, and frostbite and sprains were almost universal. The rations consisted only of frozen potatoes and fried noodles, with calories simply not keeping up with the energy expenditure.

Some people couldn't take it anymore. Liu Fugui, a new recruit and a student from the city, secretly wiped away tears during a midnight training exercise. The next day, he found He Yuzhu and stammered that he wanted to be transferred to the logistics or propaganda team.

He Yuzhu looked at his bloodshot eyes and chapped hands, but instead of scolding him, he asked, "Afraid of hardship?"

Liu Fugui lowered his head.

"It's normal to be afraid of hardship." He Yuzhu said calmly. "Logistics is tough too, and the propaganda team might have to carry guns someday. I'm giving you two options: one, I'll write a report and send you away; two, you stay and keep training until you feel that this hardship is nothing. Choose."

Liu Fugui's face flushed red and then turned pale, and he finally stammered, "I... I'll try again."

"Then go back to training."

Some were eliminated. He Yuzhu didn't force two new recruits who simply couldn't endure the hardship and whose bodies couldn't keep up, and truthfully reported their transfers. As for the remaining recruits, the initial panic in their eyes was gradually replaced by exhaustion and an indomitable spirit.

During a break in training that afternoon, He Yuzhu was squatting on the ground, whittling wood with a dagger to demonstrate a simple tripwire trap to the new recruits. A jeep, kicking up snow, drove into a clearing in the woods.

The car door opened, and out stepped Wang Fuli, the special envoy from the division headquarters. His military uniform was neatly pressed, but his expression behind his glasses was not good. He had probably read the training briefing or heard rumors before walking straight to He Yuzhu. His gaze swept over the new recruits beside him, who were exhausted and covered in mud and snow, and his brows furrowed.

"Platoon Leader He," Wang Fuli began, his tone calm yet accusatory, "is the training intensity too high? I've heard there have already been non-combat casualties. Also, you're having the recruits do these things—" He pointed to the wooden tripwires and the explosive devices simulated with stones and sheet metal, "isn't that too advanced and dangerous? Training should be gradual, and we must care for our soldiers."

The soldiers resting around all perked up their ears.

He Yuzhu slowly stood up and brushed the sawdust from his hands. He looked at Wang Fuli, his face expressionless.

"Commissioner Wang, I understand your principles of gradual progress and caring for the soldiers. But the enemy doesn't." He pointed to the distant mountains. "Those people over there won't give us a second chance just because our soldiers haven't trained well, don't know how to make explosives, or can't see the road at night. They only know how to use bullets, shells, and bayonets to teach us what it means to have no chance."

He turned to the soldiers and raised his voice: "Everyone, stand up!"

With a whoosh, despite their exhaustion, everyone immediately stood up.

"Nighttime Emergency Assembly Plan Three! Execute!"

There were no whistles, only a few pre-arranged, rapid bird calls to simulate alert positions. The veterans sprang into action instantly, silently, swiftly, and methodically dispersing towards their equipment points and taking up their posts. The new recruits were slightly flustered, but managed to keep up under the veterans' low shouts and hand gestures. Within a minute, the entire platoon of over thirty men had dispersed, concealed themselves, and were barely audible except for their breathing and the rustling of their clothing.

Wang Fuli appeared slightly surprised.

He Yuzhu didn't stop, pointing out two new recruits: "Zhang Dashan, Li Shuigen, step forward! Use the available materials to make a five-kilogram improvised explosive device, with a 30-second delay before detonation."

The two men, though nervous, immediately crouched down and gathered scraps of TNT, wire, an empty tin can, a broken alarm clock spring, and a small piece of fuse for training. Though their movements were clumsy, their steps were clear, and ten minutes later, a simple yet structurally complete simulation device was placed before them.

"Platoon leader, it's done!"

He Yuzhu looked at Wang Fuli: "Special Commissioner, this is just the basics. We also need to practice silent infiltration, small-group obstacle breaching, and field first aid. The more we sweat and endure the cold during training, even minor injuries, the less blood and death we lose on the battlefield." He paused, "I know some of these methods are inhumane. But since you came down from headquarters, have you seen complete casualty reports? Many sacrifices weren't because the enemy was so powerful, but because we were unprepared, panicked, chaotic, and lacked the necessary skills."

Wang Fuli opened his mouth, speechless for a moment. He looked at the soldier standing tall in the cold wind, his face rough but his eyes calm, then looked at He Yuzhu's young but cold face, and thought of the battle report of Qingpingchuan and the soldiers with missing limbs and frostbite in the hospital.

"...Your method may have its merits," Wang Fuli finally said, his tone slightly softer but still serious, "but you must pay attention to the approach and the degree of intervention. We must care about both the physical and mental state of the soldiers."

"Yes, Special Envoy." He Yuzhu answered crisply, standing at attention—only he knew how much he had truly listened.

Wang Fuli turned around, got into his car, and left.

He Yuzhu breathed a sigh of relief; his back was already covered in a layer of cold sweat. He waved his hand: "Dismissed. Take a twenty-minute break."

The veterans collapsed in laughter, while the new recruits huddled together, whispering about their platoon leader's earlier confrontation with the "high-ranking officer," their eyes revealing a different side to them.

A few days later, a new order was issued: a second raiding mission to destroy a newly built forward radar station 15 kilometers behind the enemy's front line. Intelligence indicated that the station had strong air detection capabilities, threatening our subsequent air operations and artillery movements. It was required to be destroyed within seven days.

Upon receiving the mission briefing, He Yuzhu convened a meeting with key personnel. The map was spread out, and the hilltop marked with a radar station symbol stood out starkly. The defenses were unclear, but certainly more robust than those around the bridge.

"This time," He Yuzhu tapped the map with his finger, "I plan to primarily train new recruits, with veterans leading the training."

Old Geng looked up: "Platoon leader, wasn't that too risky? A new recruit just got his hands on a gun and went to raid a radar station?"

"You only know how dangerous it is when it's dangerous," He Yuzhu said. "There has to be bloodshed. Veterans are responsible for guiding and covering key links, while newcomers handle the specific infiltration and sabotage tasks. Learning through combat is the most effective way."

He looked at the outstanding recruits in training, including Zhang Dashan and Li Shuigen. "Are you scared?"

Zhang Dashan retorted, "Platoon leader, we've endured so much tough training, it's just a radar station, isn't it?"

Li Shuigen licked his lips, said nothing, and just nodded vigorously.

He Yuzhu looked at them, then swept his gaze across the tense or excited faces of the entire platoon, and after a moment of silence, he spoke:

"This mission, the target must be eliminated, but there's something even more important than blowing up the radar station." His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear: "I want all of you to go there intact and come back intact. If even one of you is missing, I'm a platoon leader for nothing. Only those who come back alive deserve medals, meat, and to go home."

The shack fell silent, save for the soft crackling of the firewood in the brazier. The new recruit stared blankly at him, while the veteran seemed lost in thought.

"Do you understand?"

"Understood!" The shouts were more unified than ever before.

After the meeting, He Yuzhu walked alone outside the shack. Night had fallen, and the stars twinkled. He brought up the system interface, looked at his nearly 280,000 points, hesitated for a moment, and then found the entry:

[Passive Low-Light Night Vision Binoculars (Platoon-level Allocation, 10 units)]: Utilizes ambient low light to enhance imaging, significantly improving nighttime observation and operational capabilities. Requires 5000 points to redeem.

His finger paused in mid-air before confirming the exchange. Five thousand points were deducted, and ten new, sleek telescopes with special lenses appeared in the system space.

It's expensive, but worth it. To fulfill his promise of "everyone coming back alive," he needs to provide extra security.

A night breeze rustled through the trees. He Yuzhu gazed toward the radar station, his eyes calm and unwavering.

The sharp blade has been tempered and refined; it's time to put it to the test.