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墨書 Inktalez
Garfield stood up from the back, his face calm. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "This year, we have nine people leaving, which is the most in the entire unit. There’s me, along with Second Squad Leader, Fourth Squad Leader, and six second-year soldiers."
"Which six?" I asked quietly. I had been absent during the report on personnel changes, and I feared that those who loved the unit and were willing to endure hardships would be transferred away.
"He Baisha, Hainan, Silly Xiang, Sleepyhead, Zheng, and Wei." Hearing this eased my heart somewhat.
I knew He Baisha well; he had always been reluctant to stay in the unit. His personality didn’t suit military life at all. Since he joined as a recruit last year, he had been counting down to retirement—he should be fine.
Hainan was from Wenchang. This kid was under five feet tall but very clever and sensible, which is why everyone called him Hainan. I remembered how he quietly took my dirty clothes to wash when I first joined the squad. I had scolded him for that; as a local university student, I believed everyone should be treated equally in daily life. Although he stopped washing my clothes afterward, he always made sure to squeeze out my toothpaste and tidy my bed before lights out. After getting up in the morning, he would quickly make my bed and fold my blanket neatly. To be honest, during winter, I felt embarrassed to lie back down after morning exercises because of his efforts. He was sharp-witted and articulate, preferring actions over words. I trusted him immensely and often sent him as a messenger to fetch documents or handle tasks at headquarters. He had a girlfriend back home and wanted to return early to get married; that shouldn't pose much of a problem.
Silly Xiang—Meng Daxiang—was good friends with Xuanhua. Birds of a feather flock together; both were quite tall and reminded me of Liu Qingyun in a way. However, Silly Xiang was even more naive than Xuanhua and often became the butt of jokes without getting upset; he just laughed heartily in response. I had tried to stop everyone from calling each other nicknames when I first arrived but later realized there was no malice behind it and allowed it to continue. His easygoing nature suggested he wouldn’t have any thoughts about retirement.
Sleepyhead—Huang Guiyong—was from Hunan. He was good at everything except for one thing: sleeping. No matter where or when, he could fall asleep anywhere. Once during a meeting held by the Political Commissar in the auditorium, he actually fell asleep in Row A and let out a loud snore! He was an only child; both his parents were officials who had arranged a job for him after his service. He joined the army mainly for physical training. From what I could see, that was indeed the case; his physical condition wasn’t great, and the intense training left him with little energy for anything else—most of his time was spent sleeping. So he probably wouldn’t have any thoughts about leaving either.
Zheng Wei was from Hebei. Zheng was a rural soldier while Wei was from town; both came from less fortunate families and had long agreed to work together in the south after retirement. I already knew this; these two should be fine.
As I pondered this, He Baisha suddenly spoke up, "Squad Leader, isn't it bad not to leave at this time?" I casually replied, "Don’t joke around; you’re the one everyone wants to leave! You’ve been carrying that countdown book since you joined the unit—who would believe you if you stayed?"
He Baisha fell silent, and there was quiet below as well. Yet I felt a bit stifled; I forced a smile and said, "Isn’t this good? So Xuanhua can stay if he wants; Tang can stay too! And that deer—you want to stay as well? Those who leave are going where they belong; didn’t you all want to leave when you first came? It’s not easy adapting here! It’s all good!"
Xuanhua stood up then. "Squad Leader, I feel really uneasy about this! I'd rather not become a sergeant; I want us all to serve together! Just thinking about our brothers parting makes my heart feel empty. How about we all leave together?"
"That’s nonsense!" I snapped back. Yes, I understood why I felt sad—the bond we had formed over the past year meant everything to me. Here there were no schemes or bullying; only joy, unity, and harmony filled our days together. My gaze drifted toward the banner of Wang Pai across the room.
I found myself lost in thought.
"The atmosphere in the entire unit is like this every year," Garfield continued, pulling me back from my reverie. "Those leaving naturally won’t focus on their work, and those staying will be affected too. That’s why we usually enter a rest period about a week in advance."
I had nothing to say, so I silently nodded and waved my hand to dismiss everyone for their lunch break.
The atmosphere in the unit was indeed off. After we got up in the afternoon, the song playing was one I didn’t recognize, but it sounded very sad: "I followed them onto the bus, I looked back with them, I followed them, but it wasn’t a feigned sorrow."
"Why do they keep playing these songs? This just dampens the mood. Whether veterans or new recruits, where's the morale?" I muttered to myself.
I joined the afternoon training and noticed that not only our unit but also soldiers from other units were not as focused as usual during their training. I thought to myself that with only two weeks left, this couldn’t continue. I didn’t care about other units; my squad couldn’t be like this.
After dinner and before roll call, I specifically sought out these nine soldiers to talk. The three squad leaders led by Garfield remained relatively calm; after all, they had been in the unit for a long time and had seen a lot. They also had their own thoughts and had applied for retirement, so they weren’t emotionally affected. However, since they were leaving soon, they had become somewhat lax in their work. I clearly requested that they pass on more experience and skills to the second-year soldiers’ squad leaders. The conversation took place under the banner of Wang Pai. I pointed at the banner and said, "This banner is something we all worked hard for. Whether it can remain next year largely depends on whether you can pass on this spirit and mindset completely. Time is short; cherish it and think about what else you can contribute to this collective!"
When talking with the second-year soldiers, things started off smoothly, but I never expected that He Baisha and Silly Xiang would cause a bit of trouble. These two were actually unwilling to leave!
The first surprise came from Silly Xiang; before I could say anything, he mysteriously pulled me into a private room, leaving me quite confused. To my astonishment, he rummaged through his backpack and pulled out a wallet from deep inside, turning to me and saying, "Squad Leader, can you help me find a way to stay? I have over ten thousand cash here; I'll give it all to you."
I stared at him in shock. "Are you crazy? Put that away! Where did you learn this?"
Silly Xiang scratched his head. "Xuanhua gave it to me!" But then he quickly became serious and added, "Squad Leader, is this enough? If not, I have a card too!"
I was even more astonished. Silly Xiang had always been average among the soldiers; aside from being a bit taller and somewhat handsome, there was nothing particularly noteworthy about him. He never spent money extravagantly either—where did all this money come from? My guard was up.
As I pondered my concerns, Silly Xiang chuckled. "Squad Leader, don’t worry; this money is all mine. My parents run a big business in Shenzhen; they gave me this before they enlisted. Plus, I have a bank card—they send me money every month—but I didn’t want to touch it, so I've just kept it."
Damn it, he’s rich! I felt a wave of frustration wash over me as I replied kindly, "Silly Xiang, listen to me; we don’t operate like that here. Also, it's too late now; your application has already been submitted—there’s no chance for changes. And why didn’t you apply to stay earlier? Why are you suddenly causing such a scene now?"
He lowered his head. "Squad Leader, before I always thought the army was tough and restrictive—it felt like prison—and I wanted to get out as soon as possible. But for some reason, the closer it got to retirement, the more uneasy I felt about leaving. I realized that being here is actually great; there are brothers who share everything with each other and a simple yet fulfilling life where we suffer together, enjoy together, joke around together." His voice grew softer.
I couldn't help but respond with his name: "Silly Xiang."
He interrupted me, "Squad Leader, I'm not stupid. I didn't want to join the army at first, but after graduating high school and failing to get into college, my parents were afraid I'd go astray at home, so they pulled some strings to send me here. Since the Recruit Training Camp, I thought about just playing dumb and coasting through, so I pretended not to understand many things. But after you came along, everyone changed a lot. To avoid being left behind, I had no choice but to keep pretending. Now I've realized that I can't leave this squad! Squad Leader, can you help me stay? I still want to follow you; let’s compete together next year! I'm better than Xuanhua, right?"
I looked up into his eyes, which were filled with longing, hope, reluctance, and helplessness. I sighed and patted his arm. "Brother, no one is irreplaceable. The army is like a revolving door; you can't stay in the military forever, and neither can I. You've learned a lot over these two years; you've grown and matured. Everyone has their own path. Go back and live your life."
I stuffed my wallet into his backpack, suppressing a twinge of sadness in my heart. Turning away from him, I said, "Not much time left; show your true self now, Shen Xiang. Cherish the days you have with everyone here; remember, this will always be your second home!"
With that, I walked out and closed the door behind me. I intended to let him have some quiet time inside. Just as I looked up, I ran into He Baisha. He had his head down and hands behind his back, seemingly waiting for me.
"Just in time; I need to talk to you," I said.
He Baisha had shed his usual carefree demeanor and spoke in Mandarin, "Squad Leader, is it really impossible to change your mind? Do you really have to leave?"
"Yeah," I nodded. Looking at him, I could tell he was a smart guy who must have overheard our conversation outside. Seeing his expression made it hard for me to be harsh on him. He Baisha might be a bit of a troublemaker, but he had never slacked off in work or training. Trying to lighten the mood, I joked with him, "Weren't you eager to quit? Where's that countdown timer? Let’s see it; you haven't forgotten how desperate you were to leave, have you?"
He Baisha lowered his head and slowly pulled something out from behind him.
(To be continued; more exciting content tomorrow!)
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