Volume 1: The First Battle Chapter 13 Platoon Leader
"Comrade," Deng Yue asked, "what position do you hold in the regiment?"
"Reporting to the division commander. I am... a soldier!"
"Hmm?" Deng Yue looked at Captain Chu beside him in confusion and said, "Old Chu, how come such an excellent soldier doesn't have any position?"
"This..." Captain Chu was stumped by this question.
"Report to the division commander." I came to the rescue of Captain Chu and said, "I fainted from the cold on the way and was saved by the old squad leader. I forgot everything that happened before, so I joined the 354th Regiment. I have only been in the regiment for two days, so it is normal that Captain Chu does not know me."
"Oh, that's how it is." Deng Yue nodded and said to Captain Chu, "Old Chu, there are many brave fighters in our team, but there are not many fighters with brains like this comrade. Our revolutionary team should develop comrades like this. I think we can let him lead the troops. What do you think?"
"Yes, division commander." Regimental Commander Chu agreed, "Why not let him be a platoon leader first!"
"Platoon leader?" I was anxious when I heard that. As far as I know, the combat habits of the Volunteer Army soldiers are completely different from those of the American soldiers and the South Korean army. They are protecting officers during combat, while officers below the battalion level of the Volunteer Army soldiers are responsible for leading the charge. Therefore, the casualty rate of officers in the Volunteer Army is particularly high. It is common to change two or three company commanders and platoon leaders in a battle. This is unacceptable. If I am made a platoon leader, it will cost me my life...
"Report to the division commander." Thinking of this, I saluted tremblingly and said, "I... I like being a soldier, but I am not cut out to lead troops!"
"Hey, have you led troops before?" Deng Yue asked.
"No, nothing."
"How do you know you are not cut out to lead troops if you have never led troops before? And you are being modest!"
I was speechless and couldn't think of any excuse after thinking for a long time. I regretted it so much. Why did I want to show off like this? Isn't this just putting myself in danger?
"Report!" At this time, a guard's report saved me. He saluted and said, "Report to the division commander, there is someone who wants to see you. He said it is Major General Jin Zhongsong, the commander of the 15th Division of the People's Army!"
"Hmm?" Deng Yue said with some surprise: "It turns out that comrades from the fraternal party have come. Come in!"
After a while, Jin Zhongsong and his group came forward, and naturally, they had to recite the same lines. Fortunately, Commander Deng had an interpreter with him this time, so I didn't have to suffer that nameless pain. And judging from the smiles on the faces of Jin Zhongsong's men, their joy was genuine. After all, it was not easy to annihilate a South Korean army regiment so cleanly and neatly, and seize a large amount of equipment, even if they had the advantage in numbers.
"It's them again!" Captain Chu muttered, "They come after the battle is over. They come at the right time."
"Captain, look." I pointed at Wikowski, who was standing alone due to the language barrier.
"Yeah! Damn it!" Captain Chu reacted as soon as he saw him. He gritted his teeth and said, "Didn't he say that our crappy equipment couldn't defeat the enemy? Now that we've won the battle, comrade, go ask him and see what he says!"
"yes!"
I turned around and came to Wikowski, handed him the only cigarette I had asked Hu Zi for, lit it and said, "Comrade Wikowski, we don't have planes, artillery, or tanks, but we fought this battle well!"
Wikowski was stunned for a moment, then he looked at me and quickly recognized me. He chuckled and said, "Comrade, that depends on who the opponent is. Before you came, weren't the South Korean army also defeated by us? It doesn't matter if you can beat them. Tell me if you can beat the Americans!"
"Ah?" I never expected him to say that. I was stunned for a long time and didn't know what to say.
"What's the matter?" Captain Chu walked forward.
"He...he said that only those who can defeat the Americans can be considered powerful!"
"Ball!" Captain Chu's face darkened. He didn't care whether Wikowski could understand him or not. He just shouted at him: "Americans are nothing. I'll beat them for you to see!"
After saying that, he left without looking back. He really had a stubborn temper and refused to admit defeat.
…
After searching for a while and asking a few people, we finally found the company in the open space between two wooden houses. The comrades had already taken advantage of this gap to rest. They were in groups of two or three, huddled together for warmth, and the Type 38 rifles were placed within reach. Although it looked a bit messy, it was conceivable that as long as there was movement or an order, they would enter combat status in the shortest possible time.
I pressed down the cotton hat on my head, found a corner, leaned my rifle aside, sat down on a few sticks, and covered myself with a marching blanket to warm myself. From time to time, I heard a few rumbling sounds of artillery in the darkness in the distance, and the light from the artillery fire was like lightning, sometimes bright and sometimes dim, while there was constant snoring around me, which made me have a new understanding of the quality of the volunteers.
This is what a real soldier does. He fights with all his might and relaxes with all his heart and soul when he rests. Only in this way can he recover his physical strength as quickly as possible, so that he still has the energy and strength to face the next march or war. Although I was exhausted at this time, I couldn't fall asleep.
"Cui Wei!"
"Here!" I turned around and saw it was Captain Chu, and I stood up reflexively.
"Shh... keep your voice down." Captain Chu lowered his voice, and woke up several people one after another and gathered them together. Among these people, except the old squad leader, I didn't know the rest.
Captain Chu sat down beside me with difficulty, and said solemnly: "Comrades, Platoon Leader Chen unfortunately died in this battle. Platoon Leader Chen was a good comrade! He climbed snow-capped mountains and walked through grasslands with us. After the Japanese and the Kuomintang were defeated, Chen married a wife and lived a simple life at home. Now, he has gone to the battlefield again with the baby still in his wife's belly. Just a stray bullet..."
At this point, Captain Chu's voice was choked and he could not continue. The others also lowered their heads sadly.
"I propose." After a moment of silence, Captain Chu continued, "I propose that Comrade Cui Wei take over the position of Platoon Leader Chen and serve as the platoon leader of the third platoon. What do you think, comrades?"
"Captain! I..." I became anxious again.
Except for the old squad leader, everyone else had a puzzled look on their faces, and several of them looked at me unconsciously. No wonder they were so confused. I had only been in this regiment for more than a day, and I was appointed platoon leader before I got to know everyone. How could they not be confused?
"I agree!" The old squad leader spoke up at this time. He said slowly, "Although Comrade Cui Wei has only been in our regiment for one day, he fought bravely. He killed more than a dozen people in one breath and captured four alive at Liangshuidong. What's more, he saw the key when we were digging the warm well just now and suggested that our regiment commander put out the fire. This has greatly reduced our losses and also hit the enemy. Look, our regiment has made a name for itself. No one can catch up with him in terms of merit and intelligence. I agree."
"oh!"
After hearing what the old squad leader said, everyone finally understood that it was my idea to shovel snow and put out the fire, and no one could compare to me in terms of military achievements. Now, those who were originally doubtful and dissatisfied now all had no objections.
"But Captain, I..."
"Don't keep saying "I, I, I" like a woman." Captain Chu glared at him and said firmly, "You will be the platoon leader of this platoon from now on! Here, this is the American rifle we just seized from those puppet soldiers - a big eight-ball rifle, a great thing! And this is the box gun left by Platoon Leader Chen!"
At this point, Captain Chu showed me the bright red bloodstains on the box and said, "There's still Platoon Leader Chen's blood on it. Comrade Cui, I hope you can pass on Platoon Leader Chen's spirit of fearlessness and sacrifice. Avenge Platoon Leader Chen! Avenge our fallen comrades! Shed your last drop of blood for our motherland!"
"Yes!" Seeing the bloody light, I couldn't make any excuses even if I had any. I could only silently take the heavy pistol and rifle. I suddenly felt the burden on my shoulders had become much heavier.
