In the afternoon, the sky was overcast and the mountain breeze was gentle.

In the cemetery, the battalion commander sat on the ground without any image, picked up a pack of cigarettes, took out three cigarettes and put them in his mouth, took out a lighter, took a deep breath, and then placed the three cigarettes neatly in front of the gray wolf's monument, and said in a deep voice: "Brother, come, take a few sips, Laojiao, your favorite." ”

As he spoke, the battalion commander opened a bottle of liquor, poured most of it on the ground, and then poured it violently, letting the spicy liquid flow into the esophagus, and continued after taking a long breath: "Your wish Ah Zheng brought it here, but we can't do it, I'm sorry for you, my brother has made amends for you." ”

Next to him, Yang Zheng quietly looked at the tombstone and was in a state of confusion, he also opened a bottle of wine and spilled some of it, poured a few sips, his eyes were red, and he said in a deep voice: "Brothers, brothers, I can't do anything, I'm sorry." ”

The two of them drank wine by themselves, thinking about their thoughts, and the mountain breeze was slow, but they couldn't take the worries of the two of them.

After a while, the battalion commander put the wine bottle on the side, looked at Yang Zheng and said in a deep voice: "Ah Zheng, in front of the brothers of the wolf squad, there are some things I want to talk to you about." ”

"You say." Yang Zheng responded.

"I know you're sad, but they won't blame you, I hope you let go." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

"Drop?" Yang Zheng said bitterly: "If it weren't for me, they would be fine, how could they let go?" ”

The battalion commander looked at Yang Zheng deeply, thought for a while, and continued: "Every soldier has his own perseverance, they are fighting for the country, not for you, it is an honor to die on the battlefield, and it is also what every soldier desires, and all the people in the reconnaissance battalion are proud of it." ”

"But if it weren't for my lack of ability, they wouldn't have absorbed it." Yang Zheng said bitterly.

"Then make yourself stronger." The battalion commander suddenly raised his voice and scolded: "Look at you, living and blaming yourself will only make things worse, wild wolves, they never want to see you like this, if you are a man, you should be strong, train, become stronger, one day in the future you will go to the battlefield, kill more enemies, and kill them too." ”

"Me?" Yang Zheng was speechless and pondered.

"They sacrificed, but the living have to continue, living is sometimes more painful than dying, because you don't just live for yourself, you have to live for them, this is not a problem that you have to face alone, but a problem that every soldier has to face, everyone in the reconnaissance battalion has experienced something like you, is it that everyone is giving up on themselves? No, a true soldier should learn to face death, face the mission, and have the courage to take responsibility. The battalion commander explained in a deep voice.

"Battalion commander, I understand, but I shouldn't have left them in the mountains, I should have brought them all back intact and buried in peace." Yang Zheng said, a line of tears rolling down.

"You've done a great job." The battalion commander said in a deep voice, seeing that Yang Zheng was heartbroken, his face was full of guilt, and he couldn't help shouting: "You look at me." ”

Yang Zheng was stunned for a moment and looked at the battalion commander, who pointed to the forest to the west and continued: "Do you see that forest?" It's the border, and since the establishment of our reconnaissance battalion, one hundred and thirty-five people have died in that forest, and there are one hundred and thirty-five graves here, but do you know how many are empty? ”

"Huh?" Yang Zheng was shocked and looked at the battalion commander fixedly.

"There are eighty-nine, eighty-nine brothers lying in that forest forever, some can't find anything, some are eaten by wild beasts and only a pile of white bones remains, you can cremate everyone, and after you die, you won't be eaten by wild beasts, and it's good to be able to come back with ashes, they will only be grateful to you." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

"Huh?" Yang Zheng really didn't know about this, he was shocked, and he didn't know what to say.

"Soldiers die on the battlefield, this is the mission, but also fate, we are not afraid of death, even if the bones are buried in a foreign land? Because we are soldiers, if we back down, who will protect this country? Soldiers fight, passed down from generation to generation, just because all of us know what to fight for, it is the country, not for you. The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

Yang Zheng had some enlightenment, and a moving emotion came to his heart.

"What are you fighting for?" The battalion commander asked in a deep voice.

"What am I fighting for?" Yang Zheng said in surprise, I really didn't think about this problem, it was for revenge at first, but now? In order to harvest the lives of the brothers around you? Or is it for what? Yang Zheng was a little confused.

The battalion commander saw Yang Zheng's confusion, pointed to all the graves around him and said in a deep voice: "All the brothers who died here know what they are fighting for, so they have no regrets, you think about it, what are you fighting for?" If you don't know this, I suggest that you leave the army and go home, a person who doesn't know why he fights and has no faith is not suitable for the battlefield, so it is better to go back early. ”

"Battalion commander, me?" Yang Zheng shouted in grief, but found that he could not say anything.

"I know your situation, it doesn't make sense for you to fight for the country, after all, you have only been in the country for a short time, but you must find your faith, whether it is to protect the country, or for the people around you, if you can't figure it out, you can go back." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

"I see." Yang Zheng said gratefully.

"It's good to understand, you remember, there is peace behind us, but in front of us is war, conquest of the battlefield, the true colors of a man, serving the country in the army, no regrets, we are Chinese soldiers, I am the people's soldiers, I am the guardian of a better life, this is my faith, but also the faith of everyone here, we fight for our faith, and we are proud to die on the battlefield." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

"I see." Yang Zheng was shocked in his heart and felt something called responsibility and mission.

"Think about it, if you can't find a goal, I suggest you leave the barracks, a person without faith can't go far, if you have a goal, go to the training camp to report in a week, before coming here, I received a notice from my superiors that you were hired, I hope you don't live up to the captain's expectations." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

Yang Zheng nodded knowingly, looked at the surrounding mausoleums, a sense of pride welled up in his heart, and he felt a little less guilty and self-blame, and said: "Battalion commander, thank you, I want to slowly find my faith in the barracks, all the brothers here can fight for the country, I think it is okay, it won't be long before I can find my faith." ”

"The road is full of dangers, decided?" The battalion commander asked in a deep voice.

"It's decided." Yang Zheng said affirmatively.

"Remember, you are a soldier from the reconnaissance battalion who went out, everyone here is watching you, don't let everyone down, death is not terrible, but only heroes are qualified to enter the cemetery, be a hero, don't be a bad seed." The battalion commander said in a deep voice.

"Yes, be a hero, not a seed." Yang Zheng looked at the surrounding graves and said affirmatively, his eyes were firm, as if he was admonishing himself, more like he was taking an oath, swearing to the heroes lying in the cemetery.

(End of chapter)