At nine o'clock in the morning on July 11, 1944, the 101st Airborne Division returned to England from Normandy.

The warship floated on the sea, and Parks lay on the ramp of the ship, watching Utah Beach get farther and farther away, and all kinds of emotions suddenly surged in his heart. Since more than two years in this world, he has experienced hard training, brutal wars, friendship with his brothers and the sadness of losing his brothers, all the time in his mind.

"What do you think? Lieutenant! A voice came from beside him.

Parks turned his head and couldn't help laughing, "White, why don't you call me Parks?" ”

"Wouldn't you mind if I didn't call you Lieutenant?" White chuckled, "But I still like to call you Parks." Only then can I feel that you are not a lieutenant. ”

Parks laughed, then looked at the beach that was getting away, "It's finally time to get out of here." ”

"yes, I can finally leave!" White said the same, and then never spoke again. They just watched there, listening to the roaring engines of the landing ship as it moved and the sound of the waves crashing against the hull......

Many of the brothers of Company E stood by the gangway, and like Parks, they looked at the fading beach, where they had fought, where their comrades had shed their blood, and where some had been laid to rest.

"Lieutenant!" Just as Parks left the gangway to go to his room, he met the captain, who thought he was a very kind middle-aged man, he looked at Parks with a smile and said, "Do your soldiers need something to eat?" ”

"What?" Parks couldn't help but look at him suspiciously.

"Chicken or steak? Ice cream? Egg? The captain nodded and smiled, "We have a lot of this food on board, and if you don't mind, I can arrange some for you." ”

"Sir, this ......"

Parks was about to speak, but the captain smiled as if he knew what he was going to say, "Lieutenant, this is just a way for me to pay tribute to your heroic performance. Do I need to arrange it now? It's almost time for lunch! ”

Only then did Parks come to his senses, nodded and smiled, "Thank you very much!" Prepare some of them, and I think those guys will be more than happy to enjoy the food you serve them, and it's a delicious meal for them! ”

This is a kind of preferential treatment, I don't know that on this ship, in fact, all the ships took out what they thought was the best to entertain the officers and men of the 101 Airborne Division. In the eyes of all, they deserve to be entertained with what is done. This also allowed the officers and men of the entire airborne division to enjoy several big meals.

The next day, a flotilla of landing ships was in the British port of Southampton. Here, the 101 Airborne Division received a grand welcome. From the harbor all the way to the barracks where they had been temporarily settled, they were greeted in the mezzanine.

As soon as Kaber stepped out of the landing ship, he was stunned by what he saw. Flowers, colourful stripes and colourfully dressed crowds were crowded, and cheers and horns resounded throughout Southampton. Walking on the street, it also looks very cramped, and the bold girls even rushed into the ranks marching on the street and gave a warm hug to the GIs.

The victory in the Normandy landings completely ignited their enthusiasm. And the heroic performance of the 101 Airborne Division is also a topic of conversation among all the British.

"I'm almost lost!" Paikanti was held tightly to the chest by a girl, and he felt like he was almost out of breath, he struggled out, and then said to Lutz next to him, "Why do they always like to press my head on their chest?" You know, it's going to hurt me a lot. ”

"Come on, Paikanti." Luz had just been kissed by a girl, and he had a bright red lip print on his face, which he wiped with his hand, "That's not murder, even if it was, you'd be happy to enjoy it." ”

It soon became clear that they were almost unable to move an inch. The crowd continued to rush into the ranks, men, women and children, hugging and kissing their cheeks, expressing their affection for the GIs in various ways. So much so that each step takes a long time.

"Shall we hurry?" Wales had just kissed a girl, then he squeezed over to look at Winters, noticed that he also had a few red lip prints on his face, and smiled, "These guys almost don't want to move, they enjoy it here." ”

"I don't think it's necessary, Wales, now we are not marching to fight, we are victorious victors, this is the honor that the brothers fight for with their own surnames, let them enjoy it a little longer!" "And I love it, and to be honest, it's worth it to get that a couple of times in my life." ”

Winters also nodded at this time and said: "Lacey is right, let the brothers enjoy it, just remind them, don't get dizzy, we still have to camp here tonight." ”

"I hope so!" Wales smiled, "Actually, I enjoyed it a lot." ”

The grand welcome ceremony in the streets is still going on, and although the teams are moving as slowly as snails, no one wants to go faster. They're all enjoying their own victories.

"Why are the girls here so welcoming?" Tybert grabbed a few fruits from the basket of an old Englishman who reached out in one hand, and stuffed them into his arms, and nibbled one in his mouth. His actions made the old man very happy, and kissed him on the cheek very passionately, which made him involuntarily muttered to Landowman, "Look at the crazy behavior just now, it was all inherited from their father." Don't be surprised if a girl hugs you. ”

Randolphan carried a lot of "trophies" in his arms, fruits, candies and all kinds of chocolates, which made him have to walk cautiously and try to avoid bumping into people.

"Tybert, what's so strange about this. But I'm not interested in girls, I care more about that! His mouth tugged at what was in his arms, "These are the most affordable, you know?" I'm going to make the guys who just drill into a woman's arms drool. ”

"Well, but I want these too, but I want the girl's kiss too!" Tybert grinned, then pressed her face to a girl who had come running over with her arms outstretched, and kissed her on the cheek.

General Taylor entered the city in a jeep, apparently under the great care of the people, who held up flags of various colors and sang their hymns to the harvest and victory, and paid their respects to General Taylor.

General Taylor enjoyed the situation. He simply stood in his seat, waved to the crowd, and shouted: "Victory, victory!" ”

His voice was soon drowned out by the louder voices of the people, and the shouts of "victory" in the streets rang out, making the enthusiasm of both the masses and the troops entering the city higher and higher.

"It's crazy!" Parks shook his head, squeezing his body desperately through the crowd, and dealing with sudden kisses and hugs from time to time. He himself couldn't remember how many girls he kissed on the face and lips, and how many old people, children, men, and girls he had hugged.

"It seems that we still underestimate the enthusiasm of the British people!" Winters was also very emotional. There was already a red mark on his face, which made his expression look a little embarrassed. However, Nixon, who was struggling to push forward next to him, was not much stronger.

"I don't want to die here!" When Parks pulled Welsh's head out of a woman's breasts, Welsh let out a long breath, "But this is far better than being beaten to death by the Germans!" ”

The mayor of Southampton was also present in the welcoming procession, and he and some of the officials of the municipal axe were waiting to greet General Taylor, which Winters did not enjoy. Then General Taylor, who waved to the crowd in the car, was welcomed into the municipal axe hall by the mayor and his group. There, they held a high-ranking welcome banquet for the senior officers of the 101st Division.

"There must be a sumptuous banquet there!" Nickerson looked at him with envy.

"I don't think you'll like it there!" Winters smiled, "Or have you changed and become fond of telling lies with a bunch of politicians at big banquets?" That's not what you're looking for. ”

Nickerson laughed and said, "You still know me!" It's worth taking a sip! As he spoke, he unscrewed the lid of the kettle and took a big sip, his kettle could never have filled with water. That's whiskey.

"Well, I don't want to stay here any longer. I love it, but I want some fresh air! Parks said, and began to walk forward again, Winters and Nickerson and Wales following closely behind him. They had the same idea as Parks, and while they enjoyed it, it was also torture.

It took more than two hours to complete this less than one-mile street. All the way to the camp, all the brothers of Company E looked ragged and their faces were colorful, as if they had escaped from a refugee camp. But their harvest is generally abundant. Everyone can go home with a full load.

Despite being in England, the division headquarters decided that each company must send its own sentry for safety.

As night darkened the entire port of Southampton, the lapping of the sea could be heard even in the camp. After a long day of sailing and the hustle and bustle of the day's welcoming ceremony, many people were so tired that they slept peacefully. There was silence all around. Occasionally, sentries walked past the barracks.

Parks didn't feel sleepy, he couldn't stay in the barracks and walked out.

"Lieutenant!" A sentry saw him and greeted him. Parks nodded, then sat down in a chair near the camp, he had to sort out his mood these days.

During these days of fighting, he and his brothers had developed a life-and-death friendship, which made him feel very gratified. But I was worried about the bleak future. Although he knew the whole process and outcome of the war, what he could change was very limited and it didn't matter at all. Sometimes, even I don't know if in the future battles, like many brothers, I will be hit by the Germans, and then die in pain and groaning. Although he dared to face death, he felt a fear of the unknown way of death.

"Can't sleep?" A voice came from beside him, it was Winters, and he smiled, "Me too!" ”

(To be continued)