Chapter 16 Fifteen full officials

In the army, soldiers can be divided into two categories: one is senior soldiers who came to Taiwan from the mainland; the other is supplementary recruits - "fillers".As for officers, they can also be divided into two categories: one is standing officers; the other is our reserve officers -- nicknamed "filling officers" "Charging officials", we can start with a sketch: white, silly, a pair of myopia glasses, often always covered under the brim of a hat worn low, a little hunchback, swagger when walking, talkative I can't get rid of the bookish air he had in college. Standing in front of the line, panicking, shouting passwords like stepping on the neck of a chicken, there is no sense of domineering.

A year ago, I was just such a specific and subtle officer, tiptoeing and foolish, to this field force with many famous generals. At that time, my heart was full of confusion and apprehension. That's right, the life of playing with pens in the past ten years is like a lifetime to me.Oh, I clearly know that during the next year of service, I want to "join the army and throw pens" and play with guns for a while--of course not with flower guns! It is really a delicate coordination for a young literati with no battlefield experience to lead more than 30 veterans and young and strong soldiers.But since the official bows to the leader of the weapon platoon, he has no choice but to resign himself to it!

At night, an old man entrusted me with a dream and whispered to me: "Ancient people who want to lead troops must know the way of generals." How strange, who is this old man?The long beard is very similar to my grandfather, but my grandfather has only held a knife, never touched the barrel of a gun, let alone six secrets and three strategies.But who is the boss who knows the art of war?I thought about it, and finally thought of the Huang Shigong who ordered Zhang Liang to pick up the shoes.By the way, it must be him!His father knows that his "art of war" has long been eliminated by the times. Except for those of us who study history, few people will find out his old accounts, so he ignored the barriers of time and space, and came here to enlighten himself.Early the next morning, I asked the company commander for leave and went to the bookstore to look for the book "The Way of the General".Li Deharda's "On Strategy" has nothing to do with leading troops; Jomini's "The Art of War" is too deep.Pick and choose to find a biography of Bensenhower.When I read that Eisenhower commanded the largest army in history, and he directly commanded only three people, I couldn't help but slapped my thigh, sighed and said: "The way to be a general is to do as much as possible!"

I hurried back and immediately summoned a member of the platoon attached, a member of the 75th artillery team leader, and a member of the 60th artillery team leader. I taught the "righteousness" of hierarchical responsibility face to face, patted my shoulders and stretched my arms, and encouraged them.After a long time, they are also a little impressed by my "jianghu spirit".An "anti-communist righteous" in the platoon said to me: "When it comes to leading troops, the experience of the platoon leader is too bad. But you can treat people with a kind of generosity, that's right. Brother Bing needs this most , we are straightforward people, we like your straightforwardness, you gave us your true face, this is your greatest success."

But I have asked myself, am I really successful?I am a little ashamed that I have given so little and gotten so much back.The night before my discharge from the army. Both the "official department" and the "soldier department" entertained me respectively, with a lot of wine and gifts.Parker pens, tie clips, Outer Island specialties, warrior photos... I have never received so many things in my life.This disturbs me deeply, since they each cost a quarter of their monthly salary!This is a passion that I have not easily seen in the past fifteen years. "Elegy and generosity" is already a term in textbooks in the "institution of higher learning" where I was born.Education is like a freezer. The longer one is close to it, the colder one becomes. Too much reason is just like the handleless knife described by Tagore. It may be practical and useful, but it is too cute!However, in the army, it is not difficult for me to see this kind of "elegy and generosity" with Gu Ren's chivalrous style. I like to smoke and drink with them, and I am also happy to quarrel and revel with them.I have lost myself, how many times I have melted with them, I have also learned roughness and simplicity, infected with hard work and innocence, but I hate that I can't learn their physical strength, nor can I learn that desperate heroism mind.

One of my important team members - the leader of the Seventh and Fifth Artillery Team, from Hebei, is a standard Yanzhao soldier. Although he can't be said to be strong enough to carry a tripod, he has no problem carrying a large water tank with one hand.I often laugh at his untimely birth. If he was born in ancient times, he would surely be able to win the first martial arts examination.His marksmanship and wrestling skills are unmatched in the entire company.Once he won three wrestlings in a row, I used him as a credit to the platoon and rewarded him heavily by buying Double Happiness cigarettes.He was so happy that day, he talked about his military history in public, and finally pointed to me and said to the soldiers: "There is no one who is not afraid of going to the battlefield for the first time. Our platoon leader, you usually see him flaunting his teeth and claws, but if he goes to the battlefield, As soon as the gun slammed in front, shit came from behind him!" Everyone laughed so hard that I couldn't stand upright, and I laughed so hard that tears came out"

At the end of the one-year military life, the reserve officers of the ninth batch were also assigned to the army.They heard that there was a big brother from the 8th batch in the 4th company who was famous, so they came to "worship" one after another, and I also received them separately as a local snake. You can move out your own experience and foolishness.The "setting poem" I gave them was: "Shenggong speaks and listens to ghosts and gods", You should respect me and I pity you, If you want to take Ah Bing calmly, Read my "Pailong Sutra" first. In the "Platoon Leader's Scripture", I told them how to write letters for some veterans, how to tell stories, how to mine instructors, and how to be the smallest commander in the world-the commander of the guards.How to keep the glorious record of the platoon leader--the champion of forward-looking training artillery...

Although a year of study and training has made me no longer an inexperienced second lieutenant, I know that I am still far from the standard of a model officer.The head of the regiment asked me how I felt in the past year, and I replied: "Brother Bing sees me as a commoner; the common people see me as Brother Bing." I am not a humble person. I know that although I have experienced a lot in the past year, it is a pity that I am rich but not deep; although I have made contributions, I have only made two achievements without faults. Not up to the standards of a standard officer. Now the earth is spinning wildly, and more than three hundred and sixty days have passed.With an indescribable mood, I boarded the return warship.The man is in the boat, the boat is in the sea, but I know where my heart is.I have spent more than a year of my youth there, where there are fiery smiling faces, strong masculinity, mud, sweat spots, wind and waves, and those beating hearts, which remind me of it.

In early spring, I came back to school again, and the rhododendrons were still blooming enthusiastically, but I couldn't see a familiar face or touch a familiar echo.There are batches of new classmates, new lovers, and old classmates and old lovers on the campus.But I have given up the habit of self-pity. I think of my platoon leader career, which brought me a lot of life enzymes and gave me enough vitality to face the future. Originally published in the supplement of "Zhonghua Daily" in Taipei on April 3, 1961 Now slightly revised according to the original manuscript, October 8, 1963