Chapter 8: Defending the Home and the Nation

The squad leader marched purposefully towards the thicket, pointing at it and shouting angrily: "Zhao Haiping, I taught you marksmanship, I taught you hand-to-hand combat, I taught you how to survive on the battlefield and set traps, I taught you how to exploit the physiological characteristics of the human body to deliver a fatal blow, and I even taught you how to drive cars, tanks, and fighter jets. But I did not teach you how to act like a coward on the battlefield, did I? You have a gun in your hand, so either shoot me and let’s fight to the death, or come out here and face me like a man!"

The squad leader raised his hand, forcefully driving a specialized triangular bayonet used by the Chinese special forces into a tree with a trunk the thickness of a bowl. Pointing at the still quivering bayonet, the squad leader shouted sternly: "Tell me, what characters are engraved on that bayonet!"

Zhao Haiping's lips twitched incessantly, and he suddenly let out a howl like a wild wolf: "But she is dead now! My daughter is dead, she was so young, she was so lovely, but she is dead! She will never open her eyes again, she will never hug my neck and call me 'Daddy' while trying to get a few coins from me for pocket money! Class monitor, my daughter died such a tragic death! Do not forget, you are also her godfather whom she never met, and you even made her a birthday gift with bullet casings by hand! She will never open her eyes again, she will never hug my neck and call me 'Daddy' while trying to get a few coins from me for pocket money! Class monitor, my daughter died such a tragic death! Do not forget, you are also her godfather whom she never met, and you even made her a birthday gift with bullet casings by hand! ! !"

Listening to Zhao Haiping's hysterical laughter, the class leader fell silent. He gazed at Zhao Haiping and said: "You are asking me for an extra day because you have only killed seventeen accomplices and have not yet killed the principal offender named Li Weihua, right?"

Zhao Haiping suddenly threw down his weapon and knelt before the squad leader, raising his face and shouting hoarsely: "I know I am doomed! I know that as long as you appear before me, I am finished! My marksmanship is not as good as yours, my mind is not as agile as yours, even three of me would not be able to defeat one of you in hand-to-hand combat, my skills are not as nimble as yours, and my combat experience is not as rich as yours. In any military skill, I cannot compete with you. When I encounter you, I don't even have the chance to escape. When I killed those seventeen civilians and the librarian, I was already prepared to die at your hands! But I beg you, let me live for one more day, let me fulfill my last good wish, will you?"

On Zhao Haiping's plain yet somewhat wooden face, the muscles trembled continuously, with expressions of surprise, fear, guilt, and anger shifting constantly. No one knew what he was truly thinking at that moment.

You did quite well! You truly brought honor to our fifth-class unit, taking down seventeen 'enemies' with a single strike and engaging in guerrilla warfare against a superior enemy in the mountains, making them hesitant to act recklessly. You have truly pushed the limits of special operations techniques, and even I, as your instructor, feel proud and want to applaud you! However, I am genuinely curious; you are quite heroic, and you should know the reason for my presence here. Why did you not open fire on me?

The class leader was truly stunned; he gazed blankly at the man before him, a man who had been shot by the enemy on the battlefield. Despite the pain causing his entire body to tremble, he could still manage to show a wooden smile. Now, he was merely a desperate and sorrowful figure, reduced to a madman consumed by a hysterical desire for revenge

Do you know? I don't even have the opportunity to seek justice for my daughter through legal means! Without forensic examination, without any checks or evidence, my daughter's body was sent to the crematorium by them. And here I am, this damned fool, being deceived by my own wife all night, thinking she had played enough and suddenly changed her mind! When I learned the truth, all I brought back was a bottle, a bottle containing my daughter Panpan's ashes! And here I am, this damned fool, being deceived by my own wife all night, thinking she had played enough and suddenly changed her mind! When I learned the truth, all I brought back was a bottle, a bottle containing my daughter Panpan's ashes!

Zhao Haiping opened his mouth wide, "Ah?"

Blame me, just blame me! It is my failure to properly discipline my wife, it is my inadequacy as a man that allowed my wife to betray me! But what wrong has my daughter done? She merely informed me of this news when I returned. I was just so furious that I went to confront that scoundrel and struck him once. Zhao Haiping pounded his chest, exclaiming: "I am just a fool, fully aware that that scoundrel Li Weihua is a thorough rogue, surrounded by a group of despicable henchmen. Over the years, somehow he has risen to the position of village chief and has become even more brazen. His henchmen have turned into armed militia, flaunting their power everywhere. I, an ignorant bumpkin, dared to confront him at such a time, and I even had the audacity to hit him! My daughter Zhao Pan was raped to death by seventeen militia members under that scoundrel's orders! My daughter, Panpan, she is only fourteen! ! !"

The class leader turned his head and said coldly: "Stand up, a man has gold beneath his knees! What I seek in the chivalrous song are brothers with iron bones, not pitiful creatures who kneel! Don't forget to put another bullet in that bastard for me! I will leave a contact mark in the county town, report to me in twenty-four hours! Remember, either do not act, or if you do, do it thoroughly, leaving no one behind! A man must face the heavens without shame and bow to the earth without regret! Even if you are rejected by the world, you must pay the price of your life for your acts of revenge. At the very least, you can tell me openly before your execution that you did not wrongfully kill an innocent person, nor did you spare a bastard! Remember, either do not act, or if you do, do it thoroughly, leaving no one behind! A man must face the heavens without shame and bow to the earth without regret! Even if you are rejected by the world, you must pay the price of your life for your acts of revenge. At the very least, you can tell me openly before your execution that you did not wrongfully kill an innocent person, nor did you spare a bastard! Now lift your head, stake a man's honor, and tell me if you can do it!" Now lift your head, stake a man's honor, and tell me if you can do it!

Zhao Haiping, a resolute soldier who once rolled down a hillside to cover his comrades' retreat, crushing four landmines beneath him yet emerging unscathed due to the high speed of his descent, suddenly began to slap his own face fiercely at this moment. As he struck himself, tears streamed down his face, and with each impact of his palms against his skin, blood and tears splattered violently.

Zhao Haiping suddenly raised his head and laughed loudly, crying and laughing at the same time, "Hahaha... that bunch of guys want to cut through the chaos like a hot knife through butter, but who am I? I am the top student personally trained by the class leader. I only took an hour to uncover everything. Under that bastard's office desk, I saw four words: 'Daddy, save me!' Those four words were scratched into the surface by my daughter’s finger. Each character was etched so deeply, each one carved fiercely into my heart. Under that bastard's office desk, I saw those four words: 'Daddy, save me!' Those four words were scratched into the surface by my daughter’s finger. Each character was etched so deeply, each one carved fiercely into my heart. Just before I cut down that bastard with my military knife, he finally confessed everything, hahaha... I finally know everything!"

A man of integrity should act without guilt in his heart, be loyal to his country, be righteous to his friends, and be loving to his family! Without a trace of courage, how can one become a soldier of our Fifth Special Forces?

Two of China's most outstanding fifth-class special forces soldiers, a pair who are both mentor and friend, unexpectedly met under such circumstances

The class leader raised his head and pondered for a moment, then suddenly said: "Well done!"

An 85-type automatic rifle emerged from the bushes, followed by a man wearing a camouflage hat made of branches and draped in a homemade camouflage net. He cautiously exposed his hands and weapon in a position visible to the squad leader.

The class leader said: "In any case, you have already killed seventeen militia members. If you are truly to be found guilty, being executed ten times would not be enough. With debts not weighing you down, you should go do what you want to do! I believe that having the military law office shoot nineteen bullets into your head is not significantly different from shooting seventeen bullets. However, that difference of two bullets could allow you to do something good for society. It's worth it!"

Class monitor, I apologize! I, Zhao Haiping, bow to you here

Class monitor, do you still remember my daughter Panpan? After our daily training, during our breaks, I most enjoy talking about my daughter, discussing her academic performance, mentioning that she likes blue and black but dislikes green and red, saying that she enjoys eating hamburgers and does not like oily cakes, and that when it rains, she loves to run around in the rain without a care, not behaving like a typical girl. I also mention that she is increasingly resembling her mother. At just twelve years old, she has already started receiving love letters from boys. She is my precious child, my entire hope, and the person I am closest to in this world

"Come back alive; even if you have to die, you must die on the execution ground of our own troops!" The squad leader gazed at the brilliant and boundless sunset clouds on the horizon, sighed, and said: "Zhao Haiping, do you know? When I was young, the profession I hated the most was being a soldier. If anyone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would definitely tell them I wanted to be a bandit! I never expected that before I could become a bandit, you would already get ahead of me."

Zhao Haiping raised his head, his eyes flashing with a mad and desperate red light. He glared at the squad leader and shouted hoarsely: "Squad leader, tell me, we must protect our homeland and safeguard our people! I have followed you into battle, fought with those Indian troops on the border, clashed with Afghan guerrillas who infiltrated our territory in the jungle... I have been shot three times, and there is still a piece of shrapnel in my body that has not been removed, while you have sustained even more injuries than I have. We have shed blood and sweat, but are we really protecting such scum? Are we protecting a group of bastards who raped my daughter to death? Can you tell me why I should still protect them? Why, after bleeding and sweating for them, should I still cry for them?"

Zhao Haiping fiercely wiped away the tears at the corners of his eyes, and he looked at the man standing before him with his hands behind his back with the utmost respect. For countless years, he had been gazing at this young man, who was ten years his junior, with such eyes! He shouted fiercely: "Yes!"

Even one who can remain unperturbed like a mountain may find it difficult to stay composed at this moment. The squad leader could not help but be moved, staring at Zhao Haiping and sternly demanding: "What is going on? Wasn't Zhao Pan fine before you went home to visit your family? How did she die?"

"It’s not just him, but also that woman Zhang Yanhua!" Zhao Haiping shouted hoarsely, pounding the hard ground. "She can be promiscuous, but who made me infatuated? Before marriage, I clearly knew she led a dissolute life, yet I still married her openly and brought her home. I, a rough man, lack romantic sensibility, spending the whole year in the military without time to accompany her. When she had issues with others, I, as a man, also bear responsibility. I, a rough man, lack romantic sensibility, spending the whole year in the military without time to accompany her. When she had issues with others, I, as a man, also bear responsibility. But she is also the mother of my child! I don’t understand why she could watch her daughter being raped to death without any reaction. I further don’t understand why, after the incident, she could calmly pull me into bed, allowing those bastards the time to send my child’s corpse directly to the crematorium!"

The class leader Senran said: "You have walked to the opposite side of society, you are our enemy, and even more so, the greatest disgrace to our fifth special forces. What room do you have left for bargaining?"

I know that the words "Defend the Home and the Country" are engraved on our bayonets! On the first day I was granted permission to join the fifth category of special forces, you, the squad leader, told me that from that day on, I would be the most elite professional soldier in the world. From that day on, I bore the proud mark of a Chinese soldier. If I were to tarnish this honor and pride, you would personally take back everything you entrusted to me! However, I never expected that this day would actually come, and so soon!

Zhao Haiping's head repeatedly struck the hard ground with a resounding "bang," as blood continuously splattered from his forehead.

"Squad Leader, you taught me to defend our homeland. For the honor of our country and the happiness of our people, we, as professional soldiers, must always be prepared to sacrifice ourselves for our nation. I have always thought that my greatest fortune in this life is joining the fifth special forces unit and following a man like you, a true hero! But I suddenly realized that what you told me was wrong. I suddenly discovered that we have all been so foolish, so naive!"