We promised to develop a game called Candy Crush, what the hell is the Third Reich?

Chapter 109: A farmer's son killed another farmer's son (3k)

Hear the words.

Huang Hao had nothing to say.

After the battlefield was cleared, everyone gathered the looted supplies together, distributed the ammunition, took the usable guns and some food, and poured gasoline on the remaining looted supplies and ammunition and set them on fire.

The items definitely cannot be left for the Empire.

Of the more than one hundred people brought from Moscow during this period, only these thirty-odd remain.

No one knows when they will die.

Carrying so much stuff was actually a burden. Besides ammunition, the group only brought enough food for two days, because they might not even be able to finish it all.
As flames rose behind them, the group quickly left the area.

night.

In the village ravaged by artillery fire, there were ruins everywhere, remnants of walls and walls blasted by shells.

Only a few scattered houses still stood, not completely collapsed. A sliver of light shone in one of the houses, where Huang Hao and his group of more than thirty people huddled together in the drafty room, lighting a fire to keep warm.

The empire has breached the first line of defense.

The second line of defense was the Mozhaisk Line, which was mostly dug by women and children and was about 260 kilometers long. Beyond that was Moscow.

At that moment, they were positioned in front of the Mozhaisk defense line.

Behind them were women, children, and Moscow. Huang Hao seemed to understand why the Soviet soldiers in the initial game cutscene said, "Behind us is Moscow; we have nowhere to retreat."

retreat?

Behind them were only women, children, and the capital of their motherland.

out on a limb.

Inside the dilapidated house, the damp, cold wind of October blew in through the walls torn open by bombs. Many people huddled together, unable to sleep at all, even with a campfire for warmth, it was too cold.

at this time.

Political Commissar Alexei somehow got hold of a bottle of vodka, took a sip, and handed it to Huang Hao.
"Warm yourself up."

Huang Hao looked at the vodka and couldn't hold back any longer. He quickly waved his hand to refuse, clearly still feeling the effects of the drug.

Seeing that Huang Hao wasn't drinking, Alexei handed him the wine:

"One bite each, to warm your body."

"Don't get drunk, we still have to fight those guys from the Empire tomorrow."

"Don't fall down while charging."

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter, and one soldier jeered:

"Don't worry, Political Commissar."

"Our alcohol tolerance isn't that bad!"

Huang Hao's lips twitched slightly, and the people in the live stream were laughing hysterically.

Huang Hao looked at Alexei, recalling the scene of cleaning up the battlefield that night, and asked curiously:
"I remember you said 1918 around dusk?"

"That was right after World War I ended."

"You even participated in World War I?"

"It doesn't look like it."

Hearing Huang Hao's question, the viewers in the live stream all watched attentively.

As players learned more about the game and gathered information from various sources, they also learned that the 'Earth' in the game's background was actually the site of World War I.

Moreover, the name "World War I" was chosen on the very day the war ended.

However, the information available is limited, and records are almost impossible to find, likely because they were hidden by Polaris Corporation. The information that players have gathered is all from NPCs.

However, this excludes some veteran or official NPCs.

Players mostly interact with ordinary NPCs and learn almost no useful information from them.

Now, a Soviet political commissar who is suspected of having participated in World War I is the perfect person to question.

Hearing Huang Hao's question.

Alexei looked up at Huang Hao, the firelight illuminating his face, and then Alexei smiled and asked:

"What's the difference?"

Huang Hao spoke up:
"Age, I guess."

"You look like you're only in your thirties."

"The First World War ended 23 years ago."

"Yeah, they're almost as old as me."

"So you look only in your thirties. Did you join the army when you were just over ten?"

Alexei shook his head upon hearing this:

"Then you're wrong."

"I'm 42 this year."

"Maybe it's because he's thin that he looks younger?"

With a sigh, Alexei turned to look at the firelight, lost in memories:

Where should I begin? Hmm.

“My father was a veteran of the Tsarist Russian Empire. You may not know why it was called the Tsarist Russian Empire because the Soviet Union we have now had not yet been established at that time.”

"From as far back as I can remember, he has never acted like a father. He was an alcoholic, a fighter, and had unpredictable mood swings, often resorting to violence to solve problems." "Even when I had excellent grades, I never received a single word of praise from him."

"Finally, one day, I couldn't take it anymore and rose up in rebellion!"

"Then."

Alexei paused, and Huang Hao's eyes widened. He couldn't help but ask:

"and then?"

Alexei suddenly smiled:
"Then, of course, I got a really bad beating."

"Do you expect a boy in his teens to beat up a Soviet man in his forties with a full beard?"

"Hahahahaha."

"That was the worst beating I've ever received in my life. I was bedridden for a full two weeks."

At this point, Alexei couldn't help but laugh.

But there was no regret in the laughter, only a faint smile carrying memories.

"But his actions only fueled my rebellious spirit."

"I kept arguing with him for years until one day, flyers were scattered all over the town."

"War has come."

"Unfortunately, we didn't know anything back then. We were blinded by the propaganda, as if as long as we joined the army and participated in the war, we would gain unparalleled glory, wealth, status, and become heroes admired by thousands."

"That year was 1916. I was just 17 years old and joined the army without telling my family."

"I fantasize about fighting bravely on the battlefield, about turning the tide of battle single-handedly, about returning home in glory, standing on the car wearing a full set of medals, and looking arrogantly at my alcoholic father."

"I fantasize about him looking into my eyes, then gradually feeling ashamed, and finally feeling utterly humiliated, in order to prove that I am better than him."

Huang Hao couldn't help but blush slightly, and the number of comments from Blue Star viewers in the live stream also decreased significantly, because they felt that the comments were about them, and that the glory, wealth, status and such seemed to be the same as what those fanatics on Blue Star were promoting. They were using the same tactics.

Alexei paused for a moment, then continued:

"Of course, these are all just wishful thinking."

"The truth is, on the first day of the battle, our convoy hadn't even reached its designated position when a round of artillery fire came from the other side, and one of the shells landed directly in the carriage I was in."

As he spoke, Alexei removed the leather glove he always wore, revealing his left hand, which was missing half of its little finger:
"That's what happened back then."

"Fortunately, I was sitting at the back of the carriage, and there were a few strong men on my right who helped me absorb the impact."

"The shock of the explosion blew me out of the carriage."

"I watched from the air as the convoy was engulfed in flames, then crashed to the ground and lost consciousness."

"When I woke up again, I was already in the hospital, and my left little finger was gone."

“There were still many wounded inside. I asked the nurses about my unit, and they told me that most of the people brought in did not survive. They told me to go to the morgue to take a look.”

"When I got there, I saw one corpse after another."

"The image in my mind is still that of being in the train carriage, singing military songs of the Tsarist Russian Empire, and fantasizing about bravely killing the enemy, gaining merit, and reaching the pinnacle."

In the blink of an eye.

“They are all lying here, they didn’t even see the enemy.”

"Can you imagine?"

“A whole carriage of young people, aged 17 or 8, or around 20, were killed by a single shell.”

"Behind them are their fathers and mothers, who have worked so hard to raise their children, only to lose their lives like this."

“At that time, hatred filled my heart, and avenging them became part of my goal.”

"Once my injury healed and my fingers could move without hindering my movements, I chose to immediately join the battle. I held my gun on the battlefield and killed as many enemies as possible in order to gain honor."

"But unfortunately, most of the credit was embezzled by my superior at the time."

Alexei couldn't help but grit his teeth in anger.

"Now when I think of him, I wish I could kill him."

Alexei then continued:

“War is cruel. My comrades-in-arms changed batch after batch, and I gradually got used to the feeling of killing, just like those ‘beasts of the empire’, but at that time I was completely unaware of it.”

"Until one day, we encountered an Austro-Hungarian army head-on."

"When they suddenly collided, both sides were stunned."

"But then they all realized what was happening and started a hasty battle, which slowly turned into the most primitive hand-to-hand combat."

"We fought each other, and what impressed me most was the Austro-Hungarian boy who stabbed me. He looked about my age, but I could tell at a glance that his calloused hands were the result of years of farm work."

"Because the calluses on my mother's hands were even thicker than his."

"At that moment I suddenly felt a bit absurd, but I still stabbed him to death with the knife in my hand. I didn't have much time to think until the battle ended and we won a great victory."

"I just collapsed down and crawled to the side of that Austro-Hungarian boy. I looked at the calluses on his hands."

“A farmer’s son traveled a long way to this place to kill another farmer’s son.”

Alexei looked at Huang Hao:

"What do you think he was thinking at that moment?"

Alexei's words caused a moment of silence in Huang Hao's live stream. Huang Hao thought for a moment and then spoke:
"Perhaps it's honor, wealth, or status?"

(End of this chapter)