1978: A Literary Giant Who Began His Military Service

Chapter 59 Withdrawal
Two days have passed.

There was a commotion in front of Zhou Xu's bed. A man walked in from outside the door, and Zhou Xu looked at the man.

After walking to Zhou Xu's bedside, the middle-aged man smiled and said, "Hello, Comrade Zhou Xu! I am the director of the field hospital of the xxth Division!"

The director of a field hospital?
Zhou Xu, supporting himself on the bedside, prepared to stand up, but the dean waved his hand, saying, "No need, you should continue to rest. I'm just here on behalf of our division to express my condolences to the combat heroes."

Zhou Xu said, "Hello, Dean."

"Well, the troops were supposed to start withdrawing these past few days, so I came back to the military region to visit the soldiers at the hospital. I've heard about your heroic performance last time. Logically speaking, based on your merits, you should at least be awarded a first-class merit."

Zhou Xu said, "Compared to me, those soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country deserve a first-class merit even more!"

“No one is unworthy; all the soldiers on the front lines deserve commendation.” The director stood up before continuing, “I’m going to check on the other soldiers!”

Goodbye, Dean.

……

in the afternoon.

Zhou Xu watched as the man on the next bed struggled incessantly, twisting and turning for a while before finally opening his eyes.

"Hoohoo!"

"Company Commander Song?" Zhou Xu looked at Song Zhipeng.

Song Zhipeng sat up abruptly from the bed with a shout, but immediately lay back down in pain.

“Zhou Xu?…” He glanced around before he felt relieved.

Zhou Xu said, "Company Commander, you're finally awake."

"Huh? You..." Song Zhipeng had experienced being wounded on the battlefield and sent to the hospital, so he quickly reacted: "Are you alright?"

"Wheat Ear?! Can you pour Company Commander Song a glass of water?" Zhou Xu called out.

Mai Sui quickly came over and poured Song Zhipeng a glass of water.

After visiting Zhou Xu at the front-line field hospital, Mai Sui volunteered to stay and work as a nurse, since... medical personnel on the front lines have always been in short supply.

Song Zhipeng took a sip of warm water and asked Zhou Xu, "Where are Chen Hui and Liu Menghai?"

"Comrade Liu was seriously injured and sent directly to the rear, while Comrade Chen is still unconscious!" Zhou Xu said.

"...Oh! Is that so!? It's good that everything is alright." Song Zhipeng lay on the bed.

"Comrade Chen and I are both grateful to you, Company Commander, for saving our lives!" Zhou Xu's fighting style was rather reckless, and he rarely paid attention to bullets or shells. Several times, Song Zhipeng saved his life.

Song Zhipeng said, "You're a sharpshooter! Protecting combat personnel like you is a crucial responsibility of the company. If you don't eliminate twenty enemies, my life will have been for nothing."

Furthermore... Song Zhipeng felt that Zhou Youcai's influence played a part in protecting Zhou Xu. Zhou Youcai sacrificed himself to protect him, and he felt indebted to the two brothers, which is why he was extra careful when protecting Zhou Xu.

It was around three or four in the afternoon when Chen Hui woke up.

Chen Hui woke up later than the other two, and he was in the bed to Zhou Xu's left, with quite a few bandages on his body.

After getting up, Chen Hui tried to stand up, but found that he had no strength at all and his whole body ached with any movement.

"I'm going to die, I'm going to die..."

Chen Hui was surprised: "You're all awake!"

"Almost." Mai Sui poured Chen Hui another glass of water.

After the two had rested for a while, Zhou Xu tossed them the two packs of cigarettes he was holding: "Want one?"

Chen Hui hurriedly tore open the packaging: "Where did this Zhonghua cigarette come from?"

Zhou Xu said, "During the withdrawal of troops these past few days, several hospital directors and army commanders came to the hospital, and I got some cigarettes for free!"

"Oh! A retreat?" Chen Hui and Song Zhipeng had just been pulled away from the battle and were quite surprised, as they had never heard of such a thing before!

周旭开始给一群人解释……1979年3月5日晚，新华社奉令发表声明，中国宣布自1979年3月5日起，中国边防部队开始全部撤回中国境内。

By March 16, the border troops of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in Guangxi and Yunnan had completely withdrawn from Vietnam and returned to Chinese territory. The self-defense counterattack lasted 28 days.

After the troops officially announced their withdrawal on March 5, the main field hospitals began to gradually shrink, first transferring seriously wounded soldiers, then withdrawing lightly wounded soldiers and medical supplies, until all troops were withdrawn back to China on March 16.

The core task before the evacuation was "prioritizing the wounded"—prioritizing the transfer of all wounded to second-line hospitals in the rear, such as military hospitals in Yunnan and Guangxi, by means of cars and helicopters, to ensure that no wounded were abandoned; at the same time, medical waste that was inconvenient to carry was destroyed, and all key supplies such as medicines and equipment were taken away.

"...I see. As long as we win, that's good." Chen Hui nodded and breathed a slight sigh of relief. He had been surprised when they said they were withdrawing their troops!
The three of them lay on the bed, each smoking a cigarette.

The political commissar walked over and took a look: "..."

With a dark expression, he said, "Who lets you wounded soldiers smoke?"

"...Old Chief, just this once, everyone survived. If you're happy, have a smoke." Song Zhipeng handed over a cigarette.

The political commissar took it, lit one for himself, and remarked, "Quite a high rank~"

He took a puff and exhaled a smoke ring: "I'm here to inform you of some matters. Comrade Zhou Xu, your injuries are almost healed. Old Zhang will take you back to the news department. As for Comrades Chen Hui and Song Zhipeng, your injuries are not yet healed. You will be sent to the military hospital in Guangdong."

“…Huh? A military hospital? I’ll stay on the front lines.” Song Zhipeng immediately said.

“I know you want to visit your brothers at the martyrs’ cemetery, but you need to recover from your injuries first,” the political commissar said.

Song Zhipeng could only nod.

……

time flies.

More than half a month had passed since Zhou Xu woke up, and three days after the order to withdraw troops was given. The hospital started sending cars over, and squads of soldiers followed and got into the cars.

March 20th arrived.

Zhang Lingxiao drove over on his own initiative. After entering, he greeted Zhou Xu: "Zhou Xu, are you feeling better?"

"Director Zhang!" Zhou Xu is now able to get out of bed and walk around.

He used crutches, as his left leg was still quite badly injured, and slowly walked around.

“You’re recovering well. I’ve already written the report about you, and it should be published in the PLA Daily around the 25th!” Zhang Lingxiao said.

Zhou Xu's deeds are not only typical, but also quite special. Although the large-scale withdrawal of troops took place, the border was actually in a state of small-scale conflict. Later, several major battles were fought, including the Battle of Fakashan, the Battle of Laoshan, and the Battle of Zheyinshan.

Therefore, the task of cultural promotion still needs to continue.

"Thank you, sir!" Zhou Xu said.

“…Okay, let’s go back to the Arts and Literature Department first.” Zhang Lingxiao packed Zhou Xu’s luggage, picked him up, and walked out with him.

(End of this chapter)