Shipborne Special Forces.

As the battalion commander spoke, a look of longing appeared on his face. At that moment, Wang Aiguo understood that the battalion commander was referring to the heroes who had planted the dream of joining the army in his heart when he was young.

"I was so scared that I couldn't keep up with my parents while running, and I fell, scraping my knee. Just then, a firefighter came up to me and helped me up. Through his helmet, I saw a young man inside. He didn't say anything, just helped me up and ran quickly back towards the village. I was deeply moved as I watched him walk away. While everyone else was running for their lives, they were walking step by step into danger. I don't know what kind of courage supported them to do this. They were just ordinary people, and their backs looked incredibly lonely and forlorn in the crowd. Yet, those thin backs carried unwavering steps as they walked towards the inferno without looking back."

At this point, the battalion commander's voice choked slightly. He continued in a slightly altered tone, "Years later, I myself joined the army. Now I finally understand what a hero truly is. A hero isn't someone who saves the world on the big screen, but someone who bravely moves forward despite knowing there's danger ahead. A hero is someone who goes against the current, against the flames, is courageous and fearless, and is willing to die for their beliefs."

By now, everyone had guessed the captain's intention in saying those words. Nevertheless, everyone held their breath and looked at the captain with serious expressions.

The captain slightly raised his head, seemingly not wanting everyone to see his face.

"The fire was huge; I remember it took a whole day and night to put it out. Later, the government told us we could go back to the village, so we packed our things and rushed back. Before we returned, my parents were heartbroken because they thought the village was beyond saving, and our home was gone too. But when we actually got back, we were all shocked. We clearly saw that our village was still intact, although our house was blackened by smoke, it was completely undamaged. Then, I looked at the burning factory. There, I saw so many firefighters lying unconscious on the ground. Then, led by the village chief, we brought water and food to the firefighters. These things weren't worth much, but they represented our good intentions. When I got there, I wanted to find the brother who helped me up; I wanted to find him and thank him in person. But I searched for a long time and couldn't find him..."

The captain's voice suddenly paused at this point.

Looking at the battalion commander, Wang Aiguo felt a sharp pain, as if something had twisted in his heart. Some of the female soldiers began to have tears in their eyes, because they already knew what the battalion commander had gone through.

The captain wiped his eyes with his left hand and smiled, saying, "Hehe, people get sentimental when they get old. I searched for that brother for a long time but couldn't find him. Finally, I saw his picture on TV. Although I could only see his face through his helmet, I recognized him at a glance when his picture appeared on TV."

That day, our village erected a stone tablet at the village entrance, inscribed with many names, including that brother's. They are heroes, true heroes, heroes who protected our village, protected us, and protected this country. Looking back now, I suddenly feel that their backs as they walked towards our village that day were incredibly tall; they seemed to hold up the heavens and the earth, truly shouldering the burden of this world when the sky collapsed.

"On that day, I made up my mind that I would join the army. I wanted to take on the responsibilities that brother had, to continue to protect the country he wanted to protect, and to complete the things he hadn't finished."

At this point, some of the female soldiers, who were more easily moved to tears, finally couldn't hold back their tears. Even Wang Aiguo, who was more prone to tears, felt a deep sadness in his heart. Everyone has their prime years, yet some things still need to be done.

Thinking of this, Wang Aiguo suddenly remembered the martial monk, whose father was a martyr. Did the martial monk also want to inherit his father's will and continue to protect the country?

The battalion commander paused for a moment, then his smile faded. Holding the microphone, he spoke loudly: "I know everyone has their own reasons for joining the army. Some may want to enhance their resume, others may want to make it look better, and still others may want to improve their chances of getting into graduate school or taking the civil service exam. But what I want to tell you today is that no matter what your reasons are for joining the army, once you put on your rank insignia, you are now true soldiers."

From this day forward, from this moment you don your military ranks, you will inherit the courage and bravery of countless revolutionary martyrs, and their heroic names. You will stand tall and upright like them, driving away darkness for this country and its people, and shouldering the burden of upholding justice.

The monk was taken aback, but instinct compelled him to shout, "Here!"

"Come up here for a moment," the captain said to the monk.

The monk looked bewildered, completely unaware of what the captain was going to do, but since the captain had spoken, he obediently walked up to the flag-raising platform.

The monk walked up to the flag-raising platform, still looking completely bewildered. But then the captain patted him on the back, and then, holding a microphone in his other hand, addressed the crowd: "Monk, you all should know him, right?"