Doctor, I'm really strong!

This all started when Liu Jiuli completely reorganized and merged Rhodes Island. At that time, there was a shortage of manpower, so with the permission of the contract, Franka, Razer, Vanilla, and Jessica temporarily joined the Red Guards.

Theoretically it was temporary, but as time went on, everyone subconsciously forgot about it. In addition, many things happened later, including the war for the founding of the community, which caused the four of them to lose contact with Blacksteel. The four of them, who had completely adapted to, and even loved, life here, devoted themselves to the development and construction of the community and even joined the Red Army.

When everything settled down and Black Steel sent someone to contact them, the four of them remembered that they were still Black Steel's people.

At this point, all four men had been promoted to lieutenant, with Razer being the highest-ranking captain, and he would soon be promoted to major.

Black Steel, once a partner, is now an insignificant entity to the community that has crushed the Eight-Nation Alliance. However, the community did not bully them. Instead, they hoped that Black Steel would fully consider the actual situation and that they could pay to resolve the contract issue. So, the four stayed.

Of course, Black Steel was pragmatic, and since they would continue to cooperate in the future, he did them a favor by not only giving the four a large sum of money for job changes, but also voluntarily canceling the contract and acting as if nothing had happened.

After all, all four of them were junior officers at the time, and given their age, they would inevitably be promoted further in the future. There was no need to make a fuss over such a small matter. There were plenty of benefits waiting for them later, so they shouldn't lose sight of the bigger picture.

"Instead of complaining, let's solve this quickly," Black Snake said earnestly.

"Yes, future political commissar. Speaking of which, there are just too many enemies. Did they surrender without even fighting?"

Razer pointed to the cookhouse next to him: "They are the biggest contributors to this problem."

Franka glanced at the prisoners of war who had completed their registration and immediately ran off to collect their meals, and nodded with a smile.

"really."

Chapter 308: Overly Sweet Memories

(I hope everyone can have enough to eat, right? ^?^)

I'm sure none of you sitting in front of your phones, computers, or tablets have ever been prisoners of war, but you've definitely experienced the agony of being starving.

Hunger is the root of all disasters, and a person driven mad by hunger is more terrifying than the most horrible madman.

Food: the root of both stability and chaos.

It goes without saying how powerful a community that controls a massive amount of food is. One of the community's methods for attacking the Leitanian regular army is to surround them and then feed these poor wretches a lot of meat and fish every day.

When the soldiers of the Letanian army were so hungry they were seeing stars, the aroma wafting from afar was enough to make them lose their minds.

Many Leitanian soldiers surrendered in this way, which is why the white steamed buns filled with braised pork later became popular in Leitania. The roujiamo (meat sandwich) also has a common name here: "surrender pancake".

The chopped braised pork is added into the sliced ​​white steamed buns. The aroma of the meat, the satisfaction of the fat, and the sweetness of the carbohydrates blend perfectly in the mouth at this moment. It's a call from ancient times—time to eat!

Imagine the school cafeteria open to the public; doesn't that instantly enhance your understanding?

This was after the food standards for prisoners of war had been lowered.

After all, they were prisoners of war, and it was impossible to give them the standard meals of soldiers directly. They had to participate in labor in exchange for three meals a day, which included canned luncheon meat, milk, eggs, bread and other staple foods, plus various canned goods.

A balanced diet and plenty of food, and that's it.

Fresh vegetables and caramelized sugar were the treatment afforded to the Red Army, while prisoners of war obediently ate canned food.

Even by this standard, it is still far better than the humane treatment of prisoners of war by other countries.

Full? Forget about it. Prisoners of war are just expendable resources. Just obediently serve me like a beast of burden. I should be grateful I didn't bury you. How dare you make other demands? You deserve to die a thousand deaths. Drag them out and process them into excrement!

Therefore, the Red Army's lower limit was higher than the upper limit of many countries. If they had known that the Red Army prisoners of war were of this level, two-thirds of the enemy on the battlefield would have had to consider surrendering first. The remaining one-third who did not want to surrender might have been killed by the other two-thirds.

The current Terra Red Army has the logistical support of the US military, with incredibly good treatment. From cold drink trucks being assigned to the front lines to the kitchen staff being able to prepare buffets with flavors from more than ten countries, you can tell how hardcore these tough guys are.

When you can flip a wok in the mess hall, it's definitely not difficult to grab a rifle butt and smash an enemy's skull open.

Furthermore, there was an unwritten rule in the Red Army that all soldiers had to take turns learning in the cooking squad. This was to ensure that everyone could be self-reliant in any environment, and also to learn about the work of the cooking squad, so as to accumulate experience in making caramel on the battlefield later, and avoid making a horrible dish like bananas stir-fried with chili peppers, especially since the bananas hadn't been peeled.

Don't think it's outrageous. Historically, our army's mess halls really did do something this shocking when they marched south. Many soldiers had never seen a banana before, let alone the ocean, and didn't even know that you had to peel a banana before eating it.

The geographical limitations of the agricultural era far exceeded modern imagination. While we can now travel the world, most ancient people, from birth to death, could only understand a region extending to their immediate surroundings. Compared to the terrifying stories above, even pineapple and edamame seem tender and delightful.

This gave the Red Army's cooking squads combat capabilities that were completely out of their league. It was standard practice to have two rocket launchers hanging on the back of the cooking carts, two for each person, and any extras could be distributed to the chickens, ducks, cattle, sheep, and pigs in the backyard.

Don't laugh, that's what the cookhouse sergeant said during the interview. Of course, it was a joke, but it shows just how formidable the cookhouse's firepower is. After all, this mobile catering truck was converted from a land-based warship; aside from the slightly thinner barrels (triple 155mm turrets) and some internal modifications, the main guns are truly capable of fighting.

If you find the veterans in your platoon getting their meals after training, don't be surprised. It's just their turn. If you're lucky enough, you might even get to enjoy one of their specialties. After all, they've been in the military for so long, they must have something to offer, like local specialties from their hometown.

Gumi, the head chef today, is a veteran who brought out specialties from her hometown. Although Ursus is considered a food desert, the locals still have traditional cuisine. Now that conditions are better, they naturally want to use better ingredients to replace the inferior foods that used to break their teeth.

The large loaf of bread, simply made with sugar and cream, is soft and delicious. Compared to its counterparts, it is like a princess born in a greenhouse, exuding an aura that the poor cannot afford.

Of course, it's still affordable within the community; it's considered a consumer good for ordinary people.

Liu Jiuli described the new-style rye bread as "caterpillar bread," "a soft and mushy baguette with a new flavor," and "Are you sure this is a staple food?"

In addition, there was a negative review: "It's too sweet, makes your teeth hurt, and you can't swallow it."

The Ursus people's love for desserts reminded Liu Jiuli of the Russians back in the day. In his hometown in Northeast China, there was a Russian goods store. Everyone was curious about the novelties from the frigid land, but after buying them once, no one ever bought them again, especially the Russian candy—it was truly indescribable.

High emotional intelligence: Solid materials.

Low emotional intelligence: It's sickeningly sweet.

When those sugar cubes are thrown into the large, traditional Northeastern teacups and dissolve, they make the water taste unbearably sweet. You must be selling saccharin.

But this candy is a staple in Russia, where it is described as "sweet and delicious."

It's true that bears love sugar, and they can't resist sweetness.

Fortunately, there's no need to add so much sugar to everyday meals. The locals' fondness for overly sweet food was eventually replaced by various candies, cookies, and cakes, preventing the tragedy of braised pork becoming meat wrapped in white sugar.

Due to the complex population composition of the community, guests from all over the country have very different tastes. So if you can open a restaurant that everyone loves in every corner of the community, then you are not far from dominating the Terran culinary world.

In the military, this need translates to rations categorized according to taste.

For example, the Ursus people prefer Category A rations because they are high in sugar. The Kazdel people prefer Category B rations because they are mostly pasta. The Yan people prefer Category C rations because their staple foods are rice and steamed buns.

Once these are integrated, you will get a community recipe map.

Sweet potatoes in the north, noodles in the south, rice in the east, and wheat in the west.

There are even more specific classifications; in any case, a chef who can master all of these is definitely a legendary figure.

Gu Mi obviously doesn't have the ability to cook rice from all over the country, but the army's food rations have basic quotas, and the soldiers can add the rest themselves. Anyway, there are plenty of seasonings; you can even dip steak in white sugar. However, there is one rule: you can't waste any, or you will face a serious disciplinary warning and financial penalty.

Liu Jiuli hoped that the soldiers would enjoy good treatment, and he did indeed carry it out. However, waste was absolutely unacceptable; this was the bottom line. The People's Army serves the people, and all food is produced by the people. Wasting the food produced by the people is forgetting one's own roots, and such behavior should be severely punished.

What is morality? Morality is daily habit, it's the guilt that stands in front of your conscience when you want to do something bad.

You could say this is easy to break through, but sometimes, being able to block it for even a moment can save many people.

As for the rest, let the law and the public's anger decide; social death is also a form of death.

After receiving the food, the prisoners of war began to feast on the spot. Their meals were actually a collection of canned goods, which were almost impossible to cook. They would stew a bunch of canned goods in one pot, and that would be their three meals. At most, they would be given canned fruit and canned vegetables to supplement their vitamins. Those who were severely deficient in vitamins would also receive vitamin pills.

These prisoners of war were content to be fed, and some even ate while shedding tears. What they didn't know was that this meal was also meant to set them apart from their past.

Happiness is always found in comparison. With the comparison of a community, they can never go back to the past.

The subsequent re-education work will be very easy.

After finishing her work, Franka looked at this scene and asked, "Razer, how long has it been since we went hungry?"

Razer paused for a moment, thought seriously for a moment, and said, "It seems like it really has been a long time. Was the last time we went hungry five years ago, or ten years ago?"

Franka rested her chin on her hand and asked, "Do you remember the first meal we had after joining the Red Guards?"

Razer nodded: "Remember, take whatever bread you want, there's plenty of meat, and a huge selection of canned goods. As long as you can finish them, take as much as you want."

Blacksteel is a company, and a mercenary company with decent pay, but that's relatively speaking.

In reality, most of the lower-level employees at Blacksteel only earn enough to support themselves, barely enough to make ends meet. To support a family, they must take on more challenging tasks, which increases the risk of becoming infected. Since Blacksteel operates in dangerous areas, becoming infected is a completely different matter.

The whole world can shut its doors on you in an instant. Black Steel is considered one of the more conscientious companies in this category, but all it can do is allow its infected employees to receive a sum of money and live a relatively dignified life while waiting to die.

Blacksteel employees with families would leave their money to their wives, children, and elderly parents, then throw themselves into even more difficult missions, eventually dying during one of those missions.

Those who are all alone choose to have one last good time before either committing suicide or going on missions as infected individuals.

Regardless of the type, the final result is the same: they die after all their value has been squeezed out.

Those who are infected have no choice; that's the reality.

Franka and Razer both climbed their way up from the bottom, so they naturally know how difficult the past was. A life like that of the Community is an unimaginable luxury in any country.

With ample meat, eggs, and dairy products, and a fair social environment, it's no wonder that the Sarkaz called the Terra people's community "Holy Terra."

In this land plagued by disasters, the community is truly a sacred paradise on earth.

Franka was not religious, but at this moment she was very willing to believe that the community was heaven, a unique heaven.

"We've all been spoiled rotten."

Franka recalled something that had happened not long ago: she had bought a cake, but it turned out to be the wrong one. It was made according to the local Ursus style and was extremely sweet. The sugar in that cake shop must have been blown in by the wind.

In the past, she would have simply put this kind of cake in the refrigerator and eaten it slowly. It was made of eggs, cream, and sugar, a rare luxury that she could only enjoy slowly.

But without a second thought, she threw the cake into the trash can, completely unaware that she had done anything wrong.

Is this a waste? Yes.

But it's a good thing.

This represents a surplus of resources, a higher standard of living, and a standard that the vast majority of people can afford.

It's not just a privilege enjoyed by a few, but a choice that gives more people a choice.

"Franka, how long do you think such a dreamlike country can last?" Razer asked in a low voice.

“Who knows, but…” Franka stood up and said, “I prefer now to the past. It’s not about the happy life of one or a few people, but a place where everyone can pursue their dreams. This is my new home, and I hope it can become a new home for many people.”

Razer nodded vigorously; she firmly believed that this day would come.

Section 309: The Community of Advance Four 1105-6-30

(Let's just grab a few readers and persecute them (?ω?), who's willing to do it?)

"I didn't expect the community would actually dare to use us."

Wen Yue looked at Wei Yanwu beside her; the couple were currently overseeing work in Letania.

"Liu Jiuli doesn't care what we do at all. In fact, to the entire community, our existence is just adding two more laborers. That's the confidence of the founding emperor."

Wei Yanwu is currently in charge of the post-war reconstruction of Letania. With his abilities, handling this part is not a problem at all.

Wei Yanwu, who was once the legitimate heir to the throne, received a good imperial education. This kind of education obviously could not help Wei Yanwu become emperor, but it could help him gain an advantage in governance, personnel, and power struggles.

But these are all just tactics; what Liu Jiuli holds is power. In the face of overwhelming forces, tactics are nothing more than a clown's performance.