“Farewell, old comrades, as you set out on your journey. Not a word is spoken, but tears fill our eyes...”
The Armored Brigade, First Mechanized Infantry company.
Red banners reading “Salute to our veteran soldiers—may you have a safe journey” covered the walls of the military Clubhouse. The tune of that “forbidden song in the military” had sent off countless people; it played over and over.
The veteran soldiers about to leave the military wore crisp dress uniforms, the bright red flowers pinned to their chests especially vivid. Every pair of eyes was red and swollen.
No one knew who was the first to break. A stifled sob caught in someone’s throat, shattering the stillness in an instant.
Then one veteran soldier after another could no longer hold back. Some bowed their heads and wiped away tears; others’ shoulders trembled faintly; still others clutched their comrades’ hands. A thousand words became silent tears, and soon they could barely keep from sobbing aloud.
Only Lin Yi sat quietly in the corner, slouched a little in his chair. He was leaving, after all, yet his expression was perfectly calm, without the slightest ripple. Instead, his eyes held a hint of relief at finally being free.
The veteran soldier beside him wiped his tears and nudged him with an elbow. “Old Lin, do you really feel nothing for us old comrades-in-arms? Nothing for the military unit?”
Lin Yi had just opened his mouth when Squad Leader Liu Chang gave a cold snort. “Feel nothing? This kid cares more deeply than any of us!”
At that, several veteran soldiers nearby who had been wiping their tears couldn’t hold it in. They burst out laughing through their tears.
Who here didn’t know Lin Yi’s story?
Across all the military regions in the country, it was a tale without equal.
Lin Yi rolled his eyes. “You make it sound like I did all that on purpose. You think I wanted to?”
Liu Chang leaned back on the bench. “Sure, you didn’t do it on purpose. But your story is just too wild! Enlist three times, leave the military three times—three times in, three times out. You could brag about that for the rest of your life!”
The veteran soldiers could no longer cry. They all broke into laughter.
Lin Yi tilted his head back at a 45-degree angle and stared at the ceiling, looking utterly resigned. “I don’t want to talk right now. I just want to quietly be with Tingting. And don’t ask me who Tingting is.”
After laughing a few times, Liu Chang grew serious. “But honestly, you’re really leaving this time? The Old Master or our Brigade Commander won’t come drag you back again?”
Lin Yi’s eyes were full of hope. “Absolutely. I’m really leaving this time.”
Liu Chang still wasn’t convinced and pressed him again. “You’re sure? The kind of sure where you won’t change your mind or turn around halfway back?”
Lin Yi gave him an exasperated, scolding laugh. “Damn it, when have I ever changed my mind? The last few times were all unavoidable! This time, I’m leaving for good! Not even the King of Heaven himself can stop me! I mean it!”
As soon as he said that, the veteran soldiers and recruits at the farewell party laughed even louder.
Lin Yi, the “permanent recruit” who had worn recruit insignia on his shoulders for six years, had long since become a celebrity in the military camp, famous by word of mouth. Recruits and veteran soldiers alike had all heard his legendary story.
Who didn’t know that more than anything, this kid wanted to leave the military camp? Freedom was what he pursued.
But the two powers in Lin Yi’s family just wouldn’t grant his wish. He had failed to leave the military both times he tried.
Four years ago, when he tried to leave the military for the first time, he’d pinned on his big red flower and was just about to get out. Then a call came from the Old Master. Before he’d even warmed the seat on the bus taking the soldiers home, the Company Commander at the time had rushed aboard and forcibly dragged him off.
He didn’t want to remain in the military and take a comrade’s noncommissioned officer slot, right?
Easy!
He’d just enlist a second time!
And they’d slap the rank of Private right back on him!
Lin Yi had wanted to cry but had no tears.
Then there was two years ago.
The Old Master had left the military, and Lin Yi had finished all the discharge paperwork. But when he returned to civilian life, the neighborhood office told him his Household Registration hadn’t been transferred back.
Only after asking around did he learn—damn it, while the family was celebrating the birth, his father had been promoted to become the top officer of the Armored Brigade, and kicked him right back into the military.
Just like that, six years had flown by.
They say the barracks are made of iron, while soldiers flow through them like water. Yet the name of Lin Yi, the “permanent recruit,” was known far and wide! People were always bringing him up as a joke.
After the laughter in the Clubhouse faded, the smiles on the veteran soldiers’ faces gradually disappeared, and their eyes took on a wistful look.
Lin Yi looked at his comrades and couldn’t help being taken aback. “Damn it, what’s going on? I’m really leaving this time, so why aren’t you laughing anymore? Shouldn’t you be happy for me?”
He turned to Liu Chang and raised an eyebrow. “Lao Liu, aren’t you always hoping I’ll hurry up and get lost? Shouldn’t you be laughing your head off now? Don’t tell me... you can’t bear to see me go?”
Liu Chang abruptly snapped out of it and started cursing. “Can’t bear to see you go? Bullshit! In the six years you’ve been in the military, how much trouble have you caused me?”
“You stole chickens from the cook squad, wreaked havoc with the pigs at the livestock farm, then scared them so badly they smashed through the fence and ran off. The entire company had to go find them! And that’s not even counting all the other nonsense. Squad Leaders from other units came to report on you every few days. I wanted to kick you out of the military myself!”
Lin Yi smiled. “There you go. So you should be happy I’m leaving.”
“Right! I’m thrilled! I’m so happy I could die!” Liu Chang shouted a couple of times, then burst into hearty laughter.
But as he laughed, he suddenly turned around and pulled Lin Yi into a tight embrace. His shoulders shook violently as he muttered a string of curses.
“Damn it, are you really able to leave this time?”
“Shit, I was counting on you to take first place in the whole regiment at the next competition, so I could hold my head high in front of the other Squad Leaders! Now that you’re leaving, who’s going to win that honor for me?”
Lin Yi gently patted Liu Chang’s back. “All right, all right. Stop being so sentimental. Can’t you act like a man? Don’t cry. It’s no big deal. I’m not dead.”
“But I won’t get another chance to win first place for you, or to get you into trouble again. And I probably won’t get many chances to see you, either.”
Liu Chang cried even harder, clinging tightly to Lin Yi and refusing to let go.
The veteran soldiers around them had red eyes too. They came forward one after another, surrounding Lin Yi and embracing him in turn.
“Old Lin, go home and live well. Don’t get into any more trouble.”
“Wherever you end up, we’ll always be comrades. If anything comes up, just let us know!”
Lin Yi answered each of them, patting every comrade on the shoulder.
Six years in the military: they’d argued and fought, gotten into trouble and been scolded. But now, all those memories had become the bond between comrades.
He had never wanted to stay in the military for long and had thought of leaving every moment. But without realizing it, this bond had taken root deep in his heart, impossible to shake.
“Ahem.”
Just then, a faint cough sounded.
Everyone came to their senses and looked toward the source of the sound.
At once, everyone instinctively straightened up and called out in unison, “Deputy Company Commander!”
Zhao Minghui wore a crisp military officer’s dress uniform. The single bar and two stars on his shoulders gleamed under the lights.
His gaze passed over everyone and settled on Lin Yi. “Lin Yi, come here.”
Lin Mo stepped forward and followed Zhao Minghui.
They reached a deserted corner.
Zhao Minghui turned to Lin Yi and raised an eyebrow. “Your Discharge Application Form went through smoothly this time. How did you convince those two big shots in your family?”
“Who knows? Maybe they’ve had a change of heart?” Lin Yi couldn’t be bothered to figure it out. “Anyway, I can finally fly out of this giant furnace!”
He’d even made himself a list for the occasion.
For the next month—no, the next year—he was going to enjoy himself to the fullest! He’d make up for everything he’d missed out on over the past six years!
Zhao Minghui paused, then put the cigarette in his hand into Lin Yi’s mouth and lit one for each of them.
“Well, no matter what, you finally got your wish.”
“Yeah, I got my wish.” Lin Yi took a deep drag and exhaled. Through the smoke, the single bar and two stars on Zhao Minghui’s shoulder appeared and disappeared.
Then he raised a hand and slapped Zhao Minghui on the shoulder a few times, looking just like an old Chief giving instructions to a rookie recruit.
“I’m leaving tomorrow. Lao Zhao, do a good job in the military. Don’t bring shame on me.”
“Get lost!” Zhao Minghui rolled his eyes. “You think I need your advice? I graduated top of my class from the military academy, and became a Deputy Company Commander at twenty-four. Go ask around the whole military region and see how many can say that! You really have no shame!”
He cursed harshly, but a plainly complicated expression lingered in his eyes as he looked at Lin Yi.
Fewer and fewer soldiers who had enlisted alongside them were left. Who would have thought that even Lin Yi, the permanent fixture, would leave this year? The thought left a lump in the throat, hard to put into words.
Lin Yi chuckled and turned to stroll back.
Zhao Minghui watched his swaggering back and muttered, “That bastard...”
That Lin Yi—three times enlisted, three times discharged. He came and went as if strolling through his own backyard.
He was clearly more capable than anyone, yet his military career had been full of twists and turns. Now, as he was finally leaving, Zhao Minghui didn’t even know where to begin wishing him a bright future.
But could he really leave so smoothly this time?