In response to Xiong Mingyang's question about the source of the tap water, Ogawa Yuji's answer was, "The dormitory manager said the water plant was built right nearby."

"Let's go take a look." Xiong Mingyang became interested. At People's Party meetings, Chen Ke had expressed that tap water should be promoted in the People's Party's station. At that time, everyone just listened. Xiong Mingyang actually didn't know how to build a water plant. Although he didn't like the British, he thought that with the base area being just such a small county town now, wanting to build a water plant was not realistic. But he didn't expect that in the few days he was away, the comrades remaining in the county town could actually complete such an achievement. He wanted to see what was going on no matter what.

Walking along the bamboo water pipes to the back of the dormitory, they didn't go far before seeing a fence ahead. There were sentries guarding the fence gate. Seeing two people walking over in the darkness, the soldier holding a red-tasseled spear immediately shouted alertly, "Who goes there?"

"I am Xiong Mingyang, Platoon Commander of the First Platoon, Second Company," Xiong Mingyang quickly responded.

Moments later, Xiong Mingyang and Ogawa Yuji arrived at the fence gate. A sign was erected beside the gate. Identifying it carefully in the night, the words "Fengtai County Water Plant" were written on it. Two guards holding red-tasseled spears stood in front of the gate, staring at Xiong Mingyang and Ogawa Yuji with alert eyes.

It wasn't very clear in the dark night. Xiong Mingyang looked up and could only see some vague black shadows standing inside the water plant.

"Entry to the water plant is not allowed," the sentry shouted.

"Brother... uh, Comrade, I am the Platoon Commander of the First Platoon, Second Company. I want to take a look at this water tower," Xiong Mingyang said with a smile.

"First Platoon Commander? I don't know you. Do you have a written order?" the guard asked.

Xiong Mingyang naturally didn't have a written order and didn't know the guard. Since the other party directly said he didn't know him, it was hard to communicate. However, Xiong Mingyang didn't give up. He said: "Comrade, our Second Company just returned from transporting grain from outside. Let us go in and have a look."

Hearing Xiong Mingyang say he was from the grain transport troops, the sentry's tone became much more polite. "Comrade, the troops have orders. Whether outsiders or our own people, no one is allowed to enter the water plant without a written order. Whoever lets people in will be punished. Someone privately let people in a few days ago, and as a result, they were criticized miserably at a meeting. I really can't let you in."

"We are all comrades; I won't go out and talk nonsense either. Just let me go in and take a look." Xiong Mingyang continued to make efforts. People are like this; the more they are refused, the stronger their curiosity becomes. Xiong Mingyang walked forward as he spoke, thinking he could get in by chatting about domestic trivia.

"Don't walk forward! The troops have orders. No one can enter without a written order. If you walk forward again, I'll shout for help," the sentry's voice had become severe. As he spoke, he took a step back, and the red-tasseled spear that had been upright began to tilt forward. It looked like he would not let Xiong Mingyang enter the water plant no matter what.

Xiong Mingyang immediately got angry. *What does this mean? It's fine not to let outsiders in, but why not let our own people go in and have a look? Looking at the sentry's appearance, is he going to poke me with the red-tasseled spear?* He wanted to continue forward to see if the guard really dared to attack him. But he was pulled back by Ogawa Yuji.

"Platoon Commander, wouldn't it be fine if we ask for a written order tomorrow? It's dark, and we can't see clearly now anyway. Come back tomorrow, come back tomorrow." After Ogawa Yuji finished speaking, he pulled Xiong Mingyang away involuntarily.

Doing this finally gave Xiong Mingyang a way out. Although still unwilling, Xiong Mingyang left with Ogawa Yuji. He muttered as he walked, "*Screw your ancestors' coffin boards*, you become a sentry and don't know who you are anymore." Speaking of this, he turned his head angrily and shouted at the guard, "I'll deal with you tomorrow."

This was just angry talk. Young people had big tempers. As a platoon commander with fifty people under him, Xiong Mingyang's temper had also grown. Just after finishing speaking, he heard the guard shout: "What did you say?"

The Insurance Corps did not allow officers to scold soldiers; this was a rule. These things were talked about every day at various meetings. Xiong Mingyang just shouted in the dark night. Seeing the guard really got angry, Xiong Mingyang really didn't have the guts to court bad luck. In the Insurance Corps' training, everyone had to serve as a sentry on duty. Although angry in his heart, Xiong Mingyang knew the consequences of violating a sentry. He didn't dare to really turn back and argue with the guard.

In the military regulations of the Insurance Corps, "Sentries are inviolable" was a primary clause. If the troops were infiltrated because of lax guarding, that would be a dead end. When Xiong Mingyang served as a sentry on duty, he remembered various strict order clauses clearly. If in wartime, sentries could take many measures.

After walking quickly out of the sentry's alert range, Xiong Mingyang returned to the dock. With ready-made accommodation available, the rest was much easier. Cooking, changing shifts, resting, and eating. Everyone also took a bath with tap water. Such clean water sources were unseen by the comrades before. Everyone was very curious about where this water that flowed out automatically came from.

"Tomorrow I'll take everyone to visit the water plant," Xiong Mingyang said confidently to the comrades. This statement caused a burst of cheers from everyone. In these times, soldiers had never seen tap water personally. Such pure water sources hadn't been seen for dozens of days. Exactly how such tap water was produced, and the usage methods of those faucets, greatly stimulated the soldiers' curiosity. Everyone was very happy to be able to visit this fresh gadget.

The First Platoon was on duty in four shifts, from 9 PM to 5 AM, two hours per shift. Each platoon had a pocket watch; the People's Party was never stingy with these timing devices. With an order, comrades not on duty lay down to rest. The pocket watch was handed over to the squad leader on duty for temporary control to facilitate shift changes. Every shift change required handing over control of the watch. And the handover must have a third party present. Although the People's Party trusted comrades, ensuring people didn't make mistakes through the system was a consistent mode. Humans are creatures that cannot withstand temptation; without the guarantee of a system, temptation is very difficult to resist.

Xiong Mingyang handed the pocket watch to the First Squad Leader under the witness of Ogawa Yuji and the Deputy Squad Leader of the First Squad. The First Squad Leader spent a minute confirming the pocket watch was still running normally. Only then did he indicate the handover was complete.

The most uncomfortable shift was the 1 AM to 3 AM shift. Xiong Mingyang arranged himself for that shift. It was really tiring these days; rowing upstream consumed great physical strength. He fell asleep as soon as he lay down. Just as he was sleeping comfortably, he felt someone shaking him. He opened his eyes in a daze. A candle had been lit in the room. Looking closely, it was He Zudao. Whether it was the candle or fatigue, He Zudao's face showed unconcealable exhaustion and a trace of unspeakable helplessness.

"I heard you scolded a sentry?" He Zudao asked directly.

"Sentry? What sentry?" Xiong Mingyang asked in a daze. At this moment, he just wanted to sleep.

"The sentry guarding the water plant said a platoon commander who just came back cursed at people. The soldier is very emotional. The platoon commander over there came and told me." He Zudao seemed to have been woken up in the middle of the night too.

"Can't even talk about him?" Xiong Mingyang finally remembered his trip to the water plant.

"Two roads. Either follow me now to apologize to the soldier. Or apologize to the soldier in public tomorrow. You choose yourself." He Zudao didn't seem to want to talk nonsense anymore.

"Why should I apologize to him!" Xiong Mingyang's sleepiness faded a lot, and his voice became louder.

"Let's talk outside," He Zudao said according to the content taught in the training manual. On one hand, organizational discipline must be implemented, but basic human feelings must also be guaranteed. If a dispute woke up other comrades, it would affect everyone's rest and also have a great impact on Xiong Mingyang's leadership prestige.

A dozen people were sleeping in the room, and the temperature was much higher than outside. Although he didn't know what time it was, as soon as he went out the door, the cool air full of moisture refreshed his spirit.

"I said a lot of good words, but the sentry not only didn't listen but also prepared to poke me with a spear. Now he's in the right. Hmph!" Xiong Mingyang subconsciously picked what was favorable to him to say. Although saying this with his mouth, Xiong Mingyang still felt a bit guilty in his heart, and was extremely dissatisfied with the person who "snitched."

"That means you were very dissatisfied with the sentry not letting you in?" He Zudao asked.

"Why shouldn't he let me in! Wasn't it too late for me to apply for a written order? Besides, I would go apply for a written order as soon as it gets light and organize comrades of the First Platoon to visit the water plant."

"That means the sentry wasn't wrong. You scolded him." He Zudao didn't relax on the key issue at all.

"I just said a couple of sentences casually. He took it seriously!" Xiong Mingyang's brain wasn't clear enough at this moment, so he told the truth.

"We have discipline; you can't curse at people. Hearing you say this only shows that you still have the concept of hierarchy. The sentry's rank is lower than yours, so you can use your status to curse people. And the sentry has to listen to your scolding willingly, right?" He Zudao originally wanted to handle the problem more easily. So initially, he hoped Xiong Mingyang could seriously go and apologize. Now it seemed the problem wasn't Xiong Mingyang getting excited for a moment, but this kind of self-superiority derived from status. This problem wasn't easy to solve; this was already an ideological problem. Thinking of this, He Zudao actually didn't want to settle this matter with a simple apology anymore.

"Political Commissar, what do you mean? Do you mean someone is backing that side?" Hearing He Zudao raising the matter to the level of principle, Xiong Mingyang also got a bit angry. Not letting people sleep in the middle of the night, tossing people around for such a small matter—what did He Zudao want to do? Of course, at this moment, Xiong Mingyang completely didn't think that He Zudao had also worked hard to transport grain back like him, and He Zudao slept even less.

"I understand. Then let's talk about this matter tomorrow. You've worked hard too; hurry back and rest." He Zudao didn't want to continue entangling this matter right now. Since it was an ideological problem, it couldn't be done with a simple apology. This matter had to be grasped.

Sending Xiong Mingyang back to the residence to sleep, He Zudao also returned to the station in the county. It was past 12 AM now, and Chen Ke hadn't slept yet. Actually, He Zudao hadn't slept at all. As soon as he returned to the county, comrades immediately held a meeting. He was called out from the meeting venue to handle this matter.

The People's Party also built a new residence in the county, not far from the water plant. Returning to the venue, Chen Ke's meeting was entering the end stage. Chen Ke was making a concluding speech.

"We are about to enter rural work. The key point of entering rural work lies first in mobilizing the masses. We have to let the masses come to find us themselves. It's not us speaking for the masses, but letting the masses speak for themselves. In this great disaster, local tyrants and evil gentry definitely only care about themselves and don't care about the life or death of others. This is the period when social contradictions are most intense. In ordinary times, the common people are used to being deceived by these people and accustomed to being bullied. They just endure it. Only when a great disaster happens now, in order to live, the people have to speak up. Opportunity knocks but once. At this time, our People's Party must mobilize the masses, let the masses speak their own words first, and then we must back the people up."

The participants were all military and political cadres of the People's Party. Including Yuwen Badu and several other newly developed local comrades who also attended the meeting as non-voting delegates. Listening to Chen Ke's summary full of "political tactics," many people nodded in agreement. Some also frowned slightly.

Chen Ke obviously knew what thoughts those frowning people had. He laughed: "Comrades, the common people want to live; is this wrong? Whoever thinks the people want to die, please stand up."

Most of the comrades who frowned earlier just sighed but didn't have any intention of opposing.

Seeing no one stood up to oppose, Chen Ke continued, "I know, many comrades think that if we do this, we will offend those rich people. We will have very fierce conflicts with local evil gentry and landlords. We might even fight. But I want to ask, if we stand together with those evil gentry and landlords, what are we? Accomplices of this gang? We want revolution; who do we want to save? Who do we want to rely on? We have discussed this question long ago, right!"

Now the discussion was entering the most intense part. Even when He Zudao quietly returned to the venue and sat back in his seat, few people noticed. Everyone's eyes were gathered on Chen Ke. He Zudao secretly observed the expressions of the comrades. All those of urban origin had faces full of high spirits, while those of rural origin had somewhat complex expressions. It seemed that regarding the view on this issue, it really meant "as distinct as the Jing and Wei rivers."

*Class origin affects stance.* Somehow, this sentence Chen Ke once said suddenly popped into He Zudao's mind.