"The Brigade Commander also came to work." This news spread like a gust of wind throughout the Insurance Corps 359th Brigade. This was news announced at the Soldiers' Committee meeting. On the day of comforting the troops, the Soldiers' Committee meetings, which had been held intermittently, officially resumed.

The Soldiers' Committee of the Insurance Corps completely imitated the establishment of the Jinggangshan Red Army. Soldiers' Committees were set up in the brigade, regiment, battalion, and company. Officers were also members of the Soldiers' Committee. The whole company soldiers' assembly elected 7 people as the Executive Committee of the Company Soldiers' Committee and recommended one person as the chairman. Based on the number of people in the whole battalion, one representative was elected for every 5 people to form the Battalion Soldiers' Committee, electing 11 to 13 people to organize the Battalion Executive Committee, and recommending 1 person as the chairman. Based on the number of people in the whole regiment, one representative was elected for every 10 people to organize the Regiment Representative Assembly, electing 17 to 19 people to organize the Regiment Executive Committee, and recommending 1 person as the chairman. The whole brigade elected one representative for every 30 to 50 people to organize the Brigade Representative Assembly, electing 19 to 21 or 23 people to organize the Army Executive Committee, electing one person as the chairman, and the Army Executive Committee elected 5 to 7 people as the Standing Committee. The company had no standing committee organ; the regiment and brigade standing committees both set up organs for daily office work within the political department, and the battalion standing committee did not set up an organ.

Zhao Chengnian was an "old soldier" and had participated in quite a few meetings in the past few months. He knew the authority of the Soldiers' Committee lay in making suggestions and questioning problems within the army. Although he was not promoted, Zhao Chengnian was already a representative of the Soldiers' Committee in the battalion and also the Chairman of the Soldiers' Committee in the company.

Today's discussion agenda was the scrambling riot that occurred during this troop comforting. Why couldn't the most basic thing like queuing be strictly enforced?

When the Soldiers' Committee was held, it was not such a formal meeting. Everyone just found a place to sit casually. Now the environment was arduous, and there were no stools in the camp. The soldiers of the First Company of the First Battalion simply gathered around the dormitory of the camp, centering on the large communal sleeping platform, standing or sitting. The atmosphere was quite harmonious.

People's Party members must participate in the Soldiers' Committee meetings. The current Battalion Commander of the First Battalion of the First Regiment of the Insurance Corps was Kuroshima Jinichiro. As a Japanese, Kuroshima knew his name was inevitably a bit strange, so Chen Ke asked him to change it to a Chinese name, called Kuroshima Jin. As a member of the People's Party, he participated in the soldiers' meeting of the First Company. At this time, Kuroshima Jin stood casually by the straw shed acting as a dormitory like an ordinary soldier.

Seeing everyone had arrived, Kuroshima Jin smiled and said: "Comrades, in this meeting, I want to talk about the riot of snatching food."

Many soldiers felt a bit embarrassed hearing this topic of riot; most of them had participated in the queue-jumping riot. Kuroshima Jin followed the method Chen Ke said beforehand and smiled first, "As for this queue-jumping matter, it wasn't just everyone who was a bit chaotic. The meat was delicious; I also wanted to line up closer to the front to eat earlier."

Hearing this, the soldiers also roared with laughter. The awkward atmosphere was swept away.

Seeing everyone's emotions had calmed down, Kuroshima Jin asked, "Do comrades have any opinions on recent work? Everyone works very tiredly. Do you have any opinions or dissatisfaction with the requirements and practices of the troops? Have any cadres beaten or scolded everyone? Have any cadres had a very bad attitude?"

Mentioning this, the soldiers' expressions became a bit unnatural. Working so hard these days, the soldiers were full of grievances, and the cadres were also full of grievances. Everyone had a bellyful of grievances, so the attitude definitely couldn't be good. Although no one was beaten, there were plenty of people who were scolded. But this was one of the sources of Huai Army soldiers after all; everyone knew that getting beaten and scolded was naturally unavoidable when being a soldier. The Insurance Corps already treated everyone very well.

The meeting fell into dullness temporarily. Kuroshima Jin looked at everyone's appearance of wanting to speak but stopping, waiting patiently for the comrades to speak.

At this time, the representatives of various Soldiers' Committees were under great pressure. The comrades around looked at them one by one, hoping they could say the most critical words. Zhao Chengnian clearly felt someone pushing him from behind, and it wasn't just one person.

Just then, two people walked into the meeting circle of the company. Kuroshima Jin had sharp eyes and saw at a glance that it was actually Chen Ke and He Zudao. He hurried over to salute. There were many old soldiers in the First Company of the First Battalion, and they immediately recognized Brigade Commander Chen Ke. Watching Chen Ke return the military salute calmly to Kuroshima Jin, then wave to everyone. "Comrades, no need to get up. It's a soldiers' meeting; I am an ordinary soldier just like everyone else now."

Chen Ke's voice was loud and clear, so the soldiers who had already stood up or half stood up sat back down. But some of those who were sitting wanted to get up. There was a rumbling sound on the large communal sleeping platform, and it took a while to restore order.

"Brigade Commander, I am Zhao Chengnian, Chairman of the Soldiers' Committee of the First Company of the First Battalion." Zhao Chengnian finally squeezed out of the crowd and stood in front of Chen Ke. He saluted and said loudly. For some reason, when saying his identity as Chairman of the Soldiers' Committee loudly, Zhao Chengnian had an unspeakable sense of pride. Of course, perhaps saying this identity loudly could also make Zhao Chengnian feel he had the confidence to say the following words to Chen Ke.

Chen Ke stared at Zhao Chengnian for a glance, then returned the military salute. "Hello, Comrade Zhao Chengnian."

"Brigade Commander, I have a few questions to say." Zhao Chengnian's voice trembled slightly. Somehow, Chen Ke's calm eyes made Zhao Chengnian feel a bit guilty in his heart. After all, facing such a big figure, and the words to be said were so important, Zhao Chengnian suddenly felt a bit dry in the mouth.

"Speak, Comrade Zhao Chengnian," Chen Ke answered.

Zhao Chengnian felt even more cramped. Chen Ke's attitude was so serious and focused. Such attention made Zhao Chengnian suddenly worry whether his words would be wrong, whether it would cause any bad results. Next, he was actually tongue-tied and couldn't say anything.

The eyes of all officers and soldiers of the First Company gathered on Zhao Chengnian. Everyone was silent, and the simple venue was actually completely silent.

Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, Zhao Chengnian finally opened his mouth. He said loudly: "Brigade Commander, I want to ask, when can we get our original land back?"

The venue was very quiet. Everyone heard this question clearly. Almost everyone breathed a sigh of relief, like a gust of wind passing through the venue.

Chen Ke didn't get angry; he didn't even have any reaction. He still looked at Zhao Chengnian seriously, waiting for Zhao Chengnian's next words.

And Zhao Chengnian had also risked it all. In these few days, the troops were discussing the matter of getting back each family's land. There were various sayings. Some just wanted their own family's land back. Some raised the point that many lands had no owners; how to deal with them exactly? The idea of taking the opportunity to make a fortune was extremely blatant. There were also some soldiers who hoped to simply re-divide the land.

These discussions were all conducted privately. Everyone had seen floods, but after this flood occurred, a powerful group gathered everyone and led everyone to survive the flood. Everyone had never encountered such a thing.

Every great disaster is accompanied by various evils. The number of people directly drowned by the flood is actually not large; most deaths are caused by plague and hunger after the disaster. And most hatreds are formed in the snatching of land after the disaster. The appearance of the Insurance Corps allowed Fengtai County to maintain basic order after this flood. The various pains and evils of the past actually didn't happen. But whether it was the Insurance Corps soldiers or the victims surrounding the Insurance Corps, they all felt an inexplicable worry. For several months, they had become accustomed to the existence of the Insurance Corps and accepted the status of the Insurance Corps. But where would the Insurance Corps take everyone's future? This was something everyone didn't understand.

Zhao Chengnian stared at Chen Ke, and everyone at the meeting stared at Chen Ke. This person had saved them in the flood; this person had led them to kill Zhang Youliang, who was once famous in Fengtai County. Now everyone could stay on their native land with food and clothing settled after the great disaster without having to leave their homes. Being able to gather here alive, reasonably free of disease and disaster, was all thanks to this person. Most importantly, the soldiers might not have realized that in their hearts, they might already be expecting, or even beginning to believe, that this person could bring them new hope.

The venue became quiet again. Zhao Chengnian saw Chen Ke looking at him seriously and attentively, waiting for him to continue speaking. Such a demeanor made Zhao Chengnian feel one thing: no one had ever cared about him so much, cared about his words so much. Never respected him like this. This young man was valued by someone for the first time, and valued so much by a big figure who could lead thousands of people. An unspeakable feeling suddenly arose from Zhao Chengnian's heart. It was a warm feeling that made his nose a bit sour. In this instant, he suddenly forgot what he wanted to say.

"Comrade Zhao Chengnian, do you have anything else to say?" Chen Ke waited for a while before asking.

Hearing this, Zhao Chengnian woke up from the emotion, "Brigade Commander, I just want to ask this one thing."

Chen Ke looked at other soldiers. Everyone's gaze was equally concerned. This was everyone's common voice. Today, when the Insurance Corps already basically controlled Fengtai County, this was the number one major event everyone was so concerned about.

"Everyone rest assured! These lands, our Insurance Corps will preside over distributing them to everyone," Chen Ke said loudly.

"Oh!" Hearing this, almost everyone shouted from the bottom of their hearts. Every Insurance Corps soldier knew Chen Ke had no intention of taking the land for himself, but hearing Chen Ke promise this personally, everyone was still relieved.

"We will re-distribute the land in two years," Chen Ke continued.

As soon as these words came out, it greatly reduced everyone's excitement just now. "Why two years, Brigade Commander?" A voice of doubt came from the crowd of soldiers.

"Comrades all farm land. In such a disaster year, how long does everyone think it will take to be like before if you reclaim and cultivate the land yourselves?" Chen Ke asked.

The soldiers were silent. They knew the answer. It indeed took two years to barely restore to the level of normal years.

"Everyone wants to be distributed land; don't you all want to be distributed good land? If after two years, the land of the entire Fengtai County is irrigated land, and the land everyone gets is no longer scattered but whole pieces of irrigated land. Isn't this much better than before?" Chen Ke shouted.

The soldiers were shocked by these words. What Chen Ke told them far exceeded their expectations and imagination.

Chen Ke didn't leave time for everyone to let their imagination run wild. He immediately said: "If it were a normal year, it would be fine. Now it is a disaster year. Everyone is already so poor that there is nothing left. Now only land is left to farm. Since we are farming, why not use some better methods? Reclaim better land. Is everyone afraid of hardship, afraid of being tired? Or afraid of what?"

The soldiers didn't speak. Everyone had deeply experienced the hardship of farming. Natural disasters and taxes pressed heavily on them. Working hard for a year to be full, and then earning a little money, was a very good life. So hardship was not the problem. But if hardship was exchanged for a more miserable life in the future, it would be better to be like before.

"If I tell everyone, within the next two years, everyone can get seventy percent of the harvest they grow. Will you do it?" Chen Ke asked loudly.

"Hiss!" These words shocked the venue. Seventy percent? Many people wondered if they heard wrong. These local soldiers had never received such a high percentage of harvest since they were born.

And Chen Ke then dropped another heavy bomb, "Our Insurance Corps will set up a bank (*Qian Zhuang*). The annual interest will not exceed eight *li* (0.8 percent). Are you willing?"

The venue was instantly silent. Everyone looked at Chen Ke with disbelief, and also looked at each other. Everyone saw shock and a faint passion in each other's eyes. If it were half a year ago, even if Chen Ke had a lotus growing from his mouth (eloquent speech), it would be impossible to make everyone believe these words at all. The actions of the Insurance Corps in the past half year had unconsciously given comrades confidence. Although they still didn't believe what Chen Ke said. But something in many people's hearts couldn't help jumping. It made them hope very much that they could believe what Chen Ke said.

"If I tell everyone that I won't pay for all this myself, but it can be done by everyone working hard, do you believe it!" Chen Ke said the final inquiry.

A person suddenly stood up in the pile of soldiers. His face was tense, and he shouted in a trembling tone: "Brigade Commander Chen, I have always admired you. You are a character. I just want to hear you say how to do it. If you can explain it clearly, I, I will follow you even if I die!"