The communications company specially sent a truck to pick up Jiang Jun and He Xiangdong.
Two veteran soldiers were also sent to follow the car.
Jiang Jun and He Xiangdong once again got on the back of the truck with the reluctant farewell of the female soldiers in the new recruits' camp.
The communications company’s camp is located closest to the county town.
Since most of the herdsmen at that time were still nomadic and had just begun to semi-settle, the so-called county town was actually a market place where they gathered on the grassland for festivals, with a few adobe houses built there.
Of these adobe houses, only two of the older ones had windows, and those windows didn't even have glass, but were covered with felt. The other two houses didn't even have windows.
As Jiang Yun passed by these adobe houses, he wondered, "Why don't these herders build houses in the county town?"
There is no village in front and no shop behind. There is not even a small river to be seen. It is more than ten miles away from the well where you can draw water, so it is not convenient to get water.
Wang Weiguo told her: "This is the county town!"
Jiang Jun's mouth was curled up in a circle for a long time, and he said shamefully: "I thought this was an abandoned house of a herdsman!"
Wang Weiguo smiled and said, "Your barracks for new recruits are the sturdiest and most beautiful houses on the grasslands around here! Now that the walls have been built, it's almost as big as a county town.
This area is quite remote, so we can build a few houses so the herders can have a place to leave messages, without having to travel hundreds of miles to the league to find someone. There's no electricity, no running water, and no telephones here, so if we need to issue any documents or notices, the county committee still has to ride on horseback to find someone."
It turned out that everything was much more difficult than she had imagined.
Only when he arrived at the communications company did Jiang Yun realize that what Wang Weiguo said was true.
The communications company's camp was similar to a factory compound. Apart from a few houses, the yard was filled with telephone poles used to pull telephone lines.
Before He Xiangdong could even cry, Jiang Jun apologized profusely, "Xiangdong, why don't you just follow the communications company's car back to the recruit camp when they're out on their mission?"
He Xiangdong's tears were filled with other emotions: "Xiaojun, if I didn't come with you, how would you have lived on your own?"
Not only are the living conditions difficult, but they are all male soldiers. If there was only one female soldier, it would be so inconvenient!
Jiang Jun hugged He Xiangdong tightly, feeling very warm in her heart.
Jiang Jun and He Xiangdong were welcomed by the entire communications company, and a room at the edge of the barracks was specially vacated for them to live in.
It is not easy to see a woman on the prairie. There are actually two female soldiers in their communications company. Even if they only stay for one day, they will be treated as guests of honor and well.
The new recruits and veterans of the communications company were overjoyed.
After staying in the frontier for a long time, female soldiers became synonymous with fairies in the art troupe in their eyes.
There were about twenty male soldiers in their recruit camp, and they were assigned to the communications company.
The veterans had heard stories about Jiang Yun during her training and knew she was a brave woman. Seeing her confidently introduce herself, someone asked, "Jiang Yun, can you sing a song for us later?"
Jiang Jun smiled and said, "Except singing, I can do everything. I heard that people on the grasslands sing very beautifully. Have you heard it?"
The topic was easily changed.
Communications Company Commander Lin Anping pointed at a communications soldier and said, "Zhang Dashan, didn't you say there was going to be a gathering at the Aobao someday? What date is it?"
Zhang Dashan smiled shyly, his face flushed. "Tomorrow night we'll go to the Aobao. There will be people singing there, but not as many as during the Aobao ceremony."
Jiang Jun was surprised and delighted: "Is it true?"
Lin Anping said proudly, "Of course, that movie was filmed there. Many herders served as extras at the time. If you could meet an old herder and ask them about it, they would remember it very clearly."
Jiang Jun asked again, "Captain, is it far from here?"
Lin Anping nodded: "It's not far, it'll only take an hour or so by car."
There are no roads on the prairie, but as long as you know the general direction and bring a compass, you can drive a large truck anywhere.
The field of vision is wide. Even if the direction is slightly off, as long as you look around from a high place, you can see what is happening within a radius of dozens of miles, making it easy to find where you want to go.
However, in this era, the land is vast and the population is sparse. When their communications company goes out on a mission, they often don’t see a single herdsman within hundreds of miles.
Only when walking along the stream can you see herds of cattle and sheep.
In short, it is completely different from the time and space where Jiang Yun lived, which was full of tourists.
Wang Weiguo felt that he was more familiar with Jiang Jun and the others than anyone else, so he volunteered to ask the company commander, "Company commander, please assign Jiang Jun and the others to our squad. It just so happens that our squad will be working over there the day after tomorrow, so we can take them with us when we go on our mission."
The company commander was stunned for a moment: "I was thinking of assigning them to the telephone operator class."
The telephone operators just need to stay in the computer room, memorize the contact numbers, and have a nice voice when answering the phone. These male soldiers have to be diligent when they go on a mission!
Besides, missions on the grasslands meant following trucks, carrying telegraph poles, digging holes to bury them, and pulling and winding wires—all physically demanding work. The grasslands were also windy and dusty, and a strong wind could blow even a small person away. Therefore, the soldiers assigned to these missions in their communications company had to be strong and robust.
Jiang Yun immediately said, "Captain, we are not afraid of hardship or fatigue."
Wang Weiguo said to Lin Anping, "Company Commander, they're not permanently stationed here. They're here to support us. Don't let them be transferred before you even memorize their numbers."
In fact, being a telephone operator is a very hard job. Memorizing telephone numbers is still an easy task. Typing on the telephone to send telegrams in the middle of winter can make your fingers sore.
"They're only coming for a few days, so don't let them get bored locked up here. Take them to the prairie to see how hard it is for us to go on missions. When Jiang Jun and He Xiangdong leave, they'll be able to think of our communications company, right?"
Wang Weiguo's words were so logical that Company Commander Lin Anping couldn't even argue with him. "Alright, then when you go out on missions, don't let them do the hard work!"
Wang Weiguo was overjoyed: "We don't need them to do it, just supervise us!"
Being able to take female soldiers on missions has become a goal that all squads in the communications company are vying for.
No one knows how long these two female soldiers can stay, but it would be nice to just take a look and say a few words.
Lin Anping was both happy and worried. "Damn it! If I had known these guys were so enthusiastic, I would have applied to be a female soldier long ago. I wouldn't have to yell at them every day! But it's such a tough place, and no female soldiers are willing to come!"
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