But in that era, there was no heating. Although they lived in dorms with earthen beds, they couldn’t start a fire until they were frozen to a certain degree because firewood was supplied in limited quantities. Thus, before winter set in, the warriors spent a great deal of time chopping wood, just to ensure they had firewood for the entire winter.

Otherwise, when Zheng Long first arrived, he would have caught a cold from the freezing temperatures, barely making it through with his resilience and "space water." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

When Zheng Long arrived, it was already mid-March. If he had come in November, he probably would have frozen stupid, from a place of just below zero degrees to tens of degrees below zero. It’s no wonder that many new warriors couldn’t stand it and caught colds right after arriving.

Just as the veterans described, by the end of April, they would gradually shed their thick cotton coats layer by layer. However, it was still quite cold day and night. It was not truly warm until it got hot, which wouldn’t happen until late May.

When wild vegetables had just started sprouting, they couldn’t pick them yet as it would affect their growth. So, they had to wait until late June before they were allowed to go up the mountains to forage for wild vegetables.

Being a soldier in that time was truly hard, beyond what people of later generations can imagine. Where’s the meat, fish, eggs, or dairy in their diet?

The most common vegetables they ate were cabbage, radishes, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Their staple food consisted mostly of sorghum steamed buns and sticky bean buns made from yellow rice, which were considered as finer grains and only eaten during special occasions. They often ate steamed buns made from a variety of coarse grains that were both hard and scratchy on the throat, and the porridge they drank was made from roughly ground corn, also known as the legendary "chunky porridge."

The new warriors faced intense training and were at an age where they were growing, often feeling ravenously hungry. They looked forward to receiving their allowances so they could buy some cookies and pastries to fill their stomachs.

But not everyone could afford to buy cookies, as most had to send money back home. Thus, the chance to splurge a little on themselves was rare.

The second month’s allowance was just handed out, not yet warmed in their hands, when a comrade’s family sent a telegram stating that his father was seriously injured by an alarmed ox while plowing the field and lacked the money for hospital treatment. The comrade was so anxious that he trembled with tears in his eyes. Everyone felt genuinely sorry for him, and the troop initiated a donation drive.

The other warriors hesitated with their new allowances because they were truly hungry, but they couldn’t ignore their comrade’s family trouble, so with determination, they all contributed!

However, the squad leader stopped them, "You rascals, I didn’t expect you all to be so compassionate! What about next month? Keep a little for yourselves to buy some necessities!"

The squad leader donated ten yuan, and everyone else donated four yuan. Since he had two yuan left from the previous month, he contributed five yuan.

The squad leader patted their shoulders and gave everyone a thumbs up.

Because of that time, our entire regiment raised 1,500 yuan collectively, which very timely solved the father’s medical expenses. Although his father ended up disabled, he still managed to save his life and could later do some simple work.

This made Zheng Long feel that, although the army life was tough, it was truly warm!

And through this, they also let him experience that the affection between men was far less complicated and troublesome than between women. They didn’t consider as much and were very forthright, unlike women, who had to manage the household and consider all aspects of life and social interactions. So those who say women are petty simply don’t understand the difficulties of managing a household.

Only by mixing with men did he truly comprehend the difference between men and women, what "men are responsible for the outside world, women are in charge of the house" truly meant!

Because these men were really not cut out for managing a home.

He personally witnessed a warrior sighing over a letter from home, clearly troubled because the money they donated had caused difficulties for their own families. So sometimes, when you’re taking care of everyone else, you might neglect your own little home.