Before this, Ren Xiaosu had never gone anywhere farther west of Fortress 178.
The territory beyond the fortress was not as desolate as he had imagined. As Ren Xiaosu and Zhang Jinglin walked through the wilderness, they even saw a lot of people from the Northwest farming and herding.
Zhang Jinglin explained, "The factories all fall within the protection zone of the fortress. When you traveled here from Stronghold 144, you should've noticed those factories. But farming and herding are still more suitable to be done farther out in the Northwest. The purpose of the outposts' placement is not only to inform the fortress in advance to prepare for battle but also to buy time for these laborers to evacuate."
Ren Xiaosu nodded silently. Fortress 178 was built in a unique environment where there were very few places to farm and raise livestock. Therefore, they had to make full use of whatever land they had to carry out these activities.
He suddenly asked, "When did it become the practice for those who were chosen as the next fortress commander to travel to all the outposts?"
"Since a long, long time ago," Zhang Jinglin said peacefully. "It's very tough at the outposts. Some of the soldiers have lived there for many years. In the summer, they get exposed to the sweltering sun, and in the winter, the roads get blocked and resources become scarce. There can be five or six people at the more important outposts, so it doesn't get too lonely there. But there's also some outposts that are only manned by two people, so they have to endure the loneliness while on duty."
Zhang Jinglin continued, "Meanwhile, the fortress commander will, of course, remain comfortable behind the fortress walls. But you need to understand that the 178 outposts bear the most dangerous responsibility in war and the experiences they go through. Just as I had posted you to the Razor Sharp Company, it's only by going to the most dangerous places that you can understand the significance of every decision you'll make. Only those who have risked their lives with everyone else are qualified to be the fortress commander."
As a matter of fact, the reason why Fortress 178 was able to attract Ren Xiaosu's attention was probably because of this humanist culture.
Zhang Jinglin said with a smile, "Moreover, this has a psychological effect. I don't know if you can understand, but hardworking people will subconsciously have a disdain for lazy people. If a fortress commander has been in the Razor Sharp Company and visited all the outposts before, he'll despise the cowardly and lazy bureaucrats from the bottom of his heart. I didn't recognize it at the beginning, but later, I realized if I discovered any commanders who shirked from their duties, I would instinctively say, 'Think about the soldiers at the outposts suffering from loneliness and then think about our comrades who risk their lives on the front lines. Aren't you ashamed of yourself acting this way?'"
"All in all, this is a tradition to make the fortress commander understand what the responsibility of leadership is," Zhang Jinglin said.
Touring the outposts and joining the Razor Sharp Company was a unique inauguration ceremony.
Actually, Ren Xiaosu did not quite understand at the beginning either. Since he was a candidate for the fortress commander's position, what if he had actually died while he was serving in the Razor Sharp Company? After all, in a battle order like the Razor Sharp Company, it would be quite normal if less than 10% of the company survived.
Meanwhile, it would usually take up to two months to tour all the outposts, and the future commander even had to be accompanied by the current commander when doing so. Wouldn't there be a fear that something could go wrong during this time?
But now he realized Fortress 178's tradition was to choose a capable candidate from the most difficult path to shoulder the fate of the entire Northwest.
While Ren Xiaosu was "abducting" the refugees for the Prosperous Northwest 2.0 plan, the Great Hoodwinker had told him about his days when he was serving in an outpost.
The Great Hoodwinker said that when he was stationed at the outpost, his job after waking up was not to stay at the outpost but to bear arms and go out on patrol.
In winter, he would carry a gun as he trekked along the mountain paths for the entire day. He would set off before dawn, and by the time he returned to the outpost, it would already be dark.
His snot would get frozen on his face, and his shoes would get covered with a thin layer of ice. Even his cheeks would turn red from the cold.
While keeping warm in the outpost at night, he did not dare to stay too close to the fireplace as he was afraid his body would bloat if he suddenly warmed himself too quickly.
On the patrol route, his only opportunity to communicate with the outside world was to walk up to a mountain named Tiger Ridge at noon and wave to the sentry on another mountain.
The patrols of the two outposts' guards did not overlap with one another, and the nearest they could meet up at was on these two mountains.
Everyone had a tacit understanding that they would arrive at the peak at noon every day. After that, they would wave their hands at each other and continue on their respective patrol routes.
Regardless of whether it was windy, raining, or snowing, the two patrolling sentries would rush to the peak at noon. Only when they saw the other party was also there would they feel some comfort.
It was not that they had too much time but that they were too lonely.
If the current sentry guard at an outpost was ready to post out at the end of their military service, they would definitely remind the new incoming sentry repeatedly, "You must reach Tiger Ridge at noon every day and wave to your comrade on the other side of the mountain. Because they're waiting for you."
Over the past hundred years, 178 outposts had been built since the establishment of Fortress 178. The 178 outposts were like solitary stars and torches burning bright in the wilderness.
Ren Xiaosu asked, "Back then, Mr. Zhang probably did not understand my strength either, right? Weren't you afraid that I would die when you posted me to the Razor Sharp Company?"
Zhang Jinglin said calmly, "I'm only in my early forties, which is still considered quite young for a fortress commander. So even if you had truly died in that war, I should've still had enough time to select the next candidate. Some of the former fortress commanders only found suitable candidates when they were already in their seventies, so I'm quite fortunate."
Ren Xiaosu's eyebrows twitched. "Is it too late for me to run away now?"
"Of course it's too late." Zhang Jinglin laughed and said, "Didn't I say you're not allowed to turn back?"
A lot of people thought Zhang Jinglin was a serious and straightedge person. But Ren Xiaosu had seen what Zhang Jinglin was like while he was living in Stronghold 113's town. He knew the man could become the commander of Fortress 178 because he was also a rogue deep down inside.
…
The first outpost was 80 kilometers northwest of Fortress 178. Ren Xiaosu and Zhang Jinglin had estimated they would arrive there in the evening after setting off in the morning.
However, Zhang Jinglin realized that while he was already thoroughly exhausted, Ren Xiaosu was still completely fine.
The practice of touring all the outposts was established to hone the minds of all the fortress commanders. That was why it had to be done on foot.
But the old commander who had set this rule in the past had probably not expected a supernatural being with beastly strength would appear as a candidate for the role of commander. The "honing of the mind" was utterly useless in this case.
Based on Zhang Jinglin's plan, Ren Xiaosu had gone through so many battles in the past few years and killed a lot of people, so he hoped Ren Xiaosu would learn to cool off on this trip and give him a chance to settle his mind.
In the end, Ren Xiaosu seemed totally unaffected, and this hike felt more like a form of training for Zhang Jinglin himself.
By the afternoon, when Zhang Jinglin saw Ren Xiaosu was still full of energy, he could not help but say, "Go and carry a rock!"
Ren Xiaosu was stunned for a moment. "There wasn't a rule like that before, right?"
"There is now," Zhang Jinglin said in seriousness.