Newborn 1927

The name "Liberation Team" didn't sound particularly impressive, but it was fitting. Black Widow and the others had no objections, and it was settled. Then, as they walked out of the Hall of Righteousness, Black Widow announced to everyone, "From today onwards, a new team will be added to the hall, led by Yang Jiefang, and named the Liberation Team!" She then gestured for Yang Jiefang to come forward and say a few words.

Yang Jiefang hadn't prepared anything, but he'd won first prize in the Hunan Province speech contest during high school, so his impromptu speaking skills were undeniable. He stepped forward and said, "Thanks to the leader's guidance, an additional team was added to the existing four, and I was made its commander. Compared to the other four teams, I'm just a junior, naturally unable to compete right now. But I'm a fighter, someone who dares to fight and never admits defeat; I don't want to stay a junior forever. Three months—give me three months—I'll train my team thoroughly. After three months, our Jiefang team will accept the challenge from the entire mountain stronghold. Anyone who defeats our Jiefang team in the competition will receive a prize!"

The moment these words were spoken, the entire room fell silent. Everyone stared at Yang Jiefang in disbelief, utterly bewildered. Zhao Changming and the others behind him were even more confused, their minds racing. What was going on? Had he already started fighting the entire stronghold upon arrival? Was he trying to get beaten up enough? Yang Jiefang, his thoughts jumping too quickly, realized everyone was still caught off guard, so he continued, "In the individual competition, whoever defeats our team's individual will receive a chicken; in the team competition, whoever defeats our team will receive a sheep. Please have our leader be our referee!" Black Widow, who had also been bewildered, naturally felt obligated to speak up now that she was mentioned. It was winter, and everyone was basically idle. A large group of rough men huddled together all day was actually quite prone to trouble. Giving them something to do wouldn't be a bad thing. After a moment's thought, she agreed to Yang Jiefang's suggestion, saying, "Alright! I'll be the referee. The stronghold will hold a martial arts tournament in three months. If you want to participate, let me know in advance. Those who perform exceptionally well will receive additional rewards from the stronghold."

The entire arena erupted in commotion. The members of the Dragon, Tiger, Leopard, and Wolf teams, their faces contorted with indignation, addressed their leaders: "This is disrespecting us, trying to provoke us. Forget about the reward, we can't swallow this!" "That's right! He just arrived and dares to challenge the entire stronghold. Where does he get his confidence? We have to teach him a lesson!" Meanwhile, the four leaders frowned, lost in thought.

Smiling Tiger Peng Fangtao whispered to Cold-Faced Tiger Peng Dahu beside him, "Brother, do you think this is his own idea, or the Boss's?" He was actually reminding Peng Dahu. Cold-Faced Tiger Peng Dahu shook his head, "I'm not sure either. But regardless of whether it's the Boss's idea or not, we have to be careful!" Smiling Tiger Peng Fangtao agreed, "Yes, the Boss has given his approval. We definitely can't refuse the competition in three months; we have to go!" Peng Dahu added, "Our Tiger Team not only has to participate, but we absolutely must win!"

On the other side, the two Rongcheng dragons huddled together and whispered. Black Dragon Wang Yang said in a low voice, "Brother Chao, what do you think he's doing, acting so high-profilely?" White Dragon Li Yichao shook his head and said, "I don't understand either! We'll just go with the flow and not stand out too much; since he's so arrogant, someone will naturally teach him a lesson."

Most people couldn't understand Yang Jiefang's intentions, but almost everyone in the fourth team knew that they had to participate in the competition three months later.

Bai Lang asked, "Brother Yang, the competition in three months is no problem, but I wonder what events there will be? That way the brothers can prepare." Yang Jiefang replied, "That's a good question! Listen up, everyone. Individual events include a ten-mile light cross-country run, traversing a 400-meter obstacle course, unarmed combat, bayonet fighting, grenade throwing, and live-fire shooting; team events include three-person bayonet fighting, four-person relay races, and four-person evacuation of the wounded. I'll announce the specific rules as soon as possible. Anyone who thinks they have a particular skill can sign up with the boss. Winning an individual event will reward you with a chicken; winning a team event will reward you with a sheep. If you lose, haha, just don't cry." "Hahaha..." Everyone laughed heartily.

The reactions of the crowd at the training ground varied. Some were eager to try, while others shook their heads and sighed; some were full of anticipation, while others were indifferent. Yang Jiefang naturally hoped that more people would participate, and after thinking for a moment, he felt it necessary to add fuel to the fire. So he continued, "I've taught you two songs before, and many of you know them. Today, I'll sing you a new song called 'Only by Striving Will You Win.'" The crowd cheered and then fell silent. Yang Jiefang then sang: "When you're down on your luck, you can't help but complain; when you're down on your luck, you can't help but feel scared. Even if you lose hope and spend your days in a drunken stupor, you're like a scarecrow with no soul but a body. Life is like the waves on the sea, sometimes rising and sometimes falling. Good luck or bad luck, you still have to keep working. Three parts are destined by fate, seven parts depend on hard work. Only by striving will you win!" After he finished singing, the whole place was silent, and everyone seemed to be lost in thought.

Yang Jiefang continued, “Brothers, I, Yang Jiefang, was originally a scholar, and my family was fairly well-off. But suddenly, I suffered misfortune, my family was destroyed, and I was almost sold by human traffickers. I was taken in by Qinglong Village, and I was just a newcomer; today, I am the leader. The reason is simple: I dare to fight and take risks. As the saying goes, a man fights for his pride, and a Buddha fights for his incense. If you don't fight for your life, what's the difference between you and a salted fish? Most of us brothers in Qinglong Village come from poor families. We are not landlords or wealthy people, let alone high-ranking officials. But every one of us in Qinglong Village is a hero! We are no less than the children born into wealthy families. We cannot choose our birth; it is ordained by God. But the path is under our own feet. We decide where we go from here. Remember, three parts are destined by God, seven parts depend on hard work. Only those who dare to fight will win!” The last sentence was almost shouted. Most people were filled with enthusiasm, waving their fists and shouting, "Fight! Only by fighting can you win!"

Of course, there were also dissenting voices. One person said with a dejected face, "I tried too! When I was at home, I worked like crazy, but in the end, I still couldn't make a living! I tried my best, but it was no use! Waaah..." This seemed to resonate with many people, who echoed his sentiments. The atmosphere immediately turned cold again.

Yang Jiefang, naturally, heard this too and said loudly, "Brother, you're wrong! It's not that your efforts were useless, it's that you didn't try hard enough. This world is very unfair! The powerful and influential are high above; the rich live a life of luxury; ordinary people without power, influence, or money either struggle to survive or barely eke out a living. You think you can live a good life just by working hard? You're wrong! Working hard won't give you a good life because those powerful and influential people will take your hard-earned money for free. How can you live a good life then? If you really dare to fight, then take down those powerful and influential people and protect your hard-earned money. Only then can you live a good life." Everyone thought, "Isn't that right?"

Having said all that, Yang Jiefang pressed his advantage, saying, "In my opinion, an ideal society should be like this: the hardworking shouldn't be poor, the kind shouldn't be bullied, the rich shouldn't be powerful, the powerful shouldn't be arrogant, and the influential shouldn't be corrupt; the strong should abide by the rules, and the weak should have dignity." This statement once again shocked the crowd, their eyes fixed on Yang Jiefang. Just when Zhao Changming and the others thought Yang Jiefang would once again talk about his dreams, he changed the subject, saying, "However, my word doesn't count. Therefore, such a society hasn't appeared. I live in this chaotic world just like everyone else. I, like you, don't have a distinguished family background; I'm just an ordinary person without power or influence. Since ancient times, nobility isn't inherited; men should strive for self-improvement. To survive, to live a decent life, you have to dare to fight and struggle. Three months from now, I'll be waiting for you to challenge me. Listen carefully, only those who dare to fight will win! If you don't dare to compete, forget about winning chicken, you won't even get a feather." He then sang "Only Those Who Dare to Fight Will Win" again. After he finished singing, Yang Jiefang stepped aside, indicating that he had finished speaking.

Black Widow and the others were speechless after Yang Jiefang's outburst. So Black Widow announced, "That's all for today. We'll see how you perform in three months! Disperse!" The group assembled and left. Master Kong walked to Yang Jiefang's side and said softly, "The rewards for this operation at Zhao Family Village have been drafted. You can come to me anytime to collect them." Yang Jiefang replied, "Yes, thank you for your hard work, Master Kong!" Master Kong shook his head and turned to leave.

Sun Zhiyong, Yan Donglai, and their group gathered around. Yang Jiefang laughed, "Look at all of you with those long faces! What's wrong? Don't you have any confidence in yourselves?" Yan Donglai smiled bitterly, "Little Yang, you really think highly of us! We used to only be able to make a living in the main hall, but those people in the upper hall are no ordinary people!" Yang Jiefang said, "They're not ordinary people, and neither are we. From today onwards, we can also make a living in the upper hall. It's okay if you don't have confidence in yourselves, but you have to believe in me! I have the ability to transform you all in three months. Alright, the words have been spoken, and there's no turning back anyway, so let's give it our all!" Yan Donglai and the others nodded and said, "That's the only way." But they had absolutely no confidence.

Yang Jiefang didn't want to dwell on the matter too much, so he changed the subject, saying, "Our rewards have been issued, and we can collect them anytime. I think we'll start cooking for ourselves from tonight's dinner. After dinner, Hou Fei and Ma Shangfei, you two go herd the sheep, and drive our sheep to our backyard first. Remember, our sheep are for eating, so I don't need to teach you how to choose them, right? Lu Ziqi and Tie Jia, you two take a look at what furniture we're still missing, and you're in charge of getting it. Brother Sun and Brother Yan, you come with me to get the grain. Brother Gui, you take the other brothers up the mountain to gather firewood." With Yang Jiefang's instructions, everyone agreed and went about their own business.