Chapter 65: Not Indulging Bad Habits

Xiang Weiguo's kick caught everyone off guard, including the quarreling couple.

After they had a moment to recover from the shock, allowing Xiang Weiguo to finish speaking, a woman in her sixties, wearing clean outdoor gear, even after the disaster had struck for months, suddenly sat down on the ground and wailed, "They're hitting people! The soldiers are beating us, help! They've killed someone! If you dare, kill me too..."

Gao Yuan wasn't actually that hot-tempered, but at that moment, he couldn't help himself.

"Fuck this!"

Gao Yuan ran up to deliver a flying kick, but he pulled his punch. Nevertheless, he still kicked the old woman so hard she couldn't catch her breath.

Sometimes it's strange like that; if you don't hit them, they yell for you to kill them, but once you actually hit them, they stop shouting.

Wang Hu seemed quite embarrassed; he didn't seem to know how to handle the situation.

Gao Yuan was initially a bit panicked because his first thought was that he would definitely be sued.

But then he had a sudden realization.

It's the fucking end of the world, who the fuck is going to sue who?

With that thought, Gao Yuan charged at the extremely surprised man and gave him a heavy kick.

Alright, let's see who's afraid.

Kicked out of the shelter? Gao Yuan couldn't say he wanted it, but he wasn't afraid.

Xiang Weiguo looked at Wang Hu and then he sighed, "Commander Wang, you're still stuck in the past. Civil-military relations do need to be maintained, and it's not convenient for the military to deal with local matters, but it's military control now. You can't just ignore these rats."

Wang Hu gave a wry smile and raised his voice, "This kind of thing has never happened before, has it?"

Wang Hu was asking the cook who was also a soldier. The soldier, looking nervous, reported, "Reporting to the commander, actually, it's happened quite a few times."

"Why wasn't it reported, why wasn't it handled?"

"Reporting to the commander, these two people, well, what they did wasn't enough to violate the shelter's regulations. We reported it to the squad leader, the squad leader talked to them, but after one talk we could only keep them in line for two days, then it was no use anymore. I didn't feel it was right to keep reporting such a small matter, considering everyone is extremely busy."

Wang Hu was helpless too. As the leader of a regiment and the person in charge of the entire shelter, he had too many things to deal with every day. How could he be informed about such minor matters?

Xiang Weiguo said in a deep voice, "Commander Wang, I volunteer to take care of the order in this shelter, what do you think?"

Wang Hu was stunned for a moment, then he immediately said, "Great! I'm so busy every day, if someone could handle these matters for me, I would really appreciate it."

After speaking, Wang Hu lowered his voice and added, "The main thing is, our comrades from the army, they find it quite difficult to deal with these local civilians. It's not that there are any big issues, but it's just very troubling."

Xiang Weiguo said sternly, "In troubled times, harsh measures are needed. This applies to both the military and the locals. The presence of these two might seem like a minor issue to you, but in fact, the impact is too great, too damaging. In times of great disaster, discipline is particularly important for soldiers, but for the civilians, what's most important is order. It looks like they're just cutting in line, but what about those who follow the rules? Nobody wants to freeze in the cold, but if these two cut in line without punishment, what about the others who abide by the rules?"

Wang Hu nodded repeatedly, expressing his helplessness, "I understand the principle, but it's tricky to handle. After all, they are just civilians and they haven't made any big mistakes. These people who make small mistakes constantly but never big ones, they're what give me a headache."

Xiang Weiguo looked at the two people playing dead and said, "Now what they're doing is not just a moral problem, it's a violation of the regulations. Therefore, they must be punished, and severely at that!"

At that moment, the man who had been kicked finally couldn't bear it anymore and shouted, "What rule did I break? You can't just say whatever you want, which law says you can't cut in line?"

Xiang Weiguo looked at Wang Hu with a curious expression and asked, "No? There's no such rule?"

Wang Hu thought for a moment and then said with a bitter smile, "Alas, it was such a mess back then, people were dying every day. Who had the time to establish such detailed rules..."

"Yeah! If there's no rule against it, we can do it. You didn't specify any rules, so why punish me? From now on, I just won't cut in line, won't that solve the problem?"

The woman also said, "Exactly, we've already been hit, what more do you want from us?"

Xiang Weiguo laughed again, and loudly said, "There might have been no rules before, but from now on, there are."

"But that's about the future!"

Xiang Weiguo still smiled cheerfully and said, "Are you talking to me about procedural justice? Ha-ha, that tactic doesn't work on me. I imposed the punishment before setting the rule, so what? Is that not allowed? Does anyone object?"

Xiang Weiguo looked toward the queue of people and loudly asked, "Do you object?"

"No, we don't!"

"Well done!"

"We've had enough of them, neither of the couple is decent. They cut in line all the time, complaining this isn't good and that isn't right, grabbing food and not finishing it, even throwing it away. At a time like this, they waste food, which is simply shameless."

An actual old man spoke the most.

Xiang Weiguo nodded and declared, "Did you hear that? This is the voice of the people. I announce, from now on, anyone who cuts in line without cause will be expelled from the refugee shelter!"

The punishment seemed a bit harsh, but don't forget Xiang Weiguo's frequent saying, "Harsh times call for harsh laws."

Some things are easier said than done, such as having soldiers escort the couple out of the shelter. It seemed a hard order to give.

Moreover, saying they would be expelled from the shelter is one thing, but where would they be expelled to? If they were just thrown outside and left to fend for themselves, it would almost be the same as sentencing them to death.

But Xiang Weiguo seemed to have a plan in place already. He loudly said, "Waste a rice bowl? Starve them for two days first. Anyone who wastes food will go hungry. Is there a solitary confinement room? Lock them up in solitary, forty-eight hours, not a minute less!"

Xiang Weiguo was ruthless indeed.

But who would carry out Xiang Weiguo's orders was a question, as he had already retired, and among those present, Wang Hu had the highest rank. If he didn't speak up, who would listen to Xiang Weiguo's commands?

Gao Yuan decided to take action, but at that moment, Wang Hu spoke to an officer, "Liu Siming!"

"Present!"

"Lead your platoon, and from now on, obey Colonel Xiang's orders. Assist him in maintaining discipline in the shelter, until further orders are issued."

"Yes, sir!"

A platoon leader received the order, and he was now able to execute Xiang Weiguo's commands. So he immediately led a few of his men to pick up the couple.

Xiang Weiguo said coldly, "If they continue to make trouble, add another day to their solitary confinement! And no meals allowed!"

The punishment was still harsh, but the people present shouted their approval loudly.

As the couple was escorted away, Wang Hu sighed and asked, "Was it just to scare them a bit?"

Xiang Weiguo gave Wang Hu a look and said, "Commander Wang, we should each stick to our responsibilities. You need to trust me, and from now on, you should not concern yourself with matters of order in the shelter."

Wang Hu did not hesitate; he simply nodded and said, "Alright, then let's go have our meal."