Warriors

John's speech still needed optimization, but although the effect was mediocre, it ultimately had some impact.

At the very least, it left the Tsarist Russian serfs looking bewildered, and the pain and despair they had felt earlier were now beginning to show faint glimmers of hope.

Humans are peculiar creatures; even when their situation is dire, they will find a sliver of hope for themselves.

For instance, when a veteran was forced to the firing range, he might still believe he was that one-in-a-million lucky person, and the bullet would miraculously miss him.

This self-deceptive coping mechanism prevented most people from having a true sense of resistance or belief, causing them to merely follow orders.

This was even more true for these Tsarist Russian serfs; having grown accustomed to submission, they found it even harder to rise up again.

"Everyone aboard the train! Return immediately to New Hanover!"

At John's command, all Van der Linde's Guard began escorting the prisoners.

Van der Linde's Guard escorted the Tsarist Russian into the train.

The quality of soldiers in this era was generally low; without high-quality training and proper ideological education, these people were not much different from bandits.

Acts of burning, killing, and looting were common during World War I, and most of the Japanese soldiers in World War II and later Soviet soldiers were of similar quality.

Among them, the notoriously poor discipline of later Soviet soldiers was world-renowned. Of course, the main reason was that almost all high-quality soldiers had died.

According to the recollections of Germany citizens, the first batch of Soviet Tank soldiers who entered Berlin were gentle towards the populace, not only refraining from robbing them but also actively showing goodwill, sharing candy and chocolate with children. They even warned Berlin residents to be careful of the Army coming behind them before continuing their advance.

And sure enough, when the Army arrived later, they burned, killed, and plundered, acting like complete bandits.

Perhaps some might find such behavior understandable, as it is war, and harming the enemy is the best revenge. This refers to the Xier.

But the reality is not argued this way; otherwise, our army would not place such importance on ideological education. I won't elaborate further, those interested can research it themselves.

If Van der Linde's Guard were of such quality, then these Tsarist Russian captives would have suffered greatly.

Fortunately, however, Van der Linde placed great emphasis on cultivating the quality of his army.

Strict discipline was the most basic requirement, and Van der Linde's ideological education had even enlightened these soldiers; their treatment of enemy captives was not as violent as these Tsarist Russian had expected, but rather mostly polite.

"All aboard, gentlemen, Van der Linde has prepared housing and work for you!"

"Oh, damn it, I'm truly jealous of you. Even as captives, you get to live such a wonderful life. Be grateful, gentlemen, you are about to receive Van der Linde's forgiveness!"

"What a pitiful bunch, not even knowing what they're fighting for, sacrificing their lives for their true enemies, yet still thinking they are loyal to their country.

I think you need to read Van der Linde's Red Book more."

A group of Van der Linde's Guard stood guard with their guns, with one or two occasionally taunting the passing lines of captives.

At the train entrance, soldiers stood guard, with canned water and bread they had brought placed nearby.

Every captive who entered the train received a bottle of water and a bag of bread to serve as rations for the journey.

This act almost made the Tsarist Russian widen their eyes.

Oh, damn it, not only were they not killed as captives, but they even got soft, fragrant bread they couldn't even afford to eat at home?

What does this mean?

The fear in the Tsarist Russian's hearts had almost completely dissipated.

Every person who received bread looked incredulously at the bread in their hands, which, though cold, was made from clean white flour.

When had these poor Tsarist Russian ever eaten such clean white flour? They usually lived on potatoes and sweet potatoes most of the time; being able to eat coarse grains was already considered excellent food.

The so-called bread was only black bread mixed with chaff; the Tsar had never given them such good food before they went to war!

The Tsar who ruled them treated them like pigs and dogs, while the opposing enemy gave them fragrant bread...

The Tsarist Russian holding the bread trembled slightly, and some even had tears welling up in their eyes.

Many had already ravenously stuffed the bread into their mouths the moment they received it, almost wishing they could swallow their hands too.

This era was hailed by those who disliked cilantro as the most romantic time.

To be honest, it was indeed romantic, at least for various warlords and capitalist tycoons. Although the feudal era had passed, the advent of capitalism did not distribute wealth downwards; instead, it became even more concentrated. The upper class ate so much meat that they would throw it on the ground without a second glance, while the lower class had to fight for even the so-called wild vegetables.

The Tsar could wave his hand and millions of serfs would become cannon fodder, yet these millions of cannon fodder might never have eaten so-called fine flour from birth to death.

In 1911, there were only 4.2 million iron plows nationwide, with 10 million wooden plows and 25 million wooden harrows still being the main farming tools...

Facts proved that Nicholas II was indeed a talent.

"Hmmph..."

The Tsarist Russian, ravenously devouring their bread, had even forgotten the fact that they were captives. They only cared about the soft, fragrant bread in their hands. Some even cried while eating, and others choked and coughed repeatedly from eating too fast.

Seeing them looking like starving ghosts who hadn't eaten, Van der Linde's Guard were moved and began to sigh.

"Alas, I heard Tsarist Russia is still a feudal society. I didn't expect this feudal society to be so miserable!"

"Then you're truly foolish. Have you forgotten the kind of life we lived before?"

"I wouldn't dare forget! Damn it, I used to live and sleep in a cowshed. One day I was sick and couldn't earn money, and when I was about to starve to death, I tried to steal some milk to drink and was almost beaten to death by the farmer! Even now, when I sleep at night, I still think of that day."

The ideological level of Van der Linde's Guard had indeed reached an extremely high realm, of course, the biggest reason was also that there was no hatred between the two sides.

So, upon seeing these Tsarist Russian serfs ravenously eating bread, they not only refrained from using whips and gun butts to beat and rush them but also gave each soldier an extra portion of bread.

Meanwhile, Ivanov, who had accompanied them, had already begun his ideological guidance work.

He stood before the group of Tsarist Russian ravenously eating bread, distributing a small copy of Van der Linde's Red Book, which he had translated into Russian, to each of them. Seizing the moment of their emotional breakdown, he keenly began:

"Van der Linde once said that everyone has the right to a happy life. Even you are no exception!

The tyrannical rule of the Tsar and the cruel exploitation of the Tsarist Russian government may have made you submissive, and never having received any education from childhood may have left you without thoughts of resistance.

But today, I want to tell you, you were not born to be slaves!

You are also human, you are also people with self-respect and the right to happiness!

Rise up, those who refuse to be slaves..."

Ivanov's voice was impassioned, and his entire face flushed.

He was initially swayed by Van der Linde because of Van der Linde's overwhelming power and excellent treatment.

But as of today, he has been completely won over by Van der Linde's ideals.

Even the Russian Red Book he gave to these Tsarist Russian was entirely translated by him, originally intended to be transported to Tsarist Russia.

He had fully understood; he had been redeemed by justice.

And now, he wanted more of his compatriots to also achieve the liberation of Van der Linde's ideology!

Facts prove that the most steadfast warriors are always those with a noble ideal and firm conviction.

Van der Linde achieved this, cultivating his subordinates into red warriors with noble ideals and firm convictions.

And these warriors, like sparks, will spontaneously and continuously expand until they ignite a prairie fire!