Fred was much worse. He sprained his foot after running five kilometers on the first day. He was sent back to the hospital less than 24 hours after leaving the hospital.
Seeing how happy Fred was lying on the stretcher, Tom suspected that Fred had hurt himself on purpose.
Tom also wanted to hurt himself.
Even if I go back to the hospital and face Armstrong's ugly butt every day, it will be more comfortable than here.
In Tom's eyes, the Southern African Expeditionary Force is simply not human. It is rare that they do not have combat missions and do not have a good rest. They train from morning to night every day. There is also endless work between training. After wiping trucks and tanks, cleaning the camp starts again.
After cleaning the streets, even the local people's views on the Southern African Expeditionary Force began to change.
There used to be a garrison in Ypres, but they never took the initiative to clean up, even in the camp.
Of course, southern Africans don’t work all the time. They also have a rich entertainment life, playing football, watching movies, and playing table tennis. There is even a reading room in the camp of the Southern African Expeditionary Force, which seems like nothing to Tom.
military camp.
"It's because of those damn southern Africans that I haven't gone out to have fun in half a month -" Bruce said with deep resentment.
There are always some strange businessmen around the U.S. military camps. Some sell souvenirs, some are engaged in special industries, and some even resell arms.
The area around the Southern African Expeditionary Force camp is always clean.
Thanks to the Southern African Expeditionary Force, the area around this U.S. military camp is also very clean.
"I'm starting to understand now why we always underperformed the southern Africans -" Tom faced the gap.
It’s also a five-kilometer journey, and the journey in southern Africa can basically be completed within 25 minutes.
If the military officers on the US military side were not present to supervise, I believe that a large number of US soldiers would not be able to complete the task at all.
Tom still remembers that the first day he ran five kilometers, it took him a full 35 minutes. He had vomiting and diarrhea after the run, and he didn't get out of bed the whole next day.
"Ha, how could you say that, you traitor!" Bruce was surprised. Few American soldiers would reflect on this.
Tom not only reflected, but also took action. That afternoon, Tom took the initiative to come to the gate of the Southern African Expeditionary Force camp and tried to communicate with the guards.
"Is something wrong?" the guard said with a poker face, reminding Tom not to cross the cordon on the ground.
"Hey, hey, don't be so nervous, we are allies -" Tom took out a pack of camels, pulled out one and handed it over.
The guard refused directly and refused to chat during the mission.
"I want to borrow a football from you. I see you guys are having a great time. In exchange, I can give you a football - do you know football? We call it an American football." Tom was prepared and carried the football with him.
The guard was speechless. There is also a rugby league in southern Africa, but its popularity is far less than that of football.
Compared with football, rugby and basketball have very high requirements on the field. For football, you can just find a piece of grass and play a few kicks.
However, the guard did not refuse and directly picked up the phone.
A few minutes later, a southern African officer came out with a football and handed it to Tom without rejecting Tom's football.
Not enthusiastic, but a good start.
Tom himself never thought that his unintentional move would actually lead to friendly exchanges between the two armies.
It's too cold to fight, and the military camps are filled with young people full of energy. If you don't find something to do for them, it's really easy for problems to arise.
Therefore, US military officers do not like training, but they cannot let the soldiers idle, otherwise the local people around them will be in trouble.
The Southern African Expeditionary Force is okay.
Discipline in the US military has always been a big issue. During the rest period in Ypres, the busiest military court within the US military was held.
That is to say, Belgium is too weak to dare to confront the United States head-on. Otherwise, the things done by American soldiers may lead to internal divisions in the Allied forces.
As the saying goes, there is no first in civility and no second in military force. When two armies are stationed close to each other, everything will be decided by a winner or a loser.
So when American soldiers also started playing football, the US military commander took the initiative to contact the Southern African Expeditionary Force, hoping to have a friendly match.
"Are you sure Americans want to play football with us?" Shen Fei from Los Angeles was surprised. Southern Africa has the best football league in the world. Shen Fei himself was a member of the school team in college and almost became a football player after graduation.
Professional players still maintain the habit of playing football once a week.
"It's a friendly match. Don't take it too seriously. The professional players in our army shouldn't play. We have to save some face for our allies." Chief of Staff Rex is over fifty and has gained serious weight. He can only sit in the audience and cheer.
.
Rex also loves football and is a member and season ticket holder of the Nyasaland Eagles.
The Nyasaland Eagles have many members, with more than 10 million registered members. Many members' children are registered as members just after they are born. Season tickets are naturally hard to come by, unless someone gives up and no longer purchases.
There are places available.
But who would give up the Nyasaland Eagles season ticket? It is said that some people have offered the price to one thousand rand, but no one is willing to transfer it.
The transfer here is not a purchase qualification, just the ticket price.
That is, if someone is willing to sell, they can get one thousand rand per year.
Many people earn less than R1,000 a year at all.
"Okay, let the Americans feel the strength of our amateur players." Shen Fei has no intention of sending professional players.
There are indeed professional players in Shen Fei's army.
After the outbreak of the World War, countless people in southern Africa actively joined the army, including many professional players with excellent skills. There were two players from professional teams in the Shenfei army, and one of them was the main player on the field for the Autobots.
The Autobots are also one of the strong teams in the Southern African Football League. How strong they are is probably to the point where they can easily defeat any national team in Europe without sending out all the main players.
Due to the enthusiasm of both sides, the game was scheduled for Sunday at the camp of the Southern African Expeditionary Force.
Southern Africa treats football very professionally. Even the lawns are shipped from Southern Africa. This is also one of the military supplies distributed by the Southern African National Defense Force.
As the instigator, Tom successfully entered the US military representative team and entered the southern African camp with the US military.
This is Tom's first time in a southern African camp.
In the past, Tom only observed from a distance and could not notice many details.
Now entering the southern African camp, Tom has a new understanding of the professionalism of southern Africans.
How to describe it——
The difference is probably between a room where sloppy people live and a room where people with mysophobia live.
In the camp of the Southern African Expeditionary Force, there is absolutely no garbage on the ground, there are absolutely no holes in the military tents, and there are no mines in the corners of the camp. Even military dogs know not to urinate anywhere.
In the US military camp, there is always a lingering odor, either body odor, toilet smell, or even vomit.
At the same time, Tom was also deeply impressed by the appearance of the Southern African Expeditionary Force.
The military uniforms of the US military are not very good-looking to begin with. If you wear them more casually, they will look baggy and extremely unreliable.
Only when you get closer can you see that there is a belt on the uniforms of the Southern African Expeditionary Force. Although it is just a decorative belt, the effect is very obvious. Compared with the Southern African Expeditionary Force, the American soldiers look like they just found a sack.
Just like wrapping yourself up.
The officers and soldiers of the Southern African expedition were very considerate and prepared rich snacks for the American soldiers who had come "from afar". Tom did not dare to eat them because he knew how tempting the snacks in Southern Africa were.
Others were not so smart. Forward Bruce accidentally ate too much and felt a little full. He might not be able to play later.
"I can do it!" Bruce vowed, starting to hiccup before he finished speaking.
"That's enough. Please restrain yourself!" Captain Brown, the coach, was very angry. Are you the reincarnation of a starving ghost?
Fortunately, the generals can't see it. They are having a friendly exchange next to the venue, waiting for the athletes to enter.
"These lawns are actually sent from southern Africa. No wonder they are so neat-"
Upon hearing Shen Fei's introduction, the American generals all expressed their surprise.
With the lavishness of the United States, I feel that southern Africa is a bit too luxurious.
"It is not easy to find a suitable grass field to play football in winter, but it is very easy in southern Africa. It is summer in southern Africa now -" Shen Fei has begun to miss Nyasaland. Now the Southern African Football League is in full swing. This year
Not surprisingly, Nyasaland Eagles and Rhodesia United compete for the championship.
"I heard it never snows in southern Africa -" American generals are very curious about southern Africa.
"It's not like it's never happened. For example, it once snowed in Cape Town -" The "once" in Shen Fei's words fully proves how livable the climate in southern Africa is.
"Many of our officers and soldiers saw snow for the first time after coming to Europe. In my impression, it has never snowed in Nyasaland." Shen Fei didn't like the cold and cruel winter in Europe.
The generals are chatting here, and the players from both sides are starting to enter the scene.
There are also football fans here in the U.S. Army, and they are also senior fans. Silas, who serves as the goalkeeper, was waiting on the sidelines to enter the stadium when he accidentally noticed that there was a familiar soldier from the Southern African Expeditionary Force wearing the rank of sergeant next to him.
Silas hesitated for a moment, then asked proactively: "Are you Mr. Gunther? Robin Gunther, the No. 10 forward of the Autobots?"
Anyone who is familiar with football knows the identity represented by the numbers on the field. Number 10 is generally the most important player on the team.
At least it's one of them.
"Haha, don't worry, I'm not playing today, I'm just cheering for you." Robin Gunther was wearing a military uniform, and the size of his clothes seemed a bit too big.
That's right, the normal size probably won't fit Robin Gunther's muscular body.
Don't look at TV. Some professional players look a little thin.
This is mainly the function of reference objects. Even the thinnest professional players are very different from normal people when they stand together. Although football is a technical activity, physical fitness is the foundation.
Without excellent physical fitness, he will fall down when running on the court, and no matter how excellent his skills are, he will not be able to display his skills.
"That's great! It's really you. Can I take a photo with you? Can you give me an autograph? I'm a fan of the Autobots. I went to southern Africa to watch your game three years ago. You won the championship. The Rhodesian United game." Silas was very excited, but Robin Gunther was a little embarrassed.
The Autobots are a strong team, but they are still far from being a top team.
Over the years, the Autobots have only defeated Rhodesia United once in official competitions.
"Then you are still our mascot. You have brought us luck." Robin Gunther was surprised. The United States is a football desert, and it is rare to meet his own fans on the battlefield.
Tom didn't know Robin Gunther. He saw Silas chatting happily with Robin Gunther, so he asked if he didn't understand.
"Who is this?"
"You have to thank the generals in Southern Africa for not sending Mr. Gunther on the field, otherwise we wouldn't have to play. Mr. Gunther once ranked first in the Southern African Football League's scorer list." Silas was indeed lucky. Yes, he is the goalkeeper in this game.
The Southern African Football League is full of talents, and being able to rank first in the scorer list fully proves Robin Gunther's ability.
However, it seems more surprising that the top scorer actually joined the army and even came to the front line.
"This is the most respectable thing about Mr. Gunther. He believes that the glory of the country is above all else, so after the outbreak of the world war, Mr. Gunther applied to join the army." Silas has starry eyes, what a perfect idol.
"Yes, it was only last year that the Ministry of Defense approved my application, probably because I lost the top scorer position." Robin Gunther is not proud. For him, this is just fulfilling his responsibility as a southern African.
obligations assumed.
"Why don't you play?" Tom was extremely confused.
Although Robin Gunther's appearance means that the US army will suffer a brutal massacre.
Tom still hopes to get the opportunity to compete with Robin Gunther, which will become one of the few highlights of Tom in this war.
When he gets old, Tom can brag to his grandson: Back then, your grandfather also played with the top scorer in the best league in the world——
"If I could play football, why didn't I stay in Port Edward?" Robin Gunther had no regrets, it would have been too much of a bully for him to play.
Port Edward is the home stadium of the Autobots.
The few people here were chatting happily and didn't notice that the referee had blown the whistle to signal the players to come on.
"But don't be happy. Although I don't have to play, the boys in our team are not weak either. Several of them are echelon members of the professional team." Robin Gunther did not forget to put psychological pressure on the American soldiers.
.
How could Tom and Silas kick if they were hit hard?
