Chapter 4: Who is behind the ghost?

  The Lei family also had two pairs of eyes gazing in the direction of the explosion, one belonging to Mei Dahan's new wife, Lei Yatong. Since her second uncle died under mysterious circumstances, Lei Yatong brought two maids back to the Lei family to mourn for her beloved uncle. This left Mei Dahan helpless but also moved by his wife's filial piety. He himself led a team to go down to the countryside to find the evil spirit of the Wu Gong team. Lei Yatong was awakened by the explosion and lit candles, sitting in front of the window silently gazing at the night sky. During wartime, electricity was cut off after midnight to conserve energy, so even the big mansion had to switch to candles.

  Under the flickering candlelight, the beauty by the window's worry made Xue Qing, also a woman, feel uneasy. However, what she was more concerned about now was the explosion sound outside the city. The noise came and went, never-ending, making this woman worried for a while. Xue Qing looked in the direction of the explosion sound, comforting Lei Ya Tong: "Miss, don't worry, Master is going to the countryside to suppress bandits, not in the city, this commotion shouldn't have anything to do with him."

  "Who says I'm worried about him? Hmph, he got my Second Uncle killed, should I still be worried about him? Right, how many times have I told you, just call me Yatou, we're classmates, and you're only nominally my maid, calling me like that makes me uncomfortable." As she spoke, Lei Yatou punched Xueqing.

  Xue Qing smiled and retorted, "Hey, look at what Lei San said! Where did I dare to do that? If outsiders find out, won't they scold me for being disrespectful? I've read 'Nu Jie' and 'Nu Xun' just as much as you!"

  Lei Ya Tong gently shook her head and said, "Which 'Nü Jie' or 'Nü Xun' told you to call yourself 'you', huh? You should be calling yourself a slave instead." She laughed at herself first.

  Xue Qing's face turned red as she pretended to scratch, and Lei Ya Tong hurriedly apologized. The two of them made a ruckus for half the day before calming down. Unconsciously, they both let out a sigh, exchanged a glance, and couldn't help but smile, then each went to rest.

  Xue Qing lay on the bed in the outer house, thinking about today's events. The explosion sound just now was so sudden! He had just transmitted the intelligence yesterday, how did the military depot get bombed today? Was it a leak? It shouldn't be, then who did it? Could it be that the Wu Gong team, which was attacked by the Japanese puppet army, came up with a "surround Wei to rescue Zhao" plan? Anyway, no matter who did it, it's a great thing. With heavy doubts, Xue Qing also fell asleep.

  Outside the city of Tongcheng, the military supply depot was surrounded by Japanese devils. The crowd watched helplessly from a distance as flames shot up into the sky. However, this was no ordinary fire that could be extinguished. Bullets were flying everywhere, wounding several soldiers who couldn't resist rushing forward. Several Japanese officers tried to stop their subordinates' impulsive actions, watching in dismay as the depot was reduced to ashes amidst the raging fire and explosions.

  Yamamoto Kitaro was furious, punching several officers in charge of defending this place. Those people's faces were swollen and blood flowed from the corners of their mouths. Not far away, the corpses of Japanese devils were neatly arranged on the ground, and several soldiers were hung on the burning corner tower, being roasted.

  It seems that they were ambushed while changing shifts, and the enemy's accurate shooting killed the Japanese soldiers with one shot. There were only a few opportunities for them to be hit by a second bullet. The people present gasped in shock, when did China have such elite armed forces? It seemed that only a small team that was ambushed some time ago was killed by this method. Everyone was thinking hard about this question, and a soldier inadvertently discovered the marker left by Yan Xiwen.

  Yamamoto Kitaro took over the rough sign, with a few words revealing a hint of ancient meaning "Four People's Defense of the Country, Punishing Evil and Eradicating Treachery". The translator, Kasho, recognized at a glance that this was the emblem of the Fourth People's Party guerrilla unit behind enemy lines, usually placed near the bodies of Han traitors and enemy personnel they had shot dead.

  He hastily flattered: "This thing seems to be the emblem of the Four People's Party, often appearing in places where our people are harmed." He pointed at those few words.

  Yamamoto Kōtarō furrowed his brow, just about to speak, when a loud explosion was heard. A nearby devil suddenly flew up and burst open, with several soldiers around him suffering varying degrees of injury. Yamamoto Kōtarō was knocked to the ground by a blast of air, and several guards rushed over to shield him with their bodies. The crowd scattered in all directions, searching for the direction from which the attack had come.

  The interpreter was even more unlucky, with shrapnel concentrated on his shoulder, blood flowing profusely. However, at this time, no one had the leisure to care for him. He could only miserably tear open his clothes and wrap them around the wound. Fortunately, he had learned this skill during his time in a Japanese military school, and with his timid personality, he was particularly skilled at it. Today, this long-prepared skill was immediately put to use, and before long, a neat bandage appeared on his shoulder. A Japanese soldier who witnessed everything was shocked, his eyes wide with amazement, unable to believe that the interpreter who had just been wailing in pain had suddenly transformed into a medical expert.

  Yamamoto Kitaro angrily pushed away the surrounding guards, pointed at the corpse on the ground, and several devils suddenly realized. Hurriedly found a few sappers to deal with it, and indeed found three bundled hand grenades under another corpse, which were carefully removed.

  Looking at the several hand grenades in front of him, which had been disarmed except for the detonator, Yamamoto Kitaro accepted the explanation from interpreter Kasho. Ordinary bandits wouldn't have such precise firepower and skillful technique to set up these traps. This must be the work of the secret infiltrators, the 4th People's Party guerrilla team. These people should be trying to alleviate the pressure on the front line given by the Imperial Japanese Army division, so they came to sabotage the rear transportation and logistics lines of the Imperial Army.

  Yamamoto Kitaro issued an order to the garrison to raise its alert level, and now the losses can only be reported to the military department for disposal. The missing ammunition must be replenished from the rear immediately, otherwise, with the intense fighting on the front line, without logistical supplies, the Japanese army will soon lose its combat effectiveness. If this gives the Chinese troops an opportunity, Yamamoto Kitaro dare not imagine what the consequences would be.

  The shrill alarm accompanied the explosion of ammunition at the military supply depot all the way to dawn, and soon Tongcheng was tightly sealed off. However, everyone knew that the perpetrators had probably escaped long ago and wouldn't be foolish enough to wait around to get caught. Nevertheless, a show of effort still needed to be made on the surface.