Chapter 21

  So people finally left one after another, the British shook their heads, the Americans were indignant, and I was most unwilling to look at my comrades: they went out silently, as if they had suddenly been drained of youth and fighting spirit, like the corpses of fallen soldiers returning home.

  Yu Xiaoqing only quickened his pace after everyone else had left, he must have forgotten the existence of us two, and walked towards the gate with a slightly dragging step. Just as he was about to cross the threshold, he stopped, turned around and stared blankly at the sand table again, his years of hard work and lifelong aspiration - I clearly saw him stretch out one hand wearing gloves to wipe away the tears that finally burst forth.

  Then he came crashing down as he stepped across the threshold.

  His subordinates did not leave, Zhang Lixian and several others just followed orders and flashed to the door frame on both sides of his line of sight. They rushed up, so fast that Yu Xiaoqing couldn't fall to the ground - then they silently lifted Yu Xiaoqing out of my sight.

  I smiled wryly and looked at my teammate. He was still staring blankly at the sandbox, swaying unsteadily, as he had been since he walked in here.

  Then he fell down and his head hit the South Heavenly Gate squarely.

  I rushed into the yard shouting loudly, grabbing onto everyone I could reach, "Save him! Help me, save him!"

  They all shook my hand off, even pushed me away, I was like a disturbing air, they were busy with their own affairs, someone ran away with a first-aid kit - that was for Yu Xiaoqin's distress, not my team leader's danger.

  It's hard to verify courage, but showing courage is just a matter of being united against a common enemy. Yu Shi was as taut as a bow, today the bowstring broke, no one thought you might have saved him, people only hated the person who took away hope and confidence.

  I was being coldly stared at by two sentries in the courtyard, and finally I fell silent.

  The sentry at the gate looked at us with the same icy attitude as we walked out of the gate. We were perhaps the most disheveled pair of backs in the entire army, both bearing serious injuries and exhausted to the bone, enduring the cold gaze that seemed to be everywhere. I struggled to prop up my unconscious commander, trying not to touch his wounds while also avoiding touching mine, as we left the division headquarters.

  But one of the two losers, me, is smiling, not just smiling, I'm laughing with satisfaction, almost radiant, I'm extremely pleased with this pile of rotten flesh I've been dragging around, I mutter and praise.

  "You didn't say it out loud, that's great. Ten artillery battalions wouldn't be enough to trade for the South Heavenly Gate, Yu Xiaoqing would even want to hug you and kiss you, you didn't say it, you're really too good."

  That guy was delirious in my praise: "Too painful...painful to death..."

  "I: 'Young master really didn't misjudge me...it's all worth it, being able to work under you is just great...' "

  "Dying, dying... just humming: 'Ow... stop reading... ow...' "

  Then he passed out - leaving me standing next to our muddy and bloody wreck of a Willis, which we had managed to coast to the side of the road in, now I just stared at it.

  "I: 'You can't be like this... how are we going back now?' I slapped his face hard: 'Hey, I don't know how to drive!'"

  That guy fell down like a dead meat, and in the end I could only stare blankly at an old pushcart on the empty ground.

  My squad leader was lying very comfortably, which may be my subjective view, as he lay on that broken pushcart, I don't know if a person in a coma can still have a feeling of comfort or not.

  I was very uncomfortable, *one hand that couldn't exert force couldn't pull the cart, I made a shoulder strap like Krupp's traction cannon with rags and straps, the strap hung on the half of my body that wasn't injured. I pulled the gun hanging on the cart now I finally had two fulcrums, I used it and my good leg to struggle towards the flagpole slope.

  What a chore! --- But I'm still very happy, I still flash a joyful smile from time to time, and because of this smile, I have to turn my head to take a look at the live pig I'm dragging along. I'm so satisfied that I hum with pleasure: "We're going back, we're going back. No one's going to die. Nobody wants to die."

  Later I saw that group of elites, they were angrily and bewilderedly crowded at the street corner, my arrival gave them a focus quickly, they pointed and poked at me.

  "Heaven favors the proud, giving them a heart that remains forever childish. What I mean is not innocence or simplicity, but rather they only care about their own likes and dislikes. They adore Yu Xiaoqing and the battle plan that could get them all killed; the more they love it, the more they hate us."

  Then they split up, Zhang Lixian didn't move, but He Shuguang, Yu Zhi, Li Bing and others quickly surrounded him. Then Zhang Lixian slowly walked over, looking like he had nothing to do with what was about to happen, but even a blind man could see through it. He was just like a little Yu Xiaren who grew up imitating others.

  Yu Zhi took away my gun, they looked at me, anger beneath the calmness, yes, Yu Shi's teachings require calmness, so they mimicked calmness.

  He Shuguang: "The master's seat is rarely sat on, but now it has been laid down."

  I am also very calm, calmly and desperately, desperation can't be imitated, it's something that comes from the heart.

  "If there was a place to lie down, we would thank heaven."

  Yu Zhi: "Drag your bamboo along with Lian Shan, and lie back on the west bank."

  Li Bing: "You're a dead man. Last time I should have killed you on the spot."

  They patted my head, patting the dust into the air, then hurriedly wiped their hands on my clothes, only to find that the more they wiped, the dirtier it became. So they changed tactics and started kicking me with their feet, fortunately just lightly. To show contempt as much as possible.

  I could only smile wryly, knowing that my smile would surely infuriate them. It was the only counterattack I could muster: "Heaven spoils you and torments us."

  He Shuguang: "Because you owe practice."

  Yu Zhi chimed in: "Second Brother, what's 'owing refinement'?"

  He Shuguang: "Are you suffocating your brain in that tank? If you're not tempered, you'll be beaten."

  Yu Zhi: "Let's make it up for him. So that he won't be left with nothing but a withered flower and a broken willow."

  He Shuguang wiped his glasses and nodded slightly, whereupon the foot on my body became much heavier, and it seemed that more than a dozen people were about to pounce on me.

  I stood firm, standing firmly in front of that pushcart, I didn't want any little brat to mess with it. I myself didn't want to get beaten up either, so I pointed at my wound and said: "I'm injured."

  Li Bing: "What's the big deal if I'm injured?" He suddenly started speaking in an official tone: "I suspect you shot yourself to escape the battle."

  Yu Zhi: "Exactly!"

  Just as another violent kick was about to land, Zhang Lixian raised a hand: "Wait!"

  Among these little rascals, he has at least half the authority of Yu Xiaoqing. So they all stopped. Zhang Lixian walked up and examined my wound. He wouldn't be gentle, but he also wouldn't intentionally be heavy-handed. He's not vicious.

  "Three-eight rifle, medium and close range penetration - it's a wound from fighting Japan. Don't touch his wound."

  "Don't touch me, Captain."

  "We don't touch people who are unconscious."

  "What's wrong with him? Do I still have to invite him for a meal?"

  Zhang Lixian: "Do not touch those who are unconscious. Do not touch the wounded soldiers - as long as they were injured while fighting against the Japanese!"

  He let out a loud roar and silenced everyone. Then he looked at me with ridicule.

  I am chilled to the bone.

  That's pride. Not pity. That's boasting, not sympathy.

  Our team leader was lying on a stretcher. They didn't move him, really didn't move him.

  I was pushed to the ground by a dozen or so hands, my hands were tied up with rough ropes. The soldiers, who had nothing but knives and guns on them, used several knives to cut my hair into a mess, and used large knives to cut my clothes into tattered rags that could be easily torn off. They did all this while being careful not to touch my wounds.

  I endured it, watching my squad leader from the gap between people's legs, and I could even smile.

  That's just temporary.

  Yu Zhi: "The brush and ink await your orders!"

  That little guy took out a smelly inkstone and a smelly brush from the common people's home, squeezed into the crowd, and didn't forget to make a big bow, holding the pen and ink in front of me. Their leader Zhang Lixian took the brush and started scribbling on my face, I couldn't see what he was writing, I endured it.

  Zhang Lixian drew a sun flag on my forehead and wrote "Little Japanese Devil" on my face.

  Then he wiped his hands and pushed open, he was very satisfied, he was laughing, the guys around him were laughing so hard they fell down.

  "He Shuguang: 'Not enough like it! Not enough like it!'"

  Unlike him to fill, I was bare-chested, and there were plenty of places for him to draw. So he drew a bigger sun flag on my chest after drawing a beard on my face. I started struggling violently, but those guys were well-nourished and had excess energy, each one could hold me still.

  Yu Zhi wrote on me "Little Japanese running dog Tarō", and I shouted at them: "Why don't you peel off a piece of my skin?!"

  Li Bing is making many supplements on me, and a bunch of guys are eagerly waiting for more supplements.

  Li Bing: "We don't hit wounded soldiers."

  "I have been fighting against the Japanese invaders for many years!"

  Zhang Lixian pulled open his collar, letting me see the knife wound from his clavicle down, I don't know how he's still not dead.

  "Go tell it to the common people! We have also been fighting against the Japanese devils for many years!"

  "What about those small Japanese change we collected?!"

  Here is the translation:

  It's a mess - after fighting against the Japanese devils for many years. All those miscellaneous Japanese trinkets were piled onto me, some lieutenant's shoulder badge, some sergeant's medal. Some dead devil's thousand-stitch belt, some officer's pistol box - incredibly still loaded with bullets, some Japanese soldier's Type 38 bayonet, some kamikaze's headband - all came from their enemies. In an instant, I became the most absurd person in Zhenzai, kneeling on the streets of Zhenzai's bustling city, a pitiful sight to behold.

  Zhang Lixian: "Kneel down and apologize to Yu Shi and Chan Da. Kneel for a whole hour, then I'll send you and your bird team leader back to the garbage team."

  So I had tears welling up in my eyes, and I laughed ridiculously: "Great. Really great. Worth it. Totally worth it."

  "What's that kid humming?"

  Yu Zhi: "You're so stubborn. Your legs are gone, but your mouth is still running."

  I'm kneeling.

  As I was smeared with messy brushstrokes on my shoulder, the tears I didn't want to shed in front of them were wiped away, and my face and shoulders became even more blurred. Accentuating the strange smile hanging on my face.

  My squad leader was still lying on the stretcher, unconscious and unaware of what was happening, I don't know how he would deal with these people if he woke up.

  At this time a stone flew towards me and hit my shoulder, accompanied by a loud shout from a Zen master: "Little Japanese!"

  "Block it!"

  He Shuguang quickly took off his helmet and with a "clang" sound deflected the second flying stone outside the circle of people.

  Zhang Lixian simultaneously smiled slyly and whispered to me in a low voice - a small conspirator who didn't understand the situation: "Don't speak Chinese. One sentence, kneel for an hour more - that is, your team leader will lie down for another hour."

  I glared at him. I looked at my squad leader, and also at the rapidly gathering tide of angry Zentans rushing towards me. Those energetic little guys didn't know what kind of trouble they had stirred up, forming a circle around me, shielding me from the outside, where the Zentans were brandishing stones and pickaxes.

  Zhang Lixian smiled and thought he could control the situation: "Fellow villagers, this captured devil is very important, we still need to take him back to the division for interrogation. Don't hurt him - that is, you can throw things at him, just don't throw stones!"

  So it was temporary. The flying objects that were heading towards me turned out to be saliva and trash, but that was only temporary - soon Yu Zhi let out a miserable cry: "Who the hell threw rocks again?!"

  It's not who, but most people have lost control, stones continue to fly in, and the shovel has been raised. Yu Shi's command is clear. Those who dare not fight back, such as Zhang Lixian, are quickly torn open - and I gaze blankly at the spittle, garbage, and stones flying towards me, gazing at the shovel held high in the air, it's like an angry and blind banner. I finally broke free from the ropes tied around my hands, they were not tight to begin with, I jumped up.

  "I fought from twenty to twenty-five! I didn't contribute less to this war than you!"

  He Shuguang was trying his best to keep people out of the circle while rushing towards me and yelling: "Shut up! You're not allowed to speak Chinese!"

  "I'm just not as energetic as you guys to shout loudly and passionately! I couldn't shout it out - would I do something so destructive before things even get intense?!"

  Zhang Lixian desperately resisted the surging crowd: "Let go! You let go!"

  He called that because I pulled out the king-eight box they hung on me, and I held that ugly southern-style grip in my hand - they couldn't interfere with me. Most of them were squeezed out of the circle. The few remaining ones who took out their last strength to resist the furious Zen master were still not enough.

  "I've had enough! -- Go to your Yu Shi! -- Go to your elite troops! -- Go to everything in this world of yours! -- I've seen dead people!" I put the gun to my head, and then remembered something very important: "You send him back to Jiziqipo!"

  "Let go!!"

  I forced out a sarcastic smile at him. Turned on the engine.

  But I couldn't continue to trigger the mechanism, because Zen Daoren heard a little Japanese boy speaking so fluently, and the momentum had already dissipated. At this time, someone rushed out of the crowd, frantically waving his fist, and the first punch landed on Zhang Lixian's helmet - that was my father.

  "My father: 'You've got the wrong man! He's a patriotic soldier!'"

  Zhang Lixian was a bit embarrassed, my father was so fierce that he would grab anyone who blocked his way and punch any obstacle with his fist. The people around us quieted down, watching an old man fiercely punching several young officers armed to the teeth.

  "My father: 'He is patriotic! For the sake of our country and people, he doesn't even want his parents anymore! He doesn't even want his legs anymore! Heaven, can't this vast China accommodate a quiet desk?!'"

  I stared blankly as my father bullied and tyrannized, Yu Zhi and Li Bing joined forces to lift him up, planning to take him away from the crowd. The gun in my hand slowly drooped down.

  I am ashamed and indignant. But I have killed people in front of my father at home, I have pressed a gun against his chest, do I still have the courage to smash my own brains out in front of him?

  Then I heard Xiao Zui's hoarse voice: "He is a person from the Sichuan Army! Don't you remember? We let them go with lanterns! Only eleven people came back!"

  I turned my head and saw Xiao Zui and Zhang Lixian fighting, Zhang Lixian was really unlucky today. He loved to pretend to be elegant, but first he was punched by my old man, then Xiao Zui, who was shorter than him, pulled his helmet strap down, making him unable to open his eyes.

  I hastily wiped my eyes dry, this careless wipe also made me like a horse in Russia mixed with days of malice, I exposed two white eyes from a ghost face, staring at the absurd surroundings and making fake laughter - I didn't want to laugh, but I knew that laughing would make the person who was bothering me angry.

  He Shuguang was in a hurry to find a place for his brother, who had been beaten by a young girl. "I know where you live! The third door of Pants Alley! I know what kind of business you do! I'll come and kill you!"

  I was still laughing - Xiao Zui didn't care about He Shu Guang's weak threat at all, she had a vegetable basket, so she put the vegetable basket on Zhang Li Xian's steel helmet that was already stuck on his nose bridge - looking at Zhang Li Xian struggling under the helmet and vegetable basket, and then I heard my own laughter becoming somewhat crazy.

  Chapter 27

  Hao Shouyi, Mi Long and Bu La walked down the street, looking at the crowd of people gathered in front. Hao Shouyi was bewildered, while Mi Long and the others were exhilarated, thinking that watching a commotion was always fun.

  They couldn't see clearly in the crowd, only seeing my father being carried out of the crowd by Yu Zhi and Li Bing. They were really struggling, carrying him for over a hundred meters before daring to put him down, while also enduring my father's old fists punching them along the way.

  Yu Zhi: "Don't move! Stand still! I'll punch you, you old thing..."

  He said don't move when my father was already standing up, he said stand up when my father's turtle fist had swung over again, grabbed the face of Zhen Hua Lian Chang, and kicked the crotch of Zhang Yu Zhi.

  Hao's veterinarians stared at me in confusion, then saw the dead body on the cart, me among the crowd, and Xiao Zui who was finally pulled away from Zhang Lixian's head by He Shuguang.

  "Look at this big fellow, bullying the elderly and women and children!"

  "Beat them until they're dead on the street!"

  He snatched a carrying pole from the hands of a peasant in Zenda Township and started wrapping stones at the side of the street. He used the pole to heavily whip the backs of the elite, while Snake Buttocks wrestled with people. Dragon rushed up and swung his meteor hammer, knocking down the deputy commander of the logistics battalion.

  I was busy tearing open and grabbing Xiao Zui's He Shuguang, but later I found that I was tearing He Shuguang away from Xiao Zui.

  Zhang Lixian was busy removing the new head ornaments on his head, and also had to pick up the helmet that had been thrown away with the vegetable basket. He spat out the scallions in his mouth while watching his companions being cleaned up like fallen flowers flowing water.

  Hao Lao Toudeng waited for a long time, finally decided to go into the city with someone to take a look. Their arrival turned the tide of battle - Yu Shi said that they were innocent and would not dare to use their fists on the civilians. I, Meng Jia, will definitely win."

  "Northeast guy, come and play with Lao Ge!"