Chapter 65

  "No! You are no longer the defeated remnants! Not even a ghost of your former selves!" Dead Dead Angry stood at the edge of the cliff on Festive Flag Slope, overlooking the river, pointing and cursing, "You are just... after winning one battle..."

  With a loud crack, the whistling of the bullet was vastly different from the distant gunfire between Hengluan Mountain and Nantianmen. It was very close - we looked at the guy who was pointing his rifle at the Nujiang River with a posture of throwing a spear, his steel helmet flying off his head, and he stood on the cliff edge, just one step away from rolling into the river, motionless behind us.

  We stared blankly, helmet flying up, helmet falling down, he was still a silhouette stuck there, and we were still staring blankly.

  The first word that came to mind was "furious hair standing on end", the second word was "brain bursting". Later, I forgot all words and had only one thought, he died like a hemp.

  I rushed up, and so did the dazed dragon, the mourning star, and Hao Shouyi. What we wanted to do was to rush back that swaying corpse, lest it fell down and became an irreversible journey.

  The corpse wobbled and sat down with a thud, I rushed to the ground just in time to realize that I had fallen, then the corpse flipped over and crawled towards us, we all fell to the ground, at least those who saw it did, and lay there stiffly. The corpse crawled into our midst, where a group of us were lying on the ground.

  The corpse gave us a mysterious expression, and whispered in a thief-like tone: "There are Japanese soldiers below." Then he started to laugh softly after his narrow escape, "Where is my helmet?"

  The Manchu and muddy egg-like birds stared at us, watching our old soldiers crawling on the ground like worms at the edge of the cliff, not tense at all, as long as you don't stand in that dead spot, the Japanese army's hiding place, the riverbank, is vertical to us, even concave, we can't hit them, they can't hit us either. We're just crawling around because it feels fun.

  He quietly intimidated the rookies with a "Boom. Boom boom." while making all sorts of weird faces, leaving those fools staring wide-eyed.

  He died, he died, took a stick and tied a mirror to it, poked it out, and the Japanese below fired a shot that shattered it. He poked the stick out again, and another shot rang out. He kept poking the stick out, letting the Japanese below fire away, until one guy with incredibly good aim finally shot the stick right out of his hands.

  On the other side of the Hengling Mountain, there are no longer any living Japanese troops on either the river surface or the riverbank. The two banks are exchanging fire, but this exchange has little significance. Without our final act, it should have ended today.

  Two battered Japanese troops. Dozens of survivors were washed away by the river to the foot of the precipice under the flag-raising slope, and even the strong crossing tools were broken, it was impossible to go back, they had only one choice left.

  Dead, dead, threw the tree pole, shook off the numb hand. Rolled over and lay on the ground, hehe laughed. We also smiled with treacherous intentions, it's really happy to bully our enemies like this.

  Hehe, said with glee: "The mouse fell into the well."

  The Mourning Star also said with great excitement: "Trapped beast, trapped beast."

  "Swim and swim and swim until you die." Nuo La gave us a performance of a dead mouse.

  "You guys have fought in dozens of battles, each bringing a few who haven't. Dead, dead, he made a gesture of ambushing from below the mountain, 'Go down and catch crabs.'"

  This time we were a bit stunned. We looked at the half-soldier, half-farmer guys he had us bring along, they stood far away from us and deliberately kept their distance. From the moment we climbed up to the ridge of the burial mound, they started trembling - just because the gunfire on the other side of the mountain was more intense, now it's sparse, but they're still shaking, holding their guns like hoes, they also know that's not a hoe. So it seems they can't wait to throw away their guns - it's really a behavior that even us old soldiers find unbearable.

  The dragon said discontentedly: "What's the point of bringing them? My family doesn't need to remove bricks."

  Bù là yě shuō: "Nóng máng hái zǎo. Wǒ jiā yě bú yòng pá dì."

  Translation:

  "Not spicy also said: 'Farm work is still early. My family doesn't need to dig the ground either.'"

  I asked Deadwood: "What's the point of going down? The little Japanese devils' guns are accurate, you've seen it yourself, why do we need to go down?"

  "What's to be done? Now whoever sticks their head out gets shot." Dead or alive, they asked me back.

  I stared at him for a while, I didn't believe he was such an idiot, but you never know, sometimes people with a twisted mind can be really stubborn.

  I suggested: "Grenade! Let's just throw a grenade down there."

  That guy's praise always makes me feel like I'm in a trap, "Right, right. You throw. You throw."

  Not spicy, jumping forward, "I throw I throw. My back comes with me throw."

  He was so enthusiastic because he was the one who brought the most hand grenades among us. We called him, in his protest, seven or eight people rushed to grab his hand grenades and took away more than half of them, and he desperately protected the remaining few, and even grabbed the second one before the confused dragon and threw it down the cliff. The drop was very large, we almost didn't dare to let the hand grenade stay in our hands for too long, letting it fall straight down. We heard the explosion and screams coming from below.

  Then the infantry heavy firepower on the South Heaven Gate began to shoot at us, and the uncorrected 92-type cannon shells exploded tens of meters away.

  We took a look back, those sturdy soldiers who thought they were very powerful now all lay down, staring at us in terror.

  "Get down! Get down! Dig individual foxholes! Connect them into a line! Dig communication trenches!"

  This is what they're good at, and in the blink of an eye, the land behind us was quickly turned into a wasteland. Hoes, shovels, and rakes were flying again, with mud and grass leaves splashing everywhere.

  We old guys haven't been hiding, and after a whole day of consumption, the Japanese army's firepower is now somewhat insufficient, not at all on the same level as what we used to encounter. We can take advantage of the night to continue doing our thing on the cliff edge.

  "Come on, come on, hurry up!" "Throw it! Why aren't you throwing?"

  I looked at him suspiciously, threw another one, and at the same time as the grenade exploded, I leaned against the edge of the cliff to look down at the riverbank. This time, the remaining Japanese troops below did not fire back, no matter how good their marksmanship was, they couldn't shoot while constantly being bombarded with grenades.

  I retreated with a scowl, "There's a dead angle below! Shamelessly shrinking into an unreachable corner!"

  He said: "They were also the elite of the Japanese army."

  "What's 'also are' supposed to mean? Are we what you're talking about?" I asked him.

  Hehe, he's enjoying himself right next to me. He says leisurely, "If it were me, I wouldn't have thrown a single stone from the start. First, I'd get an oil barrel, fill it with dozens of kilograms of explosives, a few bundles of hand grenades, and dozens of kilograms of broken glass and rusty nails. Then, throw it down. Boom! At least half would be dead and half crippled, and that's how you achieve peace."

  We stared at him, and it was just him who could come up with such a lame excuse. The problem is that he brought it up now.

  "I said discontentedly: 'Why didn't you say so earlier?! Now look at us, we're all messed up and the ones below are all turtling, even the gasoline barrels can't be blown up!'"

  Die lah die lah, as if he hadn't heard, gave orders to those shovel-wielding guys: "Dig deeper first, cover the top with wooden planks, then dig through!"

  "You're doing it on purpose." I said.

  Die die ignore me. Then ordered those people, "Disperse a bit!"

  A Da turned his mind around. Finally, he came up with an idea that wasn't a bad one: "We have to send someone to block the riverbank, or they'll run into the forest and be hard to find."

  "No way. The riverbank is bare and will be targeted by the west bank."

  I reminded him, "It's evening now, can you see clearly on the opposite side?"

  "It doesn't matter anyway."

  I stared at him suspiciously, "What exactly do you want to do?"

  He ignored us again, watching those digging potatoes like a bystander watching farmers at work - they were now the busiest people on the battlefield.

  The corrected Japanese artillery began its second round of firing and has already put pressure on our positions at Jihua Slope.

  Chapter Sixteen

  It was already night, and the shells were exploding sporadically on both banks, harassing rather than suppressing. Our two heavy machine guns fired blindly into the darkness, rat-a-tat-tat, boom-boom-boom.

  Nor did I know who shouted: "Veterinarian, you have business!"

  The old man carried his three medical boxes on his back and walked along the newly dug simple trench with a cat's waist.

  The new recruits are like moles, digging the trenches deeper and deeper. The shells may be sparse, but they make us want to burrow into the ground. We old guys huddle together in a heap. I look at you, you look at me, feeling a bit depressed. Midge somehow got hold of some tobacco and rolled cigarettes with newspaper, we take turns smoking them.

  We have casualties because we have hundreds of fools who won't hit the dirt unless you yell at them, and always think they can outrun a shell by running two more steps.

  The Japanese army under our feet is still alive. Our main achievement was to connect the scattered trenches into a simple trench, and most of my comrades were good at digging earth rather than fighting.

  "Old Zhang said: 'What if I hang a box of explosives down with a rope?'"

  I let him dispel this idea early on. "Even if he could blow it up, he would have blown you up long ago."

  The snake's fart suggests starving them to death.

  "Long said: 'If Lao Zi's machine gun is now on the riverbank, blocking them from entering the forest, that would starve them to death. But Lao Zi is here.'"

  "General, what is he thinking?"

  Krupp said "I don't know" and continued sleeping.

  A cigarette was handed to me, I held it hesitantly for a moment, wondering if I should change from a non-smoking cripple to a smoking one. Just then, someone gave me a strong kick and the cigarette fell to the ground. In anger, I turned around and cursed: "Are you blind in one eye?"

  That guy was even more fierce than me, and with a strong push, I hadn't stood firm yet when I fell to the ground again. When I saw clearly who that guy was, I understood the reason for his rough behavior - he was He Shuguang, who had never been in a good mood towards us.

  "If it weren't for being on the front lines, I'd whip you with a lash. Where's your squad leader?"

  I saw clearly who was behind him and completely gave up the idea of being stubborn again, it was Yu Xiaoqing, Tang Ji and his guards.

  "Inspecting the traffic trench."

  He Shuguang said briefly: "Take the road."

  My dog friends are hiding on one side, and they can't wait to stick themselves on the wall like a painting, just to let those guys with gloomy faces pass by.

  Tang Ji called out to A Yi, "Lin, lead the way, let's go together."

  So Ah Yi had no choice but to follow. I honestly led the way, listening to He Shu Guang muttering softly behind me: "What kind of ghostly battle is this?"

  Yu Xiaoqing and the Old Master of Heaven collaborated, crushing the Japanese military's offensive before coming to inspect us. It turned out that the supplies he had promised us were somewhat reduced, a few grenade launchers, several light machine guns, and another half-dead strong battalion. For a cannon fodder unit that hadn't been used all day, he was indeed keeping his promise, but Yu Xiaoqing didn't make this trip to show off his integrity. Even a blind person could see that he came looking for trouble.

  The communication trench is behind the half-body trench on the front line. My team's ability to deal with the muddy soil is truly breathtaking. This evening, they have already dug a small section to head height, and are now directing people to add protective woodwork.

  His expression when he saw us was not much better than mine when I saw Yu Xiaoqing. To put it bluntly, Yu Xiaoqing's current expression would probably make Maitreya Buddha change his smile to a crying face, and even from a distance, it was like his usual concrete nail-like piercing gaze.

  Yu Xiaoqing knew it was intentional and asked: "What's going on?"

  "Reporting to the commander, currently building defenses." Dead dead report.

  Yu Xiaoqing said coldly, "I don't care about your skills in digging tunnels. The cowhide has been blown to the sky, that's a paper airplane, it can't hold people, now you've fallen to the bottom. The horizontal mountain array has already annihilated the enemy army, you are the only defensive line of the entire division that was breached by the enemy, and moreover, until now, they have not been annihilated. How many Japanese troops are under your position? A division?"

  "About forty or fifty."

  "Why can't you eat?" Yu Xiaoqing asked.

  Die, die, just be silent. I'd rather watch Tang Ji right now, I know that guy is very sly, but that one face, even if it's fake, is more pleasant and friendly than Yu Xiaoqing's iron face.

  Tang Ji attempted to ease the atmosphere, "Shifu told me that Long Team Leader is taking the initiative."

  Yu Xiaoqing didn't take the hint at all, "What's the use of that! Even a headless fly would take the initiative to attack!"

  "This group of soldiers I have, just a few hundred people, the ones who have really fought in battles are probably less than one company. To say something that might offend you, if we were to order a soldier to fire at the enemy position right now, I guarantee that the soldier would wet his pants before firing."

  Yu Xiaoqing's face was stern, "You overestimate your troops. I can guarantee that when you give this order, those guys will be pissing their pants - are you saying that a group of people who have the upper hand can't even handle a few dozen defeated soldiers? Let me get Zhang Lixian to bring over the special forces unit, and you clean up these scattered remnants before they jump into the Nujiang River."

  "With just the few people who have fought before, it's enough to take them down. I mean, if those devils from the other side of the river come over again like today, and we send new recruits up to hold them off, that'll be the end of the whole battalion. Now, with only a few dozen Japanese soldiers who won't retreat, I have the whole battalion take turns going up, and the estimated losses are less than one company, but the new recruits will learn how to fight." Deadwood said.

  Yu Xiaoqing couldn't quite believe his ears, "You're saying... take it slow?"

  "Take it easy."

  That was not a negotiation, because Yu Xiaoqing's face turned blue with rage, while Tang Ji's smile became more and more gentle. I don't know which threat is greater, but now it seems that he doesn't want to die at all.

  Tang Ji let out a hearty laugh. "Well said, well said! Director Lin, come with me to take a look at your formation."

  I glanced at the corner of my eye, and Tang Ji was quite familiarly putting his arm around A Yi's shoulder, and the two of them walked along the communication trench.

  It makes sense to say it twice, but it becomes nonsense when added with Yu Shi's facial expression and Tang Vice's smile. I'm going to kill you. Even a deaf person can figure it out, Tang Ji called A-Yi over to know each other's strengths and weaknesses, we all tacitly understand, A-Yi has been reporting on the poor performance or bad behavior of others in an unscrupulous manner.

  After Tang Ji walked away, Yu Xiaoqing's face became more vibrant. He finally looked at him with a gaze that seemed to say "you're dead", and the pent-up anger finally began to stir up.

  "He asked: 'Do you think I owe you something?'"

  Dead dead looks a bit inexplicable, "what's owed?"

  "The Battle of the South Heaven Gate has nothing to do with me, and I never thought of taking credit for your achievements. But if the higher-ups want to praise Wang Ma Zi, they will manage to attribute all the good things done by Zhang San Li Si to Wang Ma Zi... Don't be dissatisfied and cause trouble because of this, or else the last bit of respect I have for you will also disappear."

  Dead dead resolutely deny having discontented heart.

  Yu Xiaoqing: "What are you doing, stirring up trouble again?!"