Chapter 40: "China is really a big muddy pit!"

  At this time, Duanzi and Huang Xintian sent the two female soldiers to a safe place and rushed back to find Old Yang. The two of them ran wildly on the mountain road, and when they almost reached the high point, they saw the scene of the old man and child sacrificing themselves. They couldn't help but cry tears like rain. Huang Xintian wanted to rush up and fight the devils, but was tightly held back by Duanzi.

  Qin Zhiyong also heard the explosion and looked nervously towards a distant high point, where smoke billowed.

  The blast wave from the grenade explosion knocked Iwai and Kuroda to the ground, with debris, broken guns, and clods of earth raining down on them. The two struggled to their feet, staring in stunned silence at the carnage before them.

  "Q... Captain, shall we continue the pursuit?"

  Iwai stood there in a daze, looking around at the wounded soldiers and Japanese corpses, and said shakily, "Let's go back."

  Kuroda led the troops down the mountain, and Iwai walked a few steps before stopping again. He looked back at the scattered piles of flesh and blood, then gazed out at the distant cliff.

  The warriors and cultural workers of the reconnaissance squad sat in the dense forest to rest, the members bandaged the wounds for the wounded reconnaissance squad, Qin Zhiyong and Zhou Guangren anxiously looked into the distance, both of them worried about Old Yang's safety.

  Dongzi and Huang Xintian returned with heavy footsteps, Qin Zhiyong and Zhou Guangren looked back at the two, didn't see Old Yang, Qin Zhiyong's heart sank.

  Zhou Guangren ran forward and asked the two: "Where is Old Yang? Are you just the two of you?"

  The two of them hung their heads and squatted silently under the tree.

  "Speak up! What's going on? Where's Old Yang?"

  Duanzi lifted his head and saw Qin Zhiyong's gaze, wanting to speak but hesitating. Huang Xintian had already burst into tears.

  Qin Zhiyong felt dizzy and stumbled forward two steps, his body swaying precariously as he nearly fell over.

  Qin Zhiyong's heart had already understood that he would never see Old Yang again...

  Under the moonlight, Zhāng Zuò and Huáng Xìn Tián led a few soldiers to collect the bodies of the fallen warriors on the high ground.

  Qin Zhiyong stood silently in front of the remains of Old Yang and Xiao Yu, suppressing his grief. His voice was hoarse as he said to Zhou Guangren beside him: "Carefully gather them up and bury the two together."

  Zhou Guangren nodded with tears in his eyes.

  Qin Zhiyong finished speaking and walked away silently. Shu Zi looked at Qin Zhiyong's back with some concern.

  At this time, Qin Zhiyong just wanted to sit alone for a while, he walked under a tree and sat down, the figure of Old Yang kept appearing in front of his eyes, and the voice of Old Yang echoed in his ears:

  "A rookie like you won't last three days... When the battle starts, follow me and watch what I do... There are no generals who can't fight, only old soldiers who can't fight..."

  "You've got skills! Not a waste of teaching you. From now on, it's all up to your own luck. Having fought one battle and not dying makes you a veteran..."

  "Wow, I heard you've become the class monitor..."

  "In the depths of the mountain, the night bird cries, a lone girl under a solitary lamp thinks of her brother. In an empty room, a cold bed, a lonely sleep, what can be done..."

  "Paichang, you're our backbone now, what are we supposed to do if you're like this..."

  "Take the third squad to escort the cultural troupe and retreat to the rear mountain quickly! The second squad follows me..."

  Zhou Guangren and several soldiers were collecting and identifying the remains of Old Yang and Xiao Yu, throwing the obvious Japanese soldier's remains far to one side.

  The little monk picked up a wine gourd half buried in the soil.

  Qin Zhiyong pulled out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, took out a match, and his hand trembled. The match fell to the ground. Zhang walked over with a wine gourd, picked up the match, and lit Qin Zhiyong's cigarette for him.

  Qin Zhiyong took a deep drag on his cigarette.

  "Shan Zi: 'Pai Chang, are you okay?'"

  Qin Zhiyong rubbed his face and forced himself to say calmly: "It's okay, sit for a while."

  Duanzi handed the wine gourd to Qin Zhiyong: "It's Old Yang, this one is still relatively intact..."

  Qin Zhiyong took over the wine gourd, looked at it, stroked it, his eyes turned red, and his eye sockets were filled with tears.

  At this time, Zhou Guangren ran over and saw Qin Zhiyong's sad look, wanting to speak but hesitating.

  "What's wrong?" he asked in a low voice.

  Zhou Guangren pulled the stretcher to one side, lowering his voice: "Can't be salvaged, two people were blown to pieces, and there's still enemy flesh inside, can't be separated..."

  Qin Zhiyong suddenly stood up, threw away the cigarette butt, and roared at Zhou Guangren: "Divide it or not, we must divide!" He pointed at Zhou Guangren with his hand and rushed over, cursing and crying, "If you dare to mix in a piece of ghost's minced meat, I'll kill you!"

  Duanzi hugged Qin Zhiyong tightly, and Qin Zhiyong buried his head in Duanzi's shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably.

  Zhuāng zi beckoned to Zhou Guangren with his hand: "Hurry up and go."

  Zhou Guangren hastily turned around and ran away, the soldiers all silently stood there, watching their squad leader from afar.

  Under the moonlight, Qin Zhiyong led the warriors to stand in a row before the tomb.

  Qin Zhiyong raised his hand in salute to the tomb, shouting: "Salute!"

  The warriors all raised their hands in unison and saluted the martyr's tomb.

  Qin Zhiyong: "The ceremony is over!"

  The valley echoed with Qin Zhiyong's strong and firm command.

  Japanese army outpost, dusk.

  The squad leader's room was dark, and Iwai sat alone at the desk drinking, the sound of the hand grenade explosion still echoing in his ears. The scene of the old and young couple standing upright, as well as the two female soldiers holding hands and jumping off the cliff with determination, lingered before his eyes for a long time.

  Iwai couldn't help but shudder and muttered to himself: "He's really ready to die."

  He picked up his wine cup and put it down again, calling in the guard at the door to have Kuroda summoned.

  At this time, in the barracks, Kuroda Mitsuru was sitting cross-legged on his bed with a bandage wrapped around his shoulder and a cigarette dangling from his mouth. He stared blankly at the white cloth-wrapped coffin box in front of him, on which were written the two characters "Kojima".

  The guard came in and bowed to Kuroda: "Report! The captain is calling for you."

  Kuroda hastily extinguished the cigarette in his mouth in the ashtray, picked up his clothes and put them on, and ran to the entrance of the dormitory.

  "Report!"

  A weak voice came from inside the room, "Come in."

  Kuroda pushed open the door and went in. Iwai steeled himself: "Kuroda, come here."

  Kuroda walked up to the desk and stood at attention.

  Iwai: "Your wound—"

  Kuroda: "Nothing much, sir."

  Iwai nodded: "Sit down."

  Kuroda sat down nervously, and Iwai handed him a cup of sake.

  Iwai Tanji raised his sake cup: "Kuroda, let's have a drink together."

  Iwai took a swig of liquor from his cup and Kuroda, as if favored, hastily picked up the wine glass with both hands and drank it in one gulp.

  Iwai: "Kuroda, how many years have you been following me?"

  Kuroda: "It's been over four years, sir, since our first battle in Changsha."

  Iwai: "Do you want to go home? You can retire now."

  Kuroda stammered: "I-I like the army, Captain-sama you know, I don't have any relatives, apart from being a soldier, I'm good for nothing..."

  Kuroda poured sake for Iwai and also for himself.

  Iwai stood up and drained his cup in one gulp, saying dejectedly: "Changde has been recaptured by the enemy again, all our previous efforts have been wasted."

  Kuroda: "Captain, the elites at Tokyo headquarters will surely have a way to deal with this..."

  Iwai interrupted him: "Tokyo? Tokyo has already been bombed by the US military."

  Kuroda's mouth opened wide in surprise: "What---Tokyo---bombed---when?"

  Iwai said faintly: "Last year."

  Kuroda was even more surprised: "B-but we didn't know that――"

  "How could I let you know, fools!"

  Kuroda: "Didn't they say Japan would never be bombed by the enemy? We have Admiral Yamamoto, he'll think of a way to deal with the American army, won't he?"

  Iwai: "Commander Yamamoto has also fallen. The Imperial Navy suffered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Midway."

  Kuroda: "What? Even Yamamoto-sama..."

  Iwai sneered, "Yamamoto-sama? Ha! He's just a gambler." Iwai stood up irritably and walked to the window, gazing outside. "It's been six years since the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, and those Chinese are getting bolder by the day, killing more people every day! But our military resources are getting tighter and tighter, and domestically, they've decided to lower the draft age to 15! China is a bottomless pit!"

  Kuroda: "The staff at Headquarters will think of something - General Sugiyama will..."

  Iwai suddenly turned around, glaring at Kuroda and shouting in a rage: "Three months! Who was the idiot who said three months would be enough to solve the China problem? Three months to conquer this country? Who?"

  Iwai suddenly burst into a mad laugh, grabbed the wine bottle and took a big gulp of wine. He staggered to his feet, walked to the map on the wall, and struck it with the scabbard of his sword, laughing wildly: "The staff officers at headquarters, those elite of the empire, they just stand in front of the map, pointing and gesturing, haha! They're all just dots and lines, all just dots and lines! The fate of Japan is actually controlled by these foolish guys! Haha!"

  Rocky Iwata stumbled and fell to the ground, dead drunk.

  Kuroda hastily got up and helped Iwai to his feet, consoling him: "Captain, we still have the spirit of warriors, the Yamato spirit is invincible, and Great Japan is a divine country!"

  "Iwai muttered to himself: 'Yes, Great Japan is a divine country, a divine country! Kuroda, you truly are a loyal and brave warrior of the Empire... You still haven't forgotten that we are a divine country.'"

  Kuroda helped Iwai sit down in a chair and asked cautiously, "Sir, would you like another drink?"

  Iwai rubbed his temples with his hands and smiled wryly: "Let's not drink anymore, we've had too much. Let's drink together again at Yasukuni Shrine."

  National Army Garrison

  In the barracks, Duanzi, Huang Xintian and Zhou Guangren all sat on the bed with their heads down, Huang Xintian still holding the sniper scope given by Old Yang.

  At this time, a young cowherd came in with a pole on his shoulder and excitedly shouted: "The Dragon Boat Festival is here!"

  Everyone exchanged glances with each other, and everyone put on a forced smile.

  "Has Little Cow arrived? Is there anything delicious?"

  The young bull took out dishes and wine from the food box: "I heard you're coming back, I've prepared everything early, with wine and meat."

  The calf arranged the wine dishes and bowls on the table, but everyone sat still without moving.

  The calf asked in surprise: "What's wrong? Aren't you hungry?" He looked around and said, "Where is Uncle Yang?"

  "Yang Shu... ah... Yang Shu... he went on a mission."

  Huang Xintian and Zhou Guangren echoed: "Right, right, right, Old Yang has gone on a mission."

  "What's the task?"

  Zhang mouthed silently and secretly poked Huang Xintian: "What's the task?"

  "Ah, it's a secret mission, a secret mission."

  "Calves: "Oh, when is he coming back?""

  "This... it's hard to say, maybe one or two months, or maybe a year and a half."

  "Ah? What task is it, taking so long?"

  Zhou Guangren hurriedly took out the Wang Ba box he had obtained from under his pillow and said to Little Cow: "Little Cow, this is what your Uncle Yang asked me to bring to you, take it!"

  "Calves were shocked and delighted: 'King Baohua box! Hurry up and give it to me!'"

  The little cow grabbed the gun and held it in his hand, admiring it lovingly. He raised the gun and mimicked the sound of gunfire with his mouth: "Bang---bang---"

  Young Ox asked Zhou Guangren: "Uncle, what does 'jiāo qiāng bù shā' mean?"

  Zhou Guangren taught him in Japanese: "Surrender and you will not be killed."

  The young cow pointed his gun at Huang Xintian and said in broken Japanese: "Surrender and I won't kill you."

  Huang Xintian forced a smile and raised his hands in surrender: "I'm defeated, I'll work hard."

  The calf laughed happily and suddenly remembered to ask Zhou Guangren: "Uncle, are there bullets?"

  Zhou Guangren handed him another magazine, and Xiao Niu inserted the gun into his waist and said happily: "I'm leaving!"

  The calf carried a cartridge case, shouldered the burden, and ran out of the camp in a flash, almost bumping into Qin Zhiyong who was walking into the camp.

  The young calf saluted Qin Zhiyong and ran off, singing as he went: "With a small knife in hand, charge into the battlefield. One knife beheads the traitor! One gun shoots at the Eastern Ocean! Not afraid of being young, only afraid of not resisting! Blow the small trumpet, da-da-da-da..."

  Qin Zhiyong slowly walked up to the table and looked at the motionless dishes, saying: "These days we haven't had a good meal, let's eat something."

  Still no one moved, Qin Zhiyong sat down at the table, picked up a steamed bun and put it in his mouth, took a bite, but found it hard to swallow.

  At this moment, the door was suddenly kicked open and Old Cao rushed in with a machine gun.

  Old Cao shouted happily: "Haha! Brothers! Old Cao is back! I thought you were all dead! Good, you're all drunk!"

  Lao Cao put the machine gun on the ground, jumped onto the kang, sat down cross-legged, picked up a steamed bun and started eating. While eating, he excitedly said: "Squad leader, that Huang Mao has been safely sent away, and even kissed me goodbye, it's really disgusting. Lao Huang, Er Gui Zi, how are you guys doing? I didn't deceive a little girl from the literature and art troupe, I'm so envious of you guys..."

  Old Cao suddenly found that everyone was depressed and couldn't help but wonder: "What's wrong? Why are you all like eggplants hit by frost?" He glanced around at each person, his eyes stopping on Old Yang's wine gourd on the bed. He picked up the gourd and shook it, then threw it back onto the bed. "Where's Old Yang? Where did that old rascal run off to? Did he go find Little Cow's mother again? That old scoundrel..."

  Lao Cao stopped talking and looked at everyone vigilantly.

  "Old Yang——"

  Zhuāngzi couldn't say anything more. Zhou Guangren and Huang Xintian also lowered their heads.

  Lao Cao slowly put down the steamed bun, his eyes scanning each person. After a long while, he picked up the wine jug and poured himself a bowl of wine, took it up and drank a mouthful. He stared at the wine in the bowl: "Speak up, what's with Lao Yang? Is he showing off?"

  Zhou Guangren also picked up the wine jug and poured himself a bowl of wine, took a sip, and choked back tears: "Old Yang, we agreed to come back and drink together, why did you leave?"

  Zhou Guangren burst into tears, and Shu Zi and Huang Xintian also wiped away their tears.

  Old Cao stared at Qin Zhiyong, who glanced at Old Cao and said with a heavy heart: "Lao Yang... he's not coming back..."

  Lao Cao was stunned for a while, slowly picked up the wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp. Then he picked up the wine jug and poured another bowl, then slowly poured it on the ground.

  Zhou Guangren was still sniffling, and Old Cao said in a low voice, "Don't cry, Second Ghost, there's no war without casualties."

  Zhou Guangren's crying grew louder and louder.

  Old Cao was furious: "What a bunch of nonsense! Stop acting like a woman!"

  Zhou Guangren stopped crying.

  Lao Cao sighed and said, "It's all come to this! What was it that Sun Zi said? 'A clay pot will eventually break at the well's edge, a soldier will inevitably die on the battlefield.' Come! Bring me the wine! If Old Yang were still with us, he wouldn't want to see us crying like this."

  Qin Zhiyong picked up the wine jug and poured a bowl of wine for everyone. Everyone raised their wine bowls.

  Old Cao held up his wine bowl and choked with sobs: "Old buddy, farewell! Cheers!"

  Everyone shouted in unison: "Cheers!"

  Everyone emptied the wine in their bowls, Old Cao put down his bowl and wiped his mouth: "Old Huang, what was that song you were singing? Sing another one."

  Huang Xintian sat still and didn't move.

  Lao Cao: "For Old Yang - sing one."

  Huang Xintian picked up the wine jug, "glug glug glug" and drank the remaining wine in one gulp. Then he slowly got up, staggered to the front of the Buddhist altar, clasped his hands together in prayer, and then jumped up and started dancing the Tujia funeral dance, singing as he danced:

  "Human life is hard to escape from the cycle of birth and death."

  Even with spirit, it is still not solid.

  Like plum blossoms struck by lightning

  Like tender flowers being swayed by the wind.

  Forget it, forget it, just forget it.

  Life is like a spring grass.

  Ordinary spring grass, who doesn't age?

  The green is high and the blue is higher.

  ……”

  Old Cao picked up Old Yang's wine gourd and muttered to himself: "Old buddy, I won't let you die in vain."

  Lao Cao and Zhou Guangren stumbled down from the bed, imitating Huang Xintian's footsteps, and jumped up together...