The fire grew bigger and bigger, finally covering the entire east wall of the second floor and beginning to advance towards the ceiling beams.
Four naked men were huddled near the stairs near the west wall. Coats, trousers, hats, leggings, cloth shoes, underwear, etc. were hung around them, and some were holding them in their hands and fanning themselves.
Wang Laokou, who was sitting a little closer to the front, finally couldn't stand it anymore and kept moving back. "Cough, cough, I can't bear it anymore, it's not just the heat, cough, cough, why is there so much smoke? Big guy, stop fanning your pants, you bastard, hurry up and get some water to put out the fire. Mom, please let me pass, I have to go downstairs to take a breath and cool down."
Zhao Yong leaned against the wall comfortably, the fire was burning fiercely on the other side, and the wall was hot, making Zhao Yong hum with comfort. "Well, platoon leader, you are asking for trouble by getting so close, I think the fire is just right now, cough cough, the cold air from the night is now coming out, ah my ah my - this is so cold! cough cough."
"Platoon leader, should we water now or wait?"
"Damn it, it's up to you whether you want to water it or not, I don't care. Ahem, I need to take a breath first. Ouch, it's much cooler now that I'm downstairs."
Seeing that Wang Lao was walking downstairs with his bare bottom, he just ignored him. The big guy couldn't help but ask Hu Yi beside him: "Hu... Brother Hu, what do you think?"
The big guy and Hu Yi looked to be about the same age. He originally wanted to call Hu Yi by his name, but for some reason, when facing Hu Yi, he couldn't help but feel shorter, as if he owed Hu Yi a lot of money and felt insecure. He didn't know why, but he just called him "brother".
Hu Yi shook off his half-dried leggings and looked up at the fire. "It doesn't matter. Didn't the platoon leader say it doesn't matter if it burns down?"
After hearing Hu Yi's feedback, the big man lowered his raised buttocks and sat down steadily. He continued to wave his shorts in his hands, shielding himself from the scorching flames from time to time. His face and body were covered with sweat, and he would not be able to do it without something in his hands to block it. The clothes hanging around him were sizzling under the blazing flames, and the steam rose up, merging with the black smoke that filled the ceiling, and then drifted out along the broken windows and bullet holes. It rolled into a thick black smoke column, floating over Desheng Port.
The silly boy searched the area thoroughly, but only found twelve sweet potatoes. He found two eggs in an empty chicken coop, which were probably left behind by someone who ran away. He put the eggs in his pocket and was wondering if he should go somewhere else. Suddenly, he saw thick smoke coming out of a small building two alleys away. The fire had already spread out of the wall on one side and reached the house. He panicked immediately and ran back. As soon as he entered the door, he felt a wave of heat in the shop, and saw a person sitting on the stairs, naked, with a dark face that could not be seen clearly. The silly boy was so scared that he tightly grasped the bag of sweet potatoes in his hand, quickly stepped back a few steps, leaned against the door frame, and was ready to escape at any time.
"What the hell are you looking at, you little bastard? Come in quickly and dry your wet clothes first."
"Platoon leader?"
The silly boy climbed up to the second floor with his clothes on his bare bottom. Wow! It was so hot and choking. He raised his arm to block the burning fire and said, "Ahem, it's too hot. Wouldn't it be more convenient to light the stove downstairs? Ahem."
This statement awakened the three grown men. They looked at each other's black appearance and couldn't help but grin.
In a moment—
Silly boy: "Brother Hu, why are these sparks falling from above?"
Big guy: "The fire is coming from the beams! Of course it's falling from above. Ahem. Damn..."
Hu Yi: "Calm down, pass me the water, express water. Quick!"
Zhao Yong: "Oh my god, my hair... let me get down first."
Wang Laokou: "Stupid! Take off all your clothes first."
…
The fog dissipated, and the entire Desheng Harbor became clear. The long-lost sunlight began to shine through the gaps in the clouds, bringing a feeling of unreality, as if nothing had happened.
Near noon, the gunfire at the dock finally died down and gradually returned to calm. This vanguard of the Japanese army consisted of only one squadron of more than 200 people. Since they were not blocked along the way, they left the main force far behind and marched quickly with light equipment. It was reasonable for them to stop after reaching the south bank of the Huangpu River and collect the ferry in advance, but they thought that the Chinese army was in retreat. They did not bring any heavy weapons, only a few Type 99 rifles and grenade launchers, and crossed the Huangpu River directly, wanting to occupy the north bank dock first to provide convenience for the follow-up troops, but they did not expect that there would be Chinese troops coming head-on at this time. After the second and third battalions arrived at the river bank, they basically controlled the situation with a charge from both sides, and eliminated the remaining enemies with losses close to the same proportion. Desheng Port now completely belongs to the 638th Regiment.
Twelve sweet potatoes and two eggs were buried in the ashes on the second floor of the small building and roasted. Wang Laokou and Hu Yi each took three sweet potatoes, and the others each took two sweet potatoes. The two eggs went to the silly boy.
The second floor of the small building was completely burned down, and all the branches were black ashes, and there was still smoke. If Hu Yi and the big guy hadn't worked hard to put out the fire, the first floor would have been burned down along with the second floor. The reason why Hu Yi led the big guy to put out the fire was not to protect the people's property and lives, but to keep the first floor, which had been baked by the fire, warm, so that they could have a good sleep in it.
Later, it was proved that Hu Yi and the big guy's behavior was worth it. At this moment, the people in the third row had eaten and drunk their fill, washed their faces, and were sleeping soundly on the warm ground on the first floor. It was warm and cozy, just like the warm kang at home. As soon as they lay down on it, they felt intimate and safe, and didn't want to get up. The third row unloaded all their fatigue and sleepiness, turned over lazily, and used a dream to temporarily forget the cold and damp Jiangnan outside the wall.
Wang Laokou had a comfortable sleep. When he woke up, he found the big Zhao Yong and the silly boy were still snoring on the floor, and Hu Yi was sitting against the wall at the door, cleaning his gun.
"Xiao Hu, did you sleep well?"
"I slept well and woke up early."
After a moment of silence, Wang Laokou asked again, "What were you thinking about releasing the deserter?"
Hu Yi replied without even looking up: "What do you think? Just let him go. I let him go when I wanted to."
"Although this is against military law, I think you are doing the right thing."
Hu Yi stopped what he was doing, was silent for a moment, and said to Wang Laokou solemnly: "Brother Wang, I, Hu Yi, am not afraid of violating military law, but I have never sympathized with them. I let them go only because I was too lazy to shoot them. Do you believe it?"
Wang Laokou looked at Hu Yi's serious expression and deep yet calm eyes. He didn't know what to say for a moment. He couldn't guess Hu Yi's thoughts, but he could understand the meaning of this sentence. He could only reply with a half-understanding: "I believe it."
The atmosphere fell silent again, and Hu Yi continued to wipe the gun in his hand. However, the few words he had with Wang Laokou once again opened the floodgates of Hu Yi's memory...