Autumn is here. It is not as hot as we imagined, but it is definitely not just right because it is still hot at noon and cool at night.
The mountain wind howled irregularly, occasionally disturbing the ripples on the water. The raft drifted across the river and came to rest on the south bank.
Sun Cui stepped onto the shore carefully, then turned around and waved to Ma Liang: "Okay, go back quickly."
"Sister Sun, how about I talk to the platoon leader and leave one squad to go with you?" Ma Liang, who was operating the raft, was not in a hurry to return.
"It's not necessary. We are all used to fleeing. We are familiar with this area and can afford to live here. Even though there are many old and weak people, people like me are actually a burden. You should go back soon."
Ma Liang looked at the villagers on the shore who were quietly packing up to set off, pushed the raft away from the shore, and waved to Sun Cui.
Sun Cui kept looking at the raft until it was almost in the middle of the river. Finally, she couldn't help but shout to Ma Liang, "Be careful!"
Although they were far away, Sun Cui could still see the handsome smile of that young man. She rubbed her hands on her lapels and turned to the villagers: "Let's not waste any more time. We'll leave this afternoon. The farther the better, the more desolate the better. Try not to take anything with you except food."
One villager said with a smile: "Sister Sun, you have the most stuff! Can I help you bury it?"
"Bah! Stop your evil ideas, you cripple. I can bury the body myself, I don't need your kindness!"
"Look, you are both the captain and the director, why are you speaking so harshly? Didn't you say something about the close relationship yesterday?"
"I said that it's the close relationship between the army and the people, not sharing the same bed with you!" Sun Cui's voice was very loud, and it caused a burst of laughter on the spot, instantly diluting the tense and solemn atmosphere.
…
When the raft reached the north bank, Ma Liang jumped off and ordered the nearby soldiers to dismantle the raft on the spot and cut the rope connecting the river, then hurriedly ran to the open space of the wine station.
The wooden house of Class 2 was burned down into ruins by Li Youde's men a few days ago. The wooden house of Class 1 was demolished to the point that only the frame and the broken roof were left. Now it looks like a cattle shed. Shi Cheng demolished it himself before Li Youde came, but the puppet army was too lazy to burn it after they arrived, so Class 1's idea succeeded. The foundation and the frame are still there, so it will be very easy to rebuild in the future. This was Class 1's plan.
The wooden house of the third squad was the most intact. Ma Liang led the third squad to douse the wooden house with river water over and over again on the first night before the puppet army arrived. The puppet army did not start a fire, so the squad survived. However, it is estimated that they will not be able to survive this raid by the Japanese.
The dormitory and kitchen of the 9th squad were burned to ashes, but the bunker was saved, and it is estimated that it can be saved in this raid. Because of the unscrupulous bear's weird idea, because he was lazy and didn't want to repair the bunker in the future, he blocked the shooting holes and entrance of the bunker with wooden boards, and then led the 9th squad to bury the bunker into a big tomb, and erected a monument in front of the tomb, which read: Sixteen nameless people died here. Li Youde's puppet soldiers actually believed the bear's lies!
The girl's stone house was also burned, but only the roof was burned, because stones don't catch fire. So she still lives here these days, and can look at the stars while sleeping. Fortunately, it didn't rain. At least she is happier than the soldiers who slept in the woods.
"Brother, Sister Sun said we don't need to worry about them."
The wooden table under the tree had been smashed into pieces. Hu Yi sat on a surviving broken bench and loaded bullets into the magazine one by one. He said without raising his head, "Got it."
Then Shi Cheng, Li Xiang and the others ran to the open ground with dust on their faces: "Everything that needs to be buried has been buried. The weapons and ammunition are upstream, and the tools and supplies are downstream. Platoon leader, when are we leaving?"
The last bullet was pushed in, and the stall was closed. Hu Yi stood up, straightened the shoulder strap of his bag, and looked around: "Everyone gather, get ready to go."
…
Just as the sun set, a group of puppet troops entered the mountain pass to the west. After a while, the Japanese appeared. At least one squadron formed a long line and marched towards the sunset. Behind them was another large group of puppet troops, which continued into the mountain.
The sweep began, and this sweep was not only carried out in Meixian, but also in various places, for both sweeping and food. Meixian was divided into two routes, one from Lvshuipu and Luoye Village to the west, and the other from Songjia Village in the south to the west, sweeping parallel to Wuming Village and then north, ending at Dabeizhuang and Xinghua Village, and then sweeping back to the city along the south bank of Hunshui River after the confluence, combing the entire Meixian territory.
At this time, the smaller the team, the fewer obstacles, and the easier it is to hide. The terrain in the mountains is complex, and it is not too difficult for the 51-man Ninth Platoon to survive the mopping-up period. A large number of the villagers in Jiuzhan Village were once bandits or their families. They are familiar with the environment and can find a place to hide, which saves the Ninth Platoon a lot of worry. Hu Yi's only worry is the regiment headquarters. There are many people in Dabei Village, and it is not easy to hide even if they know in advance that the Japanese are coming. The first and fourth companies are expected to suffer a lot. Poor Wu Yan, always doing this kind of work.
There were no people living in the barren mountains for dozens of miles to the north of Qingshan Village. It seemed like a good place to hide. As long as they brought enough food, they could hide in the barren mountains until the Japanese retreated. Hu Yi made up his mind and led the ninth platoon northward into the mountains.
…
Behind the distant mountains under the night sky, gunshots suddenly rang out, becoming more and more frequent until they turned into a violent storm.
The village was in chaos in the dark, with children crying, adults shouting and the elderly trying to catch chickens and drive away sheep.
A soldier panted heavily and ran in a panic under the moonlight. He rolled over the slope, fell across the river, and rushed into the noisy and chaotic village, shouting anxiously: "Secretary Qin, where is Secretary Qin? Secretary Qin..."
A middle-aged figure grabbed the running soldier and said, "I'm here!"
"The Japs are coming from the east! Let the villagers run quickly, we can't stop them!"
Secretary Qin turned around and shouted, "Xiao Liu, take the militia to Dongshan for support!"
The soldier said anxiously: "Don't support! We can't stop them, leave!"
"Okay. Okay. I'll take the villagers with me right away." Seeing the exhausted soldiers turning around and running out of the village again, Secretary Qin couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you going with me? I need help too!"
"I want to go back to the company!" The soldier's figure quickly disappeared in the panicked crowd and ran towards the dense gunfire again.
"Xiao Liu, take people to organize the evacuation of the wounded." Secretary Qin gave new orders to the militia and then began to organize the noisy crowd.
"Hurry up! Forget about those cumbersome things, go west and leave the village first. Folks, don't make a fuss, go west and leave the village first."
He shouted anxiously and seriously, but the village was still in chaos.
"Old Man Wu... stop chasing that sheep of yours and go away. I beg you, okay?"
"My whole family depends on this sheep, I have to take it with me no matter what!"
Hi... Secretary Qin stomped his feet and followed Old Man Wu to chase the sheep.
…
It was already daybreak, and hundreds of people in the valley were carrying large and small bags, chickens and sheep, and were walking slowly, exhausted.
Secretary Qin ran from the front of the team to the back, urging and encouraging everyone along the way, his voice as hoarse as the quacking of a duck.
"Xiao Liu, give me your gun and lead the way." They had only walked thirty miles after most of the night. The blocking company was in great danger. Secretary Qin made up his mind to lead the militia to cover their retreat and protect the people. If he didn't stop them, they would definitely not be able to escape.
Xiao Liu looked at the team struggling to move forward and sighed. He did not hand over his gun, but waved his hand to the people nearby: "Militiamen, follow me!"
"Xiao Liu, come back, I'll go!" Secretary Qin shouted tiredly with a hoarse voice, and chased after them for a few steps, but unfortunately the militiamen had already run far away.
…
As the sun cast a red glow on the barren mountains, the last gunshot disappeared in the distance behind us.
Secretary Qin stopped and turned around, his ordinary face with unshaven beard was reflected in the sun. He quietly faced the rising sun, as if he saw the soldiers and militiamen who fell in the distance. So he walked from the front of the team to the back again, and once again began to encourage every tired villager who passed by him with a hoarse voice, and he spoke to the end of the team without missing a single one.
"Secretary Qin, do you have anything to say?" asked a wounded soldier of the Eighth Route Army who was walking on crutches. The wounded soldiers could hear the gunshots just now, and all the militiamen who were left behind had died.
"I... want you... to leave the team with me." Secretary Qin kept looking to the east when he said this. He didn't dare to look at the wounded soldiers.
"All wounded, gather!" The wounded whispered to those nearby. They were all recovering from their injuries at the homes of their fellow villagers. In this situation, although they did not slow down the speed of the people, they were now unstoppable. If the enemy caught up with them, they would be killed. The wounded were also soldiers. They had to block without guns. Even if they threw stones or hugged the enemy's legs, they could delay them for a while.
None of the dozen or so wounded soldiers spoke, but they gathered together silently. Even the two most seriously injured climbed down from the stretcher and remained silent.
"Secretary Qin, you can't stay. If you stay, how far do you think the villagers without organizations can go?"
"I… "
The wounded gave a helpless smile: "What's the difference between dying earlier or later? We can feel better if we die in front, at least we won't feel like a coward."
The sad and powerless feeling made Secretary Qin's legs feel like they were filled with lead. He looked at the faces of every soldier carefully without saying a word.
"Let the villagers speed up. Those who can walk fast should go first. If they can't, let everyone disperse. As long as one person survives, we won't be considered a loser. Don't delay."
I walked heavily to catch up with the team with my back to the sun, not daring to look back because the rising sun in the east was too dazzling.
…
"Faster! Faster!"
But hundreds of elderly, weak and sick people with their families were already exhausted, so how could they move faster
"Those in front go first, you guys hurry up!"
But my third aunt and second uncle were still behind, and those walking in front kept stopping to wait.
"Don't follow the team anymore! Hide now if you can! Do you hear me?"
But the valley was long, the slope was steep, and there were many barren hills. How could the elderly and children climb up with their bags
Secretary Qin, who was completely desperate, found a stone, sat down, and with great difficulty dug out a little tobacco butt and a small piece of dirty paper from his pocket. He rubbed them together and gradually rolled them into a roll in his hand. After putting it in his mouth, he realized that he had no matches on him.
A sheep ran past him, and soon Old Man Wu staggered after it.
"Father Wu, why don't you just follow the sheep instead of carrying them on your back?"
There was a sudden commotion at the front of the team, and Secretary Qin was so frightened that he jumped up and looked west.
A team vaguely appeared at the end of the valley...