I opened my eyes. It was the third day. The sky in the morning light looked pink and blue.
It was a bit chilly, and I couldn't help but tilt my head to look at the little girl curled up nearby to see if she was wrapped tightly in the blanket. She was still asleep, and her breathing sounded particularly pleasant against the background of the flowing stream.
Sitting up quietly, I saw the sentry standing on the high ground with a rifle on his back, half of his body glowing red in the sunset glow.
Take a deep breath, and the muscle pain of the past few days disappears, leaving only a vague soreness.
I leaned over the stream and felt a chill on my face that chilled my bones, waking me up completely.
He shook his hands, letting the stream water flow down his cheeks and wet his chest. He stood up and looked east. A ray of dazzling light had appeared among the clouds. He could not help but squint his eyes, and his whole face felt a little warm.
This was the most exhausting run I've ever had, and I was thirsty and had reached my limit. You could call it marching, moving, or retreating, all of which sound better than running away, but in the end it was still running.
Thinking about it carefully, I have already run across most of the mountains and rivers, past the ruins of the Great Wall, past the crying Central Plains, past the bloody Yangtze River, and into the mountains filled with smoke. I am still running after entering the mountains, and have been running until now.
I rested for three days and thought for three days, trying to find the answer about the end, but there was no end.
I had a dream last night. I was still running, being chased by bullets, stepping on blood, passing through the smoke, but I could never wait until the moment I was shot, and I could never fall down. I was tortured by the powerless running, unable to breathe, and there was no end. Later I realized that I had run in circles, round and round.
In the past, I felt colder and colder as I ran, until I was numb and had no feeling. Now… I have run to exhaustion, but I want to drink water, and I feel hot and my feet hurt. Why is this
Because the mountain is still the same mountain, the water is still the same water. The ruins of Qingshan Village, the ashes of the wine station, the waves of Hunshui River are still around me, in front of my eyes. I have run for so long and so far, but I have never parted with them. They are all there, but very quiet.
They must still be there! I was clearly awake, but I was afraid it was just a dream. I opened my eyes again to face the morning glow, and the light was even brighter. I felt a stinging pain in my eyes. I even had the urge to run back to the ruins to prove that the world was not the end of the world, so that I would no longer be afraid and lonely.
The reason for not being afraid of death is not because of bravery, but because of fear.
Immersed in the morning glow, I didn't hear the sentry shouting commands, nor the sound of hurried footsteps approaching.
“… Platoon Leader Hu, Platoon Leader Hu?”
"What's the matter?" Hu Yi spoke only after the soldier sent by Captain Wang stood in front of him.
The soldier was surprised. Didn't he hear what he had just said? He repeated, "Our company commander asked you to go over there quickly. We have something urgent to discuss with you."
The narrow figure under his thick eyebrows regained his calmness, took out his military cap from his pocket and put it on, and shouted to Ma Liang who was dazedly washing his face by the stream: "Notify the whole platoon to stand by."
…
After walking upstream along the stream for nearly ten miles, a large group of people resting appeared in sight. Hundreds of people gathered by this section of the stream. There were noisy whispers, coughs, and children crying. It didn't feel like morning at all.
Some soldiers mingled with the people, loudly persuading them, supporting them, and mobilizing them to evacuate.
A red-faced man in the uniform of the Eighth Route Army came towards him in a hurry. Hu Yi turned his gaze back and spoke before the other party came close: "What happened?"
"Some people said this morning that one person was missing. I guess he ran away last night." Wang Peng looked very bad.
"Investigated?"
"We've been checking all morning, and he must have escaped. We can only move him. I guess he must have run back the way he came. We should be seeing the Japanese soon now. If the Japanese want to come, they will arrive before dusk."
"What are your plans?"
"With so many people... we can't expect them to be moved quickly. I'm going to stay here. If it's really a traitor who reported the incident, the enemy will get here first. I'll try to ambush them and then capture them first." After speaking his mind, Wang Peng looked at Hu Yi. He hoped to get the support of the Ninth Platoon.
Attack the enemy head-on and then drag the enemy away. This is the job that the Ninth Platoon helped Secretary Qin do three days ago. It’s no big deal to do it again with Wang Peng. The problem is that this place is different from that place. The environment is different, the room for maneuver is not as big as there, and it is close to the enemy’s mopping-up advance line. If we are not careful, we will be really caught by the enemy, which will be dangerous.
Hu Yihu figured out something this morning. He couldn't tell what it was, but he just felt that today's morning glow was beautiful. Now he couldn't help but turn his head to look, but the sunlight had already jumped out of the mountain and the red color was gone.
Wang Peng couldn't understand this look: "You..."
"I will lead the ninth platoon to meet them."
"Go out and meet them? Do you want to fight?"
"Yeah. Since we're going to lure them anyway, wouldn't it be safer to lure them twice?"
Wang Peng thought about it for a moment and said, "Then you lead the ninth platoon to guard here, and I will lead the team over."
Hu Yi sighed softly: "The Ninth Platoon has fewer people and a smaller scale. If something unexpected happens, they have more chances than your large team. Besides, if the enemy is large in scale, your team will be more attractive here, so you should wait for them to tire themselves out. If that happens, you may have a harder time than me."
Including the two newly recruited militia squads, Wang Peng has nearly two hundred people under his command, and with the Ninth Platoon, there are more than two hundred people. In the eyes of the Japanese, it does not add much weight, and the attraction is the same. It is really better to let the Ninth Platoon take away some of them first.
Wang Peng accepted Hu Yi's proposal. He stretched out his hand seriously and shook hands with Hu Yi: "Take care!"
"Take care of yourself!"
When two people say goodbye like this, it seems more like they are blessing each other.
…
I am still running, but it is different from the past; because although I am running, I have not left; I am still here, although this place has become a ruin, but I am still here.
After passing the bushes and stepping over the fallen leaves, the nine rows of people by the stream were already ready. Every face in the sunlight looked new, even though they had runny noses and had not washed their faces, and even though the mules still had dissatisfied toad eyes, it could not erase the scenery in the narrow area.
He stepped on the stones, tightened his shoelaces, and waved his hands, but that group of idiots didn't react at all.
He deliberately darkened his face and asked, "Why don't you leave?"
"Brother, you haven't told me where you're going yet?"
"… "
"Boss Hu, you really didn't say that. Don't scare people like this!"
"To the north, Niujia Village."
"Squad leader, Class 2 wants to lead the team!" Runny Nose even held the compass in his hand, eager to use it to his advantage.
"Chen Chong."
"have."
"You're in front."
"yes."
Led by Chen Chong, Class 4 trotted out to the north, and the others followed in a row, forming a series of swaying young figures running towards the distant mountains.
He pulled the rifle onto his shoulder by the strap and couldn't help looking east again. It was bright blue. Then he followed the team and gradually became the 51st figure...