The devils always have a purpose, whether it is for food or for the Eighth Route Army, the goal is their direction. I have no purpose, without a purpose how can there be a direction, only two legs.
The devils had everything, so they were always watching and thinking about it, but what about us? We had nothing but ruins.
Since joining the Eighth Route Army, it was the first time that Hu Yi seriously considered what the difference was between this inconspicuous and poor team and the Chairman’s mighty army.
Poverty, hardship, guarding the ruins, they run in circles, not in a straight line. Just like the 9th Platoon abandoning the wine station, the independent regiment abandoning Dabei Village, and Captain Wang leaving Niujia Village, they are all escaping, but the Eighth Route Army can come back at any time, even if it has been burned to ruins by the devils, they can come back, and they have never really left. Those ruins are the origin of hope! They are the supporting force!
This time, I didn't abandon the wine station! I didn't abandon Qingshan Village! That's why I didn't feel numb, so I felt pain, tired, and thirsty, because there was no despair of leaving the land in my heart, and I didn't have to face infinite strangeness.
These barren mountains look so beautiful, with gusts of autumn wind and rolling yellow sand. Their barrenness and ruggedness protect people in need of hope, like a mother's chest, allowing her children to cry as much as they want.
"Fox, why don't you speak? Hello? Hello? Hello?" Xiao Hongying picked up a small piece of dirt and threw it on the back of the one in front of her.
"Sister, I'm enjoying the scenery along the way." Hu Yi didn't look back and continued to follow the team.
Xiao Hongying, who had fallen to the end of the team, looked around at the barren hills with her big eyes and said, "What's so good about this? I don't believe it!" Then she threw a small clod of earth at the back of Hu Yi's shoulder. A cloud of smoke rose up and was quickly blown away by the wind.
The girl wanted Hu Yi to carry her on his back, but Hu Yi pretended not to know.
"I'm tired. Can't you see I can hardly keep up?"
"You're not going very fast, and your stamina shouldn't be that bad, right? Why don't you find a mule?"
"That shameless guy said, if I don't see the devil, I won't care about me!"
"… "
"You don't care about me either? I'll fall behind in a moment to show you!"
"Okay, okay, I'll carry them." Knowing that the little girl would not fall behind and had no bad intentions, Hu Yi still chose to surrender. He stopped and prepared to carry the two little braids on his back. At this time, the team in front also stopped.
After a while, Chen Chong, who was leading the way, trotted towards Hu Yi at the end of the team.
Looking up, he saw that it was almost noon. Without waiting for Chen Chong to stop, he asked, "Why did it stop?"
"Platoon leader, if the enemy comes from the north, they must pass through the valley ahead. If we go out of the valley and continue forward, it will be difficult to determine where the enemy is coming from. My opinion is that if we want to fight, we should find a position nearby."
Chen Chong was originally a subordinate of Wang Peng and was familiar with the situation and terrain here. This was also the most important reason why Hu Yi wanted him to lead the team.
…
An autumn breeze blew by, bringing with it flying sand and a cool breeze, occasionally forming a beautiful little vortex that drifted away.
A figure popped out from a high barren slope, holding a Type 13 telescope and looking far into the north.
After a while, another figure popped out from the side, a pair of pigtails swaying in the wind, holding a Type 93 telescope and looking far into the north.
After a while, a third figure appeared on the barren slope. It looked a little dull and wooden, looking around as if nothing had happened. It had a potato-like head and face.
"Isn't this a bit far?" Hu Yi asked.
"Well... it's OK, but the wind is a bit strong. It would be better if the distance was closer." The little girl replied.
"It's hard to get away if we get any closer. Once they climb up this slope, it will be long enough for the three of us to run away. Let's just leave it at that. If we can't catch them, forget it." Seeing that the area was bare, Hu Yi put down the telescope and said to Wu Shitou, "Fool, go dig up two bushes from the back."
"I want to see it too!"
"Okay, then you dig three bushes." Hu Yi raised the telescope again. Wu Shitou took off his rifle and placed it next to the little girl, then happily went down the back slope carrying the engineer shovel.
After carefully looking at the area where the target might pass, the little girl put down the telescope, took the rifle, pulled the bolt, checked the bullet, loaded it, and placed it in a convenient position. Then she picked up a small stone in front of her and scribbled on the sand out of boredom.
"Fox... Fox?"
"Yeah." Hu Yi lay there and continued to observe, waiting for the target to appear.
"You don't like vixens anymore, do you?"
"Who is the vixen?"
"What do you think?"
“…” Hu Yi pretended not to hear and just focused on the telescope.
"Hey, do you like Aunt Zhou now?" The little girl stopped painting and playfully threw the stone in her hand away.
"… "
"Pretend! Keep pretending! You can't do anything else but pretend to be confused!"
"… "
"Why was she there that night?"
"Show me the injury."
"Why don't you turn on the light to check the injury? Where's the bandage? I warn you not to say that the bandage was not found!"
"Can I...say she forgot to bring it?"
"Say it again—"
"So what do you want me to say?"
"Just tell me what the hell did you two do? She even went under the bed. Why is she so afraid of seeing people?"
"Auntie, little ancestor, the enemy may be here soon, have you measured the distance? The wind is strong!"
"Anyway, as you said, if you can't fight, forget it, why don't you just fight?"
"... Well... I... want to marry her, but the environment doesn't allow it, and she doesn't allow it either."
"So... what does this have to do with what you guys are doing?"
Hu Yi was completely devastated. Was this like playing the lute to a cow? Or was it just irrelevant? He couldn't help but think of Li Youcai's line: "You don't understand my world!"
…
Three bushes appeared on the barren slope, several meters apart.
Behind the bushes on the right, there was a telescope, and he whispered, "Don't get too close. It's best to do it before turning the corner. Are you sure?"
Behind the bushes in the middle was a Type 38 rifle. Behind the raised sight was a bright black pupil. A small braid on one side was tilted in the air, swaying in the autumn wind. "How can we be sure if we have to shoot from such a long distance? I have to wait until he turns around before I shoot."
There is a fool lying behind the bushes on the left, watching the fun, I won’t mention him.
"Then we'll fight at the corner. Even if you don't fight me, I'll pull you away."
"Oh, it's annoying! Stop nagging!"
A small group of Japanese soldiers, with a battalion of puppet soldiers, a team of nearly 400 people, came in a mighty and winding manner. The one leading the way was 100% the one who escaped last night. If this traitorous bastard could be defeated first, the Japanese soldiers behind him would have to search for the traces themselves, and their marching speed would inevitably be greatly reduced.
The beautiful big eyes behind the measuring tape narrowed smaller and smaller, and the petite body crouching behind the bushes was completely still, with only the small braid on the top of the head swaying in the wind.
The target in the telescope had begun to turn, and Hu Yi was anxiously waiting for the sound of gunfire. If he was shooting alone, he would not dare to shoot at any close range. He let the girl shoot from such a distance in the hope that he could take her to run calmly and safely later, because there was no Nine Platoons here, only the three of them.
Just as the target was about to turn the corner, the little braid swaying in the wind suddenly stopped.
Bang! In an instant, a gunshot rang out, clear and loud.
The little girl started to pull the bolt.
Hu Yi, who had not let go of the telescope, whispered, "It looks like he hit his leg!"
"You should have let him get closer, didn't you listen? I'll shoot him again!" With a bang, the second bullet entered the chamber, and the little girl began to aim again unwillingly.
While the enemy was hiding in panic, a Japanese soldier rushed out and tried to drag back the target who was holding his legs and screaming. Hu Yi heard the girl's mumbling and decided to wait for another shot.
Bang—the second gunshot.
"How's it going? Did you win this time?"
Putting away the telescope, Hu Yi pulled the little girl and slid down the slope: "It's hit, it seems to be that leg again."
Wu Shitou picked up the little girl's rifle and put it on his back, then slid down the slope in the smoke.
"How could it possibly go off track again? It's all your fault!"
…
Gu Dao was kind-hearted and wanted to lead the way for the invincible imperial army, but he was shot twice from 400 meters away, leaving two holes on one of his legs, which hurt so much that the traitor cried like a wolf.
Now he felt a little regretful. He might have to live with a limp for the rest of his life. He saw the Japanese bandaging him and getting a stretcher for him.
"Madam, I have told you the location. Can you let me go back first?" Looking at the injured leg that was bleeding continuously, the traitor asked in a tearful voice.
"It's okay, you'll be fine. I still need your guidance. You'll be safe if you walk in the middle of the team."
"… "
The team that had gone out to chase returned and reported that there seemed to be only three targets, and they had fled in panic to the northeast. The distance was too far and it was difficult to catch them in this mountainous area, so in order to avoid losing the big picture for the small, they turned back.
Then the team continued to make their way. The unlucky guy who had been shot twice in the leg was carried by the puppet soldiers and walked in the middle of the team, continuing his great cause of being a traitor and embarking on his glorious journey of blood and tears.
…
More than forty people lined up and hid behind a ridge. Ma Liang was hiding at one end of the team and observing, Chen Chong was observing at the other end, and the rest of the people all lay behind the ridge with their weapons in their arms, enjoying the northwest wind and basking in the sun.
A soldier from the third squad climbed up the beam, came behind Ma Liang, looked into the distance, and found nothing.
"What are you doing up here? Go back downstairs and stay quiet." Ma Liang, who was observing, scolded his men in a low voice.
The soldier was in no hurry to go down: "Squad leader, there were two shots in the distance just now. Do you think the girl killed the guide?"
Ma Liang was silent for a while. "If it's one shot, it might work. If it's two shots... not necessarily. If the first shot misses, you have to shoot again. But when you shoot again, the enemy will be hiding, which makes it harder to hit."
The soldier agreed with this and went down the slope obediently. Then he came to the second squad and saw that the second squad leader was quite far away. Then he poked a second squad soldier and said in a low voice, "Do you think the girl killed the guide?"
"With that girl's shooting skills, how could he survive? He must have been shot!"
"Then I say he's not dead. One grenade, do you dare to bet?"
"Let my squad leader listen and he will kick you to death!"
"Tsk—if you don't dare, then don't dare. Who are you trying to scare with your squad leader?"
The soldier from the second squad rolled his eyes at the soldier from the third squad and slammed his grenade: "If you dare to deny your debt, I will never let you go!"
Ma Liang's voice suddenly came from above: "The enemy is coming, no sound is allowed from now on!"
Chen Chong also sent a warning from the observation post at the other end. The soldiers put away their guns and stopped moving. At the same time, someone woke up the bear lying on its back...