Wan Qiu, the translator sitting in the passenger seat, turned around and asked with a smile, "Do you need to get out of the car and take a walk?"
"No," Wei Ran waved his hand, "Let's keep going, let's go eat first."
Hearing this, Wan Qiu winked at the driver, who also slightly increased his speed.
In just over ten minutes, the car parked in the parking lot in front of a small Japanese restaurant.
Before opening the car door, Wei Ran glanced at the sign of this small shop. Thanks to the Japanese he learned when he first landed at Helen Reef, he could recognize it without any problems. The wooden sign had the words
The name "Shouta Izakaya" is written in Japanese. Under the sign, there is a small sign with a notice in English and Japanese saying "Our restaurant only provides Japanese service".
"Are there many Japanese food shops like this in Palau?" Wei Ran asked Wan Qiu, who had unbuckled his seat belt and was about to get out of the car.
“Relatively speaking it’s really a lot”
Wan Qiu paused, opened the car door and said, "But this is normal. At least a quarter of the people in Palau are of more or less ancestry. There are even specially built reception halls on some islands that are only for recruitment.
A tourist resort.”
"Only accepting approved tourists?" Wei Ran raised his eyebrows.
“It is true that we only accept approved tourists”
Wan Qiu opened the car door for Wei Ran and explained without any surprise, "Those resorts themselves are built and operated by recruiters, and even most of the tourism practitioners in Palau are recruiters.
And I don’t know why, they are more stubborn here than in their homeland. Not to mention that tourists from China or Southeast Asia are not allowed to enter, even their American fathers will be blocked when they come.”
"interesting"
Wei Ran muttered noncommittally and stepped out of the car.
"Monuments have been built in many places in this country, and many soldiers who recruited nuclear weapons for colonial aggression here are commemorated as heroes."
When Wan Qiu said this, he pointed to the izakaya next to him, "And in restaurants like this, there are usually shrines enshrined inside. The only difference is that some are enshrined in public and some are enshrined in the inner room. But the people enshrined in those shrines are basically
They were the nuclear-armed soldiers who invaded and colonized this place."
"Let's go in and see if it's what you said." Wei Ran said, walking towards the door of the izakaya with great interest.
Despite the small appearance of this izakaya, there are a lot of rules inside. Not only do you need to take off your shoes when entering, but the young waiter who came to greet guests with a bow also took out two pairs of white cotton socks from the cabinet next to them and handed them to them respectively.
I visited Wei Ran and Wan Qiu and helped them put their shoes in the shoe cabinet.
Although I don't know who set up this stinky rule, since the metal book gave me the address here, Wei Ran naturally doesn't mind going in and taking a closer look to see what he can find.
Wearing an extra pair of socks and washing their hands, the two walked through the few tatami tables and found a seat next to the window and sat down to the Japanese-style music.
Fortunately, there was a space less than one meter square sunk in the middle of the tatami where he could put his feet, otherwise he would really not be used to it.
"Come and order," Wei Ran said to Wan Qiu, who was sitting opposite, "Just order what you like."
"Do you have any taboos?" Wan Qiu asked, picking up the menu.
"Don't eat sea food...forget it, you just need to give me some cooked food, and a glass of cold beer will be enough." Wei Ran responded while observing the surrounding environment habitually.
This small shop is not big, and there are only a few tables in total, and I don’t know if it’s not time for dinner yet. At this time, there are only a middle-aged woman sitting closest to the small stage, drinking alone, and Wei
There were no other diners outside their table.
But even so, on the small wooden stage, which is not too big, there is still a woman dressed as a geisha with a paper fan in her hand and her face covered with flour, dancing to the music as seriously as a god.
A dance performance that I don’t understand.
On one side of the stage is a Japanese-style shrine with incense burning.
Although it was a bit far away, he could still see that there were many photo frames on display on the wall to the left of the shrine.
Underneath these photo frames, there is a dark black long table and matching high stools. There seem to be several thick notebooks on the table, as well as pens and even seals fixed on the table with threads.
"Ask the waiter, can I take a tour in the store?"
Wei Ran waved his hand towards Wan Qiu, who was sitting opposite, motioning for her to come closer, and then asked in a low voice in Chinese against his ear.
Upon hearing this, the girl immediately asked the waiter next to her in Japanese, and after receiving a positive answer, she nodded towards Wei Ran.
Seeing this, he stood up, walked around to the other side of the small stage, and approached the photo frames hanging on the wall to observe carefully.
On the top of the photo on this wall, there was written in Japanese "Letter to Shota". But with just one glance, he recognized that the people in the photo were exactly Akira and his family who died on Helen Island.
Wendigo's eldest nephew Jiro.
In these black-and-white photos, the uncle and nephew mostly wear one-piece flight suits. The background behind them is either on a warship or in an airplane, and there are even some battlefields that were obviously taken from the cabin.
Under each photo, there are also titles written in Japanese such as "Battle at XX" and the time of shooting.
Even, next to each photo, there are some Japanese letters and envelopes also kept in the photo frames.
Some of these letters were written by Akira to his son Shota, and some were written by Jiro to his father and mother. In addition to missing his family, the contents of the letters also included some speculations about the war situation, and even the two of them.
The various dangers that people encounter on the battlefield and the so-called "war exploits".
In these photos, Wei Ran even saw large areas of land and houses or cities with thick smoke on the land. Under these photos, there was a label in Japanese - Battle in China.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Secretly clenching his fists, Wei Ran suppressed his emotions and patiently looked at the bottom photo and the letter next to it.
Right below this photo of Akira and Jiro wearing a "must win" headband, there is a title like "The last word before the jade is broken" written in red Japanese. Akira in the photo still has the incense stick on his chest.
Cigarette pot.
In the letter next to it, there are the last words of the uncle and nephew describing how they were about to fly a kamikaze fighter against the US fleet, and asking their family not to be sad.
On both sides of the photo and letter, small white Japanese characters were written on the wall, "This is my father, Akira Kano, and my cousin, Jiro Kano..." and other words of remembrance, as well as tributes to their bravery.
Fighting for sure.
"Hmph! That's quite brave..."
Wei Ran sneered and looked down at the long table placed against the wall.
There are several stacks of postcards in acrylic boxes on it. The contents of the postcards are basically the old photos on the wall, some tropical island scenery or underwater coral reefs, and even some shots that seem to be war ruins.
In addition to postcards, there are also several thick guest books on the table, as well as a seal and several pens, plus a large piggy bank shaped like a lucky cat.
Next to the piggy bank, there is a wooden sign with the words "Postcards are one dollar each" written in Japanese.
I picked up the seal and looked at it. On it was the Japanese sentence on the wall, "A letter home to Shota", and in the middle of the circle of words was the silhouette of a 99-ship bomber.
I put down the seal and opened a message book at random. Most of the messages in it were handwritten in Japanese, expressing praise, gratitude, and even regret for Akira and Jiro.
But at the same time, Wei Ran also inadvertently saw a line of particularly thick red Chinese characters on one of the pages - Let your horse mother and donkey father's dog stinking fart! You little devils are still specially designed to be blown up by your beautiful father's atomic bomb.
few!
"Pfft"
Wei Ran couldn't help but laugh out loud, just as the girl next to him holding a paper fan and her face full of flour also finished the last dance to the sizzling Japanese music.
"Guest, is there something wrong with my performance?" The woman dressed as a geisha walked off the stage and asked Wei Ran, who was nearest to her, anxiously in Japanese.
Glancing at the tablets of "Kano Akira", "Kano Jiro", "Kano Shota", and "Kano Ichiro" in the niche, Wei Ran, who pretended not to understand Japanese, put down the thick message book in his hand, but only responded with a polite smile.
, returned to the seat where he and Wan Qiu were sitting under the other party's unclear gaze.
"Have you ordered your food?" Wei Ran asked happily.
"It's ready. It's all cooked food as you requested." Wan Qiu responded with a smile, "You seem to be in a good mood?"
"It's really good, I saw something very delicious." Wei Ran replied with a smile on his face, and at the same time he couldn't help but glance at the photo next to the shrine again.
He would like to see what will be on the "Family Wall of Honor" when that little rich woman Koko finds out her investigation results, as well as the diaries and bodies of Captains Hawkes and Captain Evans, and makes them public.
How big a piece of crotch cloth is needed to cover your glory and military exploits?
Seeing the smile on Wei Ran's face getting brighter and brighter, Wan Qiu, the translator and tour guide sitting opposite, couldn't help but look at the shrine and honor wall that Wei Ran had just visited, and secretly thought about it when he had the chance to come there next time.
, also went over to see what interesting things there were.
The two of them didn't have to wait long before the waiter brought two glasses of cold beer and several Japanese dishes.
After clinking glasses with the beautiful translator sitting opposite, Wei Ran took a sip of beer, picked up a piece of crispy tempura and threw it into his mouth.
Before he could finish the first bite of food, a young girl in a kimono who looked to be about 20 years old came over slowly with a plate of sushi and a small plate of Nagasaki cake, and placed them on the table.
He came to the dining table and said in Japanese, "Guest, these are some of my little thoughts. The performance just made you laugh."
"Were you performing just now?"
Wan Qiu asked in Japanese after getting Wei Ran's signal. When the other party nodded, he immediately praised ceremoniously, "Your performance is very good. Of course, thank you for the gift. We like it very much."
"It was actually my first time to perform on stage just now, and I didn't expect that there would be diners coming to the door at this time."
This beautiful girl who looked a bit like a mixed race explained as if she just remembered, "I forgot to introduce myself, I am the daughter of the owner of this store, my name is Kano Chinatsu."
The owner’s daughter?
Wei Ran, who nominally didn't understand Japanese, felt something in his heart, but didn't say anything. He just patiently listened to Wan Qiu's translation and then said with a smile, "I didn't laugh at your performance just now. In addition, could you introduce this to us?"
What’s the history of the store? The photos look like they’re from World War II.”
After Wan Qiu finished translating, the girl who called herself Kano Qianxia immediately nodded, knelt down at the table, and explained sentence by sentence under Wan Qiu's translation, "This izakaya was opened by my grandfather after the end of World War II.
My cousin Kano Ichiro and Mr. Ichiro's mother partnered up to buy this place and run it.
According to my father, before the end of World War II, this place was a very famous izakaya, which has a history of nearly a hundred years.
As for those photos, they were actually sent back from the battlefield by my great-grandfather, Mr. Kano Akira, and my grandfather’s other cousin, Mr. Kano Jiro. Unfortunately, they both died in the battle, and even their bones have not been found.”
"Are your grandfather, Mr. Shota, and his cousin, Mr. Ichiro, still alive?" Wei Ran asked a straightforward question that was not considered polite.
Wan Qiu secretly shook his head, and when translating, he took the initiative to add some seasonings to make the question less abrupt.
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "They passed away one after another more than ten years ago. Now the people who run this izakaya are Mr. Shota and Mr. Ichiro's respective sons, that is, my father and my uncle
.”
As she said that, the girl quietly pointed to the bar. The man who looked to be in his thirties whispered, "That's my cousin. My uncle is his father. He will also be with our respective fathers."
After retirement, I will inherit this izakaya.”
After saying that, Kano Chinatsu pointed to the young man who had just arrived at the door to welcome guests, and introduced in a low voice, "That's my younger brother. He will take over this restaurant with my cousin in the future."
Izakaya.”
"What about you?" Wan Qiu asked subconsciously.
"Of course I want to build my own home..."
Kano Chinatsu also subconsciously gave the answer, and then her face turned red and she said slightly panicked, "Well, I will return to recruitment life in the future."
"So are your family Japanese or Palauans?" Wei Ran asked after Wan Qiu finished translating.
"Palau"
Kano Chinatsu paused, and then added as if to prove something or to distinguish something, "But I am currently studying at Nagasaki University. According to my grandfather, our hometown is in Nagasaki.
Unfortunately, the atomic bomb destroyed all memories."
"It's really a pity. This stupid guy is so beautiful. I'm a little angry. Two pills are not enough..."
After Wei Ran listened to Wan Qiu's translation, he blatantly recited a sentence in Chinese, but he didn't care whether the other party could understand it, let alone how hard his beautiful translator worked to hold back her smile.
Seeing the girl named Qianxia looking at him, Wan Qiu secretly clenched his fists and tried to hold back his smile, and translated on the spot, "Mr. Wei said that war is really cruel, and he praised your dance just now.
It looks very pleasing to the eye, and I asked you if you are a dance major."
"I'm actually a first-year student in the Department of Multicultural Sociology. The performance just now was just to practice for the orientation activities after returning to school. The small stage is usually used by my father and my uncle to perform comic performances for guests."
Kano Chinatsu quickly explained that she was obviously not confident in her performance, but she was looking forward to others' approval and suggestions. This was probably the reason why she took the initiative to send sushi and cakes.
"What is Mancai performance?"
Wei Ran asked curiously after Wan Qiu finished translating.
"A stage comedy similar to our Chinese cross talk," Wan Qiu explained.
"Comedy..."
Wei Ran smacked his lips, and began to expect more and more in his heart. When the truth comes to light, how lively will this family-style izakaya be, and whether there will be comedy performances on that stage.
"Mr. Wei, do you want to come and see me tonight?"
Late Qiu took the initiative to send out an invitation, "Koror is not that big, our hotel is very close to here, and the security in Palau is pretty good, so you won't encounter any danger even if you go out at night."
“It’s not necessary for now”
Wei Ran waved his hand, "Let's take a rest today. I need to get over the jet lag."
As a translator and guide, Wan Qiu naturally had no objection, and the girl named Kano Qianxia did not leave. Instead, she brought a glass of cold beer and a few side dishes to accompany their only table of guests.
After having a drink, I tried to get some advice from the two of them about the dance she just performed.
Wei Ran also used Wan Qiu's translator to learn some seemingly insignificant trivia from this girl's mouth.
For example, the mother of this mixed-race girl was actually French, but she chose to divorce shortly after giving birth to her and left here and her.
Not long after her father divorced, he quickly married another woman who also had the same bloodline and gave birth to her a younger brother - the little Baga who just welcomed the guests at the door.
For example, whether she, her father, stepmother, even her half-brother, or her uncle's family, they have always wanted to immigrate back to China for recruitment, but have been unable to do so due to various reasons.
For another example, although this girl was clearly told by her father that women were not qualified to inherit the store, she was also the only child in their family in several generations to recruit local students to study.
This also made her cousin and half-brother a little undisguisedly jealous of her. Of course, the last point was noticed by Wei Ran himself, who nominally did not understand Japanese.
After all, which brother or younger brother would taunt their sister or sister in front of the guests, saying that she must want to marry a rich diner - even if the guest doesn't seem to listen at all
Understand Japanese.
However, considering the family tradition of these young people’s grandfathers being so anxious, this little conflict between the young people seems not worth mentioning at all.
After eating and drinking, and deliberately giving this optimistic and cheerful girl a hundred dollars as a tip for chatting, Wei Ran, who pretended to be drunk, greeted Wan Qiu and left the izakaya, which was gradually becoming lively.
"Why don't we take a look at the talent show of the two owners of this izakaya?" Wan Qiu asked while putting on her shoes, "Chinatsu said the show will start in half an hour at most."
"Forget it, I can't understand Japanese. If I have the time, I might as well go back and listen to cross talk."
As Wei Ran said this, he took off the socks he wore when he came in and threw them into the trash can. He put on his shoes and was the first to walk out of the door under the warm bow of the girl who was extremely happy for getting a huge tip.
After getting into the car that had been waiting outside, Wan Qiu asked tentatively before closing the door for Wei Ran, "Mr. Wei, do you need me to help you ask Qian Xia to go shopping at the beach in the evening? I guess she won't refuse.
of."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Forget it," Wei Ranhun waved his hand indifferently, "I am not the beast of the second generation."
"It's a good thing you're not Mr. Second Class," Wan Qiu teased a little before helping to close the car door.
After sitting in the car for less than ten minutes, the car stopped in front of a particularly beautiful-looking hotel.
Under the leadership of Wan Qiu, Wei Ran even skipped registration procedures and moved into a spacious suite.
"Mr. Wei, where do you plan to go shopping tomorrow?"
After helping Wei Ran carry his luggage into the room, Wan Qiu asked, "Or do you need me to give you some recommendations?"
"Let's go to Peleliu first. I came here just for the ruins of the Battle of Peleliu Island."
Wei Ran thought for a while and continued, "In addition, I also want to go diving. To be honest, I am a diving enthusiast, and I especially like beautiful coral reefs, so if you can arrange a few diving spots outside of the regular tourist attractions, you can
It couldn’t be better.”
"These are no problem." Wan Qiu paused, "Do you have any other requests?"
"Try not to provide me with seafood and raw food these days. I am allergic to seafood and my gastrointestinal condition is not good."
Wei Ran said apologetically, "Also, I need to get rid of the jet lag, so I won't have breakfast or go out for activities tomorrow."
"I've memorized all of this"
While putting away her phone, Wan Qiu made a promise, "Before lunch tomorrow, I will compile a list of less visited diving destinations, and you can personally select the sea areas you are interested in. In addition, we will go to Peleliu early the day after tomorrow.
Do you think it’s okay to visit the island?”
"Okay," Wei Ran paused and said, "In addition, help me prepare a set of diving equipment, that's all."
"Okay Mr. Wei, then I won't disturb your rest." After Wan Qiu finished speaking, he helped Wei Ran close the door from the outside.
After waiting for a moment, Wei Ran immediately carefully inspected this room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view of the sea.
After confirming that everything was normal, he opened his suitcase, changed into a set of clothes, and then took out his makeup bag and wig. After dressing up, he patiently waited until around eight o'clock in the evening, then quietly left the hotel and returned to the hotel.
That "Shouta Izakaya" secretly took some photos of the two middle-aged men who were performing on the stage.