On the evening of the day they arrived at Mo's Village, everyone who had eaten and drank enough to get permission from the old monk set up shop on the floor of the small Buddhist hall.
Outside the Buddhist hall, Squad Leader Liang alone carried a meal and camellia that had been served in advance and placed them on the edge of the covered tomb. Then he lit three incense sticks borrowed from the old monk and inserted them into a
A large porcelain bowl filled with fried rice.
In the quiet night, Squad Leader Liang, who already had a helmet on his head, lit the pipe in his hand against the pile of firewood, placed it next to the food, and then hung the oil lamp he brought on the pile of firewood.
.
Under the dim yellow oil lamp, this man who looked to be nearly forty years old silently opened the German lunch box he had brought, took out a small writing brush from it, and then took out a double-headed gun oil can and opened it.
After a moment's hesitation, Squad Leader Liang slowly took off the helmet on his head, picked up the small brush and dipped it in the gun oil pot.
"Company Commander, Long Guoping, burned himself to death for his country"
Squad Leader Liang muttered out a position, a name and a result, and at the same time solemnly wrote the first stroke on the brim of the helmet.
"Deputy company commander, Chen Huayi, died in battle."
As the short life of the second soldier was summarized in just a few words by Squad Leader Liang, there was also an additional stroke on the brim of the hat.
"Platoon leader, Yu Mingbo, died in battle"
"Second Platoon Leader, Wekeda, self-immolated and died for his country"
"Third platoon leader, Deng Yunfu, died in battle"
At this point, there was a blood-red letter on the inside of the helmet brim. But Squad Leader Liang, who was already in tears, did not stop. Instead, he moved the brush gently, chanting more positions and names, and wrote down
One stroke after another, one straight character after another!
Not far away, Wei Ran sighed softly, silently raised his camera, pointed it at the lonely cooking squad leader under the oil lamp, and gently pressed the shutter.
He quietly returned to the temple. Next to a bonfire with green smoke at the door, Qin Shouzheng was sitting shirtless on a low stool, letting a Chinese compatriot help him shave off his hair with a razor in his hand.
Next to him, Zhou Guochang, who already had a big bald head, was busy using bamboo tubes to distribute the brown sugar that Wei Ran bought in Manxi Town not long ago to his compatriots, as well as the rice provided by the old monk in the temple.
"Young man, why don't you shave your head later?" The Chinese compatriot with gauze on his head greeted enthusiastically, "When you enter Savage Mountain, there will be no place to shave your head."
"Okay, I'll be here later."
Wei Ran happily agreed, then walked into the temple and saw the businessman Luke, who was still lying on the ground with his pillow on his head.
I don't know if it was because the herbs the young monk got for him had an effect. Although Luke was still running a fever, at least he was awake.
"I went to the town of Muncie," Weiran said straightly in English while sitting cross-legged on the floor.
"Zhou has already told me," businessman Luke struggled to sit up and replied feebly, "Thank you for not abandoning me."
"But you British troops abandoned us"
Before Wei Ran finished speaking, he had already taken out a folded beauty poster from his arms and handed it to the other party, "I found the quartermaster's office in Mansi Town. The place was vacated and some documents were burned.
The only thing left is this poster."
Reaching out to take the poster and look at it, businessman Luke shook his head and threw it aside casually, "So are you here to torture me?"
“I have nothing to ask”
Wei Ran spread his hands indifferently, "According to the agreement, we can take away the medicines when we send you to Manxi Town. Now we have brought you to the safer Modi Village, which can be regarded as overfulfilling the deal."
Luke, we are going to enter Savage Mountain tomorrow. In addition, the Chinese compatriots we met here will go to the surrounding mountains to hide. What about you? Where are you going to go next? "
"Where is Zhou? Where is Zhou planning to go?" Businessman Luke asked.
"I don't know." Wei Ran spread his hands again, "I never asked him."
After a brief silence, Luke said, "I want to enter Savage Mountain with you, but I want to chase the British army. I hope you can..."
"I'm afraid it can't be done"
Wei Ran said seriously, "We must send medicines to our own troops. Those medicines can save the lives of many soldiers."
"I hold an important piece of information in my hand," Luke lowered his voice and said seriously, "This piece of information can even influence the direction of the war!"
"You can go with us, and after we catch up with the main force, we can use the radio to contact your people."
"Just you?"
A look of contempt appeared on Luke's face, "I'm afraid your radio communications have been monitored by the recruiters, and I think that even if we catch up with your large army, we probably won't be able to leave Savage Mountain alive. Wei, you guys
It's better to think clearly, only by following our British troops can you survive."
"Indeed, with your army that only knows how to run away, and can't even catch up with you, one of your own, there is a high probability of survival. But the mission of the army is to fight, not to escape, what? Are you British?
Do you still want to reenact the Dunkirk evacuation without electricity?”
"There is no point in bickering at this time."
Businessman Luke promptly changed the subject, "I will enter Savage Mountain with you, but I will go after the British army with Zhou."
"No problem at all"
Wei Ran stood up while he was speaking. As he walked out, he finally said in English, "One more thing to remind you."
"What?" Luke asked subconsciously.
Wei Ran stopped with his back to Luke and said with a normal expression, "I just talked with the abbot of this temple during dinner. When the British army arrived here, they once robbed Mo's village.
The eldest daughter was taken as a temporary wife, and a lot of buffaloes were taken away for supplies.
So even if most of the people in this village have hid in the mountains, you, the British, probably still have no way to get additional supplies, let alone hire locals as guides. Even if they find you, the British, they will probably
Will kill you."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Are you threatening me?" Luke asked with a cold face.
"I'm just stating the facts"
Wei Ran raised his finger and pointed outside the temple, "The abbot told me this, and Zhou helped translate it. The old monk has made it very clear that he will not provide you with any help."
Having said this, Wei Ran walked out of the Buddhist hall again. Immediately afterwards, he pretended to be full-faced with Zhou Guochang, who was eavesdropping.
"Wei...Brother Wei"
Zhou Guochang grinned awkwardly, raised his hand and pointed at the young monk and the old monk next to him and said, "Their master and disciple originally wanted to talk to Squad Leader Liang, but Squad Leader Liang... seems to be inconvenient now, so they want to talk to you.
.”
"No problem." Wei Ran nodded and asked with a normal expression, "Where should we go to chat?"
“Let’s go to the pagoda at the back.”
After Zhou Guochang finished speaking, he pointed in the direction behind the temple, and then said something to the two monks. He switched to Chinese again and said, "The two masters will take you there first. I want to have a word with Uncle Luke...Mr. Luke."
.”
"please"
Wei Ran politely bowed his hands to the two monks. The old monk and the young monk also clasped their hands and bowed slightly in unison, then each carried a kerosene lamp and led Wei Ran to the pagoda behind the temple.
.
"The Romance of Fairy Wood"
After a moment of waiting, Zhou Guochang also trotted to catch up. Seeing this, the old monk took steps again, led everyone around to the back of the pagoda, and then placed the oil lamp he was carrying on a stone
On the table, everyone was led to sit on the stones surrounding the table.
After everyone sat down, the old monk looked at Wei Ran, then opened his mouth and said something.
"The old abbot said that he hopes we can take away the young master Sehao." Zhou Guochanglu translated with a slight surprise.
"Why?" Wei Ran asked in surprise.
After a moment of exchange, Zhou Guochang explained, "This afternoon, Se Hao told us what happened on the road. The old abbot was worried that the little devils would kill Se Hao after chasing him. He was even more worried that the little devils would snatch Se Hao's little master and bring him back.
Those two Buddha statues, so he hoped that we could take Sehao into Savage Mountain together.
In return, he will help us prepare more food and drink, and will also help us keep the secret of the tomb."
Hearing this, Wei Ran looked at the young monk Sehao who had his hands folded and his head lowered while silently reciting scriptures. After a moment of hesitation, he nodded, "I told the old abbot that we are very willing to have young master Sehao follow us. But we have no way to guarantee his absolute safety."
.”
Upon hearing this, Zhou Guochang immediately translated Wei Ran's words, and then helped translate, "The old abbot said that Sehao has his own destination and will leave everything to us when he leaves."
"We'll leave early tomorrow morning"
Wei Ran looked at Zhou Guochang and said, "What about you? Are you going to hide with those Chinese compatriots..."
"I'll go with you"
Zhou Guochang expressed his decision before Wei Ran finished speaking, "I want to personally hand over those quinine to the hands of the expeditionary force, and I also want to join the expeditionary force."
"It's not safe on this road." In the darkness of the night, Qin Shouzheng, with a big bald head, walked over from a distance and warned.
"I'm not afraid even if I die," Zhou Guochang responded extremely seriously.
"Where's Mr. Luke?" Weiran suddenly switched to English and asked.
"He is going with us," Zhou Guochang replied in Chinese, "he can only go with us."
"All right"
Wei Ran nodded, stood up, changed the subject and asked, "Shou Zheng, is it my turn?"
"right"
Qin Shou was pulling his bald head and responded, "Go quickly. Besides, they found a lot of old British clothes before we got here. After shaving our heads and taking a shower, we can wear new clothes tomorrow."
"
"Then I'll shave my head too."
As he spoke, Wei Ran clasped his hands and bowed slightly towards the two monks, then turned and walked towards the door of the temple.
In the blink of an eye, early the next morning, at the gate of the temple, the Chinese who helped bury the grave silently carried the backpacks prepared for them by the old monk.
In addition to the kettles, lunch boxes and other items they picked up, these backpacks also contained some brown sugar given to them by Squad Leader Liang, as well as a small bamboo tube of coarse salt, some fruits and half a bag of rice provided by the old abbot.
But even so, no one can have an accurate answer as to whether these Chinese compatriots, who are no longer young, can survive.
"Are you really not going to follow us?" Qin Shouzheng asked again without giving up.
"No"
The middle-aged man at the head waved his hand, "If we had the courage to enter Savage Mountain, we would have gone in with the large army already, so we might as well go hide in the surrounding mountains."
"Then...then you must live!" Qin Shouzheng said, clenching his fists.
"Hey! Live! I will definitely live! So are you! So are you!"
The middle-aged man responded loudly, wiped his face vigorously, and asked almost cautiously, "Squad Leader Liang, you...will you come back? Will you come back?"
Squad Leader Liang, who had shaved his beard and bald head, couldn't help but be stunned. At this time, he was not even sure whether he could find the main force or whether he could cross the Yiren Mountain alive, so how could he dare to answer this question.
"able!"
Just when the faces of the Chinese compatriots showed signs of despair, Wei Ran, who was holding a camera in his hand, took a step forward and said with confidence, "We will definitely be able to cross the Desert Mountain alive, and we will definitely be able to bring it back again.
The next time we come here, we will not only drive the little devils away from Burma, but also end this war completely!"
"good!"
A middle-aged man with gauze on his head couldn't help shouting loudly, "We will wait for you to call back! If we are still alive by then, we will drink together!"
"Yes! Let's drink together!"
The leading middle-aged man wiped away his tears again, put on his bamboo hat and said solemnly, "When this battle is over, even if one of us is alive, we will come here and put a table of good wine and food waiting for you.
!”
"Then it's settled!" As Squad Leader Liang spoke, he solemnly stretched out his hand towards the other party, and the two of them held each other tightly. At the same time, Wei Ran also faced Chaoyang who was about to jump out of the ground and took a photo with the backlight.
Silhouette of two people.
"Let me take a group photo of you."
Wei Ran shook the camera in his hand and suggested, "I hope there will be more people there next time we come here."
"Take! Then take a picture!"
The middle-aged man in the lead was no longer as depressed as he was when he was burying the grave yesterday afternoon. He allowed Wei Ran to take command and took a group photo of those who were about to flee alone, with the temple entrance as the background.
"Just say goodbye!"
When Wei Ran clicked the shutter, the middle-aged man, whose name had not been revealed from beginning to end, solemnly clasped his fists, and simply left the city with his companions wearing bamboo hats and their promises to each other.
It's not a big temple.
Watching them go into the jungle with only hope and disappear completely, Wei Ran looked at the young monk Sehao. The young master was still barefoot and wearing a dark red monk's robe. The only extra thing was that
It's just a bamboo hat on the head and a bamboo basket on the shoulder.
Seeing Wei Ran shaking the camera in his hand towards him, and pointing at the old abbot next to him, the young monk clasped his hands together and bowed slightly as usual, then stood side by side with the old abbot at the door, keeping his hands clasped together.
They asked Wei Ran to take a photo for them.
"Shall we take a photo too?"
After Wei Ran finished speaking, he glanced vaguely at the businessman Luke who was being supported by Zhou Guochang. After this night's rest and a large bowl of herbal soup in the morning, the British man had basically gone away from the fever, except for the swelling on his arm.
The wound was still red and swollen, and there was even a faint smell of fishy odor.
"Take a photo! I haven't taken a photo yet," Qin Shouzheng said happily.
"Then take a photo"
Squad Leader Liang held up the helmet he wore on his head, and then stretched out the shirt and hem of the British P37 uniform he had just changed to in the morning.
"Let me take pictures for you," businessman Luke said proactively, while also seeming to hint that he didn't want to take photos with everyone.
Wei Ran naturally had no objections to this, so he happily handed over the camera that belonged to Luke, and followed Squad Leader Liang and others to the edge of the covered grave pit and stood side by side.
Now, including Zhou Guochang and Luke, they have all changed into a set of British uniforms provided by the Chinese compatriots. Wei Ran, Zhou Guochang and Qin Shouzheng each have a captured ammunition bag around their chests, holding in their hands
Submachine guns came from the same source, and even Zhou Guochang and Qin Shouzheng had wooden boxes containing Browning high-power pistols slung across their bodies.
Squad Leader Liang, who was the only one wearing a steel helmet, wore a leather Kowloon belt around his waist, with a tobacco pipe stick stuck diagonally on it, and the box gun slung at his side was also particularly conspicuous.
If you just look at the outfits of these four people, they are truly the best of the best, but everyone present knows that for the enemies waiting for them next, these weapons may not be of much use at all.
While everyone was in their own thoughts, Luke, who was in charge of taking pictures, gently pressed the shutter button, and then returned the camera that no longer belonged to him to Wei Ran.
Taking the camera, Wei Ran took the initiative to take a group photo of Luke and Zhou Guochang, and then took a group photo of Squad Leader Liang and Qin Shouzheng.
When he put away the camera, the old abbot at the door of the temple also helped the young monk Sehao and fixed the two bamboo baskets on the back of the black donkey.
Squad Leader Liang took one last look at the direction of the tomb, at the banyan tree next to the two 20-seal large iron pots that he had buried beside the tomb. Finally, he waved his hand and said softly without hesitation, "Let's go."
As the two donkeys brayed, everyone, including the injured Luke, each carried a bamboo basket on his back, carefully put on his bamboo hats and mosquito masks, and chanted before the frail old monk.
In the scriptures, I set foot on the country trail to Savage Mountain.
