Huang San and five other brothers were assigned to the same platoon and the same class in the blacksmith camp. The class leader was a young man younger than them named Zhao.
Although Squad Leader Zhao was young and amiable, he could not hide the murderous aura rolling out of the mountain of corpses and the sea of blood, so Huang San did not dare to have any contempt.
The Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps came through a series of bloody battles with the Japs. Although they suffered a defeat in Huaiyin, the brothers who retreated into the mountains were all the elite backbones who had been washed away by the waves, so their combat effectiveness was naturally not weak.
"This is your military uniform. Now our conditions are limited and we don't have the ability to make new clothes. Let's make do with them for the time being. I will send them to you when I get new ones." Squad Leader Zhao looked a little embarrassed when he said this.
Squad leader Zhao gave each of Huang San and the others two sets of military uniforms. Although they were a little shabby, they were spotlessly clean.
He volunteered to follow the Northern Jiangsu guerrillas to fight the Japanese, but he didn't even have a new military uniform. This made the several bandit recruits in the class look a little unhappy.
"Monitor Zhao, I think this is very good and very clean." Huang San understood the situation and broke the awkwardness with a smile.
"Our Chief Yang has said that although the conditions are a little more difficult now, as long as you follow us whole-heartedly to fight the Japanese and win the battle, and enjoy the hot and spicy food, the good times are still to come." Squad Leader Zhao said with relief.
"Then you have to wait until then." Someone muttered in a low voice, but another person tugged at the corner of his clothes and stopped talking.
Squad leader Zhao was also good-tempered and acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He led Huang San and the others to the military supply office to collect bullet bags, quilts, military kettles and other items, but there were no guns.
"Sir, why don't you give us guns?" someone asked.
"Our next training is mainly physical training, which is temporarily unavailable, so we will distribute it to everyone during shooting practice." Squad leader Zhao explained with a smile.
Although squad leader Zhao explained, Huang San and others also understood that the officers and soldiers of the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps did not completely trust them, and this was just an excuse.
"You guys go back and have a good rest first. Someone will inform you at dinner tonight that training will start tomorrow."
After collecting the things, squad leader Zhao asked a brother to lead Huang San and others back to the camp.
Huang San and the others got rid of their status as bandits and became recruits of the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps. The six of them lived together in a shack, and the other members of the class lived in a nearby shack, which could be regarded as surveillance.
Huang San first followed the bandits to attack Xiaoqingshan, and then became a prisoner. He was frightened for so many days, and now he has turned into a new recruit to resist the Japanese. Huang San also lamented the uncertainty of the world.
Not long after the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps entered the mountains, everything was starting from scratch, and the shacks the brothers lived in were also very simple.
After Huang San and the others had dinner, they went into the shack to rest. They had been busy these days and barely slept at all.
The mountains are shrouded in silence at night, and the black woods make rustling sounds blown by the mountain wind. Except for the night patrol team of the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps, snoring can be heard one after another in the camp.
In the middle of the night, Huang San was woken up by the rustling sound. When he opened his eyes and looked around, he saw that the other three people in the class had woken up at some point and were whispering together.
These three people were not from the same hilltop as Huang San and Huang San. Hearing their whispers, Huang San also understood that they actually wanted to escape at night.
Soon, these three people tiptoed out of the shack and disappeared from Huang San's sight, but Huang San never moved.
Just two minutes after these three people went out, a brother who had been sleeping in a daze also woke up. When he saw the empty bunk, he immediately understood something.
"Brother Three." This brother hurriedly pushed Huang San and another brother.
"They must have escaped, let's escape too." Seeing the three empty bunks, the brother asked Huang San and others for their opinions.
"There are sentries outside and they can't escape. Go to sleep."
Huang San knew that the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps would definitely send people to monitor them, so he rejected the two brothers' suggestion to escape.
"Third brother, if we don't leave, I'm afraid we won't have a chance in the future."
This brother looked at the darkness outside and lowered his voice to persuade, especially reluctantly.
"We became bandits just to make a living, and now we put on this military uniform just to make a living. Anyway, we are all trying to survive. It's the same everywhere, so why run away."
Huang San continued: "Besides, if the commander doesn't kill us, he will give us a chance to change our ways. We must cherish it."
After Huang San's persuasion, the two brothers gave up the idea of escaping at night, but they couldn't sleep and were struggling in their hearts.
Just after dawn, Huang San and the others, who had hardly slept well in the rest of the night, were called up to gather.
On the temporarily opened playground, each company lined up quickly under the command of the officers. More than 400 officers and soldiers stood there in a dark atmosphere.
Soon, the blacksmith, the commander of the battalion, walked up to the command platform made of earth and rocks with a livid face, looked at the sleepy faces, and waved to the side: "Bring it up!"
Driven by armed officers and soldiers, more than a dozen officers and soldiers with frustrated faces were brought up. Among them were Huang San and his three brothers who had escaped from the shack.
Seeing these familiar faces, the other two brothers standing next to Huang San who originally wanted to escape looked a little nervous. They looked at each other and cast grateful glances at Huang San.
If Huang San hadn't stopped them in time, I'm afraid they would have been caught now, and I secretly thought they were lucky.
"I gave you a chance to atone for your sins. As long as you follow us to fight the Japanese, all the past things will be wiped out. I also told you that you can regain your freedom by killing two Japanese. But you have disappointed me so much!"
Looking at the dozen or so people who escaped during the night and were captured, the blacksmith's face was livid, as if he hated iron but could not turn it into steel.
"Not only do you not repay your kindness, but you only want to escape and continue to be bandits to harm your fellow villagers? Or do you want to bring people back to kill you?" the blacksmith asked loudly, making these bandits who wanted to escape feel ashamed and humble.
Head.
"It's not that I haven't given you a chance, but you don't cherish it!"
"You voluntarily followed us to fight the Japanese, but now you have become a deserter. The so-called state-owned laws and the military have military regulations, and the rules cannot be broken. If you become a deserter, then follow the rules of a deserter." The blacksmith waved his hand and said: "La.
Go down and shoot them all!”
After hearing the blacksmith's words, the captured people were stunned and their legs felt a little weak. They did not expect the consequences to be so serious.
"Sir, I was wrong, please give me another chance."
"Sir, please, we don't dare anymore."
...
After being stunned for a few seconds, these people who were captured all shouted for mercy, but the blacksmith had no intention of letting go.
The dozen or so people who wanted to escape at night were quickly pulled to the side of the playground. Some officers and soldiers pulled the bolts of their guns and raised their rifles.
"Bang bang bang..."
Clouds of blood mist rose, dull gunshots echoed in the mountains, and the team gathered on the playground was silent.
"I reiterate once again, if anyone dares to be a deserter again, this will be the fate!" The blacksmith looked around at the assembled troops and warned loudly.