The spire of Suzhou Beita Temple stands high in the darkness, overlooking the entire Suzhou. Most of the city is burning, and the billowing black smoke obscures the sky, making the deep night even more hazy.
Light control has been implemented in the city. Except for the burning flames, the whole city is shrouded in darkness. The young man Su Er and his parents, who are hiding at home behind closed doors, hide in fear under the window and observe this like-looking building through the gap.
The city is as dark as hell, and fear spreads in my heart.
The streets were filled with discarded debris. Large parcels and small baskets lay haphazardly on the wet ground. Bloodied corpses were soaked in the mud and swollen. There were civilians killed by stray bullets and soldiers who resisted bravely.
No one dared to collect the corpses. From time to time, large groups of Japanese soldiers marched through the streets in a arrogant manner. Their leather shoes made a loud sound on the ground. They were harsh and arrogant. They trampled the city to the ground.
Under the illumination of torches, the thick and gleaming steel helmets of the Japanese soldiers, the bright bayonets hung high on the heads of their guns, and the snarling incomprehensible words on their ferocious faces all frightened Su Er who was hiding at home.
In the dark night, these chirping Japanese soldiers were like the legendary ghosts from hell. They were so powerful and terrifying that Su Er's mother kept kowtowing to the Guanyin Bodhisattva and prayed to the Guanyin Bodhisattva in a low voice, hoping that these ghosts would come soon.
Leave, hoping that this dark night will fade away soon.
Gunshots still rang out from time to time in the city. The scattered Chinese soldiers relied on the cover of the ruins to continuously attack the Japanese soldiers who invaded the city. However, corpses were constantly being dragged out by the Japanese soldiers and thrown into the streets. The resistance became increasingly fierce.
weak.
Su Er's heart was also tightly clenched. Whenever gunfire rang out outside, he couldn't restrain his excitement. The soldiers in the government were still resisting. They were still in this city. All this made Su Er
The fear in my heart dissipated a lot.
But every time he was excited, the gunshots would disappear into the night again. He hid under the window and began to worry about the resisting government soldiers. Did they run away? Or were they dead?
Su Er used to hate those government soldiers very much. Every time he went to his restaurant to eat, they always ate freeloaders and were rude and loud, scaring other guests away. But now he inexplicably felt that those government soldiers made them feel bad.
Safety, every time he didn't hear the sound of gunshots, he couldn't help but worry about them.
Now Su Er is very worried. He is afraid that all the government soldiers will be killed or abandon the city. In fact, the Chinese defenders have evacuated Suzhou, and the remaining soldiers are just stragglers. However, Su Er still feels that even if only the remaining
Even stragglers feel at ease.
"Second son, come here, don't lean towards the window, be careful that bullets don't have eyes."
Su Er's father has a kind-faced look and is very handsome. He is a well-known figure in Suzhou city as he has been in charge of a restaurant all year round. He has experienced many storms and waves in the past few years. Although there are constant gunfire outside, he is sitting firmly on the Grand Master's chair at the moment, and he is quite calm.
calm.
He opened a restaurant on Beita Temple Heng Street. Over the years, he has maintained a friendly attitude to make money. Although it is not prosperous, he has not caused any trouble. If nothing happens, this family business will be left to Su Er and passed down.
However, the business of the restaurant has been plummeting since August, especially after the Japanese planes came to Suzhou and bombed it several times. Many people began to flee, and the business became increasingly difficult to sustain. But this is accumulated over a lifetime.
I can't bear to lose my family fortune like this.
Although they closed the restaurant and returned home, they did not leave Suzhou City. Su Er's father could be regarded as a man who had seen the world. This war had lasted for decades. In the past, various commanders were fighting, and later they made trouble.
bandit.
After so many years of back and forth between various forces in Suzhou, he has become accustomed to it. As long as they stay at home peacefully and don't go out to cause trouble, no matter where his side wins, they will still do it.
Able to open the door to do business and make a living.
So this time, although there were rumors that the Japanese soldiers were ferocious and brutal, killing people without blinking an eye, to Su Er's father, who had seen the world, they were just rumors. It was not like he had never seen Japanese people before, and he had also entertained them in his own restaurant.
It's not that scary to have two shoulders holding one head, so this time he didn't take his family to escape.
Firstly, he has seen the world and doesn’t realize how vicious the Japanese are. Secondly, his whole life’s family fortune has been here. If he escapes, the family fortune in the chaos of war may be gone. He has to stay here and hope for the future.
This family fortune will make a good wife for Su Er, who is a single person.
"Second son, listen to your father and come here quickly." Su Er's mother believed in Buddhism. She knelt on the bed and muttered softly, worshiping Guanyin Bodhisattva. When she saw Su Er still lying by the window, she also hurriedly shouted.
"Dad, what do you think of those soldiers? Were they killed by the Japanese?" Su Er lay there without moving, still worried about the Chinese soldiers fighting guerrillas in the city.
Su Er's father scolded: "Why do you care so much? Come here quickly. What does their life and death have to do with us ordinary people? It's better to die, so as not to come to our restaurant to eat free food in the future."
Although Su Er was stupid and couldn't read, he went to private school for a few days and then came back. However, the parades on the street a few days ago shouted loudly, "Down with Japanese imperialism, don't be a slave to the country." He thought in his heart,
But aren’t the Japanese slaves who have subjugated their country?
Su Er's words came out of Su Er's mouth out of nowhere: "Dad, I think it's better for them to come here to eat for free than the Japanese. At least they don't kill people. You see, those people on the street were all beaten to death by the Japanese.
"
Su Er's father wanted to reprimand Su Er again, but suddenly there were shouts and cries from outside, a group of Japanese soldiers came over holding torches, and the room suddenly fell into silence.
"Open the door! Open the door! The imperial army wants to search!" A powerful broken gong voice rang on the street, accompanied by a knock on the door.
Su Er looked outside through the hole in the window. Isn't the person knocking on the door the black cripple who is usually a gangster on the street? Why is he mixed with the Japanese?
The door across the street soon opened. It was the home of Su Er's childhood playmate. Several Japanese soldiers with guns broke in. There was a sudden panic inside. Su Er saw that his childhood playmate had
After dragging his playmate out, the crippled black man hit his playmate to the ground with the butt of a gun and did not get up again. The crippled black man was still cursing and saying something.
An inexplicable anger surged in his heart, and he was about to rush out, but his father caught him: "Second son, don't cause trouble. They are only searching for those who are soldiers and have nothing to do with us."
"Shopkeeper Su! Open the door, open the door!" The black lame man soon led the Japanese soldiers to the door of Su Er's house and began to knock on the door.
"Second son, take your mother into the house and don't come out." Su Er's father ordered, hurriedly tidied his old cotton robe, got up and opened the door.