Chapter 1

After serving in the military for many years, Yang Zhen, who had read quite a few popular time-travel novels during his spare time from intense training, always thought that those so-called time travels were merely fabrications by the authors. After all, time travel had never been scientifically confirmed, and he had never heard of anyone coming from the past or the future. As a highly educated and well-trained modern soldier with the four cardinal virtues, Yang Zhen considered himself to be quite pragmatic.

Even when his long-time lover, who had grown up with him since childhood, left him for the embrace of a rich second generation, or when he was unjustly accused by the girl he saved, who accepted a hundred thousand dollars and an offer to study in Japan from the Japanese man who had assaulted her, and thus refused to testify, leading to his forced departure from the beloved military camp, he never thought that he would one day be able to go back in time and start over. However, when such a thing really happened to him, he realized that imagination could indeed become reality.

Indeed, when Yang Zhen regained consciousness from his coma, he found that the Boeing 747 he was supposed to be on had somehow turned into an old freight car. The people around him, who had turned from well-dressed white-collar workers into frenzied beasts in distress after the plane malfunctioned, had also transformed into a group of malnourished, ragged people, wearing what looked like military uniforms, though tattered and worn.

Seeing him come to, the crowd around him immediately split into two distinct groups based on the color of their military uniforms. This division made the already crowded car even more cramped, except for the area where Yang Zhen was, which remained relatively spacious.

Staring at the unfamiliar environment and the unfamiliar people around him, Yang Zhen, still dazed by the sudden change and unsure of what had happened, could not help but feel at a loss as he looked at the crowd with blank, lifeless eyes.

"Company Commander, Company Commander, what's wrong with you? Don't scare me. What will I do if something happens to you?" Just as Yang Zhen was still confused and trying to understand the situation, a slightly choked voice from beside him made him more alert.

Hearing the sobbing, Yang Zhen turned his head with some effort and, with the help of the weak light from the small ventilation window above his head, barely made out a boy of about fifteen or sixteen, dressed in a gray military uniform, hugging him and crying.

Still confused and agitated by the numb expressions of the people around him and the stuffy, almost stagnant air in the car, Yang Zhen, hearing the sobbing, could not help but feel angry and said, "Why are you crying? What's there to cry about? Real men don't cry. Can you stop crying and tell me what's going on? Who are you? Who am I?"

"Company Commander, you're awake?" Hearing Yang Zhen's voice, the boy immediately stopped crying and said with some joy. But then, Yang Zhen's words left him speechless, "What's wrong with you? Don't you recognize me? I'm your communications officer, Xiaohuzi. I was recruited by you. How could you forget all this?"

"Am I your company commander? I don't know about that. I was a deputy company commander when I was discharged. When did I become a company commander? And this uniform, it's really ugly. Is this a coat or a robe? The coat is so long it covers my butt, and the pants don't even have a crotch." Although he still didn't understand what had happened, Yang Zhen, realizing something was wrong, wisely kept these thoughts to himself.

"Uniform? No, that's not right." Looking at his own uniform, which was the same color and style as Xiaohuzi's, and then at the others' uniforms, he found them strangely familiar. His own gray uniform was one thing, but the yellow-green uniforms of the others, especially the caps, even without the rank insignia and cap badges, looked very much like the famous 1924 Nationalist uniform from the War of Resistance against Japan.

Thinking about this and recalling the time-travel novels he had read, Yang Zhen couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding: "I can't have time-traveled like those characters in the novels, can I? This can't be happening to me."

Despite the evidence before him, Yang Zhen still asked Xiaohuzi, "What year is it in the Republic of China?" It wasn't that he was stubborn and unwilling to accept reality; he was just unwilling to give up and was making a last-ditch effort.

"Company Commander, what's wrong with you? It's the 27th year of the Republic of China. How could you forget that? Did those white dogs do something to you? I knew they were all bad. I'll fight them." Xiaohuzi, deeply affected by Yang Zhen's awakening, gently leaned him against the wall of the car and turned to rush towards the group of people in yellow uniforms on the other side of the car.

"Xiaohuzi, stop. We don't know what's going on yet. You can't be so impulsive." Yang Zhen, still in shock from the confirmation of his suspicions, quickly stopped him.

This kid is so impulsive. He really lives up to his name. Hearing Yang Zhen's command, the boy dared not act rashly and, after glaring at the others, obediently returned to sit by Yang Zhen.

Stopping the impulsive boy, Yang Zhen carefully observed the ragged soldiers in the car, who not only lacked weapons but also had their rank insignia and cap badges removed. He couldn't help but ask, "Are we, or rather, are we prisoners of war?"

His question was quickly confirmed. The excitement he felt upon realizing he had time-traveled to the War of Resistance against Japan quickly turned to despair. Yang Zhen couldn't help but feel a deep sense of sorrow: "Am I really this unlucky? Not only did I time-travel, but I became a prisoner of war, and worse, a prisoner of the brutal Japanese army."

"In those time-travel novels, even if the protagonists are thrown into battle without knowing what's happening, they are still on their own side. Why am I so unlucky to become a prisoner of war?"

The people around him were wearing Nationalist uniforms, and it was 1938, the height of the War of Resistance against Japan. At this time, the Nationalists and Communists had temporarily set aside their differences to fight together against the Japanese. Moreover, the Eighth Route Army, who were still very poor, had not yet reached the luxury of using trains to transport prisoners of war. Based on the information from Xiaohuzi, Yang Zhen was certain he had been captured by the Japanese.

Thinking about the brutal treatment the Japanese gave to prisoners, especially Chinese prisoners, even the usually calm Yang Zhen felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but lament, "Is this unprecedented time-travel going to end here?"

"Damn it, if you're going to change my fate, at least give me a better place. Even being thrown directly into battle would be better than becoming a prisoner. The Japanese have no interest in keeping prisoners alive. This is just a cruel joke."

At that moment, Yang Zhen, who was cursing the heavens in his heart, had no idea what awaited him and the other Chinese prisoners in the car, or where this train full of prisoners was heading. If he knew the final destination of this train, marked as top secret in the Japanese transportation plan, he would not just be muttering to himself but would be cursing out loud.

Seeing Yang Zhen's stunned expression, a man from the group in the other color of military uniform walked over, checked his pulse, and said, "Company Commander Yang, since you remember what happened, it means you're fine now. I hope you won't be so impulsive in the future. Do you know that your actions could endanger all the brothers on this train?"

After saying this, the man pushed aside Xiaohuzi, who had been glaring at him but moved away under Yang Zhen's angry gaze, and sat down next to Yang Zhen. He took out a small steamed bun from his pocket and handed it to Yang Zhen, saying, "I know you're not willing. Honestly, I'm not willing either. We are all soldiers, and no one wants to be a prisoner, especially a prisoner of the Japanese."

"But we can't be rash or impulsively seek death. I can see that you have the highest rank among the 18th Group Army. For the sake of your brothers, you must survive. Only by surviving can we find a way out."

From this man's words, Yang Zhen learned the reason for his current identity's unconsciousness. It turned out that his predecessor, unwilling to be captured, had tried to escape or provoke the Japanese to kill him when the train stopped at a small station to resupply. He attempted to jump off the train when the Japanese guards were delivering food, but was hit on the head with a rifle butt. If the others hadn't quickly pulled him down, the Japanese, known for their brutality, would have likely finished him off with a bayonet or even thrown him to the dozen or so wolves they brought along to assist in the escort.