Chapter 5

After learning the true intentions behind the Japanese military's arduous journey to transport him and the other prisoners of war from the interior, Yang Zhen, despite his deep-seated foreboding being confirmed,反而 calmed down. He knew that if he really entered that heavily guarded den of evil, even with his exceptional skills, he would have no hope of ever coming out. If he wanted to survive, he had to find a way here.

In his future life, before he retired, he had served in the special forces for many years, undergoing various high-intensity training, and even received some training as a special agent. As long as he could calm down, there might still be a chance to escape.

However, as Yang Zhen calmed down and carefully observed his surroundings, he cruelly realized that even here, he had no chance of escaping. Not to mention the six machine guns around the platform that covered the entire area with almost no blind spots, and the powerful searchlights that illuminated the platform in every detail, leaving him almost no opportunity to act. Even the dozen or so Type 38 rifles with bayonets in front of him meant that any slight movement would result in their owners stabbing the bayonets into his body without hesitation.

If he had the physical strength from his years of arduous training in his future life, he might have a chance to rush out and take the Japanese major as a hostage. But now? Yang Zhen shook his head, which was dizzy from hunger and prolonged thirst, and quickly abandoned this idea. His current physical condition, with no weapons, was far from enough to break through the Japanese guards. Even if he managed to escape, he would likely run out of energy after a short distance and could not avoid the pursuit of the dozen or so police dogs.

Most importantly, Yang Zhen was certain that if the prisoners of war made any unusual moves, to keep the secret of this demon unit, which was highly classified even within the Japanese military, the Japanese would not hesitate to eliminate all the prisoners. Even if he could manage to escape, what about the other prisoners around him? Looking at his fellow prisoners, Yang Zhen hesitated for a moment but ultimately abandoned the idea of trying to escape now.

The Japanese quickly completed the headcount, and although the time seemed to drag on for Yang Zhen and the other prisoners who were forced to sit on the ground, it only took ten minutes for the Japanese to finish.

However, after the headcount, the Japanese encountered a problem. According to the orders from the Kwantung Army headquarters, all the prisoners specially transported to the Kwantung Army's Epidemic Prevention and Water Supply Department had to be strictly guarded, and any unusual movements were to be met with lethal force. During the transportation and detention, all prisoners had to wear shackles. Any violation of these rules would result in the most severe punishment for the responsible personnel.

The Japanese only brought enough shackles for 300 people, thinking they had brought too many. According to the Japanese treatment of prisoners, especially Chinese prisoners, out of 300 people, only 50 to 60 would survive the long journey.

However, they never expected that the North China Area Army would take this special transport to the Kwantung Army so seriously. Not only did they send a dedicated staff officer to escort the prisoners, but they also doubled the number of prisoners from 300 to 600, and the death rate during the transport was extremely low, with over 500 prisoners surviving. This caught the Japanese, who were accustomed to brutal treatment of Chinese people, off guard.

When the Japanese captain in charge of the headcount asked Major Taiga Sumi for instructions, although the wait was not long, the impatient Major Taiga Sumi waved his hand and scolded him harshly: "Do you need to ask about such a trivial matter? Just put two people in one set of shackles. Don't ask about such stupid things next time. If you do, find another place to stand. The Kwantung Army, especially the Epidemic Prevention and Water Supply Department, doesn't need idiots like you."

The captain, who was red-faced and extremely embarrassed after being scolded and humiliated in front of Major Ogasawara, was furious but powerless against the arrogant and domineering Major Taiga Sumi.

Major Taiga Sumi was a close confidant of Unit 731's commander, Ishii, and had followed him since the Anti-Epidemic Class at the Army Medical School. Ishii almost always followed his advice on certain matters.

If Ishii's importance to him was compared, even Ishii's two elder brothers in the special class did not match. How could a mere captain challenge his position?

The arrogant Major Taiga Sumi did not care about the captain's anger. To him, no one in the Epidemic Prevention and Water Supply Department, except for Commander Ishii, was worth mentioning or respecting. Even a few colonels were not in his eyes.

He was only thinking about getting the prisoners back as soon as possible. It had been twenty minutes since the prisoners got off the train, and he knew that another passenger train would pass through in twenty minutes. If he couldn't finish before the next train arrived, the Kwantung Army headquarters would not forgive him, and even Commander Ishii would find it hard to escape blame.

Looking at the red-faced captain, who had been scolded, the already impatient Major Taiga Sumi coldly said, "Captain Heita Ichiro, you have fifteen minutes to handle these Chinese prisoners. If the prisoners are not on the trucks and leaving by the time the next train passes, you will commit seppuku to atone to the Emperor."

Hearing this, Captain Heita, despite his dissatisfaction, could only suppress it and hurriedly turned to follow Major Taiga's instructions.

Watching the captain's figure as he turned to give orders, Major Taiga, who usually considered himself unshakable, suddenly felt a wave of annoyance. The relocation of the experimental base from Wuchang to Harbin due to the "road big" incident and repeated attacks by anti-Manchukuo elements had just been completed, but the dedicated railway line and some auxiliary facilities were not yet finished. Therefore, the prisoners for the upcoming large-scale experiments had to be temporarily transferred through the Pingfang station.

Although the station had been designated for the exclusive use of the Epidemic Prevention and Water Supply Department, it was still on the main line, with frequent passenger and freight traffic, making it unsafe and prone to leaks. This time, the Kwantung Army headquarters had ordered all passing trains to stop for fifty minutes to facilitate the large-scale transport, but this special treatment might not be available next time. The Kwantung Army could not always halt passenger and freight trains.

With the various experiments about to begin, there would be many more large-scale transports in the future. The Epidemic Prevention and Water Supply Department could not always trouble the Kwantung Army headquarters. Thinking about this, Major Taiga decided to report to Commander Ishii and temporarily halt other unnecessary projects to focus on completing the dedicated railway line.

Due to Major Taiga's decision, Guo Bingxun, who was sitting next to Yang Zhen, was fortunate to share a set of shackles with him. Captain Heita, who had already been scolded for the lack of shackles, did not want to risk further angering the major over the lack of transport trucks. To avoid further delays, he crammed all the prisoners into seventy specially arranged canvas-covered Type 94 trucks.

Captain Heita did not care if some prisoners would be crushed to death due to the long journey and lack of food. After all, more prisoners were sent than Commander Ishii required. Even if a few dozen died, as long as at least 300 remained, it would be acceptable.

To fit all the prisoners, Captain Heita even used the trucks of the other Japanese guards and the military police who came to assist, except for Major Taiga's personal vehicle. He managed to load all the prisoners onto the trucks just before the deadline. Since the headquarters was less than a kilometer from the Pingfang station, the guards could run back with the trucks. If necessary, the trucks could drive slower.

Seeing that all the prisoners were finally loaded and ready to leave, Major Taiga, who had been watching Captain Heita's actions coldly, eagerly ordered the departure. In his view, as long as the prisoners were all on the trucks and away from the station, there would be no risk of leaks.

He was not worried about the prisoners escaping during the transfer. Not only had a company of the guard unit been mobilized, but the Kwantung Army headquarters had also specially sent a company of military police from Harbin and two squads from the North China Area Army to assist. These soldiers could form a tight security perimeter on both sides of the convoy.

Moreover, the distance from Pingfang station to the headquarters was less than a kilometer, and they would be within the security perimeter after just 500 meters. If prisoners could still escape under these conditions, they would truly deserve to commit seppuku to atone to the Emperor. Besides, most of the Chinese prisoners were like sheep, timid and unlikely to run even if given the chance.

The self-satisfied Major Taiga did not realize that among the prisoners he saw as sheep, some were actually planning to escape during the transfer.

Yang Zhen, who had visited the ruins of Unit 731 many times as part of his historical education in his future life, knew that once he entered that heavily guarded den of evil, it would be nearly impossible to escape. If he wanted to run, he had to find a way during the transfer.

Yang Zhen did not take the handcuffs and leg irons that tightly bound him and Guo Bingxun seriously. When he was being escorted out of the barbed wire, he took advantage of a momentary lapse by the guards to quietly break off a small piece of wire from the fence. With this wire, which he now had in his shoe, the locks on the ordinary handcuffs and leg irons were almost meaningless to him, given his training in his future life.

Although opening the shackles was easy, achieving this was not. When he was loaded onto the truck, Yang Zhen and Guo Bingxun, being in the first row of the prisoner group, were given a special "treatment." They were placed in the first truck of the convoy and squeezed to the back due to the overcrowding.

The truck was so packed that Yang Zhen could hardly move, let alone lift his arms. The air in the truck was even worse than in a train carriage due to the thick canvas cover and the large number of people crammed inside, causing those at the back to feel oxygen-deprived.

Several attempts to retrieve the wire from his shoe failed due to the lack of movement, and the lack of oxygen made him dizzy. If not for the crowd pressing against him, he might have fainted. Reluctantly, he abandoned the idea of jumping off the truck mid-way.