Chapter 76

After making Commander Wu completely submit, they then let Li Liu handle the traitor Commander Wu. The fat man knew that Li Liu must have his own plans, so he let him handle it himself.

Among the leaders of the bandit gang, Li Liu was known for his smooth handling of affairs and his ability to endure what others could not. The fat man admired his skills, thinking that such a person would be a good ally in the future.

Letting Li Liu continue to infiltrate would help control Commander Wu and gather intelligence in the county. He decided not to recall Li Liu for now, as such a person could only excel in infiltration. If he didn’t take down the Japanese, Li Liu would continue to infiltrate.

While the fat man was organizing his men to clean up the battlefield, Tiger Li hurried over and said, "Brother-in-law, that scoundrel Zhou Xiong escaped!"

"He sure is quick to run, hmpf!" The fat man sneered. After this battle, Black Wind Mountain would no longer be a threat to Tiger Mouth Mountain. One less or one more didn’t matter; Zhou Xiong’s escape was no problem for him. The battle had achieved its intended purpose.

The battle had frightened the villagers of Xiawan Village, but fortunately, 90% of it took place outside the village. Only a wall was damaged by the Maxim machine gun. Colonel Ma insisted on compensating the villager, but he had no money. Seeing the fat man organizing the evacuation of the Maxim machine gun, he insisted that the fat man pay two silver dollars as compensation.

"Damn it, don’t involve me in such things in the future." The fat man was pained; those were two silver dollars, enough to buy a lot of chicken butts.

Moreover, the wall wasn’t worth that much. So, the fat man, feeling aggrieved, shouted at Colonel Ma, "The well-equipped puppet army and the weapons and ammunition sent by Commander Wu, you’re not to touch a single bullet!"

"Don’t be like that." Colonel Ma immediately cowered. The puppet army was fully equipped with Type 38 rifles, Czech machine guns, and flower machine guns, and they even had five grenade launchers. The weapons and ammunition sent by Commander Wu were all good stuff. Hearing that the fat man wouldn’t let him have any, Colonel Ma was stunned.

"Are two silver dollars that much? I’ll pay you back when I get my allowance." Colonel Ma patted his empty pocket, lacking the confidence to speak.

"With your allowance, who knows when that will be? It’s better to wait for the Second War Zone to pay the army salary." The fat man knew that Colonel Ma was completely broke and a bachelor.

Not a bachelor without a wife, but a bachelor who was a scoundrel.

"I really will pay you back..." Colonel Ma said sincerely.

"Get lost, go as far as you can!" Since the fat man had traveled through time, he never lacked money. His traitor father was a wealthy merchant, and the Tiger Mouth Mountain bandit gang had been operating for years, with plenty of silver dollars. Otherwise, Tiger Li wouldn’t have offered ten thousand silver dollars and twenty guns to keep him, the "son-in-law."

Now that Tiger Mouth Mountain was in his hands, weren’t the silver dollars still his?

The fat man didn’t dare tell anyone this, or they might think he was a kept man, which would be a bad reputation.

Just then, something unexpected happened. After the fat man paid the two silver dollars, the villagers spontaneously gathered, their faces filled with excitement.

The fat man panicked, thinking they might be there to demand compensation for the battle damage.

"I am the clan elder of Xiawan Village. May I ask which of you is the leader?" An old man with white hair, leaning on a cane and supported by a young man, slowly approached and asked.

" Him!" The fat man reacted quickly, pointing at Colonel Ma, then immediately turned to leave with Monkey, fearing that he would be asked to compensate for the damage to the village.

"Grandpa, it’s him, that fat man!" Before the fat man could escape, a young boy pointed him out.

The fat man inwardly groaned, realizing he couldn’t run. He turned to see a four- or five-year-old child with a runny nose, mud, and soot on his face, and messy hair, pointing at him with a dirty little finger.

"You..." The fat man snarled at the boy, but the surrounding villagers all knelt and kowtowed to him, swallowing his "damn it" and hearing a sentence.

"Sir, please accept the gratitude of the villagers of Xiawan Village."

"Get up, everyone, please get up." Colonel Ma, puzzled, wondered how the fat man had become their benefactor. He didn’t hesitate, immediately helping the old man up and then the others.

After a brief moment of shock, the fat man also joined in helping the people up, and the surrounding soldiers and bandit gang members followed suit.

"Benefactor?" The fat man was confused. When had he saved these villagers, whom he didn’t even know?

"Sir, you may not know, but the bandit chief of Black Wind Mountain, Zhou Xiong, would raid our village every harvest season. If we resisted or didn’t pay enough grain, he would kill innocent villagers. This girl’s parents were killed by that bandit chief." The old man, surnamed Lei, was the eldest in the village and was called Lei Gong, a fitting name.

"This area is under the control of Black Wind Mountain." Tiger Li whispered to the fat man.

The fat man suddenly understood. No wonder he and Monkey hadn’t found any landmines when they surveyed the area; Zhou Xiong of Black Wind Mountain had already joined the Japanese, so the Japanese wouldn’t plant mines in his territory.

Today, they had indeed done a job that killed several rabbits, with many benefits.

They had wiped out the well-equipped puppet army, eliminated the bandits of Black Wind Mountain, and obtained a batch of weapons, not to mention the weapons and ammunition from Commander Wu. The most significant achievement was saving these villagers, who no longer had to worry about Black Wind Mountain during the harvest season. They could also buy grain more easily, and the grain they had would last the bandit gang for a while, even with the reduced numbers.

"Old Mr. Lei, if any bandits try to harm the village, just mention my name. I am the leader of Tiger Mouth Mountain, Tiger Li, and this is my third brother, Yang Yun." Tiger Li said, pointing at the fat man and adding, "Your benefactor is my brother-in-law, we are family. If anyone dares to bully you, I will eliminate them!"

Tiger Li’s words startled Old Mr. Lei, who realized that these were also bandits. He had thought Colonel Ma was a military officer.

"Stone, is it really him?" Old Mr. Lei asked the young boy, puzzled.

"It’s him!" The boy insisted, adding, "I heard gunshots outside the village and climbed up to the watchtower. I saw this fat man standing on a cart, chasing the bad guys from Black Wind Mountain."

Though the boy’s voice was still childish, his account was clear and logical, leaving the fat man, Colonel Ma, and Tiger Li amazed. The villagers, however, were calm, as if this was expected behavior from the boy.

"Fat Sir is the flying army of Tiger Mouth Mountain, who never oppresses the people. Old Mr. Lei and the villagers don’t need to be afraid." The fat man was worried that Tiger Li and Yang Yun’s bandit reputation would scare the villagers. He understood the principle that the people could support or overthrow a regime.

Although the bandits of Tiger Mouth Mountain didn’t bully the people, their reputation was still tarnished by the presence of bandits like those from Black Wind Mountain. As long as they were bandits, they wouldn’t have a good reputation among the people.

So, the fat man suddenly thought of a popular song and gave the bandits of Tiger Mouth Mountain the nickname "flying army."

As for the special forces, he didn’t dare let the villagers know too much, as the Japanese’s retaliation against the "special forces" could harm the villagers.

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