Chapter 67

These hunters, having no family ties, greatly pleased Dongku. This way, after a period of training, they could form a combat force. As for the training, Dongku had already planned it out. He wanted to let these hunters see blood first, to see the gap between themselves and people like Liu Zhong. Once they realized the gap, they could endure the loneliness of training. Then, after experiencing battle and more training, they could feel their own growth in the process of killing the enemy.

That night passed without incident. In the early morning of the next day, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Shanzi and Shunzi returned to Heikou smoothly.

Seeing many familiar hunters, the two couldn't help but feel excited and sigh.

Seeing Shanzi return, Dongku gathered all the maps, marked all the positions on them, and gave a copy to Liu Zhong, Sun Tao, and Shanzi. He then assigned tasks to the group: one radio was carried by Shanzi, the other by Sun Tao. Dongku also handed over the notes he had written in his spare time about soldier training, tactical awareness, and parts of a famous essay on war from the future to Sun Tao, the only one who had attended a private school for two years. He also gave Sun Tao a Chinese dictionary and a Sino-Japanese dictionary, instructing him to work hard on his reading to better understand what he had written.

After the assignments were made, Dongku left Heikou with Shanzi and Huzi, heading to find a battlefield for these new recruits.

Liu Zhong and the others led the hunters directly to Dongdaoling, where each family received a Type 38 rifle, and a few with better physical strength also received a Nambu machine gun. The hunters received the weapons but not the ammunition, as they could not fire randomly to avoid attracting the attention of the Japanese. They carried the food that had been pre-delivered, along with grenade launchers, mortars, bullets, shells, and grenades, and headed for Beifeng Mountain along the mountain ridge.

Dongku, with Huzi and Shanzi, headed straight for Mishan. In the nearby mountains, he left Shanzi to guard the backpack and the M4A1, while he and Huzi changed into Japanese uniforms and boldly entered Mishan.

There were no obstacles at the checkpoint. Dongku, dressed as a Japanese, and Huzi, dressed as a student, showed their documents and entered the checkpoint.

Dongku and Huzi toured the bustling area of Mishan, and Dongku chose to stay at the Fukelao Inn.

"Mr. Takashita, where shall we have lunch?"

Huzi, with a stiff Northeastern accent, asked formally.

Dongku, now called Takashita Genya, smiled and said, "At Matsuyama Restaurant, where we will be staying for the next few days."

"Eating half-cooked food?"

Huzi's stomach tightened at the thought of the half-cooked dishes, even raw food, which he found terrifying.

"Yes. You need to learn Japanese quickly, at least enough to understand short conversations. From now on, you just need to bow and follow Japanese etiquette, and don't speak. Pay attention to listening." Saying this, Dongku put on a pair of wooden clogs, adjusted the ivory-handled katana at his waist, and walked out of the inn.

Huzi stretched his shoulders and followed closely behind, closing the door and walking behind Dongku.

"Welcome!"

At the entrance of the restaurant, a man and a woman dressed as Japanese bowed to welcome Dongku and Huzi.

"Mr. Takashita, please take care of me!"

Dongku, speaking fluent Japanese, bowed. He could tell that these two were not Japanese but Chinese who spoke Japanese.

"Mr. Takashita, please come in."

The two at the entrance bowed politely, and the woman ran ahead to lead the way.

Dongku and Huzi walked into the restaurant, choosing a corner in the hall to sit down.

Dongku knew very well that any restaurant that opened so early had military backing and was a place where officers would eat and chat. It allowed them to enjoy food from home, easing their homesickness.

Dongku leisurely sipped a bottle of sake, occasionally tasting the food on the table, enjoying the experience.

Huzi tried various dishes from time to time, even swallowing without flinching when he accidentally got too much wasabi. Dongku occasionally introduced the origin of the dishes and praised the chef's skills, which pleased the chef. They thought he was a genuine gourmet or someone with a deep family background in Japan, as he knew the names of some obscure dishes that only large families would make.

Dongku appeared to be enjoying himself, but his attention was actually focused on the surroundings, trying to catch the information he needed amidst the noise.

Perhaps it was the feeling of being at home, or perhaps it was because Chinese people couldn't enter, the Japanese in the restaurant talked very freely, even discussing military matters without any reservations.

After a whole noon, Dongku didn't hear the information he needed. When there were fewer people coming in, he left with Huzi.

In the evening, he arrived at Matsuyama Restaurant before dinner and chose the same corner where he could hear conversations from both sides. He ordered a few famous dishes and a bottle of sake, slowly drinking.

In the evening, more officers came, and in less than half an hour, the atmosphere reached its peak. The officers, drunk, sang and danced, using this to numb themselves and release their stress.

Dongku quietly drank, his half-closed eyes seemingly enjoying the experience, but in reality, his mind was rapidly processing the voices and their content.

Unfortunately, by ten o'clock, Dongku still hadn't heard the information he needed. Although he didn't get the information, he confirmed that this was indeed a good place to gather intelligence, just as the underground workers in the future had summarized.

He was not discouraged, paid the bill, and left, planning to return the next day.

The next noon, he and Huzi arrived at Matsuyama Restaurant on time, still choosing the same corner, and slowly enjoyed a meal with a pure large board flavor.

In the afternoon, there were few officers, and before Dongku and Huzi left, they only heard some miscellaneous information, none of which was valuable.

In the evening, before it got dark, Dongku and Huzi arrived at Matsuyama Restaurant, still choosing the same corner, and slowly drank.

Suddenly, amidst the noise, he heard a place name: Baoqing.

He immediately focused on the source of the voice, listening carefully amidst the noise.

"Mr. Otake, let's drink to our heart's content today. We won't have time tomorrow, as we need to load supplies for Baoqing," a duck-like voice said.

"Mr. Yanagita, this trip to Baoqing might mean you'll stay there to take over the defense."

"Defense? There's Mr. Kawabe there, and I'll just follow orders," the duck-like voice said with a sigh.

Dongku discreetly looked over. A bearded, slightly fat man came into his view. The man raised his glass, drank it dry, and refilled it, saying, "Mr. Kawabe has been in Baoqing for almost a month. The settlement there was destroyed, and no one wants to go. There's no decent restaurant, and very few people. Once you go, there won't be anywhere to drink."

"Ah..."

Another thin man sighed, "Mr. Yanagita is doing well. A major in charge of a key area has a bright future, unlike me, who is still just a second lieutenant, searching for mountain people and not daring to clear them out..."

Huzi noticed Dongku's movement but didn't look around. He just paid attention to his surroundings and refilled Dongku's drink, slowly eating his sushi.

For a full half hour, the two men only talked about leaving the next day to load supplies, the number of people in the group, and the types of supplies, and then they chatted about amusing stories from their hometowns, occasionally bursting into lewd laughter.

Dongku knew that was all the information he would get. He silently thanked his luck, drained his glass, and left with Huzi after paying the bill.

Back at the inn, Dongku didn't rush to leave. He carefully considered the situation in the room and ultimately decided to ambush the unknown number of Japanese troops in the mountains after they turned off the road to Hulin from Mishan.

At dawn, Dongku and Huzi left Mishan and met up with Shanzi at the rendezvous point.

Shortly after, a radio message was sent to Beifeng Mountain, where Liu Zhong was training the hunters in various basic tactical movements.

Sun Tao received the message and informed Liu Zhong. Then, a group of over forty people, carrying only three days' worth of rations and their weapons and ammunition, left the camp at Beifeng Mountain and headed for the designated location.

"Brother Zhong, what are we going to do? Fight the Japanese?"

A hunter familiar with Liu Zhong asked.

"We're going to get supplies, weapons, ammunition, food, and the shoes on your feet."

Liu Zhong, remembering Dongku's words, didn't scold the familiar hunter but answered casually.

"Damn! This time I have a steel rifle. If I meet the Japanese, I won't run anymore!"

A hunter in his twenties kept raising his rifle and aiming, muttering to himself.

Shunzi and the others remained silent, remembering Dongku's words not to provoke them with words. They would show their best in the battle.

Mangzi, seeing that they were still undisciplined after several days of training, wanted to say something but couldn't, so he walked with his head down, stepping hard on the ground, forgetting that he had once been the same.

After sending the message, Dongku and Huzi headed straight for the three-way intersection in the forest. Shanzi didn't leave, as he had an important task: to observe the enemy and report the most accurate information.

It was crucial to know when the Japanese would leave, how many vehicles, and how many people. If it was a company or a battalion, it would be a big problem. If the Japanese fortified and waited for reinforcements, and the battle didn't end within half an hour, the ambush would be in vain.

If they decided to attack only when the enemy was close, Liu Zhong and his men wouldn't have a problem, even if they were hidden, they wouldn't be discovered. But the newly joined hunters were a different story. If they were spotted by the Japanese, and the Japanese retaliated, it would demoralize the troops. This was also why the bullets hadn't been distributed yet, to prevent the hunters from accidentally firing due to excitement.