Chapter 44

"Isn't it just a few packs of cigarettes? Is it really that serious!" Hu Hao muttered while squatting in a corner of the room, having just been beaten. Now, according to Captain Zhang's instructions, he was supposed to face the wall and reflect on his actions, but it seemed that Hu Hao was not really reflecting; he was smoking instead. Captain Zhang was in the kitchen preparing the pork and beef Hu Hao had brought back.

"Lengzi, what do you want to eat tonight! Do you want to eat pork and sauerkraut, the Northeastern style!" Captain Zhang's voice came from the kitchen.

"Sure," Hu Hao shouted.

After the meal, Captain Zhang went to the regiment headquarters, and Hu Hao had nothing to do. It was a cold winter night, and he lit a kerosene lamp, with no entertainment activities. Captain Zhang wanted him to study cultural knowledge—learning to read. Hu Hao pursed his lips; he didn't even know all the traditional characters, and he didn't have the energy to learn them now. If he didn't know them, he could always guess!

Bored, Lengzi had no choice but to clean his guns. He didn't clean the sniper rifle or the Type 38, but after cleaning the two Browning pistols, Hu Hao looked at his watch; it was almost 9 o'clock, time to sleep.

On the Japanese side, they couldn't sleep. The Japanese in the city were still figuring out how to write the report about the missing supply truck. It wasn't until the afternoon that they found the body of the Japanese driver, and one body was still missing.

"Damn it, find out who did this!" said Captain Yoshida, a lieutenant colonel in charge of the Japanese forces.

"Lieutenant Colonel, according to our intelligence, the truck went to the Eighth Route Army's base! Should we go and retrieve it?" a lieutenant asked.

"What? The Eighth Route Army's base!" Yoshida asked.

"Yes!"

"Damn it!" Yoshida slapped the lieutenant. "You're asking for death, don't drag us down. Last time, the 14th Division couldn't get in, and you think your 400 men can do it?"

"Yes, Lieutenant Colonel, what should we do?" the lieutenant asked.

"What should we do? You write the report and say the supply truck was hijacked by the Eighth Route Army, and they should send another one!" Yoshida said.

"Yes!" The Japanese lieutenant left.

"Lieutenant Colonel, I think it might be the same person who came to the city to steal the military supplies last time. He also drove a truck out," a Japanese major said.

"Hmm, it's possible. This person is highly skilled. We are soldiers, and we should avoid provoking such people if we can. If we do, we are powerful against the civilians, but a skilled person can easily take our heads if we're not careful!" Yoshida said.

"Lieutenant Colonel, isn't this a disgrace to our Imperial Army!" the major said.

"Disgrace? What disgrace? Last time, the 14th Division, with 20,000 men, went to attack the Eighth Route Army's base. Do you know how many generals, colonels, and lieutenants died?" Yoshida said.

"No, I don't know!" the lieutenant stood at attention and said.

"Two major generals, eight colonels, twelve lieutenant colonels, and 32 major lieutenants died. As for lieutenants, the number is countless. Although some died after the camp was bombed, most were killed during the breakthrough!" the lieutenant colonel said.

"So, don't think about taking revenge on the Eighth Route Army. We can't do it. We have to wait for the main force to arrive. Also, the puppet army should strengthen the control of the city gates. The New Year is coming, and we don't want to mess it up!" Yoshida said.

"Yes, I'll go and take care of it," the major said and left.

"Damn it!" the lieutenant colonel cursed into the air.

The next day, when Hu Hao woke up, he saw that the rice was already cooked and the dishes were ready. After washing up, he ate. He was from the south, and while he could eat wheat flour every day, he loved rice the most. He had to find a way to get more rice from the Japanese. The 50 pounds they had would last the two of them a month.

Hu Hao finished eating and saw that many families were already putting up door couplets. "That's not right, isn't it supposed to be on New Year's Eve? Why are they putting them up on the 24th!"

But Hu Hao didn't think much about it. If they were putting them up, he would too. He went to find Captain Zhang.

"Brother, do we have any red paper?" Hu Hao asked as he entered, and Captain Zhang was holding a meeting with the various battalions, arranging for the New Year.

"What are you doing here! Don't you know this is the regiment headquarters!" Captain Zhang said.

"I know, but I don't know why I'm here!" Hu Hao said.

"You..." Captain Zhang pointed at him and shook his head. "We haven't bought any! Go to Liugouzi, there's a market there, and they sell it! Also, here's some money. Buy it and bring the rest back!" Captain Zhang said. Yesterday, Captain Zhang had taken all of Hu Hao's money.

"Okay, I'll go. You keep your meeting going!" Hu Hao took the money and headed to Liugouzi.

When he arrived at Liugouzi, he saw the small market bustling with people, all from the nearby villages. They sold everything, mostly related to the New Year. There were chickens and ducks, pigs and beef, and various New Year snacks. If you didn't know it was wartime, you might think it was a rural market in the early 1980s. Hu Hao first bought some red paper, a brush, an inkstone, and an ink stick. With the money left over, he headed to the food stalls.

"How much for the popcorn?"

"Four cents a pound!" "I'll take 10 pounds."

"Do you sell apples? How much?"

"Three cents a pound!" "I'll take 20 pounds."

"Is this persimmon cake?" "I'll take 10 pounds."

"What's this? Dried chili peppers? I'll take all you have!" Hu Hao finally found some chili peppers. He originally wanted to buy a little, but since he didn't come often, he decided to buy enough for a while.

After walking around the market, Hu Hao had several bags on his back, and he didn't have much money left. He found a place selling steamed buns, got a bowl of beef bone soup, and started eating.

After eating his fill, Wang Wankai carried his purchases back to the base. When he returned to the yard, Captain Zhang was eating in the room.

"Brother, why are you back for lunch today!" Hu Hao asked.

"Um, we're also celebrating the New Year, so I came back after arranging the duty schedule. What did you buy?" Captain Zhang asked, looking at the many items Hu Hao had brought back.

"Brother, look, this is red paper and ink, and this is chili peppers, see?" Hu Hao opened a bag to show Captain Zhang.

"Good, very good, this is great!" Captain Zhang, being from the south, loved chili peppers, but they were rare in the north.

"What else did you buy?" Captain Zhang asked.

"Apples, persimmon cakes, popcorn, ..." Hu Hao took out items as he spoke, and Captain Zhang's face grew darker. Hu Hao suddenly sensed the wrong atmosphere, stood up, and said, "Brother, I'll go check the mountain, you eat first," and slipped out.