1942, I lived on hunting

What follows is a famous scene of bustling activity and prosperity. A long line of ox carts, horse carts, donkey carts, and mule-drawn carts are driven towards the base in the mountains by the villagers' skilled drivers. The carts are piled high with food and ammunition. They have to transport them to the hiding place in the mountains first, and then come back to transport them. Once they are in the mountains, they have plenty of time to return to the base. Following behind them are wheelbarrows, with food piled high on both sides. The villagers pushing the carts are all in high spirits and don't feel tired. Looking down from the sky, you will find that they are like a group of hardworking little ants, transporting the spoils back to their homes and the base little by little.

The Eighth Route Army had two major transport teams, one was the puppet army during the Anti-Japanese War, and the other was Chiang Kai-shek's army during the Liberation War. The Eighth Route Army particularly liked the gifts they brought, and accepted them without hesitation when they met them. They were all talented and spoke well. The Eighth Route Army also particularly liked to take the initiative to ask them for gifts such as weapons, ammunition, medicines, and supplies, and even gave the chief of Chiang Kai-shek's army a friendly title - "Transportation Captain"!

The guerrillas and the villagers worked from night until the afternoon before they returned home satisfied.

If you go back to the Liu Family Courtyard village, you will find it is really clean! The cellar that originally stored food is now empty, and the corpses of the puppet soldiers on the ground have been dug into a big pit by the kind villagers and buried properly, and their clothes were taken away as rewards. The villagers are all particular people, and I asked them in advance if they agreed. None of them shook their heads and said no! There will be no one in the Liu Family Courtyard in the future, and it would be a waste if so many things in the house were not used. The villagers are all from poor families and they hate waste the most. So based on the principle of waste utilization, whether it is tables, chairs, benches, pots and pans, they are all loaded into the car, and even the leftovers that the puppet soldiers in other courtyards have not finished eating are brought back.

The most frugal were the soldiers, who refused to waste a single gun or bullet. They stood guard around the village while searching for unwanted weapons and ammunition. Unexpectedly, they found quite a few. It was like treasure hunting in the wilderness. If you picked up a few bullets, you found a small treasure. If you could pick up a grenade, you found a big treasure. If you picked up a rifle, you found a big treasure! The most outrageous was a guy who was extremely lucky. He pulled out a crooked handlebar rifle from the bushes. He was so happy that his teeth were exposed and his eyes were not visible. People around him all looked at him with envy.

The unlucky one is Zhu Laoliu. Captain Li arranged for him to lead people to clean up the ruins of the artillery tower. There are weapons, ammunition and supplies buried underneath. They can't be wasted! Li Hao also wanted to help, but Zhu Laoliu said that you are still a child, don't do such rough work! Go and follow the captain to make plans.

When returning to the base, in order to take away supplies and guns and ammunition, the soldiers all changed into cotton-padded clothes and equipment of the puppet army. Each soldier carried three or four guns on his back, and the extra water bottles and miscellaneous items on his back made a clanging sound, like a triumphant song accompanying their return. Li Hao also helped to carry the extra water bottles, weapon belts, and ammunition belts, and carried two rifles on his shoulders, making clanging sounds all the way!

Captain Li did not forget to pick up the people from the abandoned brick kiln, and asked several soldiers to help escort them and arrange for them to go to a safe place. The two farmhands wanted to take the risk of staying to farm, but after being persuaded by Captain Li, they immediately gave up the unrealistic idea and followed him obediently. It is still very dangerous there now. The nearby area has become an uninhabited village. If you are caught by the Japanese puppet army, they will not care whether you are involved or not, and you will definitely become a target for venting your anger. It is better to wait until the people who fled the famine slowly return and confirm that it is safe before talking about it!

It was not until the middle of the night that the team returned to the village where the base was located. Some villagers had already returned in advance. Everyone had already known the good news, and cheers were floating in the village. The elderly, women and children who stayed behind prepared a sumptuous dinner for everyone. They steamed a pot of big steamed buns. Today, the villagers also killed the not-so-well-raised New Year pigs in advance and made a pot of soup. After all, the weather was dry this year and there was a lack of pig grass. Even the black pigs that should have been plump were very thin. The owner took great care to survive until now, not to mention how much meat they had. The villagers wanted to let the soldiers see some meat and replenish their bodies. Their faces were sunken and they were swaying when they walked. The continuous marching and labor in the past two days should not tire the soldiers out.

Captain Li knew that everyone was very tired, so he didn't say anything more. He directly ordered the weapons and ammunition to be sent to the ammunition depot and stored away before returning for dinner. Eat first, then arrange other things.

Li Hao wasn't feeling well either. He hadn't slept for several days, and he had been traveling for days in a row. The gene enhancing fluid was what kept him from lying down. He managed to get to the village, but as soon as he relaxed, he sat down on the ground and wouldn't get up.

Captain Li asked the soldiers to move tables and chairs and placed them beside the main road in the village. He then pulled Li Hao up and put him on the chair. He brought him a bowl of boiling hot broth and placed it on the table. He also took out two hot steamed buns and asked him to eat first.

Li Hao took a bite of the steamed bun and drank some broth. These foods, which were extremely precious to the soldiers and fellow villagers, were not to his taste and he had no appetite. He had not lacked food in the past two days, but he was too sleepy. He sat there with a steamed bun in one hand and a spoon in the other, nodding his head and dozing off.

When Captain Li saw this situation, he simply gave up eating and had someone carry him to his room to lie on the bed to rest.

Li Hao didn't even know when he was put to bed. When he woke up, it was already the afternoon of the next day. He rubbed his eyes and got up, yawning loudly. He still didn't get enough rest from this sleep, and he was still tired. When he got out of bed and put on his shoes, his legs were so sore that he almost collapsed.

There were sounds of low voices coming from outside the room, as if someone was discussing or arguing about something.

Li Hao put on his clothes and shoes, lifted the worn door curtain and left the inner room. In the main room, Captain Li and the instructor sat on chairs, staring at each other across the table, as if their eyes were about to burst into flames.

Li Hao came out and saw this scene, and couldn't help but ask: "What happened?"

Captain Li and the instructor turned their heads at the same time, and when they saw that it was Li Hao who woke up, they couldn't help but relax.

Captain Li: "Nothing! Li Hao, are you awake? Did you get enough sleep? Are you hungry? Shall I bring you some food?"

Instructor: "Li Hao, wait a moment. I'll go get you some water to wash your face. Wash up first and wait for dinner."

The two of them walked out of the house together, and when they reached the door, neither of them gave way to the other. They pushed each other to get out of the door, still glaring at each other, until they had to get their things and then they looked away!

The instructor went to the kitchen to get some water, then came back with a towel made of coarse cloth, put it on a stool for Li Hao to wash his face.

Li Hao was not polite. The water was too cold, so he just washed his face casually and was about to take the wooden basin to pour out the water. The instructor quickly took it and poured the water into a small vegetable garden in the yard.

At this time, Captain Li came back with a little soldier carrying food. After entering the house, they placed the food on the broken table one by one and asked Li Hao to sit down and eat!

It looked like the meal was specially prepared for Li Hao, and it was as sumptuous as possible. A bowl of large bones, a bowl of meat soup, a bowl of millet rice, two large steamed buns, a plate of fried cabbage, a plate of pickled radish, and a small bowl filled with four or five white-skinned eggs.

Seeing that Li Hao was still in a daze, he thought that Li Hao was embarrassed, so he enthusiastically pulled Li Hao to the chair, handed him chopsticks and asked him to eat.