I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

It had been more than two years since they had been home, and the whole family gathered together for a long time, crying and making merry! The housekeeper arranged for Mancang and the others to stay in the guest room, and after a while, he came over to invite Mancang over to talk.

When I saw the little girl Zaohua again, she had changed. She was wearing a bright yellow silk dress, with a thick braid hanging down her back. She looked as pure and beautiful as those young ladies from the Republican era on TV!

Mancang was completely dumbfounded!

"Hey! What are you standing there for? Hurry up and sit down!" Looking at Mancang's silly appearance, she felt a sweet warmth in her heart and said with a hint of annoyance.

"Oh, oh, greetings to Master Zhang! Greetings to Madam!" Mancang quickly stepped forward to bow to the two elders.

"Haha, full warehouse, right? Come and sit down! I know many people in your Zhao Village, so don't be shy here!" Zhang Youcai said with a smile.

"Haha, thank you, sir! I've long heard from the older generation that Master Zhang is kind-hearted and has taken good care of the people in Zhao Village. I thank you again, sir!" Mancang said politely.

"You're such a smooth talker! I've never seen you so eloquent in the village!" Zao Hua rolled her eyes as she listened from the side.

"Haha, as expected of a great hero who dared to stand up to the Japanese devils! His resourcefulness alone is something that ordinary people can't match!" Zhang Youcai praised.

Mancang felt incredibly ashamed! Looking at that girl in front of the old man—wouldn't it be too embarrassing if he didn't say something nice?

"You flatter me, sir! I'm just living a quiet life in a small village, nothing like a great hero!" Mancang quickly replied modestly.

"Haha, good! You guys rescued the girl from the Japanese devils' den this time. I can never repay your life-saving grace! Just ask if you need anything, and I will do my best to help you!" Zhang Youcai said.

“Grandpa, you’re too kind! We formed this team to fight the Japanese and protect our fellow villagers. If the Japanese want to mine our gold and then turn around and attack our army, how can we agree to that? Don’t worry about this little thing! It’s already troublesome enough that the caravans from the village keep coming over to bother you two!” Mancang quickly declined.

"Young man, your patriotism is truly touching! Why not join the army, fight on the battlefield, and achieve even greater merit? Your brother is a regimental commander in the National Revolutionary Army. If you are interested in joining the army, I will write you a letter and you and your brother will go there. You will definitely be given important positions!" the old man said solemnly.

Upon learning that this group of people were fighting the Japanese in a village, the old man immediately thought of the incident at the base. Wouldn't it be perfect to recommend these people to his son?

“Well… we appreciate your kindness, sir! But neither my brothers nor I have any plans to join the army. The villagers in that village are all counting on us for protection! If you can’t even sweep your own house, how can you sweep the world? How can we achieve greater merit if we can’t even protect our own hometown and its people?” Mancang said resolutely.

Mancang naturally wouldn't join the army. The National Revolutionary Army did have some truly brave and daring soldiers, but the atmosphere of the entire army had changed, and the future was already predetermined, so there was no need to make any further choices.

"...To be honest, her brother heard about the bombing of the Japanese base some time ago and even sent people back to look for this great hero! If you can go there, I believe Yiliang will not let any of you brothers suffer any injustice!" The old man was still trying his best to persuade them, after all, in his opinion, this was a matter that would benefit both sides.

"Haha, I understand the old man's feelings, but we brothers are really worried about our families. Although we can't be in the same unit, fighting the Japanese doesn't distinguish between the front lines and the rear. If there's an opportunity, we can cooperate to inflict even greater damage on the Japanese!" Mancang explained.

“Dad! Don’t force them if they don’t want to join the army! Their village is so much more fun! They work together, spend money together, and when the Japanese come, the brothers fight together! Isn’t that great? If you two are willing, you can move there too. It would be so much happier if we could stay together every day!” Zaohua said, stopping her father from trying to persuade him to join the army.

"Huh?..." The elderly couple were stunned. What did this mean? Their little cabbage, which they had raised, was going to be eaten! And taken away, pot and all!

……

In Mafang Village, Qili Township, Yohji Yamamoto stood cautiously beside Masao Inoue, awaiting his instructions.

"That's enough! He's just a maintenance chairman. We can find another Chinese person to handle the daily affairs." Inoue Masao said indifferently.

When the chairman of the maintenance association, Lü Hongzhong, was assassinated, Lü Hongzhong, the head of the military police should have caught the murderer, avenged him, and held a grand funeral to make the traitors who served them wholeheartedly follow them.

But with the burden of dealing with those rats preparing military supplies weighing on him, he had no time for superficial formalities. One traitor, so be it! Three-legged toads are hard to find, but surely two-legged traitors can be found?

"Hey!" Yohji Yamamoto breathed a sigh of relief. More than a day of investigation had yielded nothing, leaving him, the head of one of the outposts, quite helpless. The puppet troops he sent out went door-to-door to investigate, but while the traitors were dead, the people were only happy. When asked if they had seen any suspicious persons coming out of the bathhouse, they shook their heads like rattles, unable to get any information out of him! What could he do?

"How much flour have you prepared?" Inoue Masao was most concerned about the flour.

"We've collected 22,000 jin already, and in two more days we'll have 30,000 jin!" Yohji Yamamoto replied earnestly.

These past few days, the people at their base have been keeping a close eye on the flour milling process, working day and night without a moment's rest!

"Alright! The grain transport team will come to transport the grain the day after tomorrow. You must be extra careful and make absolutely no mistakes!" Inoue Masao instructed.

"Yes, sir!" Yohji Yamamoto naturally understood the importance of military rations; the entire military police battalion was punished last time there was a problem with the delivery. It was only thanks to Yokoo Nagano's timely organization of rations to fill the gap that they were able to avoid being accused of delaying the battle!

"Yes, this time you will select half of the soldiers from the base to accompany me in transporting supplies. Understand?" Inoue Masao instructed.

"Hey! Thank you for your guidance, Young Master!" Yamamoto Yohji was overjoyed. An opportunity to transport grain meant an opportunity to go to the battlefield! What was the point of serving in the army for so many years, guarding this remote mountain valley? Only by going to the battlefield and killing the enemy could he achieve merit and advance further!

"Okay, get ready!" Inoue Masao said, glancing at the mountain of flour sacks before turning and leaving.

The props are all ready; whether they can catch those rats depends on how well they perform.

Wu Erdan and several puppet soldiers stood by and watched from the beginning. When they heard that grain would be transported again in two days, his eyes lit up, but he silently pressed his lips down. The last person who had inquired about the situation from him had run into trouble with the transport team just two days later. He couldn't help but give this group a thumbs up!

What would happen if we leaked the information to that person again this time?