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

Zhao Mancang looked up at the distance from the toilet to the courtyard gate and replied, seemingly out of the blue, "How long do you think it takes to get from the toilet to that gate?"

"Huh? How long will it take to walk these few steps? If it weren't for the wire mesh, a pipe of tobacco would be all it takes! No, what are you planning to do?... It can't be..." Third Master looked up at the kid with surprise in his eyes.

"Shh... keep your voice down..." Zhao Mancang quickly put the chopsticks to his lips to signal him to speak softly.

"...Cangwa'er, don't do anything reckless! These Japanese devils are like living devils! If they catch you, it'll be terrible... If something happens to you, how will I explain it to your father?..." Third Master's expression became even more terrified. It turned out that the kid's promise to get food yesterday wasn't just empty talk.

“When will this end? You’ve seen people working themselves to death every day, who knows when it’ll be our turn! ...Don’t worry, we won’t do anything too risky. If we succeed, we might be able to escape this hellhole!” Zhao Mancang said, taking a sip of his porridge.

"That makes sense, but... it's too dangerous!..." Third Master naturally understood that staying here for a long time would inevitably lead to death, but he dared not actually draw his knife and kill someone! He hadn't even killed a few chickens all year round, so how could he have the guts to fight against the heavily armed Japanese devils!

"...Let's take a gamble...like a lamb turning into a horse! Either way we're going to die, how will we know we won't succeed if we don't try? Don't worry, get some food first, the Japanese won't care!" With that, Zhao Mancang finished his bowl of thin porridge in one gulp and sat down to rest. He was indeed exhausted from the morning's busy work!

While everyone was eating, he went to the toilet alone, relieved himself, and did a few sets of leg stretches. He felt his leaden legs feel a bit lighter.

Taking physical education classes from a young age is no joke; stretching after strenuous exercise can relieve a lot of discomfort.

"Kid, you've got some work done this morning, huh? How about we team up for lunch?" Zhao Mancang had just finished stretching and hadn't even gotten up when he heard a deep voice in his ear. Even a fool could tell from the tone that it was malicious!

Looking up, a black-clad Nationalist army soldier came into view, with only a trace of his original yellowish-green color remaining under his armpits. He was the prisoner whom the Japanese had casually whipped when they praised him that morning.

"No need! You're doing a great job!" The other party was clearly up to no good; he was blaming her for being too proactive and getting whipped!

"Kid, don't push your luck! I'm doing you a favor by letting you team up with me, don't be stubborn!" The prisoner said, waving a fist in front of his face with a fierce look.

"Luo Xiang? A KMT prisoner of war? Was he captured on the battlefield? With all that bravado, why don't you go and fight the Japanese? Aren't you ashamed to show off to an ordinary civilian like me?" Zhao Mancang was short, only reaching the other man's ears, and incredibly thin, but he wasn't intimidated at all! He glanced at the name tag on the other man's chest and could vaguely make out the name, but the unit number was illegible!

"Huh? You can read? A shepherd boy who can read and write? You've been to a private school, kid?" Luo Xiang didn't care about the other party's question; instead, he was surprised that the kid could recognize his name tag at a glance!

In those days, let alone shepherds, even the children of landlords might not have attended a private school. With war and chaos everywhere, schoolteachers had no time for serene, head-shaking instruction.

"Going to a private school? You could say that! You memorized the Thousand Character Classic and the Hundred Family Surnames with the old teacher. Are you planning to fight now?" Zhao Mancang said, pointing at the other person's fist.

"Huh?...Oh!...Since you're educated, I'll let you off this time! I'm a roughneck who suffered because I was illiterate in the army, and I'm quite envious of you literate people. Don't be a fool and work yourself to the bone for the Japanese. Here, just wait it out. It doesn't matter how much you do! The more you work for the Japanese, the more iron they can make to manufacture guns and cannons to fight our own people! That's aiding...and abetting disaster, you know?" Luo Xiang withdrew his fist, his tone softening somewhat. Thinking about how he fought so hard in the army and ended up being captured and forced into hard labor here, he was filled with resentment!

"That's called aiding and abetting evil. It seems you really hate the Japanese! Are you planning to stay here for the rest of your life?" This Luo Xiang is quite tall and strong, and he was a soldier. If I could get him to join me in causing trouble, he might be a good helper.

"Of course! Which person in the country doesn't hate the Japanese devils? I was just making a living in the army, and then the devils came and I was dragged here to be a laborer! Tell me, am I wronged or not? I was planning to save up five silver dollars to go home and get married, but now I'm stuck in this godforsaken place as a laborer! I'm working myself to the bone every day, and people are dying all the time. Who knows, maybe one day it'll be my turn..." Speaking of the Japanese devils, this big, dumb guy gritted his teeth in hatred. He'd been beaten up quite a bit during this time!

"Alright! Time to get to work. If you can save your life, you might be able to get out someday! Let's go! If we're late, we'll get beaten up again!" Zhao Mancang quickly stopped him as he was getting carried away. Now was not the time to complain.

"Huh?..." Luo Xiang reluctantly followed Zhao Mancang out of the toilet. The Japanese soldiers were shouting and organizing people to get to work!

The midday hours are the hardest. Not only is it long, but the weather gradually gets warmer, and you get covered in sweat and smell bad everywhere after working. Taking off your down jacket makes you feel cold, and a gust of mountain wind will definitely catch a cold!

They ate two meals a day, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 4 p.m., and worked from 6 a.m. until dark. The period between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. was unbearable for everyone; the two meals were digested in less than two hours, and everyone had to tighten their belts and tough it out! What's more, Zhao Mancang was used to three meals a day, and these past month had been nothing short of hell!

Sure enough, another person died in the late afternoon! A man slightly older than Third Master was smashing ore with a sledgehammer when his vision suddenly went black and he collapsed into a pile of rocks, never to rise again! When his coworkers found him, he was already dead. A group of people shouted that they wanted to take the dead man home, but the Japanese soldiers naturally refused. They fired shots on the spot to intimidate the crowd and ordered two laborers to carry him and throw him into the deep mountains!

The deaths were naturally unbearable for the laborers, but with the Japanese whips right in front of them, no one wanted to fight a losing battle. They worked with grim faces, their pain and numbness palpable, their inner torment palpable…

The day's work finally ended, and everyone dragged their weary bodies back to their respective thatched huts and collapsed into bed. In the middle of the night, Zhao Mancang woke up on time, made sure everyone was sound asleep, put on his cotton-padded coat, tucked his dagger, and quietly slipped out of the hut. Taking advantage of the absence of the searchlight, he quickly made his way to the toilet, and after urinating, the light shone just as it passed by.