Vanguards of the War of Resistance! Let's travel back in time together, classmates!

Chapter Twenty: Tofu Feast

Shangguan Yun vaguely felt uneasy. Sure enough, not long after, he saw the sound of a car engine coming from the small road to the south. Then, two three-wheeled motorcycles and a truck came speeding by, billowing dust. Their destination was Songshutun.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the Japanese soldiers rushed into the village, causing chaos and commotion. All the villagers were gathered under the big tree at the village entrance.

A Japanese sergeant-like man stood on a large millstone, gesturing wildly as he began to give a speech, while the surrounding Japanese soldiers and puppet troops glared angrily at him with their guns at the ready.

The common people, seeing the gleaming bayonets all around them, shrank back, and no one dared to utter a word.

Suddenly, Shangguan Yun's eyes narrowed as a sleazy figure came into view. It was Li Yonggui, wearing a short yellow military uniform, following behind the Japanese sergeant, chattering away. His arrogant and domineering manner only made him look more despicable.

Shangguan Yun suddenly remembered that this guy seemed to have mentioned before that his older sister worked for a Japanese company. Could it be that he had also learned the Japanese language? It seems that he knows a little bit, otherwise why would he look like a translator?

Wow... everyone's talents are being put to good use! Even a match or a piece of toilet paper has its purpose...

It seems the Japanese are looking for someone; if I'm not mistaken, they're looking for our group.

However, after searching for a long time without finding anyone, the Japanese soldiers lost patience. They grabbed a few chickens, carried some local specialties, loaded them onto a truck, and drove off, heading straight for the next village.

Shangguan Yun and Min Wenqian lay on the hillside, gazing at the distant movements, until the Japanese soldiers had gone far away before they straightened up.

"Brother Shangguan, it seems the Japanese are looking for us. I wonder how Sister Zhu and the others are doing?" Min Wenqian said in a deep voice.

“Yes, let’s go down and scout around. There are Japanese soldiers patrolling along the way, so we shouldn’t leave for now…” Shangguan Yun nodded and said.

As darkness fell, Songshutun was situated with a plain to the south, Nanping Mountain to the north, and a vast forest to the west. Ten miles to the east was Jieqiao, and south of Jieqiao was Zhuanghe County. The surrounding area was filled with towering mountains and deep valleys, where bandits roamed freely, and even the Japanese were unwilling to venture deep into the region.

Just as Shangguan Yun and his companion descended the mountain and reached the vicinity of the small earth god temple in the north of the village, a young man suddenly emerged from behind the temple and greeted them.

The two men tensed up, quickly hiding behind a tree, instinctively reaching for the pistols at their waists, and staring straight ahead.

Seeing this, the man smiled slightly and whispered, "Please don't misunderstand, gentlemen. I am a villager from Songshutun. May I ask if you are Shangguan Yun and Brother Min...?"

"Hmm?" The two exchanged a glance, their brows furrowing slightly.

"Who are you?" Min Wenqian shouted.

The man looked around and said, "Zhu Yanping sent me here to pick you up. The two of them are in our village now. The Japanese came to search today, so it's inconvenient for them to show themselves. They specifically sent me here to wait for you..."

Shangguan Yun and his companion were skeptical, wondering if it was a trap set by the Japanese. "What proof do you have?" Shangguan Yun asked.

"Well... Zhu Yanping just asked me to tell you: I love beef-filled buns, and you should understand..."

"Oh? Haha... Big sister is really smart. Brother Min is right. This is our secret code, not many people know it. Big sister and the others must be safe and sound..."

As they spoke, the two slowly emerged from behind the tree. Shangguan Yun clasped his hands slightly and began to use literary language.

There's no way around it, his persona is that of a student!

"Greetings, sir. We were separated several times before, and our fates were unknown. We decided to meet here in this perilous situation, so we must be cautious. My name is Shangguan Yun. May I ask how this brother is addressed...?"

"Haha... I am Zhang Zhenfei. The old man who runs the teahouse, Mr. Wang Youde, is my uncle. Your cousin and the others are currently at my uncle's house. Please come with me..."

Zhang Zhenfei led the way, and the three of them walked lightly and with high steps toward the east of the village.

Back then, there was no electricity in the rural mountain areas. In late autumn, it got dark early, and by 5 or 6 o'clock it was pitch black, and you couldn't recognize anyone across the street.

After walking around for a while, the group arrived at a courtyard near the road at the east end of the village.

"Pat...pat pat...Zhang Zhenfei gently patted the door."

"Who is it..." a voice came from inside. "Third Aunt, it's me, Xiaofei, the person has arrived..."

"Creak..." The door opened, and inside was a woman whom Shangguan Yun and Min Wenqian both recognized—the old lady who ran the tea stall by the roadside during the day.

"Come, come...child, come in quickly," the old woman said in a low voice.

The group quickly slipped into the courtyard, and Aunt Wang hurriedly locked the door. Turning around, she called out to them, "Come on in, all of you. Hehe, young man, your sister has been waiting for you for ages, hehe..."

As Shangguan Yun walked, he looked around the small courtyard. The courtyard was not large, only about 200 square meters. There were four main rooms on the north side with flat roofs without tiles, and several thatched houses on the west side.

There was a donkey shed next to it, with a donkey tied up. Tools for setting up a tea stall were placed on a wooden cart. To the east was a haystack. A large water vat was placed under the eaves. Many large ears of corn were hanging in front of the window. Aunt Wang lifted the curtain and the group slipped into the inner room.

A man rushed towards Shangguan Yun, and Zhu Yanping immediately hugged him, bursting into tears, "Waaah...waaah...little brother, I thought I'd never see you again! Are you hurt? Waaah..."

"This afternoon the Japanese came to search, and we only escaped by hiding in the vegetable cellar on the mountain behind us. Thanks to Uncle Wang and Aunt Wang for taking us in, otherwise... we would have been captured by the Japanese long ago... Waaah..." Zhu Yanping cried uncontrollably, his eyes filled with tears.

Shangguan Yun was speechless. He patted Sister Zhu on the shoulder and said, "Alright...we're back safe and sound, aren't we? Look, all our limbs are intact, not a single hair is missing..."

Min Wenqian chuckled awkwardly, turned around and patted Li Dechao on the shoulder, "How's it going, brother? Did you run into any Japanese devils? Haha..."

Li Dechao was extremely embarrassed. "Oh dear, don't even mention it. We parted ways with you guys this morning, and not long after, we encountered a Japanese patrol. There were five or six of them. We ran all the way, and they were about to catch up with us."

Suddenly, several people rushed out, all carrying guns, and drove the Japanese soldiers away. They were accompanied by several young people dressed as students, who were said to have come from Dandong.

"Originally, those people wanted us to go back to the mountain village with them, but Sister Zhu said she would wait for us, so they brought me here and then headed east..." Brother Ban gesticulated wildly as he recounted the thrilling journey.