The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 275 Blessings (Bonus Chapter 33 for AT)

Alright! Now that we've finished talking about Mr. Nanze, this newbie, and what happened that prevented him from joining the group immediately, let's discuss that.

Now let's go back a bit and talk about what happened to Lao Yu.

Let's talk about what exactly happened to this complete newbie...

"Damn! I never thought I would actually travel back to the world of 87 and fight a fierce battle with the Japanese in Tengxian and Taierzhuang."

After opening my eyes, I saw a pile of spoils on the headboard.

Old Yu muttered to himself in a low voice, a voice only he could hear.

Perhaps during the time travel, everyone worked together to finally annihilate the Setani Detachment and kill Japanese commanders such as Setani Kei and Akashiba Yaezo.

The reason why the outcome was far better than in history is that, in retrospect, it wasn't a wasted trip.

When he muttered the above sentence, Lao Yu was actually in a pretty good mood, and his tone was quite relaxed, unlike other time travelers who felt heavy-hearted after their first time travel and return.

Unfortunately, Lao Yu didn't manage to maintain this relaxed mood for long.

The main problem is that, like Mr. Nanze, Lao Yu didn't bring back many spoils of war.

Specifically, it included Hu Biao's strange Leica camera, three light old-fashioned gold rings, an M35 steel helmet, a medal whose name I can't recognize yet, and a field officer's samurai sword.

Aside from the Japanese soldiers' gas masks, canteens, ammunition boxes, and belts, there were only some black and white photos.

The difference is that Lao Yu has an astonishing number of photos in his hands, a thick stack of them, probably numbering in the hundreds.

Looking at these photos made Lao Yu feel heavy-hearted.

Because in addition to the photos taken by foreign journalists like Hu Biao and Nan Ze, Lao Yu also has many photos that he took himself.

It included scenes that no one had ever filmed before, but which had occurred in Tengxian and Taierzhuang.

That mysterious entity directly helped develop the negatives and performed some processing on the photos.

Therefore, although these black and white items are quite well preserved, they still have a unique texture that has turned yellowish after more than eighty years.

The photos depict the beauty and prosperity of Taierzhuang, known as the premier town in southern Shandong, and Tengxian Ancient City, a city with a thousand-year history, before they were ravaged by war.

They were almost completely destroyed and in a state of extreme disrepair after the war.

With the same demeanor as Commander Wang after he was shot seven times and died in battle, there were soldiers with resolute faces rushing towards the Japanese tanks.

There are thousands of civilians who escaped the city, and the tragic scene of them being massacred by the Japanese at the foot of Gushan Mountain.

After witnessing all of the above, Old Yu's memories from his time travels flooded back uncontrollably, making it impossible for him to relax for a moment.

Finally, after putting all the photos into an envelope, putting it in his coat, Lao Yu went out.

Where to go? Of course, to Taierzhuang and Tengxian, places where battles were fought. Most importantly, to offer a bouquet of flowers, a cup of wine, and a few cigarettes to the brothers who died in battle.

Tell them that 87 years later, the land is just as they wished.

Once this impulse arose, Lao Yu couldn't wait any longer and left before dawn.

After getting on the bus, we sped towards Taierzhuang. During that time, I had no time to look at my phone and naturally missed Hu Biao's invitation to join the group.

When we arrived in Taierzhuang District, it was still not fully light.

At this point, Lao Yu realized it was too early; the flower shop wasn't even open yet.

Fortunately, during his wanderings, he successfully found a 24-hour convenience store where he bought four bottles of Peigong liquor and two packs of Huazi cigarettes—these were the most important items.

With these things in hand, he did not go to the Taierzhuang Ancient City, which was rebuilt later, but went straight to the Taierzhuang Battle Memorial Hall and stood in front of the martyrs' monument.

He poured two bottles of liquor in front of the monument, lit a pack of cigarettes, and carefully placed them on the steps.

Then he took a deep breath and, with his most standard military posture, solemnly saluted his former comrade-in-arms.

Whether by coincidence or not, at that moment, the sun rose on the horizon, and the golden sunlight shone on the monument, making it look radiant.

At the same time, a morning breeze blew by, causing the lit cigarette to burn faster, as if someone were smoking.

The sound of the wind rustling through the treetops was like the joyful laughter of many people...

Afterwards, Lao Yu went to Teng County, which is now called Tengzhou. Upon arriving at the Martyrs' Cemetery, he repeated the same actions he had taken in Taierzhuang.

The difference is that after he finished all this, he went to the Tengzhou Museum, because it houses the Tengxian Defense War Memorial Hall.

After making his way to the front desk of the office area, he placed the envelope containing the photos on the desk where no one was present.

Then, without looking back, he lifted his leg and walked away.

He felt that these photos would be more meaningful to be exhibited in a museum than to keep them as personal mementos.

In particular, it allows children to see and better understand that humiliating and difficult period of history.
Let them understand from a young age a simple but extremely important principle: Never forget national humiliation, for backwardness invites aggression.

******
When we came out of the museum, it was already past 10 a.m.

The last time they ate was when the cavalry caught up with the remnants of the Seya Detachment in the muddy ditch and ate a steamed bun during a temporary rest. Almost seventeen or eighteen hours have passed since then.

Having finished worrying about his business, Lao Yu suddenly felt extremely hungry.

I happened to see a small shop on the street selling vegetable pancakes, a local delicacy of Tengzhou. I thought of the vegetable pancakes made by the women in the city during the street fighting in Tengzhou, and I was so hungry that I felt like I could eat a whole cow.

He immediately strode forward and called out from a distance, "Boss, give me one, no! Two vegetable pancakes, and a bowl of congee."

"Just a moment, it'll be ready soon." The boss looked up and readily agreed.

Old Yu, however, seemed to have been struck by a pressure point, and his whole body went dazed.

Nothing more! Just like when Uncle Bo saw Huang Sanxi, the old squad leader of the Guilin Army, in the Guilin rice noodle shop.

The busy male boss was in his thirties, rather thin, and wore glasses; he had a rather refined and scholarly appearance.

He looked exactly like Zhou Tong, the magistrate of Tengzhou County.

Unlike Uncle Bo's situation, it was definitely not a psychological issue. Zhou Tong from the modern world made incredibly delicious vegetable pancakes by hand.

While eating the vegetable pancake, Lao Yu seemed rather absent-minded.

That was Zhou Tong in the modern world. Although the clothes he was wearing were not torn and were quite clean, they were obviously old-fashioned styles that had been around for a while.

In addition, the shop is very small and business doesn't seem to be very good.

Driven by a strange mix of affection and a desire for compensation, Lao Yu decided to help Zhou Tong from the modern world.

After all, he didn't consider himself to be doing particularly well, but he wasn't doing badly either.

However, Lao Yu was somewhat troubled about how to help and how to ask the question in a way that wouldn't seem presumptuous or hurt the other person's self-esteem.

Just then, a 'whoosh' sound rang out, attracting Lao Yu's attention.

When he looked up, he saw that it was Zhou Tong from the modern world who had pulled up the roller shutter door.

At the same time, he called out to them, "Hey buddy, I have to leave for a bit, so I won't clear the table. You can eat as you please. There's a QR code on the table; it'll be 23 yuan in total."

After saying that, he left without looking back.

Of course, it doesn't matter.

Importantly, this Zhou Tong from the modern world had changed into an expensive-looking jacket and wore limited-edition Air Jordan shoes. He walked straight towards a BMW X5 not far away.

So, he's not doing badly, he's doing very well.

These small shops may seem insignificant, but their business must be booming, and they must make a lot of money over the course of a year. The reason you see poor business is simply because you haven't noticed that the time is wrong.

They're dressed poorly! They need to make things easier for themselves.

After figuring all this out, Lao Yu's mood immediately brightened.

Yes! If people really have an afterlife, these great ancestors of yesteryear will certainly not have a bad life in this wonderful era.

Because they must have received some kind of blessing from God or this land; just like many veterans who have fought countless battles always live exceptionally long lives.

Whether or not this is the truth, Lao Yu doesn't think it's that important; as long as these people are doing well now, that's enough...

(End of this chapter)