The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 486 They Won't Die (Two Chapters Combined)

"Yes! I am Hu Biao from the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment, and they are my comrades."

Thinking that there was no need to hide his identity any longer at this point, Hu Biao nodded and admitted it under the complicated gazes of Fang Youcai and the others.

Unexpectedly, the next second Fang Youcai raised his right hand and slapped himself hard.

The slap was merciless; after the loud sound, five finger marks appeared on one side of Fang Youcai's face at a visible speed.

After finishing his cigarette, Fang Youcai cursed himself:

"I deserve to die, I've dragged you all down with me."

"If only you hadn't accompanied me and had gone to carry out the orders from our superiors; Commander Hu, you are all so capable, destined for great things, how could you die here?"

Hu Biao and the others could tell that even now, Fang Youcai still had no regrets about dragging his seriously injured body to carry out his superiors' mission.

The reason Fang Youcai reacted so strongly was simply because he regretted asking Hu Biao and the others for help, and felt that it was not worth it for them to die here.

This same kind of thinking also appeared in the children, including the veteran, and in the two female students, Song Jie.

The look in their eyes as they looked at Hu Biao and the others was incredibly complex.

There was an unusually strong sense of excitement and joy, as if they had seen an idol, as well as a strong sense of guilt for feeling that they had dragged Hu Biao and the others down.

Seeing this, Hu Biao smiled and said to them:
"Don't think nonsense! You can blame the Japanese for this, you can blame God for being blind, but you can't be blamed at all; it's not that we're bragging, but if we don't want to do something, who can force us to do it?"

Don't even mention you guys, not even the bald principal.

So whatever the outcome, it's our own choice, so let's not dwell on it.

Faced with Hu Biao's explanation, Fang Youcai and the others' expressions improved slightly, but only slightly; they still felt immense self-blame for the terrible situation that had arisen.

Considering that the ten-minute buffer time given by the Japanese was not long, Hu Biao did not bother to continue to comfort them.

Using simple language, he explained once again the dangerous method of escaping by rolling down a cliff, and solemnly asked them if they were willing to do so.

Without any hesitation, Fang Youcai and the others immediately agreed.

Even children as young as ten and a half, Xiao Hao, the art troupe member, and Cao'er immediately agreed to this crazy idea without hesitation.

In the words of this ten-and-a-half-year-old boy, full of childish innocence: he would rather fall to his death here than fall into the hands of the Japanese and bring shame upon his father.

At this point, everyone reached a consensus on the method of escaping by rolling down the cliff.

In the time that followed, they acted immediately.

That's right! It's all about preparation.

Even though the decision was made to risk rolling down the cliff to escape, it's not as simple as just throwing your head in the air and jumping straight off the cliff. Some necessary preparations still need to be made.

If these preparations are done well, their chances of survival should be greatly increased.

These preparations have the following characteristics:
Broken radios, machine guns and rifles, grenades and other weapons missing their original parts—you can't just carry these things down the river with you; you might end up hurting yourself.

So after they finished packing, they slid down the steep mountainside.

Everyone stuffed as much soft licorice as possible into their helmets and clothes, making them look bulky and bloated.

The joints such as knees, elbows, ankles, and wrists were all wrapped with towels and strips of cloth.

After all this fuss, although the shape isn't very attractive, it can at least provide some cushioning and reduce the impact no matter what it bumps into.

Perhaps it is because of these relief measures that Hu Biao and his men were able to survive.

They also kept their eyes wide open and carefully observed, trying their best to find a relatively gentle route in the steep mountains.

After all, when mountaineering teams climb Mount Everest, they plan out several reasonable routes beforehand, instead of just blindly rushing up.

A reasonable route would make their roll down safer.

Finally, after secretly clearing almost all the dry grass from the hilltop, Hu Biao and his men had basically completed all the preparations.

The rest is up to fate. Hopefully, the unreliable God will finally open his eyes this time.

Even if it's not for the adults and time travelers, but just for the children...

Just as Hu Biao and his men had finished making all the preparations, the shouts from below rang out again; ten minutes had passed exactly.

This time, however, the Japanese soldiers below dared not stick their heads out or shout through megaphones.

The voice, which had been fluent Mandarin uttered by the lackey, had transformed into a strangely accented shout that was barely comprehensible.

"Hu Sang, I am Major Tanaka, the highest-ranking commander here."

I regret to inform you that your ten-minute consideration period has passed. Now please tell me your decision: are you willing to lay down your arms or die here?
However, Hu Sang, you are heroes of our time, and I still hope…”

Major Tanaka's plea for surrender was cut short once again; halfway through his call, Hu Biao shouted back:
"Grandson! Grandpa is leaving, no need to see me off."

Upon hearing this, Major Tanaka and all the Japanese soldiers present couldn't fathom how Hu Biao and his men could possibly escape under such circumstances.

But instinctively, I sensed something was very wrong.

Ignoring the immense danger of being shot dead by the enemy's incredibly skilled sniper once they stood up, they all rose from their hiding places.

I stood on tiptoe and looked towards the direction of the hilltop.

This is precisely why the Japanese soldiers witnessed a scene that left them speechless, causing their morale to plummet at an alarming rate, and they were unable to recover for a long time.

Even the victory in this war has begun to be questioned.

******
The reason for the Japanese soldiers' huge reaction was that after Hu Biao shouted "Grandpa's gone!" at Major Tanaka, he turned to the others and shouted:
"Let's go~"

After the sound faded, at was the first to act. He scooped up the grass and, following the route they had chosen, leaped lightly.

After jumping five or six meters, he first sat down on the ground with a thud and then slid down the steep slope.

The gliding speed increased, and soon AT could no longer maintain a seated position and could only lie on the ground with the grass in his arms to continue gliding.

During this process, even though his back was stuffed with a lot of hay, at still felt that his back was burning hot and stinging from the friction with the stones on the ground. In short, it was quite uncomfortable.

However, compared to what followed, this level of stinging and discomfort could be considered a kind of enjoyment.

After sliding for another hundred meters or so while still lying down, AT, holding onto the grass, reached an astonishing speed as it slid down the mountain.

The key issue is that the ground not only has stones of various sizes, but also some uneven surfaces; combined with these factors, he couldn't even continue sliding downhill while lying down.

After sliding into a small ditch, at didn't have time to adjust his posture before he completely lost his balance.

First, it rolled sideways, then it hugged the grass and started rolling around. The speed of the rolling was getting faster and faster, and it was impossible to stop.

During the continuous tumbling, at didn't know how many times it spun in a minute, so soon its head was spinning and everything in front of it was blurry.

Even so, he still held the grass in his arms tightly.

Even when at rolls down to the lower position, its back arches slightly, in order to use its body as a cushion to cushion the grass.

As the grass rolled down, he braced himself on the ground with his knees and elbows, easing the pressure of his body on the grass.

In short, at did its best, like an old father protecting his daughter, doing everything it could to protect Cao'er.

This was a consensus that the time travelers had reached long ago.

There's no way around it! To put it bluntly, everyone has selfish motives, and the selfish motives of these transmigrators are:
Of all the people on the mountaintop, if any of them were to survive, they all hoped it would be children like Cao'er.

There are too many reasons that make them instinctively hope this way. For example, the traditional Chinese virtue of respecting the elderly and caring for the young; these children's lives are just beginning, and there are so many wonderful things waiting for them, they can't die at this age.

The above thoughts have nothing to do with identity, status, or position; they are simply the kindness and brilliance of human nature.

So apart from the veteran and Fifteen, the two oldest children, the other seven children would be escorted down the mountain by the time travelers one-on-one.

By using their own bodies as cushions, they increased the chances of the children surviving.

Even the veteran and the fifteenth child were not unprotected by the time traveler; it was simply that these two older children were unwilling to accept such protection.

However, the time travelers' practice of acting as human cushions undoubtedly added too much pain and danger to themselves.

Sure enough! While protecting the grass and rolling around, at was bumped countless times, each impact bringing a sharp pain.

A very short time later, he felt pain all over his body, as if all the bones in his body had been shattered.

Worried about frightening the little grass in his arms, he didn't dare to utter a sound of pain under this inhuman agony. He could only clench his teeth tightly and suppress any cries of pain.

As a result, he managed to suppress the sound of pain, but his bloodshot eyes bulged out like goldfish's, as if they were about to pop out.

This continued until he had rolled countless times and didn't know how far he still had to roll to reach the foot of the mountain.

His back slammed into a protruding rock the size of a watermelon, which lifted his body into the air; when he finally crashed heavily to the ground, he opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The moment AT vomited blood, he immediately fainted.

Even so, he still held the grass tightly in his arms, his back arched, his elbows and knees bent...

It should be noted that since they had chosen the risky method of rolling down the cliff to survive, they naturally did not let AT first scout ahead with Cao'er.

It's the same principle as waiting to see if AT dies after rolling off the cliff before making a decision.

So, what the Japanese soldiers, who had stood up and stood on tiptoe, saw in their stunned silence was the sight of the people on the mountaintop jumping off the cliff one after another with incredibly resolute expressions.

Indeed, just seconds after AT jumped down with Grass in his arms, Black Star jumped down with Ten and a Half in his arms.

Then, one by one, they followed, embracing Sister Yi from the cultural troupe, Uncle Bo with the trumpet, Van Gogh with Xie Liang, Lao Yu with Ma Fei, and Mr. Nan Ze with Zhu Xiu.

Before each of these guys jumped, they seemed to mutter something under their breath as they opened and closed their mouths, but no one could hear what they said.

Then, the veteran, clutching his head and with a resolute expression on his small face, leaped off the mountaintop.

For the rest of the time, they all rolled down alone, without any instances of the two of them embracing each other.

That's not right either! Because when there were only a few people left stranded on the mountaintop, Song Jie, the thug, didn't forget to ask the female student she had asked Shizi to take care of before she died.

After another female student gritted her teeth, covered her head, and jumped down, she took a deep breath and prepared to follow.

But at this crucial moment, the novice guy, Cross, grabbed her arm and earnestly explained:
"Before he died, the thug begged me to take good care of you and do my best to keep you alive."

So next, I'll hold you and jump around, protecting you, but definitely not to take advantage of you.

Upon hearing this, Song Jie exclaimed "Ah!" Her female intuition told her that she could vaguely sense that the thugs had been looking at her strangely earlier.

But I never expected that the other person would have such deep feelings for me, and even on the verge of death, he didn't forget to ask his comrades to protect him.

I was suddenly overwhelmed with emotion and didn't know what to say.

His lips moved for a while, just as he was about to say "thank you," but he realized it was too late; because the tall, imposing figure had already embraced the petite girl and jumped off the cliff.

After they jumped down one after another like dumplings being dropped into boiling water.

Not long after, only Hu Biao and Annie remained on the mountaintop.

After Qi Qi reached the edge of the cliff, Hu Biao and Annie looked at each other at the same time, as if they wanted to say something to each other one last time.

But from the other person's eyes, I realized that what I was about to say already was something they knew all along.

In the end, without saying a word, they smiled at each other, hugged tightly, and then jumped off the cliff below...

******
After Hu Biao and Annie hugged each other tightly and jumped off the cliff, no one else stayed on the mountaintop.

If it weren't for the useless trash they had hastily thrown away on the ground, it would seem as if they had never been to this desolate place.

At least a minute later, Major Tanaka, the Japanese soldier, finally realized the seriousness of the situation; he took off running and rushed up the mountain in a swarm.

As he charged forward, his legs inexplicably went weak, and he fell several times.

So, in a mere 300-meter distance, by the time he reached the mountaintop and rushed to the edge of the cliff, at least two or three minutes had passed.

At this point, he looked down the cliff.

A large birch forest at the foot of the mountain had completely concealed Hu Biao and his group's whereabouts; apart from the large branches and leaves swaying in the mountain wind, there was no trace of human figures to be seen.

At that moment, a series of rapid footsteps sounded behind them. It turned out that the other Japanese soldiers had come to their senses and were also scrambling to catch up.

One of the Japanese captains was the former captain of the Iijima Company.

Seeing Major Tanaka's dejected expression, like a lost dog, a sense of empathy arose in his heart, for they were both in the same boat.

He couldn't help but speak up, offering words of comfort to Major Tanaka:

"Major, please don't be so discouraged. The terrain here is so steep that a normal person would not survive if they jumped from here."

Upon hearing this, Major Tanaka showed no sign of relief; instead, he asked dejectedly:
"Hu Biao, the mighty Tiger of Shanghai, and his group of companions, how could they be normal people?"
Although I also hoped they would all fall to their deaths here, I had a strong intuition that they wouldn't die; at least Hu Biao and some others were still alive.

Faced with Major Tanaka's question, Captain Iijima was somewhat speechless.

The key point is that Hu Biao and his team had already achieved too many miraculous victories in the past, so he instinctively accepted what the other party said.

Even so, he still stubbornly insisted on saying:

"Even if Hu Biao and his men didn't die, many of them must have been seriously injured in the fall; so if we send troops to chase after them immediately, there is still a high probability that we can catch up with them."

Upon hearing this, Major Tanaka gave a sad smile and didn't even want to say anything more in rebuttal.

"Looking at the mountain makes one feel like a horse is about to die from exhaustion" perfectly describes their current situation.

The surrounding area consisted of rolling valleys. From the mountaintop, the birch forest below didn't seem far away, but after they took a long detour to reach it, at least an hour had passed.

By then, where will we find Hu Biao and his men?

For a time, the beautiful dream he had previously had of capturing or killing Hu Biao and others, becoming an imperial hero, rising through the ranks and making a fortune, and finally becoming a noble general of the empire was gone.

And then there's the rage and punishment that Major General Goro Mano inflicted upon learning of Hu Biao and the others' escape.

Major Tanaka was utterly desperate, and a strong will to die rose in his heart; driven by this will to die, he also jumped off the cliff.

Compared to Hu Biao and his group, this guy didn't stuff any dry grass in his clothes for cushioning, nor did he choose a slightly better route, and he didn't even cover his head.

He rolled downhill for about two hundred meters like a potato.

He rammed his head into a large, protruding rock, and his skull was instantly smashed to pieces, leaving him utterly dead.

Watching Major Tanaka's corpse continue to slide downwards and eventually disappear from sight, the Japanese soldiers on the mountaintop remained silent for a long while.

After regaining their senses, they still dispatched a squadron, taking a detour to the birch forest below to continue the pursuit of Hu Biao and his men.

All the Japanese soldiers present knew they couldn't catch up, at least not them...

(End of this chapter)