The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 526 Commander Hu's Home Ground (Two-in-One Chapter)

"Wow! They're from ethnic minorities. Their attire must be Miao, right?"

Looking at the small village in front of them, a group of men and women, hiding behind the wooden gate, were holding knives, spears, and clubs, their eyes filled with suspicion as they stared at the group of people.

Mina couldn't help but mutter this sentence to herself.

At the same time, she adjusted her expression, revealing what she considered to be a very approachable and harmless smile, before stepping forward to unleash her personal charm.

The reason for this was that when they turned a corner and saw the small village in front of them, the villagers also saw them.

Immediately, someone in the village picked up a broken gong and banged it loudly.

Amidst the resounding gong sounds, more and more people emerged from their low wooden huts.

Regardless of age, all the men wore headscarves, and the women wore silver ornaments, a very typical attire of ethnic minorities in Southwest China.

Armed with various weapons such as muskets, bows and arrows, and machetes, they hurriedly closed the village gate and looked nervously at Hu Biao and his men, who had already walked a hundred meters away.

It's actually quite normal for such a scene to occur.

The old saying, "Bandits pass by like a comb, soldiers pass by like a fine brush," has been passed down for thousands of years in this land.

This means that when ordinary people encounter bandits, they can always leave some valuables behind, just like a comb brushing against them; but if they encounter government soldiers, they will be thoroughly searched, leaving almost nothing behind.

It was only the emergence of our Party and our army that reversed this terrible situation that had lasted for over a thousand years.

With the emergence of the term "People's Liberation Army," and the deployment of troops during natural disasters, carrying various tools rather than weapons, a scene that foreigners could not comprehend appeared.

So, through word of mouth, the people in these remote mountain villages suddenly saw a group of soldiers in crisp uniforms, armed to the teeth. It would be strange if they weren't afraid.

Overall, however, there shouldn't be any major problems.

In the past, when Hu Biao encountered this situation, he would simply send out a girl to explain that they were just passing by.

They must not have harmed the people in the slightest. They paid cash for the purchase of supplies and the hiring of laborers, so there should be no problem.

This is why Mina forced a smile and prepared to step forward to negotiate.

There was no other way! They needed to find out exactly where they were, what day it was, and other basic information. Ideally, they would also hire a guide to lead them out of the mountains.

Negotiation is naturally a more suitable activity for women.

Unfortunately, the other women in the team, Anne and Chief of Staff Ann, are still recovering from the anesthesia and are clearly not suitable to appear.

Zanana? Given her physique and demeanor, it's best not to mention her.

Mina suddenly felt a strong sense of responsibility to take on the task of negotiating with these fellow villagers.

She approached the villagers with a friendly smile and was about to say a few words when she stepped forward.

Inside, a middle-aged man holding a musket shouted at the top of his lungs, "Who are you? Where did you come from? What are you doing at Peizi Garden?"

After the man spoke, he was shouting in dialect. Fortunately, Mina had participated in several time travels and had met soldiers and civilians from all over the country. She had heard many different dialects and had a wealth of experience.

With a mix of guesswork and deduction, they could tell that the other party was asking who they were, where they came from, and what they were doing there.
He was about to blurt out a string of lies, emphasizing that he needed to clarify the situation first without revealing his true identity.

Of course! It's not that Mina likes to lie.

Prematurely revealing their true identities could actually be a disaster for these fellow villagers.

Just as Mina was about to speak again, that bastard Hu Biao behind her—no, it should be her cousin's bastard—roared out with a deep breath:
"What kind of person am I? I'm Hu Biao from the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment, I'm back."

Whether it was her imagination or not, Hu Biao's roar seemed particularly loud; it echoed repeatedly through the surrounding mountains, making Mina's scalp tingle and her heart inexplicably shaken.

But in the blink of an eye, Mina realized:

Goodness! On the way here, you kept reminding us not to reveal our identities before we figured out the situation, so as not to cause trouble.

Before you could even open your mouth, you yelled out. Isn't that just playing with a silly girl?

But even more outrageous things were yet to come. After Hu Biao shouted that, the villagers hiding behind the village gate suddenly became chaotic.

They first had a very heated argument in a short period of time, but they were too far apart to know what they were arguing about.

Soon after, many people rushed into the numerous wooden houses as if their pants were on fire.

When they reappeared about ten minutes later.

Their tattered clothes were now neat and tidy, and many of the women and girls had large amounts of white silver ornaments on their heads and bodies.

Both men and women were dressed in their finest attire.

All the knives and spears they carried had disappeared, replaced by jars, large bowls, and musical instruments such as flutes, pipes, and reed pipes.

Finally, as the village gate opened, music full of ethnic minority flavor filled the air; the middle-aged man who had spoken earlier led all the men of the village, young and old, and walked quickly toward the crowd.

When they were about ten meters away from them, they suddenly shouted in unison:
"Greetings to Grandpa Hu Biao! I pay my respects to Grandpa Hu Biao~" (Note: "Grandpa" means grandfather)
Seeing this, Hu Biao stepped forward and helped the leading man to his feet, then said to the others in their dialect, "No need for formalities, please rise quickly!"

These people scrambled to their feet, and the middle-aged man at the head of the group waved his hand behind his back, saying respectfully:

"Uncle Hu Biao and distinguished guests, please go and rest in the village."

At the same time, the melodious sound of musical instruments rang out again, and the group of women who had stayed at the door were holding bowls of local wine that had been poured from jars and was somewhat cloudy in color.

While dancing to the music, she sang aloud:

"The young woman stands at the village gate, holding a bowl of welcoming wine. If you are a distinguished guest and wish to enter the village, please drink this bowl of welcoming wine first."

"Remember! You can take a small sip of this wine or drink it all in one go; but never touch the bowl with your hands, otherwise you must finish the whole bowl of wine."

Also, this is the Dong ethnic group, not the Miao ethnic group. Don't make a fool of yourself.

After Hu Biao turned his head and whispered something to everyone, he strode towards the gate of the village.

They stopped at the gate of the village, where a dark-skinned but delicate-featured, pretty, and graceful young woman brought them a bowl of wine.

Without even taking the bowl with his hands, he opened his mouth and drank it all down with the girl's help.

After finishing a bowl of wine, the smiles on the men's faces in the village grew even wider, and the women's dancing and singing became even more enthusiastic.

This bizarre scene left everyone except Hu Biao completely dumbfounded. Instinctively, they followed, but only one thought remained in their minds:
Is this Hu Biao's lair in western Hunan? Is this his home turf...?

That's right! Hu Biao did indeed return to his hometown, or rather, he returned to his home turf, to Xinning County of Baoqing Prefecture more than 80 years ago.

No wonder he had been walking along the path all this time.

I always feel that the surrounding mountains and rivers are somewhat familiar and welcoming, as if I have been here before.

Upon arriving at the village entrance, I heard the familiar local dialect name "Peiziyuan" and finally realized: the place I had traveled to after this time travel was actually my hometown from over 80 years ago.

In his memory, Peiziyuan was a village about thirteen kilometers away from the county seat.

Although the distance is not far, most of the journey is along winding mountain roads, including a section that is like a cliffside road, carved out of the rocky mountainside.

It is a rather remote mountain village surrounded by mountains.

When I was in my early twenties, I went hunting wild boar here with my relatives once or twice, so I vaguely remembered that I had been here before, but I couldn't remember exactly where it was.

As for why he didn't hide his identity and just shouted "I'm back"?
Of course, this guy is confident enough that he won't cause trouble by revealing his identity.

On the one hand, in his memory, Xinning would not fall into the hands of the Japanese until April of the 34th year of the Republic of China; their last time travel was at the end of the 29th year of the Republic of China, so the time span between the two time travels was definitely not that long.

Therefore, the nearest Japanese troops should be hundreds of kilometers away, so what is there to worry about? On the other hand, when Commander Hu recruits soldiers in other places, he often only needs to raise his arm and call out, and followers will flock to him, even outlaws will come to help.

Now that we've returned to our home turf of Xinning, it will naturally be easier to get along with our fellow villagers.

You should know that his brilliant achievements during his numerous time travels were already well-known throughout China, making him a symbol of resistance against Japan.

The news naturally spread back to his hometown, where he was said to be very proud of his family.

Another point is that, under the arrangement of a mysterious entity, his identity in this era can withstand scrutiny.

Even in the archives of the Kuomintang and the Japanese, it is recorded like this: Hu Biao, courtesy name Yitong, was born in the third year of the Republic of China. He was from Hujia Village, Xinning, Baoqing Prefecture, Hunan Province. He lived with his father in his hometown until he was ten years old.

The village elders praised him for his intelligence, integrity, and ambition, saying that he was destined for greatness.

Later, his father went to his hometown to do business, and the whole family followed him. From then on, their whereabouts and experiences were unknown. It wasn't until 1938 that he joined the Supplementary Regiment of the Jiangsu Provincial Security Corps in Rugao.

Therefore, with Hu Biao and Hu Tuanzuo back on their home turf, the villagers should be even more supportive.

******
Two hours later, Hu Biao, with his hair still wet, walked into the largest and newest-looking wooden house in the village.

This place, which resembles an ancestral hall, was a temporary resting place arranged for them by the village.

Logically, they arrived at the village quite early and could have easily made it to the county town to spend the night.

However, after learning some of the latest information from Yang Sangui, the middle-aged man who was leading the group and was also the village elder of Peiziyuan Village, Hu Biao and his group decided to stay for the night and see what happened next.

They needed to use this night to roughly discuss and come up with a plan for their crossing.

When we arrive in the county town, we can take more targeted actions.

As for why their hair was wet? Of course, it was because they took a good shower before the meeting. After all, they hadn't even dried themselves properly before pulling up their pants during the tiger attack.

As modern people, not only were Annie and Mina disgusted by this situation, but even they themselves felt uncomfortable thinking about it.

After Hu Biao entered the wooden house, he could see that all the transmigrators, whether novices or veterans, had gathered around a large fire pit.

Most of them, like him, had wet hair.

Because there were too many things to discuss, and it would probably take quite some time, Hu Biao didn't hesitate at all; he sat down on a small stool that Annie had reserved for him.

He got straight to the point, addressing the five novices seated to one side:

"By now, you should have a basic understanding of the actual situation."

Those who are willing to stay and continue working with us, please introduce your basic information and strengths so that we can make targeted arrangements for you in the future.

It's okay if you can't disclose your specific name, family, or work situation; just use a code name.

If you still don't trust us, don't want to work with us, and want to leave on your own, that's fine too! You can leave now while it's still early.

Aside from providing each person with a small amount for travel expenses, all we can do is wish those who want to leave good luck.

Hu Biao wasn't trying to bait people with his words. If someone actually listened to him and wanted to leave, he would genuinely give them some travel expenses and let them go.

He was certain of one thing: these people would never have a chance to leave these mountains before they met with misfortune on the way.

This can be seen as a way to eliminate some potential problems later on.

When faced with Hu Biao's question, the five novices exchanged glances and then surprisingly all chose to stay.

Their respective accounts were roughly as follows:
Real name: Ji Shouxing, the same novice who raised his hand to relieve himself by the roadside halfway through the journey, which led to Hu Biao and a large number of transmigrators squatting in the toilet together, attracting the attack of a vicious tiger.

He is from Lanzhou, Gansu Province, 33 years old this year, and unmarried.

His marksmanship is decent, but he needs to familiarize himself with the old weapons from World War II to be accurate. He is also skilled in close-quarters hand-to-hand combat and explosives disposal.

In addition, this person was quite tall, and his physique was not much different from that of Lao Ma, a big man from Northeast China, and the wizard nicknamed "Three Fat Men".

Therefore, Hu Biao and Annie exchanged a glance and had already preliminarily assigned this guy a preliminary position:

He served as the assistant gunner for the MG34 general-purpose machine gun team.

With such a large physique, he could carry several ammunition belts on his back during normal times; and in the heat of battle, he could certainly help the main shooter block flying shrapnel.

Code name: 803. This refers to the young man from Northeast China who, upon arriving in this world, raised his hand to indicate that he had studied medicine, identified the type of anesthetic Annie had been given, and how he woke her up beforehand.

He was in his thirties, a typical tall and imposing man from Northeast China.

However, his specific assignment was no longer to serve as a secondary machine gunner.

Because he not only has a medical background, but also works in chemical engineering, biopharmaceuticals, cell culture and other fields in the modern world, and has ten years of work experience.

Even if they are not medical professionals, their family may be involved in the pharmaceutical industry.

Having been exposed to it from a young age, he has a fairly good level of skill in both traditional Chinese and Western medicine. He has already mastered acupuncture, but his surgical skills are somewhat lacking.

Even so, it was still a pleasant surprise that Xiao Cui, the only professional medical staff member on the team, was unfortunately absent during this trip.

Without a doubt, he will serve as the team's medic during this journey.

In addition, this guy claims to enjoy mountain climbing, so his physical fitness is quite good; he's also a World War II military enthusiast, which should also be helpful in other aspects.

Code name: Zhixiang, 26 years old, from Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province, a retired PLA veteran.

When I served in the PLA, I was an artilleryman. In addition to being familiar with the operation of various conventional artillery pieces currently in service with our army, I was also proficient in map reading and use, as well as artillery calculations.

They are also adept at urban warfare and firepower assault tactics.

After this guy finished explaining the above situation, every single veteran realized that he had been hiding a lot of information, such as what he did after retiring and what his current profession is.

However, that's not important. What's important is that this is the only professional artillery personnel they've encountered during all their time travels.

They could be very useful in future battles against the Japanese; provided they can get their hands on some proper cannons and shells this time.

Code name: Welder, 35 years old, from Anhui Province, relatively thin compared to the three mentioned above.

In the modern world, his profession is that of a small shop owner selling aluminum alloy doors, windows, and security grilles; besides his welding skills, he also handles aluminum alloy door and window processing and installation, but doesn't have many other special skills.

That's not right either! He claims to have four daughters and one son, a total of five kids, which should be considered a special skill.

Code name: Dali, a newcomer who left veterans like Hu Biao speechless.

His personal strengths are quite outstanding; this guy is physically strong, incredibly strong, and adept at carrying heavy loads.

The extent of their immense strength and ability to carry heavy loads depends on the comparison they make with; compared to ordinary people, they truly possess a frightening amount of strength.

Compared to Hu Biao and others, especially Zanana, they are nothing.

Even so, he is still considered exceptionally talented; moreover, he is good at long-distance running, and proficient in archery and the use of a large hammer, so he is quite valuable to cultivate.

However, the disadvantage was also extremely frustrating. He grew up in Iraq, and the chaotic situation there caused him to develop a severe fear of guns and cannons.

Therefore, he was afraid of the sound of firecrackers and fireworks exploding, and would tremble all over at the sound of them. He also instinctively resisted the use of firearms.

This is a big problem. With this defect, how can one go to the battlefield?
Therefore, Hu Biao and the others had no choice but to decide to let him join them for now, and it would be even better if he could overcome the above-mentioned problems.

If he cannot overcome this obstacle, then his time-traveling journey will end here after this one...

(End of this chapter)