The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 654 Guests Arrive Like Clouds (Two-in-One Chapter)

On the tenth day of the first lunar month, which was also the day Hu Biao announced that he would treat the heroes to wine and meat at Lotus Mountain.

Around 3 p.m., at a temporary campsite located halfway up Lotus Mountain.

Wearing an apron and dressed as a cook, the third brother first glanced at the shack in front of him. Underneath the shack were seven or eight earthen stoves and a large pot of stewing meat.

And a little further away, there were jars of liquor with an alcohol content of at least 60 degrees.

There are also plenty of pre-processed meat chunks, fish of all sizes, vermicelli, cabbage, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other ingredients that can be directly stewed in a pot.

Then he stood on tiptoe and looked up at the area below the mountain.

After failing to see a single person amidst the swirling snowflakes, he muttered something with considerable worry:
"There's still more than an hour left, and it's getting dark. Why hasn't anyone come yet? This is completely unreasonable."

Even in Black Bear Ridge, the second-in-command, Zhang Da Erduo, hasn't made a move at all.

Was his statement that he would definitely come just a polite way of saying "Let me treat you to dinner another day" in a modern world?

In response to the third brother's mutterings, a large group of time travelers, including Hu Biao, Annie, AT, and Lao Yu, were standing around.

Although these people didn't speak, the disappointment on their faces as they kept looking up down the mountain and saw nothing left to say.

That said! Although Lao Yu and his group were exposed due to an unbelievable accident on the eighth day of the lunar new year, the group of eight who entered the city that day still managed to escape successfully.

The two men, Mo Shuiyan and the warehouse manager, who were finally able to get their belongings back, were freezing cold, even though it was already past midnight.

And the next day, with the help of the Kuomintang's Changchun station personnel, they were able to purchase enough supplies; now, they have all been moved to the mountainside.

Early this morning, apart from a few people who went out several miles ahead to keep watch and patrol, the rest of the group of time travelers were busy preparing.

They prepared the ingredients, stocked up on firewood, and cooked the meat.

They were just waiting for the arrival of the Northeastern heroes who had received the news, to drink and eat meat, and then to discuss their grand plan to pull off a heist in Changchun.

The transmigrators' plan was well-conceived, but the actual situation was rather unfavorable; because now, as darkness was approaching and the meat in the pot was quite tender, not a single person had come.

As time continued to pass, the group of time travelers suddenly became somewhat nervous.

Seeing this, Hu Biao was also very worried. He was worried that if no one came, his title of "Commander Hu," which he had just picked up a few days ago, would be smashed to the ground again.

More importantly, without the expected help of several hundred people, they really wouldn't have been able to do anything on the Lantern Festival.

However, as the team leader, he knew he had to boost everyone's morale.

How to cheer up? By cursing, of course.

He pulled a piece of firewood from an earthen stove, lit a cigarette, and began cursing with remarkable skill: "What are you all doing with those long faces? Are you trying to show me your weakness?"

Use your brains! Traveling in broad daylight, especially near the relatively densely populated city of Changchun, isn't that just asking to be exposed?

So even if the heroes of the Northeast came, they could only come at night.

Third brother, you call yourself a chef at a rural banquet, how come you have no sense of propriety at all? Quickly pull the firewood out of the earthen stove, just leave a little enough to keep it warm.

Otherwise, if we keep simmering it over high heat, the meat will all turn to mush, and then everyone will be left with just the broth.

And you know what? Hu Biao's cursing was quite effective, although soon after, the unconvinced third brother started cursing back with "dead bastard" as a prefix.

However, the morale of the group, which had been low, immediately improved.

Oh, right! There was someone here today too. Around 9 a.m., Uncle Bo, who was on lookout outside, caught a man dressed as a fellow villager.

According to the man himself, he was a commoner who had come into the mountains to chop firewood.

Hu Biao and his men found no weapons on the man, nor did they notice anything amiss, but they still did not let him leave.

Anyway, they weren't tying him up, and he was being fed and cared for the whole time. He couldn't leave until they officially started their operation...

At the same time, something closely related to Hu Biao and his group was also happening in Changchun.

More precisely, in a small conference room at the Kwantung Army headquarters, Iwasa Rokuro, the military police commander, was reporting to Umezu Mijiro and other high-ranking Kwantung Army officials about the plan targeting Hu Biao and his associates:

"Your Excellencies, given the failure of the previous 'Tiger Hunt' plan, we have adopted a new codename for this plan: 'Tiger Kill'."

Regarding the 'Tiger Killing' plan, we will utilize the following resources.

In addition to the regular forces in Changchun, such as the military police, garrison troops, South Manchuria Railway Guard, and the Japanese, the 112th Infantry Division and the Iron Stone Army of Manchuria will also be deployed.

Adding all of the above together, there are approximately 42,000 people in total.

At that time, all the above-mentioned troops will weave Changchun City into an unbreakable net; if Hu Biao and his men don't come, fine, but if they do come, they should absolutely not think about escaping.

The reason we didn't catch those people the day before yesterday was simply because our manpower hadn't been deployed properly yet.

Once the manpower is in place, the result will definitely not be like this.

Just as Commander Umezu had predicted, based on the character analysis of Hu Biao and others, these arrogant fellows would definitely come.

Therefore, Hu Biao, this vicious tiger, and his companions will definitely be hunted down and killed by us this time.

Unfortunately, compared to the confident expression on Iwasa Rokuro's face as he spoke, the other high-ranking Japanese Kwantung Army officers present seemed to have some different opinions.

The main reason is that not long ago in Jiamusi, they also mobilized more than 20,000 people but suffered a great loss.

Not only were there heavy casualties among the troops and civilians, but the city was almost completely burned to the ground.

Although they deployed more troops this time, the city area of ​​the new capital is much larger than that of Jiamusi, so naturally more troops are needed to weave a large net.

Therefore, Qin Yansaburo, the chief of staff of the Kwantung Army, frowned and asked a question:
"Isn't 42,000 men a bit too few? We have plenty of troops. Iwasa-kun, you need to learn from the lesson of Jiamusi City."

"It must be admitted! Hu Biao and his partners are all geniuses in special operations. On that night in Jiamusi, they staged a battle that was destined to enter the textbooks of various countries."

Faced with the chief of staff's questioning, Iwasa Rokuro first sighed and said something.

But the next second, he suddenly changed his tone, his expression becoming extremely disdainful:
"However, we have figured out all of Hu Biao and his gang's methods and have developed targeted countermeasures, so there is nothing to fear."

For example, one of the most important methods they used to succeed in Jiamusi was to create panic in the city so that they could take advantage of the chaos.

At that time, we will set up blockade positions at the major and minor intersections in the slums.

Even if Hu Biao and his men set fires there, those Chinese Nationalist Party members wouldn't be able to rush into the city and cause panic.

If Hu Biao and his men wanted to set fire to areas inhabited by the people of the empire, Xinjing was mostly made up of modern buildings, unlike the easily ignited wooden structures in Jiamusi.

There was simply no way to prevent such a continuous fire from forming.

In addition, we have set up firing positions on buildings and at intersections in the city, and there are multiple patrol teams on the streets.

The most crucial point is that every civilian in the empire received a strict order in advance that no matter what happened, they must stay at home.

In short, Hu Biao and his men had no room to take advantage of the chaos and launch special operations in Changchun.

In normal combat, no matter how strong their fighting power was, even with just a few dozen men, they would be overwhelmed by the Imperial Warriors once their whereabouts were exposed.

After the voice faded, another Japanese lieutenant general raised a different opinion:

"Who said that Hu Biao and his men would only have a few dozen people by then?"

As they were talking, the Japanese lieutenant general took out a piece of paper slightly larger than his palm, along with several reports, from a brown paper bag next to him.

The note was covered with tiny, densely packed handwriting.

The above content describes Hu Biao's brilliant achievements in the battles of Shanghai, Taierzhuang, Northwest Shanxi, Southern Guangxi, and C City over the years.

Several reports came from surrounding garrison troops, punitive expeditions, and the puppet regime's henchmen.

The reports consisted of people who had inadvertently discovered small groups of armed personnel who were currently approaching Changchun City.

When the above information began to be passed around among the attendees.

The Japanese lieutenant general then continued, "All the evidence above indicates that someone in the city is helping Hu Biao and his men; there are also reinforcements approaching them. Therefore, when Hu Biao and his men made their move, it was definitely not just a few dozen of them."

"Iwasa-kun, I must remind you, His Majesty the Emperor of Manchuria will also be attending the victory celebration on the night of the Lantern Festival. What if something happens to him?"

When he spoke of "that emperor," the Japanese lieutenant general showed no respect whatsoever; instead, his face was full of disdain.

However, upon hearing the above statement, the expressions of everyone present, including Umezu Mijiro, the commander of the Kwantung Army, became very solemn.

They certainly looked down on this puppet-like last emperor.

However, they also recognized the importance of the other party, as this thing could be the source of their legitimacy in colonizing and plundering this land, and it was also a very useful tool.

Tools are certainly not worthy of respect, but they are indispensable and absolutely must not be allowed to go wrong.

Before Umezu Mujiro and the others could say anything with solemn expressions, Iwasa Rokuro, the Japanese military police commander and the person in charge of the "Tiger Killing" plan, said smugly:
"This is actually a good thing. Gentlemen, please think about it. The only people who would secretly distribute these notes in the city are Chinese agents who have infiltrated the country."

Those small groups of armed men approaching the new capital city are likely remnants of KL's forces.

I'm not bragging, but over the years, under our continuous crackdowns and attacks, the strength of these personnel has been severely reduced, and there are hardly any left.

Even if they all gathered together, they would only have three or four hundred people at most.

"Such a small number of people won't cause us any trouble. On the contrary, they'll make these guys who have been hiding in the gutter come out on their own, and we can take advantage of the situation to wipe them all out in one fell swoop."

After hearing this explanation, everyone present finally nodded in agreement.

After thinking about something, Commander Umezu Mujiro immediately offered Iwasa Rokuro a rosy picture:
"Yoshi! Iwasa-kun, you have to do a good job this time."

As long as you defeat Hu Biao and his associates, you will be a hero of the empire; and such a hero will certainly be given greater responsibility.

So, Iwasa-kun, please do your best.

With a shout of "Hai!", Iwasa Rokuro agreed forcefully, his face filled with indescribable excitement, as if he had seen a golden ladder leading to heaven.

Once outside the headquarters, even the biting cold wind felt sweet on my face...

******
More than an hour later, as darkness began to fall, Hu Biao and the others, who had been waiting anxiously, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

As time went on, even greater surprises emerged.

Specifically, it is like this:

At 4:23 p.m., Hu Biao was sipping a bowl of meat soup.

Suddenly, a series of rustling footsteps came from behind. Hu Biao instinctively turned his head and his face immediately lit up with great joy.

It's here! It's finally here.

Huang Adi, who had been keeping watch in that direction, was now happily leading a group of people over. The leader was none other than Zhang Da'erduo, the second-in-command of Black Bear Ridge, who had promised to come that day.

And behind him was a large, dark crowd, probably nearly a hundred people at first glance.

What's this called? It's like Hu Tuanzuo's face, which had fallen onto the snow, being picked up again.

Upon recognizing the newcomers, Hu Biao quickly put down his large bowl and led Annie and a large group of transmigrators to greet them; his face beamed with a wide smile, revealing eight teeth, and he was incredibly enthusiastic.

Even when they were still about ten steps away from the person approaching, Hu Biao couldn't say anything.

Beside Zhang Da'er, a small old man in his fifties suddenly waved his hand forcefully, causing a hundred or so people behind him to kneel down on one knee.

They clasped their hands together and shouted loudly:
"The leaders of Black Bear Ridge, Yao Laoqi, Zhang Da'erduo, and Li Laopao, along with a total of 103 brothers, pay their respects to Grandpa Hu Biao, Grandma Annie, and all the other grandfathers of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment."

Good heavens! Such perfectly synchronized movements and sounds—the heroes of Black Bear Ridge must have rehearsed beforehand. It's safe to say they've given Hu Biao and his men a real show of respect.

The transmigrators remained outwardly calm, but inwardly they were overjoyed.

To put it bluntly, these guys in the modern world are all just like humans, only they're vulgar people with a lot of wicked tastes.

Taking a deep breath, Hu Biao strode forward.

He stretched out his arms and helped the leader, Yao Laoqi, to his feet, shouting enthusiastically, "Brothers, please get up quickly!"

You must be starving and freezing after rushing all this way, right? Go eat some meat and drink some soup to warm yourself up first.

"When it gets a little later, we'll drink until we're completely drunk and have a proper meal."

After being helped up by Hu Biao and the others, Yao Laoqi said with a smile, "Grandpa Hu, let's not rush to drink and eat meat. We also brought you a gift."

So what kind of gifts could those bearded men, who spend most of their time hiding in the old forest, have brought?

What else could it be? Of course, it's ginseng, which is a local specialty.

Moreover, judging from the solemn look on Yao Laoqi's face when he said this, this ginseng must be quite old, perhaps even hundreds of years old.

In the modern world, this is a rare item that money can't buy.

Especially Mr. Nanze, a middle-aged man, thought that if he soaked the century-old mountain ginseng and tiger penis together in wine, wouldn't the effect be terrifyingly strong after drinking it?

His face was beaming with joy, and he chuckled as he said:

"Brothers, you're too kind. Since you've already come, why bring anything..."

Before he could even utter a single "greeting gift," Yao Laoqi's expression changed drastically, becoming ruthless and even cruel.

He shouted, "Someone! Bring that worthless bastard up here!"

Under this order, Zhang Da'er personally dragged a man who was bound hand and foot over and threw him in front of Hu Biao and the others.

Then he began to explain to Hu Biao and the others:

"On the way here, we leaders were on our guard, afraid that there might be some guys who would secretly go to the Japanese to inform on us for the sake of their own gain."

During each break, we would arrange for a few trusted brothers to secretly act as lookouts and lie in ambush.

Sure enough, they actually caught this scoundrel who was trying to escape; after using some methods, they found out that he was actually a legitimate Japanese soldier who had been infiltrating our Black Bear Ridge for more than half a year.

I originally intended to kill him, tearing out his heart and lungs, but then I thought better of it and brought him to Grandpa Hu to be dealt with.

Before Zhang Da'er could finish speaking, the Japanese soldier on the ground struggled to lift his blood-stained face and shouted in a very standard Northeastern accent:
"Kill me! Hu Biao, aren't you afraid of nothing? If you have the guts, then kill me."

The Empire will avenge me! None of you will have a good end, hahaha~

As he continued, the Japanese soldier burst into a series of maniacal laughs.

"Want to die a quick death? Dream on." Upon seeing this, Hu Biao kicked out half of the Japanese soldier's teeth, knocking him unconscious.

Then he started yelling, "Two people, drag this bastard away and do whatever you want to him, as long as he's still alive."

Before we make our move, we'll kill this grandson as a sacrifice to the flag.

After the excited wizard and Mo Shuiyan dragged the terrified Japanese soldier away, Hu Biao once again made a request to the people of Black Bear Ridge:
"Brothers, let's go eat meat and drink soup."

This time, faced with Hu Biao's invitation, the people of Black Bear Ridge did not refuse again. They all came to the row of large pots and each ladled out a big bowl of soup.

After only a bite or two, everyone exclaimed in amazement, saying that the stewed meat tasted absolutely delicious.

Then, while everyone ate meat, they chatted and laughed, instantly enlivening the previously quiet atmosphere at Lotus Hill.

Meanwhile, Hu Biao and his group had been waiting for the guests.

It can be described as either they don't come at all, or they come in droves; after the people from Black Bear Ridge appeared, a large number of people continued to appear.

In terms of quantity, it can be said that it far exceeded their initial expectations.

It was just that some of the people involved behaved in a rather bizarre way; so while Hu Biao and his group were overjoyed, they were also somewhat at a loss for words...

(End of this chapter)