The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Is Chapter 655 Reliable? (Bonus Chapter for readers 2108...6298)

Amidst the laughter and chatter, about a third of the bowl of meat in Yao Laoqi's hand remained.

To the left of the camp, another group of figures appeared, this time numbering as many as 220 or 230.

Since the leader was AT, who was on lookout over there, Hu Biao and his men naturally knew that this was a friend, not an enemy, and that it was probably some bandit leader from some mountain stronghold.

Regarding Hu Biao's speculation, it can only be said that it is both right and wrong.

After Hu Biao led a group of time travelers to greet them, they immediately encountered the same scene as the heroes of Black Bear Ridge before:

The newcomers, about ten paces apart, all knelt on one knee in unison, clasped their hands in a fist salute, and uttered a phrase:
"Chuanshanfeng, the chief of Matoushan, and Zhao Bazhi, the chief of Songfengling, pay their respects to Grandpa Hu, Grandma An, and the grandfathers of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment."

No wonder Hu Biao saw from afar that this group of people was not only unusually large in number, but also looked quite fierce; he had thought they were bandits from some mountain stronghold, but they were actually so strong and well-equipped.

It turns out they were two bearded men from Shantou who came together, which makes more sense.

Unlike the bandits from Black Wind Village, Hu Biao and his men helped them up and told them to eat some meat and drink some soup to warm themselves up.

Chuanshanfeng, the leader of Matoushan, is a middle-aged man with a full beard.

He then addressed Hu Biao, saying, "Grandpa Hu, please wait a moment. We received the news too hastily and haven't had time to prepare properly."

Therefore, the gifts I bring may not be very presentable, so please don't find them offensive.

As soon as the words fell, the crowd behind him parted instantly, and some men carried or shouldered the things tied with red cloth and arranged them in front of Hu Biao.

What exactly are these so-called acts of filial piety?
As the items were being carried up, a man, who was clearly wearing makeup, called out a gift list in a shrill voice:

"In order to show respect to Grandpa Hu, Grandma An, and all the grandfathers of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment."

The brothers from Matou Mountain presented a century-old ginseng, two sixty-year-old ginsengs, a pair of top-grade Ganoderma lucidum, six sable pelts, three deer antler caps, and four pairs of deer antlers…”

Although the above items are all specialties of Northeast China and relatively easy to obtain in this era, they are all top-quality products. Even back in Daqing's time, they would have been qualified as tribute.

This was a grand gesture, almost like offering sacrifices to Hu Biao, and the person who came over immediately bowed down.

For a moment, Hu Biao even had the illusion that he was not the commander of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment at all, but the chief of the Northeast bandits.

However, on the other hand, any one of the things that Matoushan presented would be a treasure if taken back; they are the kind of good things that money can't buy.

It truly hit the sweet spot for all the time travelers, and they were all reluctant to refuse.

Of course! Hu Biao and his gang were known for not taking a single needle or thread from the masses for free, and this same principle naturally applied to people like Hu, who were willing to fight the Japanese.

However, it's not a big problem. If we give them some extra penicillin or other medicines in return, or printed US dollars, pounds, and military scrip, these bandits will probably be just as happy.

That way, you can accept these gifts with peace of mind, right?

After considering all this, the group of transmigrators began to look forward to the tributes from the other bearded men; however, they soon found themselves speechless...

******
After the bandits at Matou Mountain finished presenting their gifts, the bandits at Songfeng Ridge followed suit, offering their own tributes as if presenting treasures.

As the boxes were carried up one by one, a man wearing a dog-skin hat called out their gift list in a drawn-out tone:

"To show our respect to Grandpa Hu, Grandma An, and all the grandfathers of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment."

Songfengling sent eighty-eight taels of placer gold, and eight hundred and eighty-eight taels of fine frozen soil from Rehe…

Faced with these bizarre gifts, Hu Biao and his companions were completely dumbfounded.

Gold dust was one thing; they'd heard there were plenty of gold prospectors in the forests of Northeast China, so it was normal for the bandits from Songfeng Ridge to send him a few kilograms. The real problem was the permafrost. They knew exactly what that was—it was practically duck fillets.

Good heavens! They actually sent them dozens of kilograms of duck slices. What's going on here?

But these bandits from Songfeng Ridge seemed to have given an extraordinary gift. The leader of Matou Mountain was dressed in a windbreaker.

He opened another box, picked up a dark, lumpy thing, and smelled it.

He started cursing under his breath: "You Zhao Bazhi, I asked you all the way here what tribute you prepared for Grandpa Hu, but you refused to tell me even if I beat you to death."

I never expected you to prepare such a generous gift. Doesn't this make our Matou Mountain look inferior?

After being scolded, Zhao Bazhi and the other bandits from Songfeng Ridge were not angry at all, but rather looked quite smug and proud; judging from their attitude, they even thought they had given a generous gift.

Unfortunately, faced with such a generous gift, Hu Biao was momentarily stunned, unsure whether to accept it or not.

Just kidding! From a young age, he was taught by his parents and teachers that he shouldn't touch this kind of thing.

Fortunately, Annie pulled him back in time, which made Hu Biao realize the situation and understand something: "These bearded people value face more than anything, so let's accept it first."

He immediately cupped his hands and said, "Then thank you all for your kindness, brothers of Songfengling. We have prepared some return gifts, so please don't delay."

"Let's go, let's eat some meat and drink some soup first."

What they didn't expect was that an even more unexpected scene would unfold.

Zhao Bazhi yawned widely and said, "Brothers, go eat first. I'm craving a cigarette, so I'll have a couple of puffs first."

When Hu Biao first heard this, he was prepared to take out the last half pack of Shazi cigarettes that he had been reluctant to smoke and give to the leaders.

As a result, Chuanshanfeng's eyes lit up, and he loudly echoed:

"Count me in. I haven't smoked this kind of high-quality frozen soil in a long time. I'll have to enjoy it today."

After saying that, he even extended an invitation to Hu Biaofa and the others: "Grandpas and grandmas, would you like to have a couple of bites? The frozen soil really tastes good."

The tone of the invitation was as simple and casual as if it were just a casual invitation to have a meal together.

Only then did Hu Biao and the others realize that the addiction they were talking about was actually an addiction to opium; every single one of them was an honest man who never touched that stuff, so they dared not agree.

Hu Biao could only force a smile and explain:
"We appreciate the boss's kindness, but as soldiers, we are bound by military discipline and are absolutely forbidden from touching these things, so you should go and enjoy them."

Upon hearing this, Chuanshanfeng's expression was one of utter dismay, as if Hu Biao and the others had lost hundreds of millions of yuan.

Then, with a sudden movement, she raised her hand and slapped the heavily made-up, pretty man's buttocks hard, laughing and cursing as she said:
"You old hag! What are you standing there for? Go and light a good pipe of opium for me. Can't you see I'm getting addicted?"

"You rascal! What's the rush?"

The man, with his face powdered, raised his pinky finger and said something unusually charming.

Then, arm in arm with Chuanshanfeng, they walked towards a shack with a gait that was even more impressive than that of Annie, Mina, Xiaocui, and even the borderline female streamer Xiaobai.

Only Hu Biao and the others, looking somewhat disheveled in the cold wind, remained motionless in place for a long time.

Stunned, they had only one thought in their minds: "Is it really reliable to expect these bandits to go to Changchun to fight the Japanese...?"

(End of this chapter)