Courtyard House: Initial Donation of 50 Million

During their daring retreat, they encountered John Miller, the fake priest who had come out to search for Cardamom and Orchid after hearing the commotion. John was speechless with astonishment when he saw this disheveled yet menacing group, especially the wounded being carried and the woman they had rescued.

"God! You...you saved them?" John stammered in English.

"Father, take us back to the church. We need a doctor and medicine!" Wang Huanbo replied in fluent English, his tone leaving no room for argument.

John was impressed by Wang Huanbo's fluent English and imposing manner, and subconsciously nodded, leading them back to Winchester Cathedral, avoiding a potentially dangerous route.

Inside the church, the waiting dancers and female students, including Yu Mo, reacted differently when they saw Wang Huanbo and his group return with the wounded and the rescued Dou Kou and Xiang Lan. Most of the female students showed surprise and gratitude, while some of the dancers were wary of the soldiers. But when they saw the heavily wounded Shunzi and the dying Pu Sheng, and especially after hearing Dou Kou and Xiang Lan's tearful account of their rescue, their wariness turned into sympathy.

"Quick! Carry them to the inner room!" As the eldest sister, Yu Mo immediately showed her capable side, directing her sisters to help settle the wounded and take out a small amount of clean strips of cloth and water from the church's reserves.

Wang Huanbo, disregarding formalities, immediately began treatment. By the dim candlelight, he first examined Shunzi's injuries. The bullet was lodged in his shoulder blade and needed to be removed. His [Intermediate Surgical Proficiency] knowledge allowed him to move with precision and speed. He disinfected the dagger with alcohol (the alcohol was taken from his system space, pretending it was church stock) and said to Shunzi, "Brother, bear the pain, there's no anesthetic." Shunzi gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, and nodded heavily.

Wang Huanbo's hands were incredibly steady. He cut open the wound, carefully removed the deformed bullet with tweezers, sprinkled sulfanilamide powder on it, and meticulously bandaged it. The whole process was clean and efficient, leaving Yu Mo and several daring dancers dumbfounded. They never expected that this officer, who looked like a scholar, would possess such remarkable battlefield first aid skills.

After dealing with Shunzi, Wang Huanbo immediately turned to Pusheng. The boy's injuries were more severe; he had lost too much blood, his face was deathly pale, and his breathing was weak. The wound in his abdomen needed stitches. Wang Huanbo focused intently, threading the needle (also provided by the system space), and skillfully cleaned and sutured the wound. Doukou had somehow come over, tightly holding Pusheng's cold hand, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed softly, "Big brother... wake up... don't scare me..."

Wang Huanbo was completely focused, sweat soaking his forehead. After suturing, he sprinkled sulfanilamide powder again and bandaged the wound. He checked Pusheng's pulse; it was still weak, but temporarily stable. "Whether he survives depends on fate. He needs rest and nutrition," Wang Huanbo said in a deep voice to Doukou and the people around him.

Doukou looked at Wang Huanbo gratefully and nodded vigorously, "Thank you, sir! Thank you! I will definitely take good care of him!"

Only then did Wang Huanbo straighten up and look around at everyone in the church. The female students were gathered to one side, their faces showing fear and a hint of dependence; the dancers, led by Yu Mo, were helping to care for the wounded and distributing the little food and water left; the fake priest John was making the sign of the cross and muttering incantations; Chen Qiaozhi was nervously looking out the window.

Wang Huanbo cleared his throat, his voice weary yet carrying an undeniable firmness: "Gentlemen, I am Li Maocai, acting company commander of the National Revolutionary Army Training Corps. You all know the situation outside. Nanjing... has fallen, and the Japanese are... burning, killing, and looting in the city." He paused, uttering the word with difficulty, and a suppressed sob rose from the church.

"We crawled out of piles of corpses. The mission failed, but we survived. Now, we're trapped here, surrounded by Japanese soldiers. Our only chance to survive is to rely on ourselves!" His gaze swept across every face. "I know you all have different backgrounds and identities, but now, in this church, we are all the same! We are all Chinese! We are the Chinese that the Japanese want to exterminate!"

He pointed to the wounded: "We have brothers who need medical treatment, and sisters who need protection. Hiding here is not a long-term solution; the Japanese will find us sooner or later. We must unite and find a way to break out!"

Yu Mo was the first to step forward. She smoothed her disheveled hair, and although her cheongsam was worn and her face was stained, her eyes were exceptionally bright: "Instructor Li, although we sisters are of lowly birth, we know how to repay kindness. You saved Doukou and Xianglan, so you are our benefactors! If you have any orders, just say so, and we sisters will not hesitate!" The dancers behind her nodded in agreement.

The female student named Shu Juan also mustered up her courage and said, "Instructor Li, we...we can help too! We can take care of the wounded, boil water, and cook meals!"

"Yes! We can get things done too!"

"We can't just wait to be rescued!"

The instinct for survival and the newly awakened fighting spirit brought this group of people, who had once been in despair, together.

Wang Huanbo felt slightly relieved and nodded: "Good! In that case, we need rules. From now on, everyone must obey unified command! Men are responsible for guarding, defense, and searching for supplies; women are responsible for caring for the wounded, logistics, and maintaining hygiene. All food and medicine found will be distributed uniformly! Anyone who dares to fight amongst themselves, loot, or desert will be dealt with according to military law!" His last sentence was filled with a chilling murderous intent, making everyone's hearts tremble.

"Father John," Wang Huanbo turned to the fake priest, "you are an American, the Japanese won't easily target you for now. Please have our men thoroughly inspect the church's vehicles, tools, and all possible hiding places for supplies."

John was intimidated by Wang Huanbo's imposing manner and nodded repeatedly: "OK! OK! The car is in the garage, but it's broken and needs parts. There are some canned goods and medicines stored in the cellar, not much..."

"George Chen, you are familiar with the church structure. Assist the priest and lead the team to find all the useful things."

"Old Smoker, take a few men and immediately survey the terrain around the church, construct simple fortifications, and set up sentry posts!"

"Miss Yu Mo, please organize the sisters, count the number of people, distribute food and water, and take good care of the wounded."

With each clear instruction issued, the church, this temporary refuge, began to function like a war fortress. Wang Huanbo, along with Shunzi (who, despite being injured, insisted on participating) and two soldiers with some mechanical knowledge, followed John to the garage.

Sure enough, there was an old Ford truck parked in the garage, its tires flat and its engine malfunctioning. Wang Huanbo inspected it and found the problem significant, but not completely unusable. His [Advanced Mechanical Mastery] skill gave him an excellent understanding of mechanical structures. As he disassembled and inspected the truck, he directed his soldiers to assist, while secretly retrieving some suitable tools and parts from his system space (pretending to have found them in a pile of church junk).

"We need new spark plugs, belts, and the tires need to be patched..." Wang Huanbo frowned.

"The city is in such a state, where are we going to find spare parts..." a soldier said dejectedly.

Wang Huanbo remained silent, but his mind was racing. The system space contained some general-purpose tools, but certain parts were missing. It seemed he had to risk venturing out to find them. Moreover, he needed more powerful weapons. Relying solely on rifles and a limited number of pistols was simply insufficient to withstand the encirclement of a large contingent of Japanese soldiers.

Just then, the soldier on lookout duty at the clock tower whispered, "Instructor! Something's up! A group of Japanese soldiers is coming this way! About a dozen of them!"

The atmosphere inside the church instantly became tense!