Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Japanese devils? Do they still have those things now?" Wang Xiaolong shouted loudly.

"What are you yelling about? You look so ignorant. How much do you even know?" Xie Zhijie kicked Wang Xiaolong.

"Master?" Wang Xiaolong glanced back, somewhat puzzled.

"Alright, stop embarrassing yourselves. Back when our little world was defeated, countless Japanese soldiers were unwilling to accept defeat and hid in these 100,000 mountains."

"Moreover, there is a military base built by the Japanese in these mountains, which has not been found to this day. It is not surprising that there are a few remaining bastards."

Xie Zhijie and his group didn't get along with Wang Shouye, but compared to the Japanese, who were natural enemies, it was nothing. It was only natural for them to unite.

"So, does that mean we might get shot in the back while we're looking for someone? That's troublesome."

Xie Zhihua also looked troubled. Finding someone in these mountains is difficult enough, but if they also have to guard against hidden enemies, it will be much more complicated.

"Yes, that's what's troubling us. First, Brother Lü Zhixue broke his leg and needs timely treatment, otherwise he might suffer from hidden injuries."

"But we need manpower to send him down the mountain. We can't do it with too few people, or the enemy will pick us off one by one. After all, we don't know how many enemies there are."

Wang Shouye described the predicament they were currently facing. Of course, he couldn't say to the person in question that it would leave him with a disability in the long run.

"Secondly, it's been four days since they went missing. Just look at the condition of Brother Lü and Miss Wu, and you can tell that the other three are not doing well either."

"But for our own safety, we can't be too spread out like we are today. That would make our search very difficult and take a long time."

The area around the fire fell silent instantly, and everyone was suddenly caught in a dilemma.

At this moment, Gu Dayong's gaze swept around and stopped on Zhou Rui's face.

"Zhou Rui, come with me tonight. Let's search the hill where Brother Lü was attacked and see if we can find any clues."

Wang Shouye was somewhat surprised to hear this.

He knew that Gu Dayong had been a soldier and that he wanted to do some reconnaissance, but he didn't expect that he would ask his apprentice to go with him.

"Ruiwa, he..." Wang Shouye was a little worried. He knew Zhou Rui was skilled, but after all, he was still a minor, going on such a dangerous mission...

"Don't worry, I'll take good care of him. I know Zhou Rui; he's the only one here who can cooperate with me well."

Wang Shouye was stunned; Gu Dayong's evaluation was far too high.

"Alright, let's start a fire and cook a meal now. The sooner we finish eating, the sooner you two can go scout ahead. The more information we have about the enemy, the better it will be for our upcoming search and rescue."

Of course, starting a fire to cook a meal doesn't mean actually cooking; it just means taking out the dry food and canned goods we brought and heating them up.

It's not a good time to go hunting, as the sound of gunfire will alert the enemy.

Lu Zhixue and Wu Jiajia's condition gradually improved. Their initial weakness was mostly due to being cold and hungry, but they felt much better after eating a hot meal.

Although they had just finished eating, they still ate some canned fruit with Zhou Rui and the others, as the sugar made them more energetic.

"Don't eat too many cookies, they'll swell up in your stomach."

Wang Shouye offered advice to Xie Zhihua and the others.

Unless something unexpected happens, he'd rather watch those people make a fool of themselves.

But with manpower scarce right now, it would be terrible if these people ate too much compressed biscuit.

"Oh?"

Xie Zhihua looked at the compressed biscuits in his hand with some doubt, but seeing that Zhou Rui and the others were the same, he knew that Wang Shouye probably wasn't lying to him.

Thank you.

Xie Zhihua rarely said thank you.

"Eat less, and get some rest after you finish eating."

Xie Zhihua said to his three nephews and apprentices. These three were exhausted yesterday, and they got up early today, so their physical condition was a bit poor.

As the sun set and the moon rose, Gu Dayong and Zhou Rui carefully inspected the rifle, even disassembling it into parts and recalibrating it.

Then, to everyone's surprise, carrying a bundle of rope and a dagger, it silently disappeared into the darkness.

Lu Zhixue and Wu Jiajia were covered with thick leather cushions and thick cotton-padded coats. Their stomachs were warm, and a group of armed men were guarding them.

It felt completely different from a few days ago; a sense of security washed over me, and I drifted off to sleep.

On the dark mountainside, Zhou Rui led Gu Dayong to the spot where Lü Zhixue had rolled down. Because there was no wind or snow, the tracks on the ground were clearly visible.

"This is it. Lu Zhixue is about the same height as me, and his face is scarred from top to bottom."

Zhou Rui gestured on his face, his fingers following the direction of Lü Zhixue's scar in his mind, moving backward to the front and upward.

"That's it."

A snow-covered mountain appeared in the moonlight.

"That place has steep cliffs and is difficult to climb; it's truly a place that's easy to defend and difficult to attack."

Zhou Rui shook his head: "No, it just looks that way."

"The fact that Lü Zhixue and his companion were shot after reaching this point indicates that this road is very easy to traverse and allows them to easily reach the enemy's hiding place."

Gu Dayong nodded: "Logically speaking, that makes sense, otherwise these people wouldn't have needed to fire at all. Let's go, then we'll proceed along the route that Lü Zhixue originally intended to take."

After that, neither of them spoke, communicating only through gestures.

Sure enough, although the path was hidden, as long as they followed the accessible route, the two of them could easily make their way to the top of the mountain.

Zhou Rui and Gu Dayong were both agile and moved along the winding path without making a sound.

Upon reaching the mountaintop, all around were rocks and a few clumps of low shrubs and withered branches, offering no place for shelter.

Gu Dayong waved his hand, signaling Zhou Rui to lie down on the ground with him.

Zhou Rui had already checked the area with his senses and found that no one was there, but he couldn't tell Gu Dayong directly, so he had no choice but to lie down as well.

Gu Dayong lay on the ground for three minutes, but there was no sound from a natural cave on the hilltop.

Gu Dayong told Zhou Rui to wait there, while he crawled slowly to the cave entrance and peered inside.

"Zhou Rui, come here, there's no one inside." Gu Dayong stood up and patted the snow off his chest.

The two entered the cave, which was not very spacious and showed signs of habitation, but not much. It seemed to be just a temporary base.

Two beams of flashlight swept across the cave.

"The cups, bowls, chopsticks, and even the place to lie down are all in pairs, so it seems like there are usually two people at this time."

"So, if it's a gang, then there must be at least two people involved."

"Yes, this is just a forward observation point or a rest stop on the route in and out of the mountains."

There wasn't much in the cave, so the two could only deduce limited information from a few simple things.

Zhou Rui walked to the edge of a cliff, where he could see the spot where Lü Zhixue had slipped and fallen.

Zhou Rui raised his fingers and gestured: "The distance was nearly 400 meters. The bullet grazed Lü Zhixue's face. His marksmanship was very accurate."

Gu Dayong nodded: "His marksmanship is accurate. If there are more of them, it will be a big problem for us."