Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

Without a second thought, he abruptly raised his hand to interrupt his master's lecture, his voice rapid and tense: "Master, I'm going out to take a look!"

Before he could finish speaking, and before his master could respond, he had already strode out of the courtyard gate, rushed to an open area, and looked up at the distant horizon to the east.

In the distance, two small black dots could be seen rising above the eastern mountain peaks, rapidly approaching the west side of the village along the main rural road. At the same time, heavy engine roars echoed from the village road at the foot of the mountain, the sounds muffled and chaotic, as a military transport convoy happened to pass by the village entrance, the noise of the vehicles and horses growing increasingly louder.

The buzzing of fighter jets in the sky grew clearer and more piercing, completely shattering the tranquility of the village. The villagers were all startled by the strange noise. Some looked up blankly, pointing at the black dots in the sky with curiosity; others were terrified, shouting and running around to warn others; and women, children, and others were panicked, running and hiding in all directions. In a short while, the entire village was in chaos and in complete disarray.

Standing on high ground, Xingbao took in the chaos and turmoil of the village below, his heart sinking with anxiety. Guixiang and her master also sensed something was wrong and rushed out of the courtyard, looking towards the noisy and chaotic village and the strange movement in the sky.

Gui Xiang had never seen a fighter jet before, and was still quite naive. Gazing at the black dot rapidly approaching on the horizon, her eyes were full of curiosity and doubt. She asked softly, "Xing Bao, why is the village suddenly in such a commotion? Are those two big, buzzing birds in the sky the planes you mentioned? They look so big."

Before Xingbao could even explain, two Japanese warplanes bearing the glaring sun emblem on their fuselages rapidly approached the village, circling low and locking onto their target. Two dark figures, accompanied by the whooshing sound of wind, plummeted to the ground, two bombs detaching from their fuselages one after the other, swooping down towards the vicinity of the bamboo house with a sharp, piercing sound!

A life-or-death crisis descended in an instant. Xingbao's pupils constricted, his face filled with extreme terror, and every hair on his body stood on end. But the innocent and naive Guixiang, oblivious to the impending disaster, stared at the falling bomb with childlike wonder, exclaiming softly, "Hey, why is this big bird dropping things? It looks like it's pooping!"

In the nick of time, Xingbao had no time to explain. He immediately raised his hands and covered Guixiang's ears tightly, shielding her to his side. At the same time, he turned his head with all his might and roared, his voice breaking through the deafening roar: "Master! The planes are bombing! Cover your ears!"

Before the words were even finished, a sudden burst of fire erupted in the sky, followed by two deafening explosions! The violent blasts, accompanied by a raging shockwave, swept across the area, violently ripping off nearby roofs and causing entire rooftops to collapse instantly. Broken tiles, splintered wood, bricks, and dirt flew through the air, scattering wildly in all directions. Thick black smoke mixed with billowing dust surged and churned, instantly engulfing half the village, blurring visibility, leaving only the deafening aftershocks and the rustling of falling earth, making it hard to breathe.

Just moments before, Gui Xiang had been innocent and curious, but now she was completely jolted awake by the horrific explosion and deafening roar. All her childishness vanished instantly; her face turned deathly pale, and her eyes were filled with utter terror. She dared not linger any longer, frantically grabbing her master's and Xing Bao's sleeves, her voice trembling with uncontrollable panic as she urgently urged, "Master, Xing Bao, let's hide!"

As soon as Gui Xiang finished speaking, she was pulling the two of them tightly towards the house when a rapid buzzing sound suddenly came from the southeast horizon, tearing through the air with great speed. Xing Bao's heart tightened, and he immediately broke free from Gui Xiang's cold, trembling hand, abruptly stopping and turning around to look.

The two Japanese warplanes, which had just finished dropping their bombs and turned around to climb, and had not yet corrected their flight attitude, suddenly noticed the lone plane coming from the opposite direction. They panicked instantly, dared not linger there any longer, hastily turned their planes around, and fled in a panic to the north.

The fighter jets following closely behind wouldn't give the enemy planes a chance to escape. Their machine guns immediately opened fire, the rapid, sharp, and continuous bursts of gunfire piercing the sky. The fighter jets flew low overhead, their blue sky and white sun insignia shining brightly in the clear sunlight, clearly indicating that our fighter jets had come to our aid and protect our homeland!

Our fighter jets relentlessly pursued the enemy aircraft, with one pursuing and two fleeing. Three afterimages streaked across the sky, quickly disappearing into the distance as blurry black dots vanished completely from sight. The roar on the field gradually subsided, leaving only lingering dust and debris, and an atmosphere of lingering fear still enveloped the entire village.

Gui Xiang's face was still deathly pale, and she was still trembling slightly. She hadn't recovered from the shock of the bombing. Gazing at the horizon where the fighter jets had disappeared, she murmured to herself, her voice tinged with uncertain hope: "Xing Bao, could this plane that was protecting us be the one we bought with the money we donated?"

Xingbao felt a warmth in his heart, suppressing his lingering fear. He turned to his sister, his tone calm and firm: "Regardless of whether it's true or not, every fighter jet protecting us has been bought with the hard-earned money of the people. They are shielding us from the flames of war." He immediately composed himself and urged her quickly, "Alright, don't overthink it. Let's quickly pack our medical kits and follow Master down the mountain to rescue people!"

The three hurried back, and as soon as they reached the courtyard gate, they saw their master's wife already standing there, carrying a medicine box crammed full of supplies. Despite the shock of the bombing, she remained calm and composed, her expression anxious, having already prepared all the necessary first-aid items. Seeing the three arrive, she quickly stepped forward and handed them the medicine box, her voice urgent yet steady, carefully instructing them: "Xingbao, I've packed all the necessary first-aid medicines. Carry them carefully and go down the mountain with your master to rescue people. Old man, keep a close eye on the two children on the way, and make sure they don't get near the danger zone of the explosion's epicenter!"

The three, master and disciples, dared not delay and immediately set off down the mountain. Walking along the old street, the chaos of the village unfolded before their eyes. Young men from every household rushed out of their doors, hurrying towards the bamboo house that had just exploded, trying to rescue people and clear the area; women, meanwhile, tightly held back curious children who wanted to join the commotion, hastily pulling them back into their houses and slamming the doors shut. The instant the gates closed, the sounds of children crying in frustration and adults gently soothing and sternly reprimanding them rose and fell, a cacophony of panic and fear.

As the group arrived at Old Wang's house, they found it already crowded with neighbors and villagers. Suppressed yet heart-wrenching cries drifted intermittently from inside, chilling the heart to the bone. The master dismounted from his donkey, intending to immediately enter and investigate, but several women gathered at the door quickly stopped him, tearfully recounting the whole story.