Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

The horrific scene at Zhao Jia Yu was like a painting branded with blood and fire, etched into Li Yunlong's mind, burning him to the core. On the retreat, every step felt like walking on burning coals. Each time he looked back at the still-smoldering, deathly silent mountain valley, a blood-soaked wad of cotton felt stuck in his throat, choking him until he could only scream, only want to destroy. Xiuqin's eyes, filled with terror yet instantly turning to resolute determination before being abducted; Zhao Gang's pale face as he was carried away covered in blood; the scattered corpses of his fellow villagers… these images flashed and overlapped repeatedly before his eyes, ultimately coalescing into a chilling, surging, and explosive killing intent that surged through his chest, threatening to burst forth.

Instead of retreating directly to the designated backup position, he led the remaining guard platoon and dozens of stray soldiers gathered along the way, plunging into the deeper, more treacherous mountains southwest of Zhao Jia Yu. This area was rugged, riddled with caves, and was one of the secret areas the Independent Regiment had previously operated. As soon as they settled in, Li Yunlong, his eyes red, issued his orders:

"Communications squad! Set up every usable radio you can! Send a message to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions, all subordinate companies, district squads, county detachments... all units with which we have contact! Tell them, Li Yunlong is not dead! The Independent Regiment is not disbanded! Get every single one of you to Black Cloud Ridge as fast as you can! If you're even a minute late, don't blame me for turning on you!"

"Furthermore," he gritted his teeth, each word seemingly bursting from between them, "send someone—no, you go yourself! Go and deliver a message to those two old bastards, Ding Wei and Kong Jie! Tell them that I, Li Yunlong, have fallen this time, fallen into the hands of that bastard Yamamoto Ichiki! My wife has been captured, my political commissar has been taken down, and hundreds of villagers in Zhao Jia Yu have been slaughtered! Just ask them, do you have any spare soldiers or surplus guns? If you do, bring them over! If not, what the hell are you watching! This time, I'm going to fight Yamamoto to the death! I'm going to take Ping'an County!"

At the command, the entire dilapidated regimental headquarters sprang into action like a tightly wound machine. The incessant ticking of telegrams echoed day and night in the cave, while messengers, on horseback or on foot, disappeared along the treacherous mountain paths. Li Yunlong himself, like a wounded tiger trapped in a cage, paced back and forth in the cave, silent and sleepless, only chain-smoking, cigarette butts strewn across the floor, his eyes bloodshot and menacing. No one dared approach him; his ferocious, predatory aura sent chills down the spines of even the most daring veterans.

The news spread like wildfire, carried by both invisible radio waves and visible footsteps, quickly reaching the Independent Regiment's operational area and even a wider region.

The first to move were the battalions and companies of the Independent Regiment headquarters, which had been scattered. The battalion commander, leading more than two hundred men who had broken through the encirclement, was the first to arrive at Black Cloud Ridge. Seeing Li Yunlong's condition, this tough man's eyes immediately reddened: "Regimental Commander! The First Battalion can still fight! We're just waiting for your word!"

Immediately afterward, the Second and Third Battalions, which were scattered across various locations carrying out missions, developing new areas, and procuring supplies, along with the regiment's directly subordinate artillery company (newly formed with only two mortars), machine gun company, and reconnaissance company, upon hearing the news, disregarded the enemy in front of them, overcame numerous difficulties, and marched day and night to converge on Black Cloud Ridge. Many soldiers wore out their shoes and had blisters on their feet, but when they heard the regimental commander's call to attack Ping'an County to rescue their sister-in-law and avenge Zhao Jia Yu, not one hesitated, and not one fell behind.

What was even more shocking was that after the news spread, countless armed forces in gray, blue, and even those dressed in civilian clothes, from the fragmented land of northwestern Shanxi, which had been divided by the Japanese and their puppet regime, began to actively converge towards Black Cloud Ridge, like rivers flowing into the sea.

The fraternal units within the Eighth Route Army were the first to respond. Ding Wei, commander of the New First Regiment, slammed his fist on the table upon receiving the message: "Damn it! Yamamoto Ichiki? He dares to touch my brother's wife? He's gone too far!" Without another word, despite potential pressure from his superiors, he dispatched his most elite reinforced battalion and some artillery, personally leading the charge towards Black Cloud Ridge. Kong Jie, commander of the New Second Regiment, though often bickering with Li Yunlong, was decisive in crucial moments: "That Li Yunlong may be a bit of a rascal, but this is a man's business! We can't let them look down on the Japanese!" He also sent a main force battalion and a batch of ammunition as support.

Meanwhile, the guerrilla brigades, county brigades, and district squads in various regions, nominally under the command of the Eighth Route Army but actually possessing considerable independence, were quick to mobilize. They might have been poorly equipped or lacked formal training, but their desire to fight the Japanese was equally fervent, and they held Li Yunlong, their commander known for his ability to fight tough battles and his willingness to confront even the most ruthless, in a near-reverential trust. Many battalion and squad leaders, leading dozens or even hundreds of men and carrying a variety of weapons, traversed mountains and valleys to arrive.

Even some puppet troops with secret ties to the Eighth Route Army, or those who simply admired the Eighth Route Army's fight against the Japanese and were aware of the Zhao Jia Yu massacre, as well as some "mountain strongholds" with bandit-like characteristics but persisting in resisting the Japanese, sent people to make contact, expressing their willingness to "lend a hand." For a time, the various mountain roads leading to Black Cloud Ridge were filled with dust, shadowy figures, different unit numbers, and mixed accents, all heading towards the same goal.

Li Yunlong stood atop a boulder on the main peak of Black Cloud Ridge, watching the ever-growing, ant-like crowd below. His facial muscles twitched slightly. He had anticipated gathering a considerable number of men, but the scene before him still exceeded his expectations. A rough estimate suggested that the already arrived and those arriving in succession, the organized troops alone, numbered over eight thousand! This didn't even include the scattered, uncountable groups of armed men.

His trusted confidant, the newly appointed regimental chief of staff (the original chief of staff had died in Zhao Jia Yu), held the newly compiled and still changing list of figures, his hands trembling slightly: "Regimental commander, preliminary statistics... including those we've gathered ourselves, those sent by Regimental Commanders Ding and Kong, as well as various local armed forces and... other teams, the total strength... may exceed twelve thousand men..."

Twelve thousand people!

This number made Li Yunlong feel a brief dizziness. It was almost equivalent to the size of a regular main force division of the Eighth Route Army! And he, the commander of an independent regiment that had just suffered heavy losses, had, without any request for permission, managed to gather such a large and diverse armed force in just a few days!

After the initial shock, an even fiercer flame burned in their eyes. More people, more guns, more courage! Blood debts must be repaid in blood! Ping'an County? Yamamoto Ichiki? This time, I'll use these twelve thousand guns to crush you and that ruined city into dust!

"Order!" Li Yunlong's voice was hoarse, yet carried an undeniable, iron-fisted authority. "All arriving troops, set up camp in designated areas, inventory personnel and weapons, and reorganize into temporary attack groups! The First Battalion will be the first echelon and main attack force, the Second and Third Battalions will be the left and right flanks, and the troops of Regiment Commander Ding and Regiment Commander Kong will be the reserve and supporting attack groups! Local armed forces will be assigned to the main attack battalions and companies according to their combat effectiveness, responsible for secondary support, battlefield medical care, and supply transport! Artillery will be used centrally! I don't care which unit you belonged to before, here you have only one commander—I, Li Yunlong! One objective—capture Ping'an County and kill Yamamoto Ichiki! Anyone who dares to disobey orders and misses the opportunity will face the consequences of my indiscriminate bullets!"

Just as Li Yunlong was igniting his fury at Black Cloud Ridge and frantically gathering his army, an unexpected "assist" had quietly been completed on another front.

On the highway leading from Ping'an County to Taiyuan, three Japanese trucks, loaded with members of Yamamoto's special forces and some captured items (mainly documents and a small number of weapon samples looted from Zhao Jia Yu), were traveling at a slow pace. Yamamoto Ichiki sat in the passenger seat of the middle truck, resting with his eyes closed. Although the Zhao Jia Yu operation had failed to kill Li Yunlong, it had severely damaged the Independent Regiment headquarters, captured his newlywed wife, and massacred the entire village, essentially achieving its tactical objectives, with far-reaching negative political consequences. He needed to return to Taiyuan as soon as possible to report in detail to General Shinotsuka Yoshio and, perhaps through the woman named Xiuqin, uncover more clues about the mysterious "Mr. He" and the strange arsenal.

However, he was unaware that the whereabouts of his elite squad had already been spotted by another pair of keen eyes.

On a ridge beside the highway, Chu Yunfei, commander of the 358th Regiment of the Jin-Sui Army, was coldly watching several trucks slowly moving down the mountain through binoculars. He was dressed in a crisp officer's uniform, wearing an officer's overcoat, his face stern. Beside him, Chief of Staff Fang Ligong whispered, "Commander, it's confirmed. They're vehicles from the Japanese Yamamoto Special Forces. Judging from the direction, they came from Zhao Jia Yu; they should be heading back to Taiyuan."

A cold smile curled at the corner of Chu Yunfei's lips. He already knew about the Zhao Jia Yu massacre through his intelligence channels. He had mixed feelings about Li Yunlong, that scoundrel; he admired his brilliant and ruthless military strategy, but disapproved of some of his unconventional and even "bandit-like" actions. However, Yamamoto Ichiki's raid on the Eighth Route Army's base, the massacre of civilians, and the abduction of women had gone beyond simple military confrontation and crossed Chu Yunfei's bottom line as a Chinese soldier.

"Li Yunlong must be furious this time," Chu Yunfei said calmly, putting down his binoculars.

"Commander, we..." Fang Ligong asked tentatively. Logically speaking, this was a feud between the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese army, and it seemed inappropriate for the Jin-Sui Army to directly intervene, lest it cause unnecessary friction.

Chu Yunfei didn't answer immediately. He stared at the trucks, his mind flashing with images of Li Yunlong's possible fury and the potential horrific fate of the innocent civilians in Zhao Jia Yu. Yamamoto Ichiki… this well-equipped, highly trained, and ruthless special forces unit was always a sharp blade hanging over the heads of the Chinese army in northwestern Shanxi. If they could raid Zhao Jia Yu today, they might very well raid his, Chu Yunfei's, regimental headquarters tomorrow.

"Brother Ligong," Chu Yunfei suddenly spoke, his tone calm and even, "I remember the reconnaissance company reported the other day that they found a small number of landmines left by the Japanese at a bend in this section of the road that hadn't been completely cleared?"

Fang Ligong was taken aback at first, but then immediately understood Chu Yunfei's intention. A glint of light flashed in his eyes: "Yes, Commander! There are indeed remnants. The location is about two miles ahead at the 'Eagle's Beak' bend."

"Hmm." Chu Yunfei nodded, as if he were talking about a trivial matter. "The weather is cold and the soil is frozen solid. It's common for some landmines to be covered by snow and not discovered by the sappers in time. Pass down the order that our regiment's patrol units stay away from the 'Eagle's Beak' section of the road in the coming days to avoid accidents."

"Yes! I understand!" Fang Ligong understood immediately and turned to relay the order.

Chu Yunfei raised his binoculars again, his gaze following the trucks as they drove toward the treacherous "Eagle's Beak" bend. His face was expressionless, only his eyes behind the lenses were sharp as knives.

A few minutes later.

"BOOM!!! BOOM—!!"

Two deafening explosions came from the direction of "Eagle's Beak," and even from miles away, one could feel the ground tremble slightly. Immediately following was a third, even more violent explosion, with flames shooting into the sky and thick smoke billowing.

Through the telescope, the lead truck was seen overturned on the side of the road, engulfed in flames; the middle truck (where Yamamoto Ichiki was) was also affected by the blast, its front end severely damaged and billowing black smoke; only the last truck reacted a little faster and managed to brake, but it was also hit by flying shrapnel.

Figures jumped hastily from the damaged vehicle; they were the black-clad special agents. Although they were still well-trained in finding cover and keeping watch on their surroundings, they were clearly disheveled and furious.

Chu Yunfei lowered his binoculars and lightly dusted off non-existent dust from his cloak, as if the "accident" had nothing to do with him. "It seems the Japanese haven't done a thorough job of mine clearance," he said casually, turning to lead his guards down the mountain. "Back to headquarters. Also, send a telegram to the Second War Zone Command saying that our patrol heard a suspicious explosion, possibly triggered by a Japanese convoy that had set off a landmine, and that we've increased our vigilance."

The explosion at "Eagle's Beak" completely thwarted Yamamoto Ichiki's attempt to quickly return to Taiyuan with prisoners and some spoils of war. The convoy was destroyed, and although casualties were minor, the convoy was unable to move, and the road ahead was uncertain. Weighing his options, Yamamoto Ichiki had no choice but to grit his teeth and order the abandonment of the vehicles. He then took the important items and the prisoner Xiuqin and proceeded on foot towards the nearest major stronghold with strong fortifications and a considerable garrison—Ping'an County. He planned to hold out there, waiting for reinforcements from Taiyuan, and also use Xiuqin as bait to see if he could lure the irrational Li Yunlong into the fray.

However, Yamamoto Ichiki never imagined that the Ping'an County he was forced to retreat to would soon face a raging storm of revenge far exceeding his expectations and the capacity of the Ping'an County garrison.

On Black Cloud Ridge, when Li Yunlong received the secret report that Chu Yunfei's troops had "encountered" a Japanese convoy that triggered a landmine and that Yamamoto's remnants had retreated into Ping'an County, a terrifying light suddenly burst forth in his bloodshot eyes.

"Ping'an County...good! Excellent! Saves me from chasing you around everywhere!" He slammed his fist on the stone table in front of him, making the teacup jump high. "Send the order! All troops move out! Target—Ping'an County! Surround this tortoise shell completely! Don't let a single fly out!"

At his command, tens of thousands of troops surged forth like a flood bursting its banks at the foot of Black Cloud Ridge. Banners of various colors fluttered, and shouts, commands, the clashing of weapons, and footsteps in different accents converged into a deep, powerful roar that shook the mountains and rivers of northwestern Shanxi. Dust obscured the sky, and the reflection of swords and spears in the bleak winter sunlight created a chilling, all-consuming killing intent that swept straight toward Ping'an County, already shrouded in the shadow of death.

Li Yunlong mounted his warhorse and rode at the head of the column. His face was thin and hard, as if carved by a knife and axe, only his eyes burned with the flames of revenge, fixedly staring in the direction of Ping'an County.

The prelude to the Battle of Ping'an Gele (or, in other words, Li Yunlong's version of the "Siege of Ping'an County") officially began at this moment, fueled by overwhelming anger and fearless mobilization.