The Courtyard House: The Little Red Devil Returning from the Peninsula

The sentry post at Lijiapo stands at the crossroads.

To the north is the North Mountain Road, to the east is the mining railway station, and to the south, through the village, lies the 358th Regiment's defense zone. The map showed all three roads, but notably omitted the intersections.

In late December, the people from the 358th Regiment arrived first.

Two wooden poles lay across the road, with sandbags piled behind them. The sentry wore a Jin-Sui Army uniform, his rifle slung over his shoulder, but not cocked. After the lead coal cart was stopped, more than sixty mule carts behind it stopped one after another, the mules crowding the roadside, their nostrils filled with white steam.

The truck carried approximately 180 tons of coking coal and over 300 tons of iron ore transferred from Shuangbaigou. These were all deducted from the mining area's general ledger; they weren't newly acquired supplies on the road.

More than 120 drivers stood in the snow, afraid to unload their carts or turn around. The convoy was too long, with the last few still outside the bend in the mountain, completely unaware of what was happening ahead.

The escort company commander of the Independent Regiment walked to the sentry post.

"This is the mining area's transport route. Clear it."

The officer on the other side handed over a copy of an order.

"By order of superiors, control north-south traffic in the mining area. Lijiapo is under the jurisdiction of our unit. Vehicles are not allowed to pass without a pass."

"On the coordination map, the North Mountain Road and the coal and iron line belong to us."

"The map doesn't show Lijiapo."

Neither of them was wrong. And neither was willing to give way first.

When the news reached the regimental headquarters, Zhao Gang first checked the transportation records.

"One hundred and eighty tons of coking coal, and over three hundred tons of iron ore. More than sixty mule carts, and over one hundred and twenty drivers. If we don't leave today, we'll need to feed the horses tonight, and the people need to eat too."

Tucked behind the transport tent were urging slips from the military supply depot. If coking coal was scarce enough for even a day, small furnace testing could be halted, but mechanical furnace repairs couldn't be completely stopped; if iron ore arrived late, screening and batching had to be postponed as well. The convoy was stationary, but consumption didn't stop. Each mule still needed beans and hay, the driver still needed two meals a day, and someone had to guard the goods, prevent fires, and protect them from the cold at night.

Zhao Gang had three temporary parking areas marked out. Coal trucks couldn't all be crowded at the edge of the village, or a spark would set everything ablaze; ore trucks also needed wheel chocks, because if the slope froze, even a loose rein could send the truck and mule sliding into a ditch.

"How many people are ahead?" Zhao Weiguo asked.

"The Independent Regiment has over two hundred escorts and road guards. The 358th Regiment has about a battalion in the village, less than a company in front of the sentry post, and more people are still coming in from behind."

"Did you fire?"

"No."

"Where's the cannon?"

"We have two mountain guns at Dongling. The 358th Regiment also brought mortars."

Zhao Weiguo immediately wrote a no-fire order: no firing is permitted without two orders from the regimental headquarters; anyone who accidentally fires will be dismissed and investigated. Three copies of the order were made and sent to the escort company, the Dongling artillery position, and the north entrance of Lijiapo.

Chu Yunfei also had a copy: without the regimental commander's personal order, no firing at friendly forces was permitted. The sentry posts could check personnel and vehicle numbers, but not coal carts, and certainly not ore. Sun Ming signed the order and sent it to each company at the village entrance.

Zhao Weiguo laid out the old collaborative diagram.

The edges of the paper were worn. There were pencil lines for the villages and towns to the south, the mountain road to the north, and the railway station. Lijiapo was right between the three lines, and no one wrote their name there.

"Stop the road," he said. "The driver and mules should back half a mile. The engineers are blocking the road, leaving only enough space for one cart."

Zhao Gang looked up: "Hillbilly?"

"The Japanese troops are heading towards the village, but their cannons are not aimed at it."

What if the enemy advances?

"Retreat to the second line. Do not fire on friendly forces without my order."

At the same time, Chu Yunfei also gave the order.

"The sentry post remains standing. Guns are pointed at the ground; no one is allowed to fire first. Whoever accidentally discharges their weapon will be dealt with first."

Sun Ming asked, "Where are the coal trucks?"

"Leave the goods off the road. If the driver needs water, give him water; if the mule needs hay, let the locals find some."

"The Independent Regiment may be deploying artillery."

"He's moving his artillery; I can't let a whole company risk their lives standing in the middle of the road. The sentry post retreats twenty paces, leaving the sandbags behind."

When the orders from both sides reached the crossroads, the tension hadn't subsided, but the gun barrels had already lowered.

The independent regiment's engineers dug two shallow ditches on the north side, just deep enough to stop vehicles. A vehicle was left wide enough in the middle for wounded soldiers and urgent messages to pass through. Two mountain guns were placed on the eastern slope, with the gunners marking the possible Japanese advance from the southern ravine, the muzzles facing away from Lijiapo Village.

The breechblock wasn't open, and the gun cover wasn't fully lifted. The deputy battalion commander wrote the firing data on a small board, which only showed Nangou, the west entrance of Mopanpo, and the outer edge of the stone bridge; there were no houses in Lijiapo. The scouts from the 358th Regiment spotted the gun position from afar, but when they reported back, they only said that the Independent Regiment had a gun, without mentioning that the gun was aimed at the village.

The people of the 358th Regiment didn't touch the coal truck either.

They registered the vehicle license plates at the village entrance and boiled two pots of water for the drivers. One driver's hand trembled as he carried a bowl, spilling water onto his cotton sleeve. A Jin-Sui Army soldier nearby helped him steady the bowl. Neither of them said which side they were on.

When the monk and Zhao Weiguo arrived at the scene, it was getting dark.

The convoy was stuck in traffic all afternoon, the roadside covered in mule dung and crunched snow. The lead mule refused to eat grass; the driver said its legs were numb from standing for so long, and it needed some ore unloaded before it could move.

"Unload it," Zhao Weiguo said.

The escort company commander grew anxious: "If it's unloaded here, whose responsibility is it?"

"Trailer number, weigh it. Don't let the mule fall over yet."

Upon hearing this, the officer of the 358th Regiment called two soldiers over to help. The ore was unloaded by the roadside, a tarpaulin was laid out, and each side sent one person to keep count.

The monk looked across at the other side.

"They even helped."

"The road is blocked, and no one can move."

The monk crossed his arms and watched as the two Jin-Sui Army soldiers helped the driver unload the ore.

"Last time in Jiaojie Town, we helped that mule cart that got stuck in the mud. This time they're helping us."

Sun Ming, who had somehow walked to the back, heard this and replied with a comment.

"When the road is blocked, helping anyone else is helping yourself."

The monk glanced at him.

"What you said is more agreeable than what you said last time."

Sun Ming didn't take it, turned and left. After taking two steps, he turned back: "Monk."

"What are you doing?"

"Next time your car gets stuck in the mud," Sun Ming said, "don't expect us to help you again."

The monk chuckled: "If you won't help, I'll carry it myself."

"Can you lift it?"

"If you can't lift it, I'll curse you."

Sun Ming chuckled, turned, and left. This time, he really left.

Chu Yunfei arrived before nightfall.

He didn't bring a large force, only Sun Ming and a small squad of guards. Zhao Weiguo stood by the old millstone waiting for him, holding the coordination map in his hand.

"Commander Chu."

"Commander Zhao."

There was no handshake.

A makeshift square table was set up next to the millstone, with one short leg and half a blue brick underneath. On the table were Chu Yunfei's superior's orders, the old coordination map brought by Zhao Weiguo, the coal and iron transport ledger, and two very short pencils. When the wind blew, the corners of the papers kept flipping upwards. Sun Ming used a teacup to weigh down the south side, and Zhao Gang used an account book to weigh down the north side of the road.

Chu Yunfei first handed over the orders from his superiors. The orders stated that the north-south traffic in the mining area should be controlled to prevent the infiltration of remnants of the Japanese army and to protect the railway and villages. There was no mention of seizing coal or taking over the Independent Regiment's mine tracks.

After Zhao Weiguo finished looking at it, he pressed the old drawing onto the millstone.

"Your command is valid."

"Your coal truck is real too."

"Lijiapo wasn't drawn clearly."

"When the mining area was first discussed, everyone assumed they would be on their side at this crossroads."

Zhao Weiguo pointed to Beishan Road.

"This road connects the mining railway and the military railway. Your people are stuck at Lijiapo; every subsequent truckload of coal will have to wait for you to issue a permit."

Chu Yunfei pressed his hand against the village on the south side.

"If I don't defend Lijiapo, the remnants of the Japanese army will sneak in from the south, burn down the village first, and then blow up your bridge. When the higher-ups hold me accountable, they won't use your old map to defend me."

Both of them only talked about the part that hurt them the most.

Zhao Weiguo was short of coal and iron, and the military depot was waiting for trucks every day. Chu Yunfei was carrying out military orders, and he couldn't just give up the crossroads as soon as he received them.

Chu Yunfei also brought provisions. The 358th Regiment had approximately 8,000 men, and the southern route was responsible for transporting part of the winter rations and medicines. If the Independent Regiment were to set up a checkpoint at Lijiapo entirely, and communication was disrupted, his wounded soldiers' wagons and supply wagons might be stuck on the road for an entire day.

"I need fixed times," he said. "Two sessions a day, so my car can pass."

"We can discuss it. Please provide the number of vehicles, their purpose, and the number of escorts first."

"Immediate military intelligence cannot wait half a day."

"Then issue a separate pass, which will be signed by the liaison officers of both parties."

The discussion touched on solutions, but a decision couldn't be made on the spot. Who would guard the village entrance, who would guard the stone bridge, where the artillery would retreat, and who would keep the temporary orders—one page remained blank.

Sun Ming reported the new reconnaissance findings.

Scattered footprints were found in the gully to the south, possibly belonging to deserters from the first regiment or hunters from the vicinity. The source is unclear, and the number of people is unknown.

"Check it first," Zhao Weiguo said.

Chu Yunfei nodded: "Each of us will send one group."

The monk stood behind with his arms crossed. Sun Ming glanced at him, and both of them remembered the mule cart stuck in the mud in Jiaojie Town. That time, only one cart was stuck; this time, more than sixty carts were.

"How are you going to spend tonight?" Zhao Gang asked.

Zhao Weiguo said, "The coal carts should retreat to the outside of Shuangbaigou and stop in three places. The drivers should collect their rations according to the list, and the mules and horses should be replenished with hay. The sentry posts should be moved back fifty paces on each side."

Chu Yunfei added, "No artillery will be fired into Lijiapo Village. My men will guard the south entrance, and your men will guard the north entrance."

"The lines at Mopanpo will be redrawn tomorrow."

"Each person carries their own orders, maps, and transport logs."

"Bring casualty and injury accounts as well."

Chu Yunfei looked at him: "There were no casualties today."

"So it's best."

Chu Yunfei ordered the Independent Regiment to remove the two mountain guns from the east ridge first. Zhao Weiguo ordered the 358th Regiment to move the machine guns north of the village back to the south side first. Neither side was willing to withdraw all at once.

Finally, they each took a half step back.

The machine guns of the 358th Regiment were moved thirty paces south, while the sentry post barricades remained in place. The Independent Regiment dismantled half of the roadblock, but the two mountain guns were not removed; they were simply re-covered. No more troops were added to the eastern slope, and no new posts were established north of the stone bridge.

The officers on both sides returned to issue their orders.

The 358th Regiment raised the checkpoint bar, allowing the lead cart, riddled with mules, to reverse first. The Independent Regiment's engineers also dug a shallow ditch to create a turning point for the convoy. It took the convoy more than two hours to disperse and stop at three different locations.

Not a single shot was fired. Not a single person was injured.

Transportation was halted for a whole day, the drivers ate an extra meal, the mules and horses ate an extra night's fodder, and the military depots collected one less day's worth of coal and iron. The absence of casualties in the conflict did not mean there were no costs.

Zhao Gang listed this loss separately and did not include it in the combat losses.

The ledger title contained only two words: "Out of Service." Grain and provisions were recorded separately thereafter. The entries were made on the same day.

At night, Zhao Weiguo and Chu Yunfei each drew a test line on the map.

The two lines still do not overlap.

There was only one thing left unfinished from the agreement.

The next day, we met at Mopanpo.

Before the table could be cleared, three shots suddenly rang out from the west.

The guards on both sides turned around simultaneously, their guns still slung over their shoulders. The scout cavalry came rushing from the direction of Mopanpo, their horses' muzzles covered in white foam.

"The remnants of the Japanese army, carrying explosives, are approaching the stone bridge on the North Mountain Road!"

The unfinished boundary map was partially lifted by the wind.

I'll draw the lines tomorrow. The bridge must be held tonight.

Zhao Weiguo grabbed the map on the table and stuffed it into his pocket. Chu Yunfei had already mounted his horse, and Sun Ming led the guards towards the south entrance.

The square table on Mopanpo is still there, but the half-brick under its short leg has been knocked out of place by the wind, the tabletop is crooked, and two pencils have rolled to the ground.

The monk bent down, picked up the pencil, and put it in his pocket.

"This pencil," he called after Sun Ming's retreating figure, "is for drawing lines later. I'll keep yours for you."

Sun Ming didn't turn around, but waved his hand.

The monk carefully put both pencils away, mounted his horse, and followed Zhao Weiguo toward the northern mountain road.

The wind lifted a corner of the collaborative diagram on the square table, then it fell back down. The three characters "Li Jiapo" remained blank; no one had written their name there.

But tonight, no one has time to write their names.

On the other side of the bridge, remnants of the Japanese army were sneaking towards this side with explosives. Unbeknownst to them, two groups of people were arguing on this side of the bridge.

They're not arguing anymore.

Two groups of people, one bridge.