The War of Resistance Against Japan: Starting with a Calm View of Life and Death

"Why is it taking so long? It's delaying the Imperial Army's mealtime, damn it!"

The sergeant cursed, but over the past two weeks, Fatty Liu had brought them plenty of cigarettes and alcohol, so he was just doing it as a formality.

This Fatty Liu is said to have a unique hobby; maybe this person is his new love interest?

Thinking of this, even he, a pervert, trembled involuntarily.

"Yes, yes, there was a pothole on the road, and the axle almost broke. That's why we rushed here so quickly." Fatty Liu said with a smile, as he pulled two packs of Hademen cigarettes from his pocket and stuffed them through the car window. "Smoke for the Japanese! Genuine Hademen, the best stuff you can't even buy in the county town! I'll save one for you."

The sergeant took the cigarette, his expression softening considerably. He waved towards the guard tower: "Check it out, quickly!"

Two Japanese soldiers walked over with their guns and opened the car door.

Zhou Jindong sat in the passenger seat, wearing a yellow leather coat that had been stripped from a puppet soldier, his hat pulled low, and holding an account book in his hand with an air of importance.

"Sir, this is today's invoice. Please take a look." Zhou Jindong handed over the ledger.

The Japanese soldiers didn't take the ledger. Instead, they stared at Zhou Jindong's face for a moment, then warily scanned the dozen or so porters, including Wang Yuan and Zhang Fang, who were squatting in the carriage.

"A new face?" the soldier asked in broken Chinese.

Zhou Jindong's heart tightened, but his face was full of humble smiles, and his back was straight: "Sir, you have a good eye! No wonder you can take on this important task! Old Li used to have an upset stomach and couldn't get out of bed, so Platoon Leader Liu temporarily asked me to fill in for him for a day."

"Baka! Chinese people are so lazy!" the soldier cursed, seemingly satisfied with the explanation, or perhaps he was already used to routine procedures. He didn't delve any further and turned to the sergeant, shouting, "No problem, they're just laborers delivering vegetables."

"Open the door!" The sergeant tucked the brand-new cigarettes into his pocket and gave the order decisively.

The heavy iron gate creaked open, and the truck roared into the stronghold's courtyard.

Two sidecar motorcycles were parked in the yard, and seven or eight Japanese soldiers were lazily cleaning their guns and sunbathing in the open space.

Two armed sentries stood at the warehouse entrance, while on the roof, the gunners of two Type 96 machine guns leaned against sandbag bunkers, yawning listlessly.

As soon as the truck came to a stop in the open space between the kitchen and the warehouse, Zhou Jindong nimbly jumped out and shouted into the truck, "Stop dawdling, all of you! Hurry up and move the stuff! If you delay the Japanese soldiers' meal, you'll be in big trouble!"

Wang Yuan and Zhang Fang, along with more than thirty soldiers dressed in puppet army uniforms, jumped off the vehicle, cursing and swearing.

As planned, Kosuke Ogawa and several of his Japanese soldiers mingled among the porters, heads down, silently carrying vegetable baskets and rice and flour sacks—this was their cover.

The kitchen was located in a row of bungalows next to the warehouse, and the aroma of stews wafted out.

Fatty Liu, carrying two heavy jars of liquor, approached the Japanese cook who was stirring the liquor in front of a large pot and said solicitously, "Sir, you've worked hard! This is a special gift from Platoon Leader Liu to all of you. It's genuine Shanxi Fenjiu, aged in a cellar for five years, and it's very potent!"

As he spoke, he forcefully patted the mud seal on the jar, and a rich aroma of wine immediately filled the air.

"Yosh! Good wine!" The cook's eyes lit up, he sniffed greedily, and turned to shout into the house and yard, "Hey! Dinner's ready! Good wine! Come on over!"

Hearing the shouts, the Japanese soldiers inside the house, the Japanese soldiers cleaning their guns in the yard, the sentries at the warehouse gate, and even the two drowsy machine gunners on the roof all perked up, calling to each other, and gradually gathered towards the kitchen—this was a rare moment of relaxation for them each day.

Fatty Liu deftly opened the wine jar, while Zhou Jindong enthusiastically greeted the puppet army cooks: "Come on, brothers, don't be shy. Platoon Leader Liu is treating today, everyone gets a share!"

He gestured to the chefs to help distribute the bowls and chopsticks.

During this seemingly chaotic but actually orderly distribution process, Zhou Jindong and Wang Yuan exchanged quick glances and subtly mixed the concentrated sedative powder specially made by Zhou's father into the bottom of the rice bowls and wine bowls served to all the Japanese officers and soldiers.

The powder was extremely fine, dissolving instantly upon heating and vanishing without a trace. It had a slightly astringent taste, but this was quickly masked by the strong aroma of alcohol and the flavors of food.

To ensure absolute safety, especially for those robust sergeants and sentries who might be resistant to drugs, they added an extra spoonful to several bowls of wine intended for key targets.

The Japanese soldiers were caught off guard, and the monotonous guard duty of the past few days made them especially eager for the rare food and drink.

They gathered around the kitchen, some squatting, some standing, some leaning against the wall, all picking up their bowls and feasting, greedily gulping down the "wine" in their bowls.

"Yosh! Great wine!"

"Liu Sang, you have a good conscience! My friend!"

The atmosphere became lively, and the sergeant grinned, patting Fatty Liu on the shoulder.

Zhou Jindong's heart was in his throat as he nervously stared at the clock on the wall, his fingertips tapping silently on the seam of his trousers.

Time passed second by second.

Fifteen minutes later, the effects of the medicine began to appear.

The first to collapse was the cook who was leaning against the wall and had drunk a bit too much. His empty bowl fell to the ground with a clatter, and he slid down the wall like a limp noodle, his head lolling to the side, and he lost consciousness.

"Haha, Yamada's done for!" A soldier next to him had just finished laughing when his smile froze on his face. He shook his head, trying to steady himself, but felt dizzy. "Ugh... this liquor... it's potent..."

Before he could finish speaking, he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

"Baka... No..." The sergeant reacted quickly and noticed the abnormality. He reached for the pistol at his waist, but his arm felt as heavy as lead and he couldn't lift it at all.

He stared in horror as his men collapsed one after another like felled wheat, either slumped on the ground, lying on the table, or slumped beside the bench.

Two muffled thuds came from the roof. The two machine gunners finally couldn't hold on any longer and slid off the sandbags, lying motionless.

The two sentries at the warehouse entrance struggled to raise their guns as a warning, but their fingers couldn't even pull the trigger. They could only open their mouths in vain, unable to make a decent sound, and soon they collapsed to the ground.

In the entire stronghold, apart from a few puppet army cooks who were drugged and Fatty Liu and his men who knew in advance and avoided the "spiked" food and drink, dozens of Japanese soldiers, including sergeants, sentries, and machine gunners, were all drugged and rendered incapable of resistance within a few minutes.

"It's done!" Zhou Jindong's eyes gleamed with excitement as he suppressed a low shout: "Go!"

The porters, who were just moments ago meek and obedient as they carried vegetables, instantly changed their expressions!

Wang Yuan rushed to the sergeant's side, deftly disarmed him, and quickly tied him up with another soldier.

Zhang Fang led his men to the warehouse entrance and courtyard, where they tied up the sentries and soldiers who were lying on the ground.

Several groups of soldiers rushed to the rooftops and various corners, confirming that all the Japanese soldiers were unconscious and confiscating their weapons.

The entire process was swift and quiet, with almost no effective resistance encountered.

"Xiao Chuan!" Zhou Jindong called out.

After all this hard work, it's time to reap the rewards!