novelaction Chapter 354: The Haunting
Chapter 354: The Haunting
Just then, there was a burst of hurried footsteps outside the door.
"Oh no, Political Commissar, the Japanese are coming again!" A villager ran in in panic and shouted loudly.
"What?" Zhao Gang and Zhang Ling's faces changed and they stood up at the same time.
"Damn it, these damn Japanese devils are really haunting us!" Zhang Ling cursed angrily and picked up the machine gun on the bedside.
"Let's go and fight them!" Zhao Gang also grabbed a big knife and rushed out with Zhang Ling.
Zhang Ling ran wildly in the dark woods like a hare being chased by a hound. He didn't know how long he had been running, nor where he had run to. He only knew that he had to get rid of the devil's pursuit as soon as possible and bring the news back to the independent regiment.
"Bang! Bang!"
Several gunshots were heard behind him, and bullets whizzed past his ears, hitting the tree trunks, and wood chips flew everywhere.
"Damn it, these bastards are chasing us so closely!" Zhang Ling cursed as he ran, feeling extremely anxious.
He knew very well that with his current physical strength, it was impossible for him to outrun these well-trained devils. Once caught up by them, he would be dead.
How to do?
Zhang Ling ran while anxiously thinking about countermeasures.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he found a river not far ahead.
"Got it!" Zhang Ling was delighted and quickened his pace, running towards the river.
He came to the river, and without thinking too much, he jumped into the freezing cold water.
"thump!"
With a muffled sound, Zhang Ling's body sank into the water.
He struggled desperately in the water, trying to swim to the other side, but the water was too cold and he felt his body slowly stiffening.
"No, I can't give up!" Zhang Ling gritted his teeth, endured the cold and fatigue, and continued to swim forward.
Just when he was about to give up, suddenly, he felt his body being lifted up by a powerful force.
He opened his eyes and found himself lying on a small boat. A tall figure stood in front of him with a long bamboo pole in his hand.
"Old...Old Li?" Zhang Ling saw who it was and was immediately surprised and delighted.
Standing in front of him was the commander of the independent regiment, Li Yunlong!
"You kid, you're lucky!" Li Yunlong looked at Zhang Ling, who was soaked all over, and cursed him unhappily, but there was a hint of concern in his tone.
"Old Li, why are you here?" Zhang Ling struggled to sit up and asked curiously.
"If I had come a step later, you would have been washed away by the river!" Li Yunlong said, handing the bamboo pole in his hand to Zhang Ling, "Hurry up and get up, let's leave here first!"
Zhang Ling took the bamboo pole and climbed onto the boat.
Li Yunlong rowed the boat, and the boat slowly left the shore and headed downstream of the river.
"Old Li, how do you know I'm here?" Zhang Ling asked while wiping the water off his body.
"The political commissar asked me to come." Li Yunlong sighed, a trace of sadness on his face, "He said that you might come here, so he asked me to pick you up."
"The political commissar..." Zhang Ling's heart sank suddenly. He knew that Zhao Gang must be in great danger.
"Damn Japs! I'm going to fight them to the death!" Li Yunlong cursed with gritted teeth, his eyes filled with flames of anger.
"Old Li, don't be impulsive. The most urgent thing now is to bring the news back and let the brothers prepare for battle!" Zhang Ling grabbed Li Yunlong's arm and dissuaded him.
Li Yunlong took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in his heart, and nodded, "You are right, let's go back first!"
The boat drifted downstream and soon disappeared into the night...
The cold river water hit the side of the boat. Zhang Ling and Li Yunlong sat opposite each other. Neither of them spoke. Only the sound of the oars cutting through the water was particularly clear in the silent night. Zhang Ling knew that Li Yunlong must be feeling bad at the moment. He felt the pain of losing his comrades.
"Old Li, what happened to the political commissar?" Zhang Ling finally couldn't help but ask, but he choked up when the words came to his lips.
Li Yunlong gulped down a mouthful of the soju seized from the devils, wiped his wet eyes with his rough hands, and said with gritted teeth: "The damn Yamamoto Ikki led his men to attack our base. The political commissar... in order to cover the retreat of the villagers, finally..."
Li Yunlong did not say anything more, but Zhang Ling could already imagine the tragic scene at that time. Zhao Gang, the political commissar who was full of passion and dedicated to the people, died just like that. Zhang Ling's heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible big hand, and he could not breathe.
"These beasts! I'm going to make them pay with blood!" Li Yunlong smashed the wine jar to pieces, his eyes burning with rage.
"Old Li, you need to calm down! Does the political commissar have anything to say before he leaves?" Zhang Ling knew that now was not the time to act on impulse. The most urgent task was to find out the devil's intentions and avenge Zhao Gang.
Li Yunlong took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and said in a deep voice: "The political commissar said that the Japanese's target this time is the arsenal in our base area, and asked us to bring the news back and not let their conspiracy succeed!"
Arsenal! Zhang Ling's heart was shocked. He knew that was the lifeblood of their base. Once it was destroyed by the devils, the consequences would be disastrous!
"Old Li, we have to go back quickly! It will be too late if we are late!" Zhang Ling said anxiously.
"Okay! Let's go back overnight!" Li Yunlong said, turning the boat around and rowing hard towards the base.
......
After a night of rapid march, Zhang Ling and Li Yunlong finally arrived at the independent regiment's base the next morning. However, what greeted them was a scene of devastation.
The once bustling garrison had now become a ruin, with broken walls and broken buildings everywhere, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder. Soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield and burying their fallen comrades, and everyone's face was filled with grief and anger.
"Captain! You're finally back!"
Seeing Li Yunlong, the soldiers gathered around him and reported the situation in a flurry.
"Report to the regiment commander, the Japanese suddenly attacked us last night. We were caught off guard and suffered heavy casualties!"
"Report to the regiment commander, the political commissar...he died heroically in order to cover our retreat!"
......
Listening to the soldiers' reports, Li Yunlong's body trembled slightly. With red eyes, he walked to Zhao Gang's body without saying a word and slowly squatted down.
Zhao Gang's body had been carefully cleaned and covered with a bright red party flag. His face was pale, but he still maintained the resolute expression he had before his death.
"Old Zhao, Old Zhao, why are you leaving like this? What do you want me to do in the future?" Li Yunlong reached out and gently stroked Zhao Gang's face, his voice choked with sobs, tears welling up in his eyes uncontrollably.
"Old Li..." Zhang Ling stood aside, watching this scene, with mixed feelings in his heart. He knew that for Li Yunlong, Zhao Gang was not only his comrade-in-arms, but also his relative and his spiritual pillar.
"Captain, please accept my condolences!"
"Yes, Commander, the Political Commissar doesn't want to see you like this!"
......
The soldiers tried to comfort Li Yunlong, but Li Yunlong seemed to hear nothing. He just hugged Zhao Gang's body tightly and let his tears flow freely.
"Little Japs! I'm going to cut you into pieces!" After a long time, Li Yunlong slowly stood up, with cold murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
He turned around abruptly and shouted to the soldiers behind him: "Pass my order, assemble the whole regiment! Prepare for battle!"
"Yes!" the soldiers answered in unison, their voices shaking the earth.
......
The Independent Regiment's headquarters was filled with a solemn and murderous atmosphere. The soldiers were nervously preparing for the battle, with no trace of fear on their faces, only the rage of revenge.
Li Yunlong stood on a high place, looking at the soldiers in front of him, his eyes full of determination and resoluteness.
"Comrades, the Japanese killed our political commissar and destroyed our homeland. We must avenge this blood feud!"
"Revenge! Revenge! Revenge!" The soldiers were excited. They raised their weapons high and roared to the sky.
"Zhang Ling!" Li Yunlong suddenly shouted.
"Here!" Zhang Ling rushed to Li Yunlong and saluted.
"You are a smart boy, so you will be the one to formulate the battle plan this time! I will be your vanguard, and we will kill him without leaving a single piece of armor!" Li Yunlong patted Zhang Ling's shoulder, his eyes full of trust.
"Yes! I guarantee to complete the mission!" Zhang Ling responded loudly. He knew that a fierce battle was inevitable...
On the river, the moonlight was dim, and the water slapped against the boat, making a slight sound. Zhang Ling wrapped himself in the coarse cloth handed to him by Li Yunlong, replaying Zhao Gang's last look in his mind, and his heart felt like it was being pressed by a huge rock, making it hard to breathe.
"How did the political commissar... die?" Zhang Ling's voice was hoarse, as if his throat was full of sand.
Li Yunlong took a big gulp of wine, but the spicy liquid couldn't seem to extinguish the anger in his eyes. "The son of a bitch Yamamoto Ikki led the special forces to attack the brigade headquarters. By the time I got the news, it was already too late!"
"Yamamoto Ikki?! Is he the bastard who calls himself the 'Flower of the Empire'?" Zhang Ling gritted his teeth and his fists creaked.
"That's him! This old guy has so many tricks up his sleeve, he even tried some special operations! If I wasn't lucky enough to break out with the guard platoon, I would have died there!" Li Yunlong said as he punched the deck, shaking the hull.
"Then...what about the brigade commander and others?" Zhang Ling asked cautiously, fearing to hear worse news.
Li Yunlong was silent for a long time before he said in a muffled voice: "Brigade Commander... he was helping us break out, but we were surrounded by the Japanese... his life or death is uncertain!"
Zhang Ling took a deep breath. He knew that with the brigade commander's character, he would definitely not have a good ending if he fell into the hands of the Japanese!
"Old Li, we can't just let this go! We have to avenge the political commissar and the brigade commander!" Zhang Ling stood up suddenly, his eyes red, like a wounded beast.