War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1945 The Magic That Drives Childcare Workers to Despair

As the sun rises again above the horizon, and the sounds of gunfire awaken Sarajevo once more, dragging it back into its daily nightmare.

With the help of Luna and Sophia, Wei Ran finally managed to mend the little girl's battered body to the best of his ability.

Finally, after giving her a booster shot of antibiotics, Wei Ran winked at Thomas, and the two went into an unused room.

I know what you want to ask.

Thomas sighed, "You mean, why not let them evacuate through the passage too, right?"

"So why?" Wei Ran pressed.

You'll find out once they get up.

Thomas then kept everyone in suspense—in a helpless tone, as if unwilling to explain.

"here."

There used to be a school doctor here.

Thomas changed the subject, "But about a week ago, he was killed in a robbery following a nighttime black market transaction."

"boom!"

Just as Wei Ran was about to say something, a mortar shell struck another building not far away, making a huge explosion.

The explosion didn't elicit screams from the children; instead, it acted like an overly loud alarm clock, waking them from their sleep.

As the hallway gradually became noisy, Wei Ran also came out of the room, and then he found out the reason why these children could not be evacuated—they were disabled.

Many of these children have leg disabilities, and some are obviously blind, relying entirely on their peers to move around.

Compared to these, a considerable number of girls are already showing signs of pregnancy.

That's the reason.

Thomas, who followed them out, said, "I have interviewed every child and documented their experiences and related evidence in detail, but..."

“But it can’t be reported,” Wei Ran said.

"No, they have already been classified as Serbs, and I am a French journalist who supports Serbs."

Thomas sighed. "I don't want to say this, but in Sarajevo, besieged by Serbs, it's the perfect excuse to kill. Especially if it's reported by me, a French journalist, the result will probably be counterproductive."

"Where did they all come from?"

After a long silence, Wei Ran asked a new question, "I mean those girls."

“Some were bought on the black market, some were snatched or picked up by my friends and me, and some were picked up by Mrs. Ivana.”

Thomas sighed helplessly, "I'm just a reporter, and that's all I can do."

"That's enough."

Wei Ran offered the other person a cigarette, then turned and went back into the room where he had just briefly stayed.

"In the black market here, a pack of cigarettes like this can easily be exchanged for two days' worth of food for an adult."

Thomas said in French, "That would be more than enough to get a girl like that outside to serve a man for hours."

"This war is completely meaningless."

Wei Ran lit the cigarette in his mouth. "It's meaningless."

"It's equally pointless for us to discuss these things here," Thomas pointed out with overly clear-headedness.

"Gentlemen"

Luna and Sophia entered the room at that moment and closed the door. "Sophia and I plan to stay."

"Stay? Stay here?" Thomas asked in surprise.

"We are clearly needed here more."

Luna said earnestly, "Those children need us, especially that girl."

“And we can also exchange our wounds for some supplies here,” Sofia added. “That’s how I survived before. Even when there was a shortage of medicine, many people still needed bandaging.”

"If you've decided, then stay."

Thomas made a remarkably decisive decision: "Although there aren't many supplies here, at least it's safer."

"Will you stay too?" Wei Ran asked.

"I can't help by staying here; I'll only consume the already limited resources."

Thomas switched back to French at this point, "Victor, now that you've come along, I'd like to give you something."

"What is it?" Wei Ran asked.

"Come with me"

Thomas offered no explanation this time either. He simply led Wei Ran out of the room, greeted Mrs. Ivana, and then went through the retractable security door covered with plastic sheeting back to the first floor. He then greeted old man Mikhail who was guarding the entrance and slipped through the small door leading to the basement.

Using the beam of a flashlight, Thomas led Wei Ran to the deepest part of the basement, opened the door to a small cubicle, and then pulled a dagger from a crack in the wall.

It wasn't until the beam of the flashlight shone into the cubicle that Wei Ran could see that it contained a lot of miscellaneous items such as fire extinguishers and used tires.

"Hold this for me."

Thomas handed the flashlight to Wei Ran, then pulled an old inner tube from a discarded tire, its ends twisted shut with wire. He then used a dagger to cut open the inner tube.

"Where did you come from?"

Wei Ran raised an eyebrow. This inner tube was filled entirely with cash! Or more accurately, it was all "foreign exchange" such as US dollars and British pounds.

"I previously interviewed someone who traded goods on the black market."

Thomas said, taking out several stacks of banknotes from his pocket. He didn't even bother to count them before tossing them to Wei Ran. "I killed him after the interview."

"Is this how you conduct interviews?" Wei Ran asked in astonishment.

"The children here need the supplies he hoarded."

Thomas said matter-of-factly, "At this stage of the siege, these banknotes have become the most useless thing."

"Why did you bring it back if it was useless?" Wei Ran shook his head, both amused and exasperated.

"I'm not going to stay here forever."

Thomas became increasingly self-righteous, saying, “No matter how long the war lasts, it will eventually end, and those disabled children need prosthetics, rehabilitation training, and this school needs to be rebuilt. All of these things require money.”

"What you're saying makes me hesitate about whether to accept this commission," Wei Ran said jokingly, waving the cash the other party handed him.

"Accept it first."

After a moment's hesitation, Thomas took out another stack of money and handed it to Wei Ran. "Besides the final payment for hiring you, I plan to use the rest to buy some supplies in that building at cost."

"Aren't you worried that I'll kill you and take all this money?" Wei Ran said, shaking the extra wad of cash in his hand again.

"I believe in you, and I also believe that I haven't misjudged you."

Thomas said, pulling out an aluminum lunchbox that seemed to be encased in several layers of protective fencing from the inner tube and handing it to Wei Ran. “Part of that money is for hiring you to help me get this lunchbox out of Sarajevo.”

"Hire me?" Wei Ran narrowed his eyes. "What's inside?"

“Interview transcripts with everyone in this school and the related chain of evidence,” Thomas said, “are enough to prove one thing.”

"whats the matter?"

"This proves that this war has nothing to do with who is a Serb, who is a Croat, or who is a Bohemian; it proves that this war should have ended long ago," Thomas said earnestly yet naively.

“I’m starting to suspect that you’re from Hubert, and that you participated in the Gulf War.” Wei Ran was speechless. “If that’s true, you shouldn’t be so naive.”

"Maybe"

Thomas didn't seem inclined to argue. "So you're going to accept my employment?"

"Then I'll have to ask for a high price."

As Wei Ran spoke, he had already taken the lunchbox from the other person and stuffed it into his bag. "Who is this for?"

"When you leave Sarajevo alive with this lunchbox, you'll find an address and contact information inside."

As Thomas spoke, he pulled a thin wire from the crack in the wall and re-tied the inner tube, making it look like a large candy.

"Are you planning to die here?" Wei Ran's abrupt question made Thomas stop what he was doing.

But then he continued working, and after hiding the candy, he led Wei Ran out while saying in a light tone, "I'm a war correspondent, and I'm going to stay here until the war ends."

"What are your plans next?" Wei Ran pressed.

"The best-case scenario is that I fake my death in that building."

Thomas said as he walked out, "Then I plan to change my identity and stay here to conduct long-term follow-up interviews."

"What is your purpose?" Wei Ran pressed.

“My purpose is to be stationed here and to follow and interview these children over the long term,” Thomas replied, but this was clearly not the truth.

"last question"

After Wei Ran finished speaking, Thomas stopped at the top of the stairs leading to the first floor, clearly waiting for Wei Ran's final question.

"Which media outlet do you work for?" Wei Ran asked a question that seemed completely irrelevant.

"The Duck's Cry"

Thomas answered almost subconsciously, and Wei Ran believed that he was probably telling the truth this time.

"I don't have the authority to make decisions about the sale of supplies; I need to discuss it with Dragan and Klaus."

Wei Ran patted his backpack as he spoke, "But I'll help you take this lunchbox out of here, I mean, if I can leave here alive."

"Thank you"

Thomas mumbled a thank you in French and then continued on his way. When he returned upstairs, all the disabled or pregnant children were already up. They were lined up against the wall, quietly waiting for Mrs. Ivana, who was standing by the fireplace, to distribute food and water to them.

"May I take some photos of them?"

As Wei Ran asked the question, he had already walked to the fireplace. Almost subconsciously, he couldn't help but think of his friend in the Hürtgen Forest, who was serving food to children from a food cart beneath the castle ruins.

"Of course, please feel free to take pictures."

As Mrs. Ivana spoke, she used a spoon to scoop a small bowl of porridge into one of the children's bowls.

By the light and smell emanating from the small lamp hanging on the security bars next to the stove, Wei Ran could barely make out that the not-so-thick paste in the pot was made from potato chunks, oats, crushed compressed biscuits, and canned American luncheon meat.

He was almost certain that the porridge was far from delicious, but the children were still full of anticipation for it.

Taking out his camera, Wei Ran pointed the lens at Mrs. Ivana, who was in charge of serving the food, and a little child holding a lunchbox.

As he repeatedly pressed the shutter, each child lined up to receive a small portion of food and a cup of warm water.

Almost as he was taking a picture of old man Mikhail, who was at the end of the line, a young man shouted from a room on the second floor, "Open the door! Teacher Aidin and Teacher Vladin are back!"

Before he could finish speaking, Mikhail had already put down the lid of his Yugoslav M69 lunchbox and, at the same time, expertly lifted the PPSh-45 slung over his shoulder with one hand and headed towards the door on the first floor.

At the same time, Ivana rushed into the room where the shouts had just come from, while the children immediately helped their companions back to the window and huddled together to sit down obediently.

A moment later, Mrs. Ivana ran out and shouted, "Open the door quickly!"

"crash"

Before he could finish speaking, old man Mikhail had already opened the iron door on the first floor.

Following closely behind, two men who looked no more than 30 years old walked in, and Mikhail immediately closed the door.

"Is anyone hurt?"

Mrs. Ivana asked nervously, and the children all stood up and peered out.

"None of us were injured."

The man walking ahead replied guiltily, "But I couldn't find a doctor. I just traded my watch for two painkillers on the black market."

“Aidin, don’t worry, Mr. Thomas has brought a doctor,” Mrs. Ivana said quickly.

"Mr. Thomas is here?"

Before he finished speaking, a tall man carrying an MGV-176 submachine gun in one hand ran up to the second floor and warmly shook hands with Thomas.

Before Thomas could introduce Wei Ran and the others, another man ran up.

The man was also quite tall, with a Stechkin pistol with a wire stock and silencer hanging around his neck by a nylon rope, and an axe at his waist.

In each hand, he was carrying the carcass of a stray dog ​​and half of a nearly two-meter-long wooden utility pole that had been taken from somewhere.

“Mr. Thomas, thank you for bringing the doctor. Is this the sir? How is the child?” the man asked, putting down the dead stray dog ​​and the telephone pole he was carrying.

"The child is doing well so far."

After Wei Ran nodded to him, Thomas warmly greeted Luna and Sophia, saying, "Let me introduce them. These two are Aidin and Vladan. Aidin used to be the school's physical education teacher."

“Mr. Thomas, please allow me to correct you, I am now a physical education teacher as well,” said Aidin, who had only brought back two painkillers. “I lead the children in some simple exercises every day.”

"Okay, he's still the PE teacher here."

Thomas smiled and patted the man who had brought back the stray dog ​​carcass and half a telephone pole on the shoulder, saying, "This is Vladin. He used to be a firefighter at this fire station. After this place was converted into a school, he continued to work as a firefighter there. Vladin, if I remember correctly?"

"They are volunteer firefighters."

Vladan smiled憨厚ly and shook hands with Wei Ran and the other two in turn, introducing himself as he said, "My wife is a teacher at this school, my child also goes to school here, and my home is nearby."

"This is a T"

"Victor"

Wei Ran introduced himself before Thomas could finish speaking, but he didn't ask questions like where Vladan's wife and children were, as that would be too cruel.

After Thomas introduced Luna and Sophia, Luna took the opportunity to mention that they both wanted to stay.

"This"

Mrs. Ivana exchanged a glance with Father Mikhail, who had come back up, and then with Aidin and Vladan, who had just returned. Finally, she said helplessly, "It's not that we don't want to, but we can't afford to support two adults."

If it weren't for Mr. Thomas, we're afraid the children would have gone hungry this morning.

"We can trade it ourselves."

"Children need doctors and nurses."

Thomas spoke up at this point, "And we're about to receive a large shipment of supplies, aren't we, Mr. Victor?"

"I try my best"

Wei Ran gave an ambiguous answer. He couldn't make the decision on this matter, but at least he could make decisions about what he owned.

With that in mind, he said, "However, when I learned from Thomas that we were coming here, I prepared some little surprises for the children in advance."

What surprise is it?

Mrs. Ivana asked with great interest, and the children around her looked over curiously as well.

Seeing that the topic had been subtly changed, Wei Ran smiled and said, "I'm actually a magician. If the children are willing to cooperate, I can perform a few magic tricks for them. The little surprises I've prepared for you are hidden in my magic tricks."

"In that case, let's skip class today and enjoy Mr. Victor's magic show instead."

Mrs. Ivana made the decision with great enthusiasm, and the children immediately cheered.

"You really know magic? And I don't remember telling you beforehand?"

"Of course, of course I know magic."

Before Thomas could finish speaking, Wei Ran confidently and firmly replied in French, "I am a real magician."

"Really?" Thomas looked at Wei Ran with increasing suspicion.

"of course it's true"

As Wei Ran spoke, he took off his backpack and placed it against the wall. Then he took off the cotton coat he had borrowed from the prisoner, and under the dim light, he spread his arms and spun around while asking, "So, which child will check if I have any food hidden on me?"

"Sir, do you mean you can conjure up food?" a little boy who was missing half a leg asked in surprise.

"I have no idea what I can conjure up."

Wei Ran walked over to the other person as she spoke, "But we didn't know each other before, so it must be you. Come and see if I have any food on me."

"What if I find it?" the little boy asked expectantly, showing no stage fright whatsoever.

"If you find it, it's yours."

"I'm sure I can find it!"

Before the little boy could finish speaking, he had already reached his hand into Wei Ran's shirt pocket.

Unfortunately, the only edible thing he found in the end was half a compressed biscuit.

Seeing the disappointment on the faces of these teenagers, Wei Ran said with satisfaction, "Now it's my turn. Since you couldn't find anything to eat on me, let me see if I can find anything to eat on you."

"I don't have any food on me," the little boy replied.

"Not always"

As Wei Ran spoke, he looked at Mrs. Ivana and the others who were watching the commotion not far away, "Ladies and gentlemen, if it's convenient, would you please turn off the lights?"
Before that, please line up against the wall and walk past me and this young man whose body is covered in food.

Although they didn't know what Wei Ran was going to do, everyone except for Mikhail, who needed to guard the goal, still lined up respectfully.

"After the lights are turned off, no matter what happens, everyone must remain quiet."

Wei Ran gave a final reminder, "Let's begin now. You young man, whose whole body is full of delicious food, close your eyes and don't open them."

Before he could finish speaking, Mrs. Ivana immediately turned off the only light, plunging the corridor into darkness, with only the distant fireplace still emitting a faint red glow.

Let me look in him.

As Wei Ran spoke, he pretended to slip his hand under the young man's cotton coat. When he came out, the young man was holding three still-hot sesame seed cakes.

"I smell something delicious!" a little boy nearby whispered excitedly.

"Shut up! You idiot! We can't make a sound!"

A little girl behind him reminded him, and seemed to cover the little guy's mouth as well.

“I’m a childcare worker, how could I let you children go hungry?”

Wei Ran mumbled incoherently as if he were in a nervous state, and casually stuffed the three flatbreads, some with fillings and some without, into the first little one's hand.

Amidst the sounds of swallowing saliva and the gasps of surprise that, despite their best efforts, could not be suppressed.

The not-so-warm stairwell was gradually filled with the aroma of food that was unfamiliar yet irresistible to the Serbs, Croats, and Muslims alike.

Fortunately, this enticing aroma does not discriminate based on faith, ethnicity, stance, camp, or ideology.

just
But for Wei Ran, who performs magic, the more he conjures up food, the more desperate he becomes.

He knew that living father all too well, and he was absolutely certain that without their own history, these children would not have been able to eat these unfamiliar foods.

But he was still able to distribute the sesame cakes to everyone, including Thomas, without even having to take the box out.

This unexpected "favor" caused his body, shrouded in darkness, to tremble uncontrollably.

He had a premonition, a very strong premonition.

No one may survive here.

Just like the little owners of those colorful Budyonny hats.

At least we should have enough to eat.
Wei Ran gritted his teeth and sighed, finally taking out three sesame cakes and handing them to the little boy who had cooperated with his performance.