Literary Master 1983

Chapter 426 Joint Security Area (End)
Upon their arrival at noon that day, Yu Qie personally received them. The group was well-fed and cared for for several days, during which time they took numerous photos and documents for use in the armistice propaganda of the "Military Pictorial".

This propaganda was invaluable to the propaganda departments of both countries, especially the Vietnamese who were struggling to continue fighting. Almost as soon as the Military Pictorial was updated, the Vietnamese mouthpiece would translate the entire article.

Yu Qie showed the photos from the Military Pictorial to the Vietnamese: "Your People's Daily also reprinted the news, saying that you are guardians of peace! When you return to Laoshan, you will be heroes of peace, and your motherland will reward you."

The newspaper contained only a photo of Yu Qie with several Vietnamese people, as well as a picture of Bui Hue. The two sides seemed to have reconciled, just like the description in "Joint Security Area" that "the brotherly friendship between China and Vietnam is deeper than the sea and higher than the sky."

These few Vietnamese soldiers from the 356th Division suddenly became peace advocates attracting attention from both countries. Yu Qie even declared in the newspaper that his novel was written based on the thoughts of the Vietnamese soldiers in that company.

Under the warm hospitality of the Chinese, a Vietnamese soldier shed tears of repentance. He knelt before Old Tang's grave, grasped Yu Qie's hand, and said, "Thank you, Teacher Yu, for writing such a novel. If I had known that our relationship with the Chinese was like this... I definitely would not have participated in that battle."

Yu Qie said with great emotion, "I am very happy that you came to thank me; but I do not like that battle you insisted on fighting to the death."

"Joint Security Zone" has become a sensation on the Laoshan front lines these days. Many Vietnamese people, after reading the novel, have reconsidered the relationship between the two countries, and within Vietnam's upper echelons, "Joint Security Zone" has also triggered a nuclear-level effect.

Comrade Chang Zheng, a pro-China figure, really liked this book.

Chang Zheng's full name is Ruan Changzheng. After learning about the heroic feat of the Long March in the north, he dropped his surname and changed his name to Chang Zheng. Many years later, Comrade Chang Zheng was once again moved by a story: This is a kind of romance that only East Asians can feel!
Comrade Chang Zheng has repeatedly sent reports to the front lines, hoping that the Vietnamese opposition who have objections to peace negotiations and troop withdrawal will take a good look at this novel!
In his spare time, Bui Hue reread the book. He reaffirmed his conclusion: this book would quickly become a banned book in Vietnam once the tide of peace subsided.

Even if all the leaders after Comrade Chang Zheng are pro-China, this novel must still be banned!

China, however, does not need to, because they are not afraid to mention this relationship.

why?

Pei Shunhua asked Yu Qie for advice, expecting Yu Qie to show off, but to his surprise, Yu Qie spoke frankly.

"The formation of modern nation-states is a matter of the last two hundred years, while cultural identity is a matter of thousands of years. If 'Joint Security Area' reflects the ethnic relations between East and West Germany and North and South Korea... it should be a timeless classic for that nation! But you and I are not brothers, but rather the relationship between a tree and its branches!"

Yu Qie said, "In order to cultivate your sense of identity, you can only conduct hatred education. In other words, the reason why Vietnamese people are Vietnamese is because you must first prove that you are not Chinese!"

This was a difficult phrase, but Pei Shunhua understood it instantly after reading the story.

It is precisely because of this cultural appeal rooted in their genes that Vietnam, Malaysia, and even Singapore have all implemented anti-Chinese education programs. For small countries like theirs, this is a matter of life and death.

After all, there are only branches and trunks belonging to a big tree, but nothing can be turned upside down.

“A few years ago, I wrote a book called ‘The Way Out,’ and I suggest you find it and read it. It explains in more detail how a person who had been away from home for decades overcame countless difficulties in terms of national identity and was determined to return!”

Yu Qie left with those words, and not long after, he asked Pei Shunhua, "Did you kill anyone in the war?"

Pei Shunhua said, "I have always been involved in propaganda work in the rear and have never been on the front lines."

"Can you use a gun?"

"Of course I will. Just because I haven't been on the battlefield doesn't mean I haven't dealt with traitors in the rear!"

"Are they all Vietnamese?"

"Yes! Our Propaganda Department of the General Political Department of Vietnam was originally a semi-espionage organization. It's not a respectable thing to say, but that's really how it was."

More than a decade of war has led to extremely harsh punishments for deserters and traitors in Vietnam: better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free.

On the front lines at Laoshan, Vietnamese soldiers who had previously had contact with Chinese soldiers often asked in private with concern, "Do your superiors know about what we're doing (referring to private contact)?"

The Chinese soldier said, "We know, it was our superiors who encouraged us to lull you into a false sense of security."

The Vietnamese were surprised, saying, "In Vietnam, if you were caught doing these things, you would be shot immediately!"

Yu Qie laughed upon hearing this and patted Pei Shunhua on the shoulder. "You punish traitors so severely, and now you've become a pro-China figure. What will you do if the political winds in Vietnam change in the future?"

Pei Shunhua didn't know why he said that, and said in a muffled voice, "My deeds have all been published in the newspapers, so I have no choice but to go down this path to the end."

"Okay!" Yu Qie nodded. "I hope you can keep your word!"

Pei Shunhua suddenly felt a murderous intent. He suddenly remembered the Vietnamese soldiers he had kidnapped... Pei Shunhua instinctively said, "They knelt before Platoon Leader Tang's tombstone and apologized. They know they were wrong!"

"Too late!" Yu said.

Pei Shunhua quickly found out why!
A shocking piece of news suddenly came from behind Hanoi: Comrade Truong Trung, a pro-China figure, had passed away. Before his death, he had resigned from his leadership position, and the Vietnamese leadership immediately faced a counterattack from the pro-war faction.

Fighting is out of the question. Even the pro-war faction dares not fight anymore.

However, the frontline troops almost "mutinized," and there were Chinese "brothers" everywhere, which greatly angered the Vietnamese high command! Previously, Comrade "Chang Zheng" had said that they should not be investigated, but now that Comrade "Chang Zheng" was dead, they could no longer let these ordinary soldiers off easily.

At that moment, a meeting was being held in Vietnam to discuss the matter. Bui Hue was to rush to Hanoi immediately, ready to issue a statement of condolence for Comrade Truong Trung.

This news immediately became a death knell for the Vietnamese soldiers on the front lines. Who were the most vocal traitors during this period? They were none other than the Vietnamese soldiers who were still in the Chinese camp, who had published several press releases with writer Yu, and who had knelt before Platoon Leader Tang's tombstone—they were the prototypes for the story of "Joint Security Area"!

The Vietnamese soldiers at the Chinese outpost quickly realized what was happening and requested political asylum, but Yu refused, saying, "You've been here too long; it's time to go home."

Where is home now?

That place is hell!
The friendship that took place in the cat-ear cave in the story is legendary, but now it has all become evidence of the crimes committed by these Vietnamese.

“Teacher Yu, we were wrong!” A Vietnamese soldier cried and hugged Yu Qie’s leg. “We are willing to work like slaves in China for the rest of our lives to atone for our sins. We just beg you not to let us go back to our country!”

"If we go back to China, we'll be shot!" Yu Qie naturally refused. The Vietnamese soldiers cried and wailed, but seeing Yu Qie's unwavering resolve, they resorted to threats: "Do you think you, Yu Qie, have the final say? There's an entire company of Chinese soldiers here, and your military reporters too..."

They begged for mercy from their former enemies.

Xian Yunqiang was clearly a fearless second-generation rich kid who had long wanted to kill these people. He was extremely pleased with himself! He laughed loudly, "I buried Old Tang with my own hands that day and dreamed of avenging him. I never expected to hear about a ceasefire agreement? You have the blood of Chinese people on your hands. You should have paid for your blood debt long ago!"

"The Vietnamese are killing the Vietnamese! It's only right! You Vietnamese are the most fickle people! One day you're like this, the next you're like that, and you're even ruthless to your own people!" Xian Yunqiang got carried away and even picked up his camera to take a picture of these Vietnamese people.

He wanted to write another military report and send it to Lao Tang.

"Company Commander Qiu! Company Commander Qiu!" The Vietnamese found Qiu again and knelt down with a thud. "Please give us a way out! Don't send us back! We don't want to fight anymore! Don't make pointless sacrifices!"

"What military information do you need? We know everything—our unit numbers, our deployments! We don't need to stay here any longer. Just wait a while, until the high command is readjusted... China and Vietnam will remain friendly! The friendship between China and Vietnam is the greatest! May it last forever!"

Qiu Lian's cheek muscles trembled violently as he struggled with an internal conflict! On one side were his comrades, and on the other were military ethics and the overall situation at the front... Yu Qie reached out to stop Qiu Lian, drawing everyone's attention to Pei Shunhua's arrival.

"The Vietnamese fighting amongst themselves is none of our business. Besides, Colonel Pei needs to go back to Hanoi to write a condolence message and issue a press release... If he can't bring back these few Vietnamese soldiers, he will really be punished, and that will affect the overall situation."

Pei Shunhua, who had felt guilty towards his own people, suddenly felt a chill in his heart. After realizing what had happened, he was terrified!
These people are not just prohibited from staying in the Chinese camp.
They couldn't even stay in the Vietnamese camp; otherwise, if they went back and "talked nonsense" everywhere, Bui Hue and the frontline division commander Nguyen Van Duc would be held accountable!
At the time, everyone was making political investments, but they didn't expect to bet on the wrong horse. Now that Comrade Chang Zheng is dead, the pro-war faction leaders want to find a typical example to be executed. If these soldiers don't die, then they will die themselves!
No sooner said than done, the Vietnamese soldiers realized they couldn't escape, and with a roar they tried to flee through the door—but were caught by the soldiers of the 4th Company of the reconnaissance battalion and stuffed into a Romanian jeep.

With their hands and feet tied, Pei Shunhua naturally had to drive. He was already very familiar with the "joint security zone" that was about forty kilometers wide in this story, so returning to his own position was not a problem.

Pei Shunhua's heart pounded wildly: he had been completely outmaneuvered by Yu Qie, and was being controlled from head to toe like a puppet.

Now that the situation at the top has changed, he must kill the Vietnamese soldiers as a pledge of loyalty, otherwise, once the matter is exposed, he will become the traitor—he can still explain his appearances in newspapers and his photos with Yu Qie as non-combatants!

But bringing a few ordinary soldiers to a Chinese camp and making them kneel before a fallen Chinese platoon leader—if this were exposed… that would be utterly unacceptable!
To protect themselves, and for the sake of their families... these people cannot be allowed to live!
However, the key to Yu Qie's success lay in his accurate prediction of the time of Comrade Chang Zheng's sudden death!

Damn it! How did he know?
This is probably a mystery that Pei Shunhua will never know.

Yu Qielian had anticipated, or rather, already planned, Pei Shunhua's method of killing. Pei Shunhua rummaged around in the cockpit for a while, and upon closer inspection, found a Glock pistol lying there. He checked the magazine and found that there were exactly four bullets inside.

The prestigious "Columbia Gun" was used as a murder weapon by himself.

Pei Shunhua shook his head: He had been too arrogant!
There are probably countless "Columbian Guns". Yu Qie could buy hundreds or thousands of Glock pistols in Europe and America at any time, engrave them with exclusive patterns, and claim that this is the legendary "Columbian Gun".

After all, the quality of the gun is not important; what matters is who its owner is.

In the valley of Laoshan, there is currently a 40-kilometer-wide uninhabited area, which will be the so-called demilitarized zone in the future. In the story, Yu Qie describes it as a "joint security zone," depicting it as a place with a large number of military personnel, which is completely opposite to reality—and now it is just as he wrote in his novel.

This demilitarized zone has seen countless deaths and is riddled with landmines... In the future, it will take several years just to clear the mines.

Now, a few more corpses will be added, rotting into mud in the hot and humid weather.

Pei Shunhua couldn't help but recall a rumor:
Chinese soldiers would charge repeatedly to retrieve the remains of their fallen comrades, unwilling to give up even a single piece of clothing!

The Vietnamese, however, never cared about the bodies of their comrades. If someone went missing or died on the front lines, they were not only not brought back for burial, but were all counted as "missing." This way, they could not only pay less compensation, but also avoid wasting manpower and resources.

Now it's so convenient for me! Turns out, this was all foreshadowing in his story.

He had already anticipated that I would use this to clean up the mess.

If these people die without being able to testify, the division commander Nguyen Van Duc at the front line will be terrified and will naturally not betray him, and the pro-China faction will not cause him any trouble.

From the perspective of the pro-war faction, they were just propaganda personnel who had recently arrived at the Laoshan front—kowtowing, taking photos, and organizing large-scale celebrations to spread the word about Sino-Vietnamese friendship. They claimed that these were not their doing, but rather the work of those few misled Vietnamese soldiers!

Pei Shunhua drove the car to a cliff edge, turned back to the Vietnamese soldiers who were bound hand and foot and desperately begging for mercy, and said:
"Comrade, you didn't die by my hand, but by the hand of Yu Qie, whom you all despise! To tell you the truth, I pleaded for you!"

His "comrades" trembled and curled up in terror, like some kind of desperate insect.

"Sigh, why did you have to offend Yu Qie?"

Pei Shunhua did not torture these people too much. He moved them off the car, fired three shots, and kicked them off the cliff.

He suddenly realized: In fact, Yu Qie did not intentionally kill these people; they died because of their stupidity! They did not know how to assess the situation and protect themselves. The defeat at the front was already inevitable, yet they still fought diligently and even killed Chinese people! Naturally, they were bound to be retaliated against.

He's not a truly upright man either! If he comes to the Chinese outpost, he shouldn't be lured by Yu Qie's sweet talk and do something like kneeling down, getting publicity in newspapers, or taking RMB... Instead, he should stick his neck out and refuse to comply no matter what, and Yu Qie won't be able to do anything about it!
Ultimately, it's both stupid and wicked. If you don't die, am I supposed to?
Afterwards, Bui Hue drove his jeep and suddenly wanted to find the "comrade-in-arms killed by Yu Che" that the Vietnamese soldiers had mentioned earlier, because there were only four bullets in the Glock magazine, which meant that Yu Che had used a few bullets, and maybe what they said was true.

They hated Yuqie because Yuqie, a civilian official, killed their comrades while armed with a pistol, which fueled their rage and made them want to fight the Chinese...

Yu Qie was able to outwit him like this, predicting the situation of the Vietnamese high command with perfect accuracy. He was just like Zhuge Liang in the comic book "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," so clever that he was beyond human comprehension!
The Vietnamese high command, Nguyen Van Duc, the division commander at the front, himself, and those unfortunate Vietnamese soldiers... they were all in his hands, whether they knew it or not, they were all being used! What kind of person is he really?

Despite being complete strangers, Pei Shunhua felt a strong urge to verify whether Yu Qie had ever killed someone with a pistol, and whether it was true.

But then, Pei Shunhua secretly smiled bitterly to himself: He was in dire straits himself!

He then shot himself in the shoulder, and blood gushed out! Then, just like in the movie "Joint Security Area" where the protagonist accidentally kills someone, he wiped the blood and fingerprints off his Glock pistol, threw it into the weeds, and drove into the Vietnamese outpost with one hand.

“When those three men heard that Comrade Chang Zheng was dead and that they would be held accountable, they fought with me… They all died, and I was also seriously injured.”

The person who came to receive Pei Hue was Nguyen Van Duc, the commander of the elite division. His face was originally dark, but now he looked at Pei Hue in surprise. His eyes darted around, and then he turned around without thinking and said loudly, "Those three people committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Colonel Pei was lucky to return!"

(End of this chapter)