Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 96 If You Don't Go, I Will
The warm sun pierced through the thin mist, leaving golden streaks on the muddy dirt road.

The heavy tires of the Dodge truck rolled over the still-wet ruts, splashing mud that shimmered like broken gold in the sunlight. The singing that drifted from the truck was tinged with the solemnity of a church choir, but was quickly broken up by the soft Wu dialect spoken along the Qinhuai River, like a piece of half-melted honey stuck in the air.

The truck shuddered incessantly on the bumpy road, and Song Mei, sitting in the cargo bed, could clearly feel the dull pain in her back from each bump. She sank deeper into the pile of quilts; the faded dark green covers already emitted a faint musty and sweaty smell, but surprisingly, it was reassuring.

Riding in the same car as Song Mei were Yu Mo and more than ten other girls from the banks of the Qinhuai River. At this moment, Yu Mo's knees were close to Song Mei's, and she could feel the other's body temperature through the coarse cloth military pants.

This once-famous top courtesan of the Qinhuai River now resembles a woman who has washed away her makeup, using her calloused hands to wipe a small pistol with a towel.

After Yu Mo finished cleaning the pistol and carefully put it back in its holster, Song Mei looked up and suddenly asked, "Was it worth it?"

Yu Mo raised her head and looked at her with her almond-shaped eyes.

Song Mei said softly, "What I mean is, you could have left us and gone to the rear, to live a peaceful life in Chengdu or Chongqing. Why did you choose to follow us and live this life of danger and bloodshed?"

Yu Mo smiled gently, "There's no such thing as worth it or not. As long as I think it's worth it, that's enough."

She sighed softly: "Don't be fooled by the fact that we all have plenty of food and clothing, and can easily make customers spend a fortune just by singing a little song. To be honest, we're just a bunch of prostitutes."

Those men can elevate us to the heavens, and they can trample us to the ground just as easily. I don't want to end up as a prostitute or a brothel madam when I'm old and my looks have faded.

Song Mei looked into her eyes and chuckled softly, "So..."

“So I’m going to change my way of living.” Yu Mo continued her words: “These days, although we’ve been busy following Commander Su and even risking our lives at any moment, it’s only during this period that I feel like I’m living like a human being.”

You know what? Whenever those soldiers stopped looking at me like I was a prostitute, and started looking at me like I was their own sister, with a mixture of gratitude and respect, that feeling was more exhilarating than winning ten thousand dollars.

"Ha ha……"

Song Mei couldn't help but chuckle, "I never expected that your hands, which are used to playing the pipa and the xiao, could also pick up a scalpel to treat and save lives, just like mine."

Yu Mo raised her eyebrows: "Don't underestimate me. I was once a student."

“I believe that.” Song Mei nodded. Putting everything else aside, the fact that this woman could speak fluent English was enough to show that she had at least received a certain level of education, so it was not surprising that she knew some medical skills.

"And what about you?" Yu Mo suddenly asked, a hint of amusement on her pretty face.

"I...what do you mean, 'I'?" Song Mei rolled her eyes at her.

When are you and the regimental commander getting married?

"Me...who wants to marry him? Besides...doesn't he have that little girl Xiao Lu to serve him? What would it look like if I went up to him?"

Song Mei remained defiant, but sunlight filtering through the carriage's tarpaulin cast dappled shadows on her porcelain-white cheeks, making her rosy cheeks appear even more like peach blossoms in March. Suddenly, she bit her moist lower lip, and ripples appeared in her almond-shaped eyes beneath her willow-leaf eyebrows. Her long eyelashes fluttered rapidly like butterfly wings, revealing her innermost thoughts.

"Alright, stop arguing." Yu Mo laughed, "When it comes to dealing with men, I consider myself second to none."

Let me tell you, men are all a bunch of impatient creatures.

If he proposes to you and you're interested in him too, you'd better say yes quickly. Otherwise, once he loses patience, he'll turn around and marry another woman without hesitation.

At this point, Yu Mo's gaze lingered on Song Mei for a moment. The sharp lines of the German-style field uniform were meant to conceal her figure, but instead, they were stretched taut by her proud curves, revealing a section of her snow-white neck at the collar, which gleamed delicately in the sunlight streaming through the tarpaulin.

At this moment, Song Mei was looking down and adjusting her cuffs. Her eyelashes cast a light shadow on her cheeks, and there was still a trace of dust on the tip of her upturned nose.

"If you really don't want to..."

Yu Mo deliberately dragged out the last syllable, her gaze sweeping over the other woman's waist, which was marked by the belt, and said half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Then I'll go myself. Maybe I can get a taste of being the wife of the regimental commander."

"How dare you!" Song Mei shouted, her almond-shaped eyes glaring at him. But when she saw Yu Mo's ambiguous smile, she realized she had been tricked.

She let out a soft snort in embarrassment and anger, "I... I just couldn't bear to hurt that little girl Xiao Lu, so I was a bit conflicted. Who said I didn't want to?"

"Hehe... What's the big deal?"

Yu Mo couldn't help but chuckle: "You yourself said that Xiao Lu is just a girl."

These days, it's not uncommon for men to have multiple wives and concubines. If you feel bad for Xiaolu, just treat her better after you marry her.

Besides, do you think you're the only one eyeing the Commander? Every single one of those girls in the church has had her eye on him, especially that girl named Meng Shujuan. She's always hanging around him whenever she has a chance. If you don't hurry up and make your move, you'll regret it when someone else snatches her away.

"What... Shujuan, that girl too..." Song Mei couldn't believe it for a moment.

"What...you don't believe me?"

Seeing Song Mei's suspicious look, Yu Mo couldn't help but sneer.

"You should know that Meng Shujuan was rescued from the Japanese by the regimental commander a few months ago."

Girls her age are at the age when their hearts are beginning to flutter with romantic feelings. They've read plenty of storybooks, and it's perfectly normal for them to know things like repaying a life-saving debt with their bodies.

If you ask me, since you're so interested, you should just do it. You be the principal wife, and those two young girls are concubines—wouldn't that be great?"

"Shut up!" Upon hearing this, Song Mei's pretty face immediately turned bright red, and her almond-shaped eyes widened.

Yu Mo, however, was not afraid at all. Instead, she covered her mouth and chuckled, her eyes full of mockery.

Just then, the convoy screeched to a halt. Yu Mo, who had been giggling, was caught off guard and bumped her head on the handrail. The pain brought tears to her eyes.

Just as I was about to start cursing, I heard a cheer from the side.

We've arrived in Xuzhou!

We've arrived in Xuzhou!

The cheers were accompanied by the sounds of gongs and drums...

(End of this chapter)