Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 323 322 A Taoist priest descends the mountain to fight the Japanese, recruits a martial arts master as a bodyguard, and a secret letter from a Red Army liaison.
At the Texas train station freight yard, refugees lined up in three queues to register their information.

Each registered refugee received a mimeographed slip of paper printed in Jinan. The number on the slip indicated which rescue plane they would be on to leave.

This method is novel, yet highly efficient.

The refugees who received the mimeographed slips of paper cherished them and carefully kept them, as they meant they would have a chance to start a new life.

Then, students from Dezhou County arrived.

These progressive students asked the advance team registration staff if they could help them.

In response, William pointed to Fang Wen and said, "This is our rescue operations specialist. Go find him."

Immediately, the teenagers surrounded Fang Wen and made their request.

"Sir, with so many refugees, you don't have enough manpower. Please let us help you with some tasks."

"Yes, sir, we can do it."

Looking at these students, who are the hope for the future of this country, Fang Wen was pleased that they had this intention, and then handed over the tasks of maintaining order and checking for omissions to them.

The students were happily moving around, while at the same time, another group of people arrived outside the freight yard.

This is to distribute food to refugees.

There were ordinary people from the city, as well as Taoist priests wearing robes and hairpins.

"Who are they?" Fang Wen asked the student next to him.

“Sir, those are people from a Taoist temple in the city. These days, they’ve been organizing believers to donate money and supplies to refugees,” the student replied.

No wonder the refugees here didn't look hungry at all; Fang Wen cast an approving glance at these Taoist priests.

As usual, the Taoist priests from Gaozhen Temple brought food to the train station freight yard and distributed it to the refugees from the north.

But this time, they found that the refugees' situation was somewhat different.

The refugees today have faces beaming with joy and hope, a stark contrast to those of the past.

What brings hope to these refugees?

The abbot of Gaozhen Temple sized up the new group of people.

There were only ten people, dressed in uniform military attire, looking very smart, and they were taking notes for the refugees.

A casual inquiry revealed what had happened.

The abbot couldn't help but admire the Taishan air rescue operation.

He spoke to the middle-aged Taoist priest beside him, saying, "Junior brother, you came down the mountain to enter the world, isn't that what you want to do?"

"Yes, but I don't have that ability. Fortunately, there are still such kind-hearted people in China."

"This world needs more people like this, otherwise the world will be doomed."

"Senior brother, among these people, there is one who is very strange. Why do I feel that he is protected by an invisible power?"

"You feel this way too? Could this be a person destined for great fortune and lasting blessings?"

“We went over and chatted with him to find out who he was.”

"it is good."

The two Taoist priests walked towards Fang Wen together.

(A Taoist priest during the Republic of China era, affiliated with the Quanzhen School of Taoism)
Fang Wen, who was checking the registration information, felt someone walking towards him. He looked up and saw two Taoist priests.

The two perform a fist-and-palm salute, with the left thumb inserted into the tiger's mouth of the right hand, the right thumb pinching the tip of the right middle finger, and the other four fingers of the left hand holding the right hand, forming a posture that resembles a "Tai Chi diagram" on the outside and pinches the "Zi-Wu Jue" (a traditional Chinese hand gesture) on the inside.

This is authentic Taoist etiquette, meaning "embracing the original essence and guarding the oneness," expressing the Taoist's respect for Taoist teachings and inner piety, and also serving as a greeting among fellow practitioners.

Fang Wen was unaware of this and simply followed suit by bowing with his hands clasped in response.

His imperfect cupped-hand salute made the two Taoist priests realize that he was not one of them.

The abbot of Gaozhen Temple then said, “We have cultivated the Tao for many years. From afar, we can see that you are extraordinary, and up close you are even more so. You are blessed with good fortune and all your wishes will come true. Your life will be filled with good luck and prosperity.”

Hearing this, Fang Wen was surprised: "You can even tell that?"

Another middle-aged Taoist priest replied, "Those blessed by good fortune, though invisible to the naked eye, possess a special quality. My fellow disciple and I, having studied the art of observing qi, have some sensitivity to it."

Fang Wen couldn't help but think of his own special ability. Could it be that absorbing too much faith energy caused the two Taoists to have a hallucination?

Come to think of it, the faith energy I absorb, although from different religions, is essentially the same. The two Taoist priests have been in the Taoist temple for many years, and many believers burn incense and worship the statues of gods. Perhaps they can sense this kind of thing.

He has always been interested in the secret treasure of faith power, but now only a small bronze cauldron has energy left, and he doesn't know where he can replenish it in the future.

Now that there are Taoist priests who can sense the absorption of faith energy, why not find a breakthrough point from them?

Then, he smiled and took something out of his inner pocket. He replied, "I know, what you sensed was probably this."

The two Taoist priests initially paid little attention to the small bronze cauldron in Fang Wen's hand, but after a couple of glances, they couldn't take their eyes off it.

"What is this?" the abbot of Gaozhen Temple asked excitedly.

Fang Wen decided to tell the truth, but this was not the place to talk.

"This is a long story. Let's go to a quiet place and talk about it slowly."

The two Taoist priests readily agreed, and then, together with the two advance team members, they left the city and went to the seaplane by the river.

Upon reaching the riverbank, Fang Wen and the two Taoist priests boarded a seaplane.

He used the hot water on the plane to brew a pot of tea, poured it for the two of them, and then told them about excavating Native American pyramid tombs in North America.

The two Taoist priests looked on incredulously as they listened to what Fang Wen said.

Abbot Gaozhen sighed:
"Sir, your experience is truly amazing. I've lived for decades and have never seen anything like it. Could it be that those native Americans actually have some connection with China?"

Fang Wen has conducted extensive research on the bronze tripod.

Today, taking this opportunity, he will share his findings.

"The inscription on the tripod looks like oracle bone script. I had it appraised, and it should be from the Shang Dynasty. Furthermore, those appraisers also said that the Shang Dynasty used human and animal sacrifices, but the Zhou Dynasty abolished this practice. The human and animal sacrifices used by Native Americans are very similar to those of the Shang Dynasty. The similarity in writing and culture suggests that a group may have migrated to North America during the Shang Dynasty."

"I see. I've learned something new," the old Taoist priest exclaimed.

Fang Wen took this opportunity to reveal his true purpose.

"I am very interested in things that bring good luck and have been looking for something similar. Since you two Taoist priests can sense it, I wonder if you have seen anything similar?"

The old Taoist temple remained silent.

The middle-aged Taoist priest couldn't help but reply, "Ten years ago, I accompanied my master south on business and passed through a place where I saw something similar."

Fang Wen was overjoyed and asked, "Where?"

"Yes." The middle-aged Taoist hesitated for a moment before making a decision. "I came down the mountain this time and stayed temporarily at my senior brother's Gaozhen Temple. Originally, I wanted to contribute my meager strength to the world. But I didn't expect the world to be in such chaos. Even if I have some martial arts skills, it's useless. I see that you are extraordinary, sir, and you will surely achieve great things in the future. If you can stay true to your original intentions, just like today, I am willing to follow you."

Clearly, he understood that he couldn't do much in this chaotic world on his own, but he was moved by Fang Wen and the others' good deeds and wanted to join them.

His senior brother, Lao Daosi, did not stop him from making this choice; on the contrary, he approved of it.

Fang Wen sized up the middle-aged Taoist priest, pondering in his heart.

A Taoist priest who is detached from worldly affairs is able to put aside everything and come to this chaotic world just to contribute his meager strength. This sense of responsibility is already stronger than that of many others.

The Taishan Volunteer Army needs people like this; the more the better.

He smiled and nodded: "Sure. Let me introduce myself. My name is Fang Wen, General Manager of Taishan Airlines, Commander of the Taishan Independent Regiment, and the person in charge of this refugee relief operation. You'll learn the rest once you join. Welcome to the Taishan Independent Regiment to contribute to the fight against the Japanese invaders." This promise meant that the middle-aged Taoist priest had become a member of Fang Wen's Independent Regiment.

He also introduced himself as "Gong Xiuneng, a Taoist priest from the mountains. From now on, I will follow Commander Fang's instructions."

Abbot Gaozhen sighed, "Junior brother, you have achieved your wish. I will not disturb you any longer. Farewell. If you have the chance in the future, you must come back to Gaozhen Temple to visit your senior brother."

After saying this, the old Taoist priest took his leave and left the plane.

After watching his senior brother leave, Gong Xiu stood beside Fang Wen but no longer sat down.

Seeing his maturity and composure, Fang Wen had an idea and asked, "You said you have martial arts skills, how strong are you?"

"I can easily deal with three or five petty thieves, and even if they use guns, I can dodge them," Gong Xiuneng said confidently.

This was the first time Fang Wen had heard of such ability, and he didn't believe it, so he decided to test Gong Xiu Neng.

He then waved for the five advance team members guarding the plane to come over.

"The five of you work together to subdue him, but you can't use guns or knives."

The five advance team members were all handpicked experts who had been trained for a year. Unexpectedly, the team leader had them all work together to deal with a Taoist priest.

This infuriated them, so they put down their submachine guns and short guns and daggers from their waists, then got out of the plane and stood on the riverbank, ready to fight.

Gong Xiuneng also came out of the plane, tied the long sleeves of his Taoist robe, tied the hem around his waist, and stood still, remaining unchanged amidst all changes.

Seeing him like this, one of the advance team members couldn't hold back and took the lead in rushing over.

But he easily dodged it and used the momentum to throw him away by his shoulder.

His skill was immediately apparent; Gong Xiuneng was indeed quite capable.

The other advance team members then joined forces and attempted to launch a simultaneous attack, overwhelming Gong Xiuneng.

In response, Gong Xiuneng seized the opportunity when the enemy pounced, focusing his attack on one side and knocking down the advance team member, then broke out of the encirclement.

Subsequently, the advance team, unwilling to give up, launched another attack, but their attacks were thwarted one by one by the opponent.

Fang Wen watched from the sidelines and could tell that Gong Xiu was holding back; he was more than capable of dealing with the five advance team members.

Fang Wen was pleasantly surprised, never expecting that his trip to Dezhou would result in him acquiring a master.

The competition was immediately stopped.

After the struggle, Gong Xiuneng was not sweating, nor did he show signs of being out of breath due to excessive physical exertion. He even volunteered, "Commander, I can also demonstrate how to dodge shots for you."

"You can really dodge bullets?" Fang Wen asked incredulously.

Gong Xiuneng replied truthfully, "It's not that mysterious. It mainly depends on reaction. Within 10 zhang, when the opponent draws a gun and aims, their shoulder and arm will move. If you react before their movement, you can dodge. But if someone is aiming at you from a distance, I can't dodge."

So that's how it is. Fang Wen doesn't plan to try today either, since the previous competition had already drawn a large crowd of onlookers to the riverbank.

He let Gong Xiuneng board the plane and continued to talk about the secret treasure of faith.

"You said you saw a treasure similar to this small cauldron 10 years ago, where was that?"

Gong Xiuneng recalled: "Ten years ago, my master and I went to the land of Bashu. When we passed through Hanzhou, we saw a strange object. At that time, my cultivation was shallow, so I just felt that it was a bit extraordinary, but my master could tell that it must be a treasure left over from ancient times."

Ancient times? It should refer to the Shang and Zhou dynasties.

Fang Wen asked eagerly, "And then what happened?"

"Later, a bloody battle broke out in Hanzhou over that treasure, and many skilled fighters died. My master and I did not participate in the struggle, but we knew that it eventually fell into the hands of a local powerful figure."

After listening to Gong Xiuneng's explanation, Fang Wen realized that he needed to go to Sichuan in the future, since the more treasures that could enhance his abilities, the better, as the war continued.

But right now, with the war raging, his focus is still on refugee relief.

Immediately afterwards, he confided in Gong Xiuneng.

“I’m planning to organize a refugee transfer in the north, using seaplanes from Taishan Airlines. Texas will be the first transfer point, and we’ll go to other places later. Since you’ve joined the Taishan Independent Regiment, you’ll stay by my side as a bodyguard.”

"Okay." Gong Xiuneng accepted Fang Wen's arrangement.

Fang Wen then got him a set of advance team uniforms, a Thompson submachine gun, and various other equipment.

These weapons were still unfamiliar to Gong Xiuneng; he didn't even know how to operate them and could only learn from the special task force members during subsequent operations.

After taking Gong Xiuneng as his personal bodyguard, Fang Wen and he left the plane and returned to the city.

It was already evening. At the train station freight yard, refugees were cooking in several large pots, while at the registration area, there was no one queuing.

William reported the situation to Fang Wen: "Commander, the total number of refugees in Texas City is 867. Based on the carrying capacity of 20 people per plane, 43 flights have been arranged."

Fang Wen did the calculations.

The rescue plane traveled 200 kilometers from Jinan Water Airport to the Dezhou Canal, a round trip that took only one hour.

Including the time spent there, it will not exceed 2 hours at most.

By sending five planes to the Texas section of the canal at once, all the refugees could be transferred within two days.

Of course, this requires the cooperation of the refugees to avoid chaos during boarding.

He then instructed the advance team to send a telegram to Jinan, informing them to send a plane over the next day.

Then, they told the refugees that they could board the plane and leave the next day.

The refugees were overjoyed to hear that they could leave the next day.

They waited with great anticipation.

After one night, four seaplanes arrived, and the refugees, carrying mimeographed slips of paper, boarded their assigned planes in an orderly manner.

Although 20 people on a plane might be a bit crowded, they had no complaints.

Over two consecutive days, four seaplanes made an average of 10 round trips to transfer the refugees back to Jinan.

The first refugee relief operation was considered a success.

But this was the easiest time, since Texas, where they were stranded, was now a safe zone and they didn't have to worry about the threat from the Japanese army.

Next, the rescue team will enter North China and northern Shanxi to rescue the refugees struggling in the occupied areas.

After rescuing the refugees in Texas, Fang Wen led the advance team to leave Texas and head north.

The group arrived at the riverbank after being seen off by the county magistrate and military officers, and prepared to board the plane for takeoff.

The students who participated in refugee relief were also in the farewell procession.

They came specifically to present Fang Wen and his group with a banner, but Fang Wen was surprised to find an extra note inside.

He boarded the plane without making a sound, and only then did he open the note to check it.

[General Manager Fang, it's been a long time. I didn't expect to meet you here again. Because I have to catch up with the troops heading north to fight the Japanese, I can't stay. I can only ask the local organization to deliver this letter.]

I've heard you're preparing to provide refugee relief. We're open to cooperating on this matter. I'm leaving our telegraphic communication frequency here for future reference.

[Presented by Bai Yunfei.]

It was Bai Yunfei, whose real name was Shu Zhitao, who was a Red Army liaison officer.

Fang Wen remembers that Shu Zhitao followed the Red Third Army and embarked on the Long March.

But I never expected to meet them again in the north.

(End of this chapter)