Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 421, page 419: Fang Wen's Supernatural Gunfight, Plains Tunnels, Plan to Raid the County Town
At the city gate, Uncle Peng held a grenade, tightened the pull cord, and confronted the Japanese and puppet troops.

Four puppet soldiers and two Japanese soldiers pointed their guns at him.

Another puppet soldier grabbed Peng Sanye's daughter by the hair, attempting to coerce her into submission.

Two underground party members moved quietly through the crowd, and the moment they broke through was the time to make their move.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng followed closely behind, with Zhao Shanhu close behind.

As they marched, Gong Xiuneng whispered, "Commander, stay behind me and don't rush in recklessly. Bullets don't have eyes."

Fang Wen did not answer, but was thinking about how to make a move.

He has a trump card.

Through years of exploration, Fang Wen has mastered how to use the energy of faith.

In addition to directly absorbing and strengthening oneself, it can also activate the power of rare treasures.

Another use is to temporarily enhance oneself, giving oneself some supernatural abilities.

He had used it twice before in critical moments of air combat, and it could be used to remotely control objects and further enhance physical abilities.

Although this method is somewhat wasteful of energy, it is a very good way to generate bursts of energy.

Now, he wants to use it again.

Two underground party members rushed out of the crowd, raised their hands, and pointed their small pistols, commonly known in the north as "gun brand pistols," at the enemy.

Two shots rang out, and a puppet soldier fell to the ground.

The remaining puppet troops and Japanese soldiers either immediately lay down or jumped into nearby bunkers.

The puppet soldier who coerced the woman even hunched over behind her, using her as a human shield.

Uncle Peng shouted urgently, "Yuwa, lie down quickly!"

The woman struggled fiercely, but she was no match for the puppet soldiers behind her and could not break free.

The two underground party members hesitated for a moment and turned their guns to the other side.

It was this moment of hesitation that gave the Japanese and their puppet troops an opportunity to counterattack.

They raised their guns and tried to aim.

At that moment, Fang Wen also forcibly absorbed the mysterious energy from the necklace.

His physical abilities suddenly surged, with his senses, nerve responses, and muscle movements all being enhanced.

At that moment, he felt that everything had slowed down.

Like slow motion.

The Japanese soldiers lying on the ground raised their rifles and charged at Peng Sanye, who was pulling his daughter back, while the puppet soldiers were pulling the woman away.

There were also two underground party members firing shots, and civilians fleeing nearby.

And Gong Xiuneng and Zhao Shanhu rushed out.

What should I do?
He made a split-second decision.

Draw your gun, aim, and fire.

Between the electric light and flint.

Fang Wen completed the shooting action, and the Luger P08 pistol in his hand fired continuously and accurately.

The first bullet struck the Japanese soldier who was lying on the ground aiming, hitting him directly in the forehead. The soldier's head lolled to the side and he stopped moving.

He then turned the gun to the other side and fired three quick shots, hitting another Japanese soldier.

Then he threw a fragmentation grenade.

Everything happened so suddenly. With a few gunshots, two Japanese soldiers were killed, and at the same time, grenades were thrown accurately into the bunker in an arc.

With the explosion of the grenade, none of the three puppet soldiers in the bunker survived.

Now only the puppet soldier who held the woman hostage remains.

Gong Xiu, who was rushing forward, was stunned. How had all the enemies been dealt with?
The two underground party members didn't realize what was happening either.

The puppet soldier, however, broke down, abandoned the woman, and desperately fled towards the city gate.

With a gunshot, the puppet soldier fell to the ground, his back covered in blood.

Only then did Gong Xiuneng realize what was happening. He turned around in surprise and asked, "Commander, you killed them all?"

Fang Wen, who had stopped injecting energy, replied, "What are we waiting for? Take people and leave this place."

Yes, once the gunshots rang out, the Japanese troops in the city would definitely come over, and if we didn't leave now, it would be too late.

Immediately, one of the underground party members called out, "Peng San, bring your daughter and come with us."

Peng San rushed to his daughter's side and pulled her over without hesitation.

"Everyone, follow me."

The underground party members led a group of people towards the canal.

Someone was already there to meet them; a boat was moored on the riverbank waiting.

They quickly jumped onto the boat, and the boatman rowed across the canal.

After the group reached the shore and ran quite a distance, the Japanese army appeared at the city gate, but they could no longer catch up.

Led by the underground party members, the group made their way through many twists and turns to a village.

They entered a house there, and the young woman inside lifted the lid of the kang (a heated brick bed) without saying a word.

"Let's go down and take the tunnel," the underground party member said.

Immediately afterwards, a group of people crawled into the tunnel at the head of the kang (heated brick bed).

Fang Wen was quite curious as he entered the tunnels of the North China Plain for the first time.

He climbed down the ladder.

The tunnel shaft was rather narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time. There were also small holes on the left and right, which were probably bayonet holes used to deal with Japanese soldiers.

He couldn't help but imagine the scene: Japanese soldiers coming down from the shaft, only to be stabbed squarely by bayonets on both sides.

After climbing down 3 meters, we reached a horizontal tunnel.

You can only move forward by bending over.

Moreover, there are forks in the road, and unfamiliar people will quickly lose their way.

After turning two corners, the underground party member leading the way finally stopped.

They entered an underground space.

One of the underground party members whispered to Peng San, then asked him to leave his daughter behind, and the two left through another entrance to the cave.

Another underground party member approached Fang Wen and said, "After what happened today, it might be difficult to enter the city again. Why don't you stay in the city and let the other team stay there until they find the person, then you can meet up."

Fang Wen nodded: "Okay, let's do it this way."

The underground party member hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Have you served in the military before?"

Fang Wen shook his head: "No, he's just a pilot."

"With your marksmanship, it would be a shame if you didn't become a soldier and fight the Japanese."

"Yes, I'll consider it," Fang Wen replied. It was best not to reveal his identity in enemy-occupied territory.

"You can stay here for now. The Japanese will definitely be searching for you for the next couple of days. I'll go out for a bit and get you some food."

After saying that, he left through the other tunnel entrance.

Now, only Fang Wen, Gong Xiuneng, Zhao Shanhu, and Peng Sanye's daughter remain here.

The woman was a little scared and hid far away, crouching in the corner.

Zhao Shanhu went over to comfort her, saying, "Don't be afraid, girl. We are all good people."

The woman did not answer; she simply curled up into a ball, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Gong Xiuneng said, "Zhao Shanhu, she's been traumatized. Just let her stay here. Maybe she'll be fine in a while."

Zhao Shanhu turned back and couldn't help but ask, "General Manager, how come you're such a good shot? Teach me!"

Gong Xiuneng also looked at Fang Wen with curiosity: "Yes, Commander, I've never seen you practice shooting before. How come you're so brave in battle?"

"That's talent, but I'm even better at flying planes," Fang Wen laughed. The gunfight just now consumed energy comparable to a fierce aerial battle, but it was inefficient for him, and he only managed to eliminate a few enemies, which wasn't worthwhile.

Just then, the underground party member who had gone out returned, carrying a bundle in his hand. He placed the bundle on the table, opened it, and inside were some cornbread and corn kernels.

"This is the food prepared for you. I need to go out and find out what's going on. By the way, if anything unexpected happens, you can leave from here. Follow me."

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng followed him into the other tunnel entrance, then turned left ahead, where there was an uphill road.

Go up from there, and you'll see many small holes that let in light on the right.

"There's a flap here that leads out to the village entrance. You can also observe the situation outside from here. But it's best not to go out; there are many traitors in this world, so be careful."

After saying that, he pushed open the flap and left the village.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiu were able to return to their hiding place by the same route.

But then they saw Zhao Shanhu talking to the woman.

"Why did your dad take you to the city? It seems like he has a lot of enemies. Going back to the city is like a lamb entering a tiger's den."

The woman, biting into her cornbread, simply replied, "My mother is still in the city."

So that's how it is; the father and daughter were going back to pick up their relatives.

Fang Wen sighed inwardly and looked at Gong Xiuneng: "Bring out a self-heating military ration and give her something hot to eat."

Gong Xiuneng took off his backpack and took out a tin box.

He pried open the box and took out the paper packets inside one by one.

Zhao Shanhu had never seen self-heating military rations before, and the woman knew even less about them; they both watched Gong Xiu Neng operate them with curiosity.

There were three paper packets: one contained compressed military rations, one contained instant noodles, and one contained a bag of quicklime for heating.

Gong Xiuneng filled the iron box with water, then placed the compressed military rations on the upper tray and poured in water.

After the compressed military rations were diluted and softened by water, Gong Xiu could put instant noodles in them and add some water.

Finally, put the bag of quicklime into the water in the iron box, and then cover the tray.

White smoke billowed out, accompanied by the gurgling sound of boiling water.

The food in the tray was heated using temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Celsius.

Gong Xiuneng served the instant noodles, which used compressed military ration blocks as seasoning, to the woman.

"Eat it while it's hot, it's delicious."

The woman hesitated, and Gong Xiuneng slapped his forehead: "Right, I forgot to bring chopsticks." He took out a pair of chopsticks from his pocket and handed them to the woman.

Holding chopsticks, the woman picked up a piece of springy instant noodles, took a bite, and immediately swallowed it in large gulps, eventually even drinking the soup.

Zhao Shanhu was drooling: "Brother Gong, get me a serving of this self-heating ration too."

Gong Xiuneng smiled and took out another tin box. "You have hands and feet, you can't do something so simple yourself."

After saying that, he looked at Fang Wen and asked, "Commander, shall I get you a copy?"

Fang Wen laughed and said, "I have hands and feet, I can make myself whatever I want to eat."

After saying that, he lay down on the ground and closed his eyes to rest.

Three hours later, Peng San returned and took his daughter with him.

Now, only Fang Wen, Gong Xiuneng, and Zhao Shanhu remain in the tunnel.

Time seemed to drag on, and spending so much time in the dark tunnel was uncomfortable.

Unable to sit still, Fang Wen came up with a plan.

He led the two to the tunnel's exit via a flip panel, where they passed the time looking out through the small, light-transmitting holes.

Outside is the village entrance, where there should have been some elderly people sunbathing under the big trees.

But now, these scenes are gone; the village entrance is deserted, without a single person in sight.

In this situation, either the villagers are hiding at home, or they are fleeing to the south.

Regardless of the cause, it was the evil consequence of the invaders that caused suffering to the people on this plain.

Time just passed by little by little.

Then, a young married woman came running hurriedly from the village entrance.

Fang Wen recognized him; he had come down from the tunnel entrance at the head of her kang (heated brick bed).

The young woman hurriedly ran to the tunnel exit and stuffed a crumpled piece of paper into the crevice.

Fang Wen pried the crumpled paper out and opened it to take a look.

The comrade responsible for rescuing you has been killed in action. The Japanese are searching everywhere, including your village. Please be careful and remember not to leave.

After reading the note, Fang Wen's expression turned serious.

The image of that underground party member was still vivid in my mind, but I never imagined that he was already gone.

This shows how dangerous it is to persist in resistance behind enemy lines.

He took out his pistol and instructed Gong Xiuneng and Zhao Shanhu to prepare.

An hour later, a large group of people appeared at the village entrance.

They were Japanese soldiers searching for them.

The group consisted of over 100 people, including 60 puppet soldiers and 50 Japanese soldiers.

Some of the long spears they carried also had chickens and ducks that they had caught from other places on them.

Clearly, they viewed the search as an opportunity to plunder.

Fang Wen controlled the anger that was rising within him and stared outside.

The team got closer and closer, and they were even only a few meters away from the observation hole.

They rushed into the village, causing a wave of sorrowful cries.

"Commander, let me go out and fight those Japanese devils!" Gong Xiuneng said angrily.

Zhao Shanhu also pulled out a pistol: "Let's fight them."

Fang Wen calmly said, "Go out and die? No way. We must remember this hatred and repay them tenfold."

"How do you return it?" Zhao Shanhu asked, puzzled.

Gong Xiuneng seemed to be deep in thought.

"Commander, you mean we should take them out by plane?"

Fang Wen nodded: "Before we leave, let's give these Japanese devils a big gift, so they'll always remember that we were here."

This time, Fang Wen was determined to kill them and teach the Japanese devils in Cangzhou a lesson.

The Japanese soldiers who entered the village finally left, taking away the village's few poultry and food supplies.

Fang Wen spent the night peacefully in the tunnel.

The next day, an underground party member whom Fang Wen had never seen before entered the tunnel.

He explained the situation.

"The people have been found. Those senior men were leading their men to fight against the Japanese in the east. As a result, the Japanese bribed local traitors to lure them into an ambush area. Four of them died, and the other two are imprisoned in the county jail. They will be publicly executed next month."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shanhu looked grief-stricken, fearing that his father might be among the dead.

Fang Wen sighed and patted Zhao Shanhu on the shoulder.

Then he asked, "How do we get them out of prison?"

"We've already planned to storm the prison tomorrow night, and then we can rescue all your people."

“In that case, I can provide some military assistance,” Fang Wen replied.

"How can you help?" the underground party member asked, puzzled.

“I can’t help here, I need to go to the guerrillas,” Fang Wen replied.

His plan was simple: to launch an attack on the county town the following night, in coordination with the resistance forces in Cangzhou.

That's not just targeting the prison, but the entire county.

Upon hearing Fang Wen's plan, the other party was incredulous and immediately went out to consult with his superiors.

When he returned, he agreed to Fang Wen's plan and arranged for the three of them to leave the village and head to the reed field where the guerrillas were located.

(The gun emblem is a pistol, a Browning M1900 pistol, a popular type of pistol in China during the War of Resistance against Japan, known in the north as the "Gun Brand Luzi".)
(Luger P08, a military pistol with high stability and accuracy.)
(End of this chapter)