Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Changjin Lake, a Hundred Battles, a Hundred Victories

Chapter 228 Establishing a Foothold: The Outpost to Enter Northeast China
As the bandits and supplies were transported down the mountain, the political officers in the advance team immediately sprang into action.

The comrades in charge of propaganda began to inform the surrounding villages that the Eighth Route Army had wiped out the notorious Black Wind Village bandits.

From then on, the bandits of Black Wind Village who had plagued the countryside were no longer able to harm the people.

At the same time, it was also claimed that the Eighth Route Army, under the leadership of our Party, was a force that was truly dedicated to the people.

The grain seized from Black Wind Village will be distributed free of charge to the suffering people.

The people were invited to come to the place where the bandits were tried, to participate in the public trial of the bandits, and to expose their crimes.

They sought justice for their grievances and revenge for their enemies, relying on the Eighth Route Army as their support. They came here to stand up for the people.

A thousand words are not as effective as doing one thing well.

After the advance team entered the Chifeng area, they used implementation to build a solid foundation among the masses.

First, we need to solve the people's "survival problems" by providing assistance in terms of food, clothing, housing, and safety.

Fighting bandits and distributing food and clothing solved the problems of food, clothing, and safety.

However, these efforts have not been carried out smoothly.

The Chifeng area has been occupied for nearly ten years and is under the brutal rule of the Japanese Kwantung Army.

In addition, they did not trust the army during the period before the Kwantung Army occupied the country.

No matter how appealing the propaganda workers' words were, they dared not easily believe them.

"Should we go? The Eighth Route Army said they wiped out the bandits of Black Wind Village and would even give us some food."

"It was said by a thin man."

"I don't know, but I don't dare to go. Who knows what they're up to?"

Another villager spoke up.

"But look at the soldiers carrying guns outside the village. Although they are smiling at us, I feel their smiles are really creepy."

Another villager said.

“If we don’t go and don’t cooperate with them, what if they get angry and send troops into our village to loot all our things?”

"Our village will suffer again then."

One villager expressed his concerns.

During times of war, the fear of the army among ordinary people is far greater than that of bandits.

Bandits pass by like a comb, soldiers pass by like a fine-toothed comb, and officials pass by like a shaving comb.

This saying has been repeatedly verified over thousands of years to become a proverb.

Army like our Party and our Eighth Route Army are extremely rare, both in ancient and modern times, and in China and abroad.

They are the army that truly and wholeheartedly serves the people.

After the comrades who were giving the presentation finished, the villagers started to discuss it amongst themselves.

I have great doubts about what the propaganda comrades said.

But they were also worried that if they didn't cooperate, the army might start targeting them.

Ultimately, they had no choice but to come up with a compromise.

Several people from each village were selected to participate, using a lottery system.

If the person selected encounters misfortune, his parents, wife, and children will be cared for by the entire village.

This was a desperate survival strategy employed by the villagers amidst the chaos of war.

The place where the advance team held a public trial had more than a dozen bandits tied up and bags of grain.

It was guarded by a squad of soldiers, including a political officer who was in charge of the public trial and the distribution of grain later.

At the meeting, a soldier was somewhat disappointed to see that only seven or eight villagers had come.

When they were in Shanxi Province, the people welcomed the Eighth Route Army wherever they went.

But when they arrived at this place, the local people were so afraid of them.

The huge difference between before and after made him feel somewhat disappointed.

"Xiao Zhao, don't look so down. We've just arrived in Chifeng, and the locals aren't familiar with our Eighth Route Army yet. This kind of reaction is normal."

"We don't need to be discouraged. As long as we take practical actions to let the people know what kind of team our Eighth Route Army is, they will support us."

The political officers in the squad had sharp eyes; they could tell at a glance what the disappointed soldier was thinking.

To be honest, building a mass base from scratch was a huge challenge for him.

In Shanxi Province, thanks to the foundation laid by their predecessors, the people knew more or less what kind of force the Eighth Route Army was.

However, the Chifeng area belonged to the puppet state of Manchukuo and was ruled by the Japanese Kwantung Army for nearly ten years.

The fact that it has a very weak mass base, practically a negative number, is undoubtedly a huge challenge.

However, everything is difficult at the beginning, and some things can only be gained by doing them.

The first thing the advance team did was to wipe out the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold and hold the public trial later.

At the meeting place in the threshing ground.

Two golden mountains of grain were piled up, the millet grains round and plump, and the cornmeal gleaming with a warm yellow light. They were all taken from the bandit's den in Black Wind Village yesterday.

A dozen soldiers stood beside the grain pile with their guns on their backs. Their trouser legs were still covered with mud and gunpowder from the previous night's bandit suppression, but they held the grain bags tightly in their hands, and no one dared to move them.

A dozen or so villagers were huddled together on the earthen embankment of the threshing ground. The old ones were leaning on canes, and the young ones were being held in the arms of women. They all hunched over.

Their eyes were like those of a startled deer; they would glance at the grain pile and then quickly lower their heads, their whispers barely audible.

"Dad, do you really think these guys will give us grain?"

The woman in the patched shirt tugged at the man's sleeve.

“In the past, those ‘two-skinned devils’ also promised to give us grain, but they ended up taking away our last half bag of bran.”

The man frowned and spat on the ground: "Who knows if it's another group of bandits? Look at the guns they're carrying, they're no different from the Black Wind gang!"

Old Zhang, who was at the front of the crowd, coughed twice, his cloudy eyes fixed on the young man in the military cap next to the grain pile.

That was Shi Yan, a political officer in the advance team.

Just as Shi Yan was about to take two steps forward, Old Man Zhang suddenly slammed his cane on the ground:
"Halt! Who are you? If you want grain, we really have none left. Black Wind Stronghold looted it all!"

Shi Yan immediately stopped, put the grain bag in his hand on the ground, and slowly raised his hands to indicate that he was unarmed.

"Grandpa, we are the Eighth Route Army. We just wiped out the Black Wind bandits of Wild Wolf Village last night. This grain was stolen from your homes by the bandits, and now we are returning it to you all."

As he spoke, he called out to those behind him:

"Xiao Zhu, open that bag of millet!"

The soldier known as Little Pillar quickly untied the ropes of the grain sacks, and golden millet poured into the bamboo winnowing baskets with a clatter, its aroma wafting far and wide.

A little girl with pigtails stared at the winnowing basket, her stomach growling with hunger. Just as she was about to run forward, her mother pulled her back into her arms and covered her mouth.

"do not go!"

Shi Yan felt a pang of sadness as he watched this scene.

He picked up a rough porcelain bowl, scooped out half a bowl of millet, and handed it over:
"Little girl, come and have some food? This is the grain that was stolen from your house."

But the woman, holding the child, took several steps back, her face pale.
"We don't want it! You guys go!"

The surrounding villagers also shrank back, and some even turned around and tried to run home.

The soldiers gripped their guns tightly, but Shi Yan stopped them with a look.

He squatted down, placed the porcelain bowl on the ground, and gently pushed it to the edge of the embankment:

"Fellow villagers, I know you are afraid, you are afraid of being cheated by bandits and bad troops."

But we Eighth Route Army are different. Look, yesterday when we were suppressing bandits, Wang Erzhu's father was locked in a cave, and we rescued him.
Uncle Li's cow has also been found in the village; we'll deliver it over soon.

At this moment, the soldiers helped out several people, who were among the hostages they had taken from Black Wind Village that morning.

After the hostages were rescued, and with the psychological counseling of the political officers, the hostages have begun to trust the advance team.

They were incredibly excited when the officials offered to take them home.

When the villagers at the threshing ground saw Wang Erzhu's father being born, some of them immediately recognized him.

"It really is Erzhu's father. His father was kidnapped by bandits a month ago, but I didn't expect him to come back alive."

"Dahua, hurry back to the village and tell Erzhu that his father has returned alive."

A villager shouted.

At this moment, Wang Erzhu's father began to speak, recounting his experiences that day and the treatment he received after being rescued by the Eighth Route Army.

He said he had never seen a unit treat him like his own son.

Not only did they take good care of him and give him medicine, but they also carried him down the mountain from Black Wind Village for more than ten kilometers.

Back at the advance team's camp, the soldiers gave him a hearty meal, something he couldn't even afford during the New Year, and he ate until he was stuffed.

As he spoke, Wang Erzhu's father couldn't help but burp.

Wang Erzhu's father's words came from the bottom of his heart. As someone who had personally experienced it, how could he not know whether the soldiers in the advance team were good or not?
With the testimony of Wang Erzhu's father, an acquaintance, the people present began to have a sliver of trust.

Despite their lack of education, the villagers were still quite perceptive; they could tell if someone was lying, especially if that person was someone they knew. After gaining their initial trust, Shi Yan pointed to the dozen or so bandits tied up in the corner of the threshing ground:

“These people are bandits from Black Wind Stronghold. They usually wreak havoc on the village. If you know them, tell me about their crimes.”

"Whenever you trust us, come and collect the grain. We'll be waiting here."

The wind swept across the grain pile with a thin mist, and the aroma of millet mixed with the smell of earth wafted in the air.

The villagers still didn't move, but their whispers quieted down a bit, and a few elderly people quietly peeked out, staring at the bowl of millet on the ground.

He glanced again at the bandit tied up in the corner, a hint of hesitation creeping into his eyes.

At this moment, it was Wang Erzhu's father who stepped forward and spoke:

"Brothers of the Eighth Route Army, can I tell them about the bad things they did, and then I can get food?"

As he spoke, Wang Erzhu's father still felt somewhat guilty.

The advance team not only rescued him, but also gave him medicine and a full meal.

I feel really bad that I need food now.

However, thinking back to when he was kidnapped by bandits a month ago and his family sold everything they owned to raise money and food to save him.

As a result, the bandits broke their promise and did not release him.

Thinking that his family had run out of food a month ago because of him, Wang Erzhu's father, even though he felt guilty, still wanted to get some food so that his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson could have something to eat.

Hearing Wang Erzhu's father's words, Shi Yan was overjoyed and smiled as he spoke:

"Of course, whoever has been harmed by bandits, as long as they speak up, our Eighth Route Army will stand up for them."

Having received Shi Yan's promise, Wang Erzhu's father began to recount his experiences and the evil deeds committed by the bandits.

After he finished speaking, a soldier wrote it down in a small notebook and then handed him twenty catties of grain in a measuring cup.

"This is twenty catties of grain. It's not much, but if we eat it sparingly, it should last until the autumn harvest."

Shi Yan handed the grain to Wang Erzhu's father and held his hand tightly.

Wang Erzhu's father held the grain bag, tears welling in his eyes.

Twenty catties of grain, along with wild vegetables, if eaten sparingly, would be enough to last until the autumn harvest.

The bag of grain in one's hand is not just food; it represents a person's hope for survival, a life.

"Thank you, thank you Eighth Route Army, I kowtow to you."

Wang Erzhu's father was so excited that he wanted to kowtow to the soldiers; this was the only way an ordinary person could think of to express their gratitude at that moment.

Shi Yan quickly stopped the other person and said:

"Serving the people is the mission of our Eighth Route Army; we don't follow this kind of approach."

"If there are still people in your family, hand them over; they can also get a share of the grain."

Having said that, he turned to the crowd and shouted:

"As long as you are willing to expose the bandits' crimes, our Eighth Route Army will distribute the grain on a per capita basis: 20 catties for adults and 15 catties for children, and the grain will be distributed on the spot."

After seeing the grain actually delivered to Wang Erzhu's father, the villagers couldn't contain their excitement.

Wang Erzhu's father was a villager, and his son and grandson lived there; he wouldn't lie to them.

Besides, if there is no food, one or two family members might starve to death.

Since they had nothing left but their lives, they wanted to have a full meal before they died.

So, lured by the food, the villagers eagerly began to take turns going up on stage to recount the crimes of the Black Cloud Village bandits.

After receiving the grain, he immediately ran home to hide it, and then called his family to come and collect the grain together.

Shi Yan was very happy to see the people who had been mobilized.

Everything is difficult at the beginning; once you take the first step, things will go smoothly afterward.

As more and more people arrived, the grain in the threshing ground gradually ran out.

The soldier in charge of recording had filled his notebook with writing.

Looking at the evidence of his crimes, political officer Shi Yan thought of one word: "utterly wicked!"
Such a person deserves to be killed to appease public anger.

The squad held a public trial in the threshing ground.

Many villagers came, and the threshing ground was packed with people.

Black Wolf placed the bandit leader and a dozen or so heinous bandits tied to a pillar, heads bowed, not daring to look the villagers in the eye.

"Now, the public trial begins!"

Shi Yan stood on the earthen platform and announced loudly that the first person to be tried was Black Wolf, the leader of Black Wind Stronghold.

"First, let's ask the villagers who were bullied by bandits to tell us about their crimes!"

The first to step forward was Wang Erzhu's mother:
“That beast Black Wolf stole our grain last year and kidnapped my husband to be a forced laborer. If the Eighth Route Army hadn’t come, my husband would have been beaten to death by him long ago!”

As she spoke, pointing at the black wolf, she trembled with rage. Then, an old man stepped forward:
“Our cow was stolen by black wolves. My wife tried to stop them, but they pushed her into a ditch and broke her leg. She still can’t walk!”

"My sister was kidnapped by him, raped, and then sold to another place. Her whereabouts are still unknown!"

A young man cried out.

One by one, the villagers stepped forward and recounted the bandits' crimes.

The angry shouts from the audience grew louder and louder, and someone yelled:

"Kill the black wolf! Kill these beasts!"

Black Wolf turned ashen-faced with fright and stammered:
"I was wrong... I'll never do it again... Please forgive me!"

"Spare you? You stole our grain and killed our people, why should we spare you!"

The villagers roared in anger.

The public's anger has been ignited.

Shi Yan waved his hand, and after the audience quieted down, he said:
"Investigate the criminal Black Wolf; he is a bandit from Black Wind Village!"
According to investigation, his troops killed XX innocent civilians, looted XX tons of grain, and raped XX women...

In accordance with Article 3 of the "Regulations for the Punishment of Traitors in the Border Region," he is hereby sentenced to death!

The advance team had a very special mission, and was granted the right to sentence people to death during a special period.

For the first public trial conducted when carrying out mass work in the Chifeng area, the sentence can be handed down simply, quickly, and strictly, in accordance with public opinion.

"Kill him! Kill him!"

The crowd below is very vocal in their demands!

"Now, execute the bandit leader Black Wolf by firing squad!"

"boom!"

With a gunshot, Black Wolf, the bandit leader of Black Wind Stronghold, ended his sinful life.

"it is good!"

The villagers cheered in unison.

After executing Black Wolf and the others, Shi Yan said:

"Fellow villagers, the bandits have been driven away, but the Japanese and their puppet troops are still here. We must establish a base area, become the people's support, and protect their rights from infringement."

Having just finished the public trial of the bandits from Black Wind Stronghold and obtained life-saving food, the villagers have begun to slowly accept the advance team and have begun to acknowledge them in their hearts.

Standing under the old locust tree, looking at the scene before him, Shi Yan said to the soldier who had been looking lost earlier:
"You see, as long as we sincerely do things for the people, the people will sincerely support us."

"This base has been firmly established."

The soldier nodded, gazing at the distant mountains, and said firmly:

"Next, we will prepare to crack down on the puppet troops and traitors, and make the rural areas of Chifeng our solid base!"

“It can definitely be done,” Shi Yan said firmly.

Having overcome the most difficult first step, how far can the road ahead be?
Traitors, puppet troops, and Japanese devils—these enemies are nothing but paper tigers once they have the help of the people.

So what if they are Japanese Kwantung Army soldiers? Aren't they still born of parents?

The Japanese soldiers in northern Shanxi were beaten so badly that they didn't even dare to come out of their bunkers. Did the Japanese Kwantung Army have a few extra heads?

After receiving the intelligence compiled by his subordinates, Liu Tengjie slapped the table with delight.

Once a foothold is established in the Chifeng area, it can serve as an outpost, and the next step is to gradually infiltrate the Xinganling area.

At that time, he will be able to complete the glorious task that Chen Ming has entrusted to him.

night.

Liu Tengjie reported the situation of the advance team to the command headquarters of the independent detachment via radio.

Upon receiving the message, Political Commissar Zhang Zhengze highly praised the advance team's achievements, endorsed their resolutions, affirmed their accomplishments, and encouraged them to continue their efforts.

At the same time, he also responded to the telegram's request to send another batch of political cadres.

After consulting with headquarters, the new batch of cadres trained in the fourth district were appointed.

Under the protection of a cavalry detachment, they embarked on a journey to the Chifeng area to strengthen the base area.

(End of this chapter)