Siheyuan: Hang Jia Dongxu, smash Banggeng to death!

Eleven prisoners of war with broken legs huddled in their respective corners, clutching their broken legs, gritting their teeth, and groaning in agony.

The sound of footsteps changing guards came from outside the window, followed by the sound of the iron gate being pushed open.

A soldier walked in carrying a kerosene lamp, the dim light illuminating their cold, hard faces.

The soldier's voice was devoid of any emotion: "We're treating your wounds. Don't move around too much, so you won't be late for work tomorrow."

The medic squatted down, checked each injury, disinfected with alcohol, immobilized the wounds with splints, and wrapped them with bandages.

Someone cried out in pain, only to be scolded by the medic: "Bear with it, what are you yelling about?"

John gritted his teeth and let the medic manipulate his leg.

The alcohol felt like fire on his wound; he trembled all over, but he didn't cry out.

Tom, standing nearby, couldn't help but scream a few times, earning a glare from the medic: "Shut up! If you scream again, I'm not going to take care of you."

Tom immediately bit his lip, his eyes welling up with tears.

After treating the last wound, the medic stood up, clapped his hands, and said to the soldier, "Alright, he won't die, but he can't work. He'll need to rest for at least half a month."

The soldier nodded: "Understood. You can go back and rest now. We have work to do tomorrow."

The medic left.

The soldier, carrying a kerosene lamp, scanned the figures huddled in the darkness: "Behave yourselves, don't cause trouble. If you run again, next time it won't just be a broken leg."

He turned and left, the iron gate slamming shut behind him.

The barracks were plunged into darkness again.

Tom's voice came from beside him: "John, do you think we can still go home?"

John fell silent. "I don't know, but I'm alive, and as long as I'm alive, there's hope."

Pierre's voice drifted from another corner: "Hope? I have a friend who broke his leg, then the wound got infected, he developed a high fever, and died within two days."

The medical facilities here are simply inadequate to treat serious injuries.

A moment of silence fell over the barracks, then Mike's voice rang out: "So what do we do? Just wait to die?"

Jack interrupted him: "Mike, don't be so pessimistic. As long as you're alive, there's always a chance."

Mike was silent for a moment, then said, "But I think we might really never be able to go back."

This night was exceptionally long.

Inside the barracks, some people sobbed softly, some prayed silently, and some stared blankly at the sliver of moonlight shining through the window.

The pain from their broken legs kept them awake at night, and images of their hometown, family, and freedom kept replaying in their minds.

As dawn approached, John finally drifted off to sleep. He dreamt of his family.

The next morning, before dawn, the iron whistle sounded again.

The soldier pushed open the door: "Get up, everyone get up! Those who are supposed to work, get up and work! Those who can't work, get up and work too!"

Those prisoners of war who could still walk got up, dragged their weary bodies, and headed towards the mine.

John and several other men with broken legs were left in the barracks.

The door was pushed open, and a soldier walked in, carrying several black breads and a jug of water.

"breakfast."

He put the food on the ground, glanced at the wounded, and said, "Eat and stay put, don't move around."

After saying that, he turned and left.

John struggled to sit up, reached for a piece of black bread, broke off a small piece and put it in his mouth. It was dry, hard and rough, and it made his throat hurt.

I took another sip of water; it was cool and refreshing. As it flowed down my throat, I felt a little more alive.

Tom woke up too, rubbed his eyes, sat up, took a piece of bread, and slowly ate it like John.

Pierre sat up, picked up the bread, but didn't eat it; he just looked at it.

"Why aren't you eating?"

John asked.

Pierre shook his head: "I have no appetite."

John didn't say anything more.

The barracks quieted down, with only the sounds of chewing and the occasional splash of water.

The distant roar of machinery and shouts of overseers came from outside the window; work had begun.

"John."

Tom's voice interrupted his thoughts, "Do you think people outside will remember us? I mean, do the people in our own country still remember us prisoners?"

John paused for a moment. "Maybe. Maybe they've forgotten. But as long as we remember who we are, there's still hope of going back."

Pierre suddenly spoke up: "I heard that the Chinese are planning to build a railway from the Northeast all the way to the Southwest."

Once the railway is repaired, they will disperse the prisoners to various places. At that time, we may never see each other again.

Tom was stunned: "Really? What do we do then?"

Pierre shook his head: "I don't know. Maybe there will be a new opportunity, maybe someone will organize a new escape, maybe..."

He didn't finish speaking.

John looked up: "Maybe what?"

Pierre looked at him: "Maybe we should learn to accept it, accept that we may never be able to go back."

The barracks fell silent again.

Do you accept your fate?

John remained silent for a long time before taking another bite of bread.

However, they were just a microcosm of the more than five million prisoners.

...

Shanghai Bund.

The headquarters building of Huaxia Bank.

The square in front of the gate was bustling with people from all over the country, who lined up to exchange their Dragon Coins.

The line stretched from the bank entrance all the way to the street corner, with no end in sight.

Lin Tian stood at the window on the second floor of the bank, looking at the crowd below, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Brigade Commander Chen stood behind him, holding a report in his hand: "Commander, today is the first day of the Dragon Coin's issuance, and branches all over the country have already started operating."

The public's enthusiasm exceeded expectations; many people were already queuing before dawn.

"it is good."

Lin Tian nodded. "Tell them not to rush, take their time. We have plenty of reserves, and we have enough Dragon Coins."

Today, the Dragon Coin was officially launched.

According to Lin Tian's plan, one dragon coin is worth the same as ten silver dollars.

Huaxia Bank has been established in various regions, and its gold and silver reserves come from reparations from defeated countries and domestic mines, providing a solid credit foundation for the Dragon Coin.

It's just money, right? Can't you print as much as you want?

This is a bug in the system that Lin Tian discovered.

They print their own money and use it to make purchases within the system.

"Sir, the issuance of the Dragon Coin went very smoothly, but there's also international demand, and we're almost out of banknotes we've prepared."

Lin Tian leaned back in his chair, a smile playing on his lips: "If it's not enough, we'll print more. As long as we have enough reserves, what's there to be afraid of?"

Our vaults contain gold and silver obtained from reparations from various countries; this is the foundation of the Dragon Coin.

Commander Chen hesitated for a moment: "But there are still some countries in the world that don't recognize it, and they are still using their own currencies for settlement."

Lin Tian chuckled lightly: "No rush, they'll recognize it."

In the lobby downstairs.

An old man in an old cotton-padded coat stood nervously in front of the counter, took out a cloth bag from his pocket, and carefully opened it. Inside was half a small yellow croaker.

"Comrade, I'd like to exchange for Dragon Coins."

The staff behind the counter took the silver dollars, counted them, and handed him a stack of brand-new dragon coins: "Sir, please count them. These are ten dragon coins, equivalent to one hundred silver dollars."

The old man took the money, his hands trembling: "Is this money really usable?"

The staff member smiled and said, "Don't worry, sir. Dragon coins are just as valuable as silver dollars and are accepted nationwide. You can use this money to buy things anywhere."

The old man tucked the dragon coin into his pocket and straightened his back a bit more as he walked out of the bank.

He acknowledges the money.

Only because

This was printed by Commander Lin.

He might cheat the Japanese pirates, but he wouldn't cheat them.

……