Chapter 1 Entering Xin Jing Town

Lin Fan had just arrived in Xin Jing Town and had no idea if there were any Japanese strongholds nearby.

He also didn't know how far away those strongholds were.

Unsure of the distance to the nearest Japanese soldiers, Lin Fan didn't dare fire his gun and alert the enemies in the room.

He gently lowered his rifle, now with a well-formed plan.

Lin Fan had already decided the order in which he would assassinate his targets.

First, he would deal with the eight Japanese soldiers sitting around the brazier.

Then, he would kill the two doing exercises, and finally, the six sleeping on the ground.

He also had a plan for the Japanese soldiers around the brazier, putting the five who were clearly drunk towards the end.

In the shadows, Lin Fan straightened his clothes and touched the lieutenant colonel's saber at his waist.

Then, he strode out.

The eight Japanese soldiers who were drinking suddenly saw a lieutenant colonel appear before them.

Startled, they struggled clumsily to stand up.

Only two managed to stand, while the two soldiers who had been exercising were able to run over, though they were disheveled.

Four Japanese soldiers stood side-by-side in front of Lin Fan.

The other six were still struggling to their feet.

"Baga!" Lin Fan slapped the four Japanese soldiers in front of him hard.

His hand was heavy, and he intentionally bent his thumb, pressing it into the center of his palm to create a point.

Each slap drove this point of his thumb into the Japanese soldiers' temples.

The four Japanese soldiers standing in front of him staggered under the blows.

They retreated unsteadily, trying to regain their balance, wanting to offer their right cheeks to the lieutenant colonel, after he hit their left.

But the soldiers were dizzy and couldn't stand still.

Lin Fan stepped forward, slapping the Japanese soldiers who were still struggling to stand.

Seeing the six Japanese soldiers sleeping on the ground, he decided to leave them for the time being.

The first few soldiers who had been hit finally managed to stand up again.

This time, even those who struggled to stand earlier had managed to get on their feet.

They had probably been sobered up by Lin Fan's slaps.

Lin Fan gave each of the Japanese soldiers two slaps, one on each cheek, for good measure.

The single slap he had given earlier had clearly not had the desired effect.

This time he had to increase the dosage, wanting to completely incapacitate the soldiers who still had some awareness.

The young man tied to the pillar watched as the Japanese officer who had suddenly appeared slapped the Japanese soldiers one after another.

Even though he knew these soldiers were all the same, he couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction.

He was shocked to see that the Japanese soldiers, who had been wreaking havoc in his home, didn't even try to resist.

His eyes widened in astonishment, almost popping out of their sockets.

The two women whom the Japanese soldiers had released were slowly regaining their senses.

Turning around, they stared blankly at the scene unfolding before them, forgetting that they were scantily clad.

They stared at the Japanese officer, who was furiously slapping the Japanese soldiers who were already drunk.

As if he was trying to slap them sober.

Lin Fan gave each of the standing soldiers two enhanced slaps.

After hitting all ten soldiers, they were no longer able to stand up as they had before.

Seeing that the soldiers couldn't even stand up and offer their faces to be slapped, Lin Fan's anger seemed to reach its peak, in the eyes of the two recently humiliated women.

"Could this person be Dad's friend?" the three siblings wondered.

Lin Fan's expression grew even angrier.

Drawing his lieutenant colonel's saber, he walked up to the first soldier he had hit and shouted, "Baga!"

With a single stroke of his sharp saber, he severed the soldier's throat and carotid artery.

The young man's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

The two women were also shocked. They had only thought that the officer might be a friend of their father's or stepmother's, never imagining that he would kill someone.

But they didn't feel fear, only a sense of relief!

What happened next was beyond their imagination.

The Japanese officer who had entered last moved like the wind, his saber like lightning.

It flashed before their eyes, and then all the Japanese soldiers, who had drunk their wine, eaten their meat, killed their parents and family, and abused them, were clutching their necks.

They made sounds of "Ho! Ho!"

As if they still wanted to drink, their eyes bulging, unable to believe what was happening, staggering back step by step.

Like startled wild dogs, they only wanted to get as far away from the hunter as possible.

As if distancing themselves from the officer could save their lives.

In the eyes of the three siblings, the officer didn't stop for a moment, rushing towards the six sleeping soldiers in a few steps, as if he killed six with a single stroke.

The six soldiers, suddenly injured in their sleep, opened their eyes in terror, not understanding what was happening in the hall.

All six of them were also tightly clutching their necks with their hands.

Even so, blood still seeped out from between their fingers.

Running down their necks.

The two women who had been pinned down suddenly reacted.

They hastily began to adjust their clothes, but the torn garments couldn't fully cover their bodies.

Watching the soldiers who had abused them, their faces twisted in pain, clutching their necks.

The soldiers were still alive!

But from the blood seeping from their hands and running down their necks, they knew that all the soldiers were doomed.

Lin Fan said softly, "Don't make a sound! Okay?"

Only the young man nodded.

Now Lin Fan could see clearly that the two women who had been abused were actually still girls.

From their still childish faces, Lin Fan was sure that they were both under eighteen.

Lin Fan said to the two girls, "Go untie your brother."

Then he went outside, picked up his rifle, and slung it over his back.

Hearing Lin Fan speak Mandarin, the two girls understood, even though it wasn't their local dialect, as Lin Fan intentionally spoke slowly.

When Lin Fan returned, the cloth that had been stuffing the young man's mouth had been removed.

The two girls were untying his ropes.

As soon as the young man could speak, he cried out, "Sister!" and burst into tears.

Lin Fan said quietly, "Lower your voice! This is not the time to cry."

He knew that at this moment, the young man was simply angry, scared, and remorseful. He wouldn't be thinking of suicide.

The real danger lay with the two girls.

What they had experienced in front of their family had robbed them of the will to live.

The only reason the two girls had held on was because the Japanese soldiers had threatened them with their brother's life, forcing them to submit.

Lin Fan continued, "I am Chinese, leading a team to fight the Japanese.

If you want revenge, come with me and take revenge!"

The young man had only cried once before Lin Fan silenced him.

Lin Fan, having just killed sixteen Japanese soldiers, was exuding a murderous aura, and the young man was terrified of him.

Hearing Lin Fan's invitation, he immediately cried, "They killed my grandfather, father, mother, and stepmother! I want revenge!"

The two girls had been hiding behind the pillar ever since untying the young man.

They didn't come out.

Lin Fan asked, "What is this place called?"

"Xin Jing!"

"How far is it from the Japanese airport?"

"Very far!" the young man replied immediately.

How far was very far?

Lin Fan didn't know! Perhaps no one in this world could know.

"Nine li," said one of the girls hiding behind the pillar. (One li is approximately 0.5 kilometers)

She was a thoughtful girl, knowing from Lin Fan's question that he wanted to know the exact distance, not a literary exaggeration.

"I need to find someone who knows the way to the airport to guide us, preferably avoiding the main roads and the Japanese."

The young man looked helplessly towards the pillar.

"What are you going to do at the Japanese airport?" the same voice spoke again.

"I'm going to blow up the Japanese planes and their oil depot," Lin Fan said seriously.

"You can't get in now. Since the war started, the airport has been guarded by Japanese soldiers," the voice behind the pillar said.

This was a significant piece of information, and Lin Fan immediately understood.

"Have you been there before?"

"Before the war, we used to go there to watch the planes. Back then, the airport wasn't Japanese.

The soldiers guarding the airport were our own people, and they were very nice.

They would even invite us to visit when they saw us." At this point, suppressed sobs came from behind the pillar.

It was the sound of the two girls crying!

Being able to cry meant they had an outlet for their emotions.

The risk of suicide had decreased.

Lin Fan knew that what had happened here today was a clear case of Japanese soldiers committing robbery and rape.

No matter what, the blame for this couldn't be placed on the two girls. Why should all the criticism and blame fall on them?

If the two girls really did commit suicide, Lin Fan would feel responsible: he hadn't done enough to provide psychological support.

Lin Fan continued, "Do you know where their oil depot is?"

"Yes! We even went there to buy kerosene," the girl replied logically.

"We don't need to enter the airport. If we can see the airport from four or five li away, we can blow up the Japanese planes.

Can you help us?"

"You want to fire cannons?" the young man asked excitedly.

"Yes! We'll fire cannons from a distance, hitting the Japanese planes and oil depot," Lin Fan affirmed.

Silence!

After less than a minute, the young man became anxious. "Sister! Please help them! They just saved us."

"I need to think! I need to think about a place where we can see the airport and there are no Japanese soldiers guarding it," the voice behind the pillar said, also sounding anxious.

She was probably afraid that Lin Fan would misunderstand.

Lin Fan said, "Think it over carefully! I don't think you can stay here any longer after what happened today.

With more than a dozen Japanese soldiers dead here, they won't let it go."

As soon as he said this, the young man and the two girls behind the pillar started crying.

Thinking of the smell of blood in the backyard.

Lin Fan sighed, "Think about how to bury your family.

We have to leave tonight, or we'll be caught by the Japanese.

And that would be worse than death!"

The two girls hiding behind the pillar finally came out, both cupping their hands towards Lin Fan. "Benefactor, we will never forget your great kindness.

We three are young and weak, and we hope that you will help us again."

Although they were two young girls, they acted like men. They were two tomboys!

Lin Fan saw that they had already tried to mend the torn parts of their clothes.

Lin Fan asked, "How can I help?"

"Grandfather's coffin was prepared long ago, so we just need to put him in it.

But Father, Mother, Stepmother..." At this point, the three children started crying again.

Lin Fan thought for a moment. "It's almost dawn, and we need to hurry.

Are there any other people in the town?"

The girl said, "No, when the Japanese invaded, they looted the town on the first day.

Everyone in the town ran away.

Originally, we were going to escape too.

But, but..." She couldn't go on.

The young man became anxious. "But Father studied in Japan, and Stepmother is also Japanese.

When the Japanese soldiers came on the first day, they heard Father speaking fluent Japanese.

And they heard him talking about the places he had studied.

Those Japanese soldiers were even polite enough to come in as guests.

Because Grandfather was sick and didn't want to leave his home.

So we didn't leave.

We didn't expect these Japanese soldiers who came tonight to be so unreasonable."

The two girls started crying again.

Lin Fan said, "Since there's no one else in the town, we can't find anyone to help.

Maybe just let them stay in the house! When things settle down, you can come back and bury them properly.

There's no need to hide the bodies of these Japanese soldiers either.

Let's go to the backyard, and you can clean up a bit!

If you don't want to fight the Japanese, you can go into hiding temporarily and come back after we drive the Japanese back to their hometown.

Since there's no one else in the town, there's no one to implicate.

We'll just leave these Japanese soldiers as they are."

Lin Fan could tell that the girl in the green dress was the most decisive in the family.

She had been the one to speak the most.

The four of them carried oil lamps and walked into the backyard.

Lin Fan saw a woman lying in the backyard, not very old, wearing a kimono, with several stab wounds from a bayonet.

Not far away, there were two dead dogs.

"That's Stepmother!" the girl in the green dress said.

Her grandfather had died in bed, stabbed in the heart with a bayonet.

"Grandfather had been bedridden since the war started. The Japanese soldiers rushed in..."

In another room, a man and a woman were embracing each other, and several bullet holes could be seen in the man's back.

The girl said, "Let's put Grandfather in the coffin first!

Then we'll clear out a large cabinet and put Father, Mother, and Stepmother together."

None of the four of them could move either the coffin or the large cabinet.

They were simply too heavy.

The young man fetched water, and the two girls wiped their grandfather's body and dressed him in the burial clothes that had been prepared.

Then, they lifted him into the coffin and nailed it shut.

Their parents were clearly still young, and these things hadn't been prepared.

They could only wipe their bodies and change them into clean clothes.

For their stepmother, the two girls dressed her in a kimono and then put the three bodies into the large cabinet and nailed it shut.

The three siblings knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times.

Then they remained kneeling, unmoving.

Seeing that it was already 4:30 in the morning, Lin Fan urged, "We need to hurry."

The girl nodded. "Xiao Qiang! Go get the land deed, passbook, and cash from the house and give them to our benefactor for safekeeping!

My second sister and I will pack our clothes."

They hadn't even changed their clothes yet.

Lin Fan smiled wryly. This girl was very cautious, still afraid that he might be greedy and kill them for their money.

But she had to bring those things with her, so she wanted him to keep them, partly as a test and partly to reassure him.

Lin Fan said, "You can keep your family's belongings yourselves.

If you want to go and find relatives, I'll arrange it after we blow up the Japanese airport and escape!"

The girl said, "We have no face to see our relatives! We want to fight the Japanese! We want revenge!"

As she said this, a resolute expression appeared on her face.

The three of them busied themselves packing.

Lin Fan returned to the front yard and gathered the Japanese soldiers' weapons.

It was the weaponry of an entire Japanese squad: fourteen rifles and one machine gun.

He didn't know how he could possibly carry so many weapons.

Having made up their minds, the young man and the two girls moved quickly.

They came out in less than twenty minutes.

The girl was leading two donkeys.

Their packages were on the donkeys' backs.

Lin Fan asked, "Did you prepare any dry food?"

The three of them looked at each other. They hadn't prepared any.

Lin Fan said, "Do you have rice or flour at home?"

"Yes, we do!"

"Even though the donkeys are carrying packages, you can't go empty-handed. Each of you should carry twenty jin of rice or flour. Remember to bring salt. Do you have Sichuan peppercorns? Bring those too! Each of you should tie a small packet of Sichuan peppercorns to the top of your shoes.

Give me a packet of Sichuan peppercorns too.

And each of you should take a rifle."

Looking at their clothes, Lin Fan thought for a moment, pointing to the Japanese soldiers' bodies on the ground.

"Take off their clothes. Each of you should take a set."

Although they didn't understand why he wanted them to tie Sichuan peppercorns to their shoes,

The three siblings followed Lin Fan's instructions.

The three of them hurried back inside to continue preparing, and Lin Fan left them three rifles, loading all the remaining weapons onto the two donkeys' backs.

Getting closer, Lin Fan noticed that the two donkeys were usually well cared for, their coats were shiny and smooth, indicating that they were well-fed and didn't work much!

When the three of them came out, each carrying a package,

Lin Fan said, "Let's go!"

He smashed the oil lamp and poured it into the front yard's living room.

Leading the way, he headed in the opposite direction from which he had come.

After leaving the town and walking for a while, he said, "My men are on the other side. We'll go around the town from the outside to get back."

"Are you afraid they'll chase us?" the girl asked.

"Yes!"