Chapter 1 The Beginning

The flight to Kunming took less than two hours, but the group spent more than half a day at Kunming Airport before successfully transferring. After another hour-long flight, they landed at Tengchong's Hump Airport.

During the layover, Zhou Ze slept on Yingying's shoulder.

Of course, Lawyer An didn't dare to lean on Yingying's shoulder, but he sat in the next seat and managed to doze off as well.

Therefore,

after getting off the plane in Tengchong, the group didn't bother resting. The rental car that Lawyer An had booked in advance was already waiting for them when they disembarked, driven by a chauffeur.

It was a Jeep, specially transferred from Kunming by the rental company.

Next, it was another few hours of driving.

When the silhouette of a small town appeared in the distance, the sky was already faintly bright.

Everyone grabbed a quick meal at a rice noodle shop. Lawyer An ate with gusto, even asking Yingying to get him some hot water from the owner to brew a super-sized cup of coffee.

He was the one driving and navigating, so he was prone to fatigue and needed the caffeine boost.

Zhou Ze didn't particularly care for rice noodles; he preferred noodles. So, he ordered a bowl of noodles from the owner separately, but the noodles were cooked a little too soft.

He didn't know if he had just become accustomed to a more pampered life in the last two years or if Xu Qinglang's cooking had spoiled his palate.

After taking a few bites, Zhou Ze put down his chopsticks.

Without lingering too long, they replenished their supplies of food and water at a supermarket before setting off again.

Zhou Ze asked Lawyer An twice more about the details of their trip, but Lawyer An refused to tell him, using the same excuse he had given at the bookstore.

The gist of it was,

if he said it,

it wouldn't work.

Fortunately, the scenery here was beautiful, with clear water, lush mountains, and fresh air. After the sun rose, there was also plenty of sunshine. Zhou Ze simply stopped thinking about it and lay down on Yingying's lap in the back seat, not even worried about the bumps, and continued to doze off.

When the car stopped again, Zhou Ze was almost completely asleep. He opened his eyes, got out of the car, and looked around. He noticed a range of mountains directly in front of him, with the highest and most majestic peak in the middle rising up like a giant turtle shell.

It was covered in lush trees and dense vegetation, but he could faintly see man-made stone paths and stone tablets hidden among the trees.

Perhaps because it was early, although there were quite a few people around, it still felt somewhat deserted.

"Where is this?" Zhou Ze asked.

"Songshan."

Lawyer An lit a cigarette and rubbed his eyes. He was a little tired, and couldn't help but lament how easy it was to become accustomed to luxury and how difficult it was to return to a frugal life. He had managed to go without sleep for more than half a year before, but ever since he had a little boy to sleep with, his body had become increasingly delicate.

"Let's go up and pay our respects. After we come down, we still have to hurry on. We'll have to cross the border illegally then, hehe."

"We're still going out of the country?" Xu Qinglang was a little surprised.

"Yeah, I didn't plan this, but with our abilities, there's no need to plan it."

Lawyer An took a bottle of water, took a few sips, threw the bottle back into the car, and then beckoned everyone to go up the mountain together.

This was probably a battlefield relic. Soon after climbing the steps, they came across a stone tablet, which recorded the battle that had taken place here.

The Battle of Songshan.

The National Revolutionary Army organized a counteroffensive against the Japanese here, which was barely considered a part of the Burma Campaign. The Japanese had built an extremely strong network of bunkers and fortifications here, so the battle was fought very fiercely.

The inscription recorded that more than 3,000 Japanese soldiers died, while the Chinese army suffered more than 7,000 casualties.

Even when the American and Soviet armies attacked Japanese bunkers and fortresses, they suffered heavy losses. The Japanese's tenacity and expertise in building and using fortifications were truly unmatched at the time.

As they walked, Zhou Ze seemed to think of something, and looked at Lawyer An, asking:

"This seems similar to a TV series I watched before."

Lawyer An smiled and nodded, indicating that Zhou Ze had guessed correctly.

This was a TV series that Zhou Ze had watched in his previous life. It was very popular at the time, and Zhou Ze would watch it after getting off work at the hospital. It was called *My Chief and My Regiment*.

It was a drama from 2009. In the blink of an eye, almost ten years had passed.

The "Zenda" in that TV series was a fictional city, but the original site of that battle should be here.

Along the way, everyone also visited the Expeditionary Force Sculpture Group, which was created and donated by the famous Chinese sculptor Li Chunhua.

After reaching the top of the mountain,

looking down,

the famous Nu River Gorge stretched out before them.

The war had ended more than seventy years ago, but perhaps because they had just walked step by step from the memorial hall and monument, when they looked at the Nu River again,

in their ears,

they seemed to faintly hear the clamor of fighting and shouting, and the roar of cannons.

As for the "Tianmen Pass" mentioned in the drama, it seemed that there was also one here, but the place name "Tianmen Pass" seemed to exist in scenic spots everywhere. The most famous one seemed to be the one on Mount Tai.

Walking here, Zhou Ze seemed to understand something, and asked:

"Next, we're going to Myanmar?"

Lawyer An smiled, not answering yes or no. He knew that Zhou Ze seemed to have guessed most of it, but he couldn't say it explicitly.

Xu Qinglang had actually brought a camera with him and was taking pictures. He was well-prepared.

"Can you take pictures, Lao Xu?"

Zhou Ze asked.

Xu Qinglang shook his head honestly and pointed to the camera, saying, "I bought it yesterday specifically after I knew we were coming out. I'll practice."

Zhou Ze glanced at the brand of Lao Xu's camera,

Hasselblad.

A man with more than twenty properties is different. He buys a camera worth a few hundred thousand to practice with.

Zhou Ze was a little worried that Lao Xu was desperate about the prospects of the domestic real estate market,

and felt that the real estate bubble was about to burst, so he simply gave up and started squandering lavishly?

On the way down the mountain, they took a different path and saw the ruins of a pit. Coming out of the pit, they were in front of a mass burial pit. It was said that thousands of bodies of Chinese laborers had been excavated from it.

After the Japanese forced people to build fortifications, they were afraid that the laborers would leak secrets, so they gathered them under the pretext of a physical examination and massacred them.

It was almost two in the afternoon when the group returned to the car.

Lawyer An continued to drive,

Xu Qinglang fiddled with his camera,

Zhou Ze continued to lie on Yingying's lap, basking in the sun.

It wasn't until dusk

that the atmosphere in the car changed from solemn to relaxed.

Then,

when it was almost midnight,

the relaxation finally turned into impatience.

Because Lawyer An was driving around and around, around and around, until now.

Zhou Ze couldn't stand it anymore and said directly:

"I said, Lao An, can we be a little more professional?

I've heard of people being smuggled across borders,

but I've never heard of anyone using Baidu Maps to get smuggled."

Lawyer An shrugged and asked:

"Then should I switch to Gaode?"

Next, they heard:

"Gaode Maps, continuing to provide navigation for you..."

"............" Zhou Ze.

"Actually, I think they can really create a VIP service, providing special smuggling channels and routes, bypassing blockades and inspections.

Anyway, they're used to having no integrity."

Xu Qinglang listened to Lawyer An's words, smiled, and said, "Who would open a hospital here?"

After another half hour of driving,

Lawyer An finally stopped the car. Next, everyone would abandon the car and prepare to cross the border on foot.

"Sorry, everyone, I'm indeed involved in smuggling, but that's smuggling from hell to the mortal realm.

This kind of low-level smuggling is my first time, so since it's my first time, I have no experience, so please bear with me.

Damn it,

there are so many mosquitoes,

I don't want a second time."

The four walked through the dense forest and crossed several rivers. In fact, Lawyer An was right about one thing: it didn't matter if he was unprofessional, as long as he provided a general direction.

This smuggling team, four people, none of them were ordinary people, and there were two zombies alone!

Even the natural barriers that ordinary people would find difficult to overcome were not a problem for them.

When it was almost dawn again,

everyone stopped to rest for a while. At this point, they should be in Myanmar. Zhou Ze even paid special attention and didn't see a boundary marker. He was originally thinking of taking a group photo as a memento.

After all, Lao Xu's camera was so expensive. It would be a shame not to take a few pictures.

While everyone was drinking water and eating, Lawyer An took out a satellite phone from his backpack.

There was also one in the bookstore, which he had bought before leaving.

Lawyer An dialed a number, and it was quickly answered. Lawyer An handed the phone to Zhou Ze, while he bit into a biscuit and said he was going to scout the road ahead. The biggest fear in this big forest was getting lost and wasting effort.

Zhou Ze took it, put it to his ear, and heard the old Taoist's voice:

"Boss, four guests came yesterday, one of whom asked me to find his card, and I also withdrew the money. I'll donate it to Project Hope tomorrow.

Lin Ke also came yesterday and sent the four people away. There were also a few guests in the evening, who were also sent away by Lin Ke."

"Okay, good."

Lin Ke was still living at Wang Ke's house anyway, and it wasn't far from the bookstore.

When the bookstore had business,

biu!

She came,

after sending people to hell,

biu!

She went back to do her elementary school homework,

which was very convenient.

"Boss, have you crossed the border?"

Since they were using a satellite phone to contact each other, the old Taoist guessed something.

"Yeah."

"That sounds like fun. I knew I would have gone too."

"Squeak squeak!" The monkey seconded!

"Being fed to mosquitoes isn't fun."

Zhou Ze didn't dare to take the old Taoist with him.

In this wilderness,

who knows which evil thing's grave the old Taoist would pee on.

"There's nothing I can do. Of all the employees, I value you the most, Lao Dao.

I can only rest assured if you're overseeing the house renovation."

"Hehehe." The old Taoist was very happy, and then he didn't forget to remind him: "Boss, I heard that there are a lot of outlaws over there, and there are also a lot of drug traffickers. You guys be careful.

Hmm, that's not right,

it seems like they're the ones who should be careful."

"Alright, I'll contact you if anything happens. Keep an eye on things over there."

"Okay, boss."

After hanging up the phone,

Zhou Ze stretched.

At this time,

Lawyer An came back and said:

"There's a group of people walking this way ahead."

"What kind of people?"

Zhou Ze asked as he took a water bottle from Yingying and took a sip.

"I'd guess they're either smugglers or drug traffickers."

"Pfft!"