The Mysterious Soldier of the Anti-Japanese War

Chapter 384: The Fake Shock Caused by the Signal Flare

The smoke gradually dissipated through the valley, but the pungent smell lingered. After cleaning up the battlefield, Lei Tao and his men, along with Scarface Li and a few of his men, set out on their return journey. The forest was silent, save for the occasional bird song, but it couldn't dispel the exhaustion that enveloped them.

Scarface Li was lying on a stretcher, looking tired, but suddenly he broke into a grin, which was particularly conspicuous on his dusty face. He said to Lei Tao, "Brother Lei, why do I feel like today's battle was like eating candy beans? Although I'm injured, I feel quite happy."

Lei Tao paused, turned his head, rolled his eyes at him, and replied unhappily, "I think your brain is stuck in the door. Is fighting a joke? If I hadn't intervened, you would have been chopped in two by Mu Yitengtian."

Scarface Li was displeased when he heard this. He struggled to sit up from the stretcher and retorted, "That's not necessarily true. My swordsmanship is inherited from my ancestors. If I had a little more time, I would have been able to defeat him." As he spoke, he lifted up his shirt on the stretcher, revealing a body covered in black tiger tattoos. "If you don't believe me, take a look. I have a black tiger to protect me. A master once said that this is my protective beast. It's very powerful!"

Lei Tao almost laughed out loud when he heard this, but he suppressed his laughter and said seriously, "Look at your black tiger tattoo, and you say it's a protective beast? I think it's more like a 'troublemaking beast'!"

Scarface Li disagreed and said confidently, "Brother Lei, you don't understand. This black tiger tattoo is magical. The master said it can bless me to turn misfortune into good fortune and bring good luck when I encounter disaster. Look, I didn't die today. This is the manifestation of the black tiger's power!"

Lei Tao couldn't help laughing and said jokingly, "Okay, then from now on, we'll all rely on you, the Black Tiger, in the battle. You have to make it show its power more often and bless us to be safe and sound."

Scarface Li was about to respond when he suddenly frowned again. He asked the two men carrying the stretcher to carry him to Lei Tao's side and whispered, "Brother Lei, what do you think we should do if this black tiger doesn't work anymore? How about I go back and ask the master to perform another ritual for it?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint cry was heard not far ahead. Everyone instantly became alert and slowed down. Lei Tao raised his hand to signal everyone to remain quiet and be on guard.

A group of ragged women, supporting each other, walked slowly towards them, crying as they went, looking like they were fleeing. The woman walking in front, with messy hair and tear marks on her face, saw Lei Tao and others and fell to her knees, crying, "Please, save us! The Japanese are burning, killing, and looting everywhere. Our village is gone."

Scarface Li felt sympathy when he heard this and struggled to get up from the stretcher: "Oh, they are so pitiful, Brother Lei, let's take them in."

Lei Tao, however, looked alert. He reached out to stop Scarface Li and said in a low voice, "Don't be impulsive. The situation is so chaotic now. Who knows if they are real?"

At this time, one of the women heard Lei Tao's words and cried even harder: "Brother, what we said is true. If you don't believe it, we have no way to survive."

Lei Tao always felt that there was something strange about this group of young women, but he couldn't find any flaws. After hesitating for a long time, he finally let Scarface Li take them back to the village.

As soon as they entered the stronghold, Scarface Li was busy running around, directing his men to place the women. Lei Tao, however, was cautious and quietly called Liu Zishan and Chen Feiyang aside, whispering, "You guys, keep an eye on these women in secret. Report any movement immediately."

But before everyone could settle down, Chen Feiyang, who was in charge of surveillance, came running over to report: "Brother Lei, something's wrong! There are a few women wandering around the village. One of them is tall and slender and keeps asking others how many people are here."

Lei Tao's brows knitted into a knot, his eyes glaring as he shouted in a low voice, "What else did they ask? Tell me everything clearly."

Chen Feiyang swallowed his saliva and replied nervously, "They also...they asked who invented the Type 38 hand cannon we use, and about your identity. I felt that was not right, so I deliberately interrupted their conversation and changed the subject."

After hearing this, Lei Tao took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. He paced back and forth, his mind racing, thinking of a response. After a moment, he suddenly stopped and said to Chen Feiyang, "Well done, don't alert the enemy yet. Go call Liu Zishan over, and we'll discuss this."

Chen Feiyang took the order and left, and Liu Zishan soon arrived. The three of them sat together, and Lei Tao spoke seriously, "There's definitely something fishy about these women. They're asking for crucial information. They're asking about the Type 38 handgun, probably because they want to know about our weapons. They're asking about my identity, maybe because we exposed our whereabouts when we traveled by water, and the Japanese spies are trying to find us and eliminate us."

Liu Zishan frowned and clenched his fists: "Brother Lei, why don't we take action now and arrest them for interrogation to avoid any more trouble later."

Lei Tao waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "No, we don't have solid evidence right now. If we act rashly, what if they are really just ordinary refugees? We will be the villains bullying the people. Let's continue to observe and see what they plan to do next."

The three of them discussed it again and decided to strengthen the security of the stronghold, asking the brothers to be secretly alert and continue to monitor the every move of these women.

On the other side, Scarface Li was still enthusiastically greeting the women. The tall woman came closer to Scarface Li, forced a smile, and said in a sweet voice, "Brother, everyone here is so amazing. That Brother Lei, what did he do before? He must be very capable."

Scarface Li's heart skipped a beat, and he remembered Lei Tao's advice. He chuckled and said, "He's just an ordinary man who lived his life. He was forced into a desperate situation by the Japanese invaders, so he led us to resist. Girl, why are you asking this?"

The tall woman quickly waved her hands and said, "Nothing... nothing, I'm just curious. I think Brother Lei is particularly impressive."

Scarface Li gave a perfunctory smile and changed the subject: "By the way, girl, did you see any large Japanese troops on your way here?"

The tall woman's eyes flickered for a moment, and she said, "No... I didn't pay much attention. We were just thinking about escaping."

It was barely dawn, and everyone in the village was still deep in sleep. A thin layer of mist enveloped the village, making it seem unusually quiet. The tall woman, sleepless all night, her eyes bloodshot, waited for her chance. She tiptoed out of her temporary abode, careful with every step, fearing the slightest sound.

She glanced around, making sure no one was watching, then quickened her pace, heading for the hills behind the village. The morning dew soaked her shoes, but she was oblivious, preoccupied with completing her mission. Reaching a secluded corner of the mountain, she glanced around cautiously, making sure no one was around. Then, she reached into her chest wrap and pulled out a flare, similar to a rocket. With a slightly trembling hand, she raised the flare skyward, her other hand impatiently groping for the fuse.

At this moment, Chen Feiyang appeared quietly like a ghost. After noticing the strangeness of these women last night, he became more vigilant and patrolled the back mountain before dawn. Seeing the women's actions from a distance, he immediately realized that the situation was not good and deliberately shouted loudly: "Stop! What are you doing?"

The woman stiffened at the sound, her eyes instantly panicking. Knowing her plan had been exposed, she dared not delay any further. Her hand loosened, and the flare plopped into the dense grass. She quickly turned around, forcing a look of panic yet innocence, trying to get away with it. "Hey, big brother, I just couldn't sleep and went out for a walk," she said as she walked towards Chen Feiyang. Chen Feiyang stared at her intently, his gaze as sharp as a torch, not letting his guard down.

Just as the two men were deadlocked, Xu Huzi, about seven or eight years old, skipped by, humming a tuneless tune. Xu Huzi was the son of a hunter in the mountain village, and he spent his days playing around. His sharp eyes caught sight of the brightly colored flare in the bushes. Curious, Huzi crouched down, reached out his grubby little hands, and snatched the flare from the grass.

He took the flare in his hand, looking left and right, his head full of confusion. What on earth is this thing? He also found that there was a small iron ring tied to a thin rope at the bottom of the flare, which made him even more curious. He raised the flare high with one hand, trying to see it more clearly, and subconsciously pulled the rope on the small iron ring with the other hand. There was a muffled "puff" sound, and the flare instantly brushed past his hair with a slight whistling sound and rushed into the sky. Xu Huzi was startled, staring blankly at the sky with his mouth open.

In the blink of an eye, the flare flew into the air, and suddenly, with a loud "bang," it exploded, illuminating the sky with a multicolored light. This sudden movement instantly shattered the tranquility of the mountain stronghold. The other patrolling bandits heard the commotion and rushed towards the back mountain. Lei Tao and Liu Zishan were also awakened by the loud noise. They quickly dressed, grabbed their weapons, and ran towards the back mountain.

While Chen Feiyang's attention was drawn to the flare, the woman's eyes darkened as she quietly drew a dagger from her waist. Crouching, she approached Chen Feiyang with extremely light steps. Her breathing was rapid and suppressed, and with every step closer, her murderous intent grew stronger.

Just as she was a few steps away from Chen Feiyang, ready to attack, he suddenly dodged to the side. He had been watching her movements from the corner of his eye, ready to take precautions. He raised his leg and kicked her wrist, causing her to feel pain. The dagger clanged to the ground.

Chen Feiyang glared at her and shouted, "There's something wrong! Tell me, what are your intentions?" The woman didn't answer. Taking advantage of Chen Feiyang's pause, she suddenly leaped forward and reached for the dagger again. Chen Feiyang wouldn't let her succeed. With a grappling move, he grabbed the woman's arm tightly and twisted it hard. The woman cried out in pain, her previous feign of innocence gone.

At this time, Lei Tao and Liu Zishan arrived, followed by a group of nervous bandits. Lei Tao looked at the restrained woman, his face gloomy and said, "Take her back to the village, and restrain those women at the same time!"

When Xu Huzi saw Lei Tao, he naively shouted, "Uncle Lei, I found something interesting. It's so beautiful when it flies into the sky."

Lei Tao looked at Xu Huzi, feeling both angry and amused. He said helplessly, "Huzi, this is not fun at all. Thank goodness you're okay." Then he turned to Liu Zishan and said, "Send Huzi back to his parents. Don't scare the child."

Liu Zishan responded and left with Xu Huzi. Lei Tao led everyone back to the stronghold hall and took the woman to the center of the hall.

Lei Tao sat in the main seat, his eyes shooting at the woman like sharp blades: "Tell me, who are you? Who is behind you?" The woman gritted her teeth, closed her lips tightly, and looked resistant.

Scarface Li was also carried to the hall. When he saw the woman, he was so angry that he yelled, "You female devil, how dare you trick me? Today I will let you taste my power!" The woman glanced at Scarface Li with disdain and still said nothing.

Chen Feiyang stepped forward and slammed the table: "Don't refuse a toast and then drink a forfeit. Our patience is limited! If you don't say anything, don't blame us for being rude!" The woman remained unmoved, her eyes full of provocation.

At this moment, a bandit hurried in and whispered something in Lei Tao's ear. Lei Tao's face changed, and he said to everyone, "It seems they have a trick up their sleeve. Some suspicious traces have been found around the stronghold. Brothers, be on high alert. This battle has just begun."