The evening sun painted the war-torn village in the colors of dusk. Leitao and Liu Zishan, covered in dust and exhaustion, returned from their perilous scouting mission of the Japanese Army stronghold. Meng Xiaoyu, who had already seen to the safety of the rescued girl, spotted them from afar and hurried over, her eyes filled with anxiety and concern.
Leitao suppressed the surging anger and sorrow within him. His voice was low but firm: "I have mapped the positions and troop deployment of the Japanese stronghold. But the most urgent task now is to lay our murdered fellow villagers to rest." The weight of his words felt like a boulder pressing down on everyone’s heart.
The group picked up shovels and hoes in silence and walked to the clearing outside the village. Shuiniu and Shuiyang, both powerfully built, wielded their shovels with astonishing strength. Every heave of earth was delivered with tireless force, and beads of sweat the size of peas rolled down their cheeks, dripping into the parched soil. With every shovelful of dirt Liu Zishan moved, his gaze swept over the corpses of the villagers nearby. Hatred burned fiercely in his eyes, fueling his movements until they became frantic, as if he were pouring all his rage against the Japanese Army into the digging. Leitao and Meng Xiaoyu carefully carried the bodies to the pit, their movements so gentle they seemed devout, as if escorting these departed souls to a final place of rest.
Chapter 426