Leitao and his party quickly packed their bags, left the inn, and hurried to the station. As they arrived, the iron-horn loudspeaker suddenly emitted a harsh crackle of electricity, followed by a stiff, mechanical voice in Chinese: "Attention passengers, the 'Japan-China Friendship' train bound for Tianjin is approaching the platform. Please have your good-citizen certificates ready for orderly inspection—"
Before the voice could fade, the "East Asia Co-Prosperity March" abruptly blasted from the speakers. The out-of-tune piano intro, mixed with static, made the station ceiling shed a layer of dust. "Japan-China cooperation, a land of imperial benevolence..." As the high-pitched female voice reached its crescendo, several elderly men waiting on the platform instinctively reached for the good-citizen certificates on their chests, as if they were brands of hot iron.
Leitao clenched his fists; the melody reminded him of the horns that signaled the Japanese Army's slaughter of the city last year. Meng Xiaoyu’s eyelashes fluttered violently, and her hand unconsciously spun the willow-leaf blade hidden in her sleeve—it was a melody she had heard at Ginling College for Women, a melody soaked in blood.
Chapter 433