Chapter 12: Another Interpretation of Shooting Cannon

  It was past two in the morning, a time when people are usually in deep sleep. However, with several shrill cries, the Tianjin concession area became noisy. First, a series of police whistles sounded, followed by the roar of motorcycles, and then the "bang bang" sound of gunfire rang out. Amidst the gunfire, Japanese voices shouted: "Fire! Catch him! Ahead..."

  This night, the Japanese good citizens in the concession, big and small traitors, are destined to stay awake until dawn. As Ouyang Yun said, those who dare to be traitors must be prepared to die - after all, China has 400 million people, and traitors are like street rats, anyone can kill them - who knows if one day in a certain place, a fatal bullet will not be fired?

  Traitors are afraid of death, when the shadow of death is planted in their hearts, many people are restless and cannot end their days, fearing that they will not see tomorrow's sun.

  After Ou Yang Yun jumped out of the White Mansion, he immediately rushed to a nearby power distribution room. The woman's cry was very loud, and it was a pity that the wife who acted as a traitor had such a good voice, which would be suitable for being a night watchman, discovering a thief and shouting loudly, might even scare the thief away. The Japanese reacted quickly, of course, it was also possible that this kind of thing happened many times, and the speed was cultivated by the Chinese anti-Japanese army - the alarm sounded immediately, and a few minutes later, the patrol team and the Kempeitai rushed to here.

  The old Chinese man on duty in the distribution room was startled awake by the police siren. He peeked through the door crack and saw a masked person, immediately scaring him into closing and locking the door, then piling office desks against it. Still feeling insecure, he clasped his hands together and began reciting the names of several bodhisattvas.

  Ouyang Yun didn't want to waste time on the broken door, so he used his old trick and pinched off the wires with pliers, then ran towards Heping Street.

  He ran very fast, but after all, two legs can't outrun three wheels. He had only run over a hundred meters when the roar of the motorcycle sounded from behind him, followed by the glare of headlights. He turned into an alleyway and stood still against the wall, pulling out his pistol and turning off the infrared sight. Since the little devil was behind him and there were lights shining, it would be foolish to simply run away at this time, which would be equivalent to selling his back to the enemy.

  A motorcycle roared in, soon opening up not far from where he was hiding. The headlight illuminated the street surface, making it a pale white. He concentrated and listened intently, silently counting the numbers in his mouth, after which he suddenly jumped out, raised his hand to shoot three consecutive shots at the three light sources, then rolled forward to the left front.

  "Boom, boom, boom!" - Three consecutive crisp sounds of shattering glass, the street immediately plunged back into darkness. Accompanied by the ear-piercing sound of screeching tires on the ground - "Screech", "There!", "Fire!", "Get him!" Shouts and gunfire erupted.

  Bullets exploded on the ground and walls beside Ouyang Yun, making a "chuffing" sound with sparks flying everywhere. He crouched down, slightly curling up his body to maximize the protective area of his bulletproof vest, then quickly sprang up, rolled over to the other side of the street, stood up, raised his gun and fired at several points where flames were bursting out.

  "Ah!" "Oh!" The cries of surprise and pain rang out, but in the darkness it was impossible to tell how many people had been hit. He took advantage of the silencer on his gun and the bulletproof vest he wore, standing there continuing to shoot at specific targets until he had emptied a whole clip, before turning around and sprinting away.

  The tongues of fire flashing from the muzzles of the little devils' guns completely exposed their position, but they couldn't tell where the bullets were coming from for a moment, and suddenly there were heavy casualties. Thinking that there were many assassins, they had to stop pursuing. The gunfire gradually became sparse, and after about ten minutes, when they merged with the large team of horses rushing over, Ouyang Yun had already met Chu Tiange and started running towards the inn.

  History sometimes presents astonishing coincidences. The news that two traitorous gang leaders were killed in the early morning of April 30th within the Japanese concession area caused a significant stir among both Chinese and Japanese officials and civilians once again.

  The highest authorities in China couldn't help but scold a few people severely: "You can't just calm down, can you?! Yes, traitors should be killed, but we also need to consider the situation! Does He Yingqin not use his brain when doing things?!" Poor He Yingqin had no idea what was going on and was unjustly blamed; while the Japanese military's North China Garrison Command escalated this assassination attempt into a "major event", labeling it as the "Hebei Incident". This time, Pingjin Meizhilang and others were truly furious, partly because their old nest was being disturbed and they were humiliated, and partly to reassure their subordinates, the big and small traitors, so they came on strong from the start. On one hand, they sent their chief of staff, Sakai Takashi, and the military attaché of the Japanese embassy in China, Takahashi Tan, to meet with He Yingqin, claiming that this case was "a manifestation of China's anti-foreigner movement", and if the Chinese government did not take notice and improve, Japan would take defensive action. On the other hand, they arranged for the Japanese troops stationed in Tianjin to hold armed demonstrations and street fighting drills in front of the Hebei Provincial Government building for several days, making **naked threats. Poor He Yingqin, this veteran of the Nationalist Party, former head of the Whampoa Military Academy, was now a high-ranking official, but he was being pressured from both sides and couldn't afford to lose his temper, it was really hard for him.

  The next day, Ou Yang and Chu learned the news from Chu Kuo's machine. Chu Tian Ge was so angry that he laughed out loud and scolded: "Shameless! Shameless!"

  Ouyang Yun now thoroughly saw through the tricks of the little devil, coldly laughing twice without expressing his opinion, and had a new understanding of his mission. Killing a few traitors and Japanese devils was easy, but truly defeating Little Japan was not simple. China had been weak for too long and was now nominally unified; Little Japan's wolfish ambitions had been brewing for a long time, and it would be a battle of strength to determine the outcome - there were many things he needed to do. It seemed that the route designed by the two old men was well thought out and feasible. Well, it seemed that he must seize the time now.

  Chu Kuo-chia didn't believe it was them who did this when his nephew told him about the incident yesterday. It's not difficult to kill two traitors who rely on their pen, but what kind of strength does the Japanese garrison have? As a result, nine were killed and four were injured, which is something ordinary people can't do. He also didn't expect that this matter would cause such a big commotion, so he was worried about their safety and sent someone to send them to the 25th Division's student training class in the suburbs overnight.

  There were over 200 people in the training class for teachers and students, most of whom were hot-blooded young people studying in Tianjin. Seeing them, Ouyang Yun couldn't help but think of the student army organized by Song Zheyuan.

  The 29th Army's student corps was a tragedy, a tragic and heroic one.

  He remembered the story of the Student Army so clearly, which originated from a military history lesson in the military school. The lecturer was an old professor who somehow got on this topic and then opened his mouth to talk endlessly. When the old professor talked about this piece of history, his expression was extremely solemn: "...... The entire student army consisted of progressive students who had put down their pens and taken up arms after the December 9th Movement. They not only had knowledge but also ideals - think about it, how many university students and middle school students were there in China at that time? General Song Zheyuan actually didn't want to let them become soldiers. The so-called student army was intended to cultivate them into future local cadres for the 29th Army. Their garrison was located in the southern part of Nanwan Barracks, which was also the place with the smallest possibility of being attacked by the Japanese army. When the Japanese army rushed towards Nanwan, the students had just received their guns a few hours ago, and they didn't even know to lie down when the guns fired - if these people could survive, how many pillars of talent would be left for China! Unfortunately, for national independence and state prosperity, they threw themselves into the battlefield where they were not good at, using their hot blood to irrigate the land they loved - in the bayonet fight with the Japanese army, they often had to use ten lives to exchange for one enemy soldier, but they didn't retreat. The Student Army had 1,700 people, and only about 600 people returned alive to Beiping -" At this point, the old professor's voice choked, then he shouted hoarsely: "Everyone stand up, let's pay our respects to these predecessors!" Then, he bowed his head first -

  Unconsciously, Ouyang Yun's eyes moistened - they often had to use ten fresh lives to exchange for one enemy soldier, but they exchanged and not a single person retreated. The 1,700-strong student army returned alive to Beiping, with only about 600 people left.

  Past experience is the teacher of later events. Since he had come, such a tragedy would never happen again. He made a silent vow in his heart, closed his eyes tightly, and wiped away tears with his hand before pulling Chu Tian Ge to run towards the training ground not far away. On the training ground, some recruits were practicing aiming with their guns, while another group was learning how to operate an anti-tank rocket launcher under the guidance of a military officer.

  Seeing them, the officer stood up and smiled: "Newcomers?"

  With feet together, Ouyang Yun made a standard standing posture and saluted loudly: "Recruit Shen Yun reporting for duty."

  "Recruit Guo Xiao Tian, reporting for duty!" Chu Tian Ge imitated him.

  Ouyang Yun's body swayed, almost fainting - the two people's names were naturally fake, originally planned, Chu Tiange changed to Guo Xiaotian, unexpectedly, he actually changed to Guo Xiao Tian. Did "The Legend of the Condor Hero" also cross over?

  Moved by Ouyang Yun's standard military posture, a bright color flashed in the officer's eyes, and he stood at attention, saluted and said: "At ease. Shen Yun, have you been a soldier?"

  "Attention!" shouted Ouyang Yun, "I used to be a Boy Scout in America."

  "American Boy Scouts?!" The officer was somewhat surprised, thinking that if the American Boy Scouts could train such warriors, then what about the regular US troops?!

  "This is what Ouyang Yun has thought deeply about. People who have been in the army for a long time, no matter what they do later, can't help but leave behind the mark of the military on their bodies. Rather than trying to cover it up with great effort, it's better to find an upright and just excuse."

  "Alright, can you play trumpet?"

  "Fire the cannon?!" Ouyang Yun blinked twice, with a somewhat sinister smile. The term "fire the cannon" in the special forces regiment had a different meaning, very ambiguous, and he was used to using it as a joke, now suddenly hearing someone mention it seriously, he couldn't help but lose his composure.

  The officer saw it, was taken aback for a moment, and asked: "What's wrong?" He thought to himself that after all, this wasn't a regular army unit. The military posture was fine, but the mentality was far from it.

  He was so angry that he lifted Ou Yang Yun up, his mood couldn't be described as just "bad", it was simply unbearable.

  In the special forces battalion, there wasn't much emphasis on hierarchy, and officers and soldiers got along extremely well, often joking with each other like family. Unlike modern military units, where ranks are strictly observed, Ouyang Yun, as a person from a later era, only knew that in the national army, one should address officers as "superior officer", but he was unfamiliar with other aspects. Fortunately, he had an American background - "Superior officer, in America, 'cannon' has another meaning."

  The officer was also a young man with a strong curiosity and immediately became interested: "Oh? Tell me."

  "In America, 'to shoot' specifically refers to that thing between men and women."

  "Pffft——" Some of the soldiers couldn't help but stifle a grin, their mouths twitching upwards. More people stopped what they were doing and stared at Ouyang Yun, agape, including the officers - could Americans really make such a connection between artillery fire and romantic relationships?! Someone couldn't help but think this.

  Chu Tian Ge heard this statement for the first time, as described earlier. This kid was a bit silly and very humble, with a good habit of not being ashamed to ask questions. He rubbed his head, unable to equate shooting cannons and men's and women's affairs, so he asked: "Big brother, what does this have to do with that? They're completely unrelated!"

  "Idiot!" Ouyang Yun gave him a ruthless slap on the head, made a circle with her left hand, and poked her right middle finger inside, saying: "Fire the cannon! Got it?!"

  "Ah!" Chu Tian Ge was a straightforward child, immediately shocked with his mouth agape, as still as a wooden chicken. His appearance was silly and amusing, and with a "hoh" sound, many people burst out laughing together.

  The officer couldn't help but smile wryly, and his gaze at Ouyang Yun added new meaning as he asked with restraint: "So, what do the Americans say?"

  "Will you be fired? Will you open fire?"

  "Will you?"

  Ouyang Yun naturally - As an elite special forces soldier of the People's Republic of China, he can fly a plane and parachute from the sky, drive a speedboat and swim in the water, and must master all land vehicles, with expertise in at least one. He used to be a medic, so in the team, he is most responsible for on-site rescue. The captain did not require him to be proficient in a particular vehicle, but even so, simple tasks such as changing tires, replacing spark plugs, and cleaning fuel lines are not difficult for him. As for weapon usage, except for missiles, there's nothing he can't do.

  "Is there ammunition for the 51 caliber?"

  He took a glance at it and reported the caliber, the officer looked at him with a new gaze, intending to test him, stretched out his hand pointing forward, saying: "The farthest target in front, try shooting."

  The target is about one li away, located on a small mound. Ouyang Yun stood upright, first estimating with his eyes, then stretching out his left hand and raising his thumb towards the target, closing his left eye to take aim, before starting to adjust the cannon.

  An expert can tell at a glance, outsiders watch the excitement, insiders watch the doorway. The recruits were indeed intimidated by his demeanor, and the officer's eyes showed a frenzied color. He looked down at the markings on the barrel of the gun and asked, "What's the distance?"

  About 500 meters.

  "Good boy! Not bad! Come on, follow me."

  "Yes."

  See them off, many students' eyes lit up, and someone envied: "This new recruit is so fierce, it seems to be entering the special training group."

  Chu Tian Ge felt a bit down, he suddenly realized that he couldn't leave Ou Yang Yun alone, his heart feeling empty, he took over the conversation and asked: "What special training group?"

  "You don't even know about the special training group?"

  "He and the one from just now are both newcomers."

  ……