Chapter 4: The Guerrilla's IOU

After more than half a month of wandering and sneaking around, Li Haibo finally arrived on the outskirts of Shanghai.

The price was that all the dry food and canned goods he had previously collected in his spatial pocket were completely used up.

And just before he got home, he ran into the incident at the beginning!

Li Haibo watched the guerrilla fighters disappear into the distance, then turned back to the battlefield. The bodies of the Japanese soldiers and traitors had been stripped clean, leaving only a single loincloth. He couldn’t help but admire how thoroughly the guerrillas had cleaned up the battlefield.

After a moment of reflection, he stored the bodies in his infinite spatial pocket, then tidied up the surroundings. He then set off toward the nearest Ding family village.

Among the guerrilla group, Zhou Zhenguo ran up to Captain Li Dong. "Captain Li, do you think it was a mistake to reveal the commissar’s location to my classmate?"

Captain Li Dong smiled, "Wasn’t it you who told him first?"

Zhou Zhenguo chuckled awkwardly, "I was just too excited to see an old childhood friend. Now I kind of regret it."

Captain Li Dong waved his hand, "It’s fine. Once we reach the Earth Temple, let the deputy captain take the medics away first. We’ll set the guards farther out. The terrain there is perfect for concealment and retreat. Even if a large Japanese force comes, they won’t catch us."

"That’s good!"

Captain Li Dong sighed, "Ah, I don’t want to take risks either, but the temptation of those machine guns is just too great."

...

Not long after, Li Haibo drove a slow-moving ox cart out of Ding family village.

The ox cart was borrowed from Old Ding Nian. To ease Old Ding’s worries, Li Haibo even left one of his trusted box machine guns as collateral at his neighbor’s house.

Old Ding’s face changed as soon as he saw the box machine gun. He scolded angrily, "It’s just borrowing an ox cart, what’s the big deal about collateral? Use it with confidence. Whether you return it or not doesn’t matter."

Recalling how Old Ding trembled with anger earlier, Li Haibo sincerely admired the man’s simple and honest nature.

Li Haibo drove the ox cart to a secluded spot, used his keen hearing ability to listen carefully, and after confirming no one was around, began transferring items from his spatial pocket onto the cart.

He was generous with the Red Party guerrillas, unloading most of the long guns, ammunition, all the box machine guns, and grenades from his infinite space.

Though he had little regard for the box machine guns, to the guerrillas they were undoubtedly valuable.

The old ox watched Li Haibo’s seemingly magical act of pulling things out with wide, bovine eyes.

Li Haibo chatted with the ox as he worked, "Old Ox, you’ve got to keep today’s events a secret. Once this mission’s done, you’ll be a true anti-Japanese ox. After the war, there might even be special benefits for you!"

The old ox seemed to understand, nodding slowly. Li Haibo smiled inwardly again—what a good ox, so simple and honest. If cooked spicy and boiled, it’d definitely taste great.

Carefully covering the supplies on the ox cart with hay, Li Haibo slowly headed toward the Earth Temple.

Soon, they reached a guerrilla sentry post.

After identifying himself, Li Haibo was smoothly escorted to the small Earth Temple.

As the lowest-ranking deity, the Earth Temple was usually tiny.

This one was just over a square meter in area and less than two meters tall—a modest office fitting for a village cadre.

...

The guerrillas erupted in cheers when they saw the cart loaded with weapons and ammunition, their excitement rivaling that of a New Year celebration.

Zhou Zhenguo touched the weapons eagerly, eyes shining, "So many guns! Four machine guns—one Czech, three with crooked handles—and those box machine guns..."

Li Haibo took the opportunity to closely observe this red-armored group he’d just encountered in this world.

As Zhou Zhenguo said, they had few guns and a mixed composition. From their clothing, most were former peasants and workers, with quite a few students.

At that moment, Captain Li and a bespectacled young man approached, chatting as they walked.

"Xiao Li, this is our political commissar, Comrade Chen Gang. Like Comrade Zhenguo, he’s a top graduate from Shanghai Jiaotong University, a man of culture!"

The commissar stepped forward, shaking Li Haibo’s hand firmly. "Comrade Li, your generous gift truly relieves our urgent needs. I will write you an IOU right away."

He fetched paper and pen, solemnly beginning to write while reciting aloud: "This acknowledges receiving from patriotic hero Li Haibo..."

"It’s Comrade Li Haibo!" Li Haibo immediately corrected.

"Right! Comrade Li Haibo! Ha ha ha..." Captain Li chuckled so hard he could barely close his mouth.

"Very well! Comrade Li Haibo!" Commissar Chen’s expression turned serious as he wrote with a firm hand, "This certifies receipt from patriotic hero Comrade Li Haibo of eighty-three various long guns, four machine guns, five box machine guns, over eight thousand rounds of ammunition, and two hundred sixty grenades. All materials are for resisting the Japanese invaders. They shall be returned in full after victory. Jiading County Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Battalion.

Battalion Commander: Li Dong (signature)

Political Commissar: Chen Gang (signature)

Witness: Zhou Zhenguo (signature)

October 25, 1938"

After finishing, Commissar Chen solemnly stamped the guerrilla battalion seal.

Li Haibo took the IOU with both hands, carefully reading each line, then carefully put it away, his face beaming.

This was a family heirloom now. When he grew old, he could proudly boast in front of younger generations with solid proof.

"Commissar, I’ll keep this IOU safe. After the war, I’ll be coming to collect, you can count on that."

Everyone exchanged knowing smiles.

Captain Li laughed, "We’re all fighting the Japanese. Why don’t you just join our guerrilla forces?"

Li Haibo thought for a moment. "Maybe later. I’ve been away for years. I want to go home first, to be with my mother and show my filial piety. But if you need help, just come to me. Zhenguo knows where I am."

Captain Li sighed regretfully, "That’s fair. We’ve fought side by side, and maybe someday we’ll fight the Japanese together again."

"Good! Together we’ll defeat the invaders!"

After bidding the cheerful guerrillas farewell, Li Haibo hurried back with the ox cart, returned it to Old Ding, and retrieved his pledged box machine gun. He really did pledge it; he wasn’t trying to take advantage of anyone.

He had intended to give Old Ding some money, but the man refused stubbornly—a truly good person.

Li Haibo gazed at the somewhat empty supplies in his infinite space and shook his head with a hint of helplessness.

If not for exchanging for this protective talisman, he wouldn’t have given away so much. Unfortunately, his merit points seemed insufficient. He’d probably need to make a few more IOUs like this before he had enough capital to boast in the future. Well, slowly accumulating it.

Now, only two box machine guns, one 98K rifle, and two precious floral-patterned guns remained for personal use. Ammunition was scarce, and there was no machine gun or grenades left.

His resources were a bit thin, but it didn’t matter. Shanghai was full of Japanese and traitors. With his skills, once he got into the city, he’d have all the money and guns he wanted. You lose everything and start anew!

...

Within the guerrilla ranks, Commissar Chen Gang and Captain Li Dong walked side by side.

"Old Li, why was your old classmate so excited today? First meeting and he’s already trying to recruit people. That’s not like you!"

Captain Li sighed, "We’re short on manpower. These new recruits will soon join the main force with the supplies. Once they leave, we’ll have only about ten people left.

And he’s a seasoned veteran! Who wouldn’t like him when they see how fiercely he fought the Japanese?

Ah, too bad he’s not willing."

"He’s not unwilling. He just doesn’t know us well yet. You can tell from the guns he gave us; he wants to resist Japan, and he likes us. We just have to work on him gradually," said Commissar Chen, calling Zhou Zhenguo over.

"Zhenguo, stay in close contact with your classmate. Try to bring him into our ranks as soon as possible!"

"Got it!"

With mixed feelings, Li Haibo returned that afternoon to his home in Zhabei.

The Li family lived in a small courtyard near Zhabei Train Station. The yard was modest, with only eight bungalows, all the hard-earned property left by his late father.

Since Li Haibo joined the army, his mother had rented out the extra rooms to tenants.

She relied on the meager rent to make ends meet.

The familiar courtyard, the familiar pomegranate tree, the familiar Buddhist altar in the main room—nothing had changed.

Li Haibo gazed at the place where he grew up, overwhelmed with emotion.

"Mom! I’m back!" As he stepped inside, he saw a little girl of four or five sitting on a mat, happily sucking her finger.

Their eyes met, and Li Haibo frowned, "Oh dear! Whose child is this, so dirty?"

The girl immediately changed expression. "Mom! There’s a little scoundrel in the house!"

"You little brat! How dare you talk like that?" His mother hurried out from the inner room, "Oh, Haibo! You’re back? Buddha be praised! Come in quickly and pay respects to Buddha.

Oh my, you’re so thin! And your face is so dark!"

Seeing her son, her heart was filled with complex emotions.

Since the full-scale war began over a year ago, the turmoil outside, especially during the Battle of Shanghai, had been relentless. Gunfire filled the air, and every day she had lived in fear, worried that she might lose the son she sent off to fight.

Countless sleepless nights were spent haunted by visions of her son in danger on the battlefield, dreading the day she might receive news of his death.

[End of excerpt.]