Chapter 20 Chapter Nineteen

After a day in the sun, the air force base was already unbearably hot. The Soviet Air Force Aid to China Brigade finally received an order to return home in batches.To leave, a large number of materials, documents, etc. have to be shipped back to the country.Kirichenko and a group of Soviet pilots were shirtless and sweating, loading large and small wooden boxes onto a transport plane.He was somewhat relieved that Kirichenko was not the first to leave.Although Du Lanxiang had agreed to go to the Soviet Union with him, he knew that this decision was really difficult for Du Lanxiang.So now, it would be good to let Du Lanxiang leave here one day later.

In the shadows under the eaves of the restaurant, Du Lanxiang watched Kirichenko and the others from a distance.The fair skin of the Soviets looks even more white in the sun.Just as Du Lanxiang was about to turn around and go back to the restaurant, Gu Guosong appeared behind her.Gu Guosong looked at those busy Soviet people with vacant eyes, and said: They are really going back to China. Du Lanxiang didn't respond, as if she didn't hear it. Gu Guosong asked again: Do you really want to go to the Soviet Union with Kirichenko? Du Lanxiang nodded slowly: I have promised him. At this moment, Kirichenko, who was next to the transport plane, saw them, picked up a jacket, put it on, and walked towards this side.

Gu Guosong: I hope he leaves later. Du Lanxiang looked at him and asked: Why? Why?Gu Guosong himself couldn't tell, was it because he was afraid that he would never see her again?Is it because I know that Du Lanxiang is going to go far away, the feeling of reluctance?Or both?He couldn't answer himself, and he couldn't answer her.So he chose to turn around and leave. But Du Lanxiang stopped him, and her tone of voice showed a rare tenderness: I know what you think in your heart, you don't need to tell me.I can't...I'm sorry for you.Don't hate me, okay? Gu Guosong smiled: I have never hated you, and never will.

After dark, the air force base was quiet, and the hot and humid air was filled with the smell of weeds and chirping insects.There was joy in the military club. Under a banner in Chinese and Russian that read "Farewell to Comrades of the Soviet Air Force", the pilots of the two countries clinked glasses, drank, sang, and then shook hands under the influence of alcohol. Embrace. Kirichenko held the wine glass in one hand, and dragged Duranxiang in the other hand to drill around in the crowd, toasting with all the people.When he came to An Fuyao, he couldn't help but give a Russian-style hug first, and said: "Ann, my good brother!"

An Fuyao finally broke free from Kirichenko's embrace, and raised a wine glass to him: For the sake of fighting friendship! Kirichenko clinked glasses with him heavily, and then hugged him warmly after drinking.Watching Du Lanxiang refill the wine glasses for them, An Fuyao took a cup from the next table, handed it to Du Lanxiang and said: I will have a drink with you too. Du Lanxiang repeatedly waved his hands and refused: No, no, I don't have the capacity for alcohol. An Fuyao insisted: No, you must drink, I bless you, and Kirichenko. Kirichenko also said on the side: Lan Xiang, cheers!

Kirichenko watched them toast with a smile, then kissed Du Lanxiang, smiled at An Fuyao, hugged her and walked away. Under the urging of An Fuyao, Gu Guosong still came to the party, but he was always sitting in an inconspicuous corner, drinking wine slowly by himself, and his eyes almost never left Du Lanxiang and Kirichenko. An Fuyao was obviously drunk too, and stood on the dining table with a flushed face, raised the wine glass in his hand, and shouted loudly: Brothers, brothers! People became a little quieter and turned their attention to An Fuyao. An Fuyao said in a somewhat hoarse voice with the strength of drinking: Brothers, comrades in the Soviet Union... I propose that all of us today offer a toast to the comrades of the Soviet Air Force who died in Chongqing and China!Thank them for their support to China's War of Resistance!They shed blood and sacrificed to defend our Chongqing, we will never forget them!

After finishing speaking, An Fuyao drank the wine in the glass solemnly. Everyone responded and toasted one after another, but the atmosphere in the club suddenly became a little sad.Several drunken Soviet pilots embraced and wept. Although Kirichenko was a little drunk, he was still sober, and he didn't want to let this sad atmosphere continue to spread.He suddenly picked up Du Lanxiang and asked her to stand on the table.Du Lanxiang screamed in fright, and was at a loss, Kirichenko himself jumped onto the table, and then put his arms around the shy Du Lanxiang and said loudly: My dear Chinese brothers, my comrades, I have a message for you. Announce.I have already proposed to Du Lanxiang, the beauty of our base!She promised to go back to the Soviet Union with me!

The news made people cheer loudly. Kirichenko is still talking: After we return to the Soviet Union, we plan to have a lot of children, let the children witness our love, and become the real crystallization of the friendship between the Soviet Union and China!Then, we will take the children back to China, back to Chongqing, on the day when the Chinese comrades defeated the Japanese invaders! People cheered even louder. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Du Lanxiang was already very embarrassed.Kirichenko didn't care about this, he took off a medal from his chest and put it on Dulanxiang's chest, then hugged her and kissed her for a long time.

Of course, what followed was a deafening cheer.Gu Guosong in the corner took his gaze away from them for the first time, drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, and left quietly. It was already midnight when An Fuyao returned home reeking of alcohol and walking unsteadily.Even the lights in Zheng Xianbo's and He Xuezhu's rooms were turned off.An Fuyao went upstairs, tried his best to control his movements, and wanted to gently push the door open, but after the door was pushed open, it still hit the wall heavily.Zheng Qi was still awake, half lying on the bed with a book in her hand.After An Fuyao stumbled into the room, she took her eyes off the book and looked at her husband lukewarmly.

An Fuyao smiled at her, apologetic.Zheng Qi turned a blind eye and turned her eyes to the book again.Of course, that was just a gesture.Even though he was dizzy, An Fuyao was still prepared for such a situation. He didn't say anything, went to fetch a basin of water by himself, and after a splashy wash, he sat on the side of the bed. Zheng Qi immediately smelled the alcohol on An Fuyao's body, frowned and said: Have you been drinking? ! An Fuyao smiled: I drank a little. Zheng Qi said angrily: "I promised to go home for dinner, everyone was waiting for you, but you went to drink!"You are too outrageous.

An Fuyao explained patiently: I called home, but the phone didn't work. Zheng Qi: The phone doesn't work, so you should go home too.Mom is going to work in Beibei Nursery tomorrow, you know it! An Fuyao: Today the base sent off the Soviet pilots, who are going back to China.There is an order from above that all Chinese pilots must participate. Zheng Qi snorted: Are those Soviets so important? ! Hearing Zheng Qi speak in such a tone, An Fuyao couldn't accept it, and his tone became serious: Let me remind you, he is here to support us in the war of resistance! Zheng Qi said: What's the matter with supporting the War of Resistance?I understand this principle, so you don't need to teach me! An Fuyao knew that every time a quarrel was like this, the quarrel would get bigger and bigger in the end, so he avoided it and said in a calm tone: I didn't teach you a lesson.Why are you so angry? The anger in Zheng Qi's heart had been held all night, and at this moment it seemed that she could no longer control it, and she burst out violently: Am I angry?What's wrong with me?You are always away from home all day long, and finally the family can get together, but you promised but did not come back, making the family wait for you for a long time in vain!How I regret having a soldier like you as my husband! An Fuyao was stunned, and looked at Zheng Qi with some surprise: Do you regret it? Zheng Qi continued to attack: so what if I regret it? ! Zheng Qi should be surprised by An Fuyao's reaction next.As soon as she finished speaking, An Fuyao stood up with a "chuckle", gave her a sullen look with a fierce look, then put on the military uniform he had just taken off and went out.He opened the door, turned around and said: I am a soldier whether I live or die!If you really want to regret it, go for it! After finishing speaking, An Fuyao walked out of the room and slammed the door hard. Zheng Qi foolishly listened to An Fuyao's footsteps as she went downstairs, disappeared outside, and began to cry. Zheng Qi's unreasonableness made An Fuyao really angry.In the past, when Zheng Qi had a little temper, An Fuyao usually took a tolerant and coaxing attitude, but what she said last night was a bit too much. An Fuyao can tolerate a lot, but he will never tolerate others saying that he is a soldier thing.After returning to the base overnight, An Fuyao lay on the bed and couldn't fall asleep, basically keeping his eyes open until dawn.After the morning exercise, An Fuyao went back to the dormitory without eating breakfast, lay down on the bed, and covered his head with a quilt despite the heat.Gu Guosong had never seen An Fuyao like this before, so he didn't dare to ask him. After lunch, the alarm suddenly sounded.An Fuyao put on his flight suit, held the flight cap in his hand, ran across the runway that was scorched by the sun, and came to his fighter jet, completely forgetting that his plane was not on the combat duty list.The plane broke down last week, and Gu Guosong was busy repairing and replacing parts for several days. Gu Guosong, who was doing maintenance in front of the plane, looked at An Fuyao and asked strangely: What are you doing here?The plane cannot take off. An Fuyao was already about to climb into the cockpit, and said: Don't worry about it!I have to go up. Gu Guosong grabbed him, smiled and took out a piece of paper from his pocket: This plane is under maintenance, without my signature, you can't take off! An Fuyao said with a livid face: "Then you sign it quickly!" Gu Guosong: I can't sign! An Fuyao suddenly became irritable, and suddenly pulled out a pistol from his waist and pointed it at Gu Guosong: You sign for me immediately!Tell you, I have to take off! Gu Guosong was stunned: What are you going to do? ! An Fuyao pressed the pistol against Gu Guosong's chest: Leave it alone.Sign now! Gu Guosong didn't accept this, but said: "Then shoot!" An Fuyao didn't know what to do.Beside them, other planes have started to fire.Gu Guosong gently took An Fuyao's pistol away from his chest, and said: What's going on with you today? An Fuyao finally broke free from the brief rage, put the pistol back on his waist, and said: Brother, tell me the truth, can airplanes fly? Gu Guosong told the truth: It is barely possible to go up, but... An Fuyao: I must go up into the sky today.help. Gu Guosong asked puzzledly: Why? An Fuyao didn't answer, he climbed into the cockpit twice, turned around and said "I'll tell you when I get back", then he started the plane, taxied slowly in the heat wave, and got on the runway. The air defense sirens in the urban area of ​​Chongqing continued to sound.Zheng Qi, who was rehearsing, and a few friends from the orchestra ran out from the back door of a theater with their musical instruments in their arms, and rushed to the air-raid shelter on the side of the hill.Zheng Qi heard the roar of the plane in the sky, stopped in the middle of an open space, and looked up to the sky.In the blue sky, the formation of the Chinese Air Force and the Japanese aircraft chased each other and started an air battle.With a loud noise, she saw a Chinese fighter jet broke into two pieces in the air and fell down with black smoke.Zheng Qi stared blankly at the sky, following the plane gliding far away, until the plane landed and there was another distant explosion, her body trembled involuntarily following the sound of the explosion. This time, An Fuyao and his comrades encountered a powerful opponent over Chongqing—the Japanese army used the new Zero fighter jets to escort the bomber formation for the first time.This puts the Chinese Air Force's aircraft at a complete disadvantage both in terms of performance and firepower.The real close-range air combat has hardly started, and the Chinese Air Force has suffered heavy losses. Some exploded in the air, and some were injured and left the battlefield. After An Fuyao entered the battle, he soon realized that his old-fashioned aircraft was no match for the Zero fighter at all.The Zero fighter was like a crazy bat, entangled An Fuyao with extraordinary flexibility, preventing him from approaching the bomber formation.An Fuyao tried his best to find a space to bite a Japanese bomber.He was about to dive down when a Zero fighter suddenly turned sideways and aimed at An Fuyao.An Fuyao knew that he was already within the range of the Japanese aircraft, so he still chose to continue the attack.Once in range, he held down the cannon button and never let go.The seemingly endless shells poured accurately on the fuselage and wings of the bomber in an instant. The bomber was fatally attacked, shook a few times, and quickly fell towards the ground dragging black smoke. However, An Fuyao could not see the bomber crashing to the ground because the tail of his plane was hit by the Zero fighter and lost his balance.An Fuyao tried hard to control the burning plane and shouted to the base by radio: I was hit!The tail is on fire! The Zero fighter didn't stop there, and continued to chase An Fuyao's plane.An Fuyao was making movements with difficulty, trying to get rid of the Zero fighter, and the engine let out a heart-piercing roar.An Fuyao called again: I was hit, the damn devil's Zero fighter... In the command tower of the air force base, the commander of the Chinese Air Force and Soviet officers such as Kirichenko clearly heard An Fu through radio loudspeakers. Yao shouted, everyone looked at each other in blank dismay... Then there was an explosion. Kirichenko slammed his fist on the table.The tower suddenly fell silent. As in recent times, the Soviet Air Force, which was about to return home, did not receive an order to participate in the war, which was already unbearable for Kirichenko.An Fuyao's last shout made him unable to restrain himself anymore. He pulled a Soviet captain beside him to the tower gate and said: Comrade Captain, if we don't send reinforcements, the Chinese Air Force will be finished!The Japanese have invested in Type Zero fighters, and the Chinese aircraft are no match at all! The captain also felt uncomfortable. After all, these people who were in a desperate situation in the air battle were all comrades who had shared life and death.But there was nothing he could do: what could I do?I didn't get an order. Kirichenko shouted: But you are the commander here, you can give orders! The captain shrugged: You know, I don't have that kind of authority. Kirichenko: Comrade Captain, we must go up!You don't need to give orders, I will be responsible for violating military discipline!If you don't speak, I will act immediately!I just need you not to talk! The captain still didn't speak, and his expression seemed a little tacit.Kirichenko turned excitedly and shouted to other Soviet pilots: Let's go up! Du Lanxiang, who was working in the cafeteria, looked up and saw Kirichenko and several Soviet pilots running towards the plane on the tarmac through the window.She found it strange because Kirichenko had told her that they would never take to the skies again until they returned home. Du Lanxiang ran out of the cafeteria and yelled at Kirichenko: Kirichenko!Kirichenko! Kirichenko heard Duranxiang's shout, looked back at her, and waved to her. Du Lanxiang: What are you doing? Kirichenko didn't answer, but just blew a kiss to Du Lanxiang from a distance.He ran to his plane, jumped on it, and sat in the cockpit.Before closing the cockpit, he looked back at Du Lanxiang again.She's running across the lawn, this way.Kirichenko's plane started up, taxied off the tarmac, then veered off the runway to take off and faded into the air. Du Lanxiang stopped on the lawn, staring blankly at the direction in which Kirichenko's plane disappeared. It was not until the afternoon that the sky became quiet.The Japanese planes had left Chongqing and returned. The heavy bombing and fierce air battles were over, and everything in the air force base became silent.There were hardly any people on the airfield, and like every fierce air battle, many fighters never made it back.The sun shone down blindingly, hot and silent.At the end of the runway at the airport, a Soviet fighter plane lay askew in the green grass outside the runway.The fighter jet was severely damaged, the fuselage was covered with large and small bullet holes, and black smoke was still coming out.However, no one paid any attention to it. This is the fighter jet that Kirichenko was flying. On the side of the airport, on the open space outside the base ambulance station not far from the base canteen and military club, a large piece of white sheets and bandages were drying, reflecting dazzling white light in the sun.Du Lanxiang flew over through the barrier-like sheets and bandages. Outside the door of an operating room in the ambulance, many soldiers had already gathered.Seeing Du Lanxiang suddenly appear here, Gu Guosong hurriedly grabbed her, trying to prevent her from entering the operating room.But Du Lanxiang shook him off vigorously, and rushed into the operating room regardless.Several doctors and nurses who were performing rescue operations in front of the operating table had to stop temporarily. Du Lanxiang rushed to the operating table and saw Kilichenko who was bloody and completely unconscious.In fact, Kirichenko is already unrecognizable from the outside, his entire head is wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, and his abdomen has been blasted open, from which doctors are trying to extract shrapnel.Du Lanxiang looked at Kirichenko, his eyes widened in horror, his lips trembled but he couldn't make a sound.Then her eyes moved to those doctors and nurses, her eyes were full of pleading. Kirichenko's eyes were tightly closed, lifeless. Outside the operating room, Gu Guosong and the Soviet soldiers stood there, quietly listening to the movement inside.Someone inside was talking in a low voice, in a very urgent tone, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps... After a moment of silence, Du Lanxiang's heart-piercing cry suddenly came out. The door of the operating room opened, and Kirichenko was still lying on the operating table, but his entire body was tightly covered by a white sheet.Du Lanxiang ran out of the operating room, broke away from Gu Guosong's arms that were trying to hold her, and rushed outside.She stumbled through the sheets and bandages hanging to dry in the clearing and disappeared at the far end of the runway. No one can stop her, comfort her. An Fuyao is dead, Kirichenko is dead, and many of the people who went up to fight with them never came back.This day is undoubtedly the most painful for the air force base.Even the glaring sunlight seemed to have become paler and more unbearable because of the pain.