Chapter 92 91

The Japanese issued an air defense order, and every household had to cover their windows with black cloth. No one in Xiaoyangquan could afford the black cloth, so Inspector Bai and Fourth Master Li were worried.They didn't dare to disobey the orders from above, but they also knew that people who couldn't even wear clothes couldn't afford black cloth either. Inspector Bai sighed when he saw Fourth Master Li, and said, "I was just saying that extreme joy must lead to sorrow. Isn't this—every household has to cover the windows with black cloth." "Hmph—this time , I should be trained again."

"Hey—don't talk about that for now. What to do? This is the most important thing. If we can't get out the black cloth, how can we get along with each other?" "Dark the newspaper with ink—use it as a black cloth. When the Japanese come to check—well—everyone's windows are black anyway, so it's okay?" "You're right." , but where can I find the rice flour? Gonghe noodles are not sticky when beaten." "I'm trying to distribute a bucket of rice to everyone. It doesn't cost money. To be honest, it's just for nothing, and I can't help being scolded."

Inspector Bai immediately said: "I can't let you be scolded alone this time. I'll ask everyone to get the black cloth first. After that, you can talk about pasting the newspaper. Give everyone a share. I don't appreciate it, but I really don't know what's good." Fourth Master Li nodded. "It's not over yet." "What's the matter? It's not over!" Fourth Master Li yelled. Inspector Bai smiled. "You still have to tell everyone that if there is an air raid, the lights and stoves will be turned off in every house. No one will be allowed out of the house." "Bombs to kill everyone?"

Inspector Bai didn't answer the old man's complaints, but continued to talk about the orders from above. "Every household has to have someone stand guard outside the street door, and the door is not allowed to close during air raids. If there is no guard at home, you have to hire someone. The official price is three yuan an hour." "What kind of nonsense is this?" "If I understand, that's no wonder! You can't help but say that it would be easier for the Japanese to crash in if the street gates were left open, and you can arrest whoever you want."

"That's right. It's not for air defense at all, but for the convenience of catching people." Inspector Bai went to every household to inform the air defense.Wherever he went, there were complaints.But everyone thought again: "It seems that Japan is really bombed!" Then they became happy again. Fourth Master Li went to Cheng Changshun and asked him for old newspapers. Cheng Changshun said that he has old newspapers and rags, so he can just take whatever he wants. "Fourth grandpa, it's better to take a bundle of old newspapers instead of their families. I'm a small businessman. If everyone knows that I give it for free, they shouldn't take it. Is that the way it is?"

"You're right," Fourth Master Li nodded. "And the rags—if anyone wants them—I'll sell them for what they were bought for, not for nothing." Old man Li picked up a large bundle of newspapers, made a large bucket of pulp, and went to various households.Everyone was very grateful, even John Ding received what the old man brought. Only Yunmei didn't have the newspaper and pulp that Old Man Li had brought.She had already thought of using newspapers, and had already pasted up the windows.The newspaper was smeared black with ink. At ten o'clock at night, the air defense drill alarm sounded for the first time.Most of the people in the little sheep pen have gone to bed.

The adults were stunned, some couldn't find their clothes, and some wore the wrong shoes.The children woke up from their dreams, crying loudly.Everyone was confused, pushing and shoving, dragging their children and children, and swarmed into the yard together.Then I remembered the words of Inspector Bai: "When encountering an air raid, turn off the lights as soon as possible, sit in the room, and don't come out." Looking at the yard and the sky, they realized that even if they wanted to leave, there was nowhere to hide.The Japanese didn't dig an air-raid shelter at all, so everyone had to go back to the house and sit.

Ruixuan and Yunmei put on their clothes and got up, quietly walked to the yard, and greeted the neighbors in the Nanwu. "It's an air-raid siren—you don't care if you wake up." Then he went out of Grandpa's window and listened, and if the old man was still asleep, don't disturb him. Yunmei opened the street door and sat on the steps in front of the door, determined to wait until the alarm was lifted.She was not willing to ask Ruixuan to guard the street gate, because he had classes the next day; nor was she willing to pay three yuan an hour to hire someone to guard for her.

Ruixuan walked to the door to see her, and she kept saying, "Go back to sleep." "I'll stand here for a while, and after a while, you will replace me. Who knows how many hours this will be?" Woolen cloth!" "You'd better go to sleep, I can't sleep anyway." As he spoke, he saw the Japanese on No. 3 quietly and quickly walk out of the gate, like a thief, slipping from the base of the wall to the street. "What are they going to do?" Yunmei lowered her voice and asked. "They have to stay in the air-raid shelter. Hmph!" Ruixuan stood quietly for a while, then walked back to the yard.

In the darkness, Yunmei could see slowly by her figure and the sound of coughing, that standing at the gate of Fourth Master Li was his fat son, Cheng Changshun was standing outside Widow Ma's gate, and John Ding was standing outside gate number six.No one said anything. After more than half an hour, there was no movement at all, and old man Qi also came out. "What's the matter? There's nothing wrong, you better come in!" "You go back to the house and rest, Grandpa. I have to watch here, maybe the Japanese will come to investigate!" Yun Mei talked badly and persuaded the old man to go back.Yunmei really had a good idea.The gendarmes and policemen in the whole city were mobilized and went door-to-door to check.It was just an air defense exercise, but the Japanese did it like the real thing.They went all out to stay up all night, and they had to toss all the people in Peiping, telling them to turn off the lights and stoves, and sit in the house and not come out.In this way, the Japanese can evacuate to a safe area smoothly, and the Japanese home will not be robbed.They did come.When Yunmei saw four figures running towards Xitou, she quickly stood up.The two tall ones, she reckoned to be Li Siye and Bai Inspector, and the two short ones were Japanese devils.

They walked past doors No. 1 and No. 3, and went straight to Yunmei.She dodged to the side and said nothing.Fourth Master Li and Inspector Bai did not speak, and followed the Japanese into the yard. No lights, no fire.The Japanese took flashlights and illuminated every window, and it was dark.They come out. Six was right. Walking to No. 7 courtyard, Fourth Master Li and Inspector Bai were both sweating.The situation is not bad.Every household is in darkness—the people living in No. 7 have no lamp oil or coal at all. The gendarme shined the light on the window with a flashlight, and Inspector Bai was so frightened that he broke into sweat.At least three families did not black out their windows.Fourth Master Li couldn't help cursing out loud: "Damn it—! I even gave the pulp, why..." Inspector Bai knew that things were getting serious.For this, he had to lose his job.He hurriedly asked angrily, "Why didn't you paste the windows? Why? Didn't Fourth Master Li tell and tell me?" He said this to the people on No. 7, but he mainly said it to the Japanese. So that he can clean himself and Fourth Master Li. "I'm really sorry," said a woman standing aside pitifully, "the child ate the pulp, Inspector Bai, please say something nice to us, the children have never seen white flour all year round." Inspector Bai was speechless. The Japanese military police don't know much Chinese, so they couldn't understand what the woman was saying.He didn't distinguish between black and white, and gave Fourth Master Li two mouths as soon as he went up. Fourth Master Li was stunned.Although he had to walk around the streets and deal with all kinds of people in order to live, he had never fought with anyone; if he saw someone fighting, no matter whether they were holding sticks or knives, he would take the risk of killing them. pull away. His lungs exploded.He forgot that he had always opposed the use of force and his prudent philosophy of life. He only saw two animals standing in front of him, and he dared to beat even an old man with a white beard.He was calm and unhurried, without saying a word, he raised his hand and looked at the Japanese face all at once.He suddenly felt very happy and proud.He didn't make a sound, and put all his energy into his fists. The military police's big leather boots kicked old man Li's legs fiercely, and the old man fell down. Inspector Bai didn't dare to stop him, he wanted to rescue his old partner, but he couldn't afford to offend those two wild beasts. No one in the courtyard moved.The old man grabbed a gendarme by the leg and dragged him to the ground, and the two rolled into a ball in the yard. Another gendarme, following the rolling man around, looked for the right opportunity, and hit the old man's temple, and the old man stopped moving all of a sudden. The two gendarmes stopped and asked Inspector Bai to arrest all the residents who hadn't glued the windows tightly and put them in jail. The gendarmerie and Inspector Bai had left, and the people in the yard surrounded Fourth Master Li like a swarm.Since he became the head of the village, he has received many scolding from them.It is poverty that compels them to curse for no reason.Now, for them, he could not get up from bed.Everyone cried. Everyone carried Fourth Master Li home, but Fourth Master did not know anything about him for more than two hours.Although the alarm had not been lifted, the four mothers ignored everything and cried loudly for a long time.She lit a fire and boiled water for the old man to drink.The people in Xiaoyangpen completely forgot about the alarm and came in and out to see Fourth Master Li. The alarm was lifted at two o'clock in the morning.Old man Qi didn't fall asleep.After a while, he came out to see Yunmei, and then went back to his room to lie down. Yunmei put on a ragged padded jacket and leaned against the door frame, or she would just sit half awake and half asleep on the steps in front of the door.She wanted to see Fourth Master Li very much, but she dared not leave.Whether there was an air raid or not, she had to stick to her post.In any case, don't cause trouble for your family. A few minutes before the alarm was lifted, No. 3's Japanese, Ka Ka Gua, came back home with a laugh, and Yun Mei knew it was almost over. As soon as the all-alarm signal sounded, Yunmei immediately ran to Li's house, with Old Man Qi following behind her.Fourth Master Li opened his eyes and looked at them, then closed them again.No one could find words to comfort him.Old man Qi wanted to cry loudly when he saw his old partner lying on the bed half dead. "Grandpa, shall we go back?" Yunmei quietly asked her grandfather. Old man Qi nodded, and with her help, he went home. Three days later, Fourth Master Li was still unconscious.Finally, he opened his eyes, looked at his wife, looked at the family members, slowly closed his eyes, and never opened them again. Although the four mothers couldn't provide anything to entertain the mourners, the wake and funeral were still done according to the rules.People who have never benefited from the Li family knew that fourth master was an honest person, so they all came to kowtow three times.Those who benefited from him cried very sadly and poured wine to make a libation.The person who took advantage of him and often scolded him also came to cry, taking the opportunity to confide in his troubles and misfortunes, and scolded himself for being unfair to the old man. Old Man Qi cried very sadly.Both he and Fourth Master Li are the elders of Xiaoyangpen.In terms of age, experience and disposition, they are about the same.Although they are not relatives, they have been on par with siblings for many years.Once Fourth Master Li died, no one in the whole street, or the whole world, would be able to understand Old Man Qi's rotten sesame.They have known each other for a lifetime. Li Siye's funeral was held in such a way that many people came.Those big guys with crooked necks, those with big houses, as well as the voiceless drummers and deacons, all have friendship with him.They wore filial piety; sincerely came to send this old friend, and sent him out of the city.They couldn't avenge him, they could only express their hearts with sacrifices, blowing, funeral and friendship, and sent him to the cemetery all the way to let him rest in peace.Let's hope the Japanese don't dig up his bones.The Japanese dug countless graves to build airports and roads.