Chapter 440 Searching for missing clues

440

Tang Yue sat at the simple table in the command center. The dim light of the oil lamp swayed back and forth on the letter paper, making her furrowed brows and focused expression flicker.

The hand holding the pen tightened slightly, and she began to compose a letter to Teacher Kang.

She certainly wouldn't write directly to her mother, as she had a good idea of ​​how much her mother could understand. When the letter arrived, she would ask Commander Kang to inform her mother that she had arrived safely at the battlefield.

He wrote a long and eloquent letter, his handwriting neat and clear, seemingly ordinary, but with a hidden meaning. On the surface, it was a mourning for the sacrifice of his father and the battalion commander, the words sincere and sorrowful, but between the lines was a codeword that only Commander Kang could understand.

"The old locust tree at the entrance to the family compound has sprouted new buds. It seems the flowers will bloom especially early this year. I'd appreciate it if Commander Kang could ask someone to pick some and store them. She wants to be able to eat them when she returns."

It seemed like an ordinary family matter, hoping that Teacher Kang would understand her meaning. The old locust tree had died last year, and Teacher Kang should understand what she meant when he saw it. Shouldn't he?

Tang Yue poked her nose with her pen. She really didn't know if she and Teacher Kang had such a tacit understanding. These letters would go through layers of review before being sent back, so they couldn't be too explicit.

At the end of the letter, she also mentioned cryptically, "Please ask Teacher Kang to help look after a few friends she just met in Kyoto when you have time." Tang Yue sighed, hoping that Teacher Kang could understand what she meant.

After writing the letter, Tang Yue checked it over and over again to confirm that there were no flaws. Then she carefully folded the letter, put it in an envelope, and handed it to a reliable correspondent, repeatedly instructing him to deliver it to Teacher Kang personally.

After finishing the letter, Tang Yue took a deep breath, straightened her uniform, and headed for the commander's tent. She opened the curtains and saw a solemn atmosphere inside. The commander was hunched over a map of Bianyue, densely marked with red and blue dots. He looked up, saw Tang Yue, and nodded slightly, motioning for her to sit down.

"Chief, I want to find them." Tang Yue said in a firm tone, her eyes full of stubbornness.

The commander leaned back in his chair, staring at Tang Yue with a sharp gaze. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Comrade Xiao Tang, you should be aware that the current battlefield situation is very severe. I cannot dispatch anyone to accompany you at the moment."

"Thank you for your concern, Chief! But I don't need too many people. Having Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing following me is enough." Tang Yue answered without hesitation.

"Just two people? Comrade Tang Yue, this is not a joke." The leader spoke very seriously, as if trying to extinguish Tang Yue's idea.

Tang Yue insisted, "Commander, I'm not kidding. This is a battlefield, I'm a soldier, and every word I say is not only for myself, but also for my comrades."

However, Sun Jinan, Zhang Dabing, and I are really enough. Since the battalion commander and my father have used such a strategy, they definitely don't want to reveal that they are still alive. So even if we find someone now, we can't do it in a high-profile manner.

It's fine with just the three of us. Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing were both previously commanded by the battalion commander. They're familiar with his combat style and habits, and both have extensive combat experience. We have a good rapport now, and I'm sure we'll find some clues."

After leaving the commander's tent, Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing immediately came up to him. "Company Commander, how's it going? Did the commander agree?"

Tang Yue nodded, and Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing were very happy. Tang Yue was a little emotional now, because the leader had just said, "Your three brothers are also on the battlefield. They seem to be trying to escape every day to find your father's whereabouts.

Several times, the soldiers responsible for their safety were almost deceived by them."

Tang Yue thought that her brothers must still have concerns, otherwise, with their strength, they would not be able to escape the few soldiers responsible for protecting their safety. At the same time, Tang Yue also thought that Commander Kang had actually requested soldiers to protect the safety of her three brothers.

So, just now she had taken the trouble to contact her brothers and told them to stay on the battlefield and follow the main force without worry. She would take care of finding their father.

Sun Jinan didn't know what his company commander was thinking. "Company commander, the soldiers and I have already found out where the battalion commander and his men died. Should we go over and take a look?"

Tang Yue nodded. "The commander has already agreed to let the three of us act alone. From now on, let's separate from the main force."

Tang Yue, Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing followed a team heading to an area near their destination. After a long bumpy ride, they finally got off the car at the edge of the forest.

After saying goodbye to the team, the surroundings suddenly became quiet, with only the rustling sound of the mountain breeze passing through the treetops, as if someone was whispering.

Tang Yue casually looked at the dense forest that blocked out the sun in front of her. Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing tacitly protected her on her left and right, and the three of them stepped into the area.

I heard that the battalion commander and his men had received orders from headquarters to rush here from the southern battlefield to provide support. However, before they arrived, they encountered the American troops and a fierce battle broke out between the two sides. Later, Chang Yin and Tang Shengkai died in the battle.

The ground beneath their feet was damp and soft, and the dead branches and leaves made a crunching sound under their feet. They walked along a path half-hidden by weeds. Not long after they went, Tang Yue suddenly raised her hand to signal them to stop.

"Look here." She squatted down and pointed to several sets of footprints of varying depths on the ground. "These are the marks of military rubber shoes, produced in China. They are the same style as the ones we wear now." The footprints meandered deep into the mountains and forests, some of which were covered by fallen leaves. After carefully exploring forward for a while, these footprints emerged clearly again, as if guiding them forward.

Continuing forward, Sun Jinan suddenly pointed at a broken branch and exclaimed, "Company Commander, the end of this branch hasn't completely closed yet. It must have been broken more than ten days ago."

Tang Yue took a closer look. The wood fibers at the break had already dried and yellowed, but it was clear that it hadn't been there long. "Well, they might have been out of water at the time."

Looking in the direction of the branches, there seemed to be a trace of trampled areas in front, and the surrounding grass was tilted here and there, as if it had experienced a fierce fight.

Zhang Dabing carefully parted the grass and found several bullet casings. The surface still bore traces of burn marks from the intense heat, gleaming dark red in the sunlight. "These are the shells of our standard Chinese firearms," ​​he said after picking them up and examining them carefully.

The three of them followed these traces and groped through the forest for a long time. After an unknown amount of time, the trees ahead gradually thinned out, and in the distance, an ancient county town came into view.

Tang Yue looked back at the road they had just walked, then turned around to look at the county town. Sun Jinan took out the map in his arms and pointed to a mark on it.

"Company Commander, the county ahead is called Shanhe County. I heard this county is very superstitious. It's specially marked on the map. Don't deal with this county unless necessary."

Tang Yue raised an eyebrow. China had been very strict in suppressing superstition, but she hadn't expected it to be so prevalent in Bianyue. She was actually quite curious to see how superstitious those people were.

"That's where the traces disappeared."

Sun Jinan and Zhang Bing both nodded. Indeed, the only information they could find was that there was no information nearby.

Tang Yue continued to stare forward. The county wall was mottled and pitted, clearly bearing the brunt of time and the marks of war. Strange symbols and totems were painted all over it, and the gates were tightly closed, creating a mysterious and eerie atmosphere.

The sun gradually set in the west, its afterglow casting a psychedelic hue over this mysterious county town. Tang Yue wanted to send her consciousness outside to investigate, but she remembered something.

Tang Yue looked back at the two of them. "Since the battalion commander and my father disappeared around here, do you think it's possible that anyone in this city saw them?"

Sun Jinan and Zhang Dabing's eyes lit up. This was indeed a possibility. "Company Commander, look at the gates of their county town, they're tightly shut. It doesn't look like anyone is going to come out. Have they seen anything?"