The word "squadron leader" made Sun Xiaozhong burst into tears.
He hadn't heard this title for too many years.
During the War of Resistance against Japan, when the entire nation was in danger, the National Air Force changed from six planes to six planes to a squadron. In the end, as long as some squadrons still had two planes left, they would still be squadrons.
In the beginning, Sun Xiaozhong's squadron had 24 planes. When he was promoted to squadron leader, there were only seven planes left in the entire squadron. By the end of the war, there were only four planes left. Most of the pilots who were shot down did not survive. It was obvious how tragic the war was.
After the war, Sun Xiaozhong became a civilian and was separated from the original pilots in the squadron. Almost no one called him squadron leader anymore.
On the other end of the phone, Han Zili's face was also filled with hot tears. Memory loss was a kind of painless torture for older people. More and more people and things were being forgotten by him. When people asked him if he still remembered them or if he still remembered certain things, Han Zili always felt extremely disappointed because he really couldn't remember many people and things no matter how hard he racked his brain. This made him feel that he had let down many people.
Over the past few years, he couldn't remember much about the War of Resistance. There were many things he couldn't remember as much as his son. So when Sun Xiaozhong said the name, he couldn't remember the details of the name. However, the name seemed to be filled with a different meaning in his subconscious. This huge contradiction made him feel especially painful.
Fortunately, when Sun Xiaozhong said the unit number back then, the old man's struggling memory suddenly surged out. The scenes, the people, and the things that happened back then rushed to him like a tide. He knew that the voice on the other end of the phone was from the squadron leader Sun Xiaozhong. This made him extremely excited.
Han Zili thought he was dreaming. The old squadron leader Sun Xiaozhong who had disappeared for decades was actually calling him. He couldn't help but ask again, "Squadron leader, is that really you? I'm Zili. Are you really Sun Xiaozhong? "
"It's me, Zili! I'm Sun Xiaozhong! " Old Mr. Sun repeated over and over again. Then he wiped his tears and sighed, "50 years ago, I heard you went to Taiwan. In the end, the volunteers told me you were in Sichuan. How did you go to Sichuan?"
Old Mr. Han also choked and said, "I also heard that you gave up the opportunity to go to Taiwan. I was already in Taiwan at that time. I wanted to send you a telegram to persuade you to come, but they said that your regiment headquarters had all been withdrawn, so there was no way to contact you by telegram. I wrote several letters to you and asked people to send them to Yun Province, but they couldn't find you. At the end of 49, many pilots who went fled because they were homesick. I was also homesick, so I found an opportunity to escape at the end of 49 …"
Old Mr. Sun sighed. "You are really. If I were you, I wouldn't have dared to escape. If I were you, I, I'd be dead!"
Old Mister Han wiped his tears and said, "Old Captain, you're still the best. You gave up the chance to go to Taiwan for your wife and child. I wasn't strong-willed enough. I abandoned my wife and child and ran away.
You gave up the opportunity to go to Taiwan for your wife and child. I don't know when I can reunite with them. How can I accept that? That's why I said that you are amazing. You can see things more clearly than me … "
Old Mr. Sun nodded and suddenly fell silent in front of the phone. "That's right. At that time, they told me that they would bring my wife and child over to meet me. But when I went there, I realized that it was impossible for my wife and child to come over. At that time, I knew that I had been tricked. Staying there meant that I had to be separated from my wife and child. I didn't know when I would be able to reunite. How could I accept that?
Old Mr. Sun nodded and suddenly fell silent in front of the phone.
At this moment, Old Mr. Han's son hurriedly whispered a few words into his ear. Li Mu had spoken to him on the phone before. He needed Old Mr. Han's help in persuading the old man to leave the mountain.
After a minute or two of silence, Old Mr. Han said on the other end of the phone, "Captain, let's meet up! I don't know how long I can live. If I can see you before I die, I can die without regrets! "
Old Mr. Sun said without hesitation, "Yes. Yes. Give me an address. I'll go find you!"
"I'm not close to you, Captain!" Old Mr. Han said, "I heard from the volunteers that they will bring us old pilots to Spring City for a reunion. Let's just meet in Spring City. We can revisit old places before we die! Who knows, we might even be able to meet other old comrades! "
Old Mr. Sun said, "I just heard that Paul Crawford is still alive. He will be coming to Hua Xia soon. Do you still remember him?"
"Who is Paul Crawford? Why is his name so long? "Old Mr. Han hadn't completely recovered his memory, so he couldn't remember who this person was.
Old Mr. Sun said, "Have you forgotten? Paul, the American who flew the Flying Tigers' 99 Shark P-40. One time, your plane was damaged. I covered your retreat with him, and you even specially invited him for a drink after that. "
Old Mr. Han was stunned for a moment before he said with a sudden realization, "I remember the person you were talking about! He's still alive! "
Old Mr. Sun said with a smile, "Both of us aren't dead yet, so why can't he be alive?"
Old Mr. Han also smiled and said, "That's right. But we're already so old. This might really be the last time we meet. Old Captain, you have to be there!"
Old Mr. Sun immediately promised, "Don't worry, I'll definitely be there!"
When they heard this, everyone present heaved a sigh of relief.
It seemed that for the old man, his own body, better living conditions, and the fleeting hope of kinship couldn't make him leave this thatched hut. However, the confirmed comradeship had played a decisive role.
Liu Xinying excitedly turned her head and quietly wiped her tears. At the same time, she secretly glanced at Li Mu. No one thought that they would persuade the old man to go down the mountain by helping him find comrades. If Li Mu hadn't followed them, they might have reached an impasse at the end of the persuasion. In the end, the old man might still be unwilling to go down the mountain, and they could only retreat with their tails between their legs. Then, they would think of a way to help the old man find the whereabouts of his relatives and use kinship to persuade the old man.
At the same time that Li Mu heaved a sigh of relief, he suddenly felt stifled in his heart. He walked to Liu Xinying's side and whispered to her, "I'm going out for a smoke. Work harder on the old man and try to get him to agree to go with us today."
Liu Xinying nodded gently. Li Mu had already quietly retreated from the thatched hut. When he came out, he found that there were already dozens of villagers at the door. If Chen Chengwu hadn't asked a few soldiers to stop them, they would have probably rushed in to watch the show.
Walking in front of Chen Chengwu, Li Mu took out a cigarette and handed it to him. "Want one?"
Chen Chengwu looked at Li Mu in surprise. He smiled and asked, "Li Zong, you smoke too?"
Li Mu smiled slightly. "Occasionally. One pack a month."
Chen Chengwu nodded and took out a lighter to light Li Mu's cigarette. Li Mu was also very polite. He stretched out his right hand to cover the flame. After the cigarette was lit, he gently tapped on the back of his hand and thanked him.
Chen Chengwu was even more surprised. Smokers had their own rules. If someone lit a cigarette for you, you must protect the flame out of politeness. However, if the other party's status was obviously higher than him, it was understandable that he didn't protect the flame. In Chen Chengwu's view, with Li Mu's status, he was much higher than him, but he was still so polite. He really didn't expect that. This further increased his good impression of Li Mu.
Li Mu took a puff of his cigarette and slowly came out. Then he asked him, "Why are there so many villagers here?"
Chen Chengwu said, "The old village chief went door to door to inform the villagers. These villagers heard that the old master was an anti-Japanese hero, so they all wanted to come and see. The soldiers persuaded them with kind words, saying that they were recording the old master inside. They are waiting outside."
After that, Chen Chengwu asked Li Mu, "Did the old master agree to go down the mountain?"
Li Mu nodded. "He agreed. It was really not easy to persuade him!"
"I heard." Chen Chengwu said, "Earlier, I said that the old master was unwilling to go down the mountain and only wanted to stay here. How did you persuade him? Tell me about it. "
"Sigh, it's a long story." Li Mu said, "The cameraman has recorded it. When we get back, I will show it to you. I'm afraid you will cry after watching it."
Chen Chengwu said, "When the old man saluted us just now, I cried once. When I thought of the old hero who flew a plane in the sky to fight against the Japanese now living like this, I couldn't help but feel sad."
Speaking of this, Chen Chengwu looked at Li Mu and said seriously, "Li Zong, what you did is too meaningful. If it weren't for you, even I, a soldier, wouldn't have thought that there would be such a group of veterans living such a miserable life …"
Li Mu said, "My biggest wish is to let the whole society pay attention to the lives of these veterans in their later years. They not only need us to give them material help, but they also need us to give them enough recognition in spirit. The old people have done such great things, but no one cares about them for decades. Everything is hidden in their hearts. That kind of feeling is really sad."
Chen Chengwu nodded repeatedly, then asked, "By the way, can the old master come with us today?"
Li Mu said, "I'm asking Xinying to continue to work and see if she can persuade the old master to come with us today. It shouldn't be a big problem."
Chen Chengwu said, "This damn place can't even land a helicopter. I'm afraid that the old master will suffer a little if he comes with us. When we came, our soldiers prepared a folding stretcher. When the time comes, let's take turns to carry him out of the mountain."
Li Mu said, "Then I'll have to trouble you. If we can get out before dark, we'll rest in town for the night. Then, I'll ask Xinying to call an ambulance from Yun Province. Tomorrow morning, we'll take the old man directly to the hospital."
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