Chapter 1: Encountering an Italian Cannon at the Start

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Chapter 1: Encountering the Italian Cannon at the Start

June 1939, a mass grave somewhere in northwest Shanxi. A young man of about twenty slowly awoke. He was gaunt, skeletal, his clothes tattered, bruises and old marks mottling his skin, with a large bump on his head.

“What’s going on? What happened? I clearly remember falling asleep at the embassy last night, so why have I woken up in the wild?” The young man’s face was filled with bewilderment.

“Why is there a bump on my head?”

“Huh? My big belly is gone?”

“Where are my glasses? Wait—my vision has recovered?”

...

A few minutes later, Wu Ze, rubbing the inexplicable bump on his head, finally pieced together his situation.

He had transmigrated into the world of “Drawing the Sword,” and was now in northwest Shanxi, 1939. Shinozuka Yoshio had already recklessly occupied most of Shanxi province, greatly shrinking the survival space for the anti-Japanese forces.

This frail twenty-year-old had died from a blow to the head, and Wu Ze had crossed over to inhabit his feeble body. Due to the head injury, his new memories were incomplete. He knew nothing of this body’s identity or background, nor did he care to find out. Clearly, this was a poor boy, discarded in a mass grave, forgotten like weeds by the roadside.

In this war-torn era, who would care who he was?

Wu Ze recalled the plot of the first episode of the “Drawing the Sword” TV series: the Battle of Cangyun Ridge would take place in February 1940. Li Yunlong, the commander of the New 1st Regiment of the 386th Brigade, would wipe out Sakata Shin Zhe with a single artillery shot, break through the encirclement head-on, and gain instant fame.

That meant there were still eight months until the Battle of Cangyun Ridge.

Wu Ze’s heart surged with excitement. He’d watched “Drawing the Sword” at least thirty times and held commander Li Yunlong in the highest esteem—unruly, fierce as fire, intolerant of evil, daring to go head-to-head with the powerful Japanese troops even when outmatched.

Many times, Wu Ze had dreamed at night of traveling back to the era of resistance, charging into battle with Li Yunlong, fiercely slaughtering the Japanese.

He never imagined it would actually come true. Now, he truly had the chance to find Li Yunlong’s New 1st Regiment.

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Despite this body’s frailty, Wu Ze’s spirits were undampened. He struggled to his feet; all around the mass grave lay countless scattered bones and corpses. Clouds of flies buzzed around the decaying bodies, making him nauseous. Gritting his teeth, Wu Ze forced himself to leave the mass grave, dragging his weak body away.

Rumble! Rumble!

He reached a stretch of road. In the distance, a truck and two motorcycles rumbled towards him. The truck was towing a cannon behind it, and a small Japanese flag fluttered above the headlights.

The men on the motorcycles wore steel helmets and yellow uniforms... Wu Ze’s eyes widened instantly—these were unmistakably Japanese soldiers.

Quickly, Wu Ze hid himself in the tall grass, his thin form completely concealed.

As the vehicles drew nearer, he could see ever more clearly—the fierce, murderous expression on the Japanese soldiers’ faces, the cold gleam of bayonets flashing in the sunlight.

Finally, Wu Ze’s gaze fixed on the cannon being towed behind the truck.

He recognized it: the French M1897 75mm field gun.

Developed in France in 1897, it was the world’s first artillery piece with a recoil mechanism, boasting a firing rate of 15 rounds per minute—far outpacing its contemporaries. It shone brilliantly in the First World War, with over 20,000 produced.

According to historical records, Italy had imported a batch of these guns from France during the First World War. After the war, the outdated pieces were sold to China, where they eventually surfaced on the resistance front.

Because Italian script was engraved on the barrels, some records referred to them as “Italian cannons.”

In the “Drawing the Sword” TV drama, Li Yunlong’s 2nd Battalion captured two of these French M1897 75mm guns at the Xiao Caozhuang stronghold, and the battalion commander called them “Italian cannons.”

Later, when Li Yunlong attacked Ping’an County, Special Forces Captain Yamamoto Kazuki took Li Yunlong’s wife Xiuqin hostage to buy time. Wanting to minimize casualties, Li Yunlong roared the classic line: “Second Battalion Commander, where the hell is my Italian cannon? Bring it here now!”

The “Italian cannon” joke quickly became a viral meme online, spawning endless variations—like “Bring my Italian pasta to Xiu'er,” and so on.

Now, watching this Italian cannon roll right past his eyes, Wu Ze felt a pang of regret.

If only he could find Li Yunlong immediately and help intercept this Italian cannon—it would be perfect.

On Cangyun Ridge, when Li Yunlong and Sakata’s regiment clashed head-on, he barely had a few mortars. If he’d had an Italian cannon, there’d have been no need for the entire regiment to charge and suffer heavy losses just to cover the mortars. They could have blasted Sakata Shin Zhe’s command post from afar with a single Italian shell.

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With the power of the Italian cannon, Li Yunlong’s victory at Cangyun Ridge would have been even more glorious.

Suddenly, the Japanese truck stopped in the middle of the road. Soldiers jumped out and quickly set up a perimeter. One of them opened the hood and began fiddling with tools—it looked like the truck had broken down.

Seeing this, Wu Ze’s regret only deepened.

A broken-down Japanese truck—this was the perfect chance for an ambush!

Unfortunately, he had just arrived in this world. Forget finding Li Yunlong, he didn’t even know where to begin searching for the Eighth Route Army.

Suppressing his regret, Wu Ze dared not linger. Quietly, he retreated further into the grass.

Finding a safe spot, he collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath. This body truly was in terrible shape.

As Wu Ze was resting, a stream of cursing drifted from behind him:

“Blind Cheng got lucky and captured a mortar, and now he’s strutting around like a rooster. He even wants to trade a few lousy rifles for Wang Chengzhu—what a joke! I’ve already secured autonomy from the brigade commander. Forget mortars—I’ll get myself a few real cannons. Then let’s see how Blind Cheng dares to show off in front of me!”

Blind Cheng?

Wang Chengzhu?

Hearing these names, Wu Ze’s memories surged. Blind Cheng was the commander of the 772nd Regiment of the 386th Brigade, a character from “Drawing the Sword,” whose relationship with Li Yunlong was anything but harmonious.

Wang Chengzhu was also a character from the series—Li Yunlong’s artilleryman. Li Yunlong’s fame at the Battle of Cangyun Ridge was thanks to Wang Chengzhu, who, with two shells, destroyed Sakata Shin Zhe’s command post.

The man swearing was most likely Li Yunlong himself.

Wu Ze turned to look. Sure enough, a medium-built Eighth Route Army officer with a slightly larger-than-average head, leading a platoon of soldiers, was passing by not far away.

The man’s appearance matched the descriptions perfectly—his demeanor and manner of cursing were spot on. Even from a distance, the air of wild, unyielding authority was unmistakable.

Wu Ze’s heart began to race. Had he just stumbled upon the real deal?

A new story begins—cast your monthly and recommendation votes!

(End of chapter)