Chapter 19: The Little Chubby Boy (Please Support with Votes)

Chapter 19: The Little Chubby One (Please Vote for Me)

Qiu Family Village

“Young master, the Eight Route Army has left the cemetery, which is strange. They didn’t disturb the old master’s tomb at all,” a puppet soldier reported to Qiu Yaozu, who was playing mahjong.

“Are you sure?” Qiu Yaozu was skeptical. Could it be that the Eight Route Army had changed their mind this time?

“Yes, they didn’t touch the old master’s tomb and have already withdrawn,” the soldier replied.

“Alright, I understand. I’ll inform Father immediately. Keep watching them,” Qiu Yaozu instructed.

“Yes, sir,” the soldier left.

“Father, the men just reported that the Eight Route Army didn’t disturb grandfather’s tomb—they’ve already retreated,” Qiu Yaozu shouted toward Qiu Daba’s room.

Qiu Daba came out, suspiciously asking, “Really?”

“Father, I guess it’s because the Eight Route Army knows that if they disturb the tomb, we won’t send troops, so they didn’t bother,” Qiu Yaozu suggested.

“I’ll go take a look,” Qiu Daba said, still uneasy.

After a while, Qiu Daba returned. “Strange, they really didn’t touch my father’s tomb.”

The next moment, Qiu Daba yanked Qiu Yaozu off his chair, “Move aside, Eight Thousand!”

He then returned to the mahjong table.

——

Three days later

Wanjiatun, north of Qiu Family Village

A group of children played games on the grass. Each child was well-nourished and wore clothes without patches, clearly from wealthy families.

In the occupied zone, wealth often meant collaboration with the Japanese.

These children either came from the household of the local headman or had family members working with the puppet army.

The children’s game was interrupted when an eight-year-old boy appeared.

This boy was Wang Erniu, a young assistant handpicked by Wu Ze from the Children’s Corps.

Wu Ze had learned about these children’s family backgrounds; some had close ties with Qiu Family Village.

If they wanted to infiltrate Qiu Family Village, starting with these families might be the breakthrough.

Of course, it was difficult to approach the adults directly.

But working through the children was much easier.

So, Wu Ze found a clever child from the Children’s Corps to mingle with these wealthy children.

Now, Wang Erniu had become one of them.

The moment Wang Erniu showed up, the children stopped playing and quickly gathered around him.

Wang Erniu took out some “chicken treats” to share.

Though their families were well-off, strict Japanese control limited their meat consumption.

Besides, cooking skills at the time were limited.

Wu Ze was a good cook and made the chicken irresistibly delicious. For children, winning over their taste buds and becoming their leader was easy.

“Delicious, so delicious!” they exclaimed.

“Yeah, it smells amazing, really amazing.”

“Our cook at home can’t make it this good.”

…

The children eagerly devoured the chicken, even trying to gnaw on the bones.

After playing some games with them, Wang Erniu prepared to leave.

He walked with a few children closely connected to Qiu Family Village and said, “I’m leaving Wanjiatun tomorrow. I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again.”

“Erniu, tell your father to stay in Wanjiatun a few more days,” the kids said reluctantly.

“Ah,” Wang Erniu sighed deliberately. “I don’t want to leave either, but my father works for the Imperial Army. There can be no delays, or he’ll be executed. You all know how ruthless the Imperial Army is.”

“Erniu, what will we do if we miss you?” The little chubby boy nearly cried. Wu Ze’s chicken was so delicious—once Wu Ze was gone, they might never taste it again.

“I’ll miss you all too. I’ll tell my father to come back to Wanjiatun,” Wang Erniu promised.

“Erniu, how do you make this chicken? Can you teach us?” asked the little chubby boy.

“The recipe is my secret. I can’t just share it,” Wang Erniu replied as Wu Ze had instructed, leading them on.

“I’ll trade you a secret I know,” the little chubby boy begged, too eager.

“Well…” Wang Erniu pretended to hesitate, lowering his head as if troubled, “if my father finds out I told someone the recipe, he definitely won’t forgive me.”

“Erniu, don’t worry. I promise I won’t tell anyone,” the little chubby boy swore.

The other children nodded in agreement: “Erniu, we promise not to tell.”

“Then, tell me a secret you know first,” Wang Erniu said.

“I’ll go first,” the little chubby boy looked around cautiously and said, “Do you all know about Qiu Family Village?”

“Of course. That’s the potato-farming village. The Eight Route Army has dug up Commander Qiu’s ancestral tomb many times, but Commander Qiu stubbornly refuses to send troops,” a child blurted out.

“Do you know why Commander Qiu never sends troops even when the Eight Route Army digs up his tomb?” the little chubby boy asked mysteriously.

“Maybe Commander Qiu is making contributions to the enemy.”

“The Eight Route Army has set traps outside. If he sends troops, they’d get ambushed.”

…

The children speculated.

“None of you are right. Erniu, what do you think?” The little chubby boy shook his head and looked at Wang Erniu.

“I’ve only been here three days; how would I know? I don’t even know where Qiu Family Village is,” Wang Erniu said, feigning ignorance but secretly thrilled.

Wu Ze had told him to get important intelligence about Qiu Family Village from these children.

Now, after three days, his efforts might bear fruit.

The little chubby boy said, “It’s because the tomb the Eight Route Army digs up every time isn’t Commander Qiu’s father’s tomb.”

Wang Erniu’s heart stirred instantly; this matched what Wu Ze had told him.

Wu Ze said that even when threatened with bayonets by Japanese soldiers, Qiu Daba never let them touch his father’s tomb.

Yet, each time the Eight Route Army dug there, Qiu Daba held back perfectly—an inconsistency Wu Ze saw as a clue.

A man who valued his father’s life more than his own would never tolerate his father’s tomb being disturbed.

Now hearing that the Eight Route Army never found the real tomb made sense.

Wang Erniu remained calm, but the other children immediately questioned, “How do you know that’s not Commander Qiu’s father’s tomb? Many people saw the burial that day.”

“Yes, many people saw the burial,” the little chubby boy said seriously. “But on the night of the burial, Commander Qiu secretly moved the body and replaced it with a substitute. By the time the Eight Route Army dug up the tomb later, the body had decomposed and was unidentifiable.”

“How do you know this?” Wang Erniu asked. “Don’t make things up. I heard from a feng shui master that once a body is buried, it shouldn’t be moved.”

(End of Chapter)