Hibiskus als Gemälde

Kapitel 24

“We need a vehicle,” Elder Anxi said.

“Okay,” Elder Ao readily agreed, and ordered the soldiers, “Go get a car and give them a ride.”

Before long, an American convertible jeep rumbled along, billowing black smoke. It was an old vehicle left over from the Vietnam War, but its off-road performance was still top-notch.

Elder Anxi instructed the Left Protector to remove the People's Army driver from the vehicle, and the Protector himself drove. The entire group squeezed into the car. "Brigade Commander Yang, please lead the way," the Elder ordered.

The jeep spewed out a large cloud of black smoke and rumbled away from the old street barracks, while Dudu circled and followed in mid-air.

Old Ao went back into the house, picked up the telephone, and connected with the Kokang front-line commander.

"Yes, an American Jeep. Brigade Commander Yang Kunming of the county brigade is being held hostage in the car. Note that there is an old man with an unusually ugly appearance among them. You must capture this man alive, and do not harm him in the slightest... If you can save Brigade Commander Yang, do so. Shoot the rest of them. This is the instruction from Vice Chairman Deqin Peiding." Old Ao said coldly into the microphone.

Chapter 32, Part 3

On August 19, 1980, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Burma established an organization codenamed "8.19," headed by Vice Chairman Thakin Pe Tin. The establishment of this department marked the legalization of the Communist Party of Burma's opium trade and drug processing, with the enormous profits from drugs becoming a significant source of funding for the party. Prior to this, refined heroin had never been found in the Yunnan border region between China and Myanmar. A small number of addicts remaining from the 1950s primarily used opium. Because opium paste had a strong odor and was easily detected, and smoking opium was relatively troublesome, young people did not use drugs.

After its establishment, the "8.19" group set up over eighty arsenic processing plants in various locations along the China-Myanmar border, including Bangsai, Guigai, Menggu, Kokang, Jingbei, Northern Wa, Southern Wa, and Jielan. Refining one kilogram of arsenic required 7.5 kilograms of opium. The purchase price for each kilogram of opium was 13 "lao liens," the currency of the Communist Party of Burma's liberated areas, equivalent to approximately 10 yuan. Therefore, one kilogram of opium was purchased for 130 yuan. The "8.19" group, led by Thakin Pa Thein, collected forty to fifty tons of opium annually. After processing it into arsenic, each kilogram could be sold for 5,000 yuan on the Thai-Myanmar border, generating substantial profits. Consequently, from the central to the local levels, almost all leaders of the Communist Party of Burma, except for the General Secretary Thakin Pa Thein Tin, were drawn into the murky currents of drug processing and trade. The members of the "8.19" department were mostly relatives of the party's leading cadres. They engaged in both public and private interests and enriched themselves, which led to the demoralization of the People's Army and weakened its combat effectiveness. Under the government army's encirclement and suppression, the Communist Party of Burma suffered repeated defeats. Several years later, the Communist Party of Burma finally collapsed due to corruption.

At that time, Ao Lao was one of the people in charge of "8.19". He held a high position and great power. Most of the commanders of the People's Army districts listened to him. Therefore, with just one phone call, the commander of the Kokang southern front, Brigade Commander Mang Sa, immediately deployed soldiers to intercept the jeeps at Manse Pass.

In the towering mountains of northern Myanmar, an American jeep travels along a rugged and bumpy mountain road, while the tug-tug continues to circle overhead.

“Xiaoxiao, bring the big parrot down. This old monk has something to say,” Elder Anxi said.

"Beep beep..." Shen Caihua waved his hands in the air.

Dudu swooped down and glided gracefully onto the jeep, stammering, "Is...is something wrong?"

Elder Anxi said, "Divine Bird, could you go along the road to scout out the situation and come back to tell me immediately?"

Dudu nodded, glancing at Caihua.

"Dudu, you should go quickly," Shen Caihua said, pointing ahead.

The large parrot flapped its wings and soared into the air, then flew rapidly southward toward the road, soon becoming just a tiny black dot.

At the Manse Pass, Brigade Commander Mangsa and dozens of soldiers had already set up a roadblock—a thick log lay across the middle of the road. He glanced at his watch and estimated that it should be about time.

He raised his binoculars, stood by the roadside, and observed the situation in the distance.

A small black dot appeared in the camera's view, getting closer and closer until he could finally see it clearly: it was a large bird with blue feathers, shimmering like a sapphire in the setting sun.

"This bird is so beautiful, I've never seen anything like it before..." he couldn't help but exclaim.

"Brigadier, should I shoot it down?" A soldier raised his gun.

“No, how can we bear to destroy such a beautiful life…” Mangsa reached out to stop him, muttering to himself.

The large blue bird circled above their heads a few times, and seeing that there was no danger, it slowly landed on a large banyan tree by the roadside, hiding its body behind the trunk. Then it quietly peeked out and looked this way, which made the soldiers laugh.

Chapter 33, Part 1

Subtropical forests are home to many kinds of Asian parrots, especially cockatoos, which often flock together, but they are all small. The soldiers were amazed when they saw such huge South American blue-and-white macaws for the first time.

"Parrot, parrot, what time is it?" a nosy soldier asked, looking up at the tree. Usually, the more intelligent parrots would answer, but not accurately.

"Who...who are you?" The blue bird actually started speaking Mandarin Chinese.

The soldiers under the tree who understood Chinese were all speechless with astonishment. Although they all knew that parrots could mimic human speech, they had never heard of one with such a clear and pure accent.

Surprised, Mangsa replied in Chinese, "I am Brigade Commander Mangsa."

The big blue bird then asked, "What...what are you doing here?"

"We're ambushing..." the soldiers said with a jumble of laughter.

"Ambush? Ambush...ambush whom?" the big blue bird pressed.

The soldiers were overjoyed to see that this adorable parrot actually had thoughts and could converse with them, and they all rushed to talk to it.

“We’re ambushing a car here,” they told the truth.

"Is it a... a jeep?" Big Blue Bird asked.

"That's right, it's an old American Jeep, the Bluebird is really smart." The soldiers gave it a thumbs up in praise.

"Big parrot, how did you know it was a jeep?" Mangsa laughed, then became wary.

"I...I saw it from over there," the big blue bird stammered.

"Really?" Mangsa immediately tensed up and hurriedly asked, "Where did you see it? How far away is it from here?"

"No, not far, what... what do you want?" the big blue bird asked warily.

"Brothers, take cover immediately. Wait until the jeep stops in front of the roadblock and the men get out to move the logs, then fire on my command. Be careful, there's an ugly old man in the jeep. Orders from above not to harm him, or you'll be court-martialed. Also, Brigade Commander Yang from the county detachment is being held hostage in the jeep. Keep your guns out of their way, don't kill him too, understand?" Mangsa issued the battle orders.

The soldiers each chose advantageous positions and hid in the bushes.

When Mangsa looked up at the banyan tree again, the big blue bird was gone.

Dust rose from the distant highway as the American jeep came into view. Mangsa drew his Type 54 military pistol from his waist and hid behind a banyan tree. The sound of bolts being pulled back and chambered came from the bushes; the battle was about to begin.

The jeep sped along the highway, kicking up clouds of dust behind it.

In a panic, Dudu plummeted headfirst from mid-air, crying out, "Oh no, oh no! There's an ambush ahead!"

"Divine bird, quickly tell this old monk, what did you see?" Elder Anxi asked urgently.

"The commander of the Mangsa Brigade, he's with several...dozens of men, and they want to...kill us, but leave...the old beggar and him alone." Dudu said breathlessly, pointing at Yang Kunming with her paw.

Elder Anxi looked into the distance, pondered for a moment, and then decisively said, "Let's abandon the carriage and walk."

The jeep stopped, Elder Anxi pulled Shen Caihua along, Elder Peng escorted Yang Kunming, and the two protectors led the old beggar. The group hurriedly disappeared into the primeval forest beside the road.

Chapter 33, Part 2

Mangsa raised his binoculars and saw the jeep parked by the roadside. About six or seven people got out of the vehicle and walked into the primeval forest. Because of the distance, he could not see their faces clearly. One of them was wearing a grass-green military uniform, and his figure resembled that of Brigade Commander Yang of the Kokang County Detachment.

"Damn it, they've gone into the dense forest! Go after them!" Mangsa shouted angrily.

The soldiers emerged from the bushes and, led by Mangsa, ran along the road toward the jeeps in the distance.

Before long, they arrived at the jeep, which was now empty.

Just then, dust rose again on the north road, and a grass-green Changjiang 750 sidecar motorcycle sped towards them. When it got closer, Mang Sa saw clearly that sitting in the sidecar was a fat old man with white hair and a long beard, dressed as a Ming Dynasty scholar. It was none other than Ao Lao from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Burma's 8.19 Department.

"Old Master Ao, we set up an ambush at the Manse Pass ahead, but the cunning enemy abandoned their vehicle and fled into the dense forest..."

"Hmm," Old Ao got off the motorcycle, stared at the vast primeval forest in front of him with his round, goldfish-like eyes, and said in a hoarse voice, "These people are all skilled in martial arts, but after all, they are holding Commander Yang hostage and also have a child with them, so they can't go very fast. We need to intercept them before the enemy reaches the Enmai River, otherwise they will enter the enemy-occupied area if they go down the river."

"Yes, Elder Ao. You should go back and await good news," Mangsa said humbly.

"No, I want to go with you to pursue the enemy," Elder Ao said resolutely.

With a wave of his hand, Mangsa sent dozens of soldiers, armed with submachine guns, into the primeval forest. Old Ao declined Mangsa's offer to help him up, and instead, leaning on a purplish-red cane, limped along behind the group.

Mangsa originally thought that Elder Ao was old and not very agile, which would slow down the team's progress. However, he was completely wrong. Elder Ao was leaping forward with his cane, each leap covering one or two meters. When dodging obstacles such as branches, thorns and vines in the dense forest, he was extremely agile. Mangsa had to work hard to keep up with him.

"Old Ao, are the enemies in the jeep from the government forces?" Mangsa asked cautiously. It was the commander's duty to find out the enemy's background.

Old Ao glanced at him and said indifferently, "They are a group of monks. They don't have any weapons, but their martial arts skills are very high."

Upon hearing that the enemy was unarmed, Mangsa felt relieved and immediately informed his men, ordering them to speed up their pursuit.

In the primeval tropical rainforest, towering trees block out the sun, and because they cannot see the sunlight, the shrubs on the ground grow sparsely. The ground is damp and muddy, covered with dark green moss, and the stuffy air carries a faint fishy smell.

The soldiers of Mangsa were all native mountain people who were very familiar with the tropical rainforest, so they were able to accurately track the enemy based on the slight footprints and other traces left on the ground.

Just then, the procession in front suddenly stopped, and Mangsa quickly stepped forward to see what was going on. He glimpsed a person bound under a tall jackfruit tree not far away, looking at him dejectedly.

"Commander Yang!" Mangsa quickly stepped forward to untie him.

Old Ao stood in front of Yang Kunming, leaning on his cane, a slight smile on his face.

“Elder Ao…” Yang Kunming’s face flushed red, and he lowered his head.

Chapter 33, Part 3

“We set up an ambush at the Manse Pass, but we didn’t expect you to get off the bus ahead of time…” Mangsa said regretfully.

"It's that big parrot, the talking parrot. It ran back and told the old monk that there was an ambush ahead, and it even mentioned Commander Mang's name," Yang Kunming said with a wry smile.

"Damn it!" Mangsa suddenly realized, stamping his feet in frustration.

"Haha, this is indeed interesting. This big parrot is a real treasure, an excellent scout," Old Ao chuckled.

"The more beautiful the appearance, the more unpredictable the heart. Next time I see a big parrot, I'll just shoot it down," Mangsa said indignantly.

"No, I must find a way to capture it and train it to serve us. It can also become another secret weapon of our Party," Old Ao muttered thoughtfully.

"Keep moving forward," Mansard ordered his soldiers.

"Shh..." Old Ao suddenly smiled mysteriously and said in a low voice, "It's here. You all cooperate with me to put on a show. Be careful not to look around, lest the big parrot notices."

Next to it stood a tall, towering Hopea tree with large, dense foliage. Many thick, wrist-sized chicken blood vines hung haphazardly from its trunk, and its massive, buttress roots were covered in moss. On a branch more than ten meters high, clusters of unknown, dark green plants grew parasitically. From among the tangled branches and leaves, a small blue head and a huge, curved beak peeked out, its two eyes anxiously watching below, eavesdropping on their conversation.

Old Man Ao pounded his lame leg and said loudly to the two brigade commanders, "I need to rest for a bit. You two lead the soldiers and continue forward. I'll study this map of the dense forest more carefully. Without this map, no one can get out." After saying that, he winked at them, sat down on the ground, took out a colorful picture from his pocket, and began to study it intently. The two brigade commanders, Mang and Yang, then led their soldiers to search ahead.

"Ha, so this is the hidden forest path! It's so well hidden and hard to find. It's a good thing the old monks didn't know... Sigh, I'm really tired and need to take a nap." Old Ao said loudly, then yawned several times, closed his eyes and lay down on the ground, leaving the "map" lying carelessly beside him.

A moment later, Old Man Ao started snoring, his snores were loud as thunder.

High up in the Hopea tree, Dudu pondered. The old monk had released Commander Yang, instructing him to hide in the tree and eavesdrop on the conversation between the pursuers and him, to gather intelligence on the enemy. Now, by chance, he had discovered Old Ao's map of the dense forest. This was a rare opportunity; if he could steal it back, it would be a great achievement, bringing honor to himself and his young master.

With this in mind, eager to make a name for itself, Dudu glided down silently, flew to the top of the "map," and swiftly reached out with its sharp claws to grab it...

With a whoosh, the wind suddenly rose, and Old Man Ao suddenly flipped over, grabbing Dudu's wings with both hands...

"Haha, just as I expected, the big parrot is easily captured!" Old Ao said happily, holding the parrot's wings with one hand and its neck with the other to prevent it from spitting at him with its large beak.

The large parrot struggled desperately, but Old Ao's grip was extremely strong, tearing out several feathers, yet it still couldn't break free.

"It's all over... I'm definitely going to die this time," Dudu thought sadly.

Chapter 34, Part 1

Deep in the primeval forest, after abandoning the hostage Commander Yang, the remaining few were all highly skilled in martial arts. Elder Peng carried Shen Caihua on his back, while the two protectors supported the old beggar. They followed behind Elder Anxi, heading straight southeast at a significantly faster pace.