Chapter 5, Imprisoned in the Japanese Mainland

The so-called cell is merely a large room, which contains a big bunk that can accommodate hundreds of people. When Lin Fei entered the cell, he discovered that there were already quite a few prisoners of war inside. Each of them was dressed in tattered Qing military uniforms, with their braids hastily tied atop their heads, all curiously observing Lin Fei and the others.

Lin Fei nodded and said, "My name is Lin Fei, the gunner of the Zhiyuan ship. How were you captured?"

Several hours passed in the blink of an eye, yet no one came to take them ashore. The ship had been stationary for an unknown duration, and when it set sail again, the journey lasted even longer. Judging by the number of meal deliveries, it took a full five days before the ship finally came to a slow stop at a port.

Liu Daming also said: "Old Lin, I trust you, and I will listen to you."

At this moment, Li Ming asked, "My lord, how were you captured?"

Lin Fei hurriedly said: "Alright, stop arguing. Old Liu, if we are to die, we must take a few with us, so we cannot die now. Old Yu, just because we cannot escape now does not mean we will never escape. When it comes to fleeing, you all must listen to me."

Li Ming said: "On June 23, we took a transport ship to Korea, but halfway there, we were attacked by a pirate cannonboat. Our ship sank, most of my brothers died, and after we fell into the water, we were captured by the pirates"

At this moment, the prisoners of war also gathered around, each offering their advice to Lin Fei and the others: "You must not think about escaping; it is futile. There is at least one company of Japanese soldiers guarding outside, around two hundred of them, and there are large forces nearby, all armed with guns. If we attempt to escape, it will only lead to certain death"

Li Ming said: "It's about the same. Aoki Ryo and I are tasked with unloading the ships at the dock. Sometimes they are military ships, and the little devils find unloading too tiring and don't want to do it, so they let us handle it; other times they are civilian ships, and the shipowners give Aoki Ryo some money, and Aoki Ryo allows us to unload for them"

Yu Xier also nodded gently, and the sailors on the Zhiyuan ship responded in unison

Lin Fei and the others were escorted out of the crowd, and the Japanese civilians followed for a while before slowly dispersing. After walking for about ten more minutes, they stopped outside a large courtyard. The courtyard was surrounded by walls five to six meters high, topped with barbed wire. There was only a small door on the wall, wide enough for two people to walk side by side. A row of Japanese soldiers stood outside the small door. Lin Fei thought to himself: "This should be the prisoner of war camp."

The words of the prisoners of war left the sailors on the Zhiyuan ship somewhat disheartened. Liu Daming, however, said fiercely, "If I can't escape, I will fight the little devils to the death, I would rather die than endure their torment." Yu Xier, on the other hand, spoke in a mystical manner about "Judgment Day" and "redemption." Lin Fei, observing everyone in this state, thought to himself, "If they all hold this mindset, even if an opportunity arises, they won't be able to escape."

Li Ming spoke: "You are the superior officer, we will follow your orders." The infantry prisoners of war responded in unison

Lin Fei said: "Based on the distance calculated, we should have arrived at the Japanese mainland, but I do not know which port exactly."

Lin Fei thought to himself: "Liu Daming is the torpedo first officer. In this era, the range of torpedoes is extremely short, and those who operate torpedo boats must possess a fearless spirit. Indeed, Liu Daming is a fearless fellow!"

Yu Xier and Liu Daming looked at Lin Fei, both nodding. Lin Fei said: "The Japanese army's defenses are strict. The only thing we can do is to conserve our strength and wait for an opportunity. Moreover, we should avoid conflict with the Japanese guards, as this will allow us to lull them into complacency and facilitate our escape"

Upon hearing Lin Fei's words, everyone returned to their bunks, either sitting or lying down. Lin Fei also lay on his own bunk, feeling a sense of confusion in his heart, as the Japanese army's defenses were too strict, leaving him with no means of escape. His remarks were merely intended to boost morale.

Lin Fei was the first to descend the gangway, followed by Yu Xier and Liu Daming, with ten captured sailors bringing up the rear. Each sailor bore injuries on their faces, evidently inflicted by Japanese soldiers. The Japanese soldiers escorted Lin Fei and the others out of the crowd, and as they passed by, the Japanese civilians erupted in mocking laughter, while children picked up stones to throw at Lin Fei and the others

As the crowd shook their heads in disbelief, Lin Fei's gaze sharpened, and he said: "As long as everyone follows my lead, I can guide you all to safety!" The crowd looked at Lin Fei with a mix of skepticism and hope. Lin Fei then asked: "Please give me a straightforward answer, do you believe me or not?"

Lin Fei gently shook his head and said, "It's hard to say, let's wait a bit longer."

Liu Daming exclaimed, "What? We have reached the Japanese mainland! Does that not mean we have even less chance of escaping?"

Liu Daming jumped up with a start at Lin Fei's words, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Nonsense! We cannot surrender to the little devils! What I mean to say is, we should find an opportunity to die! What was that saying? Better to be a shattered jade than a complete tile. Today, let us act as shattered jade!"

At this moment, a Japanese officer emerged from the prisoner of war camp, holding the rank of captain. This officer was tall and handsome, carrying a whip as thick as a thumb, which was entirely black, stained with an unknown amount of blood. The officer approached Lin Fei and the others, and while tapping the whip with his hand, he spoke in fluent Chinese: "Chinese pig-tailed slaves, starting today, I am your chief guard. My name is Aoki Ryohe. Let me first explain the rules of the prisoner of war camp to you. If any of you dare to violate them, do you see the whip in my hand..."

Lin Fei looked at the sky and noticed that there was still plenty of time before the gathering time for getting up, so he asked Li Ming: "What is going on?"

At this moment, a middle-aged man walked out from among the prisoners of war. He approached Lin Fei, bowed respectfully, and said: "My name is Li Dong, and I am also a soldier. Due to my age, I understand many things. The brothers all call me 'Li Mingbai', as I am the leader among them. May I ask your esteemed surname and name, Sir?"

Lin Fei was moved by Li Mingbai's words. The "June 23" mentioned by Li Mingbai corresponds to July 25, 1894, in the Gregorian calendar. On this day, Japan instigated the Battle of Fengshan, launching a surprise attack on the Qing army's transport ships. Of the more than nine hundred soldiers on the transport ships, over two hundred were captured, while the rest perished. The captured Qing soldiers were imprisoned in Nagasaki, Japan, enduring severe torture and mistreatment. It seems that he is currently in Nagasaki, Japan.

Liu Daming's eyes lit up as he said, "Then will they take us ashore? Do we have a chance to escape?"

Lin Fei recounted the events of the naval battle, and upon hearing that the Zhiyuan ship had sunk the Yoshino ship, the faces of the captured soldiers, previously pale, brightened with smiles. At this moment, Liu Daming said to Lin Fei: "Old Lin, you just saw the guards at the prisoner camp; not even a bird can fly out. How are we supposed to escape?"

At that moment, the hatch opened, and an officer appeared at the door, shouting in Chinese: "Come out, come out, disembark, disembark!" Following this, several Japanese soldiers entered, brandishing rifles with bayonets, and escorted Lin Fei and the others out of the cabin. As Lin Fei stepped onto the deck and looked down, he saw that the ship had docked at a pier. A row of armed Japanese soldiers stood on the pier, and the area was filled with men and women in kimonos, all curiously gazing up at the ship. Upon seeing the Japanese soldiers escorting Lin Fei out, a wave of cheers erupted.

Lin Fei let out a light sigh; once they reached the Japanese mainland, they would need to escape by boat. However, as prisoners of war, where could they find a ship? The hope of escape seemed even more remote. Were they truly destined to endure humiliation and abuse in the Japanese prisoner of war camp until the end of the First Sino-Japanese War?

Although Lin Fei thought this way, he comforted Liu Daming, saying, "Don't think like that, we will find an opportunity."

Yu Xier said on one side: "Mr. Torpedo First Officer, please do not speak of suicide. Our lives are given by God Jehovah, and only He can take our lives away. Suicide is a sin..."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Although Yu Xier and Liu Daming were of the same rank as Lin Fei, they had no objections. Lin Fei continued, "I tell you all, I have a way to lead everyone to escape. Do you believe me?"

Then Lin Fei cleared his throat and said, "Brothers, listen to me." The crowd quieted down, and Lin Fei continued, "In this matter, my official position is the highest, isn't it?"

Lin Fei asked: "What does it mean to do hard labor? Is it about working?"

Li Ming said: "Surely we will have to go and do hard labor again"

The sailors of the Zhiyuan ship are also watching them. Lin Fei stepped forward and said: "Brothers, who among you is the leader?"

Yu Xier's faith was insulted by Liu Daming, and he stood up abruptly, saying angrily: "When the Day of Judgment arrives, all the dead and the living will face the judgment of God Jehovah. I will attain eternal life, and those who strike me, the Japanese, will go to hell"

Before Lin Fei could speak, Li Ming said: "My lord, you must not think of escaping. The chief guard of the prisoner-of-war camp is that demon named Qingmu Lianghe, who delights in tormenting people. You have seen the whip in his hand; many brothers have been beaten to death by that whip. When we arrived, there were more than 150 of us, and now only over 50 remain"

For five consecutive days, there were no opportunities to escape. During these five days, Lin Fei and the others behaved very "well." The Japanese army's vigilance gradually relaxed. That morning, a sharp whistle suddenly echoed in the courtyard, and Aoki Ryo's voice rang out: "Everyone get up!"

The two agreed, and the three quietly rested, with no one coming to interrogate them. The cabin was devoid of sunlight, and they could only gauge the passage of time by the frequency of meal deliveries. After three days, the ship suddenly came to a slow stop. Liu Daming asked Lin Fei, "Why has the little devil's ship stopped?"

Lin Fei thought for a moment and said: "From the process of docking, this time it does not seem like a maritime stop; it looks more like a port docking. This ship should have entered a certain port."

Liu Daming shouted angrily: "You old foreign fish, stop talking to me about your damn God. You little brat, you pray with a cross every time you eat or sleep, but when you were just hit with a gun butt by the little devils, where was He to save you?"

Lin Fei said, "Alright, let us rest immediately. In the days to come, do not confront the Japanese army; in all matters, we must comply with them. Only then will they lower their guard."

Aoki Yoshikazu spoke for ten minutes about the rules, and then said: "Take them in." The Japanese soldiers escorted Lin Fei and others into the prisoner of war camp, arranged them in the cells, and then left.