To put it simply, the old geezer among those three Japanese bastards was a very, very important figure because he had come to the Northeast in the past to do evil deeds, though he had arrived during the later stages of the war.
As for the two younger Japanese, they were just bodyguards—essentially useless.
And that stone mountain was a base built by the old geezer's forefathers.
What Wang An didn't expect, however, was that their primary purpose for coming to Huaxia wasn't that stone mountain; going there was merely a side trip or a matter of convenience.
As for their actual objective, Wu Dong didn't say.
Regardless, according to Wu Dong, because of those three, everyone involved in this operation received merits of varying sizes.
The ones who gained the most merit were Wu Dong and Wang Shuai, as their jobs were specifically responsible for these affairs.
As for Zhang Shuya, due to the difference in position and nature of work, her merit was considerably less compared to Wu Dong and Wang Shuai.
Meanwhile, He Liang, Ma Guoqiang, and Sun Nian basically just tagged along for a stroll and picked up some merit for free.
Although the merit the three of them scooped up wasn't much, who would complain about free merit being too small?
In general, it was because these six second-generation kids caught three Japanese and gained quite a few legitimate benefits, and they wanted to thank Wang An, which is why they wanted to give him some things.
Wang An originally wanted to decline again, but Wu Dong was very firm, acting as if "take it or leave it, but either way, the sand and rebar are definitely getting unloaded at your front door."
After hearing this, Wang An sucked in his teeth, momentarily at a loss for words.
The main thing was that while these Japanese bastards were "merit" to Wu Dong and the others, to Wang An, they were actually a huge hassle.
He didn't dare kill them, yet he didn't want to let them go; they were simply useless things.
Therefore, it was only right that Wu Dong and Wang Shuai earned their merit.
After thinking it over, Wang An said with a smile
"Alright then, I'll thank my dear brothers and sisters from different fathers and mothers for their care, hahahaha..."
Hearing this, Wu Dong was actually quite pleased. He patted Wang An on the shoulder and laughed
"That's the spirit. You've gotta give your big brothers and sisters a chance to show off a bit."
Upon hearing this, Wang An laughed along with him.
After a while, Wang An suddenly said with a chuckle
"Hahahaha... since it's come to this, Brother Wu, could you do me a favor and get me a circular saw? And throw in a few extra saw blades, hehehehe..."
A circular saw, also known as a gantry saw, is exactly what it sounds like—a disc-shaped saw. Simply put, it uses a diesel engine as power to drive a large circular blade to cut wood.
This kind of saw can cut not only wood but also stone, though different blades are used for the two.
Once Wang An finished speaking, Wu Dong was momentarily stunned. He simply hadn't expected that Wang An, who had been declining just moments ago, was now making requests.
In truth, Wang An had no choice. These days, if you wanted to turn a log into planks, the vast majority did it by "pulling the big saw," cutting through the wood bit by bit.
To be honest, this method was far too slow, and the people pulling the big saw were exhausted by the end of the day.
Although Wang An's family already had a chainsaw, chainsaws weren't suitable for milling logs into planks.
If he had a circular saw, Wang An could use the diesel engine from a four-wheel vehicle or a walking tractor to power it.
Fortunately, Wu Dong reacted quickly and hurriedly said
"That's a small matter. A batch of equipment just arrived at the Forestry Bureau and is being assembled. I'll just find someone to ask for two of them, and I'll have them delivered to you the day after tomorrow."
Hearing this, Wang An waved his hand and said
"No need for two, one is enough. Just get a few more saw blades."
Wu Dong said nonchalantly
"One or two, it's the same request. Since I'm speaking up, I might as well get it right. Besides, having a spare isn't redundant."
Wang An smiled
"True, indeed, haha. Anyway, Brother Wu, we'll be heading out now. My dad and second uncle are hauling cement back right now; with a load that heavy, I'm worried the axle might snap halfway."
Hearing this, Wu Dong hurriedly said
"Yeah, hauling a load of cement in a small cart is really tough. Alright, I won't keep you then; I'm busy too and need to get back to the unit."
As they spoke, the three of them walked toward the crawler tractor.
In this era, starting a crawler tractor was different from starting a four-wheel vehicle or a walking tractor, because this thing had no crank handle, nor a place to insert one.
The crawler tractor had a circular starter disc. The middle of the side of the disc was recessed, forming a groove, with a notch at the edge of the groove.
To start it, one end of a rope was tied into a knot, the knot was slotted into the notch, and then the rope was wrapped around the disc before the other end was pulled violently.
Of course, at the same time, one couldn't forget to engage the decompression.
After starting the crawler, Wang An stepped onto the tracks and entered the cab, and Wang Li climbed up immediately after.
Perhaps for teaching purposes, there was a stool for a passenger to the right-rear of the driver's seat, and Wang Li sat on that stool.
Waving goodbye to Wu Dong, Wang An stepped on the gas and drove toward the main gate.
The crawler tractor had no steering wheel, nor did it have a single steering handle like a walking tractor.
Directional control was handled by two independent levers, and often these two levers had to be coordinated with each other.
Turning this thing required wide arcs, so often, when wanting to turn around, it was simpler to just reverse.
On the way, Wang An shouted loudly while driving, teaching Wang Li how to operate the crawler tractor.
It must be said that compared to the noise produced by four-wheel vehicles and walking tractors, the noise of a crawler tractor was truly unrivaled.
Not only was the engine roaring, but the entire chassis was rattling, and the vibration of the tracks pressing into the ground felt as if it were shaking one's very bones.
Wherever the crawler tractor passed, the entire ground could be felt vibrating.
Thus, driving this thing was even less comfortable than driving a walking tractor.
After Wang An shouted once, Wang Li nodded with a look of half-understanding. Seeing this, Wang An knew he hadn't understood.
Or rather, it was possible he didn't "not understand," but simply hadn't heard clearly.
After all, speaking inside the cab of a crawler tractor required a combination of guessing and lip-reading to roughly understand what the other person was saying.
Consequently, Wang An shouted again.
(End of Chapter)