Beacon Fires in Yinjiaji
In the autumn of 1941, beneath the golden rice fields of Yinjiaji in southern Liaoning, undercurrents were stirring. Yin Sanqiang, born into a family of hunters, had been making a living by hunting. As the Japanese invasion intensified, his second brother, Yin Erhang, put down his pen and joined the Eighth Route Army, changing the course of Sanqiang's life.
Under the tutelage of Li Laogen, an experienced hunter, Yin Sanqiang learned to identify medicinal herbs, set traps, and read the enemy's movements. He transformed from a naive young man into a resistance fighter. His father, Yin Laocai, and eldest brother, Yin Dachuan, secretly supported him, turning the Yin family home into a "secret supply station" for the guerrillas. Yin Sanqiang and his partner Sanzhu risked their lives to transport medicinal herbs and dry rations, while Juanzi, a young girl, used embroidery as a cover to pass along intelligence, becoming a vital "courier."
Japanese grain requisitions and surveillance by Zhou Huaian, head of the "Peace Preservation Association," left Yinjiaji teetering on the brink of danger. The medicinal herbs hidden in a coal mine were discovered, the longtime worker Lao Zhou was killed, and family members were taken hostage. One deadly trial after another followed. Amid a hail of bullets, Yin Sanqiang learned to make hard choices. He eventually joined the guerrillas, standing shoulder to shoulder with the villagers and his fellow fighters against Japanese sweeps and encirclement campaigns.
Centered on Yin Sanqiang's growth, the novel weaves together the steadfast resistance of Yinjiaji's people. It portrays ordinary people awakening from protecting their own families to defending their country, and reveals the patriotism and unyielding spirit of the common folk in a time of turmoil. The beacon fires of Yinjiaji become a microcosm of the resistance mounted by countless ordinary heroes during the War of Resistance Against Japan.
