Lieutenant Colonel, cease fire!
The 11th Wing, fire!
"Now I'm on your bed because I am injured."
I wrote that first.
Paths will cross.
That's why Zhen handed 513 over to me.
Transfer him to another unit
Okay, leave it to me.
BASED ON PAI HSIEN-YUNG'S WORK A GREAT LITERARY FIGURE OF TAIWAN
Zhen
was our classmate.
Though he can be quite annoying,
he has the skills to fight in the battlefield in Dongbei.
How could you harass his wife?
She's your superior's wife.
She's the wife of your squadron leader.
Even Lady Qin had to get involved.
You've really disgraced all us pilots.
Do you know what military ethics are?
Bastard!
-Asshole! -Repeat after me.
No fooling around with your friend's wife. Stay away from your superior's wife.
Say it!
-Bastard! -That's your superior's wife!
Say it!
Qing is mine.
What did you say?
-Go on, say it! -Bastard.
That's enough!
Stop the beating. You'll kill him!
Say it!
You've left me no choice.
Right, come!
It's not over yet.
Get up!
-Qing is mine. -Get up!
Stupid greenhorn!
Why can't you just give up?
Qing is mine.
The family card hasn't been issued.
I've registered at the Air Force hospital for you.
So you needn't queue for your checkups.
Lady Qin.
Uncle Gu got beaten up.
They were from the 9th Wing.
Zhen's classmates.
Why?
I didn't mean it that way.
Why did he get beaten up?
I'll talk to the lieutenant colonel.
Take your jacket back! I don't want it!
I asked him for a transfer.
I didn't ask him to beat him up.
What happened?
-Qing! -Qing!
-Qing. -Qing, are you okay?
-Qing! -What happened?
-Are you okay? -Qing.
What the hell did you do?
Wei-xun.
She's bleeding.
Hospital.
Get out! Get out of there right now!
Damn bastard!
Zhen will get you for this!
The bleeding has stopped.
How about the baby?
We could only save one.
You can take her home.
Qing.
We've stopped the bleeding, but we didn't have blood for her.
Isn't this a hospital? Why is there no blood?
All the blood has been sent to Dongbei.
She's unconscious due to the loss of blood.
She might not make it.
None of the wives ever died in this village.
Come, Qing.
Hang in for a bit longer.
Don't catch a cold.
Qing.
We're both here. You'll be okay.
We'll take you home.
This place is useless.
Mo-ting, give me the onion.
This is a family tradition to keep the body warm.
Place it on her body.
Once she's warmed up I know she'll come around.
Mo-ting.
There's no lesson today.
Go outside and wait. Don't let anybody come in.
Okay.
Qing.
Don't forget.
We're supposed to be future neighbors.
When you wake up, the war will be over.
Okay?
Where are the family members?
They went back to the village.
It's been three days. How is she?
I don't know.
Mo-ting wouldn't let anyone inside.
Mo-ting.
She'll grow up to be a soldier's wife too.
Zhao-jun is now under my authority.
Transferring him right after I accept him into the team
is against the rules.
Now, he's injured a colleague's pregnant wife.
He's committed both a military and domestic crime.
I need to settle it.
Captain.
The area around the hangar is full of danger.
But as long as I'm here,
nobody will get hurt.
Everyone is safe.
I will not allow any mishaps at my hangar too.
Captain.
I hope you'll let this slide.
Besides, we're all in the same boat.
Don't make a big stink about this.
That kid
is as good as dead.
Just let karma do its work.
The steward has made his views clear.
As the guest here, I will respect
your wishes.
Let karma do its work.
Thank you.
No need to thank me.
Once Zhen hears about what happened,
even reincarnating won't save you.
Even if you reincarnated, you'd be born as twins.
He'd chase you to your mother's womb.
You'll never escape.
Drink.
Listen.
When you cross paths with Zhen again,
make the first move.
Otherwise, you're dead meat.
Also, don't tell him I coached you.
Or else,
I'm a goner too.
Here, Qing.
Is she awake?
She's awake.
That's great.
It's fine now.
My baby.
Where's my baby?
Your baby is waiting for you.
He's going to be reincarnated.
Don't cry, Qing.
Don't cry.
You must be strong.
-No. -You'll be okay.
The child needs the mother
to burn paper money
so he can reincarnate into a good family.
All right, now. Calm down.
Calm down.
Did you hear a child's voice?
The child is looking for his mother.
I'll take you to buy some paper money tomorrow.
Put on more clothes. Don't catch a cold.
Also,
you should name your child.
When you hear the voice,
don't turn on the lights.
The child wants the mother to accompany him.
Ning-yuan Guo.
Go quickly.
Do you hear me?
Ning-yuan Guo.
Don't come back to look for me.
Here.
Catch your breath.
Don't let the tears fall in.
Calm down.
Your child and mine can be friends.
He won't be lonely.
He has a friend.
Don't cry.
Come on.
Damn you!
What's your rank?
I want to go in!
Lady Qin gave orders not to allow trainees in.
Get out of the way!
-Sir, you can't go in! -That bastard is going crazy again.
I just want to see how she's doing.
-I'll go. -Wei-cheng's done the same before.
They wave their guns because they're afraid.
Let me in!
We didn't blame you before for not knowing the rules.
Forcing your way in when you've caused trouble
is just barbarism.
You saw me.
Now, leave.
I lost my child.
What are you doing?
Save your sadness.
-I'm... -Sorry?
Save it too.
Don't feel anything for me.
I don't want even a tiny bit of myself
left in your mind.
I don't want you
to even know my name.
Here's your stuff.
Take it back.
If you said you wrote it, so be it.
You'd better remember my face.
In the future, I will have other children.
If you ever see me again
anywhere in the world,
remember to hide.
I don't wish to see you again.
We won't meet again.
Give it back, this is mine!
You're not part of the 11th Wing.
This gun,
you should learn how to use it.
Because if you meet Zhen,
you'll need it to kill yourself
to save yourself from the pain.
Go away!
The mayor and the townspeople
knelt in front of the headquarters crying for justice.
Look at this carnage.
Recall in detail the sequence of events.
Yesterday at 12:45 p.m.,
you received an order to attack, is that right?
Yes.
Okay.
Thirty minutes later,
the command center ordered a change in your target.
Why didn't you obey?
You told them to drop the bombs.
What are you doing?
Zhi-jian, look after the Wing.
I will go with the governor.
We didn't receive the order to switch targets.
What?
The record from the communications officer...
Does it include a reply from us?
Because we never received the orders, sir.
This place should've been taken care of a long time ago.
You flyboys always do a thorough job.
It might not be a communist army supply line now,
but it could be in the future.
The new target the other day
was another village.
Even smaller than this one.
Find the little girl's mother.
They should be burned together.
Sir.
Let's go back to base.
We'll get what we deserve.
I already received mine.
Qing sent me a letter.
She's lost the baby.
Captain.
Reporting, Vice-Captain.
I'm Mo-ting's friend.
I'm A-niu, one of the guards stationed back at Nanjing's village.
You took me to the hospital once.
Hey, it's A-niu.
A-niu!
Did you know?
When the two of you were in jail,
a riot broke out on the streets.
The police called
to say that one of our men died on the street.
I rushed over to take a look.
It was this guy here.
He was hit by a stray bullet.
He was covered in blood
and lying on the ground, not moving.
I went to take a look
and found him still alive.
So, I took him to the hospital.
He lost his gun
while out on patrol.
I got the platoon leader
to send him elsewhere.
You're still just a kid.
You got transferred here.
You should've brought him back to the village and shot him.
It would be better to have died there.
Will karma bite me back for shooting him?
You can try.
I'll go to jail if I shoot him.
It will be more peaceful in there.
-I won't have to worry about anything. -Go, now.
-Go. -I won't be punished.
What's your problem?
The gun is jammed. I can't shoot.
This squadron leader sure is useless.
Enough!
Reporting, sir. We shot over 200 bullets
before the mission was canceled. How will you deal with us?
Zhi-jian Shao.
You disobeyed my order for an attack.
There better not be a next time.
You guessed correctly.
"Take care of yourself.
Nothing else matters.
Just the two of us for the rest of our lives.
Nobody else."
We've lost our baby.
And that's all he wrote.
I want to go to Dongbei to see him.
Don't be stupid.
Qian-yi has tried to.
It's a lot of work to find him.
They are constantly on the move.
You won't find him. Forget it.
Men are clueless.
I told you, pilots tend to lack intelligence.
Now you know.
When there's trouble at home
they don't know what to do.
They think coming back from the war in one piece
takes care of everything.
Everything will be just fine.
All problems will be solved.
When they're at the front
they can't be troubled with it
and lack the guts to face it.
All you need to do is focus on the words,
"rest of our lives."
That's good enough.
Don't be too fussy with them.
We came...
We came to repent.
We're going to kill some pilots, okay?
It's been a while since we came out at night.
Let's go back to the village and enjoy the moon.
-Mo-ting, am I good to you? -Not so much.
Goodness.
You took Qing and Lady Qing as your godmothers.
You have three mothers, you know.
There aren't any children with three mothers.
I bet your friends in school are so jealous.
Can I hit her then?
Go ahead. Hit her if you can.
This one is a runner. She's very fast.
Too bad I forgot to bring some osmanthus wine.
We need to be drinking while appreciating the moon.
"Under the moonlight, my shadow and I."
"Returning home with Spring as a companion."
I like that line.
"Returning home with Youth as my companion."
After I went to Taiwan,
I found that line in my text book.
But it didn't mention anything about my mother, Wei-xun,
or my godmother, Lady Qin, or even Qing.
Maybe their stories of heartbreak and separation
were not suitable for the classroom.
In textbooks of that time
stories of women's lives
were hardly to be found.
The Changchun war is ongoing.
-The heroic soldiers never yield the line -Happy new year.
-in defense of the city. The city -Happy new year.
of Changchun stands strong.
The enemy has failed to take the city.
Businessmen from Changchun have...
We later found out
that only victories were reported, not defeats.
Wei-cheng predicted wrongly.
The Army sent to secure a surrender
had to stay and defend the city from attacks.
The 11th Wing that left for Dongbei first did not return earlier.
I failed to predict it too.
The time for Wei-cheng's retirement
had come and gone.
Yet, he was still looking at the map in Dongbei,
calculating the distance between us.
You no longer have to call and ask about your letters.
A transport aircraft from the 8th Wing flew over to the communist side.
All future flights have been stopped.
One more thing.
First, allow me to apologize.
-We're going to Dongbei. -What?
It's a long journey there.
I want to overhaul the equipment to be safe.
I'm going to take apart 513.
As per the custom, I'll notify the family first.
Sir.
Please proceed.
Stay safe on the way to Dongbei.
I remember how it looks.
My apologies.
So you mean,
it's not going well in Dongbei?
You can guess what the truth is if you flip the radio news around.
Enjoy your meal.
Excuse me.
Write whatever you want.
I'll take the letters with me tomorrow.
I'm going back to my wife first.
Tomorrow?
-But it's the new year. -That's right.
You wives didn't go home either.
Xu-hui.
Happy New Year.
Mo-ting's started at Xinzhi Primary School.
Classes have been sporadic,
but she managed to be promoted to second grade.
Show dad your exercise book.
Dad, the eraser is the reward.
The teacher gave it to me.
I was the student on duty for a whole semester.
Didn't I tell you to change your surname?
You can't change your surname.
The teacher said so.
You can change it to this one day.
You're talking to your dad here.
What a ridiculous teacher.
Rub it off
and write Jin.
Mo-ting.
Remember.
Next time, think of it this way.
You have two dads during the new year.
One dad went back home.
The other dad is away on a trip.
Okay?
You'd better not cry.
I'm not.
I'm not allowed to cry in front of the Air Force.
Come here.
Good girl.
Wait for me there.
Xu-hui.
I went to pay Mo-ting's teacher
a visit last month.
She was shivering in fear.
Mo-ting will not have to write things like "my parents" anymore.
As for Zhi-jian,
he's got a bit of a temper
and likes to argue with me.
But he's not a bad man.
He gives me his salary every month.
He's like an only child.
And he's gone to war at Dongbei.
So, I let Mo-ting take his surname, Shao.
From up there in heaven,
I hope you'll protect him.
I won't ask for much.
Just ten years.
Once that time is up,
Mo-ting will be old enough.
I'll give him back his freedom then.
Wait. Give this to the 9th Wing's lieutenant colonel.
Those letters
-are from the family of the 11th Wing. -Okay.
There is no other way.
Hey, 513.
I'm sorry.
Okay.
-Cover up the cockpit. -Okay.
The gun casing is reusable.
-Take care while taking it off. -Yes.
Qing, don't watch. Go home.
You'll just feel sad.
We've enough parts. No need to take it apart.
Stop!
We got some parts from the decommissioned engines.
They are newer so no need to take this apart.
It's saved.
-Have you got the will? -Yes.
I just got it from the headquarters.
Collect it when they're done writing.
Okay.
Veterans
are different.
They write their wills quickly
and somehow live longer to become captains.
The 9th Wing captain didn't even look at what he was writing.
Goodness. The thing about war,
if you're scared and praying to leave the battlefield,
the bullet somehow finds you
in the midst of all the chaos.
You'll probably end up battered beyond recognition.
On the other hand,
if you imagine yourself standing before the King of Hell,
waiting for your name to be called,
you'll probably scare the bullet away.
Normally,
people who write their wills quickly
live a little longer.
If you think too much and get too sentimental while writing,
you'll be shot down very quickly.
I speak from experience.
So, did Zhen write it quickly?
I wouldn't even call that writing.
He basically scribbled his name,
threw it aside and went out to meet with girls and whatnot.
He sat at the desk for a long time
before he left for Dongbei.
What if he didn't sign it?
If he didn't write a will,
does that mean the King of Hell wouldn't call for him?
That's...
It's the same as in the Army.
If you're absent, you're considered a runaway.
Runaways are prosecuted. They are even worse than criminals.
Gong.
Do you have any extra blank wills?
Can you give me one?
Okay, come.
There you go.
Take it apart.
There's no need to.
I feel sad looking at it
sitting there in vain.
Take it apart.
All right.
Guys, get on it.
The 9th Wing is leaving soon.
It's bad luck for a plane to sit around. Take it apart and do it properly.
-Okay. -Okay.
What do you mean he's gone?
The kitchen helpers were not here for the morning roll call.
Cook something. Make it hot.
I want a bottle of beer too.
Give it to 2nd Squadron leader.
Zhen.
Get someone to help.
We need to eat.
Everyone from after Class 15 will become kitchen helpers.
All the rookies are dead.
Everyone below the rank of First Lieutenant.
Is the Army going to check it out?
No.
The Army is trapped inside the city.
They're surrounded by the Communist Army.
Surrounded?
They won't go, right?
I'll fly over it then.
We can't leave the 2nd Squadron leader there.
Sir.
If we don't go, we might have one less casualty.
Maybe he was saved by the Communist Party.
If we fly there,
we're as good as dead.
We'll have to write the notice for sure.
Have you submitted your application for a discharge?
REVIEWED
What's this?
This is a bunch of nonsense. What is this?
I've been told
that the governor has read it.
But they didn't take any action.
He also said that you've applied for it twice.
Don't make this mistake again.
What?
Get on with what you're doing.
Hey.
Pour a drink for your squadron leader.
3rd Squadron.
Your squadron leader has left for a while.
Why don't you sit here?
Reporting, we are not squadron leaders.
We don't belong there.
I'm surrounded by empty seats.
Am I supposed to expect my seat to become empty soon?
Do you want to leave a drink on my table then?
Get over here!
Everyone, fill the spots!
Stop what you're doing!
Everyone, go to the kitchen.
Grab a bottle each.
We're done for today.
Drink all you want,
even those who don't drink.
Get on it, now!
Sir.
As officer of the day I've got two bottles.
Take one for the lieutenant colonel.
Are you not going, sir?
In the 11th Wing
somebody needs to stay sober.
Zhi-cheng.
You seem happy.
What are you up to?
The vice-captain asked for a game of poker.
You know what?
You'd better not die.
There's no one left in the first squadron.
I'm scared of ghosts at night.
The vice-captain is bad at poker.
If you win all his money,
you'll be executed.
This is my salary. Give it to him.
He still needs to look after his wife and kid.
Yes. Thank you, sir.
Go on.
Sir, my son is a year old.
My son can apply for flight school.
How did you cope when Lady Qin lost the baby?
What's with that question?
Drink up.
Yes, sir.
When I got the news,
my mind became empty.
Later, all I could think of was for the war to end.
I kept my hand on the trigger and shot down more planes.
That was the way to decrease the distance between my wife and I.
You're lying, sir.
We've shot down so many enemy supply lines,
but why are we still here?
I was talking about shooting down more Japanese planes,
not taking out more of our own villages.
The more of our villages we destroy,
the further we are from home.
It's only half the story.
You can guess the rest on your own.
So this war
can't be won.
I've battled with the Japanese for eight years.
I'm tired.
Have you lost everything?
So soon?
Here, I'll be your bank.
It's the plan of attack for tomorrow.
Here are the letters from Nanjing.
Not this one. He is Zhi-jian Shao.
Mo-ting is in second grade now.
Mo-ting is in second grade.
Good.
Qian-yi
wants me to finish the war,
and put aside thoughts of retirement.
Qing wants me to write my will so she can be at ease.
She said I can go back if I write it.
That the King of Hell would have my head for being a runaway.
Will we be able to return?
Damn it!
Have you lost your guts?
What does the Air Force do?
Reporting, sir.
To conduct area bombardment and locate the 8th Wing's bombers.
They said they could only carry out level bombing runs,
they can't dive bomb.
Dive bombing isn't accurate.
Even a sack of rice can kill.
Reporting, sir.
We're not attacking any anti-aircraft weapons.
The fuel is stored in the airplane's belly.
Any bullet from the ground,
-and we'll... -Belly?
Why not intestines?
Army soldiers go into war baring our bellies.
Why can't the Air Force do the same?
What kind of planes do you have?
You're not a fighter jet.
Not a scout. What kind of planes are you?
Dustpans.
For sweeping up the villages.
Men in the Army
might not have much of an education.
But,
if you give each one of us a gun,
we can fight any battle.
Reporting, sir.
-We request to report to the Air Force... -Air force command center?
You guys are under the authority of the security command center.
Under me.
I order you to fly.
If you guys do not obey my orders,
you, you and you
will be executed.
Sign the attack order.
What the hell?
What do you mean by "reviewed"?
Are you going to fight or not?
Sir, anti-aircraft fire!
Zhi-cheng, you'd better not die!
Hold your formation.
First Squadron, Suppress anti-aircraft.
The rest, get into attack altitude.
No, we can't.
The anti-aircraft fire is from the city. It's the Army.
The Communist Army has broken through. We'll kill our men.
We need to support the Army. Just do as I say, Vice-Captain.
We can't tell the soldiers apart.
We might kill our own men.
That's making things worse.
The missiles are from the city. We'll be dead if we go lower.
Sir, let the Army counterattack.
It's the best chance.
Turn back, 1st Squadron.
Calling 1st Squadron.
Set the course for 113.
Turn back.
No! Who's the captain?
No turning back!
I can't hang in much longer.
The 1st Squadron needs support!
If I'm not dead, I'll kick both your asses myself!
The 1st Squadron needs support!
Zhi-cheng, stay with me.
Hold altitude. We'll do it ourselves!
Damn you!
The vice-captain has issued the orders.
An order cannot be retracted.
Nobody can turn back.
According to military discipline during battle,
anyone who disobeys the squadron leader's order will be executed.
Follow me!
You've lost your mind, Wei-cheng.
Follow me!
I should never have come here with you.
Fine, I'll follow you.
Get into attack formation. Follow the captain.
Go!
I'm stuck. It's so hot!
Zhi-cheng, I'm here.
-Sir... -I know it hurts.
-I'll be quick. -Sir.
Save me, sir!
I'm trying.
-Sir. -Hang on.
-It burns. -Just a bit more.
-Sir! -I hear you! Shut up!
What are you doing?
Take care of your gun.
When it's time, you should be able to end it smoothly.
Command.
This is the 11th Wing.
Mission completed, over and out.
This is what you get
for volunteering to go to Dongbei.
I should've taught you a proper lesson then.
Then, teach me now!
No, sir!
How dare you report me?
Kill me! None of us will be going back!
you'd better think of 10,000 ways to die.
Have you gone crazy, Zhi-jian?
I will avenge my brothers.
Hurry!
Subtitle translation by Jacqueline Wong