As told by LSY:
As a boy, my brother Fred went to boarding school in Guilin, 500 some miles from the village where my family lived. The last year he attended, we went to visit him, knowing that the Japanese menace might take over the city in about 4-5 weeks, because the Chinese Army, though resisting ferociously, were fighting a losing battle against overwhelming odds. School would end in 2 weeks and we would return to accompany my bro home. We left for our village and were surprised on the first day of the journey to see Japanese planes bombing and strafing travelers along the road.

The Japanese had taken over the city