Chapter 3: The Devil Arrives

  It was already December 1942. A major event that month shocked both China and the world, accelerating the variables of the Anti-Japanese War and prompting the Japanese devils to accelerate their covetous and tiger-like gaze on Jiangnan into reality. Meanwhile, the people in northern Hunan had no idea they would face an unprecedented disaster in May the following year.

  At noon on December 18, 1942, a Japanese military plane flew over the Dabie Mountains and entered the sky above Mita Temple in Taihu County, Anhui Province. It was discovered by the anti-aircraft artillery team of the 9th Company, 3rd Battalion, 412 Regiment, 138 Division, 48 Army, who were inspecting machinery and preparing for a drill. When they tried to test-fire the cannon, they suddenly saw an airplane flying towards them from the front with clear Japanese markings. The commander immediately ordered concentrated fire, and rounds of shells flew out of the barrels with a whistling sound. The plane's body emitted rolling black smoke, tilting its head towards a distant deep mountain forest. At the moment it hit the ground, a deafening explosion sounded, and a burst of flames lit up the sky.

  Not even the Japanese headquarters had expected it, nor did the Chinese army expect that the plane shot down this time would be the commander of the 11th Army, Takada Kaku, who had just taken office five months ago. Coincidentally, on the same day, the Japanese Ministry of War issued an order promoting Takada Kaku to General of the Army, perhaps fulfilling what a Chinese predecessor said: "With gain comes loss."

  Very soon, this sudden incident was transmitted to Tian Junliu's command in the first time. He was furious and like a wild wolf that had been provoked, he hastily issued an emergency order to mobilize tens of thousands of troops from the Hubei-Henan-Anhui dispatched army, setting out in five directions from Wuhan, Hefei, and Anqing, rushing straight to the destination, searching for the wreckage of Tuan's plane, and taking advantage of the opportunity to sweep through the Dabie Mountains area occupied by the New Guangxi Clique troops, carrying out a crazy armed revenge.

  The National Army was unaware of the severity of the situation, as they did not know that the commander-in-chief of the 11th Army had been shot down. As a result, they were not specifically on guard, and the Japanese army went on a rampage, killing anyone they met and burning any houses they saw. Some Nationalist troops defending their positions resisted for a period of time before being hit by the Japanese mountain guns, sending legs, arms, uniform fragments, and shattered machine gun parts flying into the air along with rocks. For a time, wherever the Japanese army passed through, they left behind traces of destruction as if beasts had trampled the area, a truly horrific sight.

  The Japanese army led by Lieutenant Colonel Kojima formally exchanged fire with the National Army on the mountain, and a fierce battle raged through the night, staining the Dabie Mountains red. The battle was exceptionally intense and cruel. In the cruel fighting, the National Army showed extraordinary bravery and tenacity, writing a tragic song of resistance against the Japanese invaders.

  The battle was extremely fierce, the Japanese army used planes and mountain cannons to crazily bombard and shoot at the defenders of Dabie Mountain in turns, after destroying several strongholds of the defenders, the position of the National Army was occupied by the Japanese army. In a trench, a young soldier with his head wrapped in bandages was on the verge of death, one hand holding something in his chest, staring angrily at the surrounding Japanese soldiers with his eyes wide open, using all his strength to pull the pin of the grenade in his chest, and suddenly there was an explosion, several devils were blown into pieces.

  The defenders engaged in a fierce and savage fight with the enemy, blood splashing everywhere, shouts, clashing of blades, and the sound of slaughter echoing through the mountains.

  The devils are getting more and more, the defending army has lost its resistance, some were stabbed by knives, and others were pressed to the ground by several devils and couldn't move.

  The battle ended, a group of brutal Japanese devils led by Xī Dǎo, gathered dozens of Nationalist soldiers who had been captured, along with tens of villagers, to a threshing ground at the foot of the mountain. With glittering bayonets, they forced the men to strip naked and herded them into a thatched hut, then set it on fire, burning them all to death. The victims inside were burned alive, screaming in agony, while outside, some Japanese soldiers dropped their weapons, laughing lewdly as they pounced on the women on the threshing ground like wolves. Instantly, the women's shrill cries and the devils' sinister laughter filled the entire threshing ground...

  Xī Dǎo didn't participate in the battle, he just stood on the side with a poker face and glanced at the scene casually. Then, he walked away, turning his gaze to the distant quiet village, looking at the distant mountain peaks. At this moment, a boy appeared in his line of sight, and his eyes suddenly lit up. He took the gun from the devil's hand beside him, raised the Type 38 rifle, aimed at the target, pulled the trigger, and the bullet flew out of the barrel with an evil whistling sound. The boy fell forward with a thud on the mountain slope, and a young life was thus strangled by Xī Dǎo.

  The boy's crimson blood spread like azaleas blooming in the spring on the mountain slope, staining the withered wild grass around him, and under the sunlight, it was especially dazzling.

  The village is a sea of flames, thick smoke, red fire, black sky, and a heart full of sorrow.

  Finally, the Japanese army led by Western Island found the wreckage of Takada's plane and the charred or dismembered bodies of Japanese soldiers in Jinzhong Village near Miyu Temple in Dabie Mountains. The remains of Takada were transported to Anqing for coffining and then sent back to Japan for burial.

  Takada's death is a blow to Japan, but for Chinese people, it is an unexpected gain.

  The death of Tada Hayao at least reduced the threat to Chongqing, as he was the main Japanese military officer responsible for the "No. 5 combat mission". His death forced Tanaka Shizuichi to postpone the implementation of this plan, giving the Chongqing side time to make strategic deployments. It is said that the occurrence of this event made Chiang Kai-shek extremely happy, not only sending a congratulatory telegram but also dispatching someone to reward all the officers and soldiers of the 138th Division. Although the Japanese General Headquarters had been eyeing the temporary residence of the Chiang family in Chongqing for a long time, they did not dare to take any action lightly to some extent, which not only alleviated the pressure on Chongqing but also delayed or even stopped the normal implementation of the Japanese "No. 5 combat plan", and also made their plan to attack Southwest China and force Chiang Kai-shek to surrender come to nothing. Therefore, this made the Japanese General Headquarters a bit angry, but they had to reconsider the candidates for the commander-in-chief of the Central China Expeditionary Army and the new commander-in-chief of the 11th Army. After years of in-depth combat within Chinese territory, their combat effectiveness was severely damaged, and due to the outbreak of the Pacific War, high-level military talents at home focused mainly on this, and no one could replace the new commander-in-chief, so they could only dispatch generals from the occupied areas. This is how the notorious Lieutenant General Okamura Yasuji became the commander-in-chief of the Central China Expeditionary Army, and Lieutenant General Yokoyama Isamu was transferred from the Northeastern battlefield to become the commander-in-chief of the 11th Army.

  One wolf dies, another comes. It is undeniable that the war has become exceptionally cruel and bloody due to the existence of these wolves. From then on, the beautiful homeland can no longer be at peace, suffering and disaster cover people's heads like locusts, even in their hearts. The pain and disaster brought by Little Japan will never be forgotten by the kind and strong Chinese people, etched in their bones and hearts forever.

  But people all over the world will not wait for death, where there is oppression, there is resistance, for freedom, people will not be silent, nor will they be defeated.

  For our beautiful homeland, our martyrs had to make sacrifices, they had to throw their heads and shed hot blood, using their own lives to defend the dignity of the country.

  The world is a place where justice prevails, and freedom is the direction that humanity yearns for in its own development. Once the world is plagued by a small group of war maniacs, it is precisely because of their arrival that hunters everywhere will pick up their guns and aim at their dark chests, pulling the trigger to eliminate them in the midst of chaos, allowing victory to fill every corner of the earth. In pursuit of freedom, happiness, and a beautiful human life, let the peaceful dove sing its moving melody every day. Please remember this painful and disastrous history, with our hearts, our love, our emotions, our tears, our pens, and our hot blood, to write down this bloody and painful memory that should not be forgotten by future generations of Chinese people.

  In the era of peace, we need peace; in the era of war, what we need even more is to pursue peace, without sparing blood or flesh. History constantly changes its footprints in the long river of years, as if foretelling that history is not always smooth sailing. The changes in nature also demonstrate that all causes and effects must follow the natural order.

  Let's remember the painful history of the past in order to write a better and more beautiful future.

  In the difficult years of the Anti-Japanese War, how many Chinese people's souls and beliefs were verified, and young people were the indispensable main force for the liberation of the Chinese nation. They used their own flesh and blood to build a new Great Wall, whether they were named or unnamed, they all went through a severe test and baptism of blood and fire.

  Bathing in blood, China's righteous youth.