Chapter 43
Behind the mountain, Wang Jinlong and others paid homage to the three martyred soldiers. The graves are getting more and more, but most of them are empty tombs, with the words "Anti-Japanese Martyrs" engraved on the tombstones. Xu Dagui finally wiped out his past shame, came to the grave, kowtowed, and comforted the spirits of the martyrs in heaven.
At night, Wang Jinlong ordered the slaughter of pigs and sheep, and had a big gathering. It's been almost a month since everyone in Feihu Village has eaten together. Ma Liu was sulking, this time he was on guard for the artillery company, just watching others get rich, without getting any spoils of war himself. If it weren't for firing two shots to satisfy his craving at the end, he would have been furious to death.
Xiao Ming paid for a while, quietly walked out of the hall, came to the playground to be alone for a while. Lin Xiuzhi followed him out, he saw that Xiao Ming seemed to have something on his mind and also wanted to talk to him, but didn't know how to start for a moment.
"Old Lin, come sit down." Xiao Ming found a stone and invited Lin Xiucheng to sit down. He rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, handing one to him.
Lin Xiuzhi was taken aback. She had never seen Xiao Ming smoke before, so he must have encountered something today. She asked cautiously: "Old Xiao, what's wrong?"
"This time we've looted the military uniforms of several Japanese divisions, they'll definitely put pressure on the garrison, I have a premonition that the Japanese won't let this go easily, and there will be more coming, our mountain stronghold has never fought a decent battle of resistance before, this time it's likely to be a disaster for us brothers!" Xiao Ming said with a bitter smile.
Lin Xiuzhi understood the meaning of "accumulated suffering", that is, after this battle, it was unknown how many people could survive, and her heart was also filled with sorrow. However, she comforted Old Xiao by saying: "Old Xiao, whether the devils come or not is still uncertain, whether it's good fortune or bad luck, we can't avoid it! Even if they do come, there's no need to be afraid of them. After all, we have the advantage of terrain and are well-prepared. If a fight really breaks out, who will die in whose hands is still uncertain! Besides, since our brothers have chosen this path, they have already made up their minds to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. You shouldn't take it too much to heart. With the great enemy before us, stability of the army's morale is most important. As the mainstay of the mountain stronghold, your every word and action will affect the emotions of our brothers. At this time, you must stand tall, so that our brothers can have confidence and courage to fight against the enemy, to engage in a fierce battle, and win victory! You can rest assured, no matter how the battle situation develops, I will always support you!"
"Good words!" A loud and rough voice came from behind, Wang Jindong and Lü Jizong walked over, "Brother, don't worry about it, as long as we're killing devils, even if we all die in battle, what's the difference? In 18 years, I'll be a good man again, still killing devils!"
"A real man has things he will not do, and things he must do! Dying for the great righteousness of the nation has always been my dream. Only with our sacrifice can we bring peace to the people! Old Xiao, let's fight to the end together!" Lü Jizū was also a hot-blooded man.
"Fine, what's the joy of living, what's the sorrow of dying!" Xiao Ming swept away the melancholy in his heart, threw away the cigarette in his hand, "Let's go, let's go back and drink, it's like saying goodbye to our brothers ahead of time! From today on, we'll fight the devils to the end!"
Having made up their minds, the Flying Tigers no longer hid and struck everywhere, specializing in attacking the Japanese army's transport teams. The Japanese army was very headache about this, but they had no choice. There were still high-ranking officials in the Security Army who came up with an idea for the Imperial Army officers: from now on, those unimportant supplies would be escorted by the Security Army, but only guaranteed to be transported halfway...
The Japanese military officer scolded the man with a torrent of abuse, but after venting his anger, he tacitly agreed: "It's just some grain, oil, vegetables, and rice; wool comes from sheep, no big deal if we have to requisition again. Compared to the lives of Imperial Army soldiers, it's insignificant!"
Fei Hu Zhai won't be able to make a big move with the military police being so cooperative. As long as they offer a few nice words, Fei Hu Zhai won't give them a hard time either. They can take what they like and leave what they don't want, and then go back and report some losses, which will end up in their own pockets. Besides, Fei Hu Zhai also occasionally trades things with them, making a profit of three parts, and also gaining personal favors, so why not?! For a time, the two sides became sworn brothers, getting along very harmoniously, while the Japanese army turned a blind eye to it all.
Behind the scenes, Feihu Village finally caught the attention of the Japanese army, and the plan to clear it out was put on the agenda. Before the transportation team had an accident, Kimura suggested to his superiors that they should wait for other supplies to arrive and arrange a complete logistics convoy to transport them. However, the superior officer believed that such a big fuss was not necessary in the occupied area, and instead thought that Kimura was exaggerating and suspected him of being cowardly, giving Feihu Village an opportunity to counterattack.
The North China Commanding Officer was extremely enraged and ordered each department to immediately draft a combat plan. Kumamaru's suggestion received attention, and he quickly submitted the combat plan: The air force continuously bombed Feihu Village without distinction, cutting off the passage with Hou Mountain, and on the ground, a brigade of troops surrounded it, rushing into Feihu Village with lightning speed to prevent the enemy from escaping into the mountains.
The commander-in-chief smiled and thought this was a fuss over nothing: the empire's war resources were tight, how could they be wasted on a group of bandits? Moreover, the current situation was delicate, if they did this, where would the imperial army's face be? Where would their morale be?
Kimura had no choice but to take out another set of plans.
The autumn harvest was very smooth, and the year's prospects were not bad either. Although various taxes and levies made people breathless, China's peasants survived stubbornly with their extremely strong tenacity in the cracks, year after year, thriving ceaselessly!
Before long, it was early spring, Xiao Ming started hiding in the back mountain again, studying wine burning. Lü Jizong received an intelligence and called him back: The Japanese army had a large-scale gathering sign, and it was likely to be cleared again, with the target seemingly in the direction of Lin City.
Lin Xiuqing was puzzled: "The National Army in Lincheng has always gotten along with the Japanese army, each minding their own business. What's gotten into them? Are they looking for trouble? Eight out of ten chances are they're coming after us."
Xiao Ming thought for a moment and said: "No matter who comes, we must prepare ourselves, be careful not to make big mistakes! Let the three companies return to the mountain stronghold, Da Long's special company is responsible for patrolling around Ye Lang Gou, Ma Liu is in charge of guarding the village, the reconnaissance company sends out a 10-kilometer scout, and the rest of the troops double their sentries at night, raise their vigilance, don't let the little devils find an empty space!"
"Alright, I'll go make the arrangements. But have the machine gun squad get ready and be on guard against an enemy air raid!" Lin Xiuzhi had always had a doubt in her mind. The mountain stronghold was located at the tiger's mouth, although it could provide some shelter from the wind and rain, but if they were surrounded by enemies, that would be a dead end. Xiao Ming wouldn't be unaware of this, so did he really have confidence in defending against the enemy outside Flying Tiger Mountain, or was there another way?
A large number of Japanese troops marched south, and the Western Expeditionary Army didn't even give Flying Tiger Mountain a serious look. This made everyone at Flying Tiger Fort breathe a sigh of relief. Lü Jizong analyzed that the Japanese army should be heading for the 18th Group Army, as they had been expanding rapidly in recent years and had become a thorn in the side of the Japanese.
It didn't take long for what was supposed to happen to finally happen.
Although it's already early spring, the nights are still very long. People shut their doors and windows to defend against the biting cold wind, curled up in their beds with their heads buried under the blankets, completely unaware of the outside world.
A group of Japanese soldiers quietly approached the gourd valley, their physique showing that they had undergone rigorous training. The two sentries standing at the entrance of the valley hugged their guns and huddled behind a rock to avoid the cold wind, unaware of the growing danger approaching them. These two sentries should have been keeping watch in shifts, but the cold weather made them lose their vigilance, and they actually gathered together to chat and pass the time.
Suddenly, two figures flashed out, the sentry was stunned, and saw a bright light flashing across his neck, looking at the spurting blood, the sentry struggled twice in despair, and fell down painfully.
The Japanese soldiers successfully launched a surprise attack, gently placing the bodies on the ground, beckoning with their hands, and the rest of the people jumped up, quickly passing through the valley, occupying the first line of defense, completing the encirclement of the barracks. Immediately, a large number of Japanese troops poured in, almost without stopping, rushing towards the mountains, but unexpectedly encountered trouble at the second line of defense.
The second line of defense was guarded by Zhang Xiaoshan, the captain of the second platoon of the Sichuan army. He arranged for two sentries to be stationed on the battlefield, with a shift change every two hours. A Japanese soldier kicked over a stone, startling the two men, who looked up to see a large group of people approaching. "Who's there? Halt!" they shouted. Seeing that the other side did not respond and instead quickened their pace after loading their guns, the two sentries opened fire. At such close range, aiming was unnecessary, and with two Japanese soldiers falling down, the two sentries were instantly shot to pieces.
A gunshot rang out, and the entire Gourd Valley was shaken. Zhang Xiaoshan jumped down from bed, grabbed his gun and wanted to rush out, but then quickly went back to put on his clothes and shoes in a hurry. He kicked open the door, rolled out, and saw that the other side had already crossed the battlefield and was charging towards him. He raised his hand and fired an arrow, rolling behind a boulder. Four or five of them fell down, but the others didn't dodge, and the hail of bullets from the submachine gun hit the rock, sparks flying everywhere.
There were warriors who opened the door to take a look, but they were knocked down in an instant. The others had no choice but to retreat back into the house and fire their guns wildly at the outside. Zhang Xiaoshan shouted while changing magazines: "Grenades, blow those turtle sons to death!" The people inside the house suddenly came to their senses, hid behind the wall, and threw out hand grenades. Although they didn't have much accuracy, it still made the Japanese army's attack pause for a moment. A clever warrior smashed the window on the back wall with his gun butt, climbed out, flipped over onto the roof, set up a machine gun, and finally suppressed the Japanese army's offensive.
Zhang Xiaoshan had a sudden thought, and his heart said it was not good. He shouted loudly at the soldiers who were running out: "Quickly, throw hand grenades! Everyone retreat to the mountain!" As soon as the words fell, the Japanese army's grenade launcher began to wreak havoc, and the grenades exploded on the roof and in the open space, instantly silencing the machine guns. The soldiers desperately dodged, looking for opportunities to throw out the hand grenades, taking advantage of the smoke, and running towards the mountain.
Taniguchi's long queue was awakened, and the sound of gunfire came from behind, his heart cooled down, and he didn't even have time to put on his clothes. He grabbed his gun and rushed out, but unfortunately, the Japanese army's grenade launcher and mortar started firing at this moment, and the entire camp fell into a sea of flames.
The two platoons of the Youhe Army Regiment stationed at the top of the valley, with all the heavy firepower set up here. When Regiment Commander Qian Sanmu arrived at the position, the Japanese army had already launched a charge from the bottom of the valley. He hastily ordered the light and heavy machine guns to suppress them desperately, while sending someone to ask for reinforcements from the mountain stronghold.
Xiao Ming and others arrived at the hall, received a call from Hulu Valley, briefly understood the situation, Xiao Ming immediately began to arrange: "Shan Wawa, go out and send a combat preparation signal; Big Brother, guard the mountain stronghold, order the various departments behind the mountain to strengthen their defenses, and the logistics company to make evacuation preparations; Old Lin, you go to Heifengxia to assist Xin Chengshan in defending, it is estimated that the Japanese army will attack from there; Old Lü, you go to Jiudaowan, keep in touch at all times. I lead the third company to Hulu Valley for support!"
As they spoke, a loud explosion sound came from afar, and everyone's heart tightened. Lin Xiuning said: "It's Er Long Ridge!"
Xiao Ming gritted his teeth and said to Wang Jinlong: "Big brother, order the artillery company to provide emergency support to Hulu Valley, and have the cavalry company wait for orders at the mountain stronghold!" Turning his head to Xu Dage who rushed over, he said: "Give me your charge team from that day, the rest of you build fortifications and defend the mountain stronghold! Gao Shouyi, assemble the troops and follow me!"
