Chapter 8: The Crime of Killing Prisoners (3)

  "When ambushing the US airborne troops, if you hadn't fired your night-scope rifle out of greed, it's highly likely that we could have captured them all. Your stupid actions got over a dozen soldiers killed!"

  "Old man, how can we fight without a watch to keep time?" Chen Zizhong retorted fiercely: "Do you know the situation? You're like a new recruit who's never held a gun! Go ask Hou Frenzi, that devil who wears a watch will get up to pee and keeps aiming at me with his rifle. If he doesn't fire, I'll be killed."

  Chen Zizhong had the habitual thinking of fighting with the Nationalist Army, and those who wore gold watches and smoked foreign cigarettes in the Nationalist Army were definitely high-ranking officers. He estimated that the American wearing a luminous watch was also an officer. Catching the leader first would make it easier to handle the rest later, so he knocked him down first.

  The standing committee members of the regiment found Hou and several other soldiers to understand the situation, discussed for a while, and the regiment commander concluded: "The situation is basically clear. Chen's intention to save the lives of his comrades is understandable, but as a commanding officer, how can he be so impulsive at critical moments? According to your words, if the Japanese devils killed several tens of millions of our compatriots, then none of us should fight wars anymore, and just hit our heads against the wall every day!"

  Chen Zizhong remained silent.

  "Chen Dabang does not record merits, the Third Guerrilla Regiment records a collective minor merit once."

  The captain severely reprimanded Chen Zizhong, then picked up the vanguard's armband and asked Ding Rugang: "How much do you know about the vanguard? Take it all out and talk about your ideas."

  Ding Ruo said: "When I entered Burma to fight, I was in the 38th Division of the Nationalist Party. The Allied forces decided to form a force to go to Burma to fight in 1943 as the vanguard of the Chinese army, and this plan was called the "Round Table Warriors". Later, the US military formed an advance force led by Major General Frank Merrill, consisting of 2,900 rangers, known as "Merrill's Marauders". The Marauders received two months of guerrilla warfare and jungle warfare training in India and entered northern Burma in March 1943 to execute missions behind enemy lines, cutting off the Japanese army's supply and transportation lines. Because they were going to fight alongside the Nationalist Army in the Burmese theater, the insignia on their uniforms was changed to include the Blue Sky with a White Sun emblem. Merrill's Marauders participated in dozens of battles, big and small. In late February 1944, the Nationalist Army attacked Walawbum, engaging the Japanese army in frontal combat, while the Marauders infiltrated behind enemy lines to conduct sabotage. Unexpectedly, they were ambushed by two companies of Japanese troops near Walawbum, and with their forces vastly outnumbered, the Marauders faced the danger of being annihilated. General Sun Li-jen immediately dispatched troops to rescue them, heavily defeating the Japanese 18th Division and successfully rescuing the Marauders. I participated in that battle and became friends with a ranger named John, learning some history about the rangers."

  Ding Ruogang gave a detailed introduction to the historical origin and nature of the task of the Rangers: In 1670, the US military began using small troops with the name and tactics of the Rangers to defend against Indians who were good at using guerrilla warfare. They formed small reconnaissance teams in the surrounding areas of the garrison to patrol, observe enemy activities and provide early warnings, called "Ranger" in English.

  The Ranger Regiment was formally established in 1756 in New Hampshire, Major Rogers first organized nine companies of Rangers to represent the British against the French and Indians. He established 19 articles of faith and wore a black beret, which were inherited and continued to be used. They widely used rapid raids and reconnaissance tactics, infiltrating behind enemy lines to attack targets. During the American Revolutionary War, various armies formed Ranger units, including Daniel Man's "The Corpsers", a group of experienced infantrymen led by Francis Marion, who fought alongside Washington's army several times. Due to the Rangers' bravery and skill, they gained Washington's trust, and after independence, the US Army had 12 companies of Rangers. During the American Civil War, one of the most famous Ranger units was Colonel John S. Mosby's cavalry unit in the Confederate Army. They used small-unit tactics, making quick raids on Union outposts or key points. The Revolutionary War and the Civil War confirmed the importance of Rangers to the US military. The tactics and military ideas used at that time also formed the basis for today's Ranger combat doctrine.

  On May 26, 1942, in the European Theater of Operations, Lt. Gen. Lucian K. Truscott established a US military unit that could fight alongside British Commandos, and named it "Ranger", led by Major William O. Darby. On June 19, 1942, the 1st Ranger Battalion was officially activated in Northern Ireland, with personnel mainly from the 1st Armored Division and the 34th Infantry Division, and received training at the Commando Training Center in Scotland for combat survival and amphibious landings. About a month later, 44 Rangers and 5 officers joined Canadian and British commandos to participate in the Dieppe Raid, becoming the first US military unit to engage with German forces in Europe.

  Ding Ruguang said: "The motto of the Ranger is 'Rangers, lead the way!'"

  "What does it mean?"

  "Hussars, forward!"

  Chen Zizhong was like a heavenly book, his thinking still stuck in the anti-Japanese battlefield and the liberation war, while Ding Ruogang had already grasped foreign military forces. The lack of knowledge made Chen Zizhong blush with shame, he said: "This cavalry is somewhat similar to our guerrilla troops and sharp knife company."

  "The Ranger emphasizes coordinated operations, the use of a small number to defeat a large number and vanguard role. From the nature of the task, it should be a combination of guerrilla teams and spearhead troops." Ding Ruguang added: "After the end of World War II, six US Ranger battalions were disbanded one after another. Now, their traces have been found near our garrison, which cannot be a simple coincidence. The US military may use again the tactics used against Japan in Burma. This is an elite force that should not be underestimated. If it is not eliminated early, it will threaten our logistics supply lines, field hospitals, warehouses and other important military facilities. The more serious consequence is that the Rangers participate in the encirclement of our troops."

  It turned out that Ding Ruguang's worries were not unreasonable. During this period, the US military's cavalrymen guided bombers to carry out indiscriminate bombing of many volunteer army command posts and field hospitals. In the most severe bombing incident, more than 70 volunteer soldiers died, mostly grassroots officers and medical personnel.

  The team leaders were amazed at Ding Ruguang's fluent English explanation, the team leader gently patted his whip, he regretted sending Ding Ruguang to fight guerrilla warfare, and could have stayed in the team department as a combat advisor.

  The captain's big palm pressed on the table and he stood up with a loud noise: "Ding Rugang, I'll give you credit for this!"