Chapter 54: The Captain is Dead, Changing Direction of Breakthrough

  "Just as they were about to stop advancing, Li Lian Sheng ran back again after just a few minutes, and there was another person behind him. Hearing his shouting, Guo Xin Ju, who was leading the team at the front, waved his hand commanding them to rest in place."

  "What's wrong, Li Zi?" Guo Xinju asked anxiously as he ran after Li Liansheng, who had already rushed past him. Li Liansheng didn't respond to him. At this time, Zhang Daman, who was in the middle of the team, saw Li Liansheng running back and his heart skipped a beat. He also hurriedly ran towards him.

  "Zhang, Zhang, Commander-in-Chief orders you to immediately change the direction of the breakthrough and choose a place where the enemy's defense is weak to break through on your own." The soldiers from the team guard company who followed Li Liansheng back were still running and shouted at Zhang Damao.

  "What's wrong with the captain......" Zhang Daman shouted in his heart and walked forward to grab his shoulder and ask.

  "The squad leader is dead... He was shot by the enemy's machine gun during the breakout..."

  When Zhang Daman heard the news of Guo Jinan's death in battle, his tightly strung heart suddenly relaxed, and he sat down on the ground with a thud.

  "Dragonfly, Dragonfly, Dragonfly..."

  "Big dumb..." Zhang's appearance scared Li Lian Sheng and others, but after seeing him wave his hand to indicate that he was fine, they finally put their minds at ease.

  "How many Japanese troops are there up ahead?" Guo Xingju asked the soldiers of the guard company as he ran over to them, glancing at Zhang Damao who was sitting on the ground with a bewildered expression.

  "The specifics are unclear, but there aren't a few, also with mortars... ... I'm afraid at least one battalion..."

  "His grandma's, this little devil has grown wings ah..." Guo Xinju heard that the Japanese army blocking them had a large troop, and one of them almost fell to the ground. A large troop of Japanese soldiers compared to a Chinese army company, if they were blocking Guo Jizhong's way, there would be at least a battalion, then the Japanese pursuing them would have at least a brigade.

  "How are the troops in front doing?" Dong Dajun asked after supporting Guo Jixin.

  "The three battalion commanders are also dead... The devils have surrounded us like an iron barrel, with five or six machine guns blocking our way. The chief of staff has ordered him and the second battalion commander to lead a part of the troops to break through from two directions, but he's afraid you'll rush out and fall into the devil's encirclement again, so he ordered me to inform you."

  "What shall we do, brother?" Li Liansheng was also shocked when he heard the soldier's words. He had not expected the Japanese army to arrive so quickly. In fact, they did not know that after the Japanese army defeated the 31st Army's position, two large detachments of Japanese troops had already divided into several routes and inserted themselves from the middle of the Chinese army to their rear.

  "He's his own grandfather, the situation is unclear... We are... " Li Liansheng wanted to say something else, but when he turned around, he saw that Zhang Daman had already recovered from the news of Guo Jinan's death and was now holding a map in contemplation.

  "According to the intelligence from the Ministry of War, four days ago, a Japanese army unit was dispatched from Liuhe and Lai'an, with the clear strategic goal of occupying Mingguang and blocking our retreat route. Judging by their speed, they may have already arrived in Mingguang or are not far away. Although heading east is the shortest distance to the north shore, it's extremely dangerous. If we can't break through the Japanese army's blockade ahead, once the three Japanese forces surround us, we'll really be left with no hope at all..." Zhang Damao spread out a map on the ground and pointed to various locations while speaking to himself without looking up.

  "The situation is critical at the moment, and we don't have a radio to contact our superiors. Moreover, the chief of staff's order was clear: we should disperse and break through on our own. Battalion commander... what do you think we should do?" Dong Dajun squatted beside Zhang Damang, watching as his finger moved back and forth on the map, feeling like a fire burning in his heart.

  "Yes! The situation is urgent... must quickly determine the direction of the breakthrough, otherwise staying here can only be a matter of time..."

  "Before the devils surround us, our troops will quickly return to Zhanjinpu. As he spoke, Zhang Daman looked up at the three of them and saw that they had no objections, so he continued: "Then we will swiftly turn southwest and advance to the area around Shangxia Lijiazhuang. After arriving at Lijiazhuang, our troops will be divided into three squads according to their original formation, with each of you leading a squad. From Xiaoshoujia and Xiaoloujia, we will disperse and break through along the Fengyangshan Reservoir, then regroup at Dongwu's house. We will then attack from behind the devils' lines via Caodian and Xiquan, heading north to cross the river at Bengbu Mountain. If we encounter devilish resistance, we can retreat in the direction of Wenyuqiao Town. The 48th Army has a division gathering there, as well as a brigade from the 7th Army that broke through... What do you think?" Zhang Daman asked after finishing his explanation.

  "As long as we can safely break through from Zhanjipu to Lijiachang, although the journey is a bit longer, it's the safest route. The problem is that a Japanese regiment is right behind us, and if we retreat to Zhanjipu now, I'm afraid we'll run into them...". Dong Dajun said with some concern, pointing at the direction of Hongxin Town on the map.

  "Although the devils in front of us were a regimental force before, judging from the fact that they have not pursued us for so long, their current force is probably not many. I estimate that it is very likely that they have already withdrawn most of their troops from the 48th and 31st armies several days ago. So even if we really encounter them, we can still take them by surprise and catch them off guard." Guo Xingju was after all a former company commander, and his words were nodded in agreement by Dong Dajun.

  "Of course, it's best to insert troops from Zhanjinpu before they arrive... Command the troops to act immediately and rush to Zhanjinpu..." Zhang Damao shouted while putting away the map.

  This time, everyone did not object because the intense gunfire in front of them just told them that if they went forward again, it would undoubtedly be a dead end. Everyone who heard the retreat was only gritting their teeth and following closely behind the team.

  However, for safety's sake, Zhang Dabao still sent Li Liansheng to lead Zhao Zhibang and three other physically fit soldiers to scout ahead.

  They had been marching continuously for more than 5 hours since they retreated from Hongxin Town to the north, and the soldiers were exhausted. Zhang Daman was also anxious in his heart, not knowing if they could arrive at Zhanjinpu before the Japanese army came up behind them. He now regretted that he should have thought of the danger of going north at that time, and if he had retreated westward at that time, he should have already withdrawn from the encirclement of the devils by now. His regiment commander, Guo Jinan, actually knew the danger of retreating from Erpu and Banqiao, and also knew that if they broke through the enemy's flank, they could safely lead the troops out. However, in doing so, they would not be able to arrive on time when the Japanese army attacked the northern shore defense line. Now, not only were they unable to retreat to the northern shore, but his entire regiment was also scattered by the devils, and even Guo Jinan himself fell down during the charge.

  "Damn it... Grandpa's ghost really did get there before us to Zhanjinpu..." They had been rushing for over 2 hours and were close to Zhanjinpu, but unexpectedly the Japanese army was still ahead of them. By now, the sky had also darkened.

  "How many people..." Hearing that there were Japanese soldiers in front, Zhang Damao immediately waved his hand to stop the advancing troops and anxiously asked Li Liansheng.

  "Probably two platoons... over a hundred people... but seemingly no heavy weapons like mortars..."

  "They are currently in what position......" It is said that there is a ghostly middle school, Zhang Daman took a breath of cool air, he took out the map from his pocket while looking at Li Lian Sheng and asked.

  "Right in front of us, in that small village,,,,,,,, these devils are cooking and burying pots,,,,,,,, I told Zhibang and 'Mi' Long to keep an eye on them,,,,,,,,,,,"

  "I've checked, the closest route from here to Lijiazhuang is this road, but we have to go through the village occupied by the devils. And on the east side is an open area, if we pass through there and are discovered and blocked by the devils, it will be difficult to break out...". Li Liansheng saw that Zhang Daman was not speaking, but was frowning at the map in his hand, knowing he was looking for another route.

  After listening to Li Liansheng's words, Zhang Daman, who had been paying attention to the map all along, threw the map on the ground with a swoop and started 'digging' in his pocket again.

  "Following the devils' marching habits, I'm afraid there are at least two more squads of devils nearby. If we rush out from the village, who knows...". Dong Dajun picked up the map that Zhang Damang had dropped and brushed off the dirt as he spoke.

  "Old Guo, you stay here and get ready for battle... Li Lian Sheng... the great army... follow me to the front and take a look..." Zhang Da Mao didn't wait for Dong Da Jun to finish speaking, he hung his binoculars around his neck and led the way forward. Li Lian Sheng and Dong Da Jun glanced at Guo Xin Ju and followed closely behind him onto the small path ahead.

  "Row after row, line after line..." Just as they were approaching a desolate piece of land not far from the village, Zhang 'Misty' Long hurried over with his waist bent.

  "What's wrong?" Li Lian Sheng hastily went up and grabbed Zhang 'Mie' Long's shoulder, asking as he saw his frantic appearance.

  "Devils, devils, those damned devils are causing trouble in the village, harming innocent people... Come on, let's hurry up and rescue them!" Zhang 'Misty' Long shook off Li Lian Sheng's hand and walked a few steps to stand before Zhang Da Meng.

  "Go ahead and take a look at the front first," he said, and without waiting for others to respond, he ran down from the side of the ground with an iron face.

  "You two stay here and observe the terrain around this area, 'Misty' Dragon take me down...". Several people came to a small hill outside the village after Zhang Dasheng said that, then followed behind Zhang 'Misty' Dragon down the hill.