Chapter 37: Investigating the Mysterious Unit

  Inside the headquarters of the Second Division, all staff officers wearing Japanese Army uniforms had gathered in the operations room, waiting for the arrival of the division commander.

  In front of these Japanese staff officers, a table about 10 meters long and 3 meters wide was placed, on which a sand table was laid out according to the actual proportion, with red and blue small flags marking the distribution of the Northeast Army and the Kwantung Army. On the wall hung a military map, also marked with the trend of both sides' situation.

  These Japanese military staff were all brains trust of the Second Division, assisting Ozawa in making strategies for Lieutenant General Muto.

  They had been receiving a large amount of intelligence about the Northern Garrison since last night, which made them so busy that they didn't have time to rest. Some people hadn't rested for 24 hours! At this moment, they were still discussing the intelligence together.

  The sound of boots trampling on the floor echoed in the corridor, followed by a loud shout from the guards, "The regimental commander is here, salute!"

  The Japanese staff inside immediately stopped their work and stood up facing the door, waiting for Tomenosuke's arrival.

  Just two breaths later, the thin figure of Tamaki Doujiro appeared at the entrance of the combat room, stepped across the threshold and walked into the house!

  "Hello, Master!"

  All Japanese officers chorused their greetings to him and saluted!

  "Hmm!" Lieutenant Colonel Tomonari nodded to the people, then walked to his position and placed both hands on the edge of the table, scanning the military officers in the room.

  Everyone also looked up at him, waiting for his instructions!

  "Is there any latest telegram from Beidaying?" asked Tomenosuke, addressing a staff officer with the rank of lieutenant commander. "Bring me all intelligence concerning Beidaying, I want to see it myself!"

  That aide hurriedly ran out and soon returned with a thick stack of files, placing them in front of Tōmori.

  Tamenosuke flipped through the documents, carefully reading them. His reading speed was very fast, and he had already finished about a third of it in no time. The staff officers inside the house didn't dare to speak, standing quietly there waiting.

  The room was very quiet, with only the rustling sound of Duo Meng'er turning pages!

  It was a long time before Lieutenant General Matsumoto finally looked up and closed the file. He glanced at his staff officers and said, "How many units have been assigned to attack the Northern Garrison this time?"

  "There are three battalions in total, which are the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the Independent Guard Brigade. The main attacking force is the 2nd Battalion led by Shimamoto Masakazu!" a staff officer replied.

  "So, that means the total number of troops mobilized this time reached 3,000 people?" Tamonjiro seemed to be muttering to himself, yet also asking those staff officers, "Three fully-equipped army battalions with advanced firepower can't even take down a single regimental barracks of the enemy's army?"

  "Report to the commander, it's not a brigade, but only about two regiments of troops!" The Japanese staff officers had already analyzed the situation based on intelligence and obtained relatively accurate information. "After Captain Hanoi created an incident at Liujiatou Lake, the high-level Northeast Army ordered the 7th Brigade to withdraw from Beidaying, so most of the 7th Brigade has withdrawn, leaving only about two regiments of troops who disobeyed orders and stayed behind. Therefore, those fighting against Shimabukuro Masao and his men should be the 1st Regiment and Special Duty Regiment of the 620th Brigade of the 7th Brigade!"

  "You're saying that two battalions of the Northeast Army defeated our invincible Kwantung Army's three brigades?" Lieutenant General Niimi heard this and burst out laughing in anger, staring at the staff officer. "If that's really true, then it would be better for us officers of the Great Japanese Empire to withdraw back to the mainland immediately, wouldn't it?"

  "General, I didn't mean it that way!" The staff officer was intimidated by Lieutenant General Ni's fierce gaze and hastily lowered his head, explaining, "I meant to say that the Northeast Army only has two regiments, but there are other troops present!"

  Tadokoro didn't say a word, waiting for him to continue explaining, so the staff officer continued, "On several battlefields in Beidaying, we collected some cartridge cases that were completely different from those used by the Northeastern Army. After technical personnel identification, they should be 5.62 caliber bullets, and according to other data collected, it can be confirmed that they are automatic weapons!"

  "Automatic firearms, were they guns purchased by the Northeastern Army from other countries?" interrupted Tomenosuke.

  The staff officer shook his head and continued to explain, "General, the current automatic weapons are nothing more than submachine guns from countries like the United States and Germany, none of which have a 5.62 caliber, and the manufacturing process for this cartridge is simply impossible at present!"

  "What?!" Tamado Nijiro was shocked this time. If it's said that the current craftsmanship can't make such a bullet shell, then doesn't that mean that such bullets and weapons shouldn't appear on the battlefield at all?!

  But it did indeed appear, and right before our eyes!

  "Or is it some kind of trial gun type that people don't know about?" asked a small Sawada, raising his own doubts.

  Another staff officer shook his head, "Impossible, I was originally studying the subject of weapon manufacturing and had studied in Germany. I can definitely say that this type of gun is at least several decades more advanced than today's rifles, and the large number of shells left on the scene indicates that it is a mass-produced weapon that has already been equipped by troops!"

  "Are you saying that this advanced automatic firearm is a standard issue for that mysterious unit?" asked Tamao Dōrō.

  "Moreover, some special cartridge cases were also found, which should be used for sniper rifles and a certain type of machine gun. They are all unprecedented models with extremely advanced performance, far surpassing our current weapon equipment!" The staff officer had an air of "if you don't believe me, I'll die", but he had to admit that he was indeed excellent, his analysis was spot on!

  After listening to the analysis of several staff members and also looking at some shell casings and landmine fragments as research samples, Lieutenant Colonel Matsumoto had to admit that this time they encountered a team that was absolutely very dangerous!

  Acting like the wind, skilled in tactics and techniques, with stunning marksmanship, and equipped with the most advanced automatic weapons, such a well-established army would be a headache for anyone who dares to be their opponent!

  Tamotsu Morita fell silent for a while before speaking slowly, "It seems we need to investigate the origin of this troop and their destination!"

  He turned around and gave the order, "Send a telegram to the Kwantung Army Command immediately, report the situation to Commander Honjō Shigeru, ask them to put pressure on the Northeastern Army from the east, let them hand over the commander of this mysterious unit and relevant materials, of course, it's best if they hand over the entire unit to us!"

  "Come back!" The staff officer was about to go down to the telegraph room, when Lieutenant General Tamo called out to him again and walked towards the door himself. "I'll call the commander directly instead!"

  …………