The First Volume of National Humiliation: The Lonely City's Bloody Battle Chapter 31: Burning with Anger (Part 1)

  Just like the old European movie "All Quiet on the Western Front" which depicts World War I, since the General Headquarters has already issued a directive for the second hundred division of Chongqing to besiege and support the battle, and also transferred the sixth division from the Chinese battlefield to Myanmar for guidance, the Myanmar army, which has increased in strength, is left with nothing to do, and as for the bones, they are naturally left for the newcomer "Steel Division" to gnaw on.

  Inside the 55th Division Headquarters on the northern high ground of Tonggu Castle, which was in the midst of a torrential downpour, there was a lively scene of singing and dancing. Watanabe Masao and Takeuchi Hiroshi frequently raised their cups, and several geishas from Osaka made Takeuchi feel extremely good, and after drinking just a few cups, he began to dance and sing with abandon, like a clown, creating a lively atmosphere. Many officers also joined in the revelry, and for a time, the headquarters was filled with noise and excitement.

  Watanabe Masao sat steadily in his seat, slowly savoring the high-quality clear wine from Tokyo under the attentive service of a geisha. Although he had a smile on his face and was slightly drunk, his eyes revealed a hint of disdain. He felt sad that he was actually associating with someone like Takeuchi Hiroshi, a 'nobody'.

  At this time, a drenched Commander entered the command center, looked around and walked straight to Tsuchiuchi Hiroshi who was gesticulating wildly, bent down and whispered something in his ear. Tsuchiuchi's expression changed from shock to joy as he rushed towards Watanabe Masao who was sitting calmly on the fishing platform.

  Actually, Takeuchi Hiroshi's actions and expressions all fell into Watanabe Masao's eyes. Seeing Takeuchi Hiroshi rushing towards him, Watanabe Masao immediately pretended to flirt with the geisha next to him who had a face full of powder and couldn't see her face clearly in order to cover himself up.

  In the corner of the headquarters, an aging geisha who was carrying sake was intentionally or unintentionally observing every move of Watanabe Masao and Takeuchi Hiroshi.

  Takeru Sugihara, who had successfully overcome the difficulties and was in high spirits, didn't notice these details. He came to Masao Watanabe's side, patted him on the shoulder and said: "Watanabe-san, how is your appetite now?"

  "Appetite?" Watanabe Masao furrowed his brow at this inexplicable question!

  Takeuchi Hiroshi saw Watanabe Masao's puzzled expression, burst out laughing and said: "During the 18th Division's battle with the new 5th Army's 22nd Regiment in Chongqing, my old subordinate Sakai Tarō unexpectedly took down one of their logistics supply stations. Inside were nine Chinese female student soldiers waiting to be transported! Real Chinese girls! I heard you've been having a tough time at Songhu, Sakai didn't keep any for himself and sent them all over. How about we each take half?"

  "Ah, Xi!" Watanabe's eyes began to emit a beast-like glow. The Chinese woman's expression of being humiliated and heartbroken was one of Watanabe's most unforgettable experiences.

  Just as the two were enthusiastically discussing how to have a good time, a lieutenant commander rushed into the command center and shouted loudly: "It's bad! The Chinese army attacked the Joint Chiefs of Staff!"

  "It's all over! It's all over!" The Japanese army lieutenant colonel collapsed to the ground, muttering repeatedly in his mouth.

  "What?" Watanabe Masao and Takeuchi Hiroshi almost simultaneously stood up, the chair was knocked over to the ground with a loud noise, the music stopped suddenly, and the shocked expressions were frozen on everyone's face.

  Takeuchi Hiroshi picked up Shosa and shouted loudly: "Toshio! Speak clearly!" Then he slapped Toshio Shosa's face with a loud slapping sound.

  Minfu woke up to the realization of his own discomposure and hastily stood up, saying: "The entire Joint Chiefs of Staff were killed, it was done by the Chinese, they were all wearing Imperial military uniforms!"

  "Hakka!" Tsubouchi Hiroshi pushed Masa-o away and gave an order that made him even more self-reproachful and remorseful, which was to immediately form a circle of encirclement and annihilate the Chinese army.

  Watanabe Masao, who was standing by, heard that the Joint Staff Headquarters had been attacked and suddenly became sober and broke out in a cold sweat. To know that many of the division's tactical, intelligence, and logistical staff were almost the brain center of the division, if they lost these professional personnel, the 56th Division would have trouble even with a simple march.

  Since the Chinese had already broken through, there was no need to carry out the original plan of besieging and relieving the city that had been formulated in the general headquarters before the execution. However, Watanabe Shōfu believed that the urgent task at this moment was to report to the military department first.

  After giving the order to attack, Takeuchi Hiroshi hurriedly found Watanabe Masao, because he knew that Watanabe still had a trump card, and there were many serious mistakes one after another, what a bleak future!

  Song Yuanhang, who was gnashed by Takeuchi Hiroshi and Watanabe Masao, also faced a difficult choice. What position is he in? The enemy's firepower, personnel situation, our side's team situation, weapons equipment ammunition, etc., all unknown!

  Song Yuanhang, who had served in special forces, had faced countless dangerous situations before, but this time he was really stumped.

  After breaking through several Japanese checkpoints, Song Yuanhang's team was followed by hundreds of Japanese soldiers behind them. Trudging through knee-deep rainwater, Song Yuanhang led the team to detour towards the city while occasionally leaving unexpected surprises for the pursuing troops behind them.

  The repeated misfires of the Japanese troops slowed down the speed of the various pursuit detachments that had been bombed, changing from pursuit to encirclement, intending to surround and control the Chinese breakout troops in a certain area, and then surround them after dawn.

  Taking advantage of the chaos in the Japanese army, Song Yuanghai finally arrived at the Xitang River Bridge, but unfortunately, the Japanese Kempeitai had already sealed off the bridge tightly. Two armored vehicles parked at the head of the bridge with their headlights on and the solid bridgehead fortifications made Song Yuanghai sigh as he looked at the bridge.

  The sparse gunfire in the south indicated that the breakout troops had likely broken through the Japanese encirclement. The big bridge was impassable due to the torrential rain, which caused the Xitang River to swell and its currents to become extremely turbulent. With no other choice, Song Yuanhang led his troops downstream along the riverbank, searching for a suitable location to cross the river.

  Not far away, Song Yuanhang unexpectedly discovered a temporary supply station of the Japanese army. More than a dozen tents were connected together, and most of the supplies were soaked in rainwater. Moreover, there was a faint noise inside the tent mixed with women's crying.

  There were only two Japanese soldiers standing guard at the entrance, Song Yuanhang waved his hand and the troops dispersed in an orderly manner, Xiao Guotang and a dozen or so soldiers closely followed behind Song Yuanhang.

  The noise grew louder as they approached the tent, and the Japanese sentry, who had been peeking in from time to time, only discovered Song Yuanghai and the others a few meters away. The Japanese sentry immediately shouted an order, followed by the sound of guns being cocked! Song Yuanghai seemed to ignore it all, walking quickly up to the Japanese sentry, swinging his arm and slapping him with a loud smack. Taking advantage of the Japanese sentry's dizziness, two Chinese soldiers crept up from either side, one covering the sentry's mouth while the other swiftly stabbed him in the heart with a bayonet.

  Looking at the two old soldiers, one pressed down on the Japanese soldier, covering his mouth, and the other made a swift twist with the bayonet, inserting it into the Japanese soldier's heart. The familiar coordination of hands made Song Yuanhang nod his head in satisfaction.

  Song Yuanhang, who entered the tent with a bow, found nearly a hundred Japanese soldiers surrounded by intoxicating fumes, their howling voices almost overturning the tent, and even Song Yuanhang led more than a dozen people in without anyone noticing.