Chapter Ten Organizing Militia
The highest-ranking Japanese military officer stationed in Chuzhou was assassinated at his residence, the most severe blow to the Japanese army in China since the July 7th Incident. The squadron leader responsible for guarding the headquarters was forced to commit seppuku, and after venting their anger, they decided to temporarily suspend the occupation of other areas and concentrate on rectifying the security situation in Chuzhou.
At that time, the anti-Japanese forces in Xuchang area, apart from "Chinese Divine Eagle", also had a team called "Chinese People's Anti-Japanese Propaganda Troupe". At that time, the Communist Party of China had not yet carried out work in this area.
Dr. Wu Qing was sitting at his desk, deep in thought. After three people visited him that day, he had a premonition that something big would happen, and the next day he heard the news of the city being put under martial law. First, the Japanese owner of the pharmacy was killed, and the pharmacy was looted. The subsequent news shocked him even more: the Japanese commander, Takashi Tatsumi, was found dead in his residence. Although it's still not possible to say for certain that those three people did it, Dr. Wu Qing couldn't think of anyone else who would have had the audacity to come and go freely in the heavily guarded command center, except for them, because he had once given them a map of the Japanese military deployment in Xuzhou, which included detailed information about the command center.
Wu Qing decided to report this matter to the organization, hoping that the organization could establish some kind of contact with this mysterious team and cooperate to resist Japan.
The Kuomintang's intelligence organization in Anhui also began to take notice of the events that occurred in Chuxian during this time. To be honest, although Chen Jifang and his men made a big stir in Chuxian, their impact was negligible on a national scale. It was already quite an honor for them to have attracted the attention of the intelligence department.
Chen Jifan returned to the base, knowing that the Japanese army would not give up easily this time. Once the Japanese army sweeps around Chuzhou, the common people will be in big trouble. His own strength is too weak, and he is busy with special warfare training, unable to effectively protect the common people. He discussed with other warriors from the future, and finally everyone agreed that they should develop their troops selectively.
"Lao Zhong, I've thought about expanding the team, but if we increase the number of people, on the surface it seems like our combat strength will improve, however, there are also a lot of troubles. First, the logistical pressure will immediately become tense, and we'll have to solve problems such as food, clothing, and ammunition for the team. Also, with a bigger team comes a bigger target, if our combat strength can't quickly increase, it will instead bring us inconvenience." Chen Jifan said to Zhong Dingcheng.
Zhong Dingcheng seemed to disagree with Chen Jifang's view, saying: "Chen, perhaps we are all carrying the burden of being former special forces soldiers, always thinking that our troops must be elite. But let's think about how our revolutionary predecessors developed from weakness to strength in the past. I suggest we first develop militia in the surrounding villages, so when the devils come, at least they can defend themselves, and the excellent ones can be absorbed into our ranks, without increasing logistical pressure, while expanding our influence and gradually improving our combat effectiveness."
"Good idea!" Chen Jifan decided without waiting for Zhong Dingcheng to finish. "However, the team's training cannot be relaxed, Old Zhong, family matters are all entrusted to you, I'll take care of the militia."
Chen Jifang only stayed at the base for three days. During these three days, he mainly inspected the training situation of the troops and reported to everyone on the recent movements of the devils.
The team's ideology and emotions are still relatively stable. Originally, everyone was resistant to the cruel training, but on one hand, they saw a huge gap between themselves and the instructors, and on the other hand, they heard that the captain and two others dared to go to the enemy commander's headquarters to cause trouble, so they had no choice but to obediently continue their training.
Chen Jifan took out the 9mm Browning High Power pistol and said to everyone: "Whoever has the best training results will be awarded this gun." Immediately, there was a commotion. Who among the soldiers didn't hope to have a good gun? Everyone originally came from the Nationalist Party's regular army, and their eyes were still discerning.
Actually, Chen Jifeng originally wanted to get a good gun for the new recruit He Chunxiang, but this gun's butt was not suitable for female soldiers, so he temporarily gave up and waited for an opportunity to get her a good gun.
Chen Jifan initially thought of arranging He Chunxiang to take care of the logistics for everyone, such as cooking and whatnot. However, he later changed his mind because this woman's psychological quality was very suitable for being an intelligence officer. After consulting with a few others, Chen Jifan arranged for He Chunxiang to study radio transmission and reception under Gao Huanjie first. This place belonged to the confidential department and could also help her avoid some trouble. Just as Chen Jifan and his team had just brought He Chunxiang into the base, those guys' eyes were all fixed on her. This was an unavoidable thing - whenever a woman came to the military camp, it would cause a stir, even in the special forces before. However, to prevent any accidents, Chen Jifan still gave the team members a stern warning: "Normal interactions are fine, but if anyone dares to have ulterior motives towards He Chunxiang, don't blame me for being ruthless. He Chunxiang is with us because she was bullied by the devils, and if anyone dares to bully her, I'll treat him as a devil." As for these Nationalist soldiers, since they hadn't spent much time together yet, he still wasn't quite at ease.
The troops now have a large number of guns left in their hands, Chen Jifan ordered to bring 80 Type 38 rifles, 2,000 rounds of ammunition and 30 wooden-handled grenades, and then take out some of the silver dollars looted from Chuzhou and load them onto two carts heading towards Xiaowangzhuang. In addition to Captain Chen Jifan, Zhao Jun and Hu Yunfeng were also present. Especially Zhao Jun's specialty was landmines and machine guns, which were most suitable for militia tactics.
Wang Jicai was well-informed about the news, and he was amazed by what happened in Xucheng. So when Chen Jifan and others explained their intentions, he immediately expressed his support. Wang Jicai understood very well that the Japanese would take revenge sooner or later after suffering such a great loss, and as soon as they came to the countryside, the common people would suffer. Someone helped the village train militia and provided guns and ammunition, which was the best thing that could happen, not to mention that there were also people from the big troops behind them.
With the support of local people, the militia work went much more smoothly. This Wang Jicai was a landlord in the village and had not done anything evil to the villagers on ordinary days. On the contrary, he still had some prestige among his countrymen. The next day, Wang Jicai rang the big bell in the village and gathered all the villagers together.
Xiaowang Village has over 300 households, with a population of over 1,000 people, making it a large village even by 21st-century Chinese standards. The reason for the large population is that Xiaowang Village has a lot of land. The village is situated in a large basin, built on the side of a mountain, surrounded by hills on all sides, with the village facing directly onto the fields, which are not only vast but also flat. In the east of the basin, between two mountains, there is a pass that serves as the only passage connecting Xiaowang Village to the outside world. Outside the village, however, lies tens of miles of mountainous terrain, and due to the inconvenience of transportation, Xiaowang Village has long been like a secluded Shangri-La, with simple and unsophisticated folk customs.
These were the circumstances that Wang Jicai introduced to Chen Jifang. When he first arrived in a place, he naturally wanted to understand some of the local customs and conditions, so Chen Jifang specially asked Wang Jicai about them.
The "square" of the village is located in the middle of the village, dividing it into East Village and West Village. The East Village has more than 200 households, all with the surname Wang, while the West Village has over 100 households, inhabited by people with other surnames. Among the people with other surnames, only a few have land, most are tenants and artisans. As the owner of a large house and business, Wang Jicai naturally became the village head of Xiaowangzhuang.
More than a thousand adults and children gathered together, the scene was quite spectacular, but it was too noisy. The women's chattering and scolding laughter, the children's crying and fighting sounds. From gathering to slowly quieting down, it took about an hour.
The reason for the sudden quiet was simple, everyone saw the three tall and heavily armed men standing behind the village chief, their eyes gleaming with spirit, wearing clothes that were gaudy. Next to them, dozens of guns were neatly stacked.
As the villagers quieted down, Wang Jicai climbed up to a high place and began to speak: "Fellow villagers, I have gathered everyone here today to discuss an important matter. In recent years, with the blessing of heaven, our small village has been peaceful and prosperous. However, last year, the Japanese invaded China, burning, killing, looting, and committing all sorts of evil deeds. The National Army was unable to defeat them, and even the capital of the National Government was occupied by the Japanese. Now, the Japanese have occupied the county town. The people in the surrounding areas have suffered greatly, and the town of Wuyi to the south has been looted clean. The Japanese are a group of beasts disguised as humans, killing everyone they see, including children, and raping women. They take whatever they want. Now, these beasts are hiding in the county town, and at any moment, they may come to our village. Fellow villagers, even if the National Army cannot win, we cannot run away either. Where can we go? Moreover, this is also the land left behind by our ancestors. So today, I ask you, fellow villagers, what should we do?
After Wang Jicai finished speaking, the scene below was a buzz. This situation is somewhat different from what Chen Jifan and others had imagined. In the past, on TV, they thought that as long as someone shouted, everyone would follow, but unexpectedly...
It was Wang Jicai who didn't care much about the villagers' reaction, which was to be expected. Most of the villagers couldn't even figure out what a Japanese person was, let alone understand concepts like country and nation. After a brief commotion, Wang Jicai saw that the situation wasn't going well, so he quickly continued: "Everyone, quiet down and listen to me. Do you all know who these three good men standing next to me are? They're from the 'Divine Eagle' unit that beat those Japanese devils until they cried out for their dads and moms just a few days ago! This is Officer Chen, this is Officer Hu, and this is Officer Zhao." Wang Jicai introduced them one by one to the villagers.
The reputation of "Shenying" has recently spread throughout the four villages and eight towns, what comes without a shadow and goes without a trace, what flies on the eaves and walks on the wall, etc. So when the villagers saw the legendary figure standing in front of them, they immediately fell silent like crows and magpies.
Wang Jicai cleared his throat and continued, "These are the leaders of the 'Divine Eagle' unit. They're willing to help us fight against the devils, so let's welcome Commander Chen to give us a speech." After finishing speaking, he led the applause, followed by a sparse and scattered round of clapping from below.
The villagers' behavior made Chen Jifang feel chilled to the bone, but it was not their fault. The vast majority of villagers were illiterate and had no concept of nation or country. Whoever harmed them, they would hate whoever; whoever treated them well, they would obey whoever.
"Fellow villagers, we are a team specializing in fighting the devils. The devils refer to the Japanese who have come to our land to harm Chinese people. As the village head just said, the Japanese devils have occupied the county town and will soon bring disaster here. What can we do? We must take up arms to protect our homeland. The devils are not invincible; recently, my comrades and I defeated a group of little devils. Today, we came to help organize a militia in your village. In peacetime, the militia will work and train, and when the devils come, they will take up arms to defend their homes. Behind me are 80 Japanese guns and bullets that were captured. Those who wish to join the militia can sign up now and receive two yuan as a settlement fee."
Many people don't quite understand what the militia is, but two dollars is real. After Chen Jifan finished speaking, people came forward one after another to ask to join the militia.
The number of applicants was too large, and after screening, Chen Jifang accepted 240 people. These 240 people were all robust villagers, and Chen Jifang considered that having 240 reserve personnel for the time being would be enough, as too many people could not be trained.
That night, the three men simply divided their work: Zhao Jun and Hu Yunfeng each led 120 people, while Chen Jifan was responsible for formulating training outlines and assessment, intelligence, logistics, and publicity.
The formal training will start the day after tomorrow morning, and the three of us must come up with a training outline and regulations within this timeframe. The militia training cannot be like special forces, everything has to start from scratch.
