Chapter Seventeen: Surprise Attack on the Pearl Dragon

  Oshima Hideki's troops have been on the move for three days, and except for Nakamichi in the south route who has not yet sent any news back, both his own central route and northern route troops have successfully converged at Dali Town, which is located at the far northwest of Chuzhou.

  Along the way, they passed through many villages, but it seemed that the villagers had received news in advance and basically all ran away, leaving only some elderly and weak people behind. Da Dao did not allow his soldiers to harass these villages because eliminating the anti-Japanese armed forces called "Shenying" was the top priority this time. However, three whole days passed, and there was no sign of "Shenying". Many villagers were caught and asked, but none of them knew where those people were.

  "What is the actual military strength of 'Shenying', who is in command, and which party is leading, the Communist Party or the Nationalist Party? The Imperial Army doesn't know anything about it. I really suspect what those guys in the Intelligence Department are doing all day. Is it only after the elite of the Imperial Army has been lost that they will take it seriously?"

  However, this campaign was not without gain. Just as the two routes of the Imperial Army merged and prepared to continue advancing towards Dingyuan, the troops were ambushed by a group of Chinese militia in a place called Yaowei Village. Unfortunately, these 1,000 or so people were just a mob, and the Imperial Army defeated them in just half an hour. The Chinese left behind more than 600 corpses before fleeing without a trace. Oyama had hoped to obtain some valuable intelligence about the "Divine Eagle" troops from the captured prisoners, but was disappointed again. Along the way, Oyama ordered that all prisoners be buried alive.

  Dingyuan cannot go for the time being. This powerful Shina armed force has threatened the security of the Empire on the Tianjin-Pukou Railway line. The next step is that the Imperial Army will attack from both north and south to capture Xuzhou, a key town on the Tianjin-Pukou Railway line. If there is any mishap on the Tianjin-Pukou Railway line, I can only apologize to the Emperor alone.

  Oshima ordered his troops to continue searching with Dayu Town as the center and at least know where "Shenying" went.

  "Divine Eagle" anti-Japanese special operations team arrived at the outskirts of Zhulóng Town in the evening.

  Chen Jifang immediately convened a combat meeting above the rank of platoon leader.

  Chen Jifan first reported the situation he had investigated to everyone: "Everyone, look, this is Zhulong Town. There is a river in the west, and the highway to Dingyuan passes over the bridge. The Japanese army has 12 guards on the bridge. Along the Chuzhou-Dingyuan Highway to the northwest are hills, and there are many rivers, which is not conducive to troop movement. Seven li to the west, there is a mountain pass, which is the only way for the devils to return. Next, please ask Comrade Xu Yang to tell everyone about the situation of the devils inside Zhulong Town."

  Xu Yang blended into the town for more than three hours and was the last one to reunite with the main force. Upon hearing his name being called by the company commander, he walked forward with some embarrassment, first saluting the personnel present, then looking up and saying: "Reporting to all superiors, Special Forces soldier Xu Yang has been ordered to conduct reconnaissance on Zhulon Town, please instruct!"

  Xu Yang's super serious etiquette made everyone hold back their laughter, Zhao Jun couldn't help but smile and gave Xu Yang a thumbs up. Luo Yu Gang hurriedly went over to pat Xu Yang on the shoulder, "Good, not bad", then turned around to say to Zhao Jun, "He must be your high apprentice".

  "I don't dare take credit for it, it's all thanks to our old teacher Zhong's good teaching."

  Some people may ask, it's just a military salute, what's the big deal. Mainly because everyone has come to this era for the first time and saw their own etiquette and norms in the army, suddenly feeling very familiar, also evoking some faint memories.

  "Comrade Xu Yang, no need for formalities, let's get down to business." Chen Jifan said.

  "Yes!" Xu Yang squatted down and began to draw on the ground.

  As soon as he finished speaking, everyone immediately put away their smiles and began to listen attentively to Xu Yang's introduction.

  "Gentlemen, please take a look. This is the wall surrounding the town, with three exits in the east, west, and south. The highway passes through the town, and just outside the southern gate is our current location. The enemy's garrison strength is approximately one company, which occupied the town about a month ago. The company commander is named Yamashita Kinsuke. According to the townspeople, this devil is very greedy, often capturing people and demanding ransom from their families, and has imposed numerous taxes. He has also exploited the land in the surrounding areas for miles around. There are thirty or so enemy soldiers at each of the three town gates, equipped with two machine guns each, as well as mortars, although I'm not sure how many. The entire wall is topped with barbed wire. The northern part of the town, near the river, has a more rugged terrain and few residents. Yamashita's command center is located in the town hall, which I was unable to infiltrate, but from outside, it appears to have a large courtyard. Apart from these three locations, there are no other Japanese troops stationed elsewhere in the town. However, there are over thirty Japanese soldiers patrolling the town in shifts. In short, the devils inside the town are very vigilant, and this is all I've been able to gather." Xu Yang lowered his voice as he finished speaking.

  The squad leaders present listened to Xu Yang's introduction and secretly praised him in their hearts. This kid had only been gone for a few hours and had already obtained such valuable intelligence, which was not easy at all, and he had great potential.

  "Alright, you've worked hard, come, have a drink of water." Chen Jifan handed over his canteen and then asked Zhao Jun, "How's the situation on your side?"

  Zhao Jun cleared his throat and said while drawing on the ground, "I led the whole row to unfold a fan-shaped search in the north. The devils have not gone to Xiao Wang Zhuang yet, and no enemy situation has been found within ten miles around Xiao Wang Zhuang. We continue to search northward and find that all the devils are concentrated near Da Liu Town, just here, and also here."

  Chen Jifan measured the distance on the map with his hand, "Daliu Town is less than 20 kilometers away from here. If the devils march on foot, it will take at least four hours. But Zhulong Town is only 22 kilometers away from Chuzhou, and if the devils in Chuzhou reinforce, it will take only an hour by car. So we can't think of swallowing a big mouthful this time, otherwise, we won't be able to swallow it when the time comes."

  "Then you tell me how to hit it?" Luo Yu Gang was somewhat anxious, seeing the fat meat in front of him that he couldn't eat, anyone would be frustrated.

  "Old tactics, the main force of the troops is ambushed outside the town, with a small number of troops carrying out harassment and using snipers as cover to lure the enemy out. The enemy can't possibly come out in full force, only a part of them can come out at a time. If there are fewer people, our main force will surround him."

  "What if the devils don't come out?"

  "So the harassment squad needs to grasp the measure now, they need to provoke the enemy but not scare them off. This task is handed over to Squad Leader Zhong, it's all up to you now. Wen Chuanhao and his sniper are also under your command."

  "Captain Chen, don't worry, 'Death God' will help me keep an eye on the devils, everything is fine."

  "Luohan, you lead the special warfare squad to depart immediately. The target is 12 devils on the bridge west of the town. Remember not to fire guns, otherwise the devils will think they are under attack by a large force and hide in the town, which won't be fun. After completing the task, go around to the north side of the town, infiltrate into the town from there, and set up an ambush. When the main force launches an attack on the town, you will be responsible for creating chaos and coordinating with the outside forces. Got it?"

  "No problem, but Xuyang has to come with me."

  "Of course!" Chen Jifan said, "The rest of the units will follow me to the back mountain slope, which is 3 miles away from the town. The terrain is just right for an ambush. Old Zhong, the formal attack time is 10:00 tonight, Luo Han will advance 10 minutes earlier. There are still 2 hours left, any questions?"

  "Is that all?"

  "Dismissed! Everyone start preparing on your own!"

  At the end of January 1938, although the New Year had passed, there were still traces of winter everywhere on the ground, especially in the desolate mountains and countryside where people rarely ventured. Snowflakes still hung from tree branches, and a blanket of white covered the mountain tops. The pale moonlight occasionally peeked out through gaps in the passing clouds.

  Luo Yu-gang led the special warfare squad to launch an attack on the bridge first. The members of the special warfare squad were originally from the Central Army and had better tactical literacy. After undergoing hellish training in Zhongding City, they were now a far cry from their former selves. These 14 people were also selected as elites during the army's reorganization, so dealing with the 12 devils on the bridge should be easy.

  But Luo Yu felt no relaxation at all, after all, the team members under his command were participating in special warfare for the first time, and the devils on the bridge were not sleeping waiting to be killed.

  The devils are indeed not idle. There were two devils patrolling back and forth on the bridge, with one mobile sentry at each end of the bridge outside, and a machine gun bunker at each end of the bridge, with two devils and a machine gun in each bunker. The key is that near this side of the town, the devils built a simple pillbox, and there were also two devils and a machine gun on top of the pillbox, while the rest of the devils should be waiting for their shift inside the pillbox.

  The enemy's position has caused great difficulty for the attack, and there is only one opportunity to take advantage of it, which is to quickly resolve the nearby ghost patrol and replace it with our own people. Then, while the patrolling ghosts are turning their backs, wipe out the ghosts above and below the fortifications, and disguise ourselves as ghosts to gather the ghosts on the other side of the bridge and those who are patrolling, and take them out together. The plan is a bit adventurous, but there is no other way.

  As the devil's patrol approached, a figure suddenly rushed out of the bushes and pressed him to the ground, and then this devil was stabbed directly into the heart with a dagger. Another special warfare soldier who had put on the devil's military uniform (previously captured) quickly stood up and began "patrolling" along the original route of the devils.

  Luo Yu-gang still preferred to use crossbow, killing people at close range was invisible, it had some ancient assassin's feeling. So the two devils on duty in the bunker were "honored" to taste the special weapon of 21st century special forces. After clearing the rooftop, Luo Yu-gang opened the door below with Japanese, as soon as the door opened a crack, the special warfare team members rushed in, four devils didn't have time to make any sound before being completely annihilated.

  The devils in the machine gun bunker about 20 meters away seemed to have heard something, one devil ran to the front of the bunker and was about to ask a question, but unexpectedly an officer came out from inside and slapped him with several slaps "pa pa", just as he was being flapped into confusion, suddenly felt a chill on his neck, and his body followed and fell down.

  Luo Yuguang shouted loudly in Japanese towards the bridge, "Everyone gather, there's a situation!" In less than 5 minutes, the remaining 5 devils came running over while adjusting their uniforms and stood lined up in front of the bunker. "Yo, west!", Luo Yuguang waved his hand, and behind each of the 5 people, a pair of strong hands stretched out, one covering their mouths, and the other accurately stabbing a dagger into their hearts.

  The battle on the bridge went relatively smoothly, and then Luo Yuguang ordered a quick sweep of the battlefield, taking away all the machine guns and bullets from the devils. No choice, since arriving in this era, battles have become like begging, after each battle, they reflexively scoured the world for things, but with few people, they could only take the valuable ones.

  In comparison, the row of guns in Zhongding City's attack on Zhenlong Town was much safer. First, everyone used the devils on the earthen wall of the town to practice their marksmanship. Although the sound of gunfire was sparse, the efficiency was quite high. After a round of gunfire, no more devils could be seen standing on the wall.

  "Enemy attack!" The devils in the town reacted quickly, and as soon as they heard the gunfire, they began to climb up the wall. However, Zhong Dingcheng had already ordered the machine guns to aim at the top of the wall, and many devils were knocked down as soon as they showed their heads. But the devils relied on their numerical superiority, and under the cover of the rain of bullets, they continued to enter the positions on the wall and began to counterattack.

  Yamashita Kinsuke's days were spent very comfortably, although at first he was quite dissatisfied with being transferred to this rural area as a guard. A few days ago, his superior officer, Oshima, came to inspect the local security situation and Yamashita tried his best to curry favor with him. Oshima promised that after eliminating the Chinese resistance forces in Xuchang County, he would consider transferring Yamashita to a front-line unit where he could distinguish himself.

  "Yamashita-kun, if there's anything urgent, please contact me through the radio. I'm counting on you to take care of Zhulong Town." These were the parting words of Commander Oshima.

  "Report, our troops have been attacked by a group of unidentified Chinese armed forces."

  "What's going on?" This was no good news for the mountain troops. "What is the enemy's troop strength and firepower deployment situation?"

  "The enemy's gunfire is not very dense, carrying a small number of grenade launchers, and the initial judgment is that there are about 40 to 50 enemies."

  "Hah!" The man at the foot of the mountain was furious, forty or fifty people actually dared to plot against the Imperial Army's garrison. These Japanese were simply a group of stupid pigs. Wait, grenade launchers? Could it be that this group was Japan's "Shin'yō" unit? Only they would have access to the Imperial Army's grenade launchers.

  "Pass on the order, the Wild Type squad will attack immediately and annihilate that group of bandits?"

  "Should we contact General Daishima?" the soldier asked cautiously.

  "Bastard, can't my elite squadron handle a few dozen of these Vietnamese?" Yamashita cursed angrily. In fact, what he was thinking in his heart was that if he could personally lead the team to annihilate this armed group, wouldn't the merit be great?

  "Report, the devils have emerged, with a force of over fifty men, a whole infantry platoon." Song Guantao put down his binoculars and said to Zhong Dengcheng.

  "Song Pai Zhang, immediately sent someone to contact Lian Zhang, told them the devils have been mobilized, and then ordered each squad to fight while retreating, not allowing them to engage in a decisive battle."

  Zhong Dingcheng's row of scattered troops outside the south gate of Zhulong Town were engaged in a fierce exchange of fire with the Japanese army on the wall. Considering that the devils might be equipped with mortars, Zhong Dingcheng ordered his two grenade launchers to fire three rounds quickly and then immediately retreat. What a joke, exchanging fire between grenade launchers and mortars? That's not looking for death? The devils found that the opposing grenade launcher had fallen silent, and they became even more excited, charging towards the row of positions with their lives on the line.

  This was Zhong Dingcheng's first time to witness the Japanese army's attack, and he felt shocked. The Japanese army charged forward without any regard for their lives, and they had mortar support from behind. No wonder the National Army couldn't win, they might have lost in terms of morale. So Zhong Dingcheng ordered:

  "Song Pailang, you lead the troops to withdraw first. Remember to maintain order and don't mess up others."

  "What about that row of troops? Why don't you lead the team to retreat, and we'll stay behind to cover?" Song Guantao didn't dare to abandon his superior casually.

  "What's with all the nonsense! I told you to withdraw, so withdraw!" Zhong Dingcheng immediately realized he had been a bit too harsh, so he changed his tone. "Don't worry, these few dozen devils can't do anything to me. Besides, we have Officer Wen's sniper behind us, let's carry out the order."

  "Yes, take care and stay safe." Song Guantou's eyes were filled with tears as he bowed and turned to leave. In the past when they were in the National Army, there was no way an officer would stay behind to cover for his men, it was because they had been abandoned by their officers that these twenty or thirty men had ended up joining the mountain rebels.

  The devils retreated as soon as they faced each other, and thought that the enemy was a mob that could not withstand a single blow. The Mori team, eager to win, began to pursue with all their might.

  Wen Chuanhe and his team were hiding on a high ground, Jin Suo was still being taken care of by He Chunxiang. Meng Xiaofei and Xu Yougen were already quite good at shooting in the National Army, but compared to the captain, they were far inferior. Moreover, the captain would often explain sniper tactics, trajectory, rifling, wind power and other new terms to them during battles and marches. The captain usually spoke very little, but when it came to these things, he was eloquent.

  Wen Chuanhao had already placed the crosshairs of his scope on an officer's head, and the Type 88 sniper rifle in his hand had been with him for many years, it could be said that it had become a part of his life. When the unit was replacing equipment, he did not update his gear, because he and this gun had long been inseparable. At a distance of 600 meters, with a gentle breeze, Wen Chuanhao pulled the trigger.

  When Nohara fell, his eyes were wide open, he couldn't believe that he would lose his life like this. The soldier behind him saw the back of Nohara's head suddenly explode with a big hole, and the squad leader's brains and blood splattered all over his face, causing the soldier to collapse immediately.

  The devils were indeed very strong, and the death of the commander did not affect the pursuit process. Soon, a Cao Chang took over as commander. However, this gave Wen Chuanhao's sniper team an opportunity to practice their skills. Three sniper rifles, combined with the accurate burst fire from Zhong Dingcheng's 03 assault rifle earlier, made it impossible for a small squad of Japanese soldiers to advance even half a step. It was Zhong Dingcheng who, after seeing the devils lose six or seven bodies, gestured to Wen Chuanhao to retreat.

  A row of not immediate nor distant willow wild team led by Chen Jifan's ambush circle set up in Zhulóng Town South 3 Li. Chen Jifan has always believed in Chairman Mao's idea that it is better to cut off one finger than to hurt ten fingers, either do not fight or must annihilate completely. So he ordered Zhao Jun to lead the fourth row to ambush early on the Japanese army's marching route, waiting for the Japanese army to enter the pocket, and immediately seal the pocket with the fourth row.

  "We mustn't let a single devil escape from you, otherwise we'll be punished by military law!" This was Chen Jifang's death order to Zhao Jun.

  To ensure the firepower of Zhao Jun's direction, Chen Jifan transferred two 96-style machine guns from the machine gun squad to the fourth row to strengthen the suppression force. The main force of the troops was ambushed on the high ground several tens of meters away on both sides, and the 7 grenade launchers had already made trajectory corrections. The remaining soldiers were waiting in array. Machine gunner Wang Dazhu was still tirelessly explaining the key points of replacing the magazine to the machine gunners.

  The night sky was quiet and still, the air seemed to be frozen, although it was very cold, but the militia soldiers who had just participated in the "Divine Eagle" exercise were all tense with sweaty palms.

  Chen Jifan was also tense, not because he was afraid of not being able to annihilate the enemy, but because he was worried about the unnecessary casualties among the new recruits. In the future, they would definitely become the best warriors, and it was a pity that they had died now.

  The devils have finally arrived, more than 40 of them. They're making a big fuss, probably because they were heavily damaged during the pursuit and are now thoroughly enraged. The ghosts must take revenge for Lieutenant Nogami's death, capture these Chinese, and use their heads to offer sacrifices to the lieutenant's heroic spirit.

  The enraged Japanese army would never have thought that they had entered someone else's ambush circle, perhaps Nohara would have thought of it if he was still there. They heard the familiar sound of the Type 89 grenade launcher firing, grenades exploding mercilessly around them, followed by intense gunfire, and the same type as those in their own hands. Then came the sound of bullets piercing through bodies.

  The devils' reaction was always quick, but this time they were definitely done for. The terrain was unfavorable, the forces were uneven, the opponent was as well-trained as themselves, with precise marksmanship and excellent shooting discipline. As a result, devils fell one after another in the dark night.

  As an excellent special forces commander, Chen Jifan certainly knew the role of heavy firepower in battle, but he never superstitiously believed in heavy firepower. On the contrary, he highly advocated for precise strikes, especially now that every grenade was precious. Therefore, he required Li An to make every grenade count and give the enemy effective casualties. Each grenade launcher was only allowed to fire once, and it was unnecessary to waste too many precious grenades on three or four dozen surrounded devils.

  The battle only lasted for over ten minutes, and then the devils' gunfire was no longer heard. I remember that in TV shows, the Eighth Route Army guerrilla forces would usually launch a group charge at this time, but Chen Jifan was very cautious. He ordered Hu Yunfeng to lead a dozen or so people to disperse and approach the devil's position, giving each devil an extra shot. Because he was worried that some of the devils' wounded soldiers might pull the pin on a hand grenade and die together, this was something the devils were familiar with.

  Old rules, the battlefield was quickly swept away, and some warriors had changed to 38 rifles. Machine guns would not be less, a 96-style machine gun made Chen Jifan feel that there was finally some gain.

  Two newly joined fighters were shot in the head by the devils and sacrificed when they exposed their heads during shooting, which made Chen Jifang heartbroken.

  Yamashita Kinsuke was originally sitting in the town hall office waiting for news from the Nohara squad, but what he got first was the news of Nohara's sacrifice to the empire. In a rage, Yamashita hurriedly went to pay his respects. "Nohara, don't worry, I'll definitely catch those Chinese and avenge you."

  Anger returned, Lieutenant Shimo didn't dispatch troops immediately. He believed that the warriors of the Nohara squad would definitely avenge their shame. However, he only heard gunfire and explosions coming from the south, but not a single soldier came back. At first, he thought that the soldiers of the Nohara squad had spent some time eliminating the Chinese armed forces to vent their anger. But two hours passed, Shimo began to feel uneasy, possibly the Nohara squad encountered an accident, he decided to lead two squads to respond in person, before leaving, he called all patrol teams to reinforce the guard of the wall and town gate.