Chapter 6: The September 18th Incident

  After about an hour or so, the officers and men of the 3rd battalion finally received a full quota of ammunition and returned to their original position, forming a neat and tidy formation.

  Foodies hope that their snacks will never run out, while clients of prostitutes hope they can hold on and not shoot too quickly.

  As a soldier, especially in this era, their greatest hope is not how much military pay they receive, nor whether they can eat their fill, but that the bullet pouches on their bodies will always be full.

  Because only with sufficient ammunition can they possibly win every battle they engage in, and only by winning battles can they survive, and have the opportunity to receive military pay and eat.

  So, after receiving an unprecedented amount of ammunition, the officers and men of the 3rd Battalion were all filled with a sense of happiness.

  "Brothers, the Japanese have recently been holding frequent military exercises, and what's more, they are targeted military exercises with us as their imaginary enemy and goal. As the saying goes, 'train soldiers for a thousand days, use them for one moment', in this chaotic world, we military personnel should shoulder our responsibilities, defend Shenyang, defend Northeast China, and defend the 30 million people of the three provinces of East China!"

  It is they who raised us, and the steel guns and cannons in our hands, as well as the military uniforms and quilts, were all given to us by the parents and elders of the three eastern provinces.

  In simple terms, it's a matter of course that when you're a soldier, you eat and fight. We usually eat and wear what ordinary people provide, so what do ordinary people get in return? Isn't it the hope that we can stand up and defend our country when foreign enemies invade?

  "So, in order to prevent the outbreak of war conflicts that may erupt next, I hereby declare that the entire 3rd Battalion of the 620th Regiment of the Independent Seventh Brigade of the National Revolutionary Army's Land Forces will immediately enter a state of high alert, first-level alert, and be ready for battle at all times! Do you understand?"

  Zhang Xinghan stood on the podium, his gaze swept across the officers and soldiers below like a knife, solemnly and sternly saying in a loud voice, with the last sentence even more heavily emphasized.

  "Understood! We swear to defend the Beidaying Camp with our lives! Defend the city of Fengtian! Defend the three eastern provinces!" More than 700 officers and soldiers from the three battalions responded in unison under the lead of Deputy Battalion Commander Liu Jianguo.

  …………

  On the night of September 17th at around 10 o'clock, the Second Battalion Headquarters of the Japanese Independent Guard Unit of the South Manchurian Railway.

  The lights were on inside the battalion headquarters, and the commander of the second battalion, Shimamoto Masakazu, was on the phone with a serious expression.

  The phone call was from the Kwantung Army headquarters in Port Arthur, and it wasn't Itagaki Seishirō or Ishiwara Kanji on the line, but rather the new commander of the Kwantung Army, Honjō Shigeru, who had previously served as a military advisor to Zhang Zuolin and was well-versed in Northeastern affairs.

  On the other end of the phone, Honjou Toshiaki sat at his desk, holding the receiver and asked in a serious tone, "Shimamoto-san, what's the situation like on your side?"

  "I report to the Commander-in-Chief, our troops are carrying out a military exercise of patrolling along the railway line according to the previously formulated plan."

  "Isn't there going to be a conflict with the Chinese army?" asked Motojirō Honjō. It turned out that although Motojirō Honjō knew about Seizō Ishiwara and others' plot to take control of Manchuria by force, he only knew that such a thing existed, but didn't know the specifics of how it would be carried out or its progress.

  So he made a cross-level call to Shima Motokazu, the commander of the second independent guard battalion closest to Beidaying.

  "Not yet." Ito Masakazu replied truthfully on the phone. In fact, Ito Masakazu also didn't know when he would clash with the Chinese army and launch an attack, because he was still waiting for orders.

  However, this order did not come from Honjō Shigeru, but rather from Ishiwara Kanji and Itagaki Seishirō who were rushing to the front lines in Fengtian.

  "Oh." Ben Zhuang hung up the phone.

  At the same time, on the railway from Dalian to Shenyang, a train loaded with Japanese troops was rumbling at high speed towards Shenyang.

  Inside a luxurious suitcase in one of the middle cars of the train.

  Itagaki Seishirō and Ishiwara Kanji were both dressed in brand new military uniforms, the two sat at a not-so-large table, with a map of the three northeastern provinces spread out before them, on which mountains and rivers were marked in detail.

  If there were Northeast Army generals here, they would definitely be shocked. The battle map in front of Ishihara Kiyoshi was even more detailed and clear than the one in the hands of the Northeast Army itself.

  Staring at the battle map, Ishihara Kanji picked up the teacup in front of him and took a small sip, then looked up and asked: "Itagaki-kun, have you thought about how to implement it specifically?"

  "Hmm." Banzan Shirakawa, who had been staring at the map with a furrowed brow, looked up and nodded, then pointed to the map and said: "Please look, Mr. Ishihara. After careful consideration, I have decided that in addition to the Second Independent Guard Unit attacking the North Great Camp, the 2nd Brigade of the 29th Infantry Regiment of the 2nd Division will attack Fengtian. We should also order other units to take action at the same time. First, the Third Independent Guard Battalion near Y?ngby?n and the Fourth Independent Guard Battalion near Hwangsong should simultaneously launch attacks on Y?ngby?n, Hwangsong, and Andong."

  Ensure that the towns along the Southern Manchurian Railway are occupied by our troops, so as to facilitate future actions.

  In addition, the main force of the 2nd Brigade of the 2nd Division should immediately rush to Fengtian to reinforce the 29th Infantry Regiment's attack on Fengtian.

  The main force of the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Division, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment directly under the division, and the 1st Battalion of the Independent Guard Brigade should simultaneously attack Changchun, Erdao Gouzi, Nanling and other places!

  Ishiwara Kanji nodded in satisfaction after listening to Itagaki Seishirō's battle plan: "Itagaki is indeed an excellent military man of the Empire, this battle plan is perfect."

  "Since Ishihara doesn't object, let's report the battle plan to Commander Honjō Shigeru. After all, mobilizing other units of the 2nd Division still requires orders from the Kwantung Army headquarters." said Itagaki Seishirō.

  "Good, but one more thing should be added. In order to respond to the unpredictable situation and quickly stabilize the occupation of Northeast China, General Honjō Shigeru should request reinforcements from Imperial Headquarters as soon as possible. At least the 20th Division of Korea must cross the Yalu River as soon as possible." A sly and sinister glint flashed in Ishihara Kanji's narrow eyes.

  …………

  In the headquarters of the 2nd Battalion of the Kwantung Army's Independent Guard Brigade, after finishing his conversation with Commander Honjō Shigeru, Battalion Commander Shimamoto Tarō's mood began to become increasingly agitated.

  Because orders had yet to arrive, Shimura Toshirou was pacing back and forth in the squad headquarters like an ant on a hot skillet.

  Suddenly, a communications soldier rushed in with a look of urgency and saluted to report: "Report to Lieutenant Colonel, an urgent telegram from Itagaki."

  "Ah? Bring it quickly." Shimamoto Masakazu stopped in his tracks, immediately stretched out his hand to take the telegram from the communications soldier, hastily scanned it once, and his face began to flush with excitement. He folded the telegram in his hand and excitedly ordered the communications soldier: "Immediately go notify Lieutenant Kawashima to come see me, quickly!"

  "Yes!" The communication soldier hastily lowered his head in response and immediately turned around to leave.

  Not long after, Lieutenant Kawashima, the commander of the 3rd platoon of the 2nd battalion, strode into the command center with his sword at his side.

  "Captain, what are your orders!" Lieutenant Kawashima stood at attention and said.

  "Kawashima, you immediately return to the Torishima barracks and bring your troops down south along the railway. Advance towards the vicinity of Liu Tiao Lake. By tomorrow night at 10 o'clock, find a way to blow up a section of the railway and frame it on the Chinese soldiers in the North Dalian barracks. Then, you immediately lead your troops to launch a surprise attack on the North Dalian barracks. I will send other squadrons to support you in time."

  "Hai!" Lieutenant Kawashima's eyes sparkled with excitement, this day had finally come, as an imperial soldier, he was always thinking of attacking the weak and inferior Chinese army, breaking through the Beidaying camp, capturing the city of Fengtian, the countless gold, silver, and treasures inside the city, guns, ammunition, and many beautiful girls.

  With a beautiful vision and fantasy, Lieutenant Kawashima accepted the order and left with a smile.

  ………

  At the same time as the Japanese army was secretly making frequent movements, the 3rd Battalion of the Northern University's camp.

  Zhang Xinghan's independent bedroom light was still on, and in the bedroom, Zhang Xinghan sat at his desk, writing something on a piece of paper.

  In the engineering works of the camp defense zone, the officers and men of the 3rd battalion who had already entered first-level alert were all on high alert, patrolling in batches, guarding posts, and deploying sentries everywhere, they had made all preparations for battle.

  A sleepless night, time flew by, and soon it was dawn. Zhang Xinghan, with red eyes, had organized his writings into three copies, and only then did he shout at the door: "Orderly!"

  "The camp is still quiet, and the duty soldiers haven't gotten up yet." A voice came from outside, it was Communications Soldier Little Li.

  "Come in." Zhang Xinghan said.

  "What's up?" Little Li asked as he walked in quickly.

  Zhang Xinghan took out two of the three written things and said to Little Li: "Little Li, these are two letters I wrote to my fiancée Wang Ruoying and my father Zhang Yuxi. You immediately send them back to Fengtian and hand them over to them separately."

  "Yes!" Little Li agreed happily, put away the family letter, and was about to leave.

  Zhang Xinghan, however, raised his hand and stopped him, saying: "Wait."

  "Little Li, I seem to recall you saying that you're the only son in your family, right?" Zhang Xinghan asked.

  "Yes, actually our family has been a single child for three generations since my grandfather's time." Little Li said without hesitation.

  "Uh-huh." Zhang Xinghan nodded calmly and said, "Alright, after you deliver the family letter to the back, just stay at my place and don't go back to Beidaying anymore."

  "But, Lieutenant Commander..." Little Li looked at Zhang Xinghan with a puzzled expression, his words unfinished as Zhang Xinghan raised his hand to interrupt: "Don't say any more, execute the order."

  "Yes!" Little Li immediately stood at attention and saluted, then turned around and walked away with big strides.

  Time flies, and before long, it was the evening of September 18th. Daylight gave way to nightfall, and the entire Beidaying camp was suddenly lit up. The officers and soldiers inside the camp began to end their training as usual, change shifts, and have dinner.

  In the barracks of the 620th Regiment's 3rd Battalion, Zhang Xinghan had been sleeping since he saw off Little Li in the morning. He hadn't slept all night and was extremely exhausted. He needed to catch up on his sleep to recharge for the upcoming fierce battle.

  Just after nightfall, Zhang Xinghan woke up and was eating in the bedroom. Since he had slept through lunch, this meal was equivalent to two normal meals for Zhang Xinghan.

  After eating a full meal, Zhang Xinghan finally put on his helmet and walked out of the bedroom with big strides.

  Outside the barracks, except for the necessary sentries, most of the officers and soldiers of the three battalions were having dinner. When they saw Zhang Xinghan come out, they all stood up to salute him.

  "Everyone eat, hurry up and eat." Zhang Xinghan smiled and waved his hand, then said to Deputy Regimental Commander Liu Jianguo who came forward: "Jianguo, bring a squad with you and come out with me for a trip."

  "Yes!" Liu Jianguo did not ask more questions, but stood up straight and accepted the order with a smile.

  …………

  As for Little Li, he was ordered by Zhang Xinghan to go to Fengtian City to deliver a family letter. Originally, Little Li planned to first deliver the family letter written by Zhang Xinghan to his fiancée Wang Ruo Ying, and then go to deliver it to Zhang's father who lived in the eastern suburbs of the city.

  If everything goes smoothly, Little Lee will be able to complete this task by noon.

  But little did he know, when Xiao Li arrived at Wang Ruo Ying's house in a hurry, he was informed by the gatekeeper that Wang Ruo Ying had gone to attend a banquet somewhere in the city with her father, Wang Yi Zhe.

  Helpless, Xiaolizi had to go to the east of the city first. However, when he found Zhang's residence according to the address, he found that the gate was closed. It turned out that Zhang Yuxi and his wife, like Wang Yizhe and his daughter, had also gone to a banquet together.

  Xiao Li Zi couldn't find anyone at either place, so he had no choice but to wait outside the gate of Zhang's residence. He waited until nightfall.

  It was 10 o'clock in the evening when Zhang Yuxi and his wife returned home by sedan chair.

  Little Li, who had been waiting at the gate for almost a day, hastily stepped forward to stop the carriage and anxiously shouted: "Excuse me, are you Zhang Yuxi, Old Master Zhang?"

  "It's me." Zhang Yuxi, sitting in the car, saw Little Li wearing a military uniform and asked suspiciously: "Who are you?"

  "Hello, Old Master Zhang. I am Little Li, the communication soldier of the 3rd battalion of the 620th regiment of the 7th Independent Infantry Brigade of the Land Army. I have been sent by our battalion to deliver a letter from home to you." Little Li said as he took out two letters from his pocket and handed one of them to Zhang Yuxi.

  Zhang Yuxi took the letter and did not immediately open it, but instead said to Little Li: "You've been waiting here for a whole day, you must be tired, go inside and have something to eat."

  Xiao Li was indeed hungry and thirsty, and he hastily nodded: "Ah!"

  …………

  At the same time, about 800 meters north of Beidaying, a Japanese lieutenant with more than a dozen devils dragged three corpses wearing Northeast Army uniforms to the Liutiao Lake section of the South Manchurian Railway.

  Three corpses wearing Northeast Army uniforms were placed on both sides of the railway line, and then the lieutenant pressed the already installed explosive device.

  "Boom! Boom!" Two loud explosions suddenly rang out, and the flames produced by the explosion in the dark night were as dazzling as fireworks, and the sound of the explosion could be heard clearly for ten miles near and far.

  A section of rail and sleeper were blown into the air in a blinding flash of flame, with splintered stone and earth flying wildly.

  About two kilometers away from the explosion site, Lieutenant Kawashima, who had been waiting for a long time on an open space, saw the extremely eye-catching fire rising in the dark night, and was excited. He immediately drew his command sword and shouted loudly: "The despicable Chinese dare to blow up our railway, we can't forgive them! Target, Beidaying, kill!"

  Over a hundred devils suddenly jumped up, holding rifles and rushing quickly towards the Beiyuan Barracks.