Liang Jian: Commander, save some for me

Just as Itagaki Seishiro finished speaking, a Japanese telegraph operator rushed in.

"Division Commander, a telegram has arrived from the Sixth Division." The Japanese telegraph operator handed the telegram to Seishiro Itahatsu.

Upon receiving the telegram, Itagaki Seishiro frowned, wondering why the Sixth Division had sent another telegram. He began to examine the contents of the telegram.

"Nonsense! How can you do something so dangerous!" Itagaki Seishiro couldn't help but exclaim.

"Division Commander, what did Division Commander Tani Hisao say?!" The Japanese brigade commander asked, somewhat puzzled.

"He had anticipated that the enemy's next move would be towards him, so he planned to stay there to draw the enemy's attention while sending the 31st Brigade towards him," Itagaki Seishiro explained.

He had previously agreed to let Tani Hisao act as bait because he felt at ease with the presence of Yamamoto's special forces. But now that Yamamoto's special forces were gone, how could Tani Hisao's small force possibly withstand the enemy's attack?!

What if they fail to hold off the enemy and end up being annihilated by them instead? How can he explain that to the commander then?

"What?! Division Commander Tani Hisao is too audacious. Knowing how powerful the enemy is, he still wants to fight them. Isn't he just courting death?!" The Japanese brigade commander couldn't help but exclaim.

In his view, even Yamamoto's special attack force was easily annihilated by the enemy, so how could the men under Tani Hisao's command possibly hold off the enemy?

"Actually, his plan was quite detailed. The enemy had just annihilated Yamamoto's special attack unit, and it would take them a considerable amount of time to reach the 6th Division's command post."
"The 31st Brigade can arrive within that time, giving them a chance to surround the enemy." Seishiro Itagaki explained Tani Hisao's specific plan.

Although the success rate was not small, he still felt it was too dangerous. If he agreed to the plan, he would not be able to bear the responsibility if something happened to Tani Hisao.

"Does the division commander think his plan is feasible?!" the Japanese brigade commander asked.

"The success rate is high, but the risks are equally significant; it's a huge gamble." Seishiro Itahira nodded. If Yamamoto's special attack force were still around, he would have agreed to the plan.

"The responsibility is too heavy for me to bear." Itakatsu Seishiro stated bluntly that he would not dare to agree to this plan unless Tani Hisao told the commander himself that he would take responsibility if anything went wrong.

As if knowing what he was thinking, Tani Hisao soon had another telegraph operator come in to report that Tani Hisao was willing to take responsibility for the plan.

"If that's the case, then I can rest assured." Seishiro Itaga finally breathed a sigh of relief. Since Hisao Tani was in charge, he didn't need to be afraid.

"Division Commander, do you think the 31st Brigade can wipe out Mu Jin?!" The Japanese brigade commander was still a little worried.

"It's hard to say. I think there's a certain probability. After all, the people who attacked the command post weren't all of Mu Jin's troops. So, if we can successfully surround Mu Jin, the probability of annihilating them is actually quite high."
Even if the enemy escapes, they will still be surrounded and intercepted. In fact, our goal is simply to inflict heavy losses on Mu Jin's troops and prevent them from posing a threat to us for a short period of time!
"In this way, we can free up more troops to deal with other enemies! So, from an overall perspective, if this plan succeeds, our objective will be achieved!" Itagaki Seishiro said with a serious expression.

If the plan goes smoothly, they can complete the mission ahead of schedule and then deal with the New First Regiment, the Independent Regiment, and Mu Jin's remaining troops with peace of mind.

He believed that the troops without Mu Jin's command were not a threat.

"The division commander's analysis makes a lot of sense, I admire it!" the Japanese brigade commander praised with a smile.

"Send a telegram to Division Commander Tani Hisao, telling him to be extremely careful," Itagaki Seishiro ordered. Anyway, he wouldn't be responsible if anything happened, so what did he have to be afraid of?

"Yes, sir!" The Japanese brigade commander then left the office with the telegraph operator.

.........

At this moment, Tani Hisao was also looking at the map on the table. This map was of the area near the command post.

The location they chose was actually quite good; for many troops, it was easy to defend and difficult to attack. Of course, this was for ordinary troops. Against Mu Jin's troops, it was still somewhat inadequate. At the very least, they couldn't stop Mu Jin's attack.

However, he was confident that he could hold off Mu Jin's attacks for half an hour or even an hour.

The 31st Brigade will definitely be able to surround Mu Jin and his men within this time. At that time, they will attack from both sides, and even if Mu Jin manages to escape, he will suffer heavy casualties.

“Division Commander, if you hadn’t sent a follow-up telegram, I reckon Division Commander Itagaki wouldn’t have approved the plan,” said the Japanese regimental commander standing nearby.

"I can understand. After all, Itagaki-kun bears some responsibility for the annihilation of the 33rd Brigade. Although Yamamoto Ichiki bears the greatest responsibility, he is probably already dead."
"Someone still needs to be held responsible for this matter. Commander Itakatsu-kun is naturally the first to bear the blame. If something happens to me now, Itakatsu-kun will be completely unable to escape responsibility," Tani Hisao said.

Yamamoto Ichiki could handle most of the burden of the previous Thirty-Three Brigade, but with the current plan, if Itagaki Seishiro agrees and something happens to him, Itagaki Seishiro will have to take full responsibility.

"That's true. Actually, Itagaki Division Commander is quite unlucky. He has to take responsibility for the mistakes Yamamoto Ichiki made." The Japanese regimental commander couldn't help but sigh. The position of commander is indeed not easy.

Anyone without considerable ability would likely be unable to withstand such a series of major events; Itagaki Seishiro is quite formidable.

“Well, he’s the commander, after all,” Tani Hisao said.

.........

At this moment, Lü Changgong and his men had already approached the Japanese command post. When they were less than a few hundred meters away, they decisively launched an attack.

Gunfire echoed throughout the area, and many Japanese soldiers were killed on the spot. Although the Japanese command post was located halfway up the mountain and they had even dug trenches, Lü Changgong and his men had already figured out the approximate distribution of the Japanese troops, so they had already gained the upper hand in the attack.

The sudden attack caught the Japanese soldiers on the mountain off guard. The Japanese machine gunners were the first to react and opened fire on the enemy attacking the mountain.

However, these Japanese machine gunners were killed before they could even fire their machine guns.

Boom boom boom! ! !
Just then, the artillery positions launched a fierce bombardment, shells raining down on the trenches halfway up the mountain, creating loud explosions. Many Japanese soldiers were even blown out of the trenches.

"Charge with me!" Lü Changgong took the lead and led his soldiers to charge up the mountain.

Tap tap tap… Bang bang bang…

The machine gun company's terrifying firepower directly suppressed the Japanese soldiers on the mountain, preventing them from raising their heads for a time.

When facing artillery bombardment, the Japanese soldiers dared not easily hide in the artillery shelters, because if they did, the enemy might occupy their positions.

But it was still to no avail. Within minutes, Lü Changgong led his men to capture the Japanese first line of defense and wiped out all the Japanese soldiers on that line. At the same time, they continued to advance upwards.

Besides the direction of Lü Changgong, the other directions were also under attack, so it was practically impossible for the Japanese to withdraw.

.........

In the command post, when Tani Hisao heard the sound of gunfire, his face instantly turned pale.

"Division Commander, it looks like the enemy is attacking!" The Japanese regimental commander was also nervously swallowing hard, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

"What?! It seems like they've already attacked! Baka! No way! How could they get here so fast? Can they fly or something?!" Tani Hisao cursed, unable to believe it.

The enemy just attacked Yamamoto's special attack force, how could they have crossed such a long distance and arrived here so quickly?!
"No, this group of enemies has probably been waiting here all along. Mu Jin actually divided his forces into three groups: one to attack the 33rd Brigade, another to attack Yamamoto's special attack team, and the last one was me!" Tani Hisao finally realized.

This is the only possibility that can explain the current situation.

"Division Commander, how is that possible? Mu Jin's troops only number five or six thousand at most! Does he only send one or two thousand men to each route?!" said the Japanese regimental commander.

"That's very possible. It seems we underestimated the fighting power of the Mujin troops. Their strength is far greater than we thought." Tani Hisao said with some helplessness.

He had previously thought that Mu Jin could only split his forces into two groups at most. After all, the combat strength of Yamamoto's special attack team was not weak, and Mu Jin would probably bring a lot of people to ambush them.

But now it seems that Mu Jin doesn't take Yamamoto's special attack team seriously at all. The enemy is dealing with the 33rd Brigade, and can also deal with the command post and Yamamoto's special attack team at the same time.

"Division Commander, let's retreat quickly! There might still be a glimmer of hope!" the Japanese regimental commander said hurriedly. Now was not the time to discuss how strong the enemy was, but to break through the encirclement.

"Sigh... There's no need for that anymore, we can't escape!" Tani Hisao sighed. Even if they managed to break through now, could they withstand the enemy's pursuit?

It was obvious that they couldn't withstand it; they were now truly doomed.

"Division Commander, don't give up so easily! The command post has at least built some fortifications; we can still hold out for a while. Send a telegram to the nearby counties immediately and ask them to come and support us!"
"When the enemy sees our support, they might retreat," the Japanese regimental commander continued to persuade.

“It would take them several hours to get into the mountains, do you think we can hold out that long?!” Tani Hisao retorted.

Was it because he didn't want to ask for help?! That's because there was no need; asking for help would only increase casualties.

“Well… how will we know it won’t work if we don’t try?!” The Japanese regimental commander paused for a moment before responding.

"Don't be so naive. In the end, not only will we be unable to force the enemy to retreat, but the reinforcements coming from the county town will also be easily dealt with by the enemy." Tani Hisao didn't want to be so harsh, but that was the truth. With the enemy's capabilities, they could indeed do that.

In fact, he had always thought that the enemy that attacked the 33rd Brigade was the majority of Mu Jin's forces, but now it seems that this is not the case at all.

The Japanese regimental commander fell silent. He knew that the division commander was right, but he was still somewhat unwilling to just let them wait to die.

"Division Commander! Division Commander! The enemy has breached our first line of defense and is now breaking through to the second!" At this moment, a Japanese lieutenant colonel rushed in, reporting the situation urgently!
"See, I told you so. In just a few minutes, the first line of defense has already been breached." Tani Hisao had an expression of surprise on his face.

"Division Commander, the enemy's firepower is very strong. The guns they're carrying seem different from the ones we've seen before. Their rifles seem to have a magazine capacity of at least ten rounds, not just five!" The Japanese lieutenant colonel reported what he had discovered.

He had been observing the enemy's situation and discovered that the enemy's marksmanship was extremely accurate, almost one shot per kill, and the guns the enemy was carrying were different from those he was familiar with.

"What?! How is this possible?! Could it be that the enemy made it themselves?!" The Japanese regimental commander was shocked. If what the other party said was true, the enemy might have made a new type of rifle, and it was quite powerful.

If that's the case, then their future troubles will likely be even greater.

They were able to overwhelm the Nationalist army because of their advanced weaponry, but now Mu Jin has actually managed to produce guns that are even more advanced than theirs.

"No wonder I felt the gunshot was off. It wasn't a Hanyang rifle, nor a Zhongzheng rifle, nor our Type 38 rifle! I see!" Tani Hisao said with a serious expression. He had thought it was his imagination, but now he was sure.

"However, it's highly unlikely that this rifle was made by the enemy. They simply don't have the capability, and even if they did, they couldn't obtain a machine tool unless they could build one by hand."
But how could that be? So I suspect the guns might have been bought from abroad by the enemy.” Hisao Tani began his analysis.

Making a good gun is not so simple; you need a machine tool. Of course, if you're making a homemade gun, it's not so complicated, but a good gun definitely requires a machine tool.

"Bought from abroad?! Could it be from Germany?! Or perhaps the United States?!" the Japanese regimental commander exclaimed.

"Buying from Germany is unlikely, since the Empire has already spoken to Germany and they've stopped selling weapons to China. So, it's most likely from the US, but that doesn't quite seem right."

"How could the enemy possibly be connected with these countries?!" Tani Hisao said, then fell silent.

"Baka! There's no point in discussing this now. Quickly send our information to Division Commander Banheng, and at the same time send a telegram to the Commander, telling him that we can no longer serve him!"

"Then have the communications soldiers destroy all the radios, codebooks, and important documents. We absolutely cannot let the enemy capture them!" Tani Hisao cursed.

It's pointless for them to discuss where the enemy's rifles came from; they just need to inform Itagaki Seishiro of the situation. (End of Chapter)