Songhu: Never Give Up

The Japanese had been wandering around in the mountains for a day, but they didn't see any guerrillas or civilians, not even a ghost.
Captain Ishikawa had underestimated the vastness of the Dabie Mountains. There were mountains connected to each other, and without a guide they could not tell the directions. Now they were lost.

By some strange coincidence they had found the hiding place of the villagers of Chashu Village, which was in the valley below the ridge. Unfortunately, a slight mistake led to a huge error, and they did not find the villagers hiding in the valley at all.

Sun Yuangui was also scared out of his wits. They were hiding in the forest on the right wing of the devils, separated only by a valley.
There was only one squad of regular soldiers and a dozen militiamen around his fellow villagers. If they were discovered, the consequences would be disastrous, so he decided to lure the Japanese away.

Just as the Japanese were about to go down to the valley to search, Sun Yuangui decisively gave the order to open fire. In an instant, more than 50 machine rifles opened fire on the Japanese, killing more than a dozen of them.

This completely pissed off the Japanese. Captain Ishikawa screamed with excitement. They had finally found the guerrillas. He immediately ordered the troops to turn around and rush towards the mountains behind them.

At this time, there were still more than 80 Japanese soldiers, while the guerrillas had only more than 90 people. Although the number difference was not big, the combat power of both sides was not at the same level, and the militia, which made up the majority, was of little use.

Sun Yuangui could only fight and retreat, leading the Japanese away from his fellow villagers. Although the militia was not as good as the Japanese in combat, they could move through the mountains as if they were walking on flat ground. They could not beat the Japanese but they could run away. Although the Japanese had all the advantages, they did not achieve any results.

Captain Ishikawa became more and more angry as he chased them. Before he knew it, he had chased them for more than ten miles along the mountain road. He could no longer tell the direction, and the villagers from Chashu Village also escaped.
The intermittent gunshots in the mountains soon reached Lin Mijian's ears. As a veteran, he was very sensitive to gunshots.

Worried about not being able to find the devils, he led a company of officers and soldiers to chase after the sound of gunfire, but it was not easy for them to find the devils either;
The sight of the mountain is enough to make the horse die, not to mention the sound of gunfire. The vastness of the mountain is the same for both sides.

In the nameless valley, Ma Mingzong, the patriarch and squire of the Tea Tree Village, breathed a sigh of relief. It was really too thrilling before.

His eldest son Ma Xiaoliang complained:
"Dad, I told you not to get involved with these mud-legged people, but you wouldn't listen. Now you're being chased by the Japanese and are running all over the mountains. You're almost becoming a savage!
The Japanese are not as scary as they say. As long as the Ma family gives them enough food, the Japanese will never harm the Ma family."

Ma Mingzong said coldly:

"I would rather burn all the food in my Ma family than leave it for the Japanese to eat!"

Ma Xiaoliang said without giving up:
"Dad, the Nationalist army's one million elite soldiers have all been killed. The Japanese are about to occupy Wuhan, and the next target is Chongqing.
Can we still expect these guerrillas to dig into the mountains and drive them away?
I heard that the Japanese are supporting pro-Japanese elements everywhere, just like when the Manchus entered the Central Plains. Whoever surrenders to them first can cooperate with the Japanese and rule China together.

My Ma family has money, food and land, and is exactly the target of the Japanese. This is a rare opportunity!"

Ma Mingzong glared and said:

"I don't understand your nonsense, but I, a proud Chinese, would rather die than serve the Japanese as a dog and disgrace my ancestors!

I warn you to watch your legs. If you dare to kneel down before the Japanese, whether you are a descendant of the Ma family or not, you will not be able to enter the Ma family ancestral hall."

Ma Xiaoliang knew that he could not convince Ma Mingzong, so he had to shut up. However, he did not give up. He hoped that the day would come when the Japanese would retake Dajing Town. Then he could surrender to the Japanese and become a hero.

Just when everyone was in fear in the nameless valley, dense gunfire could be heard in the distance. Everyone's heart was in their throat again. Old lady Qi Jin muttered:
"The merciful Guanyin Bodhisattva, may the guerrillas wipe out all the damn devils, and may Erniu be safe and sound!"

"Grandma, don't worry, Brother Erniu is fine, he is very powerful;

The guerrillas and the militia will surely kill all the devils, and we can go back to the village and live a peaceful life again."

The old lady Qi Jin naturally knew Lanhua's little thoughts and said lovingly:
"Lanhua, after we drive the Japanese away, I will arrange your marriage to Erniu. I hope that Erniu will give birth to a calf as soon as possible, so that grandma can leave with peace of mind."

After hearing this, Hu Lanhua blushed with shame and said coquettishly:
"Grandma, don't talk nonsense. You have to live to be 100 years old. After Master Ma reduces the rent, everyone's life will be better. Erniu and I will honor you together."

At Fenghuang Ridge, militiaman Ma Erniu was firing at the Japanese with a Type 38 rifle. As the best hunter in Chashu Village, he was lucky enough to be assigned a rifle.
The squad leader only taught him once and he learned how to use it, and he treated it like a treasure. This thing was much better than the bird gun he had used before, and he was confident that he could hit a pheasant within a few hundred steps.

The Japanese were easier to fight than pheasants. The guerrillas chose to ambush the Japanese again at Phoenix Ridge. Being chased and beaten all the time, even clay men would get angry.
Erniu also seized the opportunity. He usually hunted pheasants in the mountains and he was always accurate in hitting them. This time he just happened to try out his gun on the Japanese.

He spotted a sneaky Japanese soldier holding something like a blowpipe. He estimated the distance and found it was at least 200 steps.
It would be impossible to hit the target at this distance with a bird gun, but the squad leader told him that the rifle in his hand could hit the target at a distance of 500 steps.

When the big head of the Japanese soldier showed up like a glans, Erniu pulled the trigger, and the bullet accurately hit the big head of the grenade thrower. Sergeant Tsuchiya Zhou Er, who was always shrewd, did not expect to die at the hands of a militiaman, and he was very upset.

After hitting the devil, Erniu breathed a sigh of relief, reminding himself that this was just a wild boar that liked to dig up crops, and if he didn't kill it, it would harm the crops;

Then he targeted another Japanese soldier and hit him again, which soon attracted the attention of platoon leader Sun Yuangui, who was overjoyed.

The Japanese soldier who was just shot dead was at least 200 meters away. It was difficult for even a veteran like him to shoot him in the head. No wonder the captain said that some people are natural shooters.
He rushed to Erniu's side, pointed at the Japanese machine gunner and said:

"Erniu, kill that damn machine gunner!" Erniu only glanced at the machine gunner more than 300 meters away. This time he did not choose to hit the head, but directly hit the devil's chest;
Before the deputy shooter came close, he quickly loaded the bullet into the gun and shot the deputy shooter dead again. Sun Yuangui was so happy that his mouth almost stretched to the back of his head.

"Captain, you have to replenish my bullets. There are only a few left."

Each militiaman had only 10 rounds of ammunition. Sun Yuangui took out a few clips from his pocket and stuffed them into Erniu's pockets, then said generously:
"Go ahead and do whatever you want, there's plenty of bullets!"

Erniu was happy now, as the company commander had rewarded him with at least 20 bullets, enough for him to use for a while.

After one of the Japanese machine guns was knocked out, their firepower dropped a lot and their offensive also came to a halt. The guerrillas barely held off the Japanese by relying on the terrain advantage.

Captain Ishikawa cursed angrily:
"Bakayaloo, you are a bunch of losers. You can't even defeat a few guerrillas. You have brought shame to the 16th Division!
Kill a chicken and give it to me——"

“Tattattatt…”

"DaDaDa..."

Suddenly, dense gunfire rang out from behind the Japanese soldiers, sweeping down a large number of them who were caught off guard. Captain Ishikawa's face changed drastically in an instant, his eyes filled with fear, and he shouted:
"The Chinese reinforcements are coming in to work!"

Captain Ishikawa had just stood up and was running when Erniu fired a 6.5mm bullet into his neck.
Captain Ishikawa finally paid the price for his arrogance. At the moment he fell, a familiar military bugle call sounded behind him.

He had heard this kind of life-threatening military call more than once in Jinling City, and this time it was about to cost him his life;
At the moment when his soul left his body, he seemed to suddenly start stealing. It seemed that he had provoked someone he shouldn't have provoked this time...

It was the company led by Lin Mijian that arrived behind the enemy and launched the attack. After a day of rapid march in the mountains, they finally found the enemy following the sound of gunfire.
There were only more than 60 Japanese soldiers left at this time. They suddenly attacked from behind, and most of them were killed or wounded in a hail of bullets.

The remaining Japanese soldiers were quickly wiped out by the double-sided attack of the first company and the guerrillas. The arrogant Ishikawa Squadron was completely destroyed, and no one escaped except Captain Ishikawa.

One day later, in Chashu Village, when all the villagers returned to their homes that had been burned to ashes, everyone's eyes were filled with deep hatred;
The Japanese once again showed the villagers their brutality. They were just a group of bandits. Everything beautiful would be destroyed wherever they passed. They were grateful for the protection of the guerrillas, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous.

Lin Mijian stood up and said loudly:
"My fellow countrymen, the devils came to China to destroy our country and our race. In Jiangnan, they massacred tens of thousands of our compatriots and burned down cities and villages.
Wherever they passed, lives were lost and homes were destroyed. The brutality of the Japanese devils could not be described in words for days.

You must never have any illusions about them. Only by taking up arms and fighting them can you eliminate them and protect yourself!
The destruction of our homes is not a big deal, at worst we can just build a tea village on the ruins;

The most terrifying thing is that they dare not resist and are enslaved by the devils for generations. They would rather die in battle than become slaves of a conquered nation! "

"Down with the devils!"

"Fight to the end!"

The slogans came one after another, resounding through the sky. This was the roar of revenge of the Chinese people!

It is an unyielding battle declaration!

After the battle, Lin Mijian and his company of officers and soldiers did not rush to leave Chashu Village, but instead assisted them in rebuilding their homes.

They brought a lot of stones from the mountains, used local materials, and rebuilt houses on the ruins with clay, wood and stone.
With united will and concerted efforts, the military and civilians built their homes together, and soon simple houses rose from the ground.

The power of the people is infinite. With the joint efforts of the soldiers and civilians of Tea Tree Village, a new tea tree will surely be reborn from the ruins...

"Bakayaluo, the Chinese must pay a heavy price!"

After learning that Ishikawa's squadron was annihilated by the Chinese in the Chashu Village area, Major Komiya angrily chopped off the mahogany table in front of him with a knife. This was the mahogany table he had snatched back from a wealthy family in the county town.

"Damn it, we must destroy the Chenwa Temple stronghold. The blood debt can only be repaid with blood!"

When Wu Qiujian learned about the Japanese atrocities in Chashu Village, he decided to gather the main forces to destroy the Chenwa Temple stronghold;

If the devil dares to burn down the village in the base, he will burn down the devil's base and give them a tooth for a tooth! (End of this chapter)