Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 142 After being released, I still have to work for the Japanese
At night, Yoshida Yuma stood on the roof of Xiaoxinzhuang, holding a telescope and carefully looking in the direction of the surrounding villages.

Earlier, outer scouts reported that more Eighth Route Army soldiers had arrived in several nearby villages, including Xiaocaozhuang and Xingjiazhuang, but it was not clear how many people there were.

"Major, the regiment commander sent a telegram saying that the 42nd Regiment of the th Division has arrived in Guangxian and is now rushing towards Xiaoxinzhuang." The telegraph soldier reported while holding the telegram.

When the 42nd Regiment learned that the Eighth Route Army was gathering in this area, they naturally would not miss this great opportunity.

"I understand!" said Yoshida Yuma.

The straight-line distance from Guangxian to Xiaoxinzhuang is more than 80 kilometers, and there are several rivers blocking the way.

The detour distance was over 42 kilometers, and even if the nd Regiment ran as fast as possible, it would take until the day after tomorrow to arrive.

"Let the troops step up their vigilance to prevent a night attack by the Eighth Route Army," Yoshida Yuma ordered.

Night attacks have become a common tactic of the Eighth Route Army. Yoshida Yuma is sure that the Eighth Route Army will definitely come tonight.

At this time, the brigade commander had moved the brigade headquarters to Hexi Village near Xiaoxinzhuang.

"Brigade Commander, all regiments are ready and can launch an attack at any time," Chief of Staff Chen reported.

"Call the New Second Regiment." The brigade commander said to the combat staff officer beside him.

"Yes!"

The operations officer immediately picked up the phone and started calling.

After connecting with the New Second Regiment, the combat staff officer handed the phone to the brigade commander.

"Hello, Chen Chengxing."

"brigadier."

"When the New Second Regiment fought against the Sakata Regiment, there was constant fire. Today also opened my eyes."

"Commander, you have seen a lot. How can you take a liking to these little cannons?"

"Stop talking nonsense. At 12 o'clock, the New Second Regiment will launch the attack first. I only have one request. Smash the devil's assholes for me! Do you understand?!"

"Yes! Smash the devil's bastard shell!"

After hanging up the phone, Chen Chengxing looked at the phone with a pang of heartache. If he wanted to smash the Japanese's bastard shell to pieces, he needed real artillery shells.

"Commander, do you want to call the artillery position?" asked the combat staff officer on the side.

"Go ahead and fire. Tell the mortar and infantry artillery companies to fire 10 shells each and hit the enemy's central position in Xiaoxinzhuang!" said Chen Chengxing.

"Yes!"

There are 12 mortars on the mortar position and 6 infantry guns on the infantry artillery position. Each gun has 10 shells, which is 180 shells, enough to give the Japanese a hard time.

At 12 o'clock, as the command flag was waved, all artillery began rapid firing.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
Dense artillery shells fell continuously on the Japanese positions.

In the darkness, balls of flame rose up.

In several surrounding villages, Li Yunlong, Ding Wei, Kong Jie, Cheng Zhiqiang and others watched the New Second Regiment bombarding Xiaoxinzhuang, and their mouths were watering with envy.

"TND, the new second regiment is really rich. Its firepower is no worse than that of the Japanese." Li Yunlong said.

Although the range of the 82mm mortar is not as good as the Japanese mountain artillery, Li Yunlong knows the details of the New Second Regiment and knows that Chen Chengxing has a barreled artillery.

Even if there are not many shells, it will definitely be enough to support a major war.

"Commander, I heard that the new second regiment's 82mm mortars are produced by themselves, and it seems that they are made from train axles." Zhang Dabiao said on the side.

"Can we get some axles and ask the New Second Regiment to help with production?" said Zhang Dabiao.

"Zhang Dabiao, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but what's the use of having cannons alone? The important thing is the shells! How can the shells produced by the headquarters' arsenal fall into our hands?" Li Yunlong said unhappily.

The cannon is easy to deal with, but the important thing is the shells. Without shells, the mortar is less useful than a javelin.

The arsenal produced a lot of explosives, but mainly 50mm artillery shells and grenades. The small amount of 82mm mortar shells produced were all distributed to 16 numbered regiments.

Even if the New Second Regiment can help produce mortars, it will be useless without shells.

Li Yunlong knew very well that even Chen Chengxing did not have many shells.

There is absolutely no way that the New Second Regiment would transfer its limited artillery shells to the New First Regiment.

When Zhang Dabiao heard Li Yunlong talking about artillery shells, he was speechless.

The new regiment could only rely on captured artillery shells, and the limited amount of shells they had was not enough for even the two guns they had, so it would be useless even if they had more gun barrels.

"I think with this firepower density, the Japanese won't be able to hold out for long. Let everyone be prepared to meet the enemy. We must not let the Japanese break through from here." Li Yunlong ordered.

"Yes!"

In Xiaoxinzhuang, Yoshida's battalion and the puppet army were stunned by the intensive artillery fire.

"Where did the Eighth Route Army get so many artillery pieces?" Yoshida Yuma's face looked extremely ugly.

Yoshida Yuma never imagined that the Eighth Route Army, whom he had bullied with artillery before, would be fought back by the Eighth Route Army.

"Taijun! What should we do? The houses have basically collapsed, and many brothers are buried." Liu Beixin said anxiously.

Although the Eighth Route Army's artillery bombardment had gradually stopped, the shells that fell in that one minute had already frightened Liu Beixin out of his wits.

Moreover, the forward observation post has reported that the Eighth Route Army's infantry has moved forward and an exchange of fire is about to occur.

"Carry out rescue operations immediately, and then use the remaining walls to build a defense line!" Yoshida Yuma ordered.

Yoshida Yuma knew without thinking that there must be a lot of Eighth Route Army soldiers outside.

Therefore, even though there are only a few houses left standing in Xiaoxinzhuang, it is still more appropriate to use the ruins for defense than to leave Xiaoxinzhuang.

When Liu Beixin heard that Yoshida Yuma was still determined to hold on, he felt helpless.

It would obviously be the most appropriate thing to do at this time to break out in the chaos, so why couldn't the Japanese think straight?

It’s already this late, and you’re still thinking about eating this group of Eighth Route Army soldiers?

However, facing Yoshida Yuma who had made up his mind, Liu Beixin had no choice but to follow his orders.

After Liu Beixin returned to the puppet army, several battalion commanders immediately came up to him.

"Brother, what's going on? Where are the Japanese planning to break out?"

"Break out? Break out!" Liu Beixin said unhappily, "The Japs must continue to hold on!"

"Still want to hold on? Aren't you courting death?!"

"The Eighth Route Army outside has so many artillery and so many people. They may not be able to hold out tonight!"

"Brother, what should we do?"

Liu Beixin felt overwhelmed when he heard the noisy discussions around him.

"Okay, stop talking! I don't think we can hold on with so many Eighth Route Army soldiers. If the Japanese break out, we will surrender on the spot! Now let's brothers shoot into the air, but be sure not to hit the Eighth Route Army soldiers." Liu Beixin said.

If they caused casualties to the Eighth Route Army, their lives would certainly not be easy. Even if they surrendered, they would probably have to pay with a few heads, and those would definitely not be the heads of the soldiers.

"Okay! Let's go and pass the message."

The puppet army officers nearby immediately dispersed.

If the Japanese break out, the Eighth Route Army will certainly chase and intercept them. What if the bullets have no eyes and hit us?
I will have to work for the Japanese in the future.

At this time, the 772nd Regiment and the New nd Regiment had approached the outskirts of Xiaoxinzhuang, and fierce fire broke out between the two sides.

However, because it was already dark, the hit rate of both the Japs and the Eighth Route Army was not very high, so both sides relied more on machine gun firepower.

"Kill the chickens! Kill the chickens!" the captain of the machine gun squadron kept shouting.

At this time, only heavy machine guns can provide sufficient firepower suppression, and the firepower sustainability of light machine guns is simply incomparable.

Although Chen Chengxing now has more heavy machine guns than the Japanese, it is obviously impossible for the New Second Regiment to fire at full power due to the lack of ammunition. Therefore, even if the Japanese heavy machine guns are divided into two parts, the firepower of the New Second Regiment does not show much advantage, and the amount of ammunition fired by both sides is barely the same.

Seeing that they were unable to advance, Chen Chengxing immediately ordered, "Send a signal flare and have the first battalion move out to attack the enemy from both sides."

Because the First Battalion held the position in the east of the village, they were very close to the Japanese positions in the south of the village. As long as they could break through the blockade, they could raid the Japanese positions from the rear. "Yes!"

When Xu Wu saw the three flares appearing in the air, he immediately understood.

"Let the mortars concentrate their firepower to attack the Japanese blockade line in the south, and then the infantry will immediately move forward to break the Japanese blockade!" Xu Wu ordered.

"Yes!"

A minute later, the prepared 60mm mortar opened fire at full power, and dozens of shells hit the Japanese blockade line.

Except for a small number of Japanese devils, most of the troops responsible for the blockade were puppet troops.

After being hit by intensive firepower, the puppet army immediately fell into chaos.

"Beep, beep, beep, beep"

The moment the bombardment ended, the charge sounded.

"Kill!"

"kill!"

After hearing the charge and the Eighth Route Army's shouts of killing, the puppet troops on the position became even more panicked.

They had dealt with the Eighth Route Army so many times before, so they naturally knew that once the charge sounded, it meant that the King of Hell was coming to take people away.

As the puppet army continued to retreat, the Japanese on the position immediately became the target of public criticism.

Faced with the hundreds of soldiers rushing up, the Japanese army, which had less than a squad, was no match at all. The difference in strength between the two sides was more than 15:1.

When the retreating puppet soldiers saw the Eighth Route Army rushing towards them, they immediately knelt on the ground smoothly.

You have to surrender sooner or later anyway, so the sooner you surrender, the easier it will be.

More than ten minutes later, with the last Japanese soldier being killed, there was no more obstacle in front of the first battalion.

"Let the mortars continue to attack the Japanese front-line positions, and cooperate with the regiment commander to eliminate the Japanese positions!" Xu Wu put the pistol into his waist and ordered.

At this time, Yoshida Yuma had already learned that the Eighth Route Army in the east of the village was attacking the front-line defense line.

"Taijun, we really can't hold on any longer, let's break out!" Liu Beixin said anxiously.

If we wait any longer, the Eighth Route Army will enter the village, and by then we won't even be able to surrender.

The treatment of surrender and prisoners is completely different.

After the Eighth Route Army released him, his brothers still wanted to work for the Japanese.

After listening to the casualty reports from various positions, Yoshida Yuma realized that he could no longer hold on.

The Eighth Route Army's combat effectiveness is no weaker than that of the Locust Army, but its numbers are much larger.

Now Yoshida's battalion has suffered heavy casualties. If they continue to persist, they will be wiped out.

"Order the troops to turn south immediately!" Yoshida Yuma ordered.

"Hi!"

Liu Beixin immediately conveyed Yoshida Yushin's order.

At the same time, the soldiers of the puppet 53rd Regiment also received hints that their transfer speed was obviously slower than that of the Japanese.

In response to this, Yoshida Yuma was not anxious at all, but simply ignored it.

In Yoshida Yuma's opinion, the slower the Locust Army is, the better, as they can use the Locust Army behind them to block the pursuers from the Eighth Route Army.

If the Locust Association troops run ahead of the Locust Army, who will protect whom?

"Mr. Liu, I will lead the locust army and go first. You lead the 53rd Regiment and follow immediately. I will set up a defense line in Wulitun to support you." After saying this, Yoshida Yuma left in a hurry.

"Don't worry, Master! I will lead the team and catch up!" Liu Beixin shouted to Yoshida Yuma's back.

However, after Yoshida Yuma led his team to leave Xiaoxinzhuang, Liu Beixin immediately turned around and shouted, "Brothers! The Eighth Route Army treats prisoners well! Everyone, surrender with me!"

After hearing the order, the puppet soldiers immediately fell to the ground.

When the first and fourth battalions arrived here, they saw only puppet soldiers lying on the ground.

"Lao Qin, you take the 4th Battalion to take charge of these puppet troops, and I will continue to chase the Japanese." Xu Wu said.

"Okay, I know what to do." Qin Sheng nodded.

Seeing that Qin Sheng understood, Xu Wu didn't say much. He just gave him a look and then hurriedly chased after the Japanese.

"Comrades, gather the prisoners and pay attention to safety! Bullets and guns must be collected separately!" Qin Sheng ordered.

"Yes!"

The puppet army cooperated very well with the control of the Fourth Battalion, and even took the initiative to remove the bullets from their guns and put them in a pile.

After leaving Xiaoxinzhuang, the Japanese did not stop at all and ran all the way to Wulitun. As for whether the Locust Association Army behind them could keep up, that was not within their consideration.

As for whether a blocking position would be set up in Wulitun, Yoshida Yuma said that he had never said that, and turning back meant turning back!

At dawn, the Japanese fled to the vicinity of Wulitun.

The new regiment had been waiting in Wulitun for a long time.

Zhang Dabiao used a telescope to see a faint yellow smudge of shit on the horizon. He immediately turned around and reported: "Captain! The devils are coming!"

"Haha...it's finally here. I'm getting impatient waiting!" Li Yunlong said excitedly as he pulled out his pistol.

"Ready to fight!"

"Yes!"

The Japanese soldiers were running wildly, unaware that they were being pointed at by guns.

When the Japanese approached, Li Yunlong fired a shot into the air.

"boom!"

"Da da da", "Da da da", "Da da da".
"Thump, thump, thump." "Thump, thump, thump."
"Snap!" "Snap!" "Snap!" "Snap!".
When the Japanese soldiers heard the gunshots, they fell to the ground subconsciously.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Counterattack!"

"Kill the chicken for me!" Yoshida Yuma shouted.

However, caught off guard, the Japanese did not deploy their firepower so quickly.

After the New 1st Regiment launched a round of fire attack, Li Yunlong immediately ordered the charge. The New 1st Regiment was not as well-equipped as the New 2nd Regiment, and hand-to-hand combat was the New 1st Regiment's trump card.

"Beep, beep, beep, beep"

"Comrades! Follow me and kill!" Li Yunlong picked up the big knife beside him and shouted.

"Kill!"

"kill!"

Zhang Dabiao threw his hat and rushed out first.

The two sides collided with each other in an instant.

As the new regiment rushed out, Yoshida Yuma saw more than 2 people rushing out and immediately gave the order to move forward again.

The Japanese soldiers who had not yet engaged in a melee with the Eighth Route Army immediately adjusted their direction and ran away again.

The hundreds of Japanese soldiers who had already engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the Eighth Route Army fought to the death.

They wanted to buy time for the main force to move forward.

Li Yunlong directly ordered the New 1st Regiment's Japanese soldiers who chose to fight to the death, "Zhang Dabiao! Use your pistol! Fight quickly and decisively! Those who can withdraw from the battle, continue to chase the Japanese soldiers!"

"Yes!"

There are other Japanese troops in the direction of their breakout. Now the Japanese are like a turtle in a jar, so Li Yunlong is not very worried.

(End of this chapter)