Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 222 The Tradition of the Locust Army (It’s the end of the month, please give me a monthly ticket)
The next day, when the Japanese Third Mixed Brigade fired a volley of artillery shells at Qingfeng Temple and then launched an infantry attack, they discovered that the Eighth Route Army on the position had long disappeared.

The hundred or so Japanese soldiers who rushed to the Eighth Route Army's position found nothing except a pile of mines.

Looking at the troops that suffered heavy casualties from stepping on landmines, Nara Yukio's eyes turned red with anger. If the Eighth Route Army of the New Second Regiment was in front of him now, he would be able to go up and bite them to death.

"Order the Morita Battalion to search towards Jiao Town as quickly as possible!" ordered Yukio Nara.

No matter what, Nara Yukio decided to vent his anger. If he could catch the Eighth Route Army, that would be the best. If not, the Chinese civilians in Jiao Town would have to consider themselves unlucky!
After receiving the order, the Japanese Morita Battalion moved forward quickly and rushed along the road.

On the way, although the Japanese were occasionally attacked by the Eighth Route Army's sparrow warfare or stepped on landmines, their advance speed was not greatly affected. They were all very angry and wanted to vent it.

However, Chen Chengxing had anticipated this. After all, everyone in the country knew what kind of people the Japs were, so the people in this area had all hidden in the mountains.

The Japanese rushed all the way, suffered more than a dozen casualties, and finally occupied only an empty city.

After receiving the telegram, Nara Yukio felt that his anger was growing bigger and bigger, but he had no way to vent it, and there was not even a puppet soldier around for him to fight.

"Mr. Toyama, send a telegram to the headquarters and request coordination of part of the 9th Brigade's material support. We will continue to sweep forward!" Nara Yukio gritted his teeth.

He just didn't believe that he couldn't find the Eighth Route Army. Could there be tens of thousands of them growing wings and flying? As long as he continued to push south, he would be able to catch them sooner or later.

After receiving the telegram from the 3rd Mixed Brigade, Yoshio Shinozuka had a headache.

He had already heard about what Nara Yukio had done. If he were to allocate supplies from the 9th Mixed Brigade to the 3rd Mixed Brigade, Nishiyama Ken would definitely refuse. After all, their mission was not easy either.

This sweep of northwestern Shanxi was not very successful for all the troops. None of the main forces of the Eighth Route Army were found, and the flanks and rear of the Locust Army were constantly ambushed and attacked.

The Eighth Route Army even dispatched part of its forces to cut off several important roads, and the locust army's material transportation had been greatly affected.

"Sir, the mopping-up operation has been going on for more than half a month. Now each unit is at the end of its strength. I'm afraid it's time to retreat." Chief of Staff Michifumi Yamaoka said.

In the past half month, the headquarters received more than 200 battle reports of various sizes.

Especially in the past week, the Eighth Route Army's attacks have become more and more frequent, and there is a tendency for them to spill over. If this continues, the losses of the Locust Army will probably increase dramatically.

Thinking of the situation during this raid, Yoshio Shinozuka took off his glasses and pinched his forehead hard.

Although several troops had achieved some results and wiped out many Eighth Route Army troops, there was still a big gap between this and his expectations. However, as the battle line lengthened, each unit was unable to take care of both ends and was unable to gain a foothold.

Now it is the 3rd Mixed Brigade. Because they put all their efforts into it and did not divide their troops, they still have a great advantage in the Zhongyun Mountains. However, they have fought several battles in succession and now have suffered considerable casualties.

To be on the safe side, the best option for the First Army is to accept the offer.

"Mr. Yamaoka, send orders to all troops, asking them to gradually withdraw from the mountainous area and return to their original bases. Then transfer a batch of supplies from Ping'an County to the 3rd Mixed Brigade, and let them withdraw when the opportunity arises." After putting on his glasses, Yoshio Shinozuka looked at Michifumi Yamaoka and said.

"Ha!"
After receiving the telegram, although he got the supplies he wanted, Yukio Nara was still very dissatisfied.

"Our army still has a huge advantage. If we retreat now, won't it give the Eighth Route Army a chance to catch its breath?"

The Third Mixed Brigade went through untold hardships and finally drove the Eighth Route Army all the way here from the northern end of the Zhongyun Mountains.

Seeing that the mission was already half completed, as long as he made a little more effort, he could wipe out the New Second Regiment of the Eighth Route Army. Wouldn't it be a waste of time if he retreated now?
"Brigade Commander, if the rest of the troops retreat and we are the only ones staying in the Zhongyun Mountains, we might be targeted by the Eighth Route Army," Toyama Ryotaro reminded.

With several other brigades present, the Eighth Route Army could not spare any manpower. But once the other troops withdrew, the 3rd Mixed Brigade would be left alone in the deep.

If the rest of the troops from northwestern Shanxi come to support, the situation at Laoyeling will probably be repeated.

After hearing what Ryotaro Toyama said, Yukio Nara thought about it and was still unwilling to give up the great opportunity now.

"Don't worry about it for now. Order the troops to march out immediately and target the Zhang Family Association!" ordered Nara Yukio.

Whether retreating or advancing, I have to go to pick up the supplies first. After arriving at the Zhang family meeting, I will make a decision based on the actual situation.

After Chen Chengxing led the New Second Regiment back to Dayun Mountain, he immediately prepared to deal with the attack of the Third Mixed Brigade.

The people in each village also made preparations in advance. They hid all the food and other things, and packed up a few days' rations so that they could take them away at any time.

The militia and children's group deployed personnel at various intersections to ensure that the Japanese could not launch a sneak attack.

After arriving at Zhangjiahui and receiving additional supplies, Yukio Nara did not return to Wuyi County along the highway.

Looking at the Dayun Mountain which was so close at hand, Nara Yukio became more and more angry.

The New Second Regiment is now definitely gathered in the mountainous area of 1500 square kilometers, but the superiors have asked the Third Mixed Brigade to withdraw to Wuyi County.

After thinking for a long time, Nara Yukio decided to follow the tradition of the Locust Army.

The inferior overcomes the superior!
"Dong Shanjun!"

"Hai!"

Higashiyama Ryotaro, who was preparing for the retreat, thought that Nara Yukio had something to tell him. However, Nara Yukio's next words made Higashiyama Ryotaro's face change drastically.

"Order the troops to continue heading south, target: Liangzhuang!"

"Brigade Commander! Please forgive me for being frank, but it is definitely not a good thing to rashly go deep into the Eighth Route Army's base now. There are probably a lot of Eighth Route Army soldiers in Dayun Mountain." Toyama Ryotaro advised.

There are only 3,800 people left in the 3rd Mixed Brigade. If a decisive battle really comes, even if they win, it will probably be a pyrrhic victory.

"Mr. Dongshan, you are too cautious." said Nara Yukio.

"Although we haven't caught up with the main force of the New Second Regiment in the past few days, I have a deeper understanding of it."

"According to my judgment, the New Second Regiment should only have 3,000 to 4,000 field troops. The rest are either so-called basic troops or militias. These troops don't even have many heavy weapons, so they are not worth worrying about at all."

"All we need to consider are the three or four thousand field troops."

Yukio Nara felt that the telegram sent to him by the 9th Mixed Brigade two days ago must be wrong, and there were definitely not that many Eighth Route Army soldiers responsible for the blocking!

Now in Dayun Mountain, the total strength of the Eighth Route Army will definitely not exceed six thousand.

Three thousand eight versus six thousand, the advantage is on my side!
"Brigade Commander"

Although Toyama Ryotaro could judge the actual situation, he was still unwilling to take risks. Wouldn't it be better to return to Wuyi County and live a comfortable life?
"Okay! Mr. Toyama! Follow your orders!" Nara Yukio said firmly.

"Hai!"

Ryotaro Toyama had no choice but to change his plan in response to Yukio Nara's order.

There is a difference between going into the mountains to sweep and retreating along the road. Even if there is a road after entering the mountains, the load of the baggage carts must be reduced as much as possible, otherwise the horses will not be able to pull when going uphill.

"Captain, the Japanese did not retreat, but instead divided their troops into four groups and advanced towards Liangzhuang to carry out a sweep."

Chen Chengxing took the intelligence obtained by the Cavalry Reconnaissance Platoon and glanced at it.

The Japanese obviously learned their lesson. Although they were divided into four groups, the distance between them was not far, and no unit advanced rashly.

Even if a team can advance quickly along the main road, they will strictly control the distance and will never take one more step to ensure that they are on the same advancement line with other troops.

"Send a message to the Third Battalion, then pass it to the Fourth Battalion, and let the 13th Company lead the militia forces in this area to continuously harass the Japanese and see if they will take the bait." Chen Chengxing ordered.

Since the Japanese have chosen to play it safe, the New Second Regiment can only launch a mass guerrilla war and then see whether the Japanese will reveal any flaws.

The Third Battalion was indeed the best at guerrilla warfare, but now it was not about relying on guerrilla warfare to kill a large number of Japanese soldiers, but about finding ways to lure the Japanese soldiers into revealing their weaknesses.

At this time, Li Chishui, who has a big imagination, has an advantage.

Li Chishui led the 13th Company and divided it into several groups with the militia, constantly harassing the four-pronged Japanese forces.

However, the Japanese had obviously received instructions. Although each counterattack was very swift, they would usually stop chasing after chasing for a few hundred meters.

Moreover, as the number of harassments increased, these Japanese recruits gradually became accustomed to the frequency of guerrilla warfare, and the results of the harassment became lower and lower.

Li Chishui was almost scratching his scalp when he saw the Japanese soldiers chasing him for several hundred meters, then stopping at the mountain pass and quickly retreating.

"Damn it! Haven't the Japanese always been arrogant? How dare a squadron of them go deep into the enemy's territory alone? What happened?"

If you don't take risks, how can the Eighth Route Army ambush you?
"Captain Li, each of the Japanese troops is divided into the front and rear armies. I think it would be better to just ambush them, defeat them and then leave to see how the Japanese respond." Captain Niu of the militia suggested.

Most of the militia captains in the entire Zhongyunshan area are veterans dispatched by the New Second Regiment, and they have basic combat skills.

"ND, this is the only way." Li Chishui thought for a long time and nodded.

Since the Japanese won't take the bait now, we can only use a stupid method, which is to launch an ambush and see what happens.

After making the decision, Li Chishui ordered all troops to gather and discussed the ambush location with Captain Niu. They finally chose a pass at a corner.

"I think this place is good. It's perfect for ambush a vanguard squad of the Japanese." Standing on the high ground, Li Chishui said as he looked at the terrain in front of him.

"Captain Niu, your militia should disperse on the positions and fire freely." Li Chishui said.

Although the militia in the Zhongyunshan area was better equipped than those in other places, it was still very simple, and there were only a few Hanyang-made rifles.

After all, the rifles of several guerrilla brigades under the New Second Regiment were barely enough to support the militia.

"Captain Li, you don't have to worry about us. We will cooperate in the battle on our own." Captain Niu said.

Their militia had fought many battles with the guerrillas of the New Second Regiment and knew what to do.

(End of this chapter)