Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 146 Helping out
Perhaps feeling a little embarrassed himself, Li Yunlong straightened his face and said, "That's settled then. I'm the regimental commander, and I make the decisions!"

"Yes!"

Zhang Dabiao suppressed a laugh, saluted, and agreed.

Seeing the impressive equipment of the team at the foot of the mountain, Li Yunlong, filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred, led his troops away, cursing under his breath.

The impact of the fall of Wutai County is spreading rapidly, far exceeding the expectations of those involved.

Upon receiving news of the fall of Wutai County, Kitayama Yuu-no-o, commander of the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade, realized the situation had escalated and immediately reported to Lieutenant General Umezu Yoshijiro, commander of the 1st Army, requesting more reinforcements.

"Investigate...investigate immediately where this Chinese army came from!"

In the headquarters of the First Army in Taiyuan, Yoshijiro Umezu was furious with Major General Kushibuchi Kazuichi, the chief of staff (the first time I had ever seen a Japanese person with so many rare characters in their name).

"Commander, we've found out."

Faced with the furious Yoshijiro Umezu, Shizukazu Kushibuchi remained calm and took out a document from his briefcase, handing it to him with both hands.

Yoshijiro Umezu took the document, threw it on the table without even glancing at it, and said, "Tell me, what is the background of that unit, and who is its commander?"

"Hai!"

Kushiyuki bowed slightly before saying, "According to the report from our special intelligence personnel left in Wutai County, the commander of this unit is named Su Yaoyang, and the unit he leads belongs to a unit called the Shanxi Militia."

"Shanxi militia?"

Yoshijiro Umezu paused for a moment, "Why have I never heard of this unit before?"

“Commander, you may not know this,” Kushibuchi Kōichi added, “but perhaps you will understand when I mention another name: the predecessor of the Shanxi militia was the Nanjing Security Corps.”

"Nanjing Security Corps?"

Yoshijiro Umezu muttered a couple of words, then suddenly jolted and raised his voice: "I remember now, it was that unit that disregarded international law and brazenly released poison gas at the Imperial Army last year in Nanjing, causing heavy losses to the 6th Division."

"That Nanjing security regiment that recently routed the 10th and 16th Divisions at Taierzhuang?"

"That's them."

Seeing Yoshijiro Umezu's surprised expression, Kushibuchi nodded with a wry smile. In fact, when he heard about the origins of that unit, he had fared even worse than Yoshijiro Umezu.

"This is bad."

Yoshijiro Umezu's expression turned serious. He slowly stood up, walked to the wall, looked at the large map hanging on the wall and pondered for a while before suddenly saying, "If it is confirmed that it is the Nanjing Security Regiment led by Su Yaoyang, then Wutai County cannot be defended. Kitayama Yuki and his Second Independent Mixed Brigade are no match for Su Yaoyang."

Six months ago, if someone had said that an independent mixed brigade of the mighty Japanese Empire couldn't defeat a local security regiment, they would have been laughed at.

If this person were a high-ranking Japanese army general, it would be even more serious; he might be warned or even transferred from active duty on charges of undermining morale.

But now, not only did Yoshijiro Umezu say it so openly, but even the listeners did not object and tacitly accepted this fact.

Suddenly, Kushibuchi Kazuichi's expression changed drastically. "This is bad... Kitayama-kun just sent a telegram. He just dispatched two battalions to reinforce Wutai County!" Umezu Yoshijiro's eyes narrowed. "Quickly... immediately telegraph Kitayama Yuu-no-kami and tell him to withdraw his troops at once!"

The two men reacted quickly, but their warning came a little too late. By the time Kitayama Yuki received the telegram, the two battalions he had dispatched had already engaged the Chinese army.

Let's turn our attention back to Wutai County.

Two battalions dispatched by Beishan Youwang set off from Xiangding County and Meng County respectively, heading straight for Wutai County. One of the battalions was also carrying four Type 94 37mm rapid-fire guns, specifically to deal with the Chinese tanks.

One of the detachments that came out of Xiangding County ran headlong into the position set up by the Sixth Battalion led by Hou Tianyou, and the two sides immediately engaged in fierce fighting. On the other side, the Fifth Battalion led by Liang Zefeng encountered some trouble.

Liang Zefeng wiped the sweat from his forehead; his military uniform was already soaked with sweat and stuck stickily to his back.

The mountain wind from Xiaoling Peak carried the acrid smell of gunpowder as it rushed towards him. He squinted and saw the smoke rising from the ridge ahead, resembling a twisted gray snake.

A team of soldiers in gray military uniforms was moving through the gullies and hillsides, their figures appearing and disappearing intermittently.

They retreated in groups of three, taking turns providing cover, their gunfire scattered yet precise. Amidst the sound of bullets grazing tree bark, a tall, thin man suddenly emerged from behind a rock, felling the closest Japanese soldier with a single shot, before crouching and disappearing into the bushes.

Liang Zefeng raised his binoculars and discovered that the enemy's tactics were extremely flexible, like a school of fish in a mountain stream, gathering and dispersing in an instant, always disappearing behind cover before the Japanese machine gunners could react.

He also saw a young soldier whose arm was grazed by a stray bullet, but he gritted his teeth and propped his rifle on a tree branch to continue firing.

Subsequently, the Japanese troops at the foot of the mountain began bombarding the area with grenade launchers, and the explosions sent rocks and dust tumbling down.

Suddenly, a commander in a gray military uniform blew a brass whistle, the sharp, trembling sound piercing the noise.

With the sound of a whistle, the sniper immediately retreated to the steep slope to the northwest, his movements as swift as if he had practiced it a thousand times.

"hiss……"

Liang Zefeng picked at his teeth. The opposing team's tactics were too flexible, as slippery as an eel. Their commander was definitely a tough opponent.

"Battalion Commander... what should we do?" the third company commander asked, leaning closer.

Liang Zefeng hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Of course we should help. No matter what, they are also Chinese anti-Japanese armed forces. Commander Su also said that as long as we encounter a team fighting the Japanese, no matter who it is, we should help them out!"
Company Commander, you and Company Commander 2 will flank from the left and right respectively, while I will lead the First Company and the machine gun company to support that brother unit from the rear.

Remember, you must act quickly. Engage the enemy before they can react, utilize the advantages of our semi-automatic rifles and submachine guns to suppress them, and then swiftly eliminate their manpower.

"understand!"

Soon, the Second and Third Companies quickly circled around from the left and right sides. When they were two or three hundred meters away from the Japanese troops, Liang Zefeng also gave the order to the machine gun company to open fire.

The so-called machine gun company was a newly established reinforced firepower company for each infantry battalion by Su Yaoyang.

This company was equipped with nine M2 12.7mm Browning heavy machine guns and six M2 60mm mortars to enhance the unit's assault capabilities.

(End of this chapter)