Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Changjin Lake, a Hundred Battles, a Hundred Victories

Chapter 100 ends! A photo with the brigade commander.

Originally, Yoshio Shinotsuka wanted to replace defense with offense, so that the Eighth Route Army, which was active in the occupied areas, would not have time to cause trouble in the rear.

This was to support the smooth progress of the Jinan Campaign. Once the forces were freed up to liberate the several divisions that were confronting the Central Army, a large force would be mobilized to carry out a major sweep of the Eighth Route Army's base areas.

Finally, the anti-Japanese forces in Shanxi Province were completely eliminated, freeing up more troops to support the front lines.

But now, with the destruction of the Independent Mixed Fourth Brigade, the sweep plan has been flawed, and the sweep can no longer continue.

"The Eighth Route Army's Independent Detachment was in a very critical geographical location, situated between the Zhengtai Railway and the Tongpu Railway, and also threatening the three strategic strongholds of Taiyuan, Xinkou, and Yangquan. It could not be ignored."

"Immediately withdraw the sweeping troops and focus on defending the railway cities of Yangquan, Xinkou, and Yangqu. The remaining cities shall be put on the defensive and shall not be allowed to go out to carry out combat missions without orders."

Yoshio Shinotsuka gave the order.

"Hai!"

After making the arrangements, Yoshio Shinotsuka sat in his chair, somewhat lost in thought.

A large number of troops have been diverted, and now the defense force of Taiyuan and the surrounding key cities consists of only one brigade.

The most crucial city, Taiyuan, had only a little over two thousand Japanese troops.

Once the Eighth Route Army concentrates its forces to attack Taiyuan, given the strength of the independent detachment in defeating the main force of a brigade in field battles, it will be necessary to draw troops back from southern Shanxi.

The Battle of Southern Shanxi was originally an offensive campaign, and the troops were already at a disadvantage. If more troops were to be recalled, coupled with the disruption of logistics, the situation would be even worse.

It is very possible that a campaign that has been planned for a long time and mobilized a large amount of resources will end hastily.

Yoshio Shinotsuka couldn't bear this responsibility.

Now he only hopes that although the main force of the Independent Mixed Fourth Brigade was wiped out in this sweep, it also severely damaged the Eighth Route Army and the Independent Detachment.

The enemy is no longer capable of launching a large-scale attack.

Yoshio Shinotsuka's guess was correct; after this battle, the Independent Detachment indeed no longer had the ability to launch large-scale operations.

In this operation to annihilate the main force of the Independent Mixed Fourth Brigade, the Independent Detachment successfully wiped out the Japanese and puppet troops invading the base area at the cost of 1,200 lives.

The Japanese army accounted for four-fifths of them.

The loss of 1,200 men may seem like a small number, but it actually crippled the Independent Detachment.

The final assault organized by two Japanese battalions wiped out the elite of the unit.

Similarly, the First Battalion and its elite troops also suffered heavy casualties in this battle, along with a large number of wounded.

In addition, weapons and ammunition were severely depleted; almost all the shells were used up, and a considerable amount of bullets were also consumed.

In the short term, the independent detachment has lost the ability to achieve such a high kill-to-loss ratio again.

"It's still more comfortable to attack strongholds and ambush trains," Chen Ming sighed.

Given the strength of the independent detachment, the Japanese strongholds and the trains transporting supplies were essentially fixed and mobile supply points.

Attacking these targets not only results in fewer casualties but also yields more spoils, allowing the team to grow stronger with each attack.

For the Eighth Route Army, a force with very weak logistical capabilities and which relied heavily on captured weapons and ammunition, large-scale annihilation battles would be extremely devastating.

The Hundred Regiments Offensive left the Eighth Route Army in a weakened state for nearly half a year, and the Battle of Wutai also left the Independent Detachment in a weakened state for a period of time.

“However, this battle cannot be avoided.” After thinking for a while, Chen Ming said firmly.

The outcome of the Battle of Southern Shanxi, though only just begun, is already predetermined.

The fact that Chen Ming's troops were able to purchase heavy artillery from the garrison in southern Shanxi speaks volumes. (For the Eighth Route Army, a 75mm mountain gun was considered heavy artillery.)
The defeat in the Battle of Southern Shanxi had a truly terrible impact!

This severely damaged the public's confidence in the war of resistance.

"Report, the brigade commander is here." Da Biao pushed the door open from the outside and said to Chen Ming.

"Let's go, let's go greet them immediately," Chen Ming said, standing up.

After Chen Ming led Da Biao out the door, he indeed saw a man wearing a leather jacket and holding a riding whip.

The brigade commander's face lit up with a smile as soon as he saw Chen Ming.

"Good boy!"

After punching Chen Ming in the chest, the brigade commander said solemnly.

The soldiers below didn't realize just how great their victory truly was.

But Chen Ming and the brigade commander were all too aware of the significance of this battle for the Independent Detachment!

"I came here not only to see you, but also with an order: after you've finished dealing with the post-war matters, come back with me."

The brigade commander spoke.

A brief battle report from the independent detachment has been sent to headquarters by telegram.

However, Chen Ming would need to go to headquarters in person to get the detailed information.

The experience and details of this battle are worth writing down in detail for other commanders and soldiers to learn from and share.

"No problem. There's not much left to do at the base. We can set off after we've checked on the wounded," Chen Ming said.

The independent detachment has developed over time and cultivated a group of talents to assist Chen Ming in handling the affairs of the detachment and the military region.

Chen Ming no longer needs to be like Zhuge Liang, handling everything personally, as he was when he was the squad leader of the district and the commander of the Independent Second Regiment.

“Alright, let’s go together,” the brigade commander said.

Chen Ming and his brigade went to the field hospital to visit the wounded soldiers who had been injured in the operation.

The field hospital was already overcrowded. Not only was the inside full of people, but even outside, makeshift sheds had been set up for the wounded to rest.

Some of the injured, whose injuries were not particularly serious, were dispersed and placed in villagers' homes.

The villagers were very happy to agree to the independent detachment's request and were proud of it.

These were all heroes who wiped out the heinous Japanese invaders.

Those who have the opportunity to care for the wounded can speak with their heads held high and their voices heard in the village.

This has even led to a phenomenon where villagers linger at the entrance of the field hospital every day, asking if there are any wounded soldiers who need help and offering to take care of them.

If you can bring the wounded home to take care of them, you can enjoy the admiration of your wife and children.

If you fail to rescue a wounded person, you'll be blamed when you get home, with people saying, "Look at you, the neighbor is taking care of a wounded person, how can you be so useless?"

The participation of the public has increased the hospital's capacity to treat the wounded in the fourth district by five times!
At the field hospital, Chen Ming visited Chen Huanshan, the company commander of the 3rd Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, who had been the bravest in this battle.

This time, the enemy led their troops to be the first to charge onto the Guanfengkou position. Chen Huanshan single-handedly killed seventeen Japanese soldiers before being wounded. "How are you feeling?" Chen Ming asked kindly.

"Team Leader." Chen Huanshan, lying on the bed, opened his eyes and saw Chen Ming. He tried to get up.

"Don't move. You're wounded now. You need to rest and recover. The soldiers of the Third Company are waiting for you to recover so they can lead them to fight the Japanese again."

Chen Ming gently pressed down on the other person's shoulder to keep them still and prevent the wound from reopening.

"I'm not seriously injured. The Japanese bullet only pierced a small hole in my stomach. The nurse said I'll be fine in a few months," Chen Huanshan said, his eyes red.

He was shot in the stomach by a Japanese bullet, but fortunately, no vital organs were damaged. After treatment, he should be fine as long as he doesn't get an infection.

Fortunately, the independent detachment had no shortage of medical supplies; otherwise, it would have lost another valiant company commander.

"Alright, I'll wait for you to return to your unit and lead you all to continue killing the Japanese devils." Chen Ming said solemnly, holding the other's hand.

"Okay." Chen Huanshan nodded heavily, his eyes red.

Next, Chen Ming visited the other wounded soldiers and encouraged them.

After visiting the wounded, Chen Ming asked Da Biao:
Do we have any film left?

“There are two empty boxes left,” Da Biao replied.

"Okay, go get it, let's take some photos of the soldiers."

"okay."

Two soldiers from Da Biao's guard company ran back to the brigade headquarters to retrieve the camera they had captured.

A short while later, the camera was brought back.

Chen Ming wanted to film the situation at the field hospital, firstly to record valuable information from the wartime period so that it could be passed down to future generations.

Let them know the cruelty of war and that peace is hard-won.

Secondly, it was to show the people the current situation of the Eighth Route Army's tenacious resistance against Japan.

The victory of annihilating the main force of the Japanese Independent Mixed Brigade No. 4 was definitely one that needed to be publicized.

We will use some of these photos for publicity, so that the public knows that there is such a unit that fought the Japanese invaders tenaciously in harsh conditions.

After taking photos of the wounded, Da Biao noticed there were still some blank rolls of film left and asked Chen Ming:

"Team leader, let me take a few pictures of you too."

Chen Ming was slightly taken aback.

Since the camera was captured, every company in the Independent Detachment has taken a group photo.

However, the battle was sudden, and many newly joined soldiers were killed on the battlefield before they even had a chance to take photos.

All that's left are the names on the roster.

Thinking of this, Chen Ming reached into his pocket but found nothing.

"Have one of mine." The brigade commander realized that Chen Ming was thinking of the fallen soldiers and wanted a cigarette.

So he took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and handed it to Chen Ming.

Chen Ming didn't say anything, but patted Da Biao on the shoulder. Da Biao, understanding the situation, handed Chen Ming a kerosene lighter with the character "Biao" engraved on it.

Just as Chen Ming was about to light it, the brigade commander snatched it away, lit the lighter, and handed it to Chen Ming.

Chen Ming was slightly taken aback, then quickly reached out to stop him and lit his cigarette.

The brigade commander lit a cigarette in his mouth and then returned the lighter to Chen Ming.

Chen Ming casually put the lighter in his pocket and then silently smoked with the brigade commander.

All that remained was the figure of Da Biao beside him, his mouth opening and closing as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

He wanted to say that this lighter was his, and that it had his name engraved on it.

After finishing his cigarette, Chen Ming spoke:
"Take a photo of me and the brigade commander together."

“Okay,” Da Biao said.

The brigade commander did not refuse.

After straightening his uniform, Chen Ming stood with the brigade commander, and they took a precious photo together.

After completing these tasks, Chen Ming, carrying the compiled battle report details and film, and accompanied by the brigade commander under the protection of a company of guards, headed to headquarters.

Headquarters.

"The Independent Detachment's victory this time was brilliant and crucial," the commander said happily.

"Yes, in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, both the eastern and western fronts have been breached, and the defeat is already evident. This battle of the Independent Detachment is crucial at this time."

Even the teachers and officers could not hide their alarm.

"This victory has a significant and crucial impact!"

"Yes, the impact of this battle has been enormous," the boss said.

Before the Hundred Regiments Offensive was over, the Nationalist government stopped paying the Eighth Route Army's wages. To this day, they have not received a single silver dollar or a single bullet from the Nationalist government.

The eastern and western fronts of Zhongtiao Mountain have now been breached, and the organization's counterattack has failed; defeat is inevitable.

The development of the Jinan Campaign took everyone by surprise.

The results were determined in just half a month.

Now, the Nationalist army's concern is no longer about retaking the land, but about how to withdraw its troops without losing too many soldiers and causing the situation to deteriorate.

At this time, the Eighth Route Army won a brilliant victory, which was indeed very crucial.

At this moment, an officer came up to the leaders.

"Report, Chen Ming and the brigade commander have arrived."

Upon hearing this, the leaders laughed even louder.

"Let's go see our heroes," the boss said, leading the way out of the command center.

They wanted to hear Chen Ming recount all the details of the battle himself, as it was a valuable experience.

P.S.: Godfathers, I've been too busy today, so this is only 4000 words. I'll post a separate chapter later to add some additional information.

(End of this chapter)