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

Chapter 103 Yamamoto's Special Forces Came to Their Deaths
Enraged, the Japanese immediately ordered the 9th Independent Mixed Brigade, which had been recalled, to rest briefly.

Immediately drive the Eighth Route Army troops in Guoxian, Yangquan, and Yangqu back to the mountainous areas.

If the enemy continues to cause such destruction, the entire complex of pillboxes, built at great expense of manpower and resources, will be ruined.

Like the Independent Mixed Brigade 4, the Independent 9th Mixed Brigade was experienced in counterinsurgency warfare and had a high level of experience in dealing with guerrilla warfare.

In dealing with the Eighth Route Army, this brigade might have been more effective than a division, and it was one of the units that Yoshio Shinotsuka valued highly.

With the return of the Ninth Brigade, Chen Ming began to have his troops hide in the mountains, avoiding engaging the Japanese in the plains.

In the plains, the Japanese mechanized units were too fast to provide support, and the soldiers were at a disadvantage trying to outrun the machines on foot.

Chen Ming's operational objectives have been achieved. Through the large-scale sabotage operations during this period, the Independent Detachment has captured a large amount of weapons, ammunition, and food supplies.

They had recovered their strength and energy. Although their artillery shell reserves were lower than before the war, they had a surplus of bullets.

More importantly, a large number of firearms were seized.

Initial estimates suggest that this is enough to equip two regiments.

However, Chen Ming did not blindly expand the troops; the number of troops in the independent detachment was already sufficient.

Three directly subordinate main forces, plus local armed forces.

With so many troops, the scale is already large enough.

If the troops are expanded blindly, their combat effectiveness will decline, and the losses will be enormous in the increasingly severe mopping-up operations to come.

More soldiers are not necessarily better.

Recruiting soldiers isn't just about handing them guns and then ignoring everything else; logistics also need to be considered.

Shanxi Province is mountainous, and its grain production is not as high as that of the plains in the Central Plains, making it difficult to support a large army.

Coupled with the natural and man-made disasters of the following two years, grain production dropped sharply. At the most difficult time, our soldiers could not even guarantee their daily rations.

Expanding the force under these circumstances would be irresponsible to the soldiers.

In order to cope with the severe situation ahead, Chen Ming's initial combat orders were to prioritize food supplies and use weapons and ammunition as a secondary measure.

At the same time, we should streamline our administration and reduce our burdens to prepare for the difficult times to come.

The detachment headquarters reports that the troops that went out have returned to their respective defense zones.

All the main forces and guerrilla units also gathered at the detachment headquarters.

"Let's report on the combat situation during this period," Chen Ming said at the meeting.

"I'll go first," said He Jianxin, the captain of the first brigade, raising his hand.

"Our First Battalion was operating in the Dingxiang and Guoxian areas this time, guarding the Japanese railway line, destroying more than 70 Japanese blockhouses and strongholds, killing more than 300 Japanese soldiers and more than 700 puppet troops and traitors."

"More than 900 rifles, more than 50,000 rounds of ammunition, 18 light and heavy machine guns, two mortars, and 120 shells were seized."

"Other grenades and explosives were also seized. The most grain was captured. We ambushed two Japanese grain trains, and together with the grain in the stronghold, we had more than 300 tons, enough for the troops to eat for half a year. If we were careful, it could last for ten months."

He Jianxin said happily.

As the strongest battalion under the independent detachment, this battle report has already lived up to Chen Ming's expectations.

"Not bad, not bad, you didn't embarrass me." Chen Ming said with a smile.

Next, it was Kong Jie's turn to speak.

"In this operation, although our Second Battalion's spoils were one-third less than those of the First Battalion, they were still not bad. We destroyed many of the Japanese's key strongholds and towns, and connected the scattered base areas into one."

Kong Jie was calm and composed. He did not take the risk of attacking the Japanese railways. Instead, he focused on attacking Japanese-controlled towns and villages to develop base areas.

Although the spoils were not as plentiful as those of the First Brigade, the importance of developing a base area was no less than that of the spoils.

Then it was Li Yousheng's turn to speak.

"Our Third Battalion fought around Shouyang and Yangquan this time, eliminating more than 90 Japanese strongholds, killing more than 400 Japanese soldiers, and more than 800 puppet troops and traitors."

"The seized items included 1,200 rifles, more than 80,000 rounds of ammunition, 23 light and heavy machine guns, 3 mortars, 180 artillery shells, explosives, and grenades."

"However, the grain was relatively scarce, with only a little over 150 tons seized."

Li Yousheng carried Chen Ming's expectations, so this time he mainly attacked Japanese strongholds, wanting to prove himself by annihilating a large number of enemy troops.

Next came the reports from the various guerrilla brigades.

The guerrilla brigade was poorly equipped and mainly attacked villages and checkpoints controlled by puppet troops and traitors. The main targets of their annihilation were also puppet troops and traitors.

Although the spoils were far less than those of the main force, they were still sufficient.

After the officers and soldiers finished reporting their results, Chen Ming was very pleased and acknowledged their contributions one by one at the meeting. He also commended the soldiers who had performed outstandingly in this operation.

After the battle, Chen Ming kept some weapons as reserves to replenish battlefield losses as needed, and handed over the surplus of more than two thousand guns to his superiors.

Chen Ming knew that after the Japanese army liberated a large number of troops, they would launch an even more brutal and severe mopping-up operation.

Expanding the army rashly would result in a significant decrease in combat effectiveness and cause extremely heavy casualties.

Meanwhile, under the Japanese army's large-scale mopping-up operations, food supplies will become even more difficult. If the troops continue to expand, it is very likely that food supplies will not be available.

In the TV series, Li Yunlong's Independent Regiment suffered heavy casualties. Two-thirds of the officers were killed or wounded, only one battalion commander, Zhang Dabiao, survived, and only a little over 500 soldiers remained.

Because of the rapid expansion, the combat effectiveness of the troops declined too much, and at the same time, a logistical crisis occurred, coupled with the increasingly intensified mopping-up operations by the Japanese army!

Chen Ming turned in the excess weapons.

When the guns were delivered to the brigade commander, he was overjoyed.

"It has to be Chen Ming again. He hasn't forgotten his family and has given me such a great gift."

That's over a thousand guns! In normal times, that's enough to mobilize at least two regimental detachments.

However, the brigade commander currently has no plans to establish a new main force regiment.

Instead, these guns were distributed to units below that lacked weapons.

Many military units are currently facing significant weapons shortages.

We must first improve the combat effectiveness of our existing troops, rather than blindly recruiting more.

Inside the base, the three-dimensional combat map in Chen Ming's mind suddenly issued a warning.

Chen Ming immersed his consciousness in the map and indeed discovered that a small Japanese detachment had entered the map's area.

Upon closer inspection, Chen Ming realized that the group of Japanese soldiers numbered around 150, and their weapons were submachine guns.

The Japanese soldier in the lead was none other than Yamamoto Ichiki, whom Chen Ming knew very well.

Given the Independent Detachment's current reputation, Japanese battalion-level units dare not easily venture into its defense zone.

This small detachment dared to penetrate deep into the base area and even get within 20 kilometers of the Independent Detachment; they were practically courting death.

"Damn it, I didn't even bother to cause trouble for your Yamamoto Special Attack Team, yet you guys actually came to my Independent Detachment to die."

Chen Ming smiled.

Against other units, the Yamamoto Special Attack Corps, relying on its advanced combat concepts and well-trained elite troops, was indeed able to achieve some unexpected results.

However, facing Chen Ming, who possesses a map cheat, a small squad venturing deep into enemy territory alone is tantamount to suicide.

Special forces are strong, but once their whereabouts are discovered, they are doomed to die when facing the main force.

What is the range of a submachine gun? What is the range of a rifle or machine gun? What is the range of an artillery piece?
With just their range advantage, they can completely overwhelm special forces.

Faced with the Yamamoto Special Attack Team that came to their deaths, Chen Ming only had one thing to say: "Since we're here, let's make the best of it!"
"Dabiao!"

"To!"

Chen Ming's bodyguard ran in from outside the door.

"Notify the command headquarters' defensive forces to immediately enter a state of high alert. At the same time, notify Kong Jie's troops in Meng County and tell him that the opportunity to avenge themselves against the Japanese special forces has arrived. Instruct him to immediately lead a battalion of troops to converge on the command headquarters," Chen Ming ordered.

"Yes."

Although Da Biao didn't understand why Chen Ming would give such an order, as a bodyguard, he only needed to carry out Chen Ming's orders.

As the order to assemble was given, the brigade's directly subordinate special operations battalion and guard company quickly assembled around Chen Ming to protect his safety.

Kong Jie also received a telegram at the Second Battalion's base and was awakened by his bodyguard.

Upon seeing Chen Ming's words and learning that the Japanese soldiers who had attacked the Independent Regiment had returned, Kong Jie was extremely excited and immediately left the brigade headquarters.

"Notify the First Battalion to assemble immediately; there is an important combat mission!"

Kong Jie was anxious. The Japanese devil who had made the Independent Regiment carry dough on their backs had finally reappeared. His chance for revenge had come.

Kong Jie knew that with the defensive capabilities of the detachment command, dealing with a Yamamoto special attack team was not a problem at all.

But Chen Ming gave him this opportunity so that he could avenge the past!

He must remember this favor!

(End of this chapter)