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

Chapter 104 Kong Jie's Revenge! The Confident Yamamoto
Upon receiving the order to assemble, the soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Brigade immediately sprang into action.

In just ten minutes, the 713 soldiers of the First Battalion assembled, fully equipped with their weapons and ammunition.

This speed is already very fast at night.

Chen Ming's approach to troop training, apart from daily drills, largely followed the models of later generations.

Strict regulations have been established regarding internal affairs and response time in emergency situations.

Now that we are in wartime, Chen Ming also requires all soldiers to keep their guns with them at all times, so that they can be combat-ready in a short time in case of an emergency.

If any soldier slacks off and fails to complete the emergency assembly order on time, his squad leader will kindly promote him to officer.

At the same time, if one person makes a mistake, the entire platoon will be punished, thus cultivating the soldiers' sense of collective honor.

Kong Jie was very satisfied after the soldiers of the First Battalion had assembled.

"The troops led by the detachment commander are truly elite. The unit completed full assembly in such a short time," Kong Jie exclaimed.

If his independent regiment had such well-trained troops back then, how could it have been so badly defeated by Yamamoto's special attack force?

The Independent Regiment suffered such a devastating casualty ratio because it already had a high number of casualties and insufficient defensive capabilities.

The second problem was that the troops assembled too slowly and failed to organize a defense in a short period of time after the attack.

Otherwise, with a force of a few hundred men, even with a significant difference in weaponry and equipment, they shouldn't have suffered such a high casualty ratio against a combat squad of Yamamoto's special attack force.

"The entire battalion, march immediately to the command post. We have an important combat mission!" Kong Jie shouted.

After the order was given, the soldiers of the First Battalion began to move toward Chen Ming's command post.

The Second Battalion's base was located east of Chen Ming's command post, while Yamamoto's special forces came from the west.

Presumably for the sake of secrecy, after arriving in Dingxiang by train, they went directly deep into the mountains, hiding during the day and going out at night to catch the enemy off guard.

However, under the surveillance of Chen Ming's three-dimensional combat map, Yamamoto's self-perceived concealment was utterly insignificant.

Yamamoto Ichiki's rather proud stealth tactics were no different from a bunch of monkeys jumping around in Chen Ming's eyes.

Inside the command post, Chen Ming was setting up defenses, preparing to lure Yamamoto's special attack team to the vicinity of the command post before attacking them.

Otherwise, if that little devil Yamamoto senses something is wrong and runs away, it won't be easy to have such an opportunity again next time.

Suddenly, a communications officer ran up to Chen Ming.

"Report: The sentry 15 kilometers west of the command post has spotted a group of sneaky Japanese soldiers approaching the command post."

Upon hearing the communications officer's report, Chen Ming nodded: "Yes, have the sentries continue to observe, but don't alert them."

Chen Ming attached great importance to the security of the command post. In addition to having his own external guards to act as sentries, he also deployed a large number of hidden sentries around the command post.

The furthest point was 20 kilometers away from the command post. At key points in several directions, buried telephone lines were also installed to facilitate timely reporting of emergencies and avoid delays in combat operations.

Typically, sentries stationed five kilometers away will report any enemy activity they discover to avoid alerting the enemy.

If the enemy manages to evade the sentries and reaches within five kilometers of the command post, the sentries will open fire as a warning once they are spotted.

This configuration not only avoids missing opportunities but also ensures the safety of the command center.

Therefore, even if Chen Ming hadn't discovered the situation of Yamamoto's special forces, his command post would have been safe thanks to the large number of hidden sentries.

If some Japanese soldiers were to miraculously evade the sentries and sneak near Chen Ming's command post, Chen Ming would still be safe and sound thanks to the protection of the special operations brigade and the guard company.

With only a handful of Yamamoto's special forces, it was a pipe dream to think they could break through Chen Ming's guard force of over 700 men, especially with the most elite special operations brigade in the entire unit.

Two hours later.

Kong Jie led his troops to the command post in a great hurry.

"Reporting, Kong Jie, the commander of the Second Battalion, has led all the soldiers of the First Battalion to report for duty. Please give instructions."

Kong Jie gave Chen Ming a standard military salute.

After returning the salute, Chen Ming began to speak:
"Comrade Kong Jie is here. You've worked hard."

"According to reports from the sentries at the front, the Japanese Yamamoto Special Attack Unit is less than ten kilometers away from the command post. My safety as the detachment commander is now in your hands."

"You will also be temporarily in command of the Special Operations Brigade and the Guard Company."

Chen Ming spoke casually, as if joking, completely disregarding Yamamoto's special forces.

"Yes, I promise to complete the mission."

Kong Jie was very moved.

Chen Ming not only gave him this opportunity, but also entrusted him with the command of the brigade's prized special operations team, giving him a helping hand.

The reputation of the Independent Detachment Special Operations Brigade was well-known within the Eighth Route Army, and every soldier there had earned at least one First-Class Merit.

There were also many combat heroes.

The entire special operations brigade is a heroic unit built on honors, having achieved its current reputation by stepping over the corpses of the Japanese invaders.

Every soldier in the independent detachment dreams of joining the special operations brigade and takes pride in it.

Such a heroic unit was coveted even by the division commander. If it weren't for Chen Ming's constant protection, the division commander would probably have congratulated and sent them away long ago.

Now that the detachment commander has entrusted this heroic unit to his command, along with the battalion Kong Jie himself brought, they are fighting against Yamamoto's special forces team of over a hundred men. This is entirely due to the detachment commander's consideration for him. Kong Jie's eyes reddened slightly. If he weren't facing Chen Ming, his superior, and not Li Yunlong, he would have surely resorted to "paying back the debt with his fingers."

After taking command, Kong Jie immediately began making arrangements.

The battalion of soldiers, along with the special operations brigade and the guard company, totaling more than 1,300 men, were used to encircle and annihilate a Yamamoto special attack team.

With Kong Jie's abilities, knowing all of the enemy's movements, he could easily, if not effortlessly, defeat them.

Kong Jie was confident that since Yamamoto's special forces had come this time, none of them would be able to escape.

Six kilometers away, it's already three in the morning.

Yamamoto led a special forces team of over 150 men, moving swiftly through the mountains.

In order not to disturb the guards of the Independent Detachment, Yamamoto, that little Japanese devil, took the unconventional route, going wherever the road was difficult to traverse.

Sometimes, even when there's a main road, he insists on taking a detour and climbing cliffs.

"Hurry up and take action. According to intelligence, the Independent Detachment Command is only six kilometers ahead. This time, we must let this arrogant Independent Detachment know the power of our special forces."

Yamamoto Ichiki quietly gave instructions to the Japanese special forces soldiers, then climbed up a cliff first, demonstrating his superb skills to the other soldiers.

Little did they know, this scene was witnessed in its entirety by the hidden sentry of the Independent Detachment.

Yamamoto's special forces team considered themselves to be exceptionally elite and well-versed in special operations.

They didn't even notice the sentry lying in the grass not far away, his body buried in the soil.

To the sentry, the enemy's posture didn't look cool at all; instead, it made them look like a bunch of monkeys.

[If it weren't for orders from headquarters not to alert the enemy and to lure them in, with your level of skill, you would have been routed long ago.] The sentry thought to himself.

He continued to observe the movements of Yamamoto's special forces, and once they were far away, he immediately crawled out of the ground.

He immediately ran to the back of a slope and used a makeshift telephone (a wire connecting two bamboo tubes) to report the location of Yamamoto's special attack team to his superiors.

The message was then relayed to the command center by a superior via telephone.

About two hours later, Yamamoto's special forces finally reached the vicinity of the Independent Detachment's command post.

Looking at the lights on in the Independent Detachment Command Post, Yamamoto Ichiki knew he had finally found his target.

Based on his understanding of the Eighth Route Army, places with lights and electricity were usually the core organs of the Eighth Route Army.

Due to resource shortages, the Eighth Route Army typically only had access to electricity at the regimental level or above.

Based on the lighting configuration that Yamamoto Ichiki observed, he concluded that this was definitely the command post of the Independent Detachment.

His target—Chen Ming, the commander of the independent detachment—was inside.

"We've located the enemy. First combat team, sneak up from the left flank and take out the enemy sentries. Second combat team, sneak up from the right flank and coordinate with the first combat team to attack simultaneously."

"Third combat team, circle around to the enemy's rear and prevent important enemy personnel from escaping."

"The rest of you, follow me up the slope along the path ahead."

Yamamoto Ichiki began to formulate operational orders.

He was very confident in the fighting ability of his men. Even if he only led fifty-odd men to attack from the slope, he was confident that he could defeat the guard force of the Independent Detachment Command.

As for the combat team that circled around to the rear of the Independent Detachment's command post, Yamamoto Ichiki believed that if the Independent Detachment's commander fled in panic, a single combat team could take him down.

at the same time.

Inside the command post, Kong Jie approached Chen Ming.

"Report: The Japanese troops have all entered the encirclement. Please give instructions."

Kong Jie began to report.

According to the sentry's report, Yamamoto's special forces team had all entered the trap that Kong Jie had set for them.

The other side is now surrounded in layers, with no way to escape.

The Yamamoto Special Attack Team was completely unaware that their last escape route had been cut off, and they were still foolishly splitting up to prepare an attack on the command post.

"Close the internet."

Chen Ming said casually.

Given the current size of the independent detachment, a force of 150 men, even if the enemy is well-trained and well-equipped, it still cannot arouse much interest in Chen Ming.

No matter how elite they are, Chen Ming doesn't even need the special operations brigade to take action. He can easily rout the enemy by ordering an artillery company from the artillery battalion.

Right now, at least five hundred Japanese soldiers would be needed to get Chen Ming to take things seriously.

After receiving instructions from Chen Ming, Kong Jie immediately issued the order to close in.

A flare was launched into the sky, instantly illuminating the entire command post and the surrounding area.

And Yamamoto Ichiki's completely bewildered face.

(End of this chapter)