On the eve of the fall of Liaodong, he led his troops in a remonstrance against the young marshal.

The darkness is receding.

On the eastern horizon, a faint, leaden-gray light is struggling to tear through the edge of the night.

A large convoy is traveling on the highway leading to Liaoyang.

Trucks, armored vehicles, and supply wagons formed a long line stretching for several kilometers, their headlights casting dim yellow beams in the pre-dawn mist.

The roar of engines and the sound of horses' hooves mingled together, breaking the silence of the fields at dawn.

This is the 4th Brigade of the Kwantung Army.

Nine thousand soldiers and more than three hundred vehicles of various types departed from Haicheng and are heading at full speed toward Liaoyang.

At the very front of the column, in a Type 94 armored command vehicle, Major General Takeshita, commander of the 4th Brigade, was sitting in the passenger seat, one hand gripping the armrest tightly, the other constantly tapping the instrument panel.

His eyes were fixed on the road ahead, illuminated by the car headlights, and the whites of his eyes were bloodshot.

"Hayaku!"

He turned and yelled at the driver, his voice hoarse:

"Faster! Hayaku!"

The driver dared not delay and stepped on the gas.

The armored vehicle bounced violently on the bumpy dirt road, its chassis rattling and scraping against the protruding stones.

But that's not fast enough.

Takeshita turned his head and shouted to the communications soldier in the back seat:

"Pass down the order: the entire army must accelerate! Make sure the convoys behind keep up, no one is allowed to fall behind!"

"General!"

Chief of Staff Tezuka, sitting on the other side of the back seat, finally couldn't help but speak up.

"We have been marching for six hours straight, and the soldiers are at their physical limit."

"If we continue advancing at full speed, even if we reach Liaoyang, the troops may not be able to immediately engage in battle."

Takeshita did not answer, but only let out a heavy snort from his nose.

Seeing that he did not get angry, Tezuka continued to persuade him:

"Moreover, General, Commander Honjo commands three thousand elite troops, which are the best-equipped direct regiments of the Kwantung Army..."

"Equipped with sixteen Type 92 infantry guns, twenty-four heavy machine guns, ample ammunition, and well-trained personnel."

"While we can't say we can defeat our opponents, we can at least hold out until dawn without any problem."

"We still have plenty of time to get going."

Takeshita suddenly turned his head.

A sudden glint of anger appeared on his face, which was swollen from lack of sleep.

"idiot!"

He shouted it out loud, spitting all over Tezuka's face.

"Can't you read a telegram?!"

"Look at yourself! Look for yourself!"

He threw a crumpled telegram at Tezuka's face, then pointed to the almost crumpled words on it:

"Enemy armored forces have surrounded us, the train station has fallen, it's an emergency, come to our aid immediately..."

"Extremely urgent! Pay close attention to these four words!"

His voice echoed in the cramped carriage, making Tezuka's eardrums buzz:

"Who is Commander Honjo? Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army! General of the Imperial Japanese Army!"

"If it weren't a matter of life and death, how could he possibly issue such an urgent order?!"

Tezuka's facial muscles twitched twice.

His cheeks flushed red, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he ultimately held back.

After saying these words, Takeshita leaned back in his seat, panting heavily, his chest heaving.

The carriage was quiet for about ten seconds.

Tezuka took a deep breath and spoke again, but this time, his tone was more cautious than before:

"General, I completely agree with your analysis."

"But that's precisely why we should be even more careful."

"You can imagine, an enemy that can force three thousand elite troops to this point must have a considerable number of soldiers."

"The telegram mentioned that the enemy has armored units. The biggest characteristic of armored units is their speed. What if the enemy sets up an ambush halfway through the journey?"

"What if we travel through the night, our soldiers are exhausted, and we encounter a sudden enemy attack? How will we deal with that?"

His voice grew increasingly firm:

"We should prioritize our own safety before continuing our journey."

"Soldiers of the Empire may die in battle, but they cannot die in vain."

Takeshita did not immediately lose his temper.

He was silent.

Tezuka's words, though harsh, did make sense.

Takeshita turned his head, looked up at the sky through the front window of the armored vehicle.

The sky was already getting light.

That leaden gray glimmer was slowly spreading across the entire sky, and the white light on the eastern horizon became more pronounced, as the morning stars began to disappear one by one.

It should be no more than an hour until dawn.

In another hour, it will be fully light, which will allow us to march faster and also help us spot any potential ambushes in advance.

"There's no rush, General."

Seeing his hesitation, Tezuka quickly added a sentence.

Takeshita rubbed his temples with his fingers.

He closed his eyes and exhaled a long breath.

"Pass down the order."

"Cancel the forced march and switch the entire army to normal marching speed. Pay attention to maintaining formation and do not leave too much distance between the front and rear convoys."

"Send the advance reconnaissance team five kilometers ahead. If they discover anything unusual, report it immediately."

"Hai!"

The communications soldier received the order and began transmitting commands to each regiment via radio.

The convoy's marching speed slowed down noticeably.

The roar of the engine changed from a howl to a deep hum, and the soldiers' tense nerves finally relaxed a little.

Some people took the opportunity to start eating dry rations, while others leaned against the side of the carriage and closed their eyes to doze off.

Bamboo was not asleep.

He kept his eyes open, staring at the road ahead, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the handrail.

Tezuka is right, there's no rush.

Commander Honjo commanded three thousand elite troops, the best-equipped direct regiment of the Kwantung Army.

Even if they are surrounded, with their firepower and fortifications, they can hold out until dawn without any problem.

Once dawn breaks, his nine thousand men will arrive and launch a pincer attack from both inside and outside. Those Northeast Army armored units won't be able to hold out for long.

Takeshita comforted himself in this way.

But deep in his heart, a voice he didn't want to face kept echoing.

Can Commander Honjo really hold out? If he can, why is it described as an extremely urgent situation?

Takeshita felt increasingly uneasy, but he forced himself not to think about it.

Time passed by, second by second.

The sky was getting brighter.

When the real sunlight pierced the horizon, turning the entire field golden, Takeshita glanced down at his watch.

5:47 a.m.

Two full hours had passed since the order to cancel the forced march was given.

The army has already marched to the border area between Haicheng and Liaoyang.

On both sides of the highway are endless plains. In the harvested cornfields, rows of withered yellow stalks remain, and in the distance, wisps of smoke rise from the villages in the morning light.

Liaohe Plain.

Takeshita knew this terrain.

The terrain is flat and open, with almost no features that can be used for concealment.

Just then—

"squeak!!"

The armored vehicle braked suddenly, and Takeshita was thrown forward violently by the inertia, his forehead almost hitting the instrument panel.

"Baka! How can you drive like that...?"

Before he could finish speaking, he saw the view outside the windshield.

Ahead, a three-wheeled motorcycle was wobbling towards us; it was the advance reconnaissance team's vehicle.

The three scouts on the motorcycle were all pale-faced, their uniforms covered in dust, and one of them had lost his helmet.

Their expressions made Takeshita's heart skip a beat.

Everyone looked terrified.

Before the motorcycle had even come to a complete stop, the lead scout tumbled out of the truck bed, stumbled to the command vehicle, and collapsed to his knees.

"Report...Report!"

He shakily raised one finger and pointed behind him, his body trembling like a leaf:

"Ahead...five kilometers ahead...large-scale...detection detected..."

"What did you find?!"

Takeshita pushed open the car door and grabbed the scout by the collar.

"Armored vehicle!"

The scout finally spoke, his voice trembling with tears:

"A dense mass of armored vehicles! Tanks! At least several hundred! Heading in our direction!"

Inside the train carriage, Colonel Tezuka's face turned deathly pale.

Takeshita slowly loosened his grip on the scout's collar.

He stood still, motionless like a stone statue.

What does it mean that enemy armored vehicles are here?

This means that Liaoyang is no longer in the hands of the commander of this village, and those three thousand directly subordinate regiments probably no longer exist.

This also means that... Commander Honjo... is likely in grave danger.

Takeshita's body began to tremble.

His hand slowly clenched into a fist, his nails digging deep into his palm.

"Baga...general of our village..."

His lips moved as he murmured to himself.

Then, he suddenly turned around, his face contorted in pain.

"All troops, charge!"

He drew his military knife, the tip pointing towards Liaoyang.

"Avenge Commander Honjo! Avenge the fallen warriors of the Empire!"

"All troops, charge! Kill them all!!"

"No!"

A voice suddenly rang out, louder than the roar under the bamboo.

It's Tezuka.

He rushed out of the armored vehicle, grabbed Takeshita's arm as he raised his sword, and stared wide-eyed behind his glasses.

"General! This is the Liaohe Plain!"

He pointed with his other finger to the fields in all directions, "Look around! It's flat as a pancake! Perfect for armored warfare!"

"To charge head-on into an armored onslaught here is suicidal!"

"Let go!" Takeshita forcefully shook off his hand.

"You coward!"

"They have hundreds of tanks! We have thousands of Imperial soldiers!"

A mad flame burned in Takeshita's eyes. "The lives of Imperial soldiers are dedicated to the Emperor! To die on the battlefield is our glory!"

"I'm a coward!"

Tezuka refused to back down, "But this is suicide, not death in battle!"

"They don't even have anti-tank weapons! What are they supposed to use to fight tanks?!"

"Use bayonets?! Block the tank tracks with your bodies?!"

He rushed forward, his chest almost touching the tip of the military knife under the bamboo, his voice very low.

"General, please think carefully about the nine thousand brothers behind you."

Takeshita stood frozen in place.

His hand holding the military knife froze in mid-air, the tip of the knife trembling slightly in the morning light.

Nine thousand brothers.

He turned his head and looked at the convoy behind him.

The soldiers on the trucks were peering out, their faces filled with confusion.

Some people were smoking, some were talking in hushed tones, and some were dozing off against the side of the carriage, completely unaware of what lay ahead.

He slowly lowered the military knife in his hand.

After a long while, Takeshita finally spoke.

"Order......"

"Order the 12th Regiment to deploy in place, construct defensive positions, and block the enemy's armored forces."

"The rest of the troops..."

He gritted his teeth, puffed out his cheeks, and said, word by word:

"The rest of the troops, immediately turn around and retreat to Lushun at full speed."

"Withdraw from the Kwantung Army headquarters. As long as Lushun remains in our hands, there is still hope for Manchuria."

"quick!"

"Hai!"

Colonel Tezuka snapped to attention, gave a standard military salute, and then turned to relay the orders.

The traffic on the highway suddenly became chaotic.

The trucks began to turn around, and the supply wagons were pushed to the side of the road to make way for the vehicles behind them. The officers' commands, the soldiers' shouts, and the horses' neighing mingled together.

Amid the chaos, the 3,000 soldiers of the 12th Regiment began to break away from the main force and disperse towards the front.

They jumped off the truck, carrying Type 38 rifles and Type 91 light machine guns, and ran into the fields on both sides of the road, where they began digging foxholes with the entrenching tools they carried.

No anti-tank guns! No anti-tank mines! No anti-tank ditches!

There were only three thousand flesh and blood bodies, and Type 38 rifles, Type 96 light machine guns, and Type 92 heavy machine guns.

Their mission was to hold off hundreds of T-34 tanks.

Colonel Yoshida, commander of the 12th Regiment, stood in the middle of the road, watching the main force's convoy gradually disappear into the distance. Then he turned around and looked at the plain ahead, which was already illuminated by the morning light.

He drew his military knife, raised it high, and shouted with all his might:

"The black card is causing trouble!"

"May the empire prosper in war! For His Majesty, we swear to never retreat!"

Three thousand soldiers echoed the shout.

Then they continued digging the hole.

The foxholes were only half-dug, some not even knee-deep...

A deafening buzzing sound came from above.

Colonel Yoshida raised his head.

At the edge of his vision, in the eastern sky, countless black dots were rapidly growing larger.

They were arranged in a neat wedge formation, their wings reflecting a cold metallic sheen in the morning light.

The roar of the engine made the ground tremble slightly, and the loose soil at the edge of the foxhole slid down in a rustling sound.

The First Air Force of the Northeast Army in Fengtian, bringing death with them!