Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 9 I don't produce rails, I'm just a rail carrier
Chen Chengxing saw Zeng Cheng's embarrassed face, as if he was caught red-handed.

"Don't talk nonsense. Let me ask you, now that the thing is in your hands, can you use it?" Chen Chengxing said bluntly.

Hearing Chen Chengxing's words, Zeng Cheng immediately became alert.

"Don't worry, Commander. My comrades and I have already mastered the game this afternoon. We even used the wheels from the trucks to build a large baggage train vehicle."

"Okay!" Chen Chengxing was a little overjoyed. He didn't expect Zeng Cheng to be so good at hands-on work.

This was also because Chen Chengxing did not see the large vehicle modified by the engineering company, otherwise he would not have thought so.

Now Old Liu from the baggage team is cursing at the modified truck.

"Come here." Chen Chengxing called.

"Do you see those rails?" Chen Chengxing said, pointing to the Tongpu Railway.

"I saw it, what's wrong?" Zeng Cheng asked a little puzzled. The Tongpu Railway is so long that anyone can see it unless they are blind.

"The rails are bolted to each other. When the time comes, you will bring the engineering company to dismantle the rails for me and then transport them all away," said Chen Chengxing.

"There's no problem with dismantling the rails, but where should we transport them?" Zeng Cheng asked.

"When the time comes, you can transport it south, just two or three miles away from the railway. Find a place to bury it first, and we can come up with it later." Chen Chengxing said.

Although Shanxi's current railway tracks are all narrow-gauge and light in weight, they still weigh about 16 kilograms per meter, and a railway track is eight or nine meters long.

It is impossible to transport such heavy rails over long distances relying on manpower, so Chen Chengxing plans to hide them first and take them out when needed later.

This is also the reason why Chen Chengxing asked the engineering company to move south. After all, Guangshan is still a bit small. The guerrillas can operate here, but if the New Second Regiment wants to grow and develop, it must have a stable base.

Chen Chengxing's initial base was the Zhongyun Mountains. If there were no other transfer orders, Chen Chengxing would have led his troops to Zhongyun Mountains before the end of the Xinkou Campaign.

When Zeng Cheng heard the team leader say that it only needed to be transported two or three miles, he immediately patted his chest and guaranteed it.

"No problem, Commander, just look at the engineering company. They can use the large vehicle that was modified today." Zeng Cheng said.

Although the large cart that was destroyed by the engineering company had smaller space due to various reasons, its load capacity increased, making it perfect for pulling heavy objects such as railroad tracks.

"Go and prepare. Everyone in the New Second Regiment will cooperate with your actions." Chen Chengxing waved his hand.

"Yes!"

Because the railways built by Yan Laoxi are all narrow-gauge railways, the railways in Shanxi are not compatible with other railways.

This has resulted in the Japanese armored patrol vehicles in Northeast China and North China being unable to enter Shanxi, and there are currently Japanese patrol troops on the Tongpu Railway.

In order to ensure the smooth progress of the demolition, Chen Chengxing also arranged a small team to bury several mines in Shaohukou.

When another train passes by, the team will be able to attract the enemy's attention to Shaohukou and buy time for the demolition.

It was the middle of the night, and the mountainous area, which should have been silent, was now filled with torches everywhere. The Tongpu Railway was bustling with people, and everyone was busy and sweating.

"One, two, hey!". "One, two, hey!".
Luo Ping looked at the engineers who were shouting slogans and working together and said with a smile: "The engineers are very skilled in using tools."

"How could I not be skilled? Old Liu even came to me to complain, saying that the engineering company broke down the baggage team's cart." Chen Chengxing also laughed as he spoke.

Just when everyone was busy, they suddenly heard several explosions in the distance.

"It's Shaohukou! It seems that the Japs have no plans to rest at night." Chen Chengxing's face darkened after hearing the explosion.

Once the Japanese solve the problem of Shaohukou, it will only take a few minutes to get here. The New Second Regiment doesn’t have much time left.

The situation was urgent, so Chen Chengxing didn't bother to talk nonsense. He took off his coat, threw it to Wei Dayong, and started to dismantle it himself. "Captain, I'll go." Wei Dayong said hurriedly.

"You're going? Can you? Are you healed? Will you help or hinder?"

Chen Chengxing's series of questions left Wei Dayong speechless, and he was unable to answer any of the questions.

Wei Dayong could only watch Chen Chengxing start to take action while he stood there stupidly.

More than half an hour later, when Chen Chengxing was busy screwing in the screws, a communications soldier from the squad that had been sent to Shaohukou came running back.

"Captain, the Japanese have already repaired the railway at Shaohukou, and are now dragging the derailed carriages. They should be here soon."

Chen Chengxing felt a little sorry when he saw the half-demolished railway track, but he had to evacuate now.

"Pass the order! Retreat!" Chen Chengxing said decisively.

"What about the removed railroad tracks?" Zeng Cheng asked hurriedly.

There are still several rails that have not been transported away yet.

"No more! Take everything you can and leave immediately!" Chen Chengxing ordered: "Also, bury a few mines under the railroad sleepers to delay the time the Japanese have to repair the railway."

"Yes!"

As the retreat horn sounded, the New Second Regiment immediately retreated to Guangshan like a tide, leaving only a mess on the spot.

After the Japanese train passed Shaohukou, it slammed on the brakes after a few minutes.

“Squeak!!~~”

The Japanese soldiers on the train thought they were attacked again, so they jumped off the train before it stopped and quickly set up a firing point.

And then, the scene before them left them stunned.

Following the light of the train, I saw that the tracks ahead had disappeared without a trace, and even the sleepers had been dug out and burned clean. Even though some parts were not completely burned, they were of no use at all.

The scene extended directly beyond the lights of the train.

If you say this scene is a railway construction site, they will believe it, but if you say it was a railway before, it doesn't look like it at all.

After the reconnaissance team arrived at the front and conducted a thorough investigation, the Japanese leader who rushed over from Shaohukou after hearing the news felt like his head was about to explode.

The reconnaissance team's report clearly stated that the damaged railway was more than 6 meters long and the tracks had disappeared without a trace.

"Bakayalo! Who on earth did this?" the Japanese leader said angrily.

In order to rebuild Shaohukou, the replacement rails in Pingcheng and other places had been used up. If they wanted to rebuild the 600-meter railway, they had to make new rails.

Even if the Manchurian Steel Plant worked overtime, it would probably take five or six days to get here, and by the time it was completed, the war would be over.

If I delay the battle on the front line, I'm afraid I'll end up badly.

The Japanese captain, who had originally planned to take the train to the front line, now realized that the railway might not be available in the short term.

He could only look at the person in charge with a hint of pity, and then ordered: "Everyone! Move forward on foot!"

"Hai!"

The Japanese leader looked at the troops moving further and further away and could only helplessly order his men to speed up the repairs and at the same time go to Fu'an area to loot trucks to transport supplies.

(End of this chapter)