The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 475 Not a Single Person Can Escape

Major General Goro Mano didn't actually know that Hu Biao and his men, who were active in the south more than half a year ago, had now come to North China.

What are they planning to do now? Are they going to cause some big trouble again?

But he was absolutely certain of one thing: for him, this was a golden opportunity.

Whether he captures or kills the infamous Tiger of Shanghai, Hu Biao, and his gang, he will become a hero of the empire.

The bigwigs at headquarters will certainly not be stingy with their generous rewards.

Spurred by immense honor and potential benefits, Goro Mano took a deep breath and asked Major Tanaka a crucial question:
"How many people know that they are here now?"

"No one knows except me," Major Tanaka replied immediately, instantly understanding that the brigade commander intended to keep everything to himself.

At this point, Goro Mano no longer hesitated, knowing that he had a full chance to claim all the credit and gain the greatest benefit.

He immediately and solemnly instructed Major Tanaka:

"Immediately, at all costs, track them down; if we can capture them alive, that would be best, but if not, kill them outright. In any case, we cannot let any of them escape."

In addition, I will immediately transfer the Yamazaki Battalion to step down from the front and cooperate with you.

And to contact the air force to conduct aerial reconnaissance in their escape route; Tanaka-kun, this is our best chance yet, we absolutely cannot miss it.”

At a shout of "Yes, sir!", Major Tanaka readily accepted the order, his face filled with fervent enthusiasm.

The main problem was that Hu Biao and his companions thought the fish was just too fat.

Whether captured alive or killed, Goro Mano could indeed have made a tremendous contribution, and as the actual commander of the operation, he could also have gained amazing benefits.

At that moment, he could even see the island nation's newspapers frantically reporting on his bravery after he completed the mission.

His military rank was directly changed to colonel, and he became the commander of an infantry regiment in a main division, with a bright future ahead of him.

Major Tanaka's ability to become the highest-ranking officer in the Independent Mixed 2nd Brigade, the military police force, shows he has some skills.

After calming himself down, he glanced around and his eyes lit up when he saw a floral cotton-padded jacket that had been casually tossed aside by the bunker.

After picking it up, he buried his head in it and took a deep sniff. When he smelled the lingering stench of sweat and perfume, he burst into triumphant laughter.

Well! This kind of perverted behavior by the Japanese is not surprising at all.

But the key to Major Tanaka's pride was that the floral cotton-padded jacket was one that Yi-jie had taken off.

Before setting off, she instinctively changed back into her original clothes, casually tossing aside the dirty, tattered cotton-padded jacket that was even infested with lice.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no problem with this action.

The key issue is that she has a habit of wearing perfume because of her profession, and over time, she has become somewhat tainted by the perfume.

Who are these people? Mr. Xufeng, Mr. Nanze, Mr. K, and other regulars at the foot massage parlors, they just like this kind of vibe.

So this floral cotton-padded jacket was already stained with her sweat and perfume.

Major Tanaka held up the floral cotton-padded jacket and let several large wolfhounds sniff it. The wolfhounds immediately began barking wildly towards the northwest.

Hu Biao and his group left from this very direction.

Seeing this, Major Tanaka waved his hand, and the zookeepers loosened their grip slightly, then began to run northwest with the galloping wolfhounds.

The other 170 or 180 Japanese military police, led by Tanaka, quickly followed...

At the same time, some radio waves were sent out by the communications soldier beside Goro Mano using a transmitter carried by a warhorse.

Not long after, dozens of miles east of Mendun Mountain, the Japanese Yamazaki Battalion Commander, Captain Yamazaki Isamu, hurriedly finished reading the telegram in his hand.

With a face full of frustration, he uttered a Japanese curse: "Baka!"

This was mainly thanks to a spy they had planted beforehand. Since the start of the large-scale mopping-up operation, the Yamazaki Battalion had been chasing after the military district headquarters.

With the cooperation of friendly forces, the distance between the two sides grew closer and closer, and the encirclement became increasingly tight.

He could catch up with this important target in a day at most, and at least annihilate most of its personnel. But at this crucial moment, the brigade commander issued an order for his Yamazaki Battalion to turn around immediately and cooperate with the military police to search for a small group of people.

It would be strange if Yamazaki Isamu wasn't frustrated by this feeling of failing at the last hurdle.

However, the brigade commander, Goro Mano, used particularly strong language in his telegram, so even if Isamu Yamazaki was unwilling, he had no choice but to issue an order for the troops to immediately halt their advance.

Then one of the squadrons rode in trucks to the designated area first, while the remaining squadrons also quickly moved towards the designated area by forced march.

Five minutes later, three Japanese aircraft took off from Nanyuan Airport in Beijing and flew towards the Pingxi base area.

In recent times, to support the army's sweep operations, the frequent takeoffs and landings of aircraft here are not surprising at all.

Strangely, the three planes were not carrying any bombs, and their machine guns were only loaded with about one-third of their usual ammunition.

The reason was simple: after receiving a request from Goro Mano, they went to Yi County and the surrounding areas to find the reconnaissance forces of Hu Biao and his group.

Carrying less ammunition is simply because it allows for a longer loiter time.

Half an hour later, in a mountain valley.

Commander Song of the Pingdi base looked at the map spread out on the ground in front of him, his face full of puzzlement.

The main problem was that the Japanese soldiers were getting closer and closer behind them, and it seemed they were about to catch up; they were prepared to burn some important documents and forcibly disperse and break through, even at great cost.

Suddenly, the Yamazaki Battalion, which posed the greatest threat among the pursuers, voluntarily withdrew.

Given the Japanese's nature, they would only do such a thing if someone attacked some of their key locations, or if they discovered a more valuable target.

Then the question arose: Commander Song couldn't understand what target in the surrounding counties could be considered more valuable by the Japanese than him and the military district headquarters.

After thinking for a few minutes, Commander Song made a decision.

He began to explain to his comrades:

"The headquarters should not divide its forces for now. Taking advantage of the opportunity when a gap appears in the Japanese encirclement, they should immediately retreat to the northwest and get to the Taihang Mountains as soon as possible."

Select some capable men from the guard company, disguise them, and follow them in the direction the Yamazaki Battalion withdrew. We must find out why the Japanese are doing this.

Under such an order, a group of our soldiers, their uniforms tattered and their faces weary, sprang into action.

Just now, many of them even wrote their wills...

******
"Everyone, halt immediately. We'll camp here for the night," Hu Biao said, putting down his binoculars.

Actually, it's only a little past three in the afternoon, and it will be at least two and a half hours before it gets dark.

It wasn't that Hu Biao didn't want to take advantage of the early hour to travel longer; issuing such an order was simply a matter of necessity.

Firstly, this place is called Matou Village, and a nearby intersection is one of the three suspected mission locations they deduced.

However, once they arrived at the location, considering the terrain and the subtle movements of the Japanese troops nearby, they ruled out this place as a possibility.

Secondly, although they rested for a while last night, it wasn't for long.

During that time, no one could sleep at all, and they could only chat until dawn. They didn't get any rest, and their physical strength and mental energy didn't recover.

We set off early this morning and fought two battles with the Japanese.

To avoid revealing their whereabouts, they continued to travel through wilderness areas without roads.

At this point, only the group of veteran transmigrators, as well as the Cross and the foreman, are in a better situation; everyone else is exhausted.

The children, in particular, were clearly at their physical limit. Although they didn't complain, Hu Biao felt sorry for them.

Ultimately, somewhat reluctantly, Hu Biao decided to spend the night there.

Upon hearing Hu Biao's decision, everyone's eyes lit up; because it meant that the mutton hotpot they had been looking forward to all along was finally about to begin preparations.

There was only one exception: the newbie guy named Cross, who felt an immense sense of relief: "Goodness! I can finally put down the blame after carrying the burden all this way..."

(End of this chapter)