The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 558 Feigned Defeat (Bonus Chapter 13 for AT)

They didn't even need to see the blurry figures of the Japanese soldiers more than 300 meters away; they could only rely on the flashes of gunfire.

After raising his hand and firing a shot, a Type 96 light machine gun, which had just been set up and opened fire, was immediately silenced after only a small portion of its magazine had been emptied.

Then, Uncle Bo kept counting the bullets in the chamber until the last bullet had just been fired.

While pulling out a magazine and loading bullets into his Mauser sniper rifle, he took the opportunity to quickly survey the battlefield.

After discovering that the muzzles of almost all the cannons were now emitting thick smoke and flames.

Ignoring the fact that his comrades at the front were still suppressing the Japanese, he drew a signal pistol from his waist and fired a signal flare into the sky.

Unlike before, they didn't shout for him to come.

The main problem was that once the fighting started, even if he and Zanana shouted themselves hoarse from such a distance, the brothers at the front couldn't hear their orders, so this was the only way to relay them.

The command represented by this signal flare is:

"Retreat, retreat immediately, retreat while taking turns providing cover."

There's no other way! There are still several Japanese infantry units stationed not far from this valley; they must have heard the commotion and are rushing here desperately.

If things aren't going well, we should quit while we're ahead and run away with our brothers. Are we going to wait to be surrounded and wiped out by the Japanese?

Under the glow of the signal flares overhead, the brothers on the artillery positions immediately began to retreat while taking turns providing cover.

Amidst the frantic firing of dozens of submachine guns, regardless of ammunition consumption.

Some of the brothers who retreated to the rear would crouch down, take out a grenade, and set up a makeshift tripwire mine in a very short time.

So the subsequent retreat went very smoothly.

Even when the Japanese pursuers were caught off guard and didn't pay attention to the ground, repeatedly triggering makeshift tripwire mines and instantly killing dozens of them, they didn't dare to continue the pursuit when they saw Uncle Bo and his men retreat into the bushes and woods at the edge of the valley.

Zanana and Uncle Bo easily escaped with their men.

Once they reached a safe area, they quickly took stock of the casualties.

To everyone's surprise, in the previous night raid on the Japanese artillery position, their side had only suffered twenty-odd dead and thirty-odd wounded.

The casualties were not high, but the results were exceptionally impressive.

They destroyed 30 basic artillery pieces of the Japanese army, including 9 105mm howitzers, which would be considered heavy artillery even on the Eastern battlefield.

In addition, they killed or wounded at least four hundred Japanese soldiers; many of them were artillerymen, which are technical branches of the military.

So, tonight's night raid was a huge success for them.

It was precisely because of the resounding success that Uncle Bo, after considering something, made a suggestion to Zanana:

"Although the battle just now lasted only a short time, the brothers suffered heavy losses in ammunition, and now most of them only have about a third left."

"How about we call it a day and call it a night, then go back and get some rest?"

Despite some dissatisfaction with the suggestion, Zanana was still unhappy that she hadn't had enough fun that night.

However, considering the ammunition shortage, which was indeed a very serious situation, they had no choice but to accept Uncle Bo's suggestion.

Just as she was about to agree, several kilometers to their southwest, a series of explosions and gunfire suddenly erupted.

Upon hearing these commotions, everyone present changed color.

Because that direction leads to the Guantang Village area, where the defense line of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment is located; that area is currently under attack by the Japanese, and just by listening to the noise, you can tell that the intensity is extremely high.

Damn it! You have to understand that the Japanese generally don't launch attacks at night because their planes can't provide support.

Such an abnormal situation can only mean that the Japanese soldiers have gone mad and are willing to kill them at any cost.

It's not a big deal if the Japanese soldiers go crazy; the key issue is that the pressure on the main force of the regiment will increase exponentially. Under the Japanese soldiers' relentless attacks day and night, who knows how many brothers will die.

After realizing all of the above, Zanana changed her mind about withdrawing.

He pointed northwest, presumably in the direction of the Japanese attacking force's rear, and then said:
"Keep going! Even if it's just shooting from the shadows, make sure the Japanese don't have a moment's peace tonight, so they won't have the energy to attack tomorrow, thus reducing the pressure on the main battlefield."

Uncle Bo didn't speak, but nodded vigorously.

Then, aside from sending the thirty-odd wounded back via a detour, the rest of the men began heading toward the next battlefield.

For the rest of the night, the gunfire never completely subsided in the vast area along the Laodao River...

******
Time: 5:51 AM, when the sky was already beginning to lighten. Location: Position Two.

Holding a Type 38 rifle, he shot a Japanese soldier who had retreated 400 meters away, whose head looked no bigger than an egg, and knocked him to the ground with a 'bang'.

Knowing that continuing to fire would be a waste of bullets, Van Gogh put down his rifle with some displeasure.

Then he shouted a series of orders: "Send some men down immediately to take the seriously wounded down. Also, remember to tell that damned bastard to send some reinforcements up immediately."

Otherwise, there would be less than 50 people left on the position. How could we defend a 500-meter-long position?
The rest of you quickly reinforced the fortifications and reloaded the magazines. Who knows if the Japanese might launch another attack in ten minutes or so?

It was only when he shouted the above that Van Gogh realized that his throat was already hoarse, and his voice was so hoarse that even he was a little surprised.

There was nothing that could be done about it! He had been shouting at the top of his lungs for almost five hours straight.

The Japanese had not launched an attack before midnight, and he thought he could get through the night peacefully.

As a result, the Japanese night attack suddenly began at 1 a.m.

Then, these men on the front lines had almost no time to rest, and had to fight off the Japanese attacks time and time again.

During this process, Van Gogh would sometimes shout out various commands.

They keep telling the brothers to do this or that immediately; with such intense use, even the strongest voice can't withstand it.

After issuing the orders, Van Gogh picked up an entrenching tool and got to work.

He had only been busy for about seven or eight minutes when he heard footsteps behind him. He knew that the reinforcements sent by Hu Biao had arrived.

He quickly got up and turned around, wanting to call them to join in, otherwise the fortifications might not be completed before the Japanese attack began.

When they looked back, they found that the dozen or so people who had taken the wounded down earlier had returned.

There were no outsiders besides them; Hu Biao didn't send any reinforcements at all, and they all came back with these people.

Seeing this, Van Gogh ignored the fact that even swallowing a little saliva made his throat sting, and opened his mouth to start cursing.

Fortunately, the second lieutenant platoon leader in the lead quickly explained:
"Commander Fan, don't panic, you're dead..."

At this point, he realized he had been misled by Van Gogh's tendency to call him a "deadbeat," and after slapping himself, he continued:

"Commander Hu said he has a plan regarding reinforcements, and now he wants you to carry out this order first."

As he spoke, he took a handwritten order out of his pocket and handed it over directly.

He took it, opened it, and upon seeing the crooked, chicken-claw-like handwriting, Van Gogh knew that it was indeed an order written by that bastard Hu Biao himself.

Otherwise, even if the Japanese had a different notebook expert, they might not have been able to imitate it so vividly.

Of course! The handwriting isn't important; what's important is the content above.

After quickly reading through the contents of the order, Van Gogh cursed, "Damn it! That damn bastard, how worried is he that the Japanese won't fight us to the death, that we won't die on the battlefield?"

The command is short and contains the following:

Your unit is ordered to feign defeat and retreat to the second line of defense during the next Japanese attack; then, after receiving reinforcements of two platoons, retake the position...

The above orders indicate that Hu Biao intends to create a more realistic illusion for the Japanese:

The Subei Independent Regiment is about to be wiped out; if the Japanese side puts in a little more effort, they can take their position.

So during the daytime today, the Japanese soldiers were like they were on steroids; their attacks became increasingly frenzied, making it even more difficult for them to hold their ground.
Despite his cursing, Van Gogh knew that Hu Biao's orders were justified.

Because in these few days, the more they used their defensive advantages to wear down the Japanese in terms of manpower, morale, and ammunition, the higher the success rate of the encirclement and annihilation operation would be.

Based on this understanding, he began to make arrangements.

Eight minutes later, the Japanese launched another attack in the bright daylight.

After a fierce battle lasting twenty minutes, Van Gogh led the remaining men along the trenches, retreating in a sorry state towards the second line of defense.

Two or three minutes later, a number of explosives that had been placed in advance on the front line were detonated all at once.

While the Japanese soldiers were being bombed and scattered, Van Gogh led two platoons of reinforcements disguised as clerks, grooms, and cooks back to fight their way back.

After a fierce battle, they managed to retake the position with great difficulty.

In this way, a new day began; perhaps because he'd been hit on the head with a rifle butt, Van Gogh felt the sunrise was blood-red...

(End of this chapter)