The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 583 One Bite of Sauerkraut, One Japanese Soldier (Three-in-One Chapter)

Time: October 3, 1941, a little after 11 p.m.

Location: On a small path in the northern suburbs of C Shacheng.

"You damn bastard! Lend me that sleeveless woolen cloak you're wearing for a bit, so I can look a little imposing. I think it suits my style quite well."

Huang Yizhi shouted this out at the top of his lungs.

Ahead of him, Hu Biao rode at full speed on his horse, his woolen cloak fluttering in the chilly night wind, looking quite dashing.

The next second, Hu Biao started cursing:
"Get lost! You have to believe me, Fatty. Your pig-like face and your demeanor don't match this cloak at all."

Besides! Why didn't you do this earlier? If you had listened to my advice and properly courted Miss Kong when you were in C City, you would have been a better person.

Everything will belong to your uncle's family then, and you can have whatever you want.

Forget about a woolen cloak; next time we time-travel, we might even have to salute you and call you "Commander Erpang."

Upon hearing this, Huang Yizhi shuddered as he recalled the scene of being with that Miss Kong.

However, he wasn't about to back down verbally and immediately retorted with insults:
"Damn it! Why don't you take Miss Kong away yourself? The way she looked at you back then was so sweet and clingy."

Thinking of Miss Kong Er, dressed like a man, and the shy, affectionate look she gave him back then, Hu Biao shuddered this time.

Hearing the two hurling insults at each other, everyone else burst into laughter, appearing quite cheerful and relaxed.

So, after picking up the principal at the airport, everyone went back to the headquarters of the 9th War Zone together; and without any delay, they immediately held an operational meeting.

The meeting was nominally chaired by Commander Xue, but in reality, the principal had the final say.

The topic of discussion was, of course, when the 9th War Zone would take action against the retreating Japanese troops, given the current excellent opportunity, and what the specific objectives and plans were.

The meeting started a little after 3 p.m. and lasted until 10 p.m.

It lasted for a total of 7 hours, during which there was no time to even go to the toilet, let alone have dinner. The intensity was quite astonishing.

After the meeting, Commander Xue prepared a fine feast.

Hu Biao was worried about Miss Kong's situation, so he shamelessly approached the principal and asked for his precious woolen cloak.

Good heavens! Upon hearing such a strange request, the principal's expression was absolutely priceless.

However, he eventually agreed to Hu Biao's request and gave him the sleeveless woolen cloak on the spot.

After obtaining the cloak, Hu Biao and the others used the excuse of being busy with military affairs to leave C Sand City in a hurry, without even giving Song Sanjie a chance to find an opportunity to act as a matchmaker.

This is also the biggest reason why the group of people, with their laughing and joking expressions, sped through the night:

They had been starving all day and were so hungry that they were trembling with low blood sugar, so naturally they had to rush back for food.

Of course! Considering the cost of everyone's hunger today, it was well worth it; because in that long meeting, everything about their subsequent operations was finalized.

Specifically, the time to take action is set for tomorrow night, that is, 1 a.m. on October 5th, when it is quiet and the night is still.

The primary target at that time would be the Japanese 6th Division.

The reason for choosing this target is quite simple: as the old saying goes, it's better to cut off one finger than to injure ten.

There was no other way! The Japanese army that was retreating now numbered at least 80,000 to 90,000.

The 9th War Zone hastily reorganized all the troops that had been withdrawn or defeated, but it only had about 230,000 to 240,000 men.

Given the individual combat skills of both sides, the Japanese soldiers of such strength were not someone they could easily defeat in one go.

In this way, the Japanese 6th Division, which was covering the rear, became the best target.

Because now, the atrocities committed by the Japanese devils in Nanjing are known to everyone in China.

As long as there is any Chinese person with a conscience, they all desperately want to eliminate those Japanese troops who entered the city, so as to comfort the souls of their compatriots who died tragically in Nanjing.

As the first Japanese 6th Division to enter the city, it was naturally included.

Even if the target of annihilation is only the 6th Division, it is still not an easy task to wipe out this Japanese unit.

You should know that the 6th Division, as the Japanese elite force, was a massive unit with eight regiments and more than 24,000 men.

Its organization consisted of four infantry regiments, one cavalry regiment, one artillery regiment, one supply regiment, and one engineer regiment.

After a series of major battles, especially the war of attrition with the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment.

The cavalry regiment had been reduced to half its strength, and the infantry regiment had also suffered more than half its casualties; the artillery, supply, and engineer regiments, however, had suffered relatively few casualties.

After abandoning their heavy equipment, they took up arms and became light infantry.

According to Hu Biao's estimate, the Japanese 6th Division still has about 15,000 combat personnel.

Although these artillerymen, supply trainers, and engineers were somewhat inferior to the Japanese infantry regiments in combat effectiveness, they were still stronger than the elite Nationalist troops.

Against a ragtag force, one of them could be as powerful as three to five men.

Therefore, the tactics employed by the Nationalist Army in tomorrow night's battle are:

The most elite troops of the 9th War Zone, consisting of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment, the 74th Army, the remnants of the 10th Army, and a guard regiment under Commander Xue, totaled about 36,000 men, and were tasked with annihilating the Japanese 6th Division.

Once the battle begins, they will insert themselves at the junction of the 6th and 3rd Divisions, forcibly separating them.

Then the remaining elite troops will launch a fierce attack from the left, right, and rear directions, and must finish the battle before dawn.

Other Nationalist Army units in the 9th War Zone will also launch an attack at the same time.

However, compared to the enemy, these friendly forces had a much easier combat mission; they only needed to hold back the Japanese reinforcements in Yueyang.

In addition, the retreating Japanese troops included the 3rd Division, 4th Division, 40th Division, and Hayabuchi Detachment.

This would buy Hu Biao and his men enough time to annihilate the 6th Division.

The above battle plan sounds simple, but considering that the Japanese troops have been severely depleted in terms of equipment, physical strength, morale, and spirit, it is a complex and challenging plan.

At first glance, it does seem to have a fairly high probability of success.

However, in practice, it involved more than 300,000 troops from both sides, a large number of units with various designations.

Perhaps a change in even one small aspect could determine the final outcome of the war.

Therefore, in the earth-shattering battle to be launched tomorrow night, who can guarantee that the Japanese 6th Division will be annihilated without any mishap?

But then again, so what?

From the moment they arrived, Hu Biao and his team had made every effort to prepare for and advance everything they could think of for this final battle. They had done everything they could.

The outcome will depend on tomorrow's battle, where the victor will emerge victorious.

With these understandings in mind, Hu Biao and his men rode their warhorses towards the temporary regimental headquarters.

He planned to eat a few cans of captured Japanese beef to fill his stomach before leading his troops to continue their nighttime attack on the Japanese.

The goal is to weaken the Japanese forces further before actually launching an attack.

Oh, right! Hu Biao and his group were also at this operational meeting when the tasks of each unit were basically finalized, and the meeting was almost over.

Listening to the relaxed conversation between Commander Xue and the principal.

Only then did I learn about the latest developments on the battlefield in Yichang.

The Japanese 13th Division stationed in Yichang City had all its air support aircraft reassigned by Anami Korechika to cover the army's retreat from C-Sha City.

Even though they recklessly used poison gas during the battle, they still found it extremely difficult to resist the full-scale attack of the 6th War Zone.

This means that as long as Hu Biao and his men achieve their expected results tomorrow night, severely damaging the main force of the Japanese 11th Army and preventing them from returning to Yichang to provide reinforcements.

In early October, the Nationalist army will achieve two major victories in the 9th and 6th war zones.

So while discussing these things, the principal was incredibly proud and confident...

That night, the Nationalist army's attacks on the Japanese encampment were several times more intense than the previous night, causing the Japanese to suffer considerable losses.

The root cause was that the Japanese soldiers destroyed and abandoned all their heavy equipment in order to advance with lighter loads.

This has resulted in the fact that their heaviest equipment at present is the Type 92 infantry gun, which can be disassembled, carried by horses, and reassembled when necessary.

When the Japanese soldiers camped for the night, they reassembled these Type 92 infantry guns and deployed them on the defensive line around the camp.

Unfortunately, although this thing was famous for being small and agile, it was still not as agile as the mortars in the hands of the Nationalist army.

The Nationalist army would often sneak up to a spot a mile or two away from the Japanese encampment under the cover of night, where the Japanese machine guns couldn't reach, and set up one or two mortars.

In the shortest amount of time, fire three rapid shots.

After hastily finishing the firing, without even checking whether they had hit the target, they immediately carried the mortar away.

By the time the Japanese Type 92 infantry gun crew hurriedly adjusted the muzzle and fired a shell back, the attackers had already fled.

Throughout the night, the Japanese soldiers were hit by countless shells, but they had almost no effective means of retaliation.

In this case, some people might ask, if the Japanese could build battleships, how could they not build mortars? Surely their army had mortars?
Mortars weren't technologically advanced to manufacture, so of course the Japanese could make them.

The Japanese were even the first country to develop mortars, but they felt that the accuracy and power of these things were limited; as support firepower at the battalion level, it was better to use the Type 92 infantry gun for long distances and grenade launchers for closer ranges.

So, before the Pacific War, the Japanese did have mortars in their ranks, but in relatively small numbers.

In movies and TV dramas, we often see Japanese officers shouting "Fire!" and then a row of mortars firing. This is simply to save on prop costs.

And so, the Japanese soldiers endured almost a whole night of artillery fire, totaling at least several hundred rounds.

The number of casualties caused by these shells was probably not large for the massive Japanese retreating force.

But when they were sleeping, they would suddenly hear the sound of shells exploding next to them. How many Japanese soldiers could sleep well then?
The mortar shells, which could fall at any moment, continued until dawn, when the Japanese planes reappeared, finally bringing them to a complete stop.

When the gunfire stopped, countless Japanese soldiers, who had looked dejected, breathed a long sigh of relief.

Then, before they could get a good night's sleep, it was time to set off again.

Amid the officers' shouts and curses, the 40th Division, as the vanguard, had to hastily eat a rice ball that wouldn't even fill a cat's stomach with cold water, or simply drink some cold water, before setting off again.

Before they had gone three or four hundred meters, a loud explosion suddenly rang out.

Meanwhile, a huge cloud of dust rose up from the road, which was riddled with potholes.

Once the dust settled down a bit, the Japanese soldiers behind could see that a scouting squad of 13 soldiers, responsible for clearing the way, had been killed on the spot, with most of them taken down.

No one was killed in the explosion, but every Japanese soldier who fell had dense wounds and bloodstains on their lower bodies, a sight that made one's scalp crawl. Undoubtedly, they had habitually chosen to advance along the edge of the crater to conserve energy for their journey.

Then, someone stepped on a DIY anti-personnel mine that the Nationalist army had secretly planted there the night before.

Soon after, a Japanese major rushed over; he saw a large group of his men around him, their faces filled with fear, and they dared not move forward.

After taking a deep breath, he was able to suppress the anxiety he felt due to lack of sleep and taking too many "Marching Pills".

He shouted, "Sappers! Go clear the mines immediately!"

Under this order, a group of Japanese engineers carrying old-fashioned metal detectors came to the front of the column and lined up in a row, clearing mines as they advanced.

Seeing this, the large group of Japanese soldiers behind them dared to continue advancing.

With the help of engineers clearing the way, the landmines secretly planted by the Nationalist army were discovered and cleared, but the march became slower.

Are you kidding me? Do you really think the Japanese can retreat quickly by abandoning their heavy equipment and advancing lightly? Dream on! Hu Biao and his men have plenty of ways to slow these Japanese down again.

******
At 6 p.m., half an hour before it got completely dark and the planes overhead were about to leave.

The Japanese soldiers, who had only traveled about 25 kilometers throughout the day, stopped their journey early and set up camp early.

The situation was quite different from when we camped there a few days before.

A large number of Japanese soldiers were mobilized and frantically built a ring of strong defensive fortifications outside the camp.

This unusual situation seems to be because the 9th War Zone's operational plan has been leaked again, letting the Japanese know that the National Revolutionary Army will launch a full-scale attack on them tonight.

It should be noted that the 9th War Zone's operational plan for tonight has not been leaked in the slightest.

After being reminded by Hu Biao, they replaced the spare telegram codebook.

The key was that after using some disassembled components, the Japanese were able to build several DIY electronic jamming and listening devices, and the Japanese could no longer monitor the National Revolutionary Army's communications.

If it were the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment, they would be more capable of eavesdropping on the Japanese communications.

In other words, the communication codes used between the Japanese divisions and the above-mentioned units were too complex and could not be cracked in the short term.

Otherwise, the Japanese soldiers' communications would be no secret to the transmigrators whatsoever.

What truly made the Japanese soldiers react in this bizarre way was a situation that was more mysterious and harder to explain scientifically.

Starting in the morning, whether it was the lower-ranking officers and soldiers of the National Revolutionary Army who had not yet received combat orders, or the Japanese soldiers who knew nothing about it, the situation was dire.

Yet, as if they were of one mind, they all sensed the tense atmosphere permeating the air.

So much so that anyone with a slightly sharp mind, combined with recent battlefield developments, vaguely guessed one thing:
It's time to make a move! After wasting so many days of the Japanese army's time, the National Revolutionary Army is expected to take action against the retreating Japanese troops today.

When exactly will we take action? It certainly won't be during the day.

Because of the addition of army aviation units urgently sent from surrounding areas to support the 11th Army.

Anan Weiji now has at least a hundred aircraft of various types; these aircraft are divided into three shifts, constantly circling over the retreating troops to conduct reconnaissance and provide cover.

It's likely that no commander of the National Revolutionary Army would make the mistake of attacking under air raids unless they were completely out of their minds.

Therefore, the Nationalist army could only launch its attack at night.

In response to the attack, the Japanese began frantically constructing defensive fortifications.

After receiving a report from the personnel monitoring the front lines that the Japanese were frantically building defensive fortifications, Hu Biao and his men felt no surprise, unexpectedness, or tension whatsoever.

The main reason is that they never treated the Japanese as fools. They knew that the Japanese would first wear down the Japanese before making their move, and the enemy must have seen through this tactic early on.

Since the Japanese could see through it, their current reaction was entirely expected.

What Hu Biao and his men didn't expect was that this atmosphere of impending doom and imminent battle was also noticed by the surrounding villagers...

At 7:10 p.m., in a relatively spacious tile-roofed house in a deserted village where the villagers had long since fled.

Under the light of a kerosene lamp, Hu Biao and the other time travelers, except for Mina, gathered together, closed the door, and began to discuss in hushed tones.

This was a final discussion and confirmation before taking action, outlining the tasks each member of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment would undertake once the fighting began tonight.

And some details about how everyone needs to cooperate once things get started.

Since most of the battle plan had already been determined in the meeting last night, this final discussion was basically over shortly afterward.

Next, everyone prepared to eat two more bowls of brown rice without any side dishes.

According to their respective tasks, they led some of their brothers to different locations to lie in ambush, waiting for the battle to begin.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out in everyone's ears.

Upon hearing such a noise, Hu Biao and the others all frowned deeply.

Chen Tang, AT, Lao Ma, Xiao Henan, Zhana, Ji Shouxing, Dali, and other members of the time-traveling team who each served as military commanders in various battalions frowned deeply at that moment.

This deserted village was five or six miles away from the nearest Japanese camp, so there was no need to worry that the commotion we had just made would reach the ears of the Japanese soldiers.

Besides, even if the news gets to the ears of those Japanese soldiers, it won't matter. Would they dare to take the initiative to start the main engine?
If too few people come out, they're just easy prey; if too many come out, Hu Biao and his men would have run away long ago, leaving the Japanese soldiers with nothing.

The root cause of their displeasure was the previous order that everyone outside must remain silent.

Now that such a loud noise is coming, doesn't that mean there's absolutely no discipline? Did all the military discipline they emphasized before just go to waste?

Immediately, these guys wanted to open the door and start cursing.

They might even kick a few of the loudest ones a few times, just to make a lasting impression on them.

Before they could open the door, it was opened from the outside; Hu Yong, the damned captain of the bodyguards, poked his head out and hurriedly reported:

"Grandpa Sixteen, Grandma Sixteen, and all officers, many villagers have come to see you!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Biao didn't dare to delay for a moment. He quickly called to the other transmigrators and headed out of the village.

Not long after, under the full moon that night, they saw a dark mass of people being blocked outside the village.

After stopping at the village entrance, Hu Biao said, "I am Hu Biao and Hu Yitong from the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment. These are my comrades. I don't know why you villagers have come to see me so late at night?"

The words had barely faded when a question arose from the crowd:

"Commander Hu! I heard you're going to attack the Japanese tonight. I wonder if you can win tonight; and when we can go home and harvest the rice in the fields."

If this rice isn't harvested soon, it might all rot in the fields, and everyone will go hungry this winter.

Having traveled through time so many times, especially the experience of the last time, Hu Biao understood perfectly well the deep feelings his compatriots of this era had for the land and food.

As long as there is a glimmer of hope, they do not want to abandon the land that gave them life and the crops they have worked so hard to cultivate.

So when asked by the villagers, Hu Biao solemnly promised, "Please rest assured, we will definitely win tonight."

Tomorrow! At the latest, the day after tomorrow, everyone can go home and harvest the rice.

If someone else had made the above guarantee, the villagers present would probably have been very skeptical.

However, if the person making the guarantee is Hu Biao or Commander Hu, the situation is completely different.

Hu Biao was not only a banner of resistance against Japan, but also a legendary killer in the countryside, known for killing Japanese soldiers at midnight so they wouldn't live past dawn. He was also one of the people from Hunan Province.

Upon hearing this, the villagers cheered with joy, and many of them burst into tears on the spot.

Hu Biao's affirmative answer not only meant that they could finally go home, but also that they could harvest some precious food to survive in this chaotic world.

Amidst this scene of both crying and laughing, a woman in her forties or fifties stepped forward, carrying a jar in her arms.

After walking up to Hu Biao, he said with a look of shame:
"Commander Hu! You and the brothers of the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment risked your lives to fight the Japanese and drive them out of our Hunan Province. We will naturally remember this kindness."

These days, we really don't have anything good to offer as a treat for everyone.

Here's a jar of homemade pickled vegetables, filled with cheap stuff like cowpeas, chili peppers, scallions, green beans, and radishes. It's quite tasty, so I'll give it to the brothers to eat with their meals.

Even if it's just letting the brothers eat half a bowl more rice, they'll have more strength to fight the Japanese devils.

With this woman taking the lead, countless villagers crowded forward, intending to hand over their belongings to Hu Biao.

Just as the woman said, at this time of year and season, what good things could they possibly have in their home?

So among the many things the villagers brought, the quantity of cooked chicken, duck, cured meat, and eggs was very small, and even the quantity of fermented bean curd and fermented black beans was not large.

Most of the food sold was pickled vegetables, preserved mustard greens, and dried vegetables.

Even so, Hu Biao knew that these things were still extremely precious to the villagers, things they wouldn't normally dare to eat more of.

No other reason than that you need to add a lot of salt when making pickled cabbage.

Due to the war, the supply of Huai salt from the Yangtze and Huai River regions in Hunan Province has almost been cut off, and the province can only rely on salt from Sichuan and Guizhou, causing the price of salt to increase many times over.

They would exchange dozens of kilograms of rice for a pound of salt; the rice produced from that pound of rice could feed an adult for at least two months.

Therefore, Hu Biao and the others felt only gratitude towards these supplies for the troops, without the slightest hint of disgust.

After taking the jar from the woman and opening the lid, Hu Biao picked up a bright red pickled chili pepper and put it in his mouth.

I wonder if the sentiments of the villagers are contained in this chili pepper.

After taking a bite, Hu Biao found the chili pepper to be thick and fleshy, with a delicious sour and spicy flavor. His poor appetite, caused by a lack of rest recently, was immediately awakened.

After swallowing the chili pepper in his mouth, Hu Biao gave the woman a thumbs-up.

He exclaimed, "Just this one pickled chili pepper is enough to make me eat half a bowl more rice and have the strength to kill another Japanese soldier."

Immediately afterwards, Chen Tang took out a pickled radish, took a bite, and said, "This pickled radish is so fragrant and crunchy, it'll make eating a bowl of rice a breeze, and I can kill at least three more Japanese soldiers."

In the time that followed, there were time travelers such as Annie, Old Ma, and AT.

Every single one of them accepted the food offered by the villagers, and after taking a serious bite, solemnly commented on how much more food they could eat and how many more Japanese soldiers they could kill.

The language they used was less of an evaluation.

Rather, it was more like they were making a promise to their fellow villagers, a promise that they wouldn't take these things for nothing; they received the weighty sentiment and responsibility behind it all.

He also told them that they must keep their promise in tonight's battle.

After making the promise of one bite of pickled cabbage equals one Japanese soldier, Dali, the newcomer, clearly remembers that he ate a total of thirty-one bites of pickled cabbage.

The other time travelers, as well as every brother in the Northern Jiangsu Independent Regiment, clearly remembered how many bites they had eaten...

(End of this chapter)