Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 255 Evacuation
"Damn... what kind of war is this?!"

Looking at the telegram that the communications soldier had just delivered, personally sent by Li Zongren, Su Yaoyang couldn't help but mutter a curse under his breath, his face a mixture of amusement and exasperation. He casually handed the thin telegram to the operations staff officer beside him.

The combatant took the telegram, quickly glanced at it, and a helpless, bitter smile appeared on his serious face.

Previously... they were triumphant victors.

Airplanes and heavy artillery took turns bombing the once-arrogant Japanese elite troops, leaving them battered and bruised, screaming in terror.

The 3rd and 13th Divisions alone, together with the 33rd Army Group, managed to wipe out seven or eight thousand men around Nanguadian. This great victory was enough for any Chinese army to boast about for years to come.

But now?

In the blink of an eye, the situation changed drastically.

The friendly forces couldn't hold out any longer, and Japanese reinforcements were closing in from all sides. The pumpkin shop that they had previously considered theirs for the taking had instantly become a dead end with no way out.

And this "hero," who was just enjoying the fruits of victory, is now preparing to run away with his tail between his legs.

What the hell is this!

Su Yaoyang paced back and forth in the command post in frustration, and finally let out a long sigh.

He knew very well that he could understand Li Zongren's decision.

Although they achieved a resounding tactical victory in the local battlefield of Nanguadian thanks to their superior firepower, the Fifth War Zone, and indeed the entire Chinese army, remained at a significant disadvantage on the grand strategic front of the Zaoyi Campaign.

Such is the general trend, and it cannot be reversed by the efforts of one person alone.

His small victory was like throwing a stone into a rushing river; it might create quite a splash, but it couldn't change the course of the river at all.

Yichang... it's probably beyond our control.

Thinking of this, Su Yao-yang stopped in his tracks, and the hint of irritation and helplessness in his eyes was quickly replaced by his usual calmness and decisiveness.

Running away is nothing to be ashamed of.

As long as the green hills remain, there's no fear of running out of firewood. As long as his core strength is still intact, as long as he still has the resources, he can always raise an even stronger army and take back what he lost today, doubly so.

He pondered for a moment, quickly devising a preliminary plan for the retreat. He looked up at Pi Ruoyu and all the officers in the command post who were awaiting his orders.

"Pass on my orders!" Su Yaoyang's voice wasn't loud, but it was filled with undeniable power.

"Order all units to immediately cease pursuit and consolidate their defensive lines! Organize into battalion and company units, providing alternating cover, and construct temporary blocking positions."

Load all the weapons, ammunition, equipment, and supplies you can carry onto the truck! Destroy what you can't take on the spot—don't leave a single hair for those Japanese devils!

"Order the engineering corps to lay enough mines along our retreat route, starting now! Bridges, passes, everywhere that can be blown up, fill them with explosives! I want the Japanese pursuers to pay a bloody price for every step they take!"

"Order the pirate air squadron to conduct indiscriminate bombing raids on all Japanese units that may be pursuing us after dawn! Don't hold back on ammunition, bomb them hard!"

"at last……"

Su Yaoyang's gaze swept over everyone. "Notify the entire army to prepare. Tonight, we... will begin our retreat!"

Evacuation is a complex task that cannot be done haphazardly. Which troops should retreat first and which should retreat later, how to provide cover for each other, the retreat route, and so on are all matters of great importance.

The staff worked for several hours before finally putting together an evacuation plan and handing it over to Su Yaoyang. After reviewing the plan, Su Yaoyang pondered for a while before signing it.

…………

It was late at night, at 2 a.m.

The night at the pumpkin shop was eerily quiet.

The battlefield, which was filled with the roar of cannons and the deafening cries of battle during the day, is now only filled with the whistling of the wind blowing through the ruins and the faint smell of gunpowder and blood that has not yet dissipated in the air.

However, amidst this deathly silence, within the Shanxi militia's position, something completely out of place with the tense atmosphere was taking place—having a late-night snack.

Zhang Wenshan, the platoon leader of the third platoon of the first battalion of the fourth regiment, was squatting behind a broken wall, scooping up his scalding hot metal lunchbox with a spoon.

Inside the lunchbox was a hot can of beef stew with potatoes, urgently delivered by truck by the logistics department. The white sorghum rice glistened with oil after being soaked in the rich meat broth, and its aroma was irresistible.

"Damn, that was awesome!"

A young private, hissing and spitting from the heat, mumbled, "Fighting with Commander Su is so comfortable! When we win a battle, we get meat to eat, and when we have to run away, we can still have a good meal!"

Zhang Wenshan smiled but didn't say anything, only stuffing another big mouthful into his mouth. He knew very well that this was not just a simple "comfort".

As the saying goes, details determine success or failure.

Commander Su often said that food is as essential as iron, and an army that is hungry cannot win battles, nor can it run fast.

No one knew what would happen on the retreat route; it might involve a continuous forced march of dozens or even hundreds of kilometers, or they might have to turn around and fight the pursuing Japanese soldiers. Making sure the soldiers had enough to eat and were well-rested before setting off was the most basic and important preparation.

This meticulous attention to detail is the source of this unit's superior cohesion and combat effectiveness compared to other armies.

At 3:20 a.m., with a command from headquarters, this meticulously planned evacuation officially began under the cover of night.

The artillery regiment was the first to act.

The artillery regiment, which had been prepared long ago, began to bombard the Japanese positions. The dense barrage of artillery fire relentlessly bombarded the Japanese positions, causing flames to soar into the sky and chaos to engulf them.

Although the shelling wasn't intense, it continued for over an hour, putting the entire Japanese army on edge, who thought the Shanxi militia was about to launch a night attack. Little did the Japanese know that while they were enduring the shelling, the opposing army brazenly drove onto the highway to Yichang under the cover of artillery fire.

First came the convoy of trucks from the field hospital. The medics were carefully tending to the wounded in the trucks. They were the heroes of this victory and had to be transferred with the utmost priority and safety.

Following them were Huang Guantao's Second Regiment and Armored Regiment.

Amidst the slight tremors of the earth, a steel torrent of dozens of tanks and armored vehicles roared in the deep rumble. The tank tracks crunched over rubble and debris.

Without the slightest panic, they swaggered away, exuding the aura of victors, and began their relocation.

Finally, it was the Fourth and Fifth Regiments under Su Yaoyang's command. As the rearguard, they boarded the trucks in an orderly manner and joined the long steel dragon rushing westward after the engineers had laid the last landmine and destroyed the last key bridge.

The entire evacuation operation was massive in scale, with heavy traffic and a considerable commotion.

But the Japanese positions on the other side did not react at all.

At this moment, the Japanese troops were busy dodging the shells fired by the artillery regiment, and had no time to care about anything else.

Even if you hear a faint rumbling sound in the distance, or see a faint shadow on the horizon slowly moving eastward.

But they didn't know what had happened.

Is it the Chinese army that is being mobilized? Or are they about to launch a new offensive?

Without receiving clear orders from superiors, no one dared to act rashly.

They could only watch helplessly, filled with confusion and fear, as the group receded further and further away from them, eventually disappearing into the western night.

They never dreamed that the opponent who had been utterly defeating them these past few days would slip away so easily right under their noses.

As the first rays of dawn pierced the night sky above Pumpkin Shop like a sharp blade, Major General Riichiro Katayama, commander of the 5th Infantry Brigade of the 3rd Division of the Japanese Army, was finally awakened from his extreme exhaustion.

He wasn't awakened by the sound of gunfire.

In fact, what made him and all the Japanese officers and soldiers extremely uneasy was this damned, chilling silence.

At this time of day, the ferocious Chinese army on the opposite position would have already begun their daily "morning greeting" with their endless artillery fire. But today, the entire position was as quiet as a tomb.

"What's going on? What are the Chinese troops on the other side up to?"

Riichiro Katayama rubbed his bloodshot eyes and asked in a hoarse voice. His command post was filled with the unpleasant smell of gunpowder, sweat, and cheap cigarettes.

No one could answer him.

All the forward observation posts reported the same strange situation—a deathly silence on the other side.

This doesn't mean that the soldiers of the 3rd Division were all useless.

The fighting over the past few days has been far too brutal.

This elite division, which prided itself on being "elite," suffered the most devastating and humiliating blow since the start of the Sino-Japanese War.

Their proud Bushido spirit was shattered by the enemy's overwhelming artillery fire and the surging tide of tanks.

The soldiers' morale was not just declining, but on the verge of collapse. Many soldiers were even afraid to close their eyes at night, fearing that they would be torn to pieces in their dreams by those heavy bombs falling from the sky.

In such a state of heightened fear and paranoia, no one expected that the Chinese army, which had always held an absolute advantage and thoroughly dominated them, would actually pull off a midnight escape.

This is completely contrary to military common sense! How can the victorious side just slip away without even saying goodbye?
As dawn broke, a reconnaissance squad composed of the most skilled veterans, urged repeatedly by their officers, shakily crawled out of the trench and cautiously made their way towards the opposite position.

They were prepared for ambushes, sniping, and being blown to bits.

But all they found were empty trenches, a large number of abandoned ammunition boxes (which were of course empty), and cans of food still warm scattered all over the ground.

What alarmed them even more was that the countless deep tire tracks on the ground clearly indicated that a large mechanized force had calmly withdrawn from this place the previous night.

They even blew up key bridges on their retreat and left simple warning signs on some of the main roads that read "Minefield ahead, welcome"—written in Chinese characters and broken Japanese katakana, full of blatant mockery.

When this humiliating report was delivered to Riichiro Katayama, the army major general's face instantly turned a deep shade of liver.

"Bagaya road!"

He kicked over the folding table in front of him, scattering maps, documents, and teacups all over the floor.

What a disgrace! This is an utter disgrace!

Like a bunch of fools, they stood in fear all night in front of the empty position! Meanwhile, their enemy, the Shanxi militia that had defeated them so badly, had already fled.

A communications officer rushed in, his face pale, and reported the latest conclusions based on calculations by the aerial reconnaissance and technical departments.

"Reporting to Your Excellency General... According to... according to our assessment, the main force of the Chinese army... has currently... has withdrawn to a point more than 100 li away from our position..."

More than a hundred miles?
This number was like a resounding slap in the face to Riichiro Katayama and all the senior officers of the Third Division.

This means that even if they immediately organize a pursuit, they will only be left trailing behind and eating the enemy's dust. Commander Sonobu's grand, all-out "iron pincer encirclement" plan has become a complete joke.

They painstakingly built a cage, but they didn't get a single thing.

(End of this chapter)