Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 261 Urgent Urgency

Let's turn our attention back to Shanxi.

The inertia of history is so immense that even with an anomaly like Su Yaoyang, who is capable of overturning the times, certain inevitable moments still arrive as scheduled.

The Battle of Cangyun Ridge broke out.

However, this Cangyun Ridge is completely different from the other time and space.

Li Yunlong, the protagonist of "Bright Sword," was lying behind a hastily dug earthen embankment, a dry blade of grass he had somehow acquired dangling from his mouth, his eyes fixed like an eagle's as he stared intently at the faintly visible Japanese command post in the distant mountain valley.

His new regiment was surrounded by the Sakata Regiment.

But on his face, there was no trace of tension or embarrassment from being surrounded; instead, there was the excitement and cruelty of a hunter seeing his prey fall into a trap.

"Damn it," Li Yunlong spat out the grass root in his mouth, grinned at Zhang Dabiao, who was also lying down beside him, revealing a set of teeth yellowed from smoking, "Old Zhao, look at that bastard Sakata, setting up his command post there, does he think our artillery can't reach him? Hey, today I'll open his eyes and show him what 'artillery coverage' really means!"

In another timeline, Li Yunlong forced artilleryman Wang Chengzhu to gamble on a miracle with only three shells in order to eliminate Sakata.

but now……

Li Yunlong turned around and roared at a man not far away who was also covered in dirt, but whose eyes shone with a frightening intensity: "Wang Chengzhu! What are you standing there for, you son of a bitch? Aim all two of my Type 92 infantry guns and those dozen or so mortars at Sakata's den! Get the firing data ready, and on my command, fire at once!"

Wang Chengzhu was so excited that his face turned red. He never dreamed that he would be able to fight such a rich battle in his life.

The shells, while not to say they could be fired indiscriminately, were more than enough to sustain this battle! Not to mention those two Type 92 infantry guns that fell from the sky and that Li Yunlong treasured like his own fathers!

"Yes, Commander! I guarantee we'll send that son of a bitch Sakata to heaven in one round!" Wang Chengzhu roared in response, then scrambled off to command his artillery platoon.

From the very beginning of the battle, Sakata Shintetsu felt an unprecedented amount of pressure.

His impression of the Eighth Route Army was that of a unit with outdated weapons, scarce ammunition, and only capable of guerrilla warfare and laying landmines. But this "new First Regiment" completely overturned his perception.

On the front of the position, there was a crossfire network of dozens of light and heavy machine guns. The sounds of "rat-a-tat-tat" and "thump-thump-thump" were continuous, suppressing his carefully organized assault troops so much that they could not even raise their heads.

Bullets rained down like they were free, and the casualty figures of the Imperial soldiers horrified him.

Now, an even more deadly threat is looming over his command post.

"fire!"

With Li Yunlong's earth-shattering roar, the artillery positions under Wang Chengzhu's command instantly roared like thunder!

At the same time, two Type 92 infantry guns and more than a dozen mortars unleashed shells filled with anger and killing intent into the small ravine where Sakata's command post was located!

"Boom boom boom boom..."

In the end, Sakata Shintetsu could not escape his fate.

Before he could even react to what was happening, he heard a shrill scream, like the end of the world, coming from afar. Then, the whole world was engulfed by the flames and violent tremors of the explosion.

He, his regimental flag symbolizing the honor of the regiment, and the entire command post were all blown to pieces by the saturation bombardment, a mixture of flesh and rags flying everywhere.

"Come on—!"

Seeing the enemy command post wiped out, Li Yunlong threw away his binoculars, drew his brand-new Mauser pistol from his waist, and was the first to jump out from behind the earthen embankment.

"Brothers! That old devil Sakata has been taken down! Follow me and charge out from the front! Surrender and you'll be spared!"

"kill……"

The soldiers of the New First Regiment, with their morale soaring like tigers descending the mountain, charged forward with bayonets in hand and shouting, tearing a bloody gash through the Japanese encirclement and charging away triumphantly.

The news that the New First Regiment had broken through the enemy lines at Cangyun Ridge and destroyed the Sakata Regiment's command post spread like wildfire throughout the entire Shanxi-Northwest region.

Eighth Route Army Headquarters.

"Snapped!"

The deputy commander slammed his hand heavily on the table, making the teacups jump. Pointing at the battle report, his eyebrows trembling with anger, he roared at the deputy chief of staff and others before him:
"Nonsense! Utter nonsense! What is Li Yunlong trying to do? Huh? Changing the battle plan without authorization and attempting a frontal breakout!"
Who does he think he is? Does he think his New First Regiment is invincible? This victory was a fluke; what if they had lost? The entire New First Regiment would have been wiped out! This precedent must not be set!"

The staff officers around him remained silent, none daring to provoke the deputy commander-in-chief at this moment.

The deputy chief of staff, Zuo, was relatively calmer. He handed over a cup of tea and advised, "Commander, please calm down. Although Li Yunlong made mistakes, he did win a great victory and captured quite a lot of spoils..."

"Seized? Seized my ass!"

The deputy commander was furious and wouldn't listen to any advice. "Can his meager spoils compare to the mess he's made? If we don't deal with this seriously, everyone will follow Li Yunlong's example. What will become of our army's discipline?"

"Pass on my order! Immediately strip Li Yunlong of his position as commander of the New First Regiment! Send him to be the director of the clothing factory! Let him reflect on his actions!"

The order was quickly issued to the new regiment.

Li Yunlong, who had just won a battle and was leading his men to count the spoils of war and prepare for a grand victory banquet, was completely stunned when he received the order.

"What the hell? They want me to be the factory manager of a clothing factory? And deal with all those women?"

Li Yunlong's eyes widened. He snatched the telegram, read it several times to make sure he hadn't misread it, and then jumped up and down in anger. "Damn it! Why?! I just won a great victory, and not only do I not get a reward, but they even stripped me of my title? I won't accept this!"

Military orders are absolute; you have no choice but to obey.

In the end, Li Yunlong could only grumble and curse as he handed over the newly established regiment, which he had just warmed up, to Ding Wei, who came to take over. He then packed a small package with a bitter expression and went to report to the clothing factory.

After dealing with Li Yunlong's matter, the atmosphere at headquarters eased slightly. At this moment, a staff officer from the logistics department walked in with a document in hand and a serious expression.

"Reporting to the commander, our troops' medical supplies reserves are severely insufficient."

He reported, "According to reports from various units, wound medicine and bandages are in very short supply, especially penicillin... Our headquarters reserves are down to less than twenty vials."

Many seriously wounded people, because they did not receive timely treatment, all…

The staff officer didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

The deputy commander's face instantly darkened. This was even more worrying than Li Yunlong disobeying orders. Weapons and equipment could be captured, but penicillin, a life-saving drug, was a strategic resource that money couldn't buy.

"What about the contact line we used to make with the Shanxi militia last time?" Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo asked immediately.

"We have already sent people over there."

The logistics staff officer replied, "However... their response is that their commander-in-chief, Su Yaoyang, is currently not in Shanxi; he's at the front lines directing operations. All major matters concerning supply transactions must wait for his return before a decision can be made." "Directing operations at the front lines?" The deputy commander-in-chief frowned. "This Su Yaoyang, personally going to the battlefield?"

"Yes."

The staff officer replied, "I heard it's in Yichang, and they've clashed with the Japanese 6th Division. It's a very large-scale battle."

Colonel Pi Ruoyu, Chief of Staff of the Shanxi Militia, said that all their strategic materials were being prioritized for the Yichang front and could not be sold to others for the time being; he asked for our understanding.

Silence fell over the command center.

This news is even more disheartening and heavy than the news about Li Yunlong.

"The Sixth Division..."

Upon hearing this designation, the Deputy Chief of Staff let out a long breath, his eyes filled with solemnity and astonishment.

The Japanese First Army, which was entrenched in Shanxi, consisted mostly of second- or third-rate security divisions or newly formed special divisions. In this way, it had already suppressed the Jin-Sui Army, the Central Army, the Eighth Route Army, and local armed forces.

The 6th Division was one of the seventeen standing divisions of the Japanese Army before the war. It was a Class A division, the elite of the elite. It fought all the way from Nanjing to Wuhan, and its hands were stained with the blood of Chinese soldiers and civilians. It had a notorious reputation.

Has that young man named Su Yaoyang and his Shanxi militia actually developed to the point where they can fight head-on against such an elite division on the main battlefield?
"It seems we all underestimated this little kid."

The deputy commander, who had been silent all along, suddenly chuckled, breaking the silence in the command post.

His tone had lost its earlier anger, replaced by a hint of relief and emotion.

"I really underestimated them."

The deputy chief of staff also sighed, "I originally thought he was just a rising star who knew how to do business, but I never expected... he's already a regional warlord."

"However, we should be happy."

The deputy commander stood up, walked to the map, and his gaze fell on Yichang in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. His eyes became deep. "The more troops like this that are capable and willing to fight, the more hope we have of driving these damned Japanese invaders out of China as soon as possible!"

His words resonated powerfully, invigorating everyone present.

Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo nodded heavily, but then sighed, his face clouded with worry again: "That's true, but unfortunately, distant water can't quench immediate thirst. No matter how well we fight in Yichang, it won't solve our immediate problem of the wounded lacking medicine."

At this point, he seemed to suddenly remember something, his eyes lit up, and he said to the deputy commander-in-chief, "Commander, I remember the last time I heard from the intelligence personnel that the wife of that Regiment Commander Su, Ms. Song Mei, seems to be the director of their Shanxi militia field hospital, and the hospital headquarters is located in Wutai County, not far from us."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, the deputy commander-in-chief also became interested.

"Since we can't find Su Yaoyang in person, could we... contact his wife directly?"

The more the Deputy Chief of Staff spoke, the more feasible the idea seemed. "After all, she runs a hospital; she can't just stand by and watch people die, can she? We won't take it for free; we'll pay for it! Let's buy a small batch of penicillin from her first, just in case, what do you think?"

"This one……"

The deputy commander pondered for a moment.

Bypassing her husband and going directly to his wife, especially to buy her strategic materials—that's not a pleasant story to tell.

But when he thought of the soldiers who died in agony due to lack of medicine, his gaze hardened again.

“We can give it a try.” He finally made up his mind, his gaze hardening. “Human lives are at stake, we can’t worry about anything else! The wounded can’t wait! You get this done right away! And quickly!”

"Yes!"

The deputy chief of staff's spirits lifted immediately, and he stood at attention and saluted. "I'll arrange for a reliable comrade to go there right away!"

Two days later

At the Shanxi militia field hospital in Wutai County, Song Mei had just finished a complex surgery that lasted several hours, removing three pieces of shrapnel from the abdominal cavity of a seriously wounded soldier.

She took off her blood-stained gloves and mask, revealing a slightly tired but still radiant face. She rubbed her aching neck, preparing to take a rest, when Wu Min, a nurse who had recently married Li Gaoyuan, rushed in.

"Dean...Dean!"

The nurse, slightly out of breath, said, "There are a few people outside... they say they're from the Eighth Route Army headquarters and have urgent business with you!"

"The Eighth Route Army Headquarters?"

A hint of confusion appeared on Song Mei's pretty face. "I'm just a doctor. How did the Eighth Route Army find me?"

Wu Min said, "Well... I don't know either. I just saw that they seemed a little anxious, and they immediately said something. I was afraid of delaying your important matter, so I rushed over to inform you."

If you, Dean, don't want to see them, I'll go and tell them right away.

"I can't pay it back."

Song Mei shook her head: "Let's still see them, just in case they really have something urgent to attend to."

A moment later, Song Mei changed into a decent set of casual clothes and walked into the hospital's visiting room.

In the reception room sat two men and one woman. The woman in the lead was around forty years old, dressed in a faded Eighth Route Army uniform, with a calm and capable demeanor.

Sitting next to her was a man in his thirties, wearing glasses and appearing very refined.

Another, younger man stood behind them, looking somewhat awkward and wary.

Upon seeing Song Mei enter, the woman at the head of the group immediately stood up, extended her hand, and greeted her with a polite and sincere smile: "This must be Dean Song, right? I am Yang Lanjuan, the director of the First Division of the Logistics Department of the Eighth Route Army. Please forgive my intrusion."

"Director Yang, you're too kind. Please have a seat."

Song Mei shook hands with her, feeling the warmth and strength of her hand. She glanced at the other two, then cut to the chase, asking, "I wonder what important matter has brought you to our small town today?"
As far as I know, my husband recently donated a batch of medicine to your army, which should have been enough for you to use for a while.

Her words were neither humble nor arrogant, clarifying the previous relationship between the two parties while subtly expressing her doubts: Why are you here again?
Upon hearing Song Mei's words, a fleeting look of embarrassment crossed the faces of Yang Lanjuan and the man in his thirties standing next to her.

After a while, Yang Lanjuan spoke up, her tone tinged with apology and helplessness: "Dean Song, to be honest, regarding the batch of medicines that Commander Su donated last time, we... have already sent some of them to northern Shaanxi and given them to comrades who need them more."

This is what led to our insufficient medical reserves, something we hadn't anticipated. If we hadn't been left with no other choice, we wouldn't have had the audacity to bother you again.

(End of this chapter)