Bright Sword: From Border Region Manufacturing to Major National Heavy Industry

Chapter 296 A bolt from the blue
"Commander Kumamoto, we both gave the order, and many of the wounded soldiers voluntarily ended their lives. Those who couldn't do it themselves were very sensible and let others do it for them."

With red eyes and faces filled with pain and rage, Major General Muto Juichi and Major General Miyai approached Division Commander Kumamoto. "Once supplies are replenished, we will make those damned Eighth Route Army soldiers pay for their blood debts!!!"

The Kumamoto Division Commander's expression was also one of pain and anger: "Don't worry, gentlemen. After we receive our supplies and take an emergency rest, we'll immediately turn around and carry out a bloody revenge against the Eighth Route Army. We'll kill them all and burn them all..."

Before Division Commander Kumamoto could finish speaking, a staff officer rushed over and presented an urgent report with both hands: "Division Commander, this is an urgent telegram just sent from headquarters, saying that the military train transporting our supplies has been attacked by the Eighth Route Army."

A military train transporting supplies was attacked by the Eighth Route Army!
These words struck like a bolt from the blue, exploding in the minds of the three division commanders from Kumamoto.

The three of them were instantly stunned, their minds blank.

We have just dealt with more than 3,000 wounded soldiers with great sorrow; our hearts are breaking and we can hardly breathe.

We were just angrily cursing, but once the logistical supplies are replenished, we will quickly launch another attack on the Eighth Route Army and wipe them out of this world completely.

Before he could even finish his harsh words, you're now telling us that the Eighth Route Army attacked our military train transporting supplies!

damn it!
The Eighth Route Army went too far with this.

This leaves our team with absolutely no chance of survival.

The army was running out of logistical supplies, and the airdrops were insufficient, so they relied entirely on military trains for transport.

With the military train transport gone, wouldn't our army be completely doomed?
"How is this possible? This is absolutely impossible!" Muto Eleven realized what was happening and grabbed the urgent telegram from the staff officer's hand.

After reading the contents, Muto Juichi stared intently at the words, speechless for a long time.

The military train was escorted by three aircraft, but they were still unable to protect it.

Those Eighth Route Army guerrillas were too cunning; they used fake cannons to trick the planes into giving them ammunition.

Major General Gongjing leaned over, read the contents, and volunteered: "I'll lead the troops to reinforce them."

"Miyai-kun, then I'll leave it to you." The Kumamoto Division Commander had no objection.

The reason he didn't personally lead the team was to protect these five carts of tungsten ore.

The Eighth Route Army clearly intended to trap their main force until they were completely exhausted, and then reclaim the tungsten ore.

As long as Major General Miyai can recapture the supplies, the game is not yet lost.

The division commander quickly allocated some extra ammunition from his troops to Major General Miyai's unit, and the cavalry and mechanized units were also given to Major General Miyai.

That's right.

The Kumamoto Division still included cavalry and mechanized units.

However, when fighting against the Eighth Route Army, the mechanized units and cavalry were frequently attacked by rocket launchers from the Eighth Route Army, so their combat effectiveness could not be utilized, and they were left unused.

Now, the only way to recapture the lost supplies is to rely on the rapid mobility of mechanized troops and cavalry.

What? The Kumamoto Division's supplies have run out, and they can't afford to eat. Why don't they kill their warhorses to feed them?

In fact, half of the warhorse had already been killed.

But with an army of tens of thousands, half a horse wouldn't last long.

"Remember, the planes will be able to locate the Eighth Route Army's transport convoy." Muto Eleven reminded Major General Miyai, "Once the convoy's location is discovered, head straight for it; that will definitely be the Eighth Route Army's weak point."

"Yes, I know." Major General Miyai nodded and led his troops to set off quickly.

Major General Miyai led his mechanized and cavalry units away from the main force, and many Japanese officers came to ask the division commander Kumamoto why.

To avoid affecting morale, the Kumamoto Division Commander said he was only sending Major General Miyai to receive the military train supplies in case they were attacked.

……

The three Japanese pilots, filled with humiliation and anger, flew their planes back to the airport at top speed.

The ammunition was reloaded, and the three planes quickly took off.

They returned to the battlefield where the military train had been attacked.

Here, the military train was parked perfectly fine on the railway, and the Eighth Route Army did not even damage it.

One of the planes conducted a low-altitude reconnaissance but found no trace of the Eighth Route Army.

Even the doors to the carriages were properly closed.

Since the door was closed, it was unclear whether the supplies inside had been looted.

The three Japanese pilots were completely baffled as to what kind of trick the Eighth Route Army was playing.

You attacked the military train. Normally, military trains would be destroyed, and even the railway would be destroyed.

Why not do it this time? The three Japanese pilots couldn't understand it, and they stopped thinking about it.

They piloted their planes and began using their superior vantage point to search for traces of the Eighth Route Army.

Finally, in a forest, there was smoke rising from a chimney.

The three Japanese pilots quickly lowered their altitude and flew low over the forest.

The woods weren't dense, and they spotted the transport convoy in a gap.

"The foolish yet clever Chinese are making it difficult for us to choose."

The three Japanese pilots basically confirmed that this was indeed the Eighth Route Army's transport team, who had stolen supplies from the military train and were hiding in this forest.

Under normal circumstances, the three pilots should immediately attack the forest, preferably with incendiary bombs, to burn the entire forest down.

However, this would also result in the Eighth Route Army transport team burning all the supplies they had looted from the military trains.

These supplies were the lifeline of the Kumamoto Division; burning them meant destroying the Kumamoto Division's chances of survival.

Therefore, the three Japanese pilots did not attack the forest in the end.

They simply took turns circling and monitoring the forest, then sent their location coordinates back.

……

Three Japanese planes spotted the woods but did not attack, ultimately adopting only a surveillance stance.

Blind Cheng once again praised Liu Weidong, saying, "Scholar, your trick of deceiving the heavens and crossing the sea is brilliant! It not only covered our real transport team but also kept the Japanese planes here. It's truly killing two birds with one stone!"

It turned out that the so-called transport team in the woods was just Liu Weidong in disguise. The people inside were all scarecrows dressed in Eighth Route Army uniforms or civilian clothes.

Of course, there were still a few soldiers and civilians inside, who lit cooking fires to attract the Japanese soldiers.

The Japanese planes take turns monitoring this area and don't go to other reconnaissance sites, so they won't discover our transport convoy.

"There's no other way. We don't have anti-aircraft weapons, so we can only try to find a solution strategically." Liu Weidong looked at the planes circling above the distant forest, his eyes still sharp. "The Japanese reinforcements around here are few in number, barely enough to fill a gap in our defenses. The real troublesome Japanese reinforcements will definitely be separated from the Kumamoto Division. Their numbers won't be small, and to salvage supplies, they'll all be frantic, their combat effectiveness will increase significantly. Our battle to hold them off will be very stressful."

Blind Cheng's eyes sharpened, and he said, "What's there to be afraid of? We have a favorable position, plenty of ammunition, and additional troops supported by the headquarters. We can hold off those Japanese devils for one night."

"Commander, an intelligence officer has sent an urgent telegram!" At this moment, a communications soldier handed the newly arrived telegram to Liu Weidong.

Under normal circumstances, Liu Weidong's regimental-level unit would not be qualified to be equipped with a radio.

But this mission is special; it also involves dismantling locomotives for the border region's arsenal. So headquarters specially provided Liu Weidong with a radio.

Liu Weidong immediately took the document, glanced at it, and his gaze sharpened again: "As expected, the Kumamoto Division has spun off a large force—two mechanized regiments and two cavalry regiments—carrying infantry, and they are on their way. Although guerrillas are delaying and harassing them along the way, the effect is not very good."

"What are you afraid of? I'll stop them." Blind Cheng spat into his palm and said to Liu Weidong, "You go and take charge of the rest of the work on the military train."

"Let me stop them," Liu Weidong said cautiously. "The Japanese are coming in a fierce manner, so we can't just fight them head-on. You go and take charge of the rest of the work on the military train."

In the end, Blind Cheng did not compete with Liu Weidong. Blocking the enemy's reinforcements was a tough task, and the scholar's mind was more capable than his own.

"Alright, I'll take charge of the military trains." Blind Cheng nodded.

……

"Brigade Commander, a telegram has arrived from the Army Aviation." Major General Gongjing was sitting in the command vehicle when a communications soldier handed him the newly arrived telegram.

Major General Miyai took the document and glanced at it. His tense expression relaxed: "Yoshi, the plane has spotted the Eighth Route Army's transport convoy. They're hiding in the Wolf Forest now and don't dare to come out."

The staff officer beside him said happily, "At our current speed, we'll arrive at Wolf Forest around dark. By then, the Eighth Route Army's transport team will probably be leaving, and we'll be able to intercept them."

"We still need to speed things up and get there ahead of time," Major General Gongjing said impatiently. "I have a feeling that there are definitely obstacles set up by the Eighth Route Army ahead to stop us from getting through. We need to race against time."

Under normal circumstances, a mere two or three planes would not be able to stop the Eighth Route Army transport team from leaving.

The Eighth Route Army transport team, however, remained hidden in the woods, clearly waiting for nightfall.

They couldn't possibly be unaware that reinforcements had been rapidly arriving on their side.

The fact that they remained in the woods suggests there's only one explanation: their path is likely blocked by a large force of Eighth Route Army troops.

The staff officer beside him said, "Brigade Commander, if we speed up, the casualty figures will rise even faster."

Along the way, there were constant delays and harassment from the Eighth Route Army guerrillas, and the casualty figures were slowly rising.

If this speed increases, it means greater pressure and more casualties.

"There's no other way; this is the price we have to pay." Major General Miyagi gritted his teeth; there was simply no better option given the current situation.

(End of this chapter)