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

Chapter 67 Cost-Effectiveness

Ping'an County
boom!
A sudden, deafening roar came from the east gate, startling all the Japanese soldiers and traitors in the county.

Staring at the breach and the rising smoke, the Japanese soldiers and their collaborators were dumbfounded:
"My God, this is a heavy artillery siege!"

"The three regiments have gone far away, and immediately someone attacked the city with heavy artillery. This was obviously premeditated."

"Baka! Could these be the Eighth Route Army? They've attacked Heyuan County, and now they're eyeing Ping'an County too!"

……

Kobayashi Iji stared in disbelief: "This, this, how is this possible?"

He had long worried that the Eighth Route Army might attack Ping'an County with heavy artillery, so he wanted to move the supplies away in advance.

The three regiments left in a hurry, thinking that they could wipe out the Eighth Route Army, so they waited a little while.

As a result of this delay, the Eighth Route Army attacked the city.

Doesn't this mean that the three regiments have most likely fallen for the Eighth Route Army's diversionary tactic?

"Sir, what should we do? We definitely can't hold out!" a puppet army officer asked Kobayashi Iji nervously.

"Damn it, we have to hold on even if we can't. We can't just hand over the city like that..." Kobayashi Iiji didn't finish his sentence.

Zhang Dabiao has already led his troops through the breach.

"Send a telegram to the three regiments immediately, tell them that the Eighth Route Army is attacking Ping'an County with heavy artillery and has already broken in. Tell them to come back immediately!" Kobayashi Iji roared at the communications soldier.

"Yes, sir." The communications soldier immediately set off to send a signal.

"Pass on my order: no one is allowed to escape without permission. Anyone who violates this order will be punished according to military law..." Kobayashi Iji planned to do everything he could to hold back the Eighth Route Army and buy time for reinforcements.

The command has not yet been fully issued.

boom!
Another loud bang came from the south gate, and another group of Eighth Route Army soldiers took the opportunity to rush in.

"Damn it, that's awful!" Kobayashi Iji exclaimed, his expression one of utter shock.

The Eighth Route Army's movements were incredibly fast, unstoppable.

"Captain, should we retreat or fight the Eighth Route Army to the death?" a Japanese officer asked Kobayashi Iji.

"Do we even have a choice?!" Kobayashi Iji said angrily.

The meaning is clear: the Eighth Route Army didn't give us a chance to fight to the death.

Their heavy artillery is so powerful, what can we use to fight back? Are we going to be like Hirata Ichiro in Heyuan County, risking everything to get hit by a shell?
"Captain, what about our supplies...?" the Japanese officer said, already regretting his actions.

If we just transported these supplies away in livestock trucks as soon as possible, we wouldn't have this problem.

It's true what they say, being too clever for one's own good can backfire.

"It's alright." Kobayashi Iji could only try his best to calm himself down and comfort himself, saying, "The supplies falling into the hands of the Eighth Route Army might be a good thing."

"Captain, how can this be a good thing?" the Japanese officer asked, puzzled.

“The Eighth Route Army is so poor. If they find supplies, they definitely won’t want to destroy them, much less throw them away. They’ll take them with them. Do you understand what I mean?” Kobayashi Iji said.

"Captain, are you saying that we should let the Eighth Route Army be too clever for their own good? They're carrying a lot of supplies, so they definitely won't be able to move fast. Then the mechanized units and cavalry regiment can catch up with them!" The Japanese officer's eyes lit up.

If we catch up with the Eighth Route Army and wipe them out, won't we be able to reclaim the supplies?

The captain is truly brilliant!
……

"Da Biao, what did you manage to get?" After helping Ding Wei blast open a breach, Li Yunlong found Zhang Da Biao.

"Commander, bad luck," Zhang Dabiao said in a somewhat strained tone. "You see, the place we rushed into isn't a bustling street, nor is it a heavily guarded Japanese military area. It's just an ordinary street; there's nothing to gain here."

"Damn it," Li Yunlong cursed irritably. "Looks like I'm going to be laughed at by Old Ding again. Let's get out of here." They'd storm in, grab a quick loot, and then leave as fast as they could, no matter what they got.

The wheels of the Japanese mechanized units and the hooves of the cavalry regiments were quite fast.

If you leave too late and get bitten, you're doomed.

"Commander, I've found something good!" At this moment, Battalion Commander Shen Quan shouted excitedly to Li Yunlong.

"What good stuff?" Li Yunlong rushed over.

"Look, copper wire, copper billets, and some buckets. I don't know what's inside, but they smell sour, and they don't seem like vinegar." The second battalion commander pointed to a warehouse in front of Li Yunlong.

"Not bad, at least the work wasn't for nothing. Hurry up and move it, and be quick about it." Li Yunlong didn't recognize the sour-smelling liquid, but that didn't matter; Old Li recognized copper.

Copper is a good thing; whether it's copper wire or copper billet, it's still copper.

"Yes, Captain."

The Independent Regiment moved its belongings and quickly withdrew.

"Old Ding, you've struck it rich!" Ding Wei said as Li Yunlong withdrew, and the two left together.

Ding Wei really got a lot of stuff: guns, ammunition, and a lot of sacks filled with either grain or salt.

"Make a fortune my ass! Most of this is ammunition and supplies. I thought I could get a couple of Type 92 infantry guns." Ding Wei's words were cursing, but his tone was still very happy.

"Old Ding, is there any sugar in here?" Li Yunlong asked.

"No, damn it, those little devils have no sense at all, they didn't even offer a little something beforehand." Ding Wei cursed, then asked Li Yunlong, "Old Li, I don't see you've gotten much, what is it?"

"It's nothing, just some copper and some acidic liquid, I don't know what it is." Li Yunlong's tone carried a hint of arrogance. "But anything that can be stored with copper must be valuable. If we take it back, Li Muzhi will definitely recognize its worth."

Li Yunlong's attitude was essentially saying, "Don't look down on me just because I, Old Li, have taken less than Ding Wei. Our stuff is more cost-effective because our arsenal can use it."

"Well done, Lao Li, looks like you've turned the tables on me," Ding Wei said with a laugh.

"That's right, how could Old Li be inferior to Old Ding?" Li Yunlong was very arrogant.

After traveling for a while, Zhang Dabiao reminded Li Yunlong, "Commander, we have a tail following us. Should I go and cut it off?"

"Never mind him, we're in Chu Yunfei's territory up ahead. I'd better hurry over there," Li Yunlong said casually. "Chu Yunfei will clean up our mess."

We can't march at full speed with our supplies, while the Japanese mechanized units and cavalry regiments are fast, so we can't stop along the way.

We're passing by the edge of Chu Yunfei's defense zone; Chu Yunfei won't fire.

But if the Japanese soldiers were passing by, that might not be the case.

In the Jin-Sui Army, Chu Yunfei was definitely a hero. He never missed an opportunity to fight the Japanese.

Ding Wei said to Li Yunlong, "Old Li, we only used two shells from this Hell Cannon, and we still have two left. We haven't finished the test yet."

Ding Wei meant that they could use the tail to continue testing the shells.

“We haven’t finished the task the brigade commander gave us yet.” Li Yunlong glanced at Ding Wei.

"You still want to take over the scrap yard?"

"Isn't this just a coincidence? The Japanese mechanized units and cavalry regiment are tied down by Chu Yunfei. If the brigade commander doesn't complete his mission, he won't be able to explain himself when he gets back."

"Haha, that's true, that's true."

……

(End of this chapter)