Bright Sword: Flesh and Blood Military Industrial Base

That night, Yang was resting in the remaining room of the company headquarters, pondering the current situation of his Eighth Company.

The number of combat personnel had reached 53, but the weapons were severely insufficient, with only 24 rifles, one light machine gun, and his own Mauser pistol.

The seven Type 7 rifles had a relatively sufficient supply of ammunition, around a thousand rounds, but the other rifles only had a few rounds on average. Once those were gone, they were practically useless, probably less effective than a broadsword for killing Japanese soldiers.

Therefore, if the Japanese really attack, we definitely can't rely on our limited firepower to fight them head-on; close combat might be a better option.

Fortunately, he summoned eight elite warriors from the Greatsword Squad, which allowed him to leverage their strengths.

The battlefield was set in Changning Village.

Yang Zheng's thoughts gradually became clear, and he began to devise a strategy to lure the Japanese soldiers step by step and gradually lower their guard.

Those rifles with only a few bullets could be put to use, even the civilians—but no.

Yang Zheng denied his last thought and began to reconsider.

Before long, he had a preliminary plan, which consisted of five steps: arranging for the evacuation of civilians, harassment, defeat and loss of weapons, retreat into the mountains, and street fighting in Changning Village.

Every step of the plan must be implemented flawlessly, otherwise it could very likely result in large-scale casualties.

But since we've chosen this location, taking risks is essential. Otherwise, how can we develop rapidly?

Having made up his mind, Yang was about to rest when a figure came to his door, knocked lightly, and said, "Company Commander, Ono is back. He has important news to report!"

It was Chen Xiaoquan's voice.

Without hesitation, Yang Zheng got up and quickly opened the door. He saw a thin soldier following behind Chen Xiao, who was none other than Lin Xiaoye, who had gone on a reconnaissance mission with Mao Dashuan.

"What news?" Yang Zheng asked quickly.

"Company Commander, there's a Japanese stronghold about 24 li east of the village. Around dusk, a new infantry squad arrived. Brother Dashuan suspects that this infantry squad is after us!" Lin Xiaoye replied succinctly.

Yang Zheng narrowed his eyes slightly, just as Chen Xiaoquan said, "Company Commander, should we organize the villagers to evacuate first?"

Yang Zheng shook his head and said, "No need. It's too late. Notifying the villagers now will inevitably cause panic and unnecessary casualties. Let's wait until dawn!"

The soldiers were also told to rest assured and get a good night's rest, as there would be a major battle tomorrow.

Yang Zheng remained calm. The key was that the scale of the Japanese retaliation was about what he had expected, and even if the Japanese marched at full speed, it would take them three to four hours to cover 24 li.

Therefore, there is no need to rush. After dawn, you can make various arrangements more calmly.

"Understood!" Chen Xiaoquan nodded heavily. From his somewhat solemn face, it was clear that he was under a lot of psychological pressure.

After all, the Japanese soldiers were no weaklings, and it would be extremely dangerous for their Eighth Company to encounter them.

Yang Zheng waved his hand, sending them off to rest, and then quickly closed his eyes to relax himself.

Only with sufficient mental and physical strength can one command effectively and avoid making mistakes in planning. As the company commander of the Eighth Company and the commander of this operation, he needed to be in peak condition before the battle began.

Yang slept soundly through the night and woke up just as the sun was rising.

Upon exiting the room, one could already see Chen Xiaoquan and Zhao Dahu organizing the soldiers to prepare for battle.

He waved to the two men and called them over. After giving them a few instructions, he quickly left the company headquarters and headed towards Zhou Dachui's house.

Next, Zhou Dachui needs to mobilize the villagers of Changning Village to evacuate.

Soon, Yang Zheng arrived at the east end of the village. Zhou Dachui's courtyard gate was ajar, and suppressed coughing could be heard from inside.

Yang Zheng stepped forward and knocked on the door, raising his voice, "Uncle Zhou, are you up?"

The door creaked open, and Zhou Dachui appeared in the doorway, wearing a patched-up jacket. He looked tired, but his eyes were clear.

Upon seeing Yang Zheng, he paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Company Commander Yang, so early? Come inside and let's talk."

Yang Zheng waved his hand, indicating that he would speak at the door. His tone was serious: "Uncle Zhou, the Japanese might be coming today. We need to get the villagers into the mountains to take refuge immediately."

Zhou Dachui's smile froze instantly. His grip on the doorframe tightened, and he took a deep breath: "Really? When are we leaving?"

"Now, immediately."

Yang Zheng then added, "Our scouts brought back news that a full-strength infantry squad will arrive today. The villagers must evacuate completely within an hour after dawn; no one can be left in the village."

Zhou Dachui's chest heaved a few times, then he stepped forward without hesitation to another courtyard, raised his cane and began to vigorously strike it.

"Shunzi, Zhou Shunzi, come out now! Wake up! Grab your weapons and go door-to-door to warn them!"

Zhou Shunzi opened the courtyard gate, still looking a bit groggy and asking, "Uncle, what's wrong?"

"The Japanese devils are coming soon!" Zhou Dachui pushed open his courtyard gate and went in without saying a word. A moment later, he took out a gong from Zhou Shunzi's house.

"Go, bang the gong loudly to warn the villagers to bring whatever dry food and clothing they can carry and gather under the old locust tree at the village entrance! Tell them it was me, Zhou Dachui, who said it."

Zhou Dachui shoved the gong into Zhou Shunzi's hands, then ignored him and turned to go home.

Zhou Shunzi looked at Yang Zheng with a mixture of doubt and fear in her eyes.

Yang Zheng nodded, indicating that what Zhou Dachui said was true.

"Oh my god!"

"Clang clang clang clang!"

"Fellow villagers! Fellow villagers! The Eighth Route Army comrades said the Japanese are coming soon! Let's quickly gather our belongings and assemble at the village entrance immediately!"

Changning Village instantly became lively, with villagers rushing towards the village entrance in a flurry of activity.

Yang Zheng, however, didn't care about that for the time being and quickly returned to the company headquarters, where he needed to put his plan into action immediately.

When he returned to the company headquarters, the soldiers of the two platoons were already fully prepared to go. Although they were about to face Japanese soldiers who were far stronger than them, none of them showed any intention of backing down.

Yang Zheng glanced at the 40 or so people present and said, "I won't waste any more words. We joined the army to kill the Japanese devils. The Japanese are very likely to arrive around noon. What we need to do is wipe them out!"

"Kill the Japanese devils!" Zhao Dahu shouted, raising his broadsword high and his face flushed red.

Instantly, this inspired the other soldiers, who raised their weapons and shouted loudly.

"Kill the Japanese devils!"

"Kill the Japanese devils!!"