Double-Cut During the War of Resistance: My Wife Came from 1937

The constant harassment and road sabotage by the guerrillas greatly slowed down the retreat of the 21st Regiment.

Even if they destroyed the infantry guns, they didn't increase their speed much.

Because, from time to time, guerrillas would suddenly appear and shoot at them with sniper rifles and throw grenades.

Although these guerrilla groups would run away immediately after each battle, killing very few people, it was extremely mentally torturous for them.

With pursuers behind them, they had a feeling of being surrounded by enemies everywhere.

Even the regimental commander, Hideaki Awahara, dared not ride his tall horse anymore, but instead blended into the crowd.

Previously, many sniper shots were aimed at these mounted officers. One bullet hit his horse and almost killed him.

Therefore, Hideaki Awahara dared not continue riding a horse.

They had been traveling for a long time and were both hungry and thirsty.

"Take a short rest and have something to eat!"

Hideaki Awahara ordered the team to stop and rest.

He picked up his canteen, drank some water, and asked his adjutant, "Has the reinforcement arrived yet?"

The adjutant pointed to the map and said, "The roads have been constantly damaged by the Eighth Route Army's guerrillas. They are coming from other counties and it will take them some time. The closest one to us is about 30 li away."

"These Eighth Route Army guerrillas are truly despicable!"

Colonel Hideaki Awahara's eyes flashed with a fierce light as he gritted his teeth and said, "If I, the regimental commander, can return to the county town, I will make them pay!"

"Colonel, please have something to eat!"

The adjutant brought some food, including beef jerky, boiled and pickled vegetables, and flatbread.

This hard bread is so hard that it must be soaked in tea before it can be swallowed.

Hideaki Awahara, having suffered heavy losses, had little appetite.

But he also knew that he needed to be well-fed to have the strength to run.

So I forced myself to eat some food.

After quickly finishing his meal, he issued the order to advance again.

The remaining Japanese soldiers, exhausted and demoralized, continued their retreat.

……

The Japanese troops were all advancing on the "main road".

On a mountain path some distance from the main road, a group of people were walking briskly.

"Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!"

"Speed ​​up everything!"

"If we run fast enough, we can block the Japanese regiment's path and annihilate them!"

Battalion Commander Zeng of the Independent Regiment stood on a rock, his face filled with anxiety, waving and shouting to his troops.

Commander Yang's order to him was to "overtake" along the small road, get in front of the Sufan Regiment, stop them, and attack them from both sides.

Urged on by Battalion Commander Zeng, the Eighth Route Army soldiers, despite being exhausted, continued to speed up and rush forward.

The mountain path was rugged and uneven, and not easy to walk.

Some soldiers tripped over stones or bushes while running at high speed, but they still persisted in moving forward.

Only those who have sprained their ankles and are injured and unable to walk will choose to stay in place.

But the vast majority of soldiers, after a long journey, finally reached their destination.

Although the path winds through mountains and is more difficult to traverse, it avoids the long detours of the mainland, offers a more direct route, and saves more time.

When they marched quickly to the front, the Japanese army was still some distance away.

During this period, they ate rice and canned food every day, and had enough oil, water and salt, so they naturally had plenty of energy for a rapid march.

"Huff! Huff!"

Old Wu, Xiao Gao, and Instructor Peng were also in the team.

They and their assistants were panting heavily.

The reason they were made to run to the front was to use the McMillan sniper rifles in their hands to behead the Japanese regimental commander and other officers.

The killing of all the commanders would inevitably affect the morale and command of the Japanese army.

In addition to the six of them, five of the other eleven sharpshooters using SVD sniper rifles also arrived.

"Battalion Commander, look ahead!"

Instructor Peng pointed ahead and said.

Battalion Commander Zeng looked ahead.

At that moment, on the hillsides on both sides, many guerrillas and militiamen were digging trenches and building simple fortifications.

"Don't rest yet, let's quickly help our guerrilla comrades build up their positions!"

Battalion Commander Zeng ordered, "Only by establishing a good defensive position can we better fight the Japanese!"

"Click click click!"

So the Eighth Route Army soldiers who had just arrived here did not have time to rest and immediately threw themselves into the work of building fortifications.

Battalion Commander Zeng then stepped aside and reported via walkie-talkie: "Reporting to the Regimental Commander! Reporting to the Regimental Commander! My First Battalion has reached its designated position and is constructing fortifications! My First Battalion has reached its designated position and is constructing fortifications!"

The message was sent, and soon Commander Yang's voice came from the other end: "Very good, your next task is to work with the comrades of the guerrilla detachment to stop this group of Japanese troops."

"We will then attack them from behind and wipe them out together!"

"By the way, the guerrillas reported that two battalions of Japanese troops are heading towards you from two directions. The fastest battalion will arrive in about 3.5 hours."

"So in addition to stopping the 21st Regiment, you also have to hold off two other Japanese battalions. The task is extremely difficult!"

After Regiment Commander Yang finished speaking, Battalion Commander Zeng pressed the button and said in a deep voice, "Please rest assured, Regiment Commander, our First Battalion guarantees to complete the mission!"

He knew this task would be very difficult.

Currently, their battalion has more than 1700 people.

The nearby guerrilla detachment numbered around 500.

With just over 2200 men, the task of stopping four battalions of the Japanese army was extremely difficult.

But now is a time of life and death for the nation, and they must strike the Japanese devils hard in order to save the country.

It was worth it for them to make any sacrifices to eliminate the Japanese invaders.

Fortunately, these four Japanese battalions did not attack together.

The first to engage them were two defeated infantry battalions of Awahara Hide.

These two battalions are low in morale and are being pursued from behind, making it easier to attack them from both sides.

What we really need to pay attention to are the two Japanese battalions that are on their way from behind.

These two Japanese battalions had not experienced any combat, had no casualties, and had not consumed any weapons or ammunition. Their combat effectiveness would surpass that of the remnants of the 21st Regiment.

Thinking of this, Battalion Commander Zeng began to mobilize a group of soldiers to go further forward to build a defensive line and block the Japanese reinforcements.

Buy them as much time as possible so they can wipe out the 21st Regiment that they have surrounded.

If the 21st Regiment is destroyed by them, it will become the first Japanese regiment to be completely annihilated.

This will be an unprecedented blow to the morale of the Japanese army and an unprecedented boost to the war effort.