Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

"how many people?"

"About 8- people. They're carrying eight heavy machine guns, so it looks like an infantry squadron and a machine gun squadron."

"Have the 37th Regiment wipe out this group of Japanese troops. Also, tell the 37th Regiment to stop any Japs that come out of Xuanhua. This will buy time for the detachment to wipe out the Japs in Huailai."

"Yes."

Zhang Zihua gave the order without even raising his head.

因为这些都在战前的预案当中。16团、18团、25团都是察南支队下面正式的部队，而37团和38团是纵队临时借调给察南支队的。

The 16th, 18th and 25th Regiments are all first-class main force regiments of the th Column.

The 25th Regiment, in particular, although reorganized later, had always been a unit directly under the Column. It fought many battles with the Column, and as a result, its combat effectiveness increased dramatically, and together with the 26th Regiment, it became a rising star of the th Column.

而新整编的37团、38团、39团、40团当中，37团的战斗力最为强悍。

Cao, who came from the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, was truly an outstanding general.

His outstanding tactical ability, combined with the Eighth Route Army's mobile warfare and guerrilla warfare, made the 37th Regiment another outstanding unit of the Eighth Column. It can be said that among the many regiments of the Eighth Column, Cao Mo's tactical ability is definitely among the best among the regimental-level cadres.

Therefore, Zhang Zihua handed over the task of blocking the Japanese troops in the direction of Xuanhua to the 37th Regiment.

"The Japanese are approaching our ambush point. Send someone to notify Deputy Commander Wu and have them prepare.

"Yes."

"We'll go over there now."

Chapter 360 Xuanhuai Campaign 2

Huai arrived in Xuanhua, a distance of just over a hundred miles, and could have been reached in a day by car or by forced march. But Ren Jianyi prepared five days' worth of dry food, knowing that the Eighth Route Army would not allow him to return to Xuanhua easily. There were many good places for ambushes along the way.

Ren Jianyi was always very careful whenever he went to such a place.

Worried about being ambushed by the Eighth Route Army.

So whenever they arrived at such a place, Ren Jianyi would send people to search carefully to see if there were any ambushes of the Eighth Route Army.

Despite such caution, none of the places Ren Jianyi thought the Eighth Route Army would ambush were attacked. This surprised Ren Jianyi. Those were ideal locations for ambushes, yet the Eighth Route Army abandoned them. Only small units of the Eighth Route Army continued to attack them with sniper rifles, increasing casualties and exhausting the troops.

The biggest blow this kind of harassment causes to the troops is not casualties, but mental exhaustion.

Staying tense for a long time can be very tiring.

And be even more cautious when passing through places where ambushes are possible.

The retreating Japanese troops alternated between nervousness and relaxation. This repeated cycle left them physically and mentally exhausted. However, Hitomi Yoichi remained cautious.

Because in Chahar, whoever underestimated the Eighth Column would be in trouble. The Eighth Column used its glorious military achievements to intimidate the Japanese and puppet troops here.

Therefore, people saw him leading his troops forward cautiously.

The rear guard had already engaged the Eighth Route Army several times. As the Japanese were evacuating Huailai, the 16th Regiment suddenly charged into the city and pursued them. To protect the retreating main force, the rear guard engaged the pursuing 16th Regiment about five miles from Huailai.

The 16th Regiment did not attack the Japanese army fiercely, but attacked very cautiously.

After a brief exchange of blows with the Japanese rearguard, the attack ceased. However, after more than an hour of marching, the Japanese rearguard again engaged the 16th Regiment. At this time, the 16th Regiment significantly intensified its attack, putting the Japanese rearguard under great pressure.

But it's the same this time.

The 16th Regiment intensified its attack, but it only lasted a short time, not engaging the Japanese for much longer. After the Japanese had marched for about an hour, the 16th Regiment caught up again. This time, the 16th Regiment continued to increase its strength and engaged the Japanese rearguard for over minutes.

The troops of the 16th Regiment took turns advancing.

Use this method to torture the rear guard troops.

Hitomi Yoichi was now utterly careless. He knew that a single careless move on his part could easily wipe out his entire force. While the 16th Regiment's attack hadn't been a full-scale assault, the Japanese rearguard consisted of only a single squadron. Frequent exchanges of fire with the 16th Regiment had resulted in rapidly increasing casualties. After several exchanges of fire, the rearguard squadron not only suffered heavy casualties but also began to run low on ammunition.

Hitomi Yoichi immediately dispatched a company of the puppet guards to serve as the rear guard, and together with the Japanese troops behind them, they blocked the 16th Regiment's fierce attack. Because Hitomi Yoichi knew that if the rear guard completely collapsed, he would not be able to reach Xuanhua. The rear guard had to block the Eighth Route Army troops that followed behind.

In this way, the troops arrived at Duanfang Village.

Duanfang Village is high in the south and low in the north, but the southern part isn't very high. Furthermore, the terrain isn't very steep, so both sides have farms. This isn't a good place for an ambush.

But Zhang Zihua chose this as the ambush location.

The 25th and 38th Regiments were ambushed to the north of Duanfang Village, taking cover in the sorghum to the north.

By the time they reached Duanfang Village, the Japanese troops were exhausted to the extreme.

"Bang

"bang bang bang"

“Da da da, the 25th and 38th Regiments suddenly opened fire.

The fierce firepower caused heavy casualties to the Japanese troops. Fortunately, the Japanese reacted quickly, first lying down. Then, they quickly observed the terrain and soon saw the ditch on the south side of the road.

It is either a very deep ditch, or a ditch used to water the cultivated land in spring and summer.

While not as good as a dug trench, it was still a very good place. The terrain here was particularly high in the south and low in the north, making the ditch even more useful. It could be used to hide and form a defensive line against ambushes by the Eighth Route Army. Therefore, Hitomi Yoichi immediately ordered the Japanese troops to quickly retreat from the road to the ditch to the south.

The Japanese army reacted quickly, lying down and slowly retreating into the ditch on the south side to reduce casualties.

In comparison, the reaction of the pseudo-security team was much worse.

Although the puppet security forces followed the Japanese, their fighting spirit was still there.

They would not surrender unless it was absolutely necessary. However, fighting spirit was fighting spirit, and tactical level was tactical level.

The puppet security forces' tactical level and combat effectiveness were far inferior to those of the Japanese army.

Even the puppet security forces' tactical capabilities were inferior to those of the North China Security Army. While the North China Security Army was the Eighth Route Army's favorite soft target, their officers were graduates of legitimate military academies and had learned basic tactical knowledge. It was just that the North China Security Army lacked the will to fight.

But the pseudo-police force is different.

The puppet security forces were made up of landlords and local scoundrels. They knew nothing about warfare, and their tactics were extremely poor. At best, they had committed too many evil deeds, and the Japanese paid them well, so they wouldn't surrender as easily as the North China Front Army.

So after being attacked, their reaction was much slower than that of the Japanese. But in an ambush like this, if you react even a second late, you could be killed. Furthermore, the garrison's reaction was far from slow. As a result, the garrison suffered over a hundred casualties in the initial attack.

Then there is the retreat ditch.

Compared with the Japanese army, the security team was in chaos.

After receiving the order to enter the ditch, they retreated in a complete chaos, and during this time, nearly a hundred people were killed or wounded by the 25th and 38th Regiments.

Within less than ten minutes of the start of the war, the guards' low combat effectiveness was fully demonstrated, with casualties reaching nearly two hundred.

In comparison, the Japanese army was well-trained.

Although the 25th and 38th Regiments mostly ambushed the Japanese, the Japanese casualties were only about a hundred.

But Ren Jianyi still couldn't accept it.

It has been about seven hours since we evacuated from Huailai County.

Along the way, mines and sniper rifles were deployed, resulting in approximately 180 casualties for the Japanese army. Furthermore, the 16th Regiment was engaged in a continuous battle with the rearguard, inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese rearguard. Currently, nearly 300 Japanese and puppet troops remained behind to resist the 16th Regiment.

There were about 1900 Japanese and puppet troops who arrived at this place.

But within ten minutes, the Japanese and puppet troops suffered 300 casualties. In fact, the combat personnel in this unit were limited. Besides the Independent First Battalion, the rest were the brigade headquarters, the Independent Communications Team, the Independent Engineering Team, and the Independent Artillery Team.

Ren Jianyi was worried about a potential clash with the Eighth Route Army, so before the troops set out, he issued rifles to the Independent Communications Corps, the Independent Engineering Corps, and even the Independent Artillery Corps. If a fight broke out, everyone would be on the team. However, these were specialized units, and their combat effectiveness was relatively weak.

Now another 1600 men have been lost, and the number of soldiers capable of fighting has been reduced to .

Fortunately, most of the troops retreated to the ditch. The Japanese were well-trained, so they immediately used the ditch to build a defensive line. Although the artillery was not taken down due to their haste, mortars, mortar canisters, and heavy machine guns were quickly deployed.

Although he was ambushed by the Eighth Route Army, Ren Jianyi was not afraid.

But people were a little confused when they saw Yuyi.

Although Ren Jianyu had never directly led troops into battle against the Eighth Route Army, he had seen some of their tactics. When the Eighth Route Army ambushed, they would choose the best ambush location, with a clear geographical advantage.

Because such ambushes can have very good results.

However, this place wasn't ideal for an ambush. Yet, the Eighth Route Army chose it. However, Hitomi Yoichi's suspicions were soon resolved. As the Japanese troops set up their defenses in the ditch, preparing to engage the 25th and 38th Regiments to the south, they suddenly heard the sound of Mauser pistol fire from behind.

“Pah—Pah”

"The sound of the Mauser pistol is very close.

It should be said that they were right behind the Japanese army. Everyone knew immediately that the Eighth Route Army had ambushes in both the south and north. However, after the ambush began, the Eighth Route Army in the south remained motionless.

They hid directly in the sorghum field.

They lay low in the sorghum field, avoiding detection by the Japanese. As the Japanese built a defensive line in the ditch, they suddenly rushed out. The men at the front were all armed with Mauser pistols, unleashing a volley of bullets.

Just like a submachine gun.

In a matter of seconds, each man fired several rounds. Over two hundred people, using Mauser pistols, quickly unleashed hundreds of rounds. And because the distance was so close, the Japanese soldiers were immediately wounded and killed.

The Japanese army was quickly thrown into chaos.

The troops ambushed here were from the 18th Regiment. Two battalions, over a thousand men, were ambushed at close range. The sorghum field was large enough to accommodate so many men. Many of them were wielding broadswords.

It’s not because there are no weapons, but hand-to-hand combat is the most effective method at such a close distance.

"kill"

Chapter 361 Xuanhuai Campaign 3

Thousands of people rushed out from the sorghum fields.

As the commander of the 18th Regiment, Guo Lin rushed forward with a big knife in his hand.

Zhang Zihua's ambush tactics this time completely caught Ren Jianyi off guard. Before evacuating Huailai County, Ren Jianyi had repeatedly simulated how the Eighth Route Army would ambush him and prevent him from returning to Xuanhua. He had devised numerous tactics based on these predicted Eighth Route Army ambushes. He was particularly cautious when passing through the most likely ambush locations, sending out reconnaissance units and then employing combat-style marching. While slower, it was safer.

However, the Eighth Route Army did not ambush in the places where ambushes were most likely.

All his expectations were dashed.

The ambush chosen by Zhang Zihua, from the ambush location, the ambush time, to the ambush tactics, was completely beyond everyone's expectations.

Never thought about it.

So from the beginning, they were in a passive position. Because they did not expect an ambush here, they relaxed their vigilance. As a result, the 25th and 38th Regiments suddenly attacked, inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese and puppet troops.

After seeing the ditch, Ren Jianyi thought it was the emperor's blessing.

There is such a good ditch here.

Unfortunately, he hadn't guessed the Eighth Route Army had ambushes to the south. Of course, ambushes were common, but he hadn't anticipated the Eighth Route Army's direct hand-to-hand combat. The Japanese and puppet troops marched for seven hours, enduring mines, sniper rifles, and exhaustion.

After all, humans are not made of iron.

If you don’t eat enough, you will feel hungry; if you are tired, you will want to rest; if you are injured, you will feel pain.