kvmb Chapter 1157 A Surprise Attack
Chapter 1157 A Surprise Attack
Because he wanted to launch a surprise attack, Zhang Kedi did not rush to order an attack, but continued to move forward little by little.
Once the enemy was completely within firing range, the soldiers of the first and second companies dispersed in groups of three, ready to charge towards the Japanese outpost.
Zhang Kedi stepped forward from the crowd, shouting, "Comrades, follow me!"
He rushed forward at top speed, carrying only a pistol.
About 20 meters east of the Japanese garrison, there is a simple fortified shelter built with sandbags and rubble. If we can take out the dozen or so Japanese soldiers there and successfully capture the shelter, the Japanese soldiers in the garrison will be forced to take the hits.
The first to be wiped out was a Japanese patrol.
These dozen or so Japanese soldiers were clearly green recruits sent from the mainland. Knowing that a large battalion had already gone east to sweep through the area, they never expected to encounter enemies here. They even huddled together in twos and threes, empty-handed, wandering around the area as if on patrol.
These Japanese soldiers wandered around, smoking and chatting, completely unaware that the Eighth Route Army soldiers had gotten close.
At Zhang Kedi's command, the soldiers of the First and Second Companies scattered and charged forward, opening fire on the patrol team at the same time.
The Japanese soldiers panicked, crying and screaming as they fled in all directions.
The Japanese soldiers in the bunker blew their whistles and opened fire in return!
On the north side, Uncle Luo was lying on the ground, with Xiao Shuanzi and Chen Youdi beside him.
He rested the gun on his shoulder and skillfully and precisely pulled the bolt with his left hand.
Bullet loaded!
"Kids, watch closely!"
"Snap—hook!"
The distinctive double shot from the Type 38 rifle rang out, and a Japanese soldier who was preparing to fire a machine gun from behind the bunker fell to the ground.
Uncle Luo continued pulling the bolt, "A private first class."
Chen Youdi was surprised, "Uncle, how could you recognize what kind of Japanese officer he was from such a distance?"
Uncle Luo proudly said, "These skills were honed back in Northwest Shanxi!"
The Japanese soldiers in the bunker panicked. They realized that if they dared to peek out and fight back, they would be shot in the head!
There's a sharpshooter on the other side!
In just a short while, Zhang Kedi had led his soldiers to the front, circled around to the side of the cover and started firing with his pistol!
A Japanese soldier went berserk, brandishing his gun and about to thrust forward. Zhang Kedi, carrying a woodcutter's knife on his side, with a long wooden handle, the blade about the width of a hand and the length of two hand spans, was angled and wedged into the handle. He casually untied it and parried from the lower right to the upper left, just enough to deflect the Japanese soldier's bayonet. Then, with great force, he brought the knife down diagonally, striking the Japanese soldier's neck. With a single, powerful blow, the Japanese soldier's neck was completely split open at an angle, leaving only a layer of skin connecting the cavity. His head drooped, and blood gushed out with a series of spurts.
"Charge! Charge! There are still Japanese soldiers in the stronghold!"
This stronghold had two rows of simple barracks. Most of them were resting at this point, but after hearing the gunfire, they hurriedly grabbed their guns and rushed out. There was no time to regroup, so they could only use the earthen walls of the barracks as cover to try to resist the Eighth Route Army soldiers' charge.
The soldiers had been holding their breath for a long time, and with the determination to die at any cost, they gritted their teeth and charged forward!
This terrified the Japanese soldiers!
"It's the Eighth Route Army! It's the Eighth Route Army! How did the Eighth Route Army get here!"
"Bang bang bang bang!"
The soldiers of the Second Company set up their grenade launchers and fired three grenades, which blew up a barracks.
With dust flying and darkness falling, the Japanese soldiers had no idea how many enemies were approaching. A lieutenant shouted in Japanese, "Retreat to the west! Retreat to the railway line and wait for reinforcements!"
"Retreat westward!"
Zhang Kedi was a rare talent in command; he even had a rudimentary understanding of Japanese.
He immediately shouted the order, "The Japanese are retreating! Fight them from behind for a while, but don't pursue them too far!"
The soldiers pursued for a while, which made the Japanese soldiers even more frightened.
In their minds, if the Eighth Route Army dared to chase and beat them, it must mean that there were quite a few of them.
Could it be that the main force of the Hebei-Central region is trying to break out from here?
The more the officer thought about it, the more convinced he became. He quickened his pace and scrambled towards the railway line.
This surprise attack killed more than 170 Japanese soldiers, and the remaining Japanese soldiers fled towards the railway line.
"Comrades! Those who are wounded, retreat to the rear! The rest of you, hurry up and clean up the battlefield!"
Zhang Kedi breathed a sigh of relief. The situation was better than he had imagined. With the ruins of the barracks and the makeshift shelter, they now had three lines of defense.
It's 8 PM now, and there are still about ten hours until dawn the next day.
Three lines of defense, ten hours!
Suddenly, a soldier shouted in surprise, "Battalion Commander! Battalion Commander! Cannon! Small cannon! It's a small cannon!"
Zhang Kedi rushed over and saw a Japanese Type 97 mortar prominently displayed in a barracks that had not collapsed!
The term "small steel cannon" originated from this. The Type 97 mortar produced by the Japanese was of better quality but lighter in weight, and produced less smoke and noise. If any guerrilla unit captured it, it would be a real treasure!
The cannon weighs only 67 kilograms, a little over 100 kilograms, so two people can carry it.
There were two boxes of shells on the ground, that's twelve shells.
The only drawback is that the Type 97 mortar has a relatively high rate of fire, so if a real battle were to break out, all twelve shells would be used up in no time.
That's better than nothing!
Zhang Kedi decisively gave the order: "Second Company Commander! Second Company Commander!"
"To!"
"You know how to use this thing, so you don't need to command for now. Let the political instructor take over for you. You take five or six men and set this thing up on the southeast slope. Remember, the Japanese reinforcements will definitely come. We'll hold out near this barracks for a while. When we retreat, you open fire on those bastards!"
"Yes!"
"Shoot more accurately. If you waste shells, you'll be writing a self-criticism!"
The second company commander grinned, "Reporting to the battalion commander, I'm sure I can hit the target, but if I can get back alive, I'm willing to write ten self-criticisms!"
Zhang Kedi laughed and patted his comrade on the shoulder. "That's right, your Second Company Commander is a cultured man, a famous scholar, right? Writing a self-criticism is a piece of cake for you. When we get back, I'll have you write twenty of them!"
"Yes! Promise to complete the mission!"
The second company commander led his soldiers away, carrying small cannons.
On the way, a soldier asked curiously, "Company Commander, why did the Battalion Commander say you were a scholar? Didn't he say that the imperial examination system has been abolished for a long time?"
The second company commander curled his lip and said proudly, "I'm a college student from Tangshan Railway and Mining University! After the Japanese came, the university moved south, but I didn't go with them; I stayed behind to fight the Japanese!"
Upon hearing this, the soldier was immediately filled with respect. A college student!
There are educated people in the guerrillas, but it is really rare for college students to join the guerrillas!
Tangshan Railway and Mining School is the name students usually use. The full name of the school is National Chiao Tung University Tangshan Institute of Engineering, formerly known as the Railway and Mining School.
As you can tell from the name, this school mainly teaches road and bridge engineering and mining and metallurgy. Presumably, the second company commander's skill in firing artillery is closely related to his major.