Chapter 268: My Intelligence Was Insulted
“Baka, this is impossible, absolutely impossible!”
Kitano Chuji soon received feedback from the cliff above, saying there were no enemies on the cliff, nor had they seen the cannon. Kitano Chuji simply did not believe it.
Although that detonation delayed our reaction a bit, our encirclement action was still quick.
This enemy might have possibly sprouted wings and flown away in advance, but they could not have put wings on the cannon on the cliff too. This is absolutely impossible!
Fujita Ichi said, “Colonel, could it be that those few went up and were captured by the enemy, and the enemy made them shout like that?”
“Hmm, that makes some sense.” Kitano Chuji nodded, thinking this possibility existed.
But the cannon sprouting wings and flying away, he absolutely would not believe.
Soon, Kitano Chuji sent some other puppet army soldiers up.
After these puppet army soldiers went up, the feedback was the same, saying there were no enemies above, nor had they seen the cannon.
Kitano Chuji did not believe it and told these men to come down.
If there really were enemies above, the enemy probably would not let them go easily.
In the end, these puppet army soldiers came down very smoothly.
This left Kitano Chuji baffled: “Baka, could it really be that there are no enemies on this cliff, and no cannon either?”
Fujita Ichi had a solemn expression: “Colonel, if we go up ourselves and take a look, won’t we know? Maybe the enemy dug a hole and hid the cannon above.”
“Hmm, that makes sense.” Kitano Chuji nodded.
Then he still had some Japanese soldiers go up first to confirm there was no danger above.
Only then did Kitano Chuji and Fujita Ichi climb up the cliff along the rope.
Arriving at the top of the cliff, Kitano Chuji naturally had the Japanese soldiers search carefully above first, and in the end, even after digging three feet deep, they found no hole hiding the so-called cannon.
They only saw twenty dirt pits left at the edge of the cliff.
These dirt pits were so shallow and small that they clearly did not have the conditions to hide a cannon.
Kitano Chuji scratched his head, his face full of confusion: “Could it be that this enemy’s cannon really sprouted wings and flew away?”
A Japanese soldier said, “Even if this enemy put wings on the cannon, they wouldn’t bother digging twenty dirt pits on this cliff, right? Is this just mystifying things?”
Fujita Ichi’s brain was stupid, but after all, he had been a gendarmerie captain for a few days.
Fujita Ichi remembered that the cannonballs fired from the cliff seemed to number twenty rounds.
The dirt pits here were exactly twenty as well.
Fujita Ichi squatted at the edge of these dirt pits and still noticed smooth, solid pressure marks. Fujita Ichi thought back again; at the time, the tails of those twenty cannonballs seemed to be dragging long smoke trails.
Thinking of this, Fujita Ichi slapped his forehead and said, “Colonel, I understand.”
“What do you understand?” Kitano Chuji and the others all looked at Fujita Ichi.
“Do you all still remember? When the enemy’s cannonballs flew down back then, there was long smoke behind them?” Fujita Ichi reminded.
“Hmm, it seems like that was the case.” Kitano Chuji and the others all nodded.
At the time, everyone had been stunned by the cannonballs suddenly flying down from the cliff, and no one had noticed the smoke trails dragging behind the cannonballs.
Now, with Fujita Ichi’s reminder, it seemed like that was the case.
Fujita Ichi continued, “Our tank regiment was attacked by Eighth Route shoulder-mounted cannons. When their shoulder-mounted cannon cannonballs fly, they also drag smoke behind…”
Before Fujita Ichi finished speaking, a Japanese soldier could not help interrupting: “Do you mean to say that this enemy is Eighth Route, they made the caliber of their shoulder-mounted cannons bigger, and since the cannon barrel caliber was bigger, a single soldier’s shoulder couldn’t bear it, so they dug a dirt pit here and placed the cannon barrel in the dirt pit to fire?”
“High probability that’s the case.” Fujita Ichi nodded. “This way, it can explain clearly why the Eighth Route’s cannon disappeared; it definitely wasn’t heavy and was carried away by them.”
“That doesn’t add up either.” Kitano Chuji squatted down and carefully observed the marks in the dirt pit again, saying, “If the Eighth Route placed the cannon barrel in the dirt pit to fire, then this dirt pit is obviously dug wrong. Moreover, according to your reasoning, the Eighth Route made the shoulder-mounted cannon caliber bigger and had to support the cannon barrel to fire; they could just place the cannon barrel directly on the cliff edge, right? Digging a dirt pit to support the cannon barrel is totally unnecessary.”
Hearing Kitano Chuji say this, Fujita Ichi also nodded: “Yeah, if the Eighth Route shoulder-mounted cannon caliber was made bigger, they could just place the cannon barrel on the cliff. Why bother digging an extra dirt pit? It couldn’t be that…”
“That what?” Kitano Chuji felt Fujita Ichi was about to say the right answer and could not help interrupting.
“It couldn’t be that the Eighth Route put this cannonball directly in the dirt pit to fire, right?” Fujita Ichi said.
“Baka, this is impossible, absolutely impossible!” Kitano Chuji instantly felt his intelligence quotient had been seriously insulted.
Artillery had been around for centuries; cannonballs had always been propelled out through the cannon barrel by huge chamber pressure.
Now you’re telling me cannonballs are fired directly in a dirt pit. Isn’t that nonsense!
If cannonballs in a dirt pit can fly on their own, then why do we go to such great lengths to make cannon barrels?
Are our military industry experts all stupid?
The atmosphere froze at this moment.
Although everyone felt their intelligence quotient had been insulted,
The signs right in front of them seemed to really be Eighth Route cannonballs flying on their own; they didn’t even need a cannon barrel.
Fujita Ichi thought of something and continued:
“Under normal circumstances, artillery is mounted on the ground to fire.”
“Even our smallest caliber grenade launcher has to be placed on the ground to fire.”
“But the Eighth Route Border Region Arsenal made a cannon that fires from the shoulder, which already changed the history of artillery firing.”
“This expert at the Eighth Route Border Region Arsenal who changed the history of artillery firing—could it be that this person invented a new cannonball? This new type of cannonball doesn’t even need a cannon barrel and is fired directly in a dirt pit?”
Hearing Fujita Ichi’s analysis, Kitano Chuji and the others still felt it was absurd, feeling their intelligence quotient insulted again.
Only a stupid person would analyze it like Fujita Ichi.
But for the moment, no one immediately refuted Fujita Ichi.
That expert at the Eighth Route Border Region Arsenal had managed to make a heavy cannon with crude conditions, then a shoulder-mounted cannon.
This person’s military industry ability had already been demonstrated; he was simply a monster.
Even if this person was that capable, without sufficient equipment, he could not possibly make seamless steel pipe.
So.
If he simply didn’t use a cannon barrel and directly made cannonballs that could fly on their own, it seemed not impossible.
Although this possibility was utterly absurd and unbelievable, no one in front of them dared to absolutely deny it.
“Colonel, if we report to headquarters that the Eighth Route made cannonballs that can fly on their own, we’ll probably be shot dead, right?” A Japanese officer could not help leaning close to Kitano Chuji.
The supplies had been attacked; the process definitely had to be written into a report.
Writing in the report that the Eighth Route made cannonballs that fly on their own—anyone above who saw it would definitely execute people.
Unless!
Unless we can find substantive evidence now.
But the Eighth Route had already fled; aside from these twenty dirt pits, no clues were left here.
This evidence was thus unobtainable.
“Baka!” Kitano Chuji gritted his teeth and roared: “So, even if we dig three feet deep, we must find the Eighth Route.”
Without finding evidence, this report cannot be written.
If the people above see their report is delayed in being submitted, they might even question their loyalty to the Emperor.
Even if he had to commit seppuku, he could not bear the hat of disloyalty.
Kitano Chuji and Fujita Ichi came down from the cliff, and large numbers of troops scattered like celestial maidens scattering flowers, frantically searching for the Eighth Route.
Fujita Ichi still reminded Kitano Chuji: “Colonel, you can delay the report to headquarters a bit, but I think the reminder to the Kumamoto Division Commander should not be withheld.”
Fujita Ichi had just heard Kitano Chuji tell the signalman to send a telegram to the Kumamoto Division Commander about the supplies being attacked, but he had not allowed the signalman to send the details of how they were attacked.
“Do you think the Kumamoto Division Commander will believe it?” Kitano Chuji asked directly.
Even now, Kitano Chuji felt like it was a dream.
He, the person involved, did not believe it; telling the Kumamoto Division Commander would not make the latter believe either.
In fact, the Kumamoto Division Commander’s rage would burn even hotter, thinking he was deceiving him.
But Fujita Ichi said:
“If my judgment is correct and the Eighth Route really made cannonballs that can fly on their own, you’ve also seen this cannonball’s lethality; it’s comparable to our medium howitzer.”
“Then the Eighth Route is extremely likely to use it on the Kumamoto Division Commander’s head next.”
“Colonel, this cannonball has considerable lethality; digging a dirt pit allows it to fire, and combined with the Eighth Route’s guerrilla warfare tactics, the Kumamoto Division Commander really cannot afford not to guard against it.”
“Now that logistics and supplies are gone, the Kumamoto Division Commander only has two or three days of dry rations on hand; in this situation, we should remind him even more.”
Kitano Chuji agreed with Fujita Ichi’s view but still said, “The Kumamoto Division Commander probably won’t believe it at all.”
“It’s normal if he doesn’t believe at first; as long as the Eighth Route uses this thing on the battlefield, with your reminder, he will definitely believe.” Fujita Ichi said.
“Hmm, that makes sense.” Kitano Chuji nodded and called the signalman over. “You immediately send another telegram to the Kumamoto Division Commander, tell him to be careful of the Eighth Route’s cannonballs that can fly on their own. This cannonball’s power is comparable to a medium howitzer. If this thing is paired with the Eighth Route’s guerrilla warfare, it’s no joke; he must be very careful.”
“Yes, Colonel.” The signalman continued sending the telegram.
Kitano Chuji and Fujita Ichi of course did not idle either, continuing to frantically hunt the Eighth Route.
Of course, the final result was no suspense; Liu Weidong, Cheng Xiazi, and the others had slipped away early. They were doomed to find nothing.
