Chapter 266: Aren’t You The Poor Eighth Route? Where Did The Weapons Come From?
Wherever Squad Leader Chasaki’s command saber pointed was the trap woven by the Communist Party!
Outside Liushu Gully, that green gauze curtain swaying and undulating in the summer breeze.
“Rumble…” The diesel engine of the Type 89 medium tank at full throttle emitted a dull and powerful roar, its stubby 37mm gun barrel pointing deep into the sorghum field, its tracks brutally crushing over the field ridges, splashing up murky mud.
Trucks followed closely behind, the cargo beds crammed with ferocious-faced Imperial Army soldiers clutching Type 38 rifles.
Chasaki’s intention was simple and brutal: utilize armor advantage to crush those “dirt Eighth Route” who had just carried out the ambush massacre in the green gauze curtain, completing a textbook mechanized pursuit and annihilation battle against infantry.
The area marked on the map was “plain terrain, no obstacles, suitable for mobile troops to deploy.”
However, when the steel torrent plunged headlong into that ink-green ocean, Squad Leader Chasaki’s combat plan was instantly torn to shreds by reality.
Sorghum stalks over three meters high formed dense green barriers, obstructing vision and hindering advance.
The cumbersome tanks struggled in the deliberately dug narrow field ridges and deep-rutted gullies, their tracks often futilely spinning in the soft mud.
The trucks’ wheels sank even deeper into the mire; no matter how hard the drivers floored the accelerator, exhaust pipes spewing black smoke, the vehicles merely spun in place or even tilted to one side.
Imperial Army infantry were forced to jump off the vehicles, attempting to pursue on foot.
This seemingly desperate green gauze curtain was, to the 129th Division fighters familiar with every inch of soil, an ideal hunting ground.
“Fire!”
A sharp whistle, not from the armored vehicle, but from all directions in the sorghum field, like the command of the Grim Reaper swinging his scythe!
“Da-da-da-da-da!” Dense firepower never listed on the Imperial Army’s “dirt Eighth Route equipment inventory” erupted suddenly!
This time it was not the crisp single shots of old bolt-action rifles, nor the short bursts of the Type 11 light machine gun, but continuous terrifying roars!
That was heavy machine guns! And…
More than one!
At the same time, the crisp rapid short bursts of Zbrojovka Brno light machine guns beat like the drums of death, precisely targeting the bewildered Imperial Army soldiers exposed on the field ridges or beside the trucks.
“Pfft pfft pfft!” The dull sound of bullets penetrating flesh and the shrill screams of the wounded instantly echoed through the green gauze curtain!
The Imperial Army infantry who had just jumped off the trucks, not yet dispersed, fell in swathes like wheat being cut down.
Blood mist sprayed onto the emerald sorghum leaves, the stench of blood filling the air.
Squad Leader Chasaki horrifiedly saw his flank cover Type 11 light machine gun team resist for less than ten seconds before being riddled by the dense bullet rain from the opposite side, the gunner and assistant gunner collapsing together into pools of blood.
“Boom boom boom!” Even more devastating strikes followed in quick succession!
Type 82 mortar shells whistled sharply from the sky! Massive explosions directly tore apart the trucks mired in the mud, hurling wreckage and body fragments high into the air.
The mortar impacts were exceptionally precise, covering the densest areas of the Imperial Army convoy and all possible assembly points based on preset coordinates! Thick smoke and fire swallowed the road.
“What’s going on?! Where did the heavy machine guns come from? Where did the mortars come from?” Squad Leader Chasaki huddled behind the only still-mobile tank’s side, his helmet ringing from impacts, his face splattered with his subordinates’ flying blood and mud, terrified almost to the point of breathlessness.
This was absolutely not the Eighth Route Army fighting with “border region-made” grenades and captured equipment as described in the maps and intelligence!
This firepower density, this equipment level, this artillery accuracy far exceeded their cognitive limits for a so-called “guerrilla” force!
The Type 89 tank futilely rotated its turret, trying to fire toward the direction of the heavy machine gun roars.
“Boom!” A muffled blast, the shell hitting the sorghum field, merely blowing over a patch of crops without even grazing the attackers.
Its clumsy bulk, constrained by the mud and the labyrinth of the green gauze curtain, had completely become a live target.
“Lieutenant Colonel Chasaki! The Chinese have heavy weapons! Firepower too fierce! We…” A blood-smeared squad leader scrambled to Chasaki’s side,
Before he could finish, a mortar shell exploded nearby, the massive shockwave hurling him several meters away, life or death unknown.
“Firepower too fierce,” what an alien phrase,
Squad Leader Chasaki had never imagined that one day he would use “firepower too fierce” to describe the dirt Eighth Route’s firepower.
Looking at the hellish scene before him—burning truck wreckage, soldiers sprawled dead in all directions, several firepower points futilely counterattacking under dense fire only to be instantly suppressed and wiped out, and that tank struggling like a headless fly in the mud and bullet storm…
Fear completely drowned out the frenzy of revenge; at this moment, he no longer dared dream of any “textbook annihilation battle,” left with only one thought: I want to live!
“Retreat! Retreat now! Retreat toward the Liushu Gully stronghold!” Chasaki screamed hoarsely, scrambling hand and foot onto the rear seat of the only functioning motorcycle, heedless of dignity or image, urging the driver to frantically reverse.
The Imperial Army remnants, like pardoned prisoners, completely abandoned resistance, discarding all heavy equipment and even wounded, fleeing desperately back along the path like ants from a kicked nest, pursued by the life-reaping sweeps of light and heavy machine guns and the booming farewell of mortar fire.
The green gauze curtain was no longer easy terrain for deployment but a massive green grave burying most of an Imperial Army elite mobile company.
Five days later, Taiyuan, Invading Japanese Army North China Area Army First Army Headquarters.
The massive “Pacification Operation Situation Map” on the wall seemed particularly ironic.
At the map’s center, the blue encirclement line of the “Cage” plan remained conspicuous, but in the Taihang Mountains area, the red arrows representing Eighth Route Army 129th Division activity had just torn a gaping hole marked “near Liushu Gully, green gauze curtain area” on the map.
First Army Commander Lieutenant General Shinozuka sat stone-faced behind the large desk, his fingers irritably tapping the desktop.
On the desk lay a frontline battle report just delivered: Chasaki’s company nearly wiped out, the Liushu Gully stronghold’s outer mobile forces utterly decimated.
The battle report’s annotations were especially glaring, repeatedly bolded and circled:
“…The Communist Party troops encountered in the ambush were equipped far beyond expectations, with several heavy machine guns, extremely numerous Zbrojovka Brno light machine guns, abnormally fierce and sustained rifle and machine gun firepower.”
“Moreover, at least five or more Type 82 mortars coordinated, with exceptionally precise bombardment.”
“Their explosives had enormous power, far surpassing previously seen ‘border region-made’ in lethality against armor and personnel. Our soldiers universally reacted that the opponent’s firepower intensity, sustainability, and equipment sophistication showed a massive gap from our intelligence department’s assessment of Communist Party local forces. Suspected stable external channels secretly providing them with ample standard weapons, ammunition, and high explosives…”
“Absurd!” Lieutenant General Shinozuka slammed the desk, jolting the tea cup, “What are those idiots in the intelligence section doing! Months ago their assessment was ‘poorly equipped, short on ammunition, mainly relying on captures and crude homemade weapons’!”
“In such a short time, where did all these heavy machine guns come from? Mortars? And explosives of such shocking power? Did they fall from the sky?”
Chief of Staff Major General Nakamura Masao respectfully said: “Commander Your Excellency, calm down. The intelligence section may have been negligent, but the Chasaki company report is hardly an isolated case.”
“In recent days, North China Area Army pacification actions against the Communist Party have repeatedly suffered heavy blows; some sporadic battle reports from Pingxi and Jizhong…”
“Seem to vaguely mention sudden elevations in firepower intensity for some Communist Party troops, especially in attacks on transport convoys and strongholds, with explosive power greatly increased.”
“More critically, the Chasaki report notes the ambush troops seemed to know their action routes and equipment deployment patterns like the back of their hand.”
“And the pursuit route through the green gauze curtain was precisely the ‘standard reaction’ based on our latest ‘pacification plan map.’ This is probably more than just ‘firepower beyond expectations’…”
“You mean…” Shinozuka Yoshio’s pupils contracted sharply, a chill flashing, “Our ‘Cage’ deployment map, deemed top secret… has leaked?”
“Traitors in the Imperial Army? Mr. Nakamura, you can’t make such accusations lightly.”
“This would put Commander Tada on the hot seat!”
“Your Excellency Shinozuka, I can only say this possibility cannot be ruled out: leaks within the army, and of core top-secret maps.”
“Otherwise inexplicable how they precisely grasped rapid reinforcement routes and preset positions in the green gauze curtain area most suitable for ambushing our mechanized forces. At the same time…”
“Such concentrated, large-scale high-quality weapon inputs cannot possibly be sporadic battlefield captures! There must be a stable, covert, and massively resourced materials transport network behind it! Its source channels and contacts are crucial to annihilating the Eighth Route Army and to the overall North China pacification situation.”
Shinozuka Yoshio’s expression shifted, finally turning grim: “It seems our old adversaries have prepared more than one knife for us.”
“One is the ‘Cage’ drawn on the ground, the other… a supply line hidden in the darkness.”
“Both must be uprooted immediately!”
“Mr. Nakamura! This matter is of utmost importance, beyond just Shanxi. Leakage of the ‘Cage’ plan could endanger the entire area army’s strategic deployment.”
“This anomalous equipment source is a dagger at the heart! Depart immediately and personally report all details to Expeditionary Army Headquarters Commander Hata Shunroku!”
“Be sure to request he coordinates all intelligence agencies in China, especially those murky waters in the Shanghai concession, to thoroughly investigate! Who is secretly arming our mortal enemies!”
“Hai!” Nakamura Masao bowed deeply, “This subordinate will report in full detail, requesting Commander Hata Shunroku to mobilize all forces for a full investigation of this damned bloodline and the leaking mole!”
Days later, Shanghai, Japanese residential area, a heavily guarded Western-style courtyard.
Far from the city’s clamor, this was one of General Hata Shunroku’s secret retreats.
Inside and outside the courtyard, agents in military police uniforms and black suits stood guard every three and five steps, the atmosphere so tense even the cicadas seemed cautious.
In the center, a Japanese-style tea room where Hata Shunroku, dressed in a kimono, knelt on tatami, his gray hair impeccably combed, deep wrinkles unable to mask the authority in his eyes.
Opposite him, the travel-worn Nakamura Masao knelt respectfully, hands presenting an urgent secret letter.
The room was silent, only the rustle of leaves in the wind outside the window.
Nakamura detailed the disastrous situation of the Taiyuan encirclement, especially the 129th Division’s unimaginably powerful firepower and equipment and their precise grasp of key “Cage” plan map nodes.
He emphasized the catastrophic impact of the anomalous equipment sources combined with precise combat intelligence.
“…The above is the critical situation on the Shanxi frontline. Commander Shinozuka is deeply worried, deeming this not a local pacification issue in Shanxi alone, but a major hidden danger concerning the foundation of the Empire’s ‘pacification’ across all North China!”
“The Communist Party’s equipment level and intelligence acquisition ability did not arise from thin air; there must be systematic support from foreign forces and deep infiltration by internal traitors!”
“If this channel is not cut off and the leaking moles not eliminated, our Imperial Army ‘Cage’ enemy-trapping strategy will spring leaks everywhere, with pacification operations everywhere facing the peril of dual firepower and intelligence disadvantages!”
General Hata Shunroku slowly unfolded the secret letter, reading every word carefully, his brow furrowing tighter.
“‘Cage map’… If truly obtained by Liu’s forces, it’s no different from handing our sharp blade to the enemy.”
“This map, drawn with the blood and sweat of multiple Imperial generals, fell into enemy hands so easily… The Taiyuan intelligence section should collectively commit seppuku!”
He picked up the tea cup, sipping lightly, his gaze sharp as a hawk sweeping over Nakamura: “As for those weapons… Heavy machine guns aren’t something ordinary people can obtain, and mortars are hard to disassemble and transport.”
“They’re not the pistols, Boxer pistols, or stray ammunition resold by those arms dealers in the concession.”
“This channel can secretly and stably input so many heavy weapons and ample ammunition from the far rear, evading all checkpoints and sentries along the way, straight to the heart of the Taihang Mountains…”
“This requires not just minor connections and tricks; it’s a tightly organized, massively powerful transport channel! A behemoth rooted under our noses, likely right here in the ten-mile foreign field of Shanghai Bund!”
“Commander Your Excellency sees clearly!” Nakamura immediately responded, “Commander Shinozuka thinks the same! This is no ordinary smuggling; not the work of petty players!”
“Shanghai as the Paris of the East, the spy capital of the Far East, teeming with fish and dragons, infiltrated by British, French, American, Soviet forces—I suspect international powers secretly manipulating! Soviet Russia? Britain and America? All possible using the concession as a springboard!”
“Whether Soviet Russia, Britain and America, or those fence-sitting foreign compradors or warlord remnants… whoever dares touch this high-voltage line,” Hata Shunroku’s voice suddenly turned icy cold, “treat as mortal enemies of the Empire, kill without mercy, no quarter given!”
【There will be another chapter this afternoon…】
