Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao stood on a slightly higher ridge with his saber in both hands, squinting his long, narrow and fierce eyes and looking at Qinghe Town.
Under the command of two second lieutenants, more than a hundred Japanese infantrymen were quickly divided into two groups and built bunkers based on the field ridges.
Three Type 92 infantry cannons were also pulled to the front of Qinghe Town. The Japanese artillery detachment was busy unloading the shell boxes from the carriages and sending them to the side of the infantry cannons.
"Go around to the back one after another and surround the town!"
"Third Company, set up the machine gun for me!"
"Four rounds of bullets on top of the fire, go to the front!"
…
Under the command of battalion commander Zhang Lezi, nearly a thousand puppet troops quickly deployed and surrounded the town.
The Japanese and puppet troops had already set up their postures, with light and heavy machine guns set up. Behind the grassy ridge, the Japanese grenadiers were squatting on the ground, ready to attack.
The Japanese were preparing for the attack, and the officers and soldiers of the third guerrilla detachment in Qinghe Town had no intention of withdrawing. Under the orders of the officers, they carried ammunition and set up machine guns, pretending to be in a desperate situation.
Under the gray sky, the blue sky and white sun flag hanging on the flagpole was swaying slightly with the breeze, and the whole town was filled with a tense atmosphere as if facing a powerful enemy.
"Captain, why don't you go out and beat the Japs while they're still on a weak footing?"
A company commander saw the Japanese and puppet troops preparing in an orderly manner outside the town, and approached the acting detachment leader Zhang Liechen for advice.
"Are you blind? Didn't you see that the Japanese have set up their heavy machine guns? If you want to die, go ahead and don't get involved with the brothers." Zhang Liechen said angrily and cursed.
"Tell the brothers to guard their positions. If anyone dares to act without permission, I will shoot him!" Zhang Liechen said fiercely, waving the fancy machine gun in his hand.
"yes!"
The company commander, who was scolded, felt annoyed, responded, and returned to his defensive trench.
"Sir Zhang, this little devil is coming very hard, can you beat him?"
Zeng Xian'an, the mayor of the town office, looked at the menacing Japanese and puppet troops outside, his teeth chattering as he spoke.
Although Zhang Liechen was unsure, he was currently the top commander of the Third Guerrilla Detachment, so how could he lose face?
"Don't worry, Mayor Zeng, these enemies are just embroidered pillows. With brothers like us here, they can't get in! Don't worry!" Zhang Liechen looked at the Japanese and puppet troops outside and said calmly.
"That's good, that's good..." Mayor Zeng Xian'an felt a little relieved.
Now the whole town is tied to the same boat as the Third Guerrilla Detachment. If the town cannot be defended, they will also suffer.
"Mayor Zeng, leave the battle to our brothers. You ask the people in the town to prepare some food, drink and stretchers. I'm afraid this battle won't be over for a while." Zhang Liechen thought for a while and said.
"That's natural. I'll go back and tell people to prepare."
As he spoke, Mayor Zeng bowed his hands to Zhang Liechen, and then returned to the town with a group of frightened squires, preparing to eat and drink and organize the young men to prepare stretchers to carry the wounded.
"Taijun, we have surrounded the town, do you want to attack?"
When the puppet battalion commander Zhang Lezi saw that his men were already in place, he hurriedly ran to the Japanese captain Kasai Sadao for instructions.
Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao looked at the puppet battalion commander who was like a pug. He saw the hard work of the puppet soldiers and nodded with satisfaction.
"Your...loyalty...is of great benefit." Captain Kasai Sadao praised the puppet battalion commander Zhang Lezi.
"I don't care whether I take it seriously or not, I'm all serving the imperial army..." Hearing this compliment, Zhang Laizi felt happy.
"Go and shout for Zhang...the martyr to surrender, otherwise he will die!" Captain Kasai Sadao ordered.
"Yes! I'll go shout right now!"
Zhang Lezi hurriedly nodded and agreed, turned around and ran to stand in front of Qinghe Town.
He straightened his wrinkled puppet uniform, cleared his throat, and then shouted loudly.
"People inside, listen! You have been surrounded! You have no way to go to heaven and no way to enter the earth!"
Zhang Lezi nodded and bowed in front of the Japanese, but when faced with the surrounded guerrilla officers and soldiers in Qinghe Town, he showed his authority again.
"Your Majesty is kind and does not want to kill all the people and increase casualties. I will give you a chance to surrender. If you put down your gun and surrender, you will survive. Otherwise, none of you will survive!"
"Bah, Zhang Lezi, you are not a fucking Chinese. You are helping the little devils to beat us Chinese people. I advise you to turn around and quickly turn your gun and kill the gang of devils behind you. Otherwise, be careful if you die."
Can’t reach the ancestral grave!”
Zhang Lezi was not angry either, thinking that it was not you who had the final say whether I could enter the ancestral tomb or not.
He continued to shout: "Zhang Liechen, don't toast or drink as a fine. You were lucky enough to escape the last few times, but this time you will definitely not be able to escape. Did you see it? The imperial army pulled out all the cannons."
Come here, how many shells do you think your fortifications can take?"
Hearing what Zhang Laizi said, the guerrilla officers and soldiers guarding the fortifications immediately whispered and looked panicked. They had seen the power of infantry artillery, and the fortifications would not collapse even if the shells came over.
"Zhang Lezi, I'm not scared. It's just a few bad cannons. I saw a lot of them during the battle in Xuzhou. I'm still alive and kicking now. Stop talking nonsense. Either go back or start a fight."
, let’s see who has the stronger fist, if I frown, I’m a son of a bitch!”
As Zhang Liechen said, he raised his machine gun and pointed it at the direction of the puppet battalion commander Zhang Laizi, who fired a hail of bullets. Zhang Laizi was so frightened that he turned around and ran away. He even dropped his hat in the ditch and did not dare to look back to pick it up.
"Hahaha, you coward!"
Seeing Zhang Laizi showing off his power, he was so frightened that he ran back. The guerrilla officers and soldiers guarding the back of the fortification burst into laughter, and the tense atmosphere relaxed.
Seeing that Zhang Liechen and the others refused to surrender and instead played tricks on Zhang Laizi, the Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao who was standing on the ridge behind frowned.
"Tai, Taijun, they are die-hards and refuse to surrender. I think they will all be destroyed!"
Zhang Laizi, who was bare-headed and full of anger, ran back to the Japanese Captain and started to fan the flames.
"Yours, lead the attack and wipe them all out!" Captain Kasai Sadao didn't have the patience to waste any more, and prepared Zhang Laizi to launch an attack.
"Yes! I promise to wipe them all out!" Zhang Lezi said, pulling out the shell gun from his waist, but before he left, he glanced at the three infantry cannons over there: "Taijun, that..."
Why didn't Captain Kasai Sadao know what Zhang Laizi was thinking? He said, "Don't worry, I'll have... artillery support..."
"Thank you, Taijun. Thank you, Taijun..."
Zhang Lezi nodded and bowed his head and thanked him again, then trotted towards the puppet soldiers who were already lying in the field.