After dawn, the sleeping brothers were woken up one by one by the officers and gathered in the spacious grain drying field in Xiaowangzhuang.
"Please be quiet, don't wake up the fellow villagers." Wang Huzi and the others kept reminding them in low voices.
However, hundreds of people gathered to carry the grains moved from Liu's warehouse, which still woke up many villagers. After all, another army was stationed in the village, and no one could sleep well.
"What do they want to do?" The villagers stuck to the cracks of their doors one after another, observing what was going on outside.
"It looks like they are leaving."
Seeing the brothers packing their things one after another, the villagers also made speculations.
"It's good to leave. If they keep living in Xiaowangzhuang, then we won't be able to live our lives anymore. Maybe the Japanese will come back."
"What are you talking about? Your conscience has been eaten by dogs. Then Chief Yang gave us twenty kilograms of rice yesterday. He looks like a good person at first glance..."
The villagers hid behind the cracks in their doors and whispered under the windows, with different opinions.
Some people hope that Yang Ling and others will stay in Xiaowangzhuang. After all, they are the Chinese team. If they stay, they will feel at ease. At least they will not be frequented by bandits and puppet troops.
But some people still hope that Yang Ling and others will leave quickly. After all, they are guerrillas and they have beaten the puppet army and the Japanese. The Japanese and puppet army will definitely retaliate by then, and their Xiaowangzhuang will definitely suffer.
No matter what the villagers think at the moment, Yang Ling and the others are really going to leave. They are now weak and the Japanese and puppet troops are coming, and they have no ability to protect these villagers.
Since we can't protect them now, we can't cause trouble to the villagers and attract revenge from the Japs. As long as they leave, the Japs can't do this to the villagers when they come.
After all, many of the puppet soldiers were locals, and the Japanese would not massacre Xiaowangzhuang, because doing so would arouse large-scale hatred and be detrimental to their rule in this area.
Yang Ling and the others took the things they copied from the Liu family and left Xiaowangzhuang and headed north without saying hello to the villagers.
Shortly after Yang Ling and the others left, under the command of the Japanese commander Sadao Kasai, more than a hundred fierce Japanese soldiers and hundreds of puppet troops who had fled back stormed towards Xiaowangzhuang in a fierce manner.
But they arrived a step too late and came to nothing. Except for the Liu family compound which had been evacuated, not a single guerrilla was seen.
They asked the villagers to inquire. These villagers got the benefit of twenty kilograms of rice from Yang Ling and the others last night, and told an unprecedented lie.
"Where did the guerrillas go? Tell me, it will be of great benefit."
Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao tried his best to make his face less ferocious as he interrogated a commoner in the village.
"Taijun, we were still sleeping when they left, and we don't know where they went." The villagers also replied with fear.
Hearing this answer, Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao was naturally dissatisfied, but after interrogating several villagers, they all shook their heads and couldn't explain clearly.
"Your conscience is greatly damaged!" Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao didn't ask anything and roared angrily.
Seeing the anger of Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao, the puppet battalion commander Zhang Lezi, who had narrowly escaped death last night, also shouted a vicious threat.
"Don't make a toast and eat as a penalty. If you offend the emperor, you will lose your head!"
But no matter how threatening and intimidating Zhang Laizi was, the villagers were determined not to say anything.
"Damn, he's really tough. Bring him here and beat him hard. Let's see how long they can keep talking!"
Zhang Laizi was also a little angry and loudly ordered a villager to be pulled out and whipped.
"boom!"
Before Zhang Laizi could finish his words, a dull gunshot suddenly rang outside the village. Zhang Laizi was so frightened that he hurriedly threw himself to the ground.
Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao was also shocked. He hurriedly pulled out the pistol from his waist and hid behind a grinding plate.
"Report, Chinese guerrillas were found outside the village, Xiaohe Sangyu Sui was on duty..." Soon, a panting Japanese sentry rushed in from outside.
"Bagaya Road! Chase!"
Hearing that the guerrillas actually attacked their sentries and killed one, the Japanese captain Kasai Sadao immediately turned ferocious and ordered with a fierce look in his eyes.
"Quick, don't be stunned, listen to Taijun, chase, chase -" Zhang Laizi also got up from the ground, raised his shell gun and shouted.
Hundreds of puppet troops and more than a hundred Japanese soldiers rushed out of Xiaowangzhuang and chased the guerrillas who attacked them.
These guerrilla officers and soldiers left behind were deliberately left by Yang Ling to attract the attention of the Japs, fearing that the Japs would retaliate against Xiaowangzhuang.
Seeing the Japanese and puppet troops chasing away in a hurry, the people of Xiaowangzhuang all breathed a sigh of relief and secretly said that it was a close call, but they became worried about Yang Ling and the others.
"The devils are coming, prepare to fight!"
Seeing several brothers running towards them panting in the distance, Wang Dongming, who was hiding in a grove and ambush, shouted in a low voice.
More than a dozen brothers lowered their bodies, put their rifle butts on their shoulders, unbolted their rifles, and pointed them at the path outside the grove.
Soon, several brothers who had attacked the Japanese sentries ran eastward along the path, and the Japanese and puppet soldiers who were running sparsely also chased after them in an aggressive manner.
Those running in front were all Japanese soldiers with fierce eyes. They were shooting while running, and the bullets flew past the brothers who were running in front, making Wang Dongming break into a cold sweat for them.
"beat!"
Seeing that the pursuing Japs had entered the shooting range, Wang Dongming decisively pulled the trigger.
"Bang bang bang——"
Smoke drifted from the muzzle of the gun, and a row of bullets rushed out of the woods, shrouding the pursuing Japanese.
"Puff-"
"ah!"
The chasing Japanese soldiers never expected that bullets would suddenly be fired from the small woods on the roadside. The running Japanese soldiers were pierced by bullets and fell to the ground wailing.
"Enemy attack!"
"There are Chinese people in the woods!"
The reaction of the Japanese soldiers was quite fast. The running Japanese soldiers shouted and fell down, threw themselves into the pit beside the road, and then started shooting with their guns.
"Swish swish——"
The enemy's bullets flew over quickly, causing the leaves to fall one after another, like a goddess scattering flowers.
Looking at the bullets flying overhead, Wang Dongming chuckled and threw a few grenades outside, which exploded with rumbles.
"withdraw--"
Taking advantage of the cover of the smoke from the grenade explosion, Wang Dongming and others took their guns and turned around and got into the depths of the woods.
The Japanese beat them with thunderbolts for a while, smashing the weeds and leaves to pieces. After seeing no counterattack, the Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao raised his head from the pit.
"Continue your pursuit and surround the woods!"
Japanese Captain Kasai Sadao gave instructions to Japanese Second Lieutenant and puppet battalion commander Zhang Lezi.
"Yes, yes, Taijun, surround the forest." Zhang Laizi nodded and bowed in agreement.
Some Japanese soldiers went out to pursue the guerrillas who had fled without a trace.
Under the command of Zhang Laizi, hundreds of puppet troops quickly took action and soon surrounded the grove.
When the puppet soldiers cautiously went into the woods to search, Wang Dongming and the others had already escaped.
"Batalion Commander, no one was found -" Soon, the searching puppet soldiers came out and picked up some bullet casings, but found nothing.
The Japanese led by the Japanese second lieutenant also came back soon, and they lost the chase.
"Baga! Baga ya road!"
Seeing the few dead Japanese soldiers and the panting people, the Japanese captain Kasai Sadao felt that he had been teased.