The Type 92 infantry artillery roared, and high-explosive shells roared into a small river mouth village where low-rise houses gathered.
Broken bricks and tiles rushed up to the sky in smoke and dust, and the shock wave shattered doors and windows. In the violent tremors, the falling tiles fell with the gray waterfall.
The mud on the potholed streets filled with mud and water also flew up. Before it fell, it was thrown high by a new shock wave.
Although it was raining lightly, it was still clear enough to see the fire, smoke, and thick smoke billowing from the explosion in the village.
"They are bombarding such a palm-sized place with artillery. The little devil is so damn rich. It would be great if we could have such big artillery sometime."
The scene of the Japanese shelling the village at Xiaohekou was clearly seen by the guerrilla brothers lurking in the fields. Facing the rumbling shelling, they were jealous with envy.
Although this time the Ninth Guerrilla Column replenished them with a batch of weapons and ammunition for the next military operation, the heavy weapons only included a mortar and a heavy machine gun.
Moreover, this artillery gun has been taken away by Wu Changqing's second battalion to attack fortresses. Their current heavy machine gun is like a treasure. It was used once and then retreated to the back, fearing that it would be damaged.
Now seeing the Japanese extravagantly bombarding the village of Xiaohekou with Type 92 infantry artillery, many guerrillas felt itchy in their hearts and wished they could rush out and grab the artillery right now.
"Don't worry about the Japanese fighting happily now. Just wait and see. Sooner or later, those two cannons will take our surname." Battalion Commander Wang Huzi wiped the rain off his face and said firmly.
The brothers of the guerrillas had no intention of fighting head-on with the Japs, so they did not stick to the small river mouth with only a few dozen houses, but took the initiative to withdraw.
After a chaotic bombardment by the Japanese, a squadron of Japanese soldiers opened a skirmish line and rushed forward. However, they could not charge forward quickly from the farmland with one foot deep and one foot shallow.
But they did not dare to walk on the easier-to-walk field ridges. They had already suffered a loss. They were killed when they were swept away by a machine gun while walking on the field ridges. This was how a small unit of theirs was wiped out earlier.
The continuous battles made Squadron Leader Kameda feel like a mud monkey. Even the shouting of "Kill Gaigai" was so weak that the rest of the Japanese were not much better.
"Bang! Bang..."
Although the Japs did not charge into the village on the field ridge, it was not safe to walk in the farmland. The guerrilla officers and soldiers lurking nearby still opened fire.
"ah!"
The bullet pierced the kid's chest, and a stream of warm blood flew out as the bullet penetrated his body. He stumbled and fell to the ground.
Now that the crops have been harvested, there is an open area around the farmland. The guerrilla officers and soldiers wearing torn sacks lurking there make it difficult for the little devils to guard against them.
The guerrilla officers and soldiers were as slippery as loaches. They turned around and ran away regardless of whether they hit or not. By the time the little Japs lay down and raised their guns, they were already out of range.
The little Japanese was also howling with anger. He had no other choice but to continue to advance towards the shattered villages that had been bombed.
They entered the village cautiously, expecting to encounter strong resistance, but found that the village was empty.
"Report, the guerrillas in the village have been repelled by our squadron!"
Captain Kameda quickly reported to Major Kuroda Ichiro who was staying in the distance.
Kuroda Ichiro commanded the troops to fight for such a long time, but they were physically and mentally exhausted. Standing in the rain was not a problem, so he ordered them to go into the village to rest.
The Japanese soldiers and puppet soldiers rushed into the village one after another as if they had been granted amnesty. The previous burst of shelling had destroyed some houses, and intact houses were in short supply.
The puppet soldiers naturally did not have the opportunity to enter the courtyard and house to rest, so they could only hide under the eaves to take shelter from the rain.
The little devil happily entered the house, took off his wet raincoat, and was about to light a fire and eat something to warm himself up, when an accident happened.
"Boom!"
A deafening explosion came from the room, and smoke filled the air. An unlucky Japanese soldier encountered a booby trap left by the guerrilla officers and soldiers, and was blown up on the spot.
Ichiro Kuroda, who had just sat down to rest and was about to study how to deal with the elusive guerrillas, was so frightened by the explosion that he almost jumped up from the bench.
"Baga! What's going on?!" Kuroda Ichiro asked with a dark face.
Soon, some little devils rushed over to report that one of them was killed by a bomb left by the guerrillas.
"Nani?" Hearing this, Kuroda Ichiro took a deep breath and looked at the dimly lit room where he was staying, feeling a chill on his back.
While he was talking, there was another booming explosion, a plume of black smoke rose in the yard next door, and there were shouts and screams.
Ichiro Kuroda strode out of the house with a livid face, and went straight to the yard next door. He saw three Japanese soldiers, covered in blood and flesh from the explosion, lying on the ground wailing, and a door was also blown into pieces.
"The cunning Chinese put a cluster grenade on the door, and it exploded when the door was opened..."
Ichiro Kuroda now finally understands why the guerrillas took the initiative to evacuate the village and gave the place to them. This is a trap emotionally.
"Order, everyone is camping on the street and not allowed to enter the house!"
In order to prevent similar incidents from happening again, under the order of Ichiro Kuroda, the Japanese soldiers exited the house one after another and crowded under the eaves to rest. The puppet soldiers now did not even have a place to cover themselves from the rain...
The Japanese soldiers fought with the guerrilla officers and soldiers in the rain for most of the day, and they were very tired. Although it was a break between battles, the peripheral defense was watertight.
Light and heavy machine guns were quickly set up all around, leaving the guerrilla officers and soldiers with no opportunity to strike.
"Withdraw in batches to eat and replenish your strength, and temporarily stop attacking." Yang Ling also promptly issued the order to stop the attack.
Soon, batches of guerrilla officers and soldiers, soaked and covered in mud, withdrew from the front to the rear.
In a forest not far from the mouth of the creek, a tent was being set up here, and hot meals and a large pot of ginger soup were ready.
The hungry guerrilla officers and soldiers had been fighting with the Japs since the morning. They were already hungry. Faced with the hot food, they wolfed it down and had to continue fighting after eating it.
In the rainy and foggy weather, the field of vision was greatly restricted by the ears. It was hazy just a few hundred meters away. The little devils couldn't see the smoke here at all, so the brothers could hardly relax.
"The first combat group returned, the second combat group returned, the third combat group disappeared, the fourth combat group all died, the fifth combat group lost two people...the 53rd combat group disappeared, the 50th combat group disappeared
All four combat groups were killed..."
As the guerrilla officers and soldiers withdrew in batches to rest and eat, staff officer Lei Xiong and others were also busy counting battle losses and casualties.
Although they dragged the little devil tightly into the wilderness and caused heavy casualties, the little devil was so powerful that they still lost a lot of brothers.
When they heard about so many battle losses, the brothers who had beaten the little Japanese to the point of being unable to move were all in high spirits, but now they all calmed down and became serious.
"Notify the stretcher team to evacuate the wounded for medical treatment as soon as possible. Retrieve the bodies of the fallen brothers as much as possible. Notify Director Sun of the Military Supplies Department and issue death pensions to their families according to the death list..."
As long as there is a war, casualties are inevitable. Although Yang Ling felt sad, he quickly hid his sadness deep in his heart.
After calming down his mind, his face regained the composure and calmness that a commander should have, and he had to continue directing the battle.
"Do you have any news from Battalion Commander Wu and the others?" Yang Ling asked.
The combat staff officer replied: "Sir, not yet, I think it will be soon."
Whether they can successfully crush the Japs' encirclement and suppression operation this time, Wu Changqing and the others are crucial. Once they fail to attract the Japs back for reinforcements, Yang Ling and the others will fall into a bloody and bitter battle.
"We can't wait any longer. The Japs will continue to attack after a short rest. Immediately send someone to the direction of Qinghe Town to urge Battalion Commander Wu and the others to attract the Japs to return reinforcements as soon as possible." Yang Ling frowned and ordered.
Now Yang Ling's communication methods are backward. They don't even have a radio. They can still rely on communication soldiers to communicate at short distances, but it will be very troublesome if they are farther away.