At 12 o'clock at noon, the Japanese troops advancing along the highway towards Huaiyuan were attacked five times in a row, ranging in size from large to small.
The journey that was supposed to take three hours ended up taking nearly five hours with lots of stopping.
What's more important is that the more than 500 imperial troops and the Imperial Association Army who split up their forces to pursue the guerrillas are getting further and further away from each other by the road. By this time, the gunshots of the exchange of fire between them and the guerrillas can no longer be heard.
It's nearly fifteen kilometers away from the highway on a mountain road.
After more than 500 days of beating, more than 300 puppet troops were left, panting and chasing forward.
Dozens of guerrillas were retreating frantically more than 300 meters in front. As long as there was an opportunity and the terrain was suitable, they would immediately turn around and fight the pursuers. This would not only consume their troops, but also further anger the Japanese and puppet troops, leading them to run away by the nose.
They stopped chasing.
On the high ground not far from the mountain road, captain Peng Shaofeng stood on it, with a serious and excited expression.
Standing next to him were two unfamiliar faces: the captain of another guerrilla unit in Huaiyuan and the company commander of the main force.
After confirming that the Japanese and puppet troops had divided their forces to pursue him, and that they would not let go of the guerrillas, Peng Shaofeng was keenly aware that a huge fighter plane was opening its arms to him.
While sending people to lead the Japanese and puppet troops in circles in the mountains, as far away from the road as possible, they contacted the nearest guerrillas and the main force to join forces and annihilate this enemy group.
At the foot of the mountain is the tomb chosen by Peng Shaofeng and others for more than 300 days of puppet troops.
The main force consists of two platoons with strong combat capabilities. One is responsible for blocking the head and the other is responsible for cutting off the tail.
The two guerrillas assembled all their light and heavy machine guns to ambush on one side of the pocket formation, and attacked the Japanese and puppet troops who entered the pocket formation with firepower, trying to inflict heavy damage on them with the strongest firepower.
Of course, their main target is still the little devil.
If the puppet troops can capture them, they will capture them.
"Captain Tan, the Japanese and puppet troops have entered the pocket formation!" Peng Shaofeng tried his best to stay calm and looked at the commander of the main company to remind him calmly.
"Don't be impatient!" Captain Tan shook his head and refused.
"Wait until the Japanese and puppet troops have completely entered the mine array before opening fire. They alone can help us kill dozens of Japs..."
Two minutes later, Company Commander Tan gave the order to fire.
Nearly thirty light and heavy machine guns fired at the same time. More than a hundred Japs reacted quickly and jumped to the ground subconsciously when the gunshots were heard. However, the bullets flying towards them were too dense. The Japs in the middle of the team killed and injured nearly a hundred people in the blink of an eye...
The living Japanese wanted to fight back on the ground, but the bullets on their heads were so dense that they had no chance to raise their heads...
The battle ended after half an hour.
The mountain roads were littered with corpses, including those of Japanese soldiers, puppet soldiers, the Eighth Route Army and guerrillas.
There were also many puppet soldiers kneeling on the ground with their heads in their hands, their faces full of fear, and they did not dare to move.
Weapons and ammunition were scattered everywhere.
The Eighth Route Army and guerrillas in various costumes swept the battlefield with guns in hand, gathered prisoners, and treated the wounded...
In the simple headquarters, the three people were all smiling, discussing the battle just now, and some were calculating how much equipment they could seize from this ambush and how many puppet soldiers they could capture...
"Company Commander, Captain Peng, Captain Huang, the battle losses and results have been tallied." The instructor of the main company rushed in with excitement on his face.
"All the Japanese and puppet troops who entered the pocket formation were killed, and no one escaped."
"A total of 189 Japanese corpses, two Japanese wounded, and 59 puppet corpses were found on the battlefield. The remaining 189 puppet soldiers were all captured."
"We sacrificed 86 people, and 21 people were seriously injured and lost their combat effectiveness."
"Where are the seizures?" another guerrilla leader asked.
For guerrillas like them, the most indispensable thing is soldiers.
As long as there are weapons and enough time, it is not a problem to expand the guerrillas two or three times.
Although each guerrilla force received a large amount of weapons and equipment in the Huaiyuan War, the equipment and ammunition were limited, and the losses were less.
Therefore, the most important thing for these guerrilla captains is weapons and ammunition, and sometimes they even sacrifice their lives for several days for a gun.
The instructor saw his thoughts at a glance and immediately replied: "There are two intact mortars, three heavy machine guns, five light machine guns equipped by the Japanese, 118 38 guns, and nine light machine guns equipped by the puppet troops.
OK, rifle 279."
"The ammunition is scattered on each soldier. We haven't had time to count it yet, but each Japanese soldier has at least fifty rounds of bullets and two grenades. The total must be 20,000 rounds of bullets and a thousand grenades."
"Very good……"
The guerrilla leader who spoke just now almost jumped with excitement.
"Captain Tan, Captain Peng, with these seizures and prisoners, we will not only be able to quickly regain our strength, but also expand a lot of troops."
On the highway, the deputy captain's bad feeling became stronger as he walked forward.
The gunshots from the attacking force had disappeared for almost two hours, and there was no news from more than 500 people. Once an accident occurred, the blow to the entire attacking force would be absolutely fatal.
The total number of troops counterattacking Huaiyuan was only more than 2,000. After deducting the casualties caused by the Eighth Route Army's sneak attacks, and then deducting the more than 500 people, there were only more than 1,300 people left.
There is still more than half of the way to Huaiyuan, so there must be many risks.
If the losses continue like in the first half of the journey, more than 2,000 troops will be completely lost before reaching Huaiyuan.
Whether it is retaking Huaiyuan or occupying Huaiyuan, it is still a dream.
Every time the words came to his lips and he wanted to remind the captain, the confidence and arrogance on his face directly blocked the words he had not yet spoken.
After enduring it for two hours, I finally couldn't bear it anymore.
"Sir, it's very strange that no news has come back from the attacking troops for such a long time. I suggest sending someone to find them immediately to confirm whether they are safe."
The deputy captain's worried expression, which he hesitated to speak along the way, was all seen by the captain.
We are at war now, and there are many dangers around us, so there is nothing wrong with being cautious.
After a moment of hesitation, he began to issue an order: "Send half of the scouts to look for them and report any news immediately."
"Other troops continue to advance, and the remaining half of the scouts increase the search range on both sides of the road. I don't want to see the Eighth Route Army guerrillas attack us under everyone's nose again."
The deputy captain breathed a sigh of relief: "I will make arrangements now and find the attacking troops in the shortest possible time."
Half an hour passed, but no news came back from the scouts who rode out on fast horses.
An hour passed and there was still no news from the scouts.
Cavalry, unlike infantry, can cover a distance in one hour that would take four or five hours to cover.
Even if the attacking troops are located twenty kilometers away by the road, they should come back.
But they didn't come back.
At this time, the confident captain also became anxious.
While marching forward, I looked back, hoping to see the scouts early and figure out the specific figures of the attacking troops.