Chapter 17: Striking It Rich!
“Click… click…”
“Scrape… scrape…”
On the battlefield, the soldiers were preparing for the charge—cocking their rifles, sharpening their blades, and replenishing their water supplies.
At that moment, a messenger hurried over and found Li Yunlong fiddling with his pistol. “Reporting, Commander! We've just received orders from the brigade headquarters!”
“The brigade commander has ordered the 1st Regiment to alternate covering the retreat and break out from Yujiaping, with the 771st and 772nd Regiments providing cover!”
Li Yunlong was momentarily stunned. Retreat now? The brigade commander really knew how to pick the worst moment! They were already at the critical point, no turning back now. This wouldn’t do!
“Retreat? The enemy’s bayonets are already at my nose! How could they even think of retreating now? Besides, what difference does it make which way we break through?”
Li Yunlong was determined not to miss this chance. If he let it slip now, there’d be no second chance! If the brigade commander were here, would he miss this opportunity?
From his perspective, Zhang Dabiao thought breaking out through Yujiaping was better. “Commander, Yujiaping is the weakest point in the enemy’s encirclement. Breaking out there would have a better chance of success.”
That was just Zhang Dabiao. Li Yunlong patiently explained, “What do you know? If we retreat, that bastard Sakata will definitely press down on us! Then we’d be completely on the defensive, and the enemy can bite us however they want!”
“Messenger, report back to brigade headquarters! Tell them the 1st Regiment is already engaged in close combat with the enemy and cannot retreat. To cover our brothers’ breakout, Commander Li Yunlong has decided to lead the entire regiment in a frontal assault to crush the Sakata Regiment and break through from the front!”
Zhang Dabiao understood the commander’s reasoning. If the attack had already begun, it would be one thing, but now that the brigade’s order had come first, launching an attack would be outright disobedience on the battlefield!
At this moment, no one could stop Li Yunlong. Zhang Dabiao had no choice but to risk everything—if they won, everything could still be explained!
Meanwhile, at the Sakata Regiment’s command post, in an effort to deal with this formidable foe Li Yunlong, Sakata Nobutetsu was issuing new orders.
“Send a message to the 5th Battalion to assist the 3rd Battalion in launching an attack!”
Unfortunately for him, the order came too late!
Li Yunlong raised his broadsword high, having already rallied his troops for the assault. The entire regiment was brimming with the fierce spirit of “fortune favors the brave,” waiting for Wang Chengzhu’s decisive artillery strike.
Next to the half-man-high M1 81mm mortar, Wang Chengzhu took his eyes off the aiming scope. “Fire!”
Wang Chengzhu caught the massive high-explosive shell with both hands. Under Li Yunlong’s watchful gaze, he steadily loaded it into the mortar and released it. “Boom!”
Within seconds, the shell whistled through the air and exploded. “Whoosh… boom!”
Li Yunlong peered through his binoculars at the Sakata command post, which was blasted apart in a thunderous explosion. Flames and dust billowed, scattering splinters of wood. He laughed heartily. “Ha ha ha! Well done, Zhuzi! You hit it dead center!”
Though Wang Chengzhu’s first shot was successful, he remembered the commander’s instructions and fired two more shots in quick succession, cautious not to leave Sakata, that old devil, alive.
Seizing the moment before the enemy could react, Li Yunlong wielded his broadsword fiercely. “Brothers! Charge with me!”
Light and heavy machine guns opened fire first, followed by grenades and explosives in turn. The enemy’s momentum faltered as Li Yunlong and Zhang Dabiao led the charge, brandishing their blades and plunging into the enemy ranks.
“Ha! Brothers! Kill!” Li Yunlong felled the Japanese soldiers before him, continuing to lead the assault.
Zhang Dabiao’s assault team followed closely, his broadsword flashing like a tiger’s swipe, unstoppable. The soldiers behind him fought fiercely, even when bayoneted, still swinging their swords with bloodied resolve to cut down the enemy.
Soon, the enemy broke first, turning to flee. The soldiers of the 1st Regiment surged forward with high spirits, pursuing the retreating foe and charging across the entire line.
Wang Chengzhu’s mortar shells struck with unerring precision, targeting the enemy’s machine gun nests and rapid-fire artillery positions.
High-explosive and smoke shells exploded in succession, the enemy’s cries piercing the air as their resistance weakened significantly.
“Artillery! It’s mountain artillery!”
“Poison gas! Poison gas shells!”
“Kill them all! Kasaan…”
The smoke shells contained white phosphorus, making the smoke somewhat toxic. This led the enemy to believe poison gas was being used, especially as many soldiers showed burns on their faces, causing chaos and panic.
Major Fukuda’s face flushed red as he waved his command saber. “Baka yarou! It’s smoke shells, not poison gas! Hold the line!”
Unfortunately, the thick smoke obscured vision and slowed the spread of orders.
Could Li Yunlong miss such a golden opportunity? Seeing the chaos among the enemy, he howled with excitement. “Ha ha ha, splendid! Zhuzi did a fantastic job!”
“Brothers! Kill with me!”
The 1st Regiment’s charge intensified, effortlessly breaking through the makeshift defenses of the 3rd Battalion. The 5th Battalion guarding the rear and the 4th Battalion covering the flanks were caught entirely off guard—the entire situation flipped too suddenly.
After fighting so long, no one expected the Eight Route Army to wield such large-caliber mortars, let alone launch a counter-charge while on the defensive.
Li Yunlong and Zhang Dabiao, leading the assault team, were the first to reach the ruins of Sakata’s command post.
Scanning the scene, Li Yunlong immediately grabbed a command saber from the ground. “Ha ha ha ha, old Li is hitting the jackpot!”
Looking at the scattered command sabers on the ground, Li Yunlong’s joy was beyond words. “Hurry, Huzi, gather these command sabers for me—don’t lose any, or I’ll skin you alive!”
“Commander, don’t worry! Not a single one will be lost!” Huzi said, grabbing a scorched, multicolored rag and bundling the sabers tightly in his arms.
Carefully examining the spoils, Zhang Dabiao was ecstatic. “Commander! This must be Sakata’s command post! We’ve caught a big haul—one colonel, two lieutenant colonels, and one major!”
This was truly a double blessing! Li Yunlong was quite pleased. “Heh heh! Zhuzi did a fine job, wiping out an entire regiment’s command post with one shot!”
“Back at base, the brigade commander won’t dare execute me! Ha ha, he’ll have to buy me a drink!”
Without wasting time, Li Yunlong knew the enemy would soon react. He immediately ordered, “Keep attacking! Break them through!”
Li Yunlong glanced at Huzi, who was clutching the command sabers tightly. “Huzi, hold onto those tightly! Follow me closely—these are our lifelines!”
The 1st Regiment pressed their advance into the depth of the battlefield. Once they crossed another ridge, they would break out of the encirclement of the 3rd Regiment.
Major Fukuda, having barely regrouped his scattered troops, received the devastating news of his regiment commander’s death. His face flushed from pale to red as despair set in.
Under his very eyes, his forces had been shattered, the senior officers wiped out in one fell swoop—his future was over.
Consumed by rage, Major Fukuda roared, “Pursue them all! Kill them to the last man!”
The 4th Battalion, also informed of the news, abandoned their attack on the 1st Battalion of the Death Column, while the nearby 5th Battalion wailed like ghosts as they rushed to reinforce.
Unfortunately for them, the last Type 92 heavy machine gun blocking the 1st Regiment was destroyed by a single shell from Wang Chengzhu. The 1st Regiment charged over the ridge without resistance.
The enemy could only watch helplessly as Zhang Dabiao led the rear guard, disappearing into the mountains beyond.