Chapter 29: The Fish Has Taken the Bait

Following two gunshots, the puppet troops became as skittish as birds startled by the mere sound of a bowstring. The veterans from the two platoons immediately sprang up, roaring as they launched their charge.

However, despite the grand display of momentum, the veterans moved with deliberate slowness.

Upon hearing the shots, the Japanese soldiers scrambled out of their barracks, shrieking as they quickly deployed into a combat formation. Roughly a dozen of them set up a Type 11 light machine gun and began firing away. The veterans reacted with agility, immediately diving to the ground and avoiding the initial barrage of heavy fire.

What followed was a stalemate. The puppet troops, terrified of dying, focused primarily on "fate-based" marksmanship—firing blindly into the air with their eyes shut—which infuriated the Japanese sergeant to no end. With too few men to launch an offensive, the Japanese were forced to match Zhang Dabiao's men, trading sporadic, aimless shots.

Li Yunlong’s objective had been met: the construction of the Japanese blockhouse had ground to a halt.

An hour passed quickly. A scout from the security platoon caught up with Zhang Dabiao and reported, "Battalion Commander, the Japanese reinforcements are almost here! They’re less than two miles out!"

Zhang Dabiao gave the order to retreat without hesitation. "Pass the word down! Everyone, pull back!"

With the order given, the platoon led by the Third Company Commander ceased fire and retreated first, with Zhang Dabiao’s men providing cover. Moments later, Zhang Dabiao withdrew his forces as well, disappearing into the mountain forests alongside the security platoon. The Japanese could only watch helplessly as the Eighth Route Army soldiers vanished.

Silence gradually returned to the area, broken only by a few confused puppet soldiers firing off the occasional stray shot.

"Damn it! You bastard, get up! Stop shooting!"

"And you, Ge Lao-Er! They're already gone! Get up this instant!"

The puppet platoon leader, still smarting from a slap by the Japanese officer, cursed and kicked his men back to their feet. When the Japanese reinforcements finally arrived and learned of the situation, they could only curse "Baka" in frustration, and for good measure, delivered another slap to the puppet platoon leader.

Zhang Dabiao had set a fine example, and what followed was simple. The second and third battalion commanders followed suit. Over the next two days, the three leaders took turns leading their teams in rotation. The blockhouse at Xiaowang Village made zero progress, and they managed to kill several Japanese and over twenty puppet soldiers. The puppet troops were so thoroughly terrified that, even under the threat of further beatings, they refused to step out to supervise the construction.

In the end, the Japanese had no choice but to send an entire reinforced squad of their own troops, along with an additional company of puppet soldiers, to the Xiaowang Village blockhouse.

When Li Yunlong heard from the second battalion commander that the Japanese had bolstered their numbers, he couldn't stop grinning. "Hahaha! The bait has arrived!"

With his long-awaited bait in place, Li Yunlong immediately began preparations for the assault.

"Huzi, go tell Zhang Dabiao to come here, and notify the reinforced company to prepare for action!"

"Communication squad, split up and contact the various district platoons and the county militia units. Tell them to organize a transport team and wait at the designated location!"

Once everything was arranged, Li Yunlong began checking his own gear.

Before long, Zhang Dabiao arrived at the regimental headquarters. "Reporting!"

Once inside, Li Yunlong didn't mince words. "Zhang Dabiao! Those twelve rifles I gave you didn't come for free. Take the First Battalion and the militia, and surround the Japanese and puppets at Xiaowang Village!"

"Your mission is to feign an attack and make them feel the sting!"

"We’re going to 'besiege a point to strike reinforcements.' Once I finish off the Japanese relief force, I’ll turn back and wipe out the garrison at Xiaowang Village!"

"Is that clear?"

"Yes! Mission guaranteed!" Zhang Dabiao laughed. "Heh, Commander, my First Battalion can handle the Japanese and puppets at Xiaowang Village all on our own!"

Li Yunlong glared at him. "Don't get cocky, you rascal. Keep it steady—don't go eating the bait before the fish even bites!"

Zhang Dabiao didn't flinch. "Understood. But Commander, you’d better move fast, or my First Battalion might just finish them off before you get back!"

"Hahaha, that's your own skill talking! If you can pull that off, I'll let your First Battalion have first pick of the spoils!" Li Yunlong was delighted to see his men showing such spirit.

Li Yunlong and Zhang Dabiao departed with their respective teams. Li Yunlong led the reinforced company to the small valley. The valley was flanked by hundred-meter-high earthen slopes; one side was particularly steep with sparse vegetation, making it difficult to climb. Through the center ran a two-meter-wide dirt road, flanked by a small, frozen stream—though the ice was thin and would shatter under the slightest pressure. The slope on the side near the stream was relatively gentle.

After observing the terrain, Li Yunlong decided to place the ambush on the steep slope. Four light machine guns were arranged in a staggered line, designed to cover the Japanese formation entirely as they advanced.

Two more light machine guns were held in reserve, and Wang Chengzhu’s artillery squad, equipped with two mortars, was tasked with targeting the Japanese grenade launchers—they were to be neutralized at all costs.

Two heavy machine guns were positioned at the front and back to trap the Japanese in the middle, supported by the firepower of eighty-six Garand semi-automatic rifles.

It was a beautiful setup. With that level of concentrated fire, the unprepared Japanese would be stunned by the initial blow. Li Yunlong had even thoughtfully left them an escape route: if they could cross the bone-chilling stream and brave the risk of being sitting ducks, they could climb the slope and potentially flee with their lives. Otherwise, they would be annihilated in the valley floor.

"Hurry, pick up the pace on the ambush positions! Zhuzi, get the mortars set up. Make sure you take out their grenade launchers the moment they appear!"

"Place all light machine gun positions on the flank. First and Second Squads, protect the flanks of the machine gun nests and focus on taking out the enemy machine gunners!"

"Third and Fourth Squads, take a heavy machine gun and block the exit. Fifth and Sixth Squads, take the other heavy machine gun and seal off their retreat! Do not let a single Japanese soldier escape!"

Li Yunlong busily directed the positioning of every unit, and in no time, everything was prepared.

By then, the transport team organized by the county militia had arrived nearby. The team leader approached with Huzi. "Commander, this is Team Leader Tian from the county militia!"

"Greetings, Officer!"

Li Yunlong returned the salute. "Team Leader Tian, no need for pleasantries. Please have your transport team ready to sweep the battlefield as soon as we finish off the Japanese!"

"We will head to Xiaowang Village immediately. As soon as you finish clearing the site, move to the vicinity of Xiaowang Village at once!"

"We must finish the fight and clear the battlefield before reinforcements from other directions can arrive!"

Team Leader Tian had no complaints about his militia unit being tasked with transport duties. "We follow your orders, Officer. We will complete the mission!"

With everything settled, Li Yunlong and the soldiers of the reinforced company went into hiding, waiting quietly for the Japanese to take the bait.

Meanwhile, Zhang Dabiao had led the First Battalion and the militia to the outskirts of the Xiaowang Village blockhouse, where they began to openly and aggressively deploy their forces.