roccoschili Chapter 38 A Bountiful Harvest—The Zhang Family
Chapter 38 A Bountiful Harvest—The Zhang Family
Following Yang Zheng's order, the soldiers quickly began to carry it out.
The bodies of the fallen comrades were carefully moved outside the stronghold, ready to be taken back for burial; the wounded comrades received emergency treatment immediately and were then taken to a clean location; and inside the stronghold's courtyard, the sounds of rummaging and kicking open wooden doors could be heard.
Not long after, Zhao Dahu shouted, "It's the Japanese ammunition depot! They've got this little stuff!"
Yang Zheng walked closer and peered into the house, only to find the end of it in a single glance.
Inside were several open ammunition boxes containing rifle bullets and light and heavy machine gun ammunition, as well as two boxes containing grenades and grenade launchers.
On the side, there were also two long wooden crates, each containing five Type 38 rifles.
This is just a small warehouse at a base; it has some things, but not many.
"My dear Platoon Leader Zhao, you've really gotten rich now. You don't even care about these things anymore?" Yang Zheng said to Zhao Dahu with a half-smile, standing at the door.
Upon hearing Yang Zheng's voice, Zhao Dahu turned around and saw it was Yang Zheng. Surprisingly, his expression didn't change. He continued complaining to Yang Zheng, "Company Commander, look at this! Damn it, this is all that's left of our stronghold! Forget everything else, at least we could have a heavy machine gun!"
So he didn't catch Yang Zheng's tone at all...
Yang Zheng sighed, rolled his eyes at him, and said irritably, "If we had heavy machine guns, damn it, we would have moved them into the pillbox long ago and started firing at us! Why are they just sitting in the warehouse collecting dust?"
"Hey? That makes sense!" Zhao Dahu thought about it carefully and realized it was true.
"Take a clear count and bring it back!" Yang Zheng didn't want to say anything more to him. He gave the order and walked away. He had already heard Luo Dashan's shouts after finding the granary.
"Company commander, we've found grain! I reckon it'll be enough for us to eat for half a month." Luo Dashan immediately reported as Yang Zheng approached.
Yang Zheng glanced inside and saw rows of bulging burlap sacks, with two boxes of compressed biscuits and a box of... canned meat piled up in the corner.
"All the canned meat was distributed to the wounded soldiers, and the rest of the grain was counted, loaded onto trucks, and taken back."
Inside the Japanese stronghold, there were mule carts, which now belonged to them. Although there were only five carts, with the help of three warhorses and nearly a hundred soldiers carrying and lifting them, they were able to transport almost everything back.
Meanwhile, on the railway a few kilometers away from the Daejeon stronghold, an armored train led the way, followed by a special train with eight carriages.
They soon arrived at the section of railway that had been partially destroyed by Chen Xiaoquan and his men.
From a distance, the armored train leading the way began to honk its horn frantically, gradually slowing down the special train behind it until it came to a complete stop when it was still more than ten meters away from the gap!
"Strengthen security and protect the middle carriages!"
"Machine guns, prepare!"
"First Squadron, disembark and assist with the patrol!"
The Japanese officers on the special train were issuing orders methodically.
In the distance, Chen Xiaoquan and a squad of soldiers lay quietly.
"Damn it, the guards are really tight!" Chen Xiaoquan cursed, staring intently at the scene.
The armored train at the front was equipped with a large number of machine guns, and nearly a company of Japanese soldiers got off the special train behind it.
With this setup, let alone their Eighth Company, even if you brought the entire New First Regiment here, they would all become machine gun targets in this open area and be mercilessly mowed down.
The Japanese soldiers who got off the train did notice the black smoke rising in the distance, but they ignored it and were not surprised, clearly having already received the news.
The leading Japanese officer glanced at it and then quickly ordered the railway repair troops to repair the section of railway that had been destroyed.
For them, the key is to safely transport this batch of valuables on the train to its destination.
"Major, the repairs will be completed in 30 minutes!"
"Hmm, speed things up. That idiot in the pond, he made Tian An mobilize so many troops from the surrounding area to clean up his mess!" The Japanese major shook his head, then added, "Judging from that location, it should be the Ota stronghold! Looks like it's already been breached by the Eighth Route Army!"
"Yes, sir! According to Major Tani's message, the Ota base previously requested tactical guidance, but it seems..." the Japanese major's adjutant replied, flipping through the documents in his hand.
"Useless! Let's deal with this group of Eighth Route Army soldiers when Tian Anjun has time to spare!" The Japanese major withdrew his gaze and returned to his private officer's compartment.
Meanwhile, inside the Daejeon base.
"Company Commander, the inventory is complete. There are 18 intact Type 38 rifles, ten of which are brand new; over 2800 rounds of rifle ammunition; over 3200 rounds of 6.5mm machine gun ammunition; 2000 rounds of 7.7mm heavy machine gun ammunition; 100 grenades; and 112 hand grenades..."
"In addition, we have nearly 4000 catties of grain, enough to feed us for half a month!" Zhao Dahu reported in detail.
"Alright, let's go back to Changning Village!" Yang Zheng nodded and gave the order loudly.
This is not a place to linger. After making sure we've looted everything, we should head back. We don't want to get caught by the Japanese troops when they come.
The Eighth Company, after three consecutive battles and constant marches, is utterly exhausted. They only managed a short half-hour rest and a meal before feeling a bit better.
Following Yang Zheng's order, the soldiers set off, carrying loads of spoils, and marched back the way they had come.
Inside the stronghold, flames were burning fiercely, and the corpses of Japanese soldiers were among them.
Finally, one of Luo Dashan's soldiers pulled the fuse of the explosive charge.
"Boom boom boom boom!"
The entire stronghold's pillbox was destroyed, billowing with smoke and dust. It would take the Japanese at least half a month to rebuild it.
"Company Commander, we've made quite a haul this time. Let's go back and rest for two days, and then take down the other two strongholds! Otherwise, we won't have enough food for a month," Zhao Dahu suggested, walking beside Yang Zheng.
Luo Dashan nodded repeatedly upon hearing this, "Brother Dahu is right. Our morale is high. Let's take them down a couple more times in a couple of days. One stronghold provides half a month's worth of food, two strongholds will provide a month's worth..."
Listening to their plans, Yang Zheng shook his head. "If only it were that simple. Leaving aside everything else, the Japanese retaliation is the first problem we need to face!"
The Japanese suffered a great loss, and once they have the time, they will definitely send troops out to search for their traces.
Once their whereabouts are discovered, the Japanese will surely retaliate.
"What's there to be afraid of? No matter how many Japanese devils come, we'll kill them all!" Luo Dashan drew his broadsword, which had killed at least six Japanese devils, full of confidence.
None of Zhao Dahu, Zeng Dahui, or the others were afraid.
Seeing this, Yang Zheng laughed loudly: "Good, however many Japanese devils come, we'll kill them all!"
His heroic spirit soared to the heavens.
Once we get back, we can summon our soldiers and the Eighth Company can immediately double its strength. We'll have plenty of weapons and ammunition, so what are we afraid of the Japanese?
Dry!