Chapter 3: Pessimism and Disappointment: The road ahead is difficult

End of June 1942.

Japanese garrison. Sitting in a leather chair behind a large desk in his office, Eiichi Nakagawa was concentrating on reading the Chinese version of "On Protracted War," picking up a pen from time to time to make notes and write down his experiences in his notebook. Next to it are military books in Chinese editions such as "Strategic Problems of Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Warfare," "Tasks of the Communist Party of China in the War of Resistance Against Japan," "Analysis of Various Classes in Chinese Society," "A Spark Can Fire the Plains," "Sun Tzu's Art of War," "Sima Fa," "Hundred Battles," "Thirty-six Strategies," "Three Books of the Martial Classics," and "Reading History and Military Strategy," as well as a classical Chinese masterpiece "Romance of the Three Kingdoms."

Captain Masayoshi Nakahiro, a Japanese combat staff officer, looked anxious and heavy, hurriedly walked into the office, walked to the desk, and immediately reported:

"Report, General Murayama urgently telegraphed." After speaking, he opened the folder and took out the telegram and put it in front of Nakagawa, and stood straight and waited for Nakagawa's instructions.

Nakagawa picked up the telegram and looked at it, and a look of panic and disgust immediately appeared on his face. He put the telegram aside in annoyance and said to himself angrily: "Alas! When will the endless war end? Nakagawa raised his head and looked at the roof, his eyes empty, depressed and sad. In a moment, the phone on the desk rang suddenly. Nakagawa reached out and picked up the phone: "Moxi Moxi?" Hail!" Nakagawa immediately stood up: "Hey! Your Excellency, I am Nakagawa, and I have received an order for battle. Hi! The troops have been rested and are ready to go. Your Excellency General, why did you send our troops to Shengcang Village, Lin'an County? The main battlefield of this one-month campaign was in the plains of central and southern Hebei, and our army achieved brilliant results. Why did you send heavy troops to attack the poor and remote Hebei border areas at the end of the day? It was not an important military-strategic area for our Imperial Japanese Army. Yes? Hi! Resolutely obey the order, Zhongchuan will definitely live up to his mission, I immediately gathered my troops and marched to Shengcang Village, reinforcing the Hegu Brigade with all my strength, and completely destroying the remnants of the defeated Eighth Route Army and all resistance forces. Hi! Nakagawa swore allegiance to the emperor. Putting down the phone, Nakagawa slumped into his chair in frustration. Sighing heavily: "Alas! ”

"Captain, I'm going to gather the troops and prepare to go......"

"Wait. Captain Zhonghong, a few years ago, you came to China with me to participate in the Holy War, and we have never been separated, we are not only a relationship between superiors and subordinates, but also bosom friends who have known each other for many years, how do I treat you? You should have a number in mind, right? ”

"Yes. Thank you Captain for taking care of me over the years, I never dare to forget it, and I am even more grateful. ”

"Well, if only you could remember. You have to be honest with me, don't have any worries, what kind of prediction do you have about the outcome of this holy war? ”

"This? This? Okay, I'll be honest, Captain, I think that the final outcome of this holy war, the empire and the imperial army may not be optimistic, maybe, may not be optimistic. ”

"Just not too optimistic? Jihad has been going on for a few years, and you still can't see it? The final outcome of this holy war may be the defeat of the Japanese Empire and the Imperial Army, and the victory of China. A few years ago, Professor Sadaharu Yabe, head of the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Law at Tokyo Imperial University, said that China could not be conquered. The leader of the Communist Party has clearly written in his book that Japan will be defeated and China will win. Nakagawa pointed to the "On Protracted War" spread out on the desk and said.

"I—I thought so in my heart, but I didn't dare say it. The captain is watching 'On Protracted War' again? Haven't you seen it a few times? Why do you have to watch it again and again? ”

Nakagawa picked up 'On Protracted War' in his hand, looked at the vigorous and powerful title of the book, and said:

"I've lost count of how many times I've seen it. However, every time I watch it, I will have a new and different understanding and experience, which is really a lot of benefits and a lot of gains. Therefore, this book is well worth reading again and again, and you should also take a good look at it. ”

"Hi. I'll definitely take a good look at it again. Captain, do you have any basis for thinking that our Imperial Army will be defeated and China will win in the end? ”

"Of course there is a basis, and I have a good basis to prove my judgment. Zhonghongjun, I'll tell you in detail when I have time in the future. ”

"Captain, since the Empire and the Imperial Army can't win this war, what should we do?"

"What to do? Alas! What else can I do? The only way to fight until the last moment of his life is to be loyal to the emperor. ”

"Huh?! Captain, we know we can't win this war, why do we keep fighting? Even to the last moment of life, can't you stop fighting? ”

"What's wrong? Captain Nakahiro, are you afraid of death? I can see that in the last year or so, you have developed a mood of war weariness and war fear. How? Don't you want to be loyal to the emperor? ”

"No, no. Captain, I—I'm not afraid of death, and I'm willing to be loyal to the Emperor. But, I—I really don't want to die. In this holy war, my father and brother have been crippled and incapacitated, and they have returned home. My brother died in battle in Taihang Mountain a year ago. Now I have my elderly grandparents, parents, sisters-in-law, siblings, my unmarried sister, my wife, and a bunch of children, all waiting for me to go back and take care of them. So, I can't die. ”

"Well, I know your situation and your difficulties. Captain Nakahiro, Nakahiro-kun, I hope you will return to Japan to reunite with your family in good condition. ”

"Thank you, please take care of the captain, I thank you on behalf of our whole family."

"Okay, let's not talk about it so much. Captain Nakahiro, you go and deliver my order at once, assemble your troops, and set off in two hours. ”

"Hey!" Zhonghong Zhengyi saluted, turned around and walked out of the office.

"Report!" Someone shouted outside the door.

"Come in." In the office, Nakagawa replied weakly.

The Japanese army's chief accounting officer (logistics accounting personnel) and staff officer Captain Ji He walked into the office with a folder in his hand. He walked up to his desk and bowed, and said in a humble tone:

"Captain, this is the accounting log you want for the last few days, please take a look."

"Put it down, put it down." Nakagawa said sadly and irritably.

"Captain, are you not feeling well?" Ji He asked puzzled and concerned.

Nakagawa shook his head with a sad face in a heavy heart.

Ji He cautiously asked, "Is the battle order down?" ”

"Alas!" Nakagawa sighed heavily and nodded in frustration.

"When will the troops leave? Where are you going? ”

"The troops will set off in two hours and rush to Shengcang Village in Lin'an County as soon as possible."

"Huh?! Lin'an County?! Ji He was shocked and his heart was pounding.

"Huh? Why do you look like this? Are you scared? ”

"Huh? Yes. I—I'm a little scared, but I'm not afraid of death. ”

"Humph! Not only are you a little scared, but you're also a little unbearable, right? ”

"Huh? Yes, yes. Report, report to the captain, Shengcang Village, Lin'an County, is, is my hometown, and it is the place where my ancestors have lived for generations. Ji He trembled, looked frightened, and stammered.

"How's that going? It's a time of war, so don't you fight when you get to your hometown? Ji Hejun, don't forget, you have already joined the Japanese nationality, and you are an imperial soldier, and it is our sacred mission to be loyal to the emperor and eliminate all anti-Japanese forces. ”

"This? I—I haven't forgotten. Captain, you know. Back then, for the sake of the Nakagawa family, Masako, and our children, I joined the Imperial Army. However, at that time, the War Department clearly told me that he was going to fight in Soviet Russia, and he did not say that he would come to China at all. Unexpectedly, after leaving Japan, he came directly to Tianjin, and went all the way west to participate in the Lugou Bridge Incident. Now, it's my hometown in Hebei again. Alas! ”

"Wherever the imperial army goes, it is the needs of war and strategy, we are soldiers, and we must obey unconditionally! Ji Hejun, don't you understand this truth? ”

"I know, I know. However, as a hostile party, attacking the hometown and the people who have lived for generations and raised me, I am really unbearable and unsettled. ”

"This is war, brutal war. Ji Hejun, you must put aside these selfish distractions in the end, dedicate yourself to the war, dedicate yourself to the emperor, defeat and destroy our enemies, this is this time, don't think about your hometown and your fathers and fellow villagers. ”

"This? Captain, how is this a selfish distraction? Think about it, if you were me, what would you think? This war has been fought for five years, and the imperial army has not defeated and destroyed its opponents, but has more and more opponents, and they are getting stronger and stronger......"

"Smack!" Nakagawa raised his right hand and slapped it heavily on the desk, and he stood up angrily. "Baga! Damn war! When will it end? Now, I'm very disgusted with this never-ending war, the more I fight, the more passive it becomes. ”

Ji He's heart was pounding, and he looked at Zhongchuan in a panic and whispered to stop:

"Captain, no, don't say it again, it's terrible for others to hear it! Captain, you're an Imperial soldier, why do you have such thoughts? It shouldn't be. ”

"Yes, it shouldn't. However, knowing that we could not win this war, which had no hope of victory, we still had to hold on to it and fight to the end, and we wanted to destroy all anti-Japanese armed forces in China. The war has been going on for a few years, and I know very well in my heart that it will be difficult, or that we have no chance of winning. Helplessly, I am an imperial soldier, and I must swear allegiance to the emperor to the death, and I must carry out orders to the letter until I am martyred. ”

"Why does the captain say that he hates this war very much?"

"Alas! After participating in the jihad for so many years, I would love to completely occupy and completely conquer China. Later I slowly discovered that this was not possible. At the same time, I also like the vast, beautiful and rich China more and more, and I like the simple and kind people here, not only because my wife is Chinese. In fact, long before the Holy War, I had been to China many times as a scholar, and had traveled through most of China, from Northeast China to North China, through Central China, East China, and finally South China and Southwest China. I was shocked to see more and understand more. I have extensively contrasted and studied the Great Japanese Empire with China. Alas! There is no comparison at all, I feel sad for the Great Japanese Empire, and I feel sad for the Yamato nation. ”

Ji He was puzzled: "Captain, isn't it contradictory that you say this?" ”

"Yes, it's a contradiction. So, I suspect that now I have schizophrenia. ”

"Captain, some of the current junior commanders and soldiers do not hesitate to injure themselves and harm themselves in order to escape this long war and return to Japan as soon as possible, and some desperate soldiers even commit suicide......"

"Ji Hejun, I know what you said. I understand what these people do, but I look down on them, because they are cowards and deserters in doing so, which is a shame for the Imperial Army of Japan and a sorrow for the Yamato nation. Well, let's not talk about that. Captain Jihe, you should also go and prepare. Nakagawa said decisively.

White clouds floated in the clear sky, and the hot air seemed to freeze. After the wheat harvest, the wheat field was bare and empty, and only two or three inches of wheat stubble remained in the field. At this time, in the sun-drenched wheat fields of western Hebei, a brutal battle of the enemy's strength and weakness was going on fiercely, with the sound of artillery rumbling, the smoke of gunpowder, and the sound of gunfire being intensive. The soldiers of the Eighth Route Army and the militia alternately covered, fighting and retreating, stubbornly blocking the Japanese army and the Imperial Allied Army that were frantically chasing. The fleeing people dragged their children and daughters to help the old and the young run south in fear and exhaustion, and the fields were full of discarded items. The wounded and sick of the Eighth Route Army and the militia supported each other as they marched southward, and from time to time someone fell in the explosion of shells and a dense rain of bullets.

Fang Jiren, who was carrying a big knife, lay on the ground, put the 38 big cover rifle on the one-foot-high ridge, and fired accurately at the attacking Japanese puppet army. The soldiers of the sixth company and one platoon scattered and lay in the wheat fields in front of and behind Fang Jiren to block the Japanese puppet army.

"Ma Fucai! A squad leader! Francis shouted.

Ma Fucai bent over to Fang Jiren's side with the crooked machine gun he had captured from the Japanese army, lay on the ground, and asked breathlessly:

"Platoon commander, what are your instructions?"

"First squad leader, why are our six companies more and more scattered? Where is Deputy Company Commander Yuan now? Why can't I see him anymore? ”

"Yuan Lian was wounded by a bullet in the right arm and has already withdrawn from the battle. Now the structure of the troops is disrupted, and the command is chaotic. Platoon commander, you will command the sixth company. ”

"Alas! That's all there is to it. This battle is getting harder and harder, and the more it is fought, the more passive it becomes. You can't fight like this anymore, how can you do this kind of sheep-herding style of play? You have to change your play. ”

"How did it change? How to fight? Platoon commander, you name it. ”

"First squad leader, there is a drainage canal in the wheat field four or five hundred meters behind us, you go and inform the second platoon commander and the third platoon commander to move closer to me now, and when you see me retreating, you will lead the team to follow us and retreat to the drainage canal at the same time, build a defensive position to block the devils, and cover the transfer of the large army and the villagers. Just go! ”

"Yes!" Ma Fucai, the leader of the first squad, got up and ran away with a machine gun.

Francis commanded the soldiers to prepare to continue the stubborn resistance to the Japanese puppet army. The Japanese army and the Imperial Allied Army gradually approached. The soldiers of the second and third platoons bent down and ran quickly, and they all gathered around Francis and lay down. When the two armies were more than 100 meters apart, Francis gave the order to open fire. Suddenly, the machine guns and rifles of the Eighth Route Army opened fire together, and the dense bullets slowed down the attack of the Japanese puppet army. The two armies exchanged fierce fire.

"Comrades! Prepare to drop bombs, one per person, at a distance of 50 meters. Francis shouted.

The attacking Japanese puppet army is getting closer and closer.

Francis shouted an order: "Drop the bomb!" ”

The soldiers of the Sixth Company threw dozens of dense grenades at the same time and exploded in the ranks of the Japanese puppet army attacking and advancing, billowing smoke rose into the air, and the Japanese puppet army was killed and wounded. The Japanese puppet army stopped advancing and lay on the ground in embarrassment.

Francis shouted: "Comrades! Remove! ”

Fang Jiren led his team to retreat south under the cover of billowing gunsmoke.

The soldiers of the 6th Company, some soldiers of the 4th and 5th Companies of the 2nd Battalion, and a small number of militiamen withdrew into a dry drainage channel more than one meter deep in the wheat field.

Sweating profusely, Francis stood in the drainage canal, looked back and forth, panting soldiers, and asked Ma Fucai, who was standing beside him:

"First squad leader, how many people are there in our row? What about weapons? ”

"There are 26 people, except for my crooked handle, and a Czech light machine gun, and the other fighters are all three or eight big covers, but there are not many bullets and grenades."

"How many people are there in our sixth company? Are they all here? ”

"I estimate that there are about 80 people in our sixth company, all of whom are here."

"Hmm. I looked just now, and the soldiers of our second battalion are also nearby. ”

"Yes. Platoon commander, are we going to fight a positional defensive battle here? ”

"yes. As you can see, this wheat field is unobstructed and has a wide field of vision, which is really a good battlefield for positional warfare, but it is very unfavorable to us and we can't fight for a long time. ”

"Who's to say it isn't. Platoon commander, think about the idea, is there a better way to play? ”

"That's what I thought. Fucai, there is a forest four or five miles away from here in the south, you send a soldier with fast legs, quickly find the regiment commander, let the troops and villagers retreat into the woods, and then call the soldiers of the first battalion to move closer here. ”

"Huh? Platoon commander, how do you want to fight? ”

"In this unobstructed wheat field, we will suffer a big loss by fighting hard with the devils. I wanted to hit the devil by surprise and fight back, get some weapons and ammunition and withdraw. ”

"Okay, great. I'll go. Ma Fucai bent over with a machine gun and left.

"Platoon commander, the devil is up again!" The soldier beside Fang Jiren who was in charge of observing the enemy situation shouted loudly.

Franciscan got up and lay down on the side of the drain to inspect.

The Japanese puppet army launched an attack on the positions of the Eighth Route Army, shooting and marching at the same time.

Francis shouted: "Comrades, prepare for battle!" Save bullets, shoot accurately, aim and hit again! Defeat the Devil's Heavy and Commander first. ”

The fighters lying in the drainage canal and in the wheat fields behind the drainage canal were ready for battle, forming a defensive line more than 400 meters wide. The Japanese puppet army from 300 meters away attacked and advanced, and light and heavy machine guns and rifle bullets rained down.

"200 meters." Served as an observer of the warrior report.

"150 meters, 100 meters, 90 meters, 80 meters. Platoon commander, don't you fight yet? ”

Fang Jiren slowly raised his head and carefully observed the battle situation, and shouted: "Fight! As soon as Fang Jiren gave the order, the soldiers opened fire at the same time, and the angry bullets suddenly blew up like a hurricane, and the arrogant Japanese puppet army suddenly fell. The rest of the Japanese puppet army immediately lay down and returned fire, and then crawled forward and fired at the Eighth Route Army.

"Bomb dropping!" Francis shouted. The grenade exploded in the enemy group at a distance of 60 meters.

"Comrades! Come on! With a broadsword in hand, Francis jumped out of the drainage ditch and rushed towards the Japanese puppet army, and the soldiers followed closely behind and charged.

The two armies wrenched together and engaged in a fierce white-knuckle battle. The soldiers of the Eighth Route Army shouted and roared, and they all forgot to kill and killed with red eyes. The Japanese puppet army suffered heavy casualties, and gradually could not support it, so it had to throw away its armor and flee in embarrassment.

Francis ordered: "Don't pursue! Hurry up and gather weapons and ammunition. Remove! ”