Chapter 1 A Lucrative Endeavor

The day's labor didn't make these simple villagers feel tired. On the contrary, they thought working for the Special Operations Brigade today was very worthwhile.

That's why Li Dazhu asked this question when he was about to go home.

Tang Youwei said with a smile, "Yes! Everyone come earlier tomorrow, and gather here as well."

"Can I bring another person? From my family, although she's a woman, she's used to farm work and I guarantee she's no worse than a man."

This opened up the conversation, and more people began to speak up, "My brother went to the fields today, but he can come tomorrow."

"My dad can come tomorrow too!"

...

When the Special Operations Brigade went to find these people today, the lizheng (warden) and village chiefs in each village were assigning one person per household.

No one wanted to do this kind of work, but with the army pressing down, they had no choice but to send people out.

After finishing their work today, this group of people were carrying their share of spoils, as well as a canned meat, a foreign novelty.

They also had a yuan in their pockets, which was a tangible gain. As for having a full belly, that was just a bonus. If they could get another family member to earn money tomorrow, that would be even better.

Tang Youwei smiled, "We only need people over eighteen and under fifty, male or female.

But if there are too many people, we won't have that much money to pay."

"Do you still provide meals?" someone asked from the crowd.

"No matter how many people there are, as long as you work, we'll still provide lunch and dinner.

Those who are actually assigned to work will still be paid." Tang Youwei said.

He knew that when the villagers got enthusiastic, they could gather everyone from all the surrounding villages. Men would work, women would gather to chat, and children would play together.

It's human nature to be social. If there was a reason for everyone to gather together, and even get fed, he believed no one would refuse. It would be just like a festival.

The villagers, having received a satisfactory answer, returned home with their day's earnings. They would be back tomorrow.

On September 2nd, the Central China Expeditionary Army Headquarters received hundreds of battle reports from various locations.

On the Jiangbei battlefield, apart from the 6th Division's advance towards Guangji,

The Second Army's two-pronged attack in Jiangbei had met with strong resistance. At the foot of Fugui Mountain, the Nationalist 36th Division was still holding its ground.

However, the outer positions of Liu'an and Huoshan had been breached, Chaohu Lake had been occupied, and the Special Operations Brigade was also active in the Tianjia'an area.

Further away, in the areas controlled by the North China Front Army, guerrillas were very active. This day was truly a difficult one for Yan Junliu.

He was being driven crazy by the Special Operations Brigade. The Central China Expeditionary Army Headquarters conducted a special analysis of the Special Operations Brigade's pattern.

They believed that the Special Operations Brigade's development was like a spark, or a seed of fire. Wherever they went, the resistance forces there would increase exponentially.

This was a very dangerous signal, and it treated Lin Fan as a particularly dangerous person. It had already issued a kill order to the Tokko, ordering them to kill Lin Fan by any means necessary.

The development process of the Special Operations Brigade was completely transparent to Yan Junliu and the high-ranking Japanese officers.

There were Japanese spies within the Nationalist high command, as well as many sympathizers, and even surrenderists who wanted to negotiate peace with them.

It was simply too easy for the Japanese to gather intelligence.

According to the collected intelligence, the soul of the Special Operations Brigade was Lin Fan. As long as this person was killed, the Special Operations Brigade's combat power would immediately drop by half.

This time, the task of assassinating Lin Fan was handed over to Colonel Fujiwara Yuzhen.

The reason was very simple: he was the only surviving commander who had fought Lin Fan and the Special Operations Brigade four times.

Moreover, he was also an outstanding graduate who had studied at the German special forces, making him the most suitable person for this task.

Although Fujiwara Yuzhen had suffered losses against the Special Operations Brigade, he had consistently maintained victories when dealing with other Nationalist troops. This was why he was able to be promoted from lieutenant colonel to colonel so quickly.

For Fujiwara Yuzhen, the Special Operations Brigade and Lin Fan were thorns in his heart, causing him constant pain.

Receiving this task gave him another chance to compete with Lin Fan. And this time, the support he received was much greater than before.

Lin Fan knew nothing about all of this. He was still at the front line, looking at the temporary passage that the Eighth Regiment had built during the day.

The Japanese blockhouses were not built casually. They were built either in important transportation areas or in places that could control large areas of plains.

These places all had one thing in common: relatively good transportation. This reduced the amount of work required for the Eighth Regiment and the supply train to build roads.

The sky had already darkened, but the road construction work had not stopped.

They all needed to work overtime tonight to ensure that the artillery could be delivered to the front of the Japanese blockhouse before dawn.

That afternoon, at Xuzhou Railway Station, two infantry battalions and one artillery battalion of the Japanese Independent Mixed 10th Brigade had boarded the train and departed from Xuzhou.

These three battalions were commanded by Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro, with the Nakamuwa Yusuke infantry battalion at the front.

Following behind was the Hayuda Taro infantry battalion, with the artillery battalion at the rear.

They departed at 5:00 PM and were expected to arrive in Tianjia'an around 12:00 AM.

This was in line with Brigade Commander Soratake Shunsuke's expectations. He had already learned about the situation in Tianjia'an from Garrison Commander Kaminoe Yusuke.

After losing its first line of defense, Tianjia'an repelled the Nationalist attack through heroic Japanese resistance.

The situation at the front was now stable, the Nationalists had retreated, and the Japanese soldiers at the front were in stable spirits with high morale.

According to Garrison Commander Kaminoe Yusuke's description, the situation in Tianjia'an was still very optimistic.

There were at least two lines of defense that were still intact, which gave Brigade Commander Soratake Shunsuke unlimited room for imagination.

No matter how wonderful the imagination was, Brigade Commander Soratake Shunsuke was clear about one thing: battles had to be fought step by step. Therefore, he ordered Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro to deploy his troops to the front line.

When he led the entire brigade to arrive later, he would immediately launch an attack on Hefei.

Before that, Brigade Commander Soratake Shunsuke hoped that Mizukane Ichiro could open up the situation in advance.

Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro fully understood the brigade commander's spirit and did not feel that there was anything wrong with it.

He now had two infantry battalions plus an artillery battalion. Such a strong force was enough to stand alone.

If he added the tank and cavalry teams under Garrison Commander Kaminoe Yusuke in Tianjia'an, he felt that he could directly attack Hefei.

"Clang! Clang!" The sound of the train running was monotonous and dull. Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro was alone in a carriage, studying the map.

He looked at Hefei on the map. The strategic importance of this place was definitely not as great as Xuzhou, but the Jinpu Railway had to pass through here. Even if it wasn't to open up a logistics supply line for the Second Army, it had to be captured.

Just thinking about it made Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro feel good.

Although it was already dark outside, he didn't feel sleepy at all. They should arrive in Tianjia'an tonight around midnight.

Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro did not plan to stay in Tianjia'an. He planned to send two infantry battalions directly to the second line of defense and launch a surprise attack on the Special Operations Brigade on the opposite side tomorrow morning, striving to defeat them in one fell swoop.

That was the plan, and that was how he was going to act. Although Mizukane Ichiro's team was the first priority in scheduling, this railway line was very busy.

Along the way, they still had to wait for the freight trains that had already started running on the section to arrive at the station. Therefore, when they actually arrived in Tianjia'an, it was already 2:30 AM on September 3rd.

It took another two hours for the two infantry battalions and one artillery battalion to get off the train.

By this time, the Japanese of the entire team had been tossing and turning all night, and they were tired and hungry. Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro decided that they would have breakfast on the spot before starting their operation.

During this period, he would also discuss with Garrison Commander Kaminoe Yusuke how to fight the next battle.

Garrison Commander Kaminoe Yusuke was, of course, overjoyed to hear that the Japanese of Mizukane Ichiro's regiment would go to the front line today.

He immediately agreed and patted his chest to show that he would fully support all actions of Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro.

A strong dragon cannot suppress a local snake. Although Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro was of a higher rank, he was not familiar with the terrain of Tianjia'an at all.

He was pointing at the sand table and introducing the situation in the garrison headquarters. Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro was somewhat puzzled when he heard it say lightly that the first line of defense was broken by the Special Operations Brigade yesterday.

However, he was relieved to hear that the Special Operations Brigade was driven back by a strong firepower when it reached the second line of defense.

This fully showed that the Special Operations Brigade's attack on the first line of defense should have been a surprise attack. Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro couldn't help but remind, "They should have attacked the first line of defense by surprise. We must be prepared for defense on the second line."

Commander Kaminoe Yusuke nodded with a smile, "Great minds think alike. That's what I think too. I've already ordered all strongholds today to send out patrols at night to patrol outside the strongholds and strictly prohibit anyone from approaching."

This reassured Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro. They were not clear about the troop deployment of the Special Operations Brigade.

But did that matter? For Regimental Commander Mizukane Ichiro, it didn't matter at all.

No matter how many soldiers there were in the Special Operations Brigade on the opposite side, he would just push straight through.

Feng Junya, who had been busy all night, stood in front of a cannon. In the dark night, he could vaguely see a little firelight far ahead.

That was where the Japanese blockhouse was located. Today, there were teams patrolling outside the Japanese blockhouse with torches.

He Yushu walked around the blockhouse and complained, "It's so late at night, and we're still being asked to patrol. The Japanese are really bad."

Another person followed and said, "We've never been asked to get up in the middle of the night to patrol before. Why is that, platoon leader?"

These puppet soldiers would ask the platoon leader if they didn't know what to do. If they didn't understand anything, they would ask the platoon leader. Who told him to have attended the Jiangwutang Military Academy?

Fan Jinglue said, "The first line of defense was broken by the Nationalists at the same time. The blockhouse was so strong, and we don't even know how the Nationalists blew it up.

Of course, the Japanese are scared. They must think that all the blockhouses were blown up by the Nationalists with explosives, so they want us to patrol the outside to prevent anyone from approaching the blockhouse."

"So that's how it is!" These puppet soldiers, who were full of complaints, finally understood.

He Yushu suddenly asked, "Platoon leader! How did the Nationalists blow up so many blockhouses?"

Fan Jinglue thought for a while, "If I could figure it out, I would have been a company commander already."

The Nakamuwa Yusuke Infantry Battalion, the Hayuda Taro Infantry Battalion, and the Ueda Yōsei Artillery Team, who had arrived in Tianjia'an by train overnight, had already eaten breakfast and started heading towards the front line before dawn.

They were going to the second line of defense to strengthen the defense and prepare to attack and defeat the Nationalist troops on the opposite side.

When it was slightly bright, Feng Junya could already clearly see the Japanese blockhouse a thousand meters away.

It was time to fire!

Feng Junya ordered into the microphone, "Fire!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" As soon as his order was issued, there was a earth-shattering roar.

The Eighth Regiment had spent a day and a night installing the cannons in the front, and now it was time to reap the rewards.

Five thousand people from each company of the First Regiment, plus the supply team, fully armed, waited for the blockhouse in front to collapse so that they could continue the charge.

The Eighth Regiment had done the same task once before, and this was the second time. Every cannon had been carefully adjusted, and Lin Fan had personally adjusted some of them.

At this time, Lin Fan, Chen Sichuan, and Tang Youwei were all on the scene watching.

At a distance of one thousand meters, the speed of the shells in the air was more than nine hundred meters per second. They only flew in the air for one second before exploding on the Japanese blockhouse.

Just as the sky was getting bright, Fan Jinglue and the others had finished patrolling again and had just returned to the fortifications near the blockhouse when they heard a loud noise, "Rumble!"

These puppet soldiers ran out together and looked up in the direction of the sound. The blockhouse that they had just walked around was now down, leaving only a stump less than two meters high at the bottom.

The Japanese blockhouses were all built in a circular shape, and now they looked like tree stumps left in the ground after being felled.

"Where is the Taijun (Japanese soldier) inside?" He Yushu suddenly asked.

"Dead!" Fan Jinglue said coldly.

"Dead? Good riddance! Damn it, making us get out of there," He Yushu rejoiced.

"We have to thank them! Otherwise, we would have been among the dead too," Fan Jinglue continued.

"What kind of weapon did the Nationalist army use?" This was what the puppet soldiers were concerned about.

"Cannon! Heavy cannon! They have heavy cannons and bombed it directly," Fan Jinglue understood as soon as he heard the sound of the cannon.

"But didn't you see yesterday on the blockhouse that the Nationalist cannon couldn't penetrate the blockhouse?" He Yushu asked, puzzled.

"Yesterday was yesterday, and today is today. Do you know why they didn't continue fighting yesterday?

They weren't scared at all, they just weren't ready. Now they're ready, and you can see how easily they can destroy a blockhouse with one shot.

We have to prepare to run! With such powerful cannons, if they miss and hit us, none of us will be able to escape," Fan Jinglue said seriously.

"Where do we run to? If we run back now, we'll probably get it."

...

When the Nakamuwa Yusuke Battalion was marching, they suddenly heard a "rumbling" sound from the front.

This was the sound of cannons. Many of the Japanese soldiers marching were old soldiers who had been on the battlefield, and they recognized it immediately.

"The battle has already begun in front. The whole team stops advancing! Squad Leader Kogen Shota, you take the team to scout and report back immediately!"

"Hai!" Squad Leader Kogen Shota responded and immediately led a squad out.

The Japanese had built the road well, and they could just charge forward along this road.

After running more than a thousand meters, the Japanese soldiers of Squad Leader Kogen Shota had already seen the situation in front: there was clearly a long line of defense in front, and now many of the blockhouses that were originally installed on that line of defense were missing.

Just as the Japanese soldiers of Squad Leader Kogen Shota were watching, some more blockhouses suddenly exploded, splitting apart, completely without warning.

Each blockhouse was connected by communication trenches, and now people were constantly running out of those communication trenches and running away.

"Sūmura Takuya! Report back to the battalion commander immediately: the front line is under artillery fire, and the soldiers on the line are fleeing in panic."

Squad Leader Kogen Shota led the team and rushed up without regard for anything else.

Kageyama Yūta was the battalion commander of the Aikō Company stationed on the second line of defense, and he lived in the blockhouse.

He was different from Aikō Company Commander Shihōdō Atsushi and puppet army Division Commander Bian Binbiao. Those two lived in the village behind the second line of defense.

Battalion Commander Kageyama Yūta jumped up as soon as he heard the first cannon sound.

He quickly rushed to the top of the blockhouse to check the situation. When he saw that the blockhouse not far away had been blown down, he didn't know what was going on.

But he had a feeling that this blockhouse was not a fortress, but a tomb. There were nearly a squad of Japanese soldiers and some puppet soldiers in that blockhouse that had collapsed. Now he couldn't see a single living one.

Thinking of this, he quickly ordered, "Quick! Get out of here! Get out!"

His blockhouse was larger than the other blockhouses, and it had been specially reinforced during construction. The walls were much thicker.

The sound of the cannon just now had awakened the Japanese soldiers and puppet soldiers who had been waiting in full battle readiness.

Some of them rushed to the top of the building, and some were preparing to fight at the shooting holes on the second floor.

The Japanese soldiers who were rushing up the stairs heard the battalion commander order them to rush out quickly.

For a moment, they didn't react. They thought they were going to rush to the top of the building.

This made it impossible for Battalion Commander Kageyama Yūta, who was eager to go downstairs, to move at all.

He had to order again, "Rush out of the blockhouse and go to the communication trench."

This time the order was clear. The Japanese soldiers who had just reached the top of the building and the Japanese soldiers who were on the ladder began to squeeze down.

They didn't know why the battalion commander suddenly ordered them to abandon the solid fortress, but none of these Japanese soldiers asked questions. They were only responsible for executing the order.

The puppet soldiers who lived on the bottom floor took the lead this time. These puppet soldiers were all veterans on the battlefield.

They were definitely not as good as the Japanese soldiers when it came to charging and fighting, but they would never admit defeat when it came to escaping!

Ma Lingyun was a small leader of the puppet soldiers in the blockhouse. From the panicked voice of the battalion commander when he issued the order, he had already sensed the imminent danger.

He kicked Gu Xiaobai, who was trying to get a gun, and scolded, "We're running for our lives! What gun? Run!"

Where was the danger? Gu Xiaobai looked around and couldn't find any danger at all.

Ma Lingyun could only help to this extent. It was impossible for him to give up his chance to escape for one person.

Although he didn't know where the danger came from. But it didn't prevent him from running away with all his strength.

The puppet soldiers running in the front tried to open the narrow door of the blockhouse and lower the drawbridge. Ma Lingyun rushed out first.

Taking the lead, he rushed towards the connecting communication trench. The puppet soldiers behind him were also trying to keep up.

When these puppet soldiers rushed out, the chaotic order of the Japanese soldiers on the top of the building had just recovered. They all gave way to allow Battalion Commander Kageyama Yūta to go first.

Even the Japanese soldiers and puppet soldiers on the second floor did not dare to go downstairs at this time. They had to clear the road and ask the battalion commander to go first.

At this time, Ma Lingyun, who was running, heard a sharp sound in the air.

He didn't turn his head to look in the direction of the sound, but instead made a fish leap and plunged into the communication trench.

His body had just touched the ground when he heard a deafening explosion, and he also felt the ground tremble, shaking his head dizzy.

At this time, he had time to climb up and look in the direction of the sound.

The blockhouse where they had just been was now down, and the puppet soldiers who had run out with him were staggering and falling on the road.

Only a few people were still groaning. There were only five or six people who were really not injured.

Gu Xiaobai was holding a rifle in his hand, and he fell to the edge of the blockhouse. Half of his body was crushed by the collapsed blockhouse, and he was obviously not going to survive.

He had seen this situation many times and didn't feel much sadness. Being a puppet soldier was like being cannon fodder, and the brothers who were with him were constantly changing.

Only those old-timers could survive battle after battle.

It's just that in today's situation, even the old-timers had died three or four.

It wasn't that they didn't react quickly, but the power of the shells fired by the Nationalist army was too great.

Then he thought of Battalion Commander Kageyama Yūta, who was the first to discover that something was wrong and issued the order to retreat, but he himself was buried in the blockhouse.

Ma Lingyun felt a sense of joy: let you always choose a good place to live.

In a place like a blockhouse, the bottom floor was of course dark and humid, and they, the puppet soldiers, could only live on the bottom floor.

Only the Japanese soldiers could live on the second and third floors. As a result, these puppet soldiers on the bottom floor had the advantage in escaping just now. Although they didn't all survive, there were still five or six who survived, which was better than none of the Japanese soldiers surviving.