Chapter 1 The Retreat

Shi Youshan watched the battle from a distance. He clearly saw that the puppet troops were only trying to bomb one platoon.

Shi Youshan, who had witnessed dozens of artillery shells being fired, sighed, "We can't break into Xuzhou. Notify everyone to retreat!

"Let's go back where we came from! Whoever wants to pick this ready-made peach, let them have it! I'm not serving anymore."

Judging from the puppet troops' counterattack, there was no sign whatsoever that they had lost morale and were preparing to surrender and run away.

Shi Youshan had every reason to believe that the high-ranking Kuomintang (KMT) officials had been deceived by intelligence, and the information given to him was also false.

Fortunately, only one company was deployed, and casualties were controllable. At this time, retreating meant not knowing if there were any Japanese ambushes on the way back.

The thought of this sent a shiver down Shi Youshan's spine! If they were really ambushed by the Japanese, his unit would be finished!

Growing more fearful, he ordered, "Send out a reconnaissance team ahead. Be careful!"

The KMT army came quickly and retreated quickly. The puppet troops never imagined that they could actually repel the attacking KMT forces.

The happiness came so suddenly that the puppet troops were somewhat unable to accept it for a while.

When Fanjiatuan and the others had just begun their attack, Ruan Lesheng had already urgently sent a telegram to the North China Front Army Headquarters, reporting that Xuzhou was in crisis and was being attacked by the KMT forces.

The senior staff officers at the North China Front Army Headquarters were still struggling to come up with a plan to rescue Xuzhou, and half an hour had already passed.

The North China Front Army Headquarters still hadn't found a feasible solution.

They didn't slack off but continued to work hard, trying to find a way to prevent Xuzhou from being captured by the KMT forces.

Ruan Lesheng in Xuzhou City never imagined that only half an hour had passed, and the KMT forces had actually been driven back!

The news came so suddenly that Ruan Lesheng couldn't believe it was true.

It wasn't until the reconnaissance team that Zhuo Qiang had sent out followed the KMT forces for a full twenty *li* (approximately 6.2 miles) that he dared to confirm that the KMT forces had really retreated.

At this time, Shi Lesheng insisted that the troops attacking today were the Lunan Detachment!

Overjoyed, Ruan Lesheng once again sent a telegram to the North China Front Army Headquarters: "Our army killed more than 300 members of the Lunan Detachment in the recent battle.

"The Lunan Detachment led its troops to flee. Our army pursued them for twenty *li*. We are now firmly defending our lines and are ready to fight again at any time."

When this telegram reached the North China Front Army Headquarters, the entire headquarters was silent.

All the Japanese couldn't believe the authenticity of the telegram. Fortunately, although the regular troops stationed in Xuzhou City had all died,

there were still many spies left in Xuzhou City. Through this line, the North China Front Army Headquarters received definitive news.

The 37th Puppet Army had actually defeated the Lunan Detachment!

The happiness came so suddenly that Commander-in-Chief Terauchi Hisaichi shed tears of excitement: "He finally doesn't have to bear the blame for losing Xuzhou."

Although he didn't know why the puppet troops could defeat the Lunan Detachment, while the elite Xuzhou Task Force was completely annihilated, none of that mattered anymore.

What mattered most at this time was that Xuzhou was saved!

Such a thing must be rewarded immediately: Okamura Neiji immediately reported the good news to the Imperial General Headquarters and requested commendation for Ruan Lesheng.

He also ordered: "Immediately send two women from the island to Ruan Lesheng in Jinan to comfort him."

This was considered the greatest reward the Japanese could give to a puppet army commander. These women, who were still in school on the island, were inspired by the content of propaganda.

They resolutely interrupted their studies and came to the front line with the idea of devoting themselves to comforting the exhausted bodies and minds of the Japanese.

They wanted to devote themselves, and their only task here was to devote themselves. All along, these women with higher qualities were enjoyed by the upper echelons of the Japanese.

Now it was time to let them comfort Ruan Lesheng's body and mind.

For a puppet army commander who could defeat the Lunan Detachment, Terauchi Hisaichi felt it was worth sending two women over to watch over this kind of fighting puppet army at all times, preventing it from having other ideas.

While the Japanese rejoiced, the KMT was worried. Chiang Kai-shek received the news that Shi Youshan had led the 69th Army to retreat from the outskirts of Xuzhou and continue to hide in the mountains to fight guerrilla warfare.

He said with some disappointment, "Rotten mud can't be plastered on the wall!" Fortunately, his overall direction of capturing Xuzhou hadn't changed.

Didn't they still have the Lunan Detachment, who knew nothing about what had happened before? Let the Lunan Detachment chew on the hard bones!

As for the 69th Army's report that the defending puppet troops had fierce firepower and their combat effectiveness was even stronger than the Japanese, the people in the Wuhan headquarters' staff department didn't believe it, and Chiang Kai-shek didn't believe it either.

The puppet troops' firepower was fierce? Could it be fiercer than the Japanese' firepower?

What's more, many of the staff officers in the headquarters had participated in actual combat on the front lines, and it wasn't like they hadn't fought with the puppet troops before.

Regarding the news of the 69th Army's setback in Xuzhou, no one thought of notifying the Lunan Detachment.

The next day, Lin Fan led the team from Tashan Town towards Xuzhou City, and the remaining regiments all acted according to their assigned tasks.

This time, he was leading the 6th to 11th Regiments of the Lunan Detachment, as well as five companies from the 1st Regiment, leading five security regiments.

At the same time, in the direction of the Jiangbei Detachment, Chen Sichuan also led his team all the way through thorns and thistles, fiercely attacking Xuzhou along the railway line.

Regarding the snowflake-like telegrams for help along the railway line and the constant phone calls to the Xuzhou City Defense Headquarters for help, Ruan Lesheng didn't reply to the telegrams, and only told them to hold on and defend well on the phone.

Just kidding! It had seen so many Japanese troops leaving the city to rescue them these days, but the result was that they failed to rescue them and were completely annihilated.

Once bitten, twice shy! Ruan Lesheng wasn't so stupid. It would just defend Xuzhou to the death and wouldn't go anywhere.

Being able to repel the attacking Lunan Detachment, it believed that Xuzhou was as solid as a rock and didn't need to worry anymore.

The two women that the North China Front Army Headquarters had specially sent to it last night made it truly feel the importance the Japanese attached to it.

After a night of spring dreams, Ruan Lesheng woke up with a sore waist and didn't get out of bed until the sun was high in the sky.

Yesterday's battle had also made it very excited. This morning, it had already notified each regiment in advance: today, all officers above the company level should come to the Xuzhou City Defense Headquarters.

They would listen to Regiment Commander Zhuo Qiang explain how to deal with the attacking KMT troops, and they would also hold a commendation meeting for the brave puppet troops who had fought yesterday.

This was a celebration meeting and also an experience exchange meeting. The entire meeting was scheduled to last for three days. Today, there would be commendations, reports, and a dinner. In the afternoon, there would be an experience exchange, and in the evening, there would be another dinner and a dance party.

Ruan Lesheng was very familiar with this kind of process. There were many talents like this among its subordinates.

Ruan Lesheng, who got up late, entered the venue at ten o'clock, and everyone attending the meeting had arrived.

It first gave an enthusiastic speech and presided over the awarding of prizes to the puppet troops who had performed bravely yesterday.

In particular, it gave Zhuo Qiang a particularly high evaluation and also rewarded him with a courtyard in Xuzhou City.

Next, the puppet troops began to report their deeds on the battlefield one by one.

Just as it was about half past eleven, all the puppet troops' officers above the company level went to attend the specially held celebration banquet.

After the dinner, it was the officers' free time. At three o'clock in the afternoon, there would be an experience exchange.

These puppet troops who were drinking and eating meat at the dinner were now in high spirits. They were hooking up in groups and strolling around Xuzhou City.

For these puppet troops, today was their most glorious day. All the Japanese in Xuzhou City were gone.

Heaven was the boss, and they were the second in command. The key was that they believed they had saved Xuzhou, and the entire Xuzhou belonged to them.

This kind of psychological self-recognition made all the puppet troops very inflated. Today, they acted on the streets without any scruples.

They took whatever they wanted, ate whatever they wanted, and played with whatever they wanted. Today, a large group of puppet troops, with red faces and mouths full of alcohol, wreaked havoc in Xuzhou City, causing great suffering to the merchants in the city.

These days, shopkeeper Bai's life hadn't been easy either. Although he had established a relationship with Battalion Commander Qiao of the puppet army and bought a large number of cheap goods,

he still had to pay the taxes that the puppet army came to collect, especially since he was rich and powerful. The puppet army's standards for him were high, and they only thought about making a quick buck when collecting taxes, without thinking about the long term.

The tax collection was particularly heavy. He originally thought that this was the end of it, but he didn't expect some puppet troops to come again after drinking today.

When would these days come to an end?

The people in the city couldn't hear the sound of gunfire on the outskirts of Xuzhou. They didn't know about the battle that was taking place outside the city.

Shopkeeper Bai only secretly complained in his heart: why hadn't the 69th Army come yet?

At this time, Shi Youshan was already leading his team on the way back to his old nest. The entire team was walking with their heads down. Fortunately, it wasn't the first time they had been defeated, and everyone was able to remain stable.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the advance troops of the Special Operations Brigade arrived on the outskirts of Xuzhou. Company Commander Feng Shuili of the 1st Company was now the commander of the 1st Security Regiment of Ju County.

He was leading the 1st Security Regiment of Ju County, but this time he wasn't walking at the front of the entire team. This time, the attack on Xuzhou was led by the 7th Regiment of the Lunan Detachment.

Regiment Commander Song Guoan received a report: "The 1st Company has discovered the puppet army's defense line ahead."

Without hesitation, Regiment Commander Song ordered, "The entire regiment spread out and prepare for artillery bombardment." His regiment was no longer the security regiment it had been half a month ago.

After half a month of continuous fighting, Song Guoan's regiment had been completely transformed.

The weapons in the soldiers' hands had all been replaced, and all the equipment was no different from that of the 1st Regiment. The entire regiment now had not only mortars and rocket launchers,

but also anti-aircraft machine guns and rocket artillery, which had only been equipped by the 1st Regiment later.

Not to mention that there were only puppet troops blocking the way, even if the Japanese were blocking the way, Regiment Commander Song wouldn't hesitate at all. He would just rush up and fight.

Upon receiving the order, the companies immediately began to prepare. Regiment Commander Song reported the puppet army's defense line ahead to Lin Fan.

Lin Fan's opinion was the same: attack! However, he ordered the 6th Regiment to spread out on the spot and immediately bombard the puppet army's defense line.

For the enemies blocking the way, and with the puppet troops having solid bunkers, Regiment Commander Song Guoan's infantry artillery might not be powerful enough. Lin Fan ordered the 6th Regiment to join the bombardment.

He also told Regiment Commander Song to wait a moment for the bombardment, and to start bombarding together when the 6th Regiment began to bombard.

At the same time, he also ordered the planes from Feixian Airport to take off and assist in the attack.

Everything in the world is interconnected! When the 7th Regiment discovered the puppet army's defense line, the puppet army also discovered the 7th Regiment.

"The KMT army has been discovered attacking outside the city again!" The news was immediately transmitted from the front line of defense to the headquarters of the 37th Puppet Army.

At this time, Ruan Lesheng was enjoying the special benefits that Commander-in-Chief Terauchi Hisaichi had given him, with one woman on each side.

Suddenly hearing that the KMT army was attacking outside the city again, he nonchalantly ordered, "Attack! Give it to me fiercely! This time, we must beat them so badly that they won't dare to come again."

He was a little angry: why wouldn't these KMT troops give up? They ran away yesterday, and they were back again today?

At the same time, he also regretted it a little: yesterday, he should have ordered each regiment to pursue them for ten *li*, so that they wouldn't always be thinking about attacking the city.

Thinking of this, he finally forced himself to crawl out of the gentle embrace and ordered the guards outside, "Bring back the commanders of each regiment and company. I want to give them a lecture."

Inside the puppet army's bunker outside Xuzhou City, Jiang Chongyi had an ominous feeling as he looked at the KMT troops not far away.

Today's team was different from yesterday's. Yesterday's KMT troops started charging as soon as they reached the front line, without stopping at all.

This time, the people on the other side just stopped and waited, as if just waiting would allow them to attack Xuzhou.

He had just reported the situation, and the order he received was still conveyed from the city defense headquarters: "Attack! Attack fiercely!"

The company commander, battalion commander, and regimental commander were all in Xuzhou City. If they weren't there, who would command?

At this time, the city defense headquarters in Xuzhou City had already started looking for people in the city.

If you wanted to find someone in this era, you could only send people to ask at each shop in the city.

The merchants in Xuzhou City couldn't recognize who the puppet troops who came to harass them today were. They could only point out the directions and let the puppet troops go to find them.

Platoon Leader Jiang, who was still in the bunker, could only order his dozens of puppet troops to prepare to counterattack.

Platoon Leader Jiang was only an infantry platoon leader. He didn't make much功劳 (gōngláo, contribution) in yesterday's battle. Among the puppet army's mortar companies, the platoon leader had gone to Xuzhou City to report.

"Prepare the mortars!" When the order was passed down, Squad Leader Zhong Cheng immediately had his puppet troops start preparing.

They fought well yesterday, and the platoon leader had gone into the city to report and receive rewards, leaving behind these artillerymen. The highest-ranking officer was the squad leader.

Zhong Cheng first ordered the artillerymen to test-fire a few shells to find the firing parameters. They had plenty of shells prepared and weren't afraid of wasting them.

The KMT troops attacking now were only a little over a thousand meters away, well within the range of the mortars.

In the puppet army's mortar positions, if one gun fired, others would follow suit.

Once they started firing like this, they couldn't stop. The puppet troops on the defense line were very familiar with this scene. That's how they fought yesterday.

The puppet troops defending in this direction were all excited: that's how they repelled a KMT force yesterday.

It had made the regimental commander very happy, and all the officers said during the lecture: "Our team has strong combat effectiveness. We drove away the Lunan Detachment, which annihilated tens of thousands of Japanese troops. Brothers, you're awesome!"

Where did a team's combat effectiveness come from? It came from winning battles.

These puppet troops firmly believed that they had driven away the Lunan Detachment, and then the Lunan Detachment had annihilated tens of thousands of Japanese troops. The result of this comparison was: the puppet army had the strongest combat effectiveness!

This conclusion boosted the puppet troops' morale, and now was when their morale was at its highest.

Those puppet troops squatting in the trenches and hiding in the bunkers watched their own mortars firing non-stop.

They all cheered. Platoon Leader Jiang was no exception. He watched his own shells being fired continuously, and the puppet troops under his command cheered.

The morale was commendable, and the military's spirit was usable! He quickly called the city defense headquarters again: "Our army has begun a fierce artillery bombardment of the attacking KMT troops. The brothers on the front line are in high spirits and are waiting in formation for the KMT infantry to attack."

Being able to do this was already the limit of what Platoon Leader Jiang could do.

Anyway, they had a lot of shells, and the mortar shells were fired non-stop. Platoon Leader Jiang was happy to see this happen at this time.

When Ruan Lesheng answered the phone just now, it had asked him for the numbers and names of all the teams. It believed that it would definitely be promoted after this battle.

Platoon Leader Jiang was already full of expectations for the future!

When the commander of the 6th Regiment of the Lunan Detachment, Hou Wentian, was commanding the artillery regiment to spread out, before he had fired a shot,

news came from the front line that the puppet troops had fired first, which made Commander Hou feel a little embarrassed.

These puppet troops were too unethical. His own artillery hadn't been deployed yet.

The 7th Regiment wasn't someone who would only be beaten and not fight back. Regiment Commander Song had ordered the entire regiment to retaliate when the first shell of the puppet army landed.

His regiment's retaliation didn't last for five minutes when Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader), who was standing firmly in the bunker, suddenly felt the ground shake.

He heard the sound of artillery shells exploding, which was deafening, and the ground of the entire bunker was shaking.

This shock was just the beginning. Next, these puppet troops were like sitting on a small boat in a stormy sea, their bodies shaking non-stop.

Shells were falling everywhere, and there was the sound of explosions everywhere.

"Fight back!" Platoon Leader Jiang wanted to order the mortar gunners. He grabbed the phone and wanted to connect to the mortar position.

The puppet soldier who answered the phone reported in a trembling voice: "Officer! The KMT's artillery fire is too fierce. Our position has been destroyed and we can't fight back at all."

"What?" The other side had only just started bombarding, and they couldn't hold on anymore?

"How can we defend this?" Platoon Leader Jiang's face was pale as he called for the phone again. He wanted to report to his superiors.

At this time, only a dial tone was coming out of the microphone, and there was no other reaction at all.

"What to do?" Platoon Leader Jiang looked at the twenty or so puppet soldiers in the bunker. Although he didn't ask the question, his expression and demeanor had already revealed everything.

"Let's run!" Zhou Youwei in the bunker said loudly.

When they were cheering just now, its voice was the loudest, and the suggestion to escape was also the first thing it said loudly.

"Run!" Puppet soldiers immediately echoed. Yesterday, they had a fluke victory, and their morale had soared.

Just now, they saw their own shells bombarding the KMT army, and the other side's reaction was no more than they had imagined. These puppet troops were still thinking about how to beat this KMT army back again.

Now all the ideas were gone, and they had only one thought: "Escape!"

The entire team's morale, which had just gone up, was like a deflated ball after being blown up by artillery shells, and it immediately withered.

"Yesterday, they didn't fire so many shells." Platoon Leader Jiang gave himself a reason, a reason to retreat.

Without hesitation, when they ran out of the bunker, smoke filled the air, and it was difficult to see clearly in the haze.

However, the bunker they had just been staying in collapsed after a loud noise.

Whether it was Platoon Leader Jiang or the puppet soldiers, their faces changed in fright: if they hadn't run out, they would all be ghosts now.

"Run!" Zhou Youwei shouted, threw away the rifle in his hand, and began to flee backward.

In the smoky haze, Platoon Leader Jiang couldn't see the situation on the battlefield clearly. He could only see that many puppet soldiers were running out of the trenches and fleeing towards Xuzhou City.

Seeing the puppet soldiers running out of the trenches and bunkers in the distance, Regiment Commander Song immediately reported the situation.

Artillery bomb! Infantry charge! Now it was the 6th Regiment's heavy artillery that was bombing. Regiment Commander Song didn't dare to send anyone to charge up.

They had to wait until the 6th Regiment's bombardment ended before the infantry dared to launch an attack.

After the heavy artillery bombardment ended, Company Commander Min Zishi of the 1st Company, Company Commander Yu Zizhen of the 2nd Company, Company Commander Bao Xingwang of the 3rd Company, and Company Commander Quan Yeyu of the 4th Company led their four companies and charged toward Zhuo Qiang's regiment's defense line.

When they charged, they still used the same cart to open the way, rushing all the way without being attacked by a single bullet.

The puppet troops originally had no combat effectiveness, let alone morale. They were oppressed by the Japanese every day and didn't dare to resist. How could a team like this have morale?

These puppet troops had only gained the upper hand in the battle with the 69th Army yesterday, and that's why they had some morale.

Today, after being bombarded by the Lunan Detachment like this, the morale that had just risen collapsed like a paper tiger.

Regiment Commander Song didn't know how this puppet army had fought yesterday. He didn't even know that there had been a battle here yesterday.

He just thought that the puppet troops should be like this. After charging into the puppet troops' defense line, judging from the situation reported by the company commanders, the puppet troops had all fled.

There was no need to hesitate: continue to pursue! Don't chase desperate bandits, that's because you're not strong enough and afraid that the puppet troops will fight like trapped beasts.

For the Lunan Detachment, these puppet troops must not be let go. If they were caught and reformed, the power of resistance would be increased by one point.

Now it wasn't just Song Guoan's 7th Regiment that was chasing the fleeing puppet troops, Zhang Xiuru's 8th Regiment and Tian Huacai's 9th Regiment, three regiments were pursuing the fleeing puppet troops at the same time.

Zhuo Qiang's regiment wasn't the only one defending on the puppet army's defense line north of Xuzhou. When the Lunan Detachment's artillery bombarded, the puppet troops who weren't subjected to artillery bombardment were the first to start fleeing.

They were all old hands on the battlefield. They could feel just by listening to the sound of the shells exploding: today was different from yesterday. It was completely two different teams attacking.

Yesterday, these puppet troops wanted to run away when the 69th Army started attacking.

It was just that yesterday they had company commanders and regimental commanders pressing down on them, and at the same time, Lao Zhuo next door could also retaliate.

Yesterday, these puppet troops heard from the shells fired by the KMT army: small guns, and few in number. That's why they had their counterattack later, driving away the KMT army.

Today was different. Zhuo Qiang, who was so brave in counterattacking yesterday, fired his shells, but he didn't scare the other side at all.

And it also attracted the other side's fierce retaliation. At first, the two sides fought back and forth, but after a while, it was clear that the KMT army on the other side had heavy artillery joining in.

At this time, the puppet army's mortars were already playing dead and didn't dare to fire at all.

In fact, the puppet troops who were operating the mortars had already run away. They were the ones who fired the guns. From the shells fired by the other side, they immediately knew that they had kicked a steel plate this time.

In this situation, why wouldn't they run away? Were they sitting and waiting to die?

When several regiments of the Lunan Detachment charged into the puppet army's defense line, the puppet troops had already run far away.

In this situation, of course everyone had to continue to chase.

This defense line was still ten kilometers away from Xuzhou City. When it came to comparing who could run faster, the Lunan Detachment wouldn't lose.

In fact, this defense line was proposed by the Xuzhou Task Force when it hadn't been wiped out yet.

At that time, they had already started doing some basic work, and a few days ago, they had Zhuo Qiang lead people to build it urgently.

Yesterday, this defense line made great contributions, but today it was leveled by the Lunan Detachment in one wave.

Now a strange scene appeared on the outskirts of Xuzhou: the puppet troops were fleeing in front, and the Lunan Detachment was chasing behind.

These fleeing puppet troops, after all, couldn't run as well as the Lunan Detachment, who trained every day.

After chasing for only three or four *li*, some puppet troops had already thrown away their weapons and collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.

They couldn't run anymore and could only sit and wait to be captured!

A full three regiments chased after them. Each regiment left a company to gather these puppet troops, and the remaining companies continued to chase forward.

These puppet troops who were paralyzed on the ground, feeling that moving would kill them, looked at the lively and energetic soldiers of the Lunan Detachment and couldn't imagine: how could these soldiers still be fine after running so far!

While the chase outside the city was fierce, the puppet troops in Xuzhou City were still as leisurely as ever.

Even Ruan Lesheng, who knew that the KMT army was attacking, was very calm: Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader), who had first reported the situation, had reported again.

He said that the puppet troops on the front line had started shelling, and the puppet troops' morale was high. They were waiting for the KMT army to charge.

With such a strong army in hand, what did he have to worry about! Looking at the fact that some puppet troops' company and regimental commanders who had come to attend the celebration meeting and exchange meeting had already returned to the command post.

Ruan Lesheng wasn't in a hurry. Anyway, the meeting was scheduled for three o'clock, and there were still more than twenty minutes left. By then, all the puppet army commanders would be back.

It even felt that it was a little too urgent to send guards to find these puppet troops all over Xuzhou City.

It didn't have any sense of being in command. It still had to practice more! He was the commander of a team that was even more powerful than the Japanese army.

Ruan Lesheng ordered to contact the front line and see how the situation was on the front line.

The command post of Zhuo Qiang's regiment, which had first reported the discovery of the KMT army, couldn't be reached by phone. That Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader) was also like that. It had been nearly twenty minutes and he hadn't reported the battle situation.

It seemed that he still wasn't mature enough! If he was sensible enough, he should have called to report every five minutes.

Ruan Lesheng thought this way, but the expression on his face didn't change. He just stood in the courtyard outside the command post. Da Feng Novel.com

He stood majestically in the courtyard, constantly greeting the company-level and battalion-level commanders of the puppet troops who came in and encouraging them.

These puppet troops were its foundation. Ruan Lesheng was clear about this. It wasn't a good-for-nothing and knew that a casual smile or a casual word of encouragement would require these company commanders to pay with their lives.

It was almost three o'clock in the afternoon, and all the puppet troops' company and regimental commanders who had been commended today were all walking back to the Xuzhou City Defense Commander.

The several regiments of the Lunan Detachment who were chasing the fleeing puppet troops had also approached Xuzhou City.

Those fleeing puppet troops, after all, couldn't run away. Even Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader) was squatting on the side of the road, waiting for the soldiers of the 7th Regiment to escort him away.

It wasn't until a voice shouted for them to stand up that Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader) obediently stood up.

Only then did he dare to quietly look at the soldiers with guns: he found that today's soldiers were definitely not the same group as yesterday's.

At least the weapons used by these two groups were different: yesterday they had picked up a lot of weapons on the battlefield, all of which were the KMT-equipped Zhongzheng rifles.

Today, all the soldiers were holding Arisaka rifles, all of which were weapons used by the Japanese.

Looking at the weapons held by the soldiers who were still walking towards Xuzhou City on the road, they were also used by the Japanese.

"They're definitely not the same group." Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader) thought to himself.

Zhou Youwei was a bold person and also an old veteran. He stood up, took a few steps, and asked the soldiers escorting them, "Brothers! Which team are you from?"

"We're from the Lunan Detachment!" The soldiers didn't hide anything.

"From the Lunan Detachment? We drove you away yesterday, and you're here again today?

"This is really driving away the small ones and bringing in the big ones!" Zhou Youwei didn't care about these things and joked lightly.

"Yesterday we were still in Tashan Town and didn't send anyone over at all. Besides, have you seen these?

"Can you still drive us away?" The soldier pointed his hand to the sky.

A large group of planes was flying overhead, and Jiang 排长 (Pái zhǎng, Platoon Leader) couldn't help but ask, "Are these your planes?"

"Of course, we have not only planes, but also artillery! How could you drive us away?" The soldier said very seriously.

"Misunderstanding! Misunderstanding! The ones who came to attack yesterday were definitely not them. I said that a team that could annihilate tens of thousands of Japanese troops wouldn't be so easily defeated!" Zhou Youwei said loudly.

These puppet troops understood something: they knew that the ones who came to attack the city yesterday were definitely another team.

This situation was immediately reflected to Lin Fan. After knowing that a team had come to attack Xuzhou yesterday,

Lin Fan immediately understood that the 69th Army had come. They should have received news from the Wuhan headquarters that the defense of Xuzhou City was weak and wanted to run ahead and pick the fruits.

They didn't expect the puppet troops defending the city to dare to resist, and the 69th Army couldn't even defeat them.

No wonder these puppet troops dared to take the initiative to fire at first, but when they really fought, they didn't fire a single shot.

Captain Dong Yanghua of the air force was dispatched again. When he flew over at low altitude, he found that Xuzhou hadn't even closed its city gates, and the order in the city was in good order, not at all like a major battle was imminent.

This situation made it difficult for his air squadron to start firing. The Lunan Detachment was ruthless to the Japanese and wouldn't show any mercy.

If they could kill two Japanese soldiers, they would never kill just one and a half. However, the Lunan Detachment had always been lenient to the puppet troops. As long as the puppet troops weren't guilty of heinous crimes that had to be killed, they could all be allowed to atone for their crimes.

In this situation, Dong Yanghua couldn't grasp it and immediately asked Lin Fan for instructions. Lin Fan ordered the air squadron to stand by in the air and at the same time ordered Song Guoan's 7th Regiment to speed up.

After all, the puppet troops hadn't even closed the city gates, which was very beneficial for attacking the city. At the same time, he ordered the 9th, 10th, and 11th Regiments to march quickly towards the other three directions of Xuzhou City.

There was no need to engage in the tactic of besieging three sides and leaving one side open for the puppet troops. As long as they were surrounded, these puppet troops would definitely surrender.

After fighting for a year in this era, Lin Fan had a good understanding of the puppet troops: most of these puppet troops were just trying to make a living.

It was absolutely impossible for them to fight to the death for the Japanese, it would never be possible.

Being a puppet soldier was like going to work for them. They could do some things for the Japanese, but they wouldn't risk their lives.

Therefore, Lin Fan asked for the entire Xuzhou City to be surrounded so that the puppet troops in the city would have nowhere to escape.

Today, this puppet troop was considered to be courageous. They were able to dare to fire after the Japanese were completely annihilated by them, which was very good.

When Company Commander Min Zishi led the team to appear outside the city walls of Xuzhou, it was Luo Heze's puppet troop who was guarding the city walls.

All the officers above the company level of the entire regiment had gone to attend the experience exchange meeting. The puppet troops on the city walls were unmanaged, and they didn't want to just stand on the city walls and bask in the sun, so they went to find shady places to play.

Even the puppet soldiers guarding the city gate didn't know where they had gone. Min Zishi led the 1st Company into the city, immediately rushed to the city wall, and controlled the high ground.

Only then did the puppet troops squatting in the corner gambling stand up and scold them for who they were?

Seeing the 1st Company soldiers' menacing shouts, "Squat down!" was much louder than the puppet troops' voices.

The puppet soldier who had just spoken saw the Arisaka rifle they were holding and the bright bayonet stabbing towards him.

He was so frightened that he quickly begged for mercy, "I'll squat! Is it okay if I squat down?"

The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Companies that followed continued to charge into Xuzhou City.

Ruan Lesheng, who was sitting on the platform listening to Zhuo Qiang talk about his battle experience with the Lunan Detachment, suddenly heard a few gunshots from outside!

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The gunshots were clear and crisp. Although they were holding a meeting, the sound still came in.

It showed that the gunshots weren't far away! The gunshots weren't intense.

"Go out and see! Where did it go off?" Ruan Lesheng said calmly to his guards.

He thought it could only be the puppet soldiers outside playing with their guns. It wasn't a big deal.

The guard he sent out didn't walk out. He just walked to the door, saw the scene outside, and his first reaction was to draw his gun, followed by a crisp gunshot. Da Feng Novel

The guard fell to the ground all of a sudden. He fell