Chapter 23 The Fifth Brigade's Solution to Food Supply

The Japanese Fifth Infantry Brigade finally stopped in Pingluo Village, it was already past four in the afternoon.

These Japanese soldiers hadn't eaten a grain of rice since dinner the night before. Since morning, they had been in a state of fleeing for their lives.

To survive, these Japanese soldiers had forgotten their hunger.

Now it was different. When they could finally stop, without any immediate life-threatening danger.

One by one, the Japanese soldiers felt tired and hungry.

This feeling didn't spare Katayama Riichiro because he was the brigade commander, nor did it spare Takeda Shigezo just because he was an engineer.

All the Japanese soldiers were hungry, leaning against the ruins, basking in the sun, lazily unwilling to move.

Kurihara Naoji, the commander of the transport regiment, was being lectured by Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro: "Baga! The lifeline of the entire brigade, and you lost it all? Slap! Slap! Slap!"

The sound of slapping echoed.

"Hai!" While standing at attention, Kurihara Naoji, who was being slapped, moved his face closer, making it easier for the brigade commander to reach.

Katayama Riichiro, who was already starving, felt even hungrier after slapping him more than a dozen times.

He took a water bottle from a Japanese soldier beside him and took two sips of cold water.

He stopped hitting him but didn't let Regimental Commander Kurihara Naoji leave. Instead, he asked Regimental Commander Takeda Seiichi beside him, "Takeda-kun! You just said that you rescued a soldier from the Fourth Cavalry Brigade from the well, and he survived in the well for four days?"

"Hai! Ono-kun survived in the well for four days," Regimental Commander Takeda Seiichi replied, standing at attention and bowing.

"How did he solve the food problem in the well for four days?" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro was very curious about this question.

He and his team had only been without food for a day, and they were already starving.

If they didn't eat for four days, he didn't know if he could hold on until then.

"Brigade Commander! This subordinate suspects that he ate the remains of Nakajima-kun!"

"Nani?" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro was very brutal, but he hadn't developed the skill of eating Japanese soldiers yet.

However, Regimental Commander Takeda Seiichi's answer reminded him: many animals have the habit of eating their own kind.

Insects like mantises even eat the male mantis immediately after mating.

"Are you sure?"

"Brigade Commander! Ono-kun said that the marks on the corpse were made by large rats, and he survived on the fish in the well these days." Regimental Commander Takeda Seiichi didn't dare to hide anything.

In any case, Junior Captain Ono Shiji had never admitted to cannibalism.

"Nani?"

"I will bring Ono-kun and the remains of Nakajima and Takenaka, the two warriors found in the well, for the brigade commander to see, and it will be clear."

"Yoshi!" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro agreed.

When Ono Shiji saw the two naked corpses, his eyes gleamed with red light.

Of course, he could recognize his two good friends, Nakajima Issei and Takenaka Naoki, even though they had been soaked in the well for four days and nights, and their bodies had swelled up.

But Ono Shiji could still recognize them clearly, and he was uneasy: what does it mean to let me walk with two good friends?

They arrived at a heavily guarded place, which was actually just a half-collapsed ruin.

The Japanese soldier escorting him reported, "Brigade Commander! Ono-kun has arrived."

Hearing the report that Ono-kun had arrived! Ono Shiji's uneasy mood stabilized slightly.

It seemed that the situation was not as bad as he had imagined.

Just as he was thinking that he would be allowed to go inside, a general came out.

Without guessing, Ono Shiji could imagine that this was Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro.

Beside him was Regimental Commander Takeda Seiichi, who had already asked questions.

Ono Shiji stood at attention and saluted, "Brigade Commander!"

Katayama Riichiro looked at the Japanese soldier who had been soaking in the well for four days. He was full of energy, had a very good complexion, and didn't look hungry at all.

His condition was better than that of his subordinates.

Katayama Riichiro asked kindly, "Ono-kun! You have been alone in the well for four days. How did you maintain your physical condition?"

After asking this question, he walked to Nakajima Issei's body and looked at his arm, which only had bones left, and most of the meat on his shoulders was gone.

In fact, Ono Shiji had been nibbling on the corpses from time to time in the well these days.

At first, it was just because he was too bored in the well and time passed too slowly.

He treated Nakajima Issei as a snack. Later, it became a habit. He would tear off a piece of meat and chew it every once in a while.

Ono Shiji couldn't bring himself to talk about this kind of thing.

But the brigade commander must not be stupid, and neither was anyone else.

When Ono Shiji held down Nakajima Issei and Takenaka Naoki with both hands, he never thought that they would leave such obvious bruises on their cervical vertebrae after their deaths.

The corpses accurately presented the cause of death clearly in front of all the Japanese soldiers.

Katayama Riichiro carefully checked the bruises in the same position on the two corpses, but he hadn't heard an answer for so long.

He was a little angry: "Ono-kun!"

"Hai!" Seeing that he couldn't hide it anymore.

Ono Shiji knelt on the ground with a "plop" and said with tears in his eyes, "Brigade Commander! In the well, I wanted Nakajima-kun and Takenaka-kun to be buried in peace.

Keeping them soaked in water all the time is disrespectful to them, and I can't bury them in peace.

That's why I thought of burying them in my stomach, so that the three of us would be together."

"Oh! You really ate them?" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro couldn't be sure.

"Hai!"

Kneeling on the ground, Ono Shiji agreed reflexively.

"Ono-kun! You have to demonstrate!" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro ordered.

"Hai!" Ono Shiji, who was kneeling on the ground, was used to eating something to live on.

He had been very uncomfortable for more than an hour since he came out of the well.

Hearing the brigade commander's order, he finally let go.

He knelt and walked to the stretcher placed on the ground. He had never eaten Takenaka Naoki before.

Let's try it this time!

He bit Takenaka Naoki's arm, tore off a piece of meat, and ate it.

Takenaka Naoki's corpse had been there for four days, and the blood had long since solidified. He didn't look bloody when he ate it raw like this.

Several Japanese soldiers who had just carried Takenaka Naoki and Nakajima Issei over saw him eating so deliciously.

These Japanese soldiers, who were still hungry, couldn't help swallowing.

"Yoshi! Good! Very good!" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro finally found a way to solve the food supply problem.

He waved his hand, and someone immediately took Ono Shiji down.

Out of the brigade commander's sight, Takeda Shigezo asked in a low voice, "What does it taste like?"

"Ah!" He didn't expect that he would be let go after just performing a meat-eating act in front of the brigade commander.

Ono Shiji, who had nothing to do, suddenly heard the Japanese soldier carrying the stretcher ask this question.

After thinking seriously, he replied, "A little salty, a little sweet!"

Several Japanese soldiers looked at each other, carried him to a remote place, and quickly disappeared behind the bushes.

Soon, the sound of tearing and biting came from behind the bushes.

Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro was, after all, an officer. He looked at Regimental Commander Kurihara Naoji: "Do you understand?"

"Hai!" Of course, Regimental Commander Kurihara Naoji understood.

"Kurihara-kun! The soldiers have not eaten for twenty-four hours. To maintain combat effectiveness, the problem of eating must be solved.

You can consider giving the soldiers some barbecued meat, but remember: it must not be too delicate," Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro instructed.

"Delicate?" Repeating these two words, Regimental Commander Kurihara Naoji instantly understood.

The brigade commander meant to make it unrecognizable.

"Hai! This subordinate understands!"

"Do you! Really understand?"

"Hai! So delicate that you can't recognize the original appearance!" Regimental Commander Kurihara Naoji said.

"Yoshi! You really understand. Go prepare!" Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro said with satisfaction.

In the evening, the Japanese soldiers who fled to Pingluo Village all ate barbecued meat.

With barbecued meat and cold water, as soon as they swallowed, these Japanese soldiers immediately recovered three points of their energy.

They could finally spend the night without going hungry.

They could finally have a good night's sleep.

Lin Fan would never have imagined that the Japanese Fifth Brigade would use such a method to solve the food supply problem.

The Special Operations Brigade would definitely not let the Japanese soldiers have a good night's sleep and rest well.

The shells urgently replenished from Jurong were being sent to the front line.

Whether it was the Special Operations Brigade's rockets or the ammunition seized from the Japanese artillery, they were all sent to the front line.

The 59th Army's Lu Zhong Artillery Regiment, after receiving the four mountain guns, immediately started the tractors and drove towards Pingluo Village.

They established an artillery position on the east bank of the Baihe River. In the afternoon, they also borrowed the eyes of the Special Operations Brigade's air force and fired several test shots.

It was getting dark! Zhu Qingmao landed his fighter jet at the Maetian Araki Village Airport, which had now become the rear base of the Special Operations Brigade.

Five refueling planes were parked at the other end of the runway. Every plane that landed would first go to the refueling plane to fill up with fuel.

They would also cooperate in tonight's battle.