Chapter 42: Six Cannons

Chapter 42: Six Cannons

Summer rain comes and goes quickly. The downpour ceased, and the sun hung high, bringing the sweltering heat back to the land.

Without waiting for the roads to dry, the officers of the puppet army under Jiang Deshui immediately dispatched scouts into the mountains to search for the trail of the New First Regiment.

"Jiang Deshui, the heavy rain delayed us for three days. You must hurry and find the New First Regiment," Fujimura Noichi said with a stern expression.

Fujimura Noichi was the commander of the Japanese infantry company sent by Hirata Ichiro. Although he had brought only one company, his tone was incredibly severe. In his eyes, Jiang Deshui was nothing more than a dog.

"Don't worry, Taijun. My men have already been sent out as scouts. We will locate the New First Regiment very soon," Jiang Deshui replied hastily.

"Yosh," Fujimura Noichi nodded.

—

This was a precarious mountain pass, where a platoon of Eighth Route Army soldiers lay in ambush, waiting with bated breath.

A squad of puppet soldiers scouted the area. Despite their extreme caution, they were caught completely off guard when the platoon of Eighth Route Army soldiers suddenly opened fire.

After a brief exchange, half of the puppet soldiers lay in pools of blood. The survivors fled in a panic, not even stopping to assist their wounded comrades, and most were killed during their retreat. In the end, only two out of the entire squad managed to escape.

After repelling the puppet soldiers, the Eighth Route Army platoon quickly cleared the battlefield, dealt with the wounded, and relocated.

—

This was a mountain hollow, a terrain perfectly suited for an ambush.

A squad of puppet soldiers scouted the area, but they were not fools. They avoided the hollow entirely, opting to flank from higher ground.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As the squad reached the halfway point of the ridge, they triggered a chain of landmines buried there. A dozen explosions rocked the area, instantly wiping out most of the squad.

"My legs, my legs!"
"My eyes, I can't see!"

The wounded puppet soldiers wailed in agony, but their companions ignored their cries, turning and running for their lives.

The hidden Eighth Route Army soldiers fired at the fleeing men; not a single one escaped.

Similar scenes played out across the mountains. Having secured the advantage of the terrain, backed by ample ammunition and effective weaponry, the New First Regiment’s ambushes were highly successful.

Hearing the sounds of combat echoing throughout the mountains, Jiang Deshui did not remain idle and urged his main force to move forward. However, before they had covered half the distance, they saw over a dozen scouts fleeing back in terror.

A full company of scouts had gone out, and only a dozen returned.

"Sir, the Eighth Route Army’s firepower is too intense. We were ambushed before we could even react!"
"Sir, their landmines are deadly. They must have buried them during the rain, which hid all the traces, so we couldn't detect them."
"Sir, they occupy all the high ground. We likely need artillery support to scout ahead."

The scouts reported back to Jiang Deshui in a state of panic.

"It seems this New First Regiment has truly become a force to be reckoned with," Jiang Deshui muttered, finally acknowledging Hirata Ichiro’s assessment. In the past, when they had encircled the regiment, the enemy would ambush them, but never with such devastating effectiveness. Losing a whole company of scouts with only a handful surviving was a massive difference from previous encounters.

"Bring up the cannons! Shell the locations where the Eighth Route Army was spotted!" Jiang Deshui ordered decisively.

"Yes!"

Six cannons were pushed into position, and their barrels were adjusted.

"Fire!"

Following Jiang Deshui's command, the six cannons roared to life. Shells slammed into the mountain passes and key points where the fighting had occurred, sending stone flying and shredding the vegetation.

Watching through his binoculars, Zhang Dabiao smiled at Li Yunlong, "Commander, just as you predicted, these puppet soldiers opened fire. It’s fortunate we withdrew our men, or we would have suffered significant losses."

"Dabiao, pass the word down: withdraw the troops from the key points on the second line of defense," Li Yunlong instructed. "These puppets have suffered a loss of over a hundred men. For the next line, they will certainly shell it first before advancing."

Zhang Dabiao asked, "If they shell every pass and key point they encounter, wouldn't we—"

Li Yunlong cut him off before he could finish, "Don't worry. There are so many passes and key points; they’ll feel the pinch of their ammunition soon enough. This grand feast has only just begun."

"Yes, Commander!" Zhang Dabiao immediately went to relay the orders.

While Jiang Deshui’s cannons were still pounding the first line of defense, the soldiers of the New First Regiment had already vacated the second line.

"Attack! Attack!" As soon as the six cannons stopped firing, the puppet regimental officers ordered their troops to charge the first line of defense.

Over a thousand puppet soldiers rushed to the target points, only to find cratered earth—the Eighth Route Army had left nothing behind, not even a single hair.

"Sir, the Eighth Route Army is too cunning. They must have withdrawn in advance," the puppet regimental commanders reported.

"No matter. Move the cannons forward immediately and shell the next line of defense. They must be hiding there," Jiang Deshui said, gritting his teeth. This round of shelling had yielded no results, and a tenth of their ammunition had already been wasted.

"Yes!"

The six cannons were moved forward and quickly aimed at the second line of defense.

"Fire!"

The cannons roared again, and the new set of passes was subjected to intense shelling. Smoke and dust filled the air as trees and rocks were pulverized.

"Charge! Hurry up and charge! This time, the Eighth Route Army will definitely be there!" Before the shelling even ceased, the puppet commanders were already ordering their men forward.

As the thousand-plus puppet soldiers charged, they stepped on several landmines, causing dozens of casualties. Yet, no one stopped; they had to push through while the artillery suppressed the defenders.

As soon as the shelling stopped, the puppet soldiers swarmed the second line of defense. To their dismay, the result was the same as before.

The ground was left with only craters; the Eighth Route Army had vanished without a trace.