Volume 1 Chapter 043 Counterfeit
358th Regiment Headquarters!
Fang Ligong placed a stack of information on the table. "Commander, this is the information you asked me to prepare!"
Picking up the information, Chu Yunfei flipped through it .
The Kuroda Battalion was stationed in Heyuan County.
Captain Kuroda Tengmu, with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
The team has a full complement of 1,100 people, but 978 are suspected to be on the list;
The team is now equipped with more than 500 rifles;
36 light machine guns;
37 grenade launchers;
8 heavy machine guns;
2 Type 97 81mm indirect-fire infantry guns (mortars), 2 Taisho 11-year Type 70mm indirect-fire infantry guns;
a 110-man transport squadron;
A communications team.
…
Chief of Staff Fang Ligong asked worriedly, "Are you really determined to attack the Kuroda Battalion?"
Chu Yunfei nodded. "Yes! Last time, our regiment suffered a great loss at the hands of the Kuroda Battalion. We will not be satisfied unless we get our revenge!"
Fang Ligong frowned and said, "But! You saw what happened last time. The Japs are not easy to mess with. If you get bit by them, you will be skinned alive even if you don't die!"
Chu Yunfei said firmly. "That's why we have to do it! I can't let my men be afraid of the Japanese. I want the 358th Regiment to dare to fight even when facing the Japanese!"
Although everyone in the 358th Regiment believed that Linzhai Town was a victory.
However, the Japanese planes and fierce artillery still left a shadow in the hearts of the soldiers of the 358th Regiment.
The confidence that was hard-earned from the last victory over the Japanese army was greatly reduced.
Chu Yunfei didn't want his soldiers to be afraid of the Japanese army.
They must be convinced that the Japanese army is the same as them, with two shoulders supporting one head.
It can be defeated!
This will make the soldiers of the 358th Regiment firm in their determination to fight the war and prevent them from having thoughts of escaping or surrendering.
Seeing that the regiment commander was determined to deal with the Kuroda Battalion, Fang Ligong asked: "But... Commander, how do you plan to deal with the Kuroda Battalion? They are stationed in Heyuan County, and we can't attack the county!"
Chu Yunfei thought about this question.
He said: "I have thought it through. I plan to ask Shen Quan's Big Knife Team to pretend to be the Eighth Route Army and attack the puppet army's artillery tower. Luring the devils out. Once the devils take the bait, the whole regiment will take them all down in one fell swoop!"
"Pretending to be the Eighth Route Army?" Fang Ligong looked at Chu Yunfei with a strange expression. "Commander, this is not good!"
"What's wrong with that?" Chu Yunfei asked in confusion.
Fang Ligong reminded him. "If we win the war against the Japanese, who will get the credit? And if word gets out that we are pretending to be 'friendly troops', it won't sound good! It may even cause misunderstandings!"
Chu Yunfei waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "As long as we can eliminate the devils, I believe the Eighth Route Army will not care about these trivial matters!"
Fang Ligong muttered to himself.
This is no trivial matter!
But since the regiment commander doesn't care, why should he, the chief of staff, care?
What if they pretend to be the Eighth Route Army?
It seems to be very promising.
Fang Ligong and his staff quickly developed a feasible plan based on Chu Yunfei's orders.
Chu Yunfei read it and agreed to the battle plan submitted by Fang Ligong.
May 3, 1941.
When Shen Quan, the captain of the Big Sword Team, heard the order, he immediately went to the regiment headquarters.
"Commander! The captain of the Big Sword Team, Shen Quan, is here to report. Please give us your instructions!"
Chu Yunfei smiled when he saw Shen Quan. "Shen Quan! You've come just in time. Um, Chief of Staff Fang, come and tell him about our battle plan this time!"
When Fang Ligong saw that the regiment commander actually pushed the matter onto himself, he smiled bitterly and said.
"Major Shen, we think that pretending to be the Eighth Route Army to attack the artillery towers in Heyuan County is the easiest way to lure out the Japanese. So we hope that you and the Big Knife Team will pretend to be the Eighth Route Army and attack the puppet army's artillery towers. The 5th Battalion will assist you in completing this mission."
What?
Shen Quan couldn't believe his ears when he heard it.
Did I hear it wrong, or did they say it wrong?
Is there such an operation?
I can't believe it!
Shen Quan said with a tangled look on his face: "Commander, Chief of Staff, it's not a good idea to pretend to be an Eighth Route Army soldier!"
"What's wrong with that? As long as we fight the devils, what does it matter if we pretend to be the Eighth Route Army?" Chu Yunfei stared at Shen Quan and said, "Why? Could it be that Captain Shen is still thinking about the Eighth Route Army?"
Shen Quan opened his mouth and wanted to say that I was an Eighth Route Army soldier, but when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back.
The commander was so insidious that I almost got the secret out of him.
But I promised in front of the political commissar that I would complete the task.
We are just fighting the Japanese, so it’s fake.
Shen Quan straightened his back, stood at attention and said: "I am now a soldier of the 358th Regiment. I obey the commander in chief in everything. If the commander asks me to pretend to be an 8th Route Army soldier, then I will pretend to be one!"
Chu Yunfei was very satisfied with Shen Quan's attitude.
If it was so easy to get someone to tell you something, it would be better to send Shen Quan back as soon as possible. Otherwise, it would be harmful to him.
Chu Yunfei clapped his hands and said, "Okay! Then Captain Shen will go down and make preparations. Remember! You have to put on a full set of performances, prepare hundreds of Eighth Route Army uniforms, and let the soldiers of the 5th Battalion wear the tattered clothes of the people!"
Fang Ligong praised: "If this is the case, I'm afraid the Japanese will be more convinced that it was the Eighth Route Army who did it. I will go and prepare the uniforms for the Eighth Route Army right away!"
Fang Ligong went to prepare military uniforms.
There were only a little over a hundred uniforms of the Eighth Route Army, and they were quickly prepared.
The next afternoon, the Big Sword Team, dressed in Eighth Route Army uniforms, and the 5th Battalion, dressed in tattered clothes, arrived at a watchtower near Zhengtai Road in Heyuan County.
A squad of Japanese troops was stationed in the artillery tower.
This artillery tower is closest to Wuzhai Town, making it convenient for the 358th Regiment to implement its plan.
The artillery tower stands on this wasteland, covering an area of about 300 square meters.
The main gun tower is only about a hundred square meters. It is a civil structure, three or four stories high. There are a large number of firing holes on each floor for shooting outward and throwing bombs.
There is a circle of barbed wire around the turret, and a wolfhound is kept there.
There is a layer of trench outside the barbed wire.
There are no trees or crops allowed within two to three hundred meters around the artillery tower, so the view is wide.
It is simply unrealistic to want to approach without being noticed, or even sneak into the artillery tower and wipe out the defenders in one fell swoop.
To take down such a solid turret, the Eighth Route Army, which lacked artillery capable of direct fire, would have to pay several times the casualties, or resort to siege tactics.
Of course, that was a small unit that lacked artillery, and for the units with artillery, it was a sitting duck.
Unfortunately, if a large force is used, it will not only be uneconomical, but also easily provoke a large Japanese army to encircle and suppress it.
It is dangerous and not worth the cost, which is why there are so many artillery towers in China.
When Shen Quan arrived with his broadsword company, the wolfhounds in the artillery tower started barking wildly.
A squad of Japanese soldiers in the artillery tower immediately became alert, turned on the lights, and pushed the floodlights toward the wasteland not far away.
From time to time, a few bullets were fired, hitting the ground with a popping sound.
Lying on the ground, looking at the artillery tower not far away, Shen Quan could not help but curse.
Damn it, it seems these Japanese soldiers are quite cautious!
Why!
If the regiment commander had not asked him to pretend to be more convincing, he would not have been willing to allocate a mountain cannon.
Otherwise there is no need for this!
Just fire one shot and everything will be done.
If that doesn't work, fire another shot. I don't believe it won't explode!
Unfortunately, I am now a local Eighth Route Army soldier, a group of Eighth Route Army soldiers who don’t even have a cannon.
Shen Quan shouted, holding a rifle. "Go!"
