Volume 1 Deserter's Bloodbath Chapter 2 Death Battalion
Three days ago, Nanjing, Shuiximenwai Military Prison.
Hundreds of prisoners in tattered military uniforms stood in the central square of the prison. Although they were soldiers who had committed crimes, they still maintained basic military qualities, and the entire team did not appear to be so messy.
"I am Peng Shan, the commander of the 11th Division of the National Revolutionary Army. Officer Chen from the Military and Political Department told me that there is a group of veterans here, veterans who fought bravely. He asked me to lead you to the battlefield, fight the Japanese, earn military merits , and clear your name. So here I am!"
On the high platform in front, Peng Shan, dressed in the uniform of a lieutenant general, looked solemn into the loudspeaker. He was not very satisfied with this group of so-called veterans. If it were not for the request of his old superior Chen Cheng, he would not have planned to come here to waste his time.
"Rape, robbery, desertion..." One charge after another kept spewing out of Peng Shan's frowning mouth. He had no mercy on these soldiers. In his heart, these scum of the army should be tried by military law and executed on the spot.
"If I were to judge you, you would all be killed. But some people are begging for mercy. They think you are veterans of the battlefield and want you to sacrifice your lives in the battle against the Japanese to save your filthy souls..."
"Now, your chance has come. From today on, you are a member of the 11th Division's Death Battalion. You must be the first in every battle and the last in every retreat! If you dare to fight and die, you can live. If you are afraid of death, shrink back, and desert in the face of battle, you will die! This is your destiny - the Death Battalion. Of course, in my army, if you violate the military law again, you will not have the opportunity to enter here again. You will all be executed on the spot. I am very much looking forward to you challenging the 11th Division's Supervisory Team to see if their knives are sharp and if their bullets are sufficient..."
"Tomorrow, I will come here again. Those who are willing to accept reorganization and join the 11th Division's Death Battalion will wash up, change into military uniforms, and prepare to go to the battlefield."
"Adjutant Gao!"
Peng Shan shouted loudly,
"arrive!"
A young captain officer stood out from behind the podium, saluted with a standard military salute, and waited for Peng Shan's order.
"You stay here and explain the rules to them. Leave on time at 12 noon tomorrow!"
"yes!"
After Peng Shan finished speaking, he refused the lunch at the military prison and strode out of the prison. He did not like this place.
"Captain, the Nanjing Military Academy is a great place! How could this young man be a deserter? They are officers when they graduate, and they don't have to fight at the front. In two years, they can become regiment commanders, with money and guns! Is this guy crazy?"
Inside the carriage, the officers sitting around Company Commander Chen Sheng spoke.
As officers sent by the 11th Division, there must be more than one company commander, whether supervising or commanding them in battle. The one who spoke was the platoon leader of this company. He bared his big yellow teeth, took out a wrinkled cigarette from the bag, put it to his nose and sniffed it, then carefully stroked the wrinkled cigarette, and did not seem to give any cigarettes to other officers.
"Why did he become a deserter? How would I know? Don't ask around. If I knew, I would definitely tell you. But he killed over a hundred enemies and went through three bloody battles, which is not an easy task. Now we are going to fight the Japanese, not to suppress bandits. The Japanese are not that easy to fight. Weren't hundreds of thousands of Northeastern troops driven out of their homes?"
The company commander sighed, as if mourning for his fate. How could he be assigned such a task? Company commander of the suicide squad? In name, he was promoted to a higher rank, but he was sending himself to die!
"Blat!"
The second platoon leader, baring his yellow teeth, came up to the oil lamp, lifted the cover, and lit a cigarette. The strong smell of low-quality tobacco filled the entire carriage.
"Chen Sheng, we'll let Feng E go to your company. You don't need to take special care of him. He's an accurate shooter and he did well in school at the military academy. As long as he doesn't run backwards, leave him alone!" Chen Sheng remembered the instructions given by the battalion commander before getting on the bus.
"Excellent military academy students are sent down here to serve as soldiers? This is weird!" Chen Sheng muttered, then leaned his head against the wall of the carriage, trying his best to think...
“Hoo, hoo…”
Obviously, such a profound question was not something that a dull mind like his could figure out. Soon, the commander of the death squad fell into a deep sleep. Even though the train was shaking, he slept deeper and deeper.
The train that transported troops to reinforce Shanghai was not like a passenger train with chairs, windows and toilets. It was all freight cars. The sealed car was considered good, at least it was not exposed to the sun and rain. Those who were assigned to open trucks or even flatbed trucks loaded with supplies were the worst. The wind alone could blow people into raisins, but at least these people could still doze off for a while in the car.
"Clang, clang..."
The regular collision of the moving wheels against the rails, the creaking and twisting of the carriage and the whistling of the wind kept echoing in the carriage. As the roar gradually spread into the carriage, Chen Sheng finally woke up. He knew that the battlefield was approaching and he had to get off the train. Their destination this time was Shanghai, where a bloody battle with the Japanese was underway.
“Puff!”
The train came to a stop with a fart-like sound.
"Clang "
The heavy sliding door of the carriage was opened, and the cool breeze that blew in woke everyone in the carriage. The sky was already white, and bursts of white vapor released by the steam locomotive drifted over the dim platform from time to time, floating in large clumps on the platform.
"Everyone get off the car! All regiments assemble on the spot according to their organization and wait for orders! No noise! Stay on the spot and wait for orders... No noise..."
The roar of the gendarmes could be heard on the platform, and the pale armbands on their arms revealed their identities.
"Carry your rifles, get off the car and assemble!"
Chen Sheng stood up in the carriage and shouted loudly, asking the soldiers who had been sleeping all the way to wake up quickly.
Feng E stood up slowly, stretched vigorously, looked at the platform wet with dew under his feet, and looked around. Soldiers kept jumping out of the surrounding carriages.
He threw the M1924 Mauser rifle in his hand over his shoulder, tightened the small bag on his back, and jumped out of the carriage. The two bayonets on his leggings reflected a pale light.
Unlike Feng E, most of the soldiers in the Death Squadron used the Zhongzheng rifle. Of course, there were also dozens of Hanyang rifles. The 11th Division was a direct descendant of the Central Army, and hundreds of rifles were no problem for Chen Cheng, a favorite of Chairman Chiang. Originally, they were to be equipped with all Zhongzheng rifles, but many veterans were already accustomed to the Hanyang rifles, so there were dozens of Hanyang rifles. As for the German-imported M1924 rifle on Feng E's back, that was even less of a problem. Because this thing had a small mirror on it, and no Chinese soldier liked it, so when Feng E made a request, he got one without any effort.
