In normal seasons, there are two locations where the muddy river section between Dabizhuang and Jiuzhan can be forded. One is located two miles southeast of Dabizhuang and is called Nantan. The river channel widens here, and because of a slight drop in terrain, the water is shallow and covered with rocks. The river water is diverted over a short distance and can be forded even during the rainy season.
Another wadable location is called Baishitan, which is located 30 miles downstream of Dabeizhuang and about 30 miles away from the wine station. The riverbed of Hunshui River is wider at Baishitan. In the dry season, the riverbed width can reach 100 feet. The water is shallow, but there is not as big a drop as Nantan. There is no water, and there are many pebbles and sand. However, it is not wadable in the rainy season. From the upper reaches of Hunshui River to here, Baishitan is the last wadable location, and there is no more downstream.
Faced with the sudden situation, the four company commanders of the independent regiment each had incomplete information, and could not share it in the first time. They had to rely on their own opinions. So, Gao Yidao was daring enough to take his life and lead his idiots to mess around in the mountains, as if they were chasing the Japanese. The bored Hu Yi could pick it up but refused to put it down, and led his idiots to not move until they saw the Japanese, and "bared their teeth" at Li Youde's troops who came to the door.
The most difficult company was still the First Company. In fact, every company had a difficult time because it had to consider too many things and always fought losing battles. That was why no one envied the First Company. No matter what treatment or rewards the regiment commander gave to the First Company, there was never any objection in the independent regiment.
This time was the same, the first company burned down Dabei Village with their own hands, and the entire company looked at the billowing black smoke that covered the sky and the sun without saying a word. The first company was made of iron, so of course they had a heart of stone!
Wu Yan, a consumptive man, sat on a tree stump at the head of the village, smoking a pipe and coughing furiously. He didn't know if he was choked by his own cigarette or the smoke in the air. His patched uniform was dirty and black. After coughing enough, he raised his sweaty face and took the military canteen that Tiedan had been holding in front of him. "Is that enough?"
"Yeah. Almost done. I've already notified them to gather." Tiedan turned his back to Dabei Village and said, "Next... do we go west to cover our retreat? Or do we go north to leave traces of retreat?"
"Since the Japs want to attack in one go, the longer we delay the first encounter, the better it will be for us." He looked up at the sky, black and blue, blue and white, and white and black. "After the troops gather, go to Kanan Beach immediately. You make the arrangements."
Tiedan stood at attention facing the company commander, his chest held high and no expression on his face. The company was not fighting for military merit, but only for every minute. In Tiedan's mind, time was the company's military merit; but people always fail to notice the passage of time, so how can they realize the incomparable value of certain time
The soldiers gathered in rows solemnly under the rolling haze. The flames rushed up the unburned black ashes, which fell down piece by piece like black snowflakes. Dirty sweat was solemnly on every young face, but they forgot to wipe it off. They were as taciturn as their company commander, and just listened quietly to Platoon Leader Tiedan loudly assigning mission orders to them. The black snowflakes occasionally fell on the military caps and occasionally on the dirty shoulders, silently.
Soon after, a large cloud of rolling black smoke had covered the distant mountains in the west. The sound of neat footsteps rumbled up, one row after another connected together and gradually spread out, eventually forming an evenly moving gray line, calmly and orderly heading southeast of Dabizhuang, Erli, and Nantan.
…
The Japs arrived earlier than expected because they did not stop while the messenger was running. Just at noon, the vanguard team and a group of scouts arrived at the south bank of the Hunshui River southeast of Dabizhuang. They were exhausted, with red eyes, and stared at the rolling black haze over Dabizhuang with idiotic expressions. They were extremely disappointed!
I didn't expect to get anything in this poor place, but where is the resting place? How can anyone enter the place with the blazing fire? It will burn for days? What's more hateful is that even the right to set fires for fun has been taken away. Where is the sense of accomplishment, you idiot! After overcoming difficulties and obstacles and trekking through mountains and rivers, the mission is completed... Completed... Completed... Completed...
The lightning-struck scenery caused the Japanese to lose interest in even this last leg of their journey. The second lieutenant commanded the complaining crowd on the spot to find a suitable place to rest, open fire, eat lunch, and wait for the main force!
A Japanese squad of more than ten soldiers stopped on the south bank of Nantan and sent one soldier to wade across the river to the north. The soldier carried his rifle across his shoulders and staggered to the middle of the river on the disordered stones. Five or six gunshots suddenly rang out on the north bank of the river, and he was knocked into the rapids at his feet. He waved his arms and kicked his legs and drifted away with blood bubbles coming out.
The battle began when the Japanese wanted to rest. At first, they shot at each other across the riverbank, and soon the Japanese on the south bank pressed the north bank. The Type 99 light machine guns were pulled to both sides and vented their anger on the north bank. Two grenade launchers fired half a base at the north bank in one breath. The broken stones fell like hail, splashing white pieces on the water surface near the shore.
The soldiers of the company were forced to stay silent behind their respective bunkers, enduring the pain of falling rocks, listening to the bullets ramming into the ground or flying around them, unscrewing the grenades, waiting, but seeing no enemy charge. It was fine this way, anyway, the hourglass of time would not stop.
A soldier died, and another one died a minute later. Everyone endured the next minute together. As a result, one soldier, under pressure, reached out his gun and fired, but was immediately covered by a hail of bullets. He couldn't even pull his head back and became a corpse. Two more grenades fell, raising large amounts of earth and rocks.
Lying on the north bank of Nantan, they were suppressed by the Japanese vanguard for a full half an hour. The main force of the Japanese finally reached the south bank and went into battle without any rest. South of Nantan, the number of Japanese troops increased and became denser, because they did not have to worry about the legendary artillery attack. The two squadrons stopped together in a mess, doing everything in a grand manner: restocking grenade launchers, selecting positions for heavy machine guns, setting up mortars, and gathering stormtroopers in place to prepare for a tentative attack. The scene was bustling with noise.
Wu Yan turned over and lay in a sand pit on the north bank and started smoking again. He knew what was coming and had waited for it many times before, so he tried his best to instill the importance of discipline in the company. It was not only to restrain identity, but also to restrain fear. Wu Yan felt that no one was not afraid, including himself, but the company was the company after all, and it had to bear it!
Tiedan dragged his rifle strap and crawled behind the skirmish line. Under the constant attention of the machine gun trajectory, he struggled to reach a low position not far from Wu Yan. He did not risk getting closer and shouted, "Company commander, are you going to hold on?"
This question made countless soldiers hold their breath, even those with iron hearts fell to the ground.
The cough of the consumptive man was heard again in the bunker, and then there was a reply: "We must repel the first wave of attack! We will retreat while the remaining enemy retreats to the south bank."
Suddenly, a shell was fired. It could be heard clearly on both sides of the South Beach. The Japanese's fire preparation had begun. Although there were two mortars, unfortunately the distance between the two sides was not large. There seemed to be countless grenade launchers, and continuous high-trajectory parabolas crossed the river beach and bombarded the north bank, raising dirt and rocks, or accidentally falling into the water near the shore, stirring up high white waves into the sky. The water mist obscured the dazzling sunlight and rainbow, and the rumble echoed endlessly.
The Japanese assault troops crawled out of the bunkers on the south bank in a scattered manner, holding bayonets and small plaster flags, and under the waving of sabers, they bent over and dispersed, pulled apart, entered the river beach, and pushed north. Every reflection in the sun was a steel helmet. Then the light and heavy machine guns officially began to suppress, covering the first wave of wading attacks...