Bright Sword: I checked in amidst the aftermath of the battle

Chapter 106 The Eve of the Storm!

"Commander, should we hold out?"

As Wang Yousheng was pondering, Wei Dayong approached him with a forlorn expression.

Compared to his comrades, Wei Dayong was clearly a bit impatient.

Wang Yousheng replied, "Yes, let's wait a bit longer."

Wei Dayong hesitated, then feigned a wronged expression and said, "But we've run out of food we brought with us, and we'll be starving starting tomorrow. How can we fight a war when we're hungry?"

"You ate it all?" Wang Yousheng sized him up. "When we distributed the rations before the battle, each comrade was given five days' worth of dry rations. Only three days have passed, how could you have eaten them all?"

As he spoke, Wang Yousheng looked at the comrades sitting and resting beside him and asked them, "Comrades, what about you?"

Several comrades took out their food bags. Wow, even though the pancakes and steamed buns were cold, each comrade still had several left.

Wang Yousheng kicked Wei Dayong in the buttocks and cursed, "Damn it, you've finished all your own rations?"

"hey-hey……"

Wei Dayong grinned, his face full of shame.

He has a big appetite, eating enough for two people. He finished his dry rations at noon today and his stomach is still empty. He's worried that he'll starve to death if he runs out of food.

Don't let yourself starve to death in the secret passage before you even fight the Japanese, saving yourself the trouble of even having a coffin.

Wei Dayong said aggrievedly, "Battalion Commander, I've run out of rations, but there's nothing I can do. I get hungry if I don't eat for a meal."

Wang Yousheng laughed and scolded, "Go away! Everyone's rations are divided equally. Who can you blame if you finish yours early?"

Wei Dayong could only nod reluctantly. Perhaps because he hadn't eaten for a long time, he suddenly sat down on the ground with a thud, breathing weakly.

Seeing that he looked sickly, Wang Yousheng threw his own bag of dry rations to him.

"Here, just bear with it for two more days. I reckon the time will come soon."

Wei Dayong didn't listen carefully. His eyes lit up when he saw the bag of dry food, and he hurriedly took out two steamed buns and started eating.

He chuckled as he ate, "Hehe, I'm starving! Thanks, Battalion Commander!"

I thought to myself that the Eighth Route Army was more reliable.

Wang Yousheng glared at him disdainfully. Damn it, this monk not only drinks and eats meat, but he also has a big appetite. In less than a minute, he had finished two steamed buns.

Zhang Shan, who was also standing not far from Wang Yousheng, took the opportunity to ask, "Battalion Commander, when do you think the operation will start? Old Zhou hasn't come to see us for two days, and we don't know his current situation."

Wang Yousheng shook his head and said, "Don't worry about Lao Zhou. Let's wait a bit longer. The main force of the Japanese army has gone to the front line, but the field hospital and supply train will definitely follow. That will be our chance to strike!"

"oh!"

The soldiers all turned to look, thinking to themselves, "The battalion commander made us wait here for so long just for this opportunity?"

Zhang Shan said, "Battalion Commander, you knew about the Japanese field hospital's relocation?"

Wang Yousheng smiled faintly and said, "Of course, field hospitals must always be behind the main combat force."

He had watched several documentaries about the War of Resistance against Japan before, so he naturally knew some things. This was not unusual; wars were basically like this.

If field hospitals don't follow the main force, are they supposed to be set up dozens of kilometers away in the rear?

If that's the case, the efficiency of transferring the wounded is too low, and some seriously wounded people might die on the way.

Zhang Shan nodded and then asked, "Since the Japanese field hospitals have moved forward, is their command post also moving forward?"

Wang Yousheng shook his head slightly and said, "No, this is the division command post. The Japanese know how effective our guerrilla tactics are in our base area, so they won't advance easily."

Zhang Shan thought it made sense. Daxia Village was an enemy-occupied area, so such a high-level command post would naturally be set up in the occupied area.

Zhang Shan thought to himself that Wang Yousheng was truly remarkable. He was only a few years younger than him and had only been in the army for a year, yet he already possessed such a high level of military insight.

He couldn't help but give a thumbs up, and was just about to praise Wang Yousheng when he saw Wei Dayong take out two more pancakes and start eating. He changed the subject and scolded, "Hey! Wei Monk, eat less. This is the battalion commander's dry rations."

When Wang Yousheng came to his senses, he turned around and saw that Wei Heshang was holding a half-eaten pancake, looking at him with a silly grin, his mouth full of crumbs.

Looking at the food bag again, at least half of it was missing.

Wei Dayong grinned and said, "Hehe, sorry, I couldn't control myself. Don't worry, Battalion Commander, I'll definitely pay you back after we get out."

Wang Yousheng ignored it; Wei Dayong's food shortage problem had already made him think.

The soldiers were running low on rations, and Zhou Huaiqi, their informant, had become useless. They could only stay for another two or three days at most.

If food supplies are truly cut off, the combat effectiveness of the troops will drop sharply, and in more serious cases, even loading a rifle will become difficult...

Now let's talk about the situation on the ground.

Wang Yousheng's guess was correct; the Japanese field hospitals were already preparing to move to the front lines.

The two brigades have successfully completed the encirclement and begun to divide and sweep. In the past two days, they have occupied twelve villages and annihilated several thousand troops from various Chinese factions. This is a good result.

Meanwhile, the field hospital will also be moved to the front line tomorrow.

This is the fighting style of the 6th Division: before the battle, they advance and retreat together with the main force in the field, with the supreme commander in command, to boost the morale of the entire army before the battle.

With the main force advancing smoothly, the divisional command will not advance with the main force, but will return to the rear to await the main force's triumphant return.

After all, Taro Kameda wasn't stupid. If a division's command post was too far from the main force, what if some of the Eighth Route Army troops broke out and attacked his command post?

Although the direct command unit had a guard of several hundred men and ample firepower, the command headquarters was mostly staffed by intelligence personnel, making it difficult to maintain communication with the front lines in the event of an attack.

Therefore, his division headquarters is also preparing to withdraw to Yangquan in the next two days.

To his great delight, he received a telegram from Yoshio Shinotsuka in the evening.

At the Army Headquarters, a senior staff will travel to the Central China Theater to participate in a meeting regarding the next steps in encroaching on China's territory.

The senior staff learned that the First Army in North China was carrying out the "Iron Wall Encirclement" security cleanup plan. They wanted to pass through North China to see the security situation before heading south.

Therefore, Yoshio Shinotsuka instructed him to personally report the battle situation to the senior staff.

Taro Kameda was very excited. Being able to report the battle results in front of the senior staff of the military headquarters was the highest honor for him as a division general.

He had already begun to dream, imagining the praise he would receive from Yoshijiro Umezu, the highest-ranking officer in the General Staff.