At the Japanese brigade headquarters in Baoding, Major General Fujita was banging the table and getting furious in the war room.
"A bunch of trash..."
"A whole reinforced squadron, more than two hundred elites of the Imperial Army, couldn't even deal with dozens of Eighth Route Army troops."
"The Baoding garrison has lost all face by them."
Everyone in the war room was scolded into silence, with their heads lowered, as if they were being scolded humbly.
But everyone has their own little thoughts.
The chief of staff spoke first.
He and Major General Fujita are one body, both prosperous and devastated. I sincerely hope that the brigade commander can protect Baoding.
But he and Major General Fujita have one thing in common.
They were all from the Kwantung Army and did not understand the Yizhong Eighth Route Army and were not familiar with the tactics used by the Yizhong Eighth Route Army.
Only by knowing yourself and your enemy can you be victorious in every battle.
They don't even know their opponents, so it's easy to imagine how difficult it is to defeat the Yizhong Eighth Route Army.
Facing Major General Fujita's angry gaze, he asked: "General..."
"Although the reinforcements failed to completely wipe out the railway guerrillas."
"But through this battle, we finally determined the strength and combat effectiveness of the railway guerrillas."
"They don't have many troops, but they have good fighting ability."
"Particularly good at fighting guerrilla warfare."
"But we don't have to be too afraid of them."
"The reinforcements that attacked them only had one reinforced squadron, but they were able to chase them."
"It shows that the railway guerrillas are no match for a strengthened squadron of our army."
"In future battles, we can arrange more troops to reinforce the battlefield."
"Use the squadron as a unit and divide the troops into multiple routes to encircle and suppress the railway guerrillas."
"As long as they dare to come out, they will be eliminated to avoid future troubles."
Major General Kawasaki curled his lips and said nothing.
The pursuit ended so suddenly that it could even be described as hasty.
The troops were fighting and fighting, but they actually lost track of the railway guerrillas.
More importantly, the pursuit troops fought all the way with the railway guerrillas, suffering more than a hundred casualties, but their opponents did not leave a single body.
This is not so much a pursuit as a one-sided hunting.
The railway guerrillas circled the battlefield with the pursuit troops.
Take the opportunity to consume the strength of the pursuing troops. After the fight is almost done, decisively break away from the battle and withdraw from the battlefield.
Based on this analysis: the role played by the railway guerrillas in tonight's battle was not to defeat the troops, but to be the leader.
In this case, the actual combat effectiveness of the railway guerrillas must be more than twice what Major General Fujita judged.
They could easily kill a strengthened squadron chasing them, but they did not do so. The reason is worth exploring.
The word "showing weakness" suddenly came to Major General Kawasaki's mind.
In the past, I suffered from "showing weakness" several times when fighting against the Yizhong Eighth Route Army.
Every time they "show weakness", it means there will be a bigger conspiracy waiting for them on the battlefield.
He always insisted in his heart that the railway guerrillas were a front.
The real culprit of the sneak attacks on military columns and railway lines was the Yizhong Eighth Route Army.
Now that they are "showing weakness" again, their plan must be more than just raiding military columns and cutting off the southbound railway line.
But he didn't express the idea.
Major General Fujita has determined that the railway guerrillas have nothing to do with the Eighth Route Army in the Wing, and that they cannot defeat a reinforced squadron of the Imperial Army.
To stand up and sing the opposite tune now will not only be detrimental to unity and offend the Kwantung Army, but will also make him fear the Eighth Route Army, which is not worth the loss.
Since there is no benefit in expressing your own judgment, then continue to stay aside as a bystander and watch the show.
When he loses face and can no longer hold on, he will stand up and turn the tide.
Seeing Major General Fujita suddenly turn his eyes to himself and ask for his opinion.
Major General Kawasaki quickly followed up with the chief of staff's analysis: "Fujita-kun..."
"You are now the commander of the Baoding garrison. I will listen to your arrangements..."
Major General Fujita was very satisfied with Kawasaki's current reaction. He looked at his subordinates and ordered confidently: "Just do as the chief of staff said."
"Next time we encounter the railway guerrillas, all four infantry squadrons under the mobile brigade will be dispatched."
"Surrounding us from all sides, I don't believe we can destroy them."
…………
At the temporary headquarters of the Shunping Defense Regiment, Duan Peng was reviewing the reasons for operational errors with Huang Yu.
"Captain..."
"We underestimated the enemy too much..."
"I thought the military column we were raiding tonight would be the same as last time, but I didn't expect the Japanese to actually set a trap for us on the car."
"The team members were caught off guard by the Japanese ambush."
"One person was sacrificed and another was slightly injured."
"On the way back, we were intercepted by a squadron of Guozi."
"One person was sacrificed and three were slightly injured..."
"Please punish the leader..."
Huang Yu shook his head: "There is no way in which you won't suffer a loss in a war."
"Although some accidents occurred during the operation, we were unable to seize the weapons, ammunition and supplies on the military column."
"But you successfully destroyed the military column, destroyed a 300-meter section of railway, and severely damaged the 200 little Japs who blocked it."
"In terms of results alone, we did not lose this battle."
"You must be cautious next time you act, consider all possible accidents in advance, and strive to complete the mission with the minimum cost."
After saying that, he turned his attention to Wang Lin: "We blew up a military train again, interrupted the railway line, and severely damaged a reinforced squadron. How did the Japanese army in Baoding react?"
Wang Lin shook his head and said with a puzzled look on his face: "The Japs' reaction is so strange, I can't understand it."
"The railway garrison rushed to the battlefield immediately to repair the railway."
"After the mobile brigade withdrew to Baoding, there were no other changes except to replenish the battle losses."
"It seems like the kid didn't take the attack seriously at all."
Huang Yu laughed after hearing this: "Our show of weakness worked."
"The Japanese looked down upon the railway guerrillas, so they did not take this attack seriously."
"If the next time the special operations team takes action, the Japanese are still chasing and intercepting squadrons everywhere, it means that the Baoding Japanese army completely believes in the existence of railway guerrillas."
Wang Lin immediately said: "Since the Japanese have been fooled, can we close the net?"
Huang Yu shook his head: "Continue to show weakness."
"Kill more than a hundred Japs in one operation."
"It may not seem like much, but if the number of operations increases, the Japanese and puppet troops in Baoding will feel pain."
After saying that, he stared at Wang Lin and continued to ask: "Has the commander of the Baoding garrison been replaced..."
"The southbound railway line has been interrupted again. Has that old devil Fujita been replaced?"
“What was Kawasaki’s response to the fight?”
"Can our intelligence personnel hidden in Baoding City find out this information?"
Wang Lin thought while answering: "The commander of the Baoding garrison is still Fujita."
"I don't know what kind of ecstasy soup he was used to by Okamura Neji. He could make such a big mistake and turn it into a big deal."
"The title of Kwantung Army really works."
"Kawasaki seems to have been completely suppressed by Fujita. Except when Fujita calls him by name, he rarely leaves his headquarters and rarely speaks."
"I heard that when the Japs held a post-war summary, Kawasaki unconditionally supported Fujita's orders and had no objection at all."
"I think he was also fooled by our show of weakness."
