This kind of rapid-fire artillery is usually equipped on important targets such as Japanese armored vehicles, airports, ammunition depots, and oil depots. Xu Dalong and others also captured two when they attacked the Japanese airport this time.
The Japanese 32nd Division is a garrison division and does not have heavy weapons, so it does not have such rapid-fire artillery equipment.
This time Yoshio Shinozuka wanted to deal with the chariot unit of the Mawushan guerrillas, so he specially applied for it from the North China Front for the 32nd Division.
Only then did Xu Dalong understand why the Japanese army was so honest. It turned out that they were waiting for these anti-tank weapons.
Xu Dalong must not let the Japanese army use this kind of rapid-fire artillery on the battlefield. He personally led Wei Monk's special operations squadron and Wang Pao's motorcycle squadron to Lingao City.
The formation of the Japanese army has a big feature, that is, the soldiers of a unit all come from the same area. For example, the Japanese Fourth Division comes from Osaka, so it is also called the Osaka Division. The formation of this kind of army has certain advantages, that is, the soldiers are all from the same area, have a strong sense of hometown, and are relatively united internally.
Takahashi Bingwei is a very flexible person who is good at speculating in camps. Xu Dalong provided a large amount of funds to Takahashi Bingwei through Zheng Xirong, allowing him to use money to open a path among the Japanese army and improve his status in order to better provide intelligence to the guerrillas.
Takahashi Bingwei has a man from the same village who now serves as the deputy chief of staff of the Japanese 32nd Division. Takahashi Bingwei quietly sent the money back home and asked his family to give it as a gift to the deputy chief of staff's family papers.
As a result, with the support of the deputy chief of staff, Takahashi Bei was promoted to associate staff officer of the Logistics Section, and his military rank was promoted to Shaozuo.
The associate staff officer does not specifically work in a certain department of the logistics department. This is a separate position responsible for coordinating the relationship between various departments in the logistics department and performing the functions of supervision, coordination, and management.
Because he has to write evaluation reports for each department every month and send them to the deputy chief of staff in charge of the logistics department. In order to gain good reviews, each department gave Takahashi Bingwei face.
With the convenience of this position, Takahashi Heiwei can move around various departments of the Japanese army's logistics department at will, so he can master more intelligence.
The Japanese army transferred a large number of 23mm rapid-fire guns, and it was he who got the news from the Japanese army's firearms department.
On the outskirts of Lingao City, Zheng Xirong came out of the city to meet with Xu Dalong and others. He came to Lingao City three days in advance, and after getting in touch with Takahashi Bingwei, he sent the information.
Zhao Xirong said: "Captain, the situation is clear. There are 28 23mm rapid-fire guns shipped by the Japanese army, and they are currently placed in the warehouse of the 32nd Division Logistics Section in the city."
Having said this, Zheng Xirong took out a sketch and marked the location of the Japanese warehouse on the map.
Monk Wei saw that the Japanese army's warehouse was not together with the Japanese army's division headquarters, but in a separate yard of the logistics department, close to the city wall, relatively remote.
He said: "Master Long, the terrain here is quite good. Let's go in at night and take down this warehouse with one assault."
Xu Dalong shook his head and said: "There is no problem in taking over this warehouse, but we can't do this. Have you noticed? We have received accurate information about the Japanese army's weapons transportation several times in a row. If we say that in the past, the Japanese army would think This is a coincidence, but these 23mm rapid-fire cannons were secretly transported by the Japanese army, and only a few people know this secret.
If we intercept this batch of artillery pieces from the warehouse so accurately, the Japanese army will definitely suspect that there is a spy within them. If the Japanese army conducts an internal sweep, Takahashi Bingwei may be exposed.
Takahashi's role is much greater than these rapid-fire cannons. We must protect his safety. "
Zheng Xirong said sincerely: "Captain, you are still thoughtful."
Monk Wei asked: "We can't rob it from the Japanese army's warehouse, so what should we do?"
Xu Dalong said to Zheng Xirong: "You should return to the city now, get in touch with Takahashi Bingwei, tell him our intentions, and ask him to pay close attention to the whereabouts of these weapons. If you have new information, report to me at any time. "
Zheng Xirong returned to the city, secretly met with Takahashi Bingwei, and told him Xu Dalong's considerations to protect his safety.
Takahashi Bingwei was very moved and said that he would continue to provide information about these rapid-fire cannons.
Xu Dalong and others had no chance to take action for the time being, and they had nothing to do, so they left Lingao City and headed to Yu City to see the construction of the Japanese airport there.
Shortly after Xu Dalong and others left, they received a telegram from Zheng Xirong, saying that Takahashi Bingwei had provided intelligence and that these rapid-fire artillery pieces had been allocated to the Japanese 81st Regiment, and that the 81st Regiment would send personnel tomorrow morning. Come and get it.
Of course, Xu Dalong could not let these weapons fall into the hands of the Japanese combat troops, so he immediately returned to Lingao City with Monk Wei and others.
With such accurate intelligence, it was easy for Xu Dalong and others to intercept the Japanese weapons halfway. However, precisely because the intelligence was so accurate, once these weapons were lost, the Japanese army would definitely notice that there were spies inside.
Now I still face the same problem as before, how to do things quietly and completely like an accident.
Outside Lingao City, Xu Dalong met Zheng Xirong. They discussed with Zheng Xirong to see if there was any way to solve this problem.
Zheng Xirong has been thinking about this issue. He is mainly engaged in intelligence work now, so he naturally puts a lot of effort into this aspect. He often consulted Xu Dalong and Lin Xueying on the skills of agents, and coupled with his continuous practice, he has now accumulated a lot of experience.
He suggested: "Captain, I have been thinking for a long time. No matter what we do, it is inevitable that the Japanese army will not notice that the incident is too coincidental and will suspect that the information has been leaked in advance.
Do you think this is okay? Since it is unavoidable, the Japanese army suspects that there is a spy inside. Can they find a scapegoat and pin the blame on him?
My opinion is that we intercept the Japanese army halfway and seize these weapons. After killing those Japanese soldiers, most of the Japanese soldiers' corpses were left at the scene, and the corpse of the officer was taken away, and then they imitated his handwriting or something, or left something he was wearing at the scene, deliberately giving it to The Japanese army left clues and framed the leak of secrets on him. "
After Xu Dalong thought for a while, he said: "This is an idea, but there still seem to be some problems. On the one hand, if we intercepted these weapons so accurately, the Japanese army will definitely notice that there is a spy within them, even if they do not suspect it. There is an internal problem in the logistics department of the 32nd Division. They will also strengthen prevention in the future. If Takahashi Bingwei provides intelligence in the future, the risk will be much greater.
On the other hand, the person who transported this batch of weapons was the 81st Regiment of the Japanese Army. When they came to transport this batch of materials, they may not be able to know in advance what they were transporting. Our guerrillas may not be able to make the Japanese feel that such accurate information has been obtained by our guerrillas. It was he who leaked the news.
There is another problem. We framed this Japanese soldier. We did not know him well beforehand, so we may not be able to convince the Japanese army that this person leaked the information. "
Zheng Xirong also felt that his idea was not perfect enough. He continued to think about it and then said: "Captain, do you think this is okay? Let's ask Takahashi Bingwei to provide a message. After we intercept these weapons, Let's create a disappearance from the logistics department of Takahashi Bei and his colleagues. This person is from the logistics department, and he must be able to master the secrets of these weapons. If he disappears, wouldn't it be reasonable for the Japanese army to suspect him? "
Xu Dalong said: "What you said is a solution. However, there is still the problem I mentioned first. This incident is still too coincidental. It will at least remind the Japanese army to strengthen internal management and prevent leaks.
We have to think again. Is there any more clever way to make the Japanese army think that this is a complete accident? "
Monk Wei has also been thinking about this issue. He said: "Master Long, do you think this is okay? These little devils will definitely pass through Pingan County on the way to transport weapons, and we will not intercept them on the way. Wait until they enter. After the county seat, we mobilize a large force to capture the county seat, eliminate the Japs in the city, and seize this batch of weapons along the way, isn’t that enough?”
Zheng Xirong's eyes lit up and he said happily: "Captain, I think what the monk said makes sense. Even the people in the Japanese Military Special High School would think that if the secret was leaked in advance, we would intercept it halfway and not with such a big fanfare. I want to go to the county town. I think it will work."
Xu Dalong also thought this method was good. He smiled and said: "Monk, you look like a tough guy, your mind is spinning really fast. Let's follow this idea and add it all up."
Lin Xueying also made suggestions. She believed that the guerrillas' attack on the county town was still a bit of a coincidence. It would be best to find a way to make the guerrillas' attack on the county town look like a pure accident.
Several people studied it carefully according to Lin Xueying's suggestion, and finally came up with a solution to the problem.
The next morning, people sent by the Japanese 81st Regiment arrived in Lingao City. This time the Japanese army also learned the lesson. They were worried about being intercepted by the Mawushan guerrillas on the road, so they requisitioned some civilian trucks and pretended to be businessmen, intending to quietly transport the weapons back.
Due to the accurate information provided by Takahashi Bingwei, the actions of this group of Japanese troops have been under the surveillance of the guerrillas.
In order to avoid long nights and long dreams, the Japanese army immediately embarked on the way back after loading this batch of weapons without stopping in Lingao City. By 2:30 in the afternoon, they had entered Ping'an County.
The Japanese gendarmerie in Ping'an County had been notified in advance and had prepared lunch for them, and they planned to continue their journey after eating.
While they were eating, gunshots were heard outside the city.
The captain of the Ping'an County Gendarmerie said nervously to the Japanese squadron leader in charge of transportation: "The Eighth Route Army is coming from outside the city. You can't leave for the time being. Why don't you help us defend the city."
The Japanese squadron leader followed the gendarmerie captain to the city wall, and saw a group of Eighth Route Army cavalry appearing outside, about 200 people in total.
The Japanese squadron leader was also worried that they would invade the city, so he agreed to cooperate with the Japanese military police in defense.
The guerrilla cavalry probably thought that there were only Japanese gendarmerie and some puppet soldiers and police in the city, so they were very weak. They were very arrogant and sent people to shout to the city, asking the Japanese troops to quickly open the city gate and surrender. Otherwise, they would fight. Come in and kill without mercy.
The Japanese military police captain now had the help of the Japanese troops transporting weapons, and he became more confident. Of course, he ignored the guerrillas.
As a result, the guerrillas became angry and launched an attack on the county seat.
