"Da da da--"
The two heavy machine guns arranged crosswise in front spit out dazzling muzzle flashes, and each round of 6.5×52mm Carcano rifle bullets caused a bloody storm among the panicked villagers.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
The roar of the heavy machine gun lasted less than ten seconds, but Zhou Changfeng felt as if ten minutes were long.
In the short time of a few breaths, more than a hundred fresh lives disappeared. Among them were white-haired old people and children who were no taller than a rifle. Their nascent life journey was like a progress bar. It was also cut off abruptly.
"As you wish, Mr. Lieutenant Colonel, they died because of you. I know that you guys who only make war fortune will not have mercy."
As he spoke, Enrique, who looked relaxed, reached out and stuffed the photo into the pocket of Zhou Changfeng's uniform.
The gentle and refreshing spring breeze was still blowing, but what it brought with it was not the vibrant natural scent, but the disgustingly rich smell of blood.
Somehow, Zhou Changfeng felt that he had calmed down, and his clenched fists loosened.
After everything became a fait accompli, the previous tension and entanglement suddenly dissipated.
"A businessman who makes war fortune is better than an executioner who slaughters civilians." He said calmly.
"War allows all means." Enrique shrugged and mocked: "Isn't it a mistake to stand by and watch the death of a hundred people without helping?"
"Whether I tell you or not, it's not right. Both choices are wrong, so... the fault lies with you who let me make the choice."
"So what? Okay, Mr. Lieutenant Colonel, the game is over. Please go back. I have temporarily borrowed your notebook and will return it later. After all, this is the result of your work. If you want to stay and inspect I won’t say no to how the Italian army fights.”
Where the hell did you get this crazy confidence?
The expressionless Zhou Changfeng took a deep breath and replied coldly: "If I have time, I will."
The Italian army did not embarrass the three men anymore and directly handed back the guns. Adala, whose hands were tied behind his back, was also released.
They got on the Type 62 off-road vehicle, reversed the vehicle, and then left this place of right and wrong as fast as they could.
The gloomy sky seemed to have accumulated enough energy. After a "bang" of thunder, heavy rain poured down.
"Damn it!" Adala shouted with tears in his eyes and gritted teeth: "These robbers from the Apennines!"
Zhou Changfeng lit a cigarette for himself and remained silent for a long time before speaking: "Adala, do you think I did something wrong?"
"Of course not. Although you don't know our army's specific combat plan, those deployments may also alert the rebels..."
After driving more than ten kilometers toward Guadalajara, the Model 62 off-road vehicle blew out its left front tire.
As the predecessor of the famous Type 82 bucket truck, the off-road performance of the Type 62 is much worse, and its reliability can only be said to be average.
Just when a few people had just changed the spare tire, they suddenly heard the sound of an engine coming closer and closer from the front?
Everyone looked up, and their hearts suddenly dropped - it was a four-wheeled armored vehicle painted with the Iron Cross logo.
The other party obviously also noticed them, so they drove over directly.
"The German Type 221 armored vehicle is probably the scout unit of the Red Eagle Legion." Chen Guangyun judged without thinking.
This Sdkfz.221 armored reconnaissance vehicle stopped on the side of the road. The machine gunner on the roof spoke a few words in German loudly, but no one understood it.
In a place with many nationalities, language communication is really difficult. None of the three people can speak German; and the crew of this armored vehicle does not seem to understand French or English.
However, they reported the situation over the radio and then signaled to follow them back.
After a quarter of an hour, the rain stopped and they were taken to a forest a few kilometers away.
There are two Type 62 barrel trucks and an Sdkfz.221 armored vehicle parked here. A captain is holding a map, and two second lieutenants are standing next to them. The three of them are pointing and talking, and there are more than a dozen people around them. Soldiers on guard with guns.
A sergeant jumped out of the armored vehicle just now. He walked straight over, pointed at Zhou Changfeng and the three of them and said a few words.
Later, the officers came over. The captain saluted and tried to ask in English: "Is there anything I can do to help you?"
"Zhou Changfeng" can speak French but not English, and Zhou Changfeng can speak English but not French. The two blend together and he is now bilingual.
He breathed a sigh of relief, "Two hours ago we were ambushed by the Italian army on the way to the village of Aribero. They took us to the village of Capuelen. The defenders there had been destroyed. The Italian army and the National Army Approximately equivalent to two company-sized motorized units,..."
After listening to his narration, the captain pondered: "It seems that the Italians are still unaware of our movements. They will pay the price for their carelessness and cruelty."
After a few days of dormancy, the National Army and the Italian Army relaunched their offensive - first using multiple rapid detachments equipped with tanks and trucks to penetrate behind the Republican Army's front lines, while concentrating their forces on the front to break through.
Here, the Republican Army has added a new infantry brigade, and the Red Eagle Legion has also temporarily formed a battle group to come for reinforcements.
They planned to use their tactics to cause the enemy to suffer a big loss. However, the National Army and Italian Army on the opposite side were obviously unaware of this, otherwise they would not have been able to directly release these "neutral people".
The captain raised his hand and glanced at his watch, then looked at Zhou Changfeng and admonished: "A war is about to break out here. Mr. Observer, I suggest you evacuate Guadalajara as soon as possible."
Regarding his well-intentioned suggestion, Zhou Changfeng just nodded, but did not confirm it clearly.
The cruelty that happened around him before was still vivid in his mind, and Enrique's contemptuous words made him itch with hatred.
In his opinion, that was an inferior opponent, and he was disgusted by the situation before. If he really wanted to go head-to-head with real swords and guns on the battlefield, Zhou Changfeng was sure that he could beat that self-righteous fool to death. Mom doesn’t even know her.
In the early morning of the next day, on the road from Guadalajara to Tarancon...
The flow of people with neither beginning nor end in sight moved slowly southeastward on both sides of the road, like wriggling earthworms.
There are mostly four-wheeled carriages in the middle of the road, as well as horses and cattle, and occasionally a truck or car.
The screams of wounded soldiers, the cries of children, the neighing of livestock, and the sound of car engines were mixed together, as if a claw was scratching the heart, which was particularly uncomfortable.
Because the fighting at this stage has already begun, and there may be street fighting later, civilians were asked to evacuate Guadalajara urgently last night, which resulted in the current scene.
The off-road vehicle that Zhou Changfeng and the three were riding in was also among them - last night, after learning of their encounter, Major General Negro ordered them to leave Guadalajara immediately without any explanation.
His original words were, "If something happens to you, it may affect your country's attitude towards us. I can't take any more risks."
So, after hastily gathering their belongings, they joined the retreating army.
(End of chapter)
