In the early morning, it was just dawn...
Thick fog rose from the Irrawaddy Delta, shrouding many islands.
It was extremely quiet at dawn, and there seemed to be no other sounds except the cries of seabirds.
Qiu Lin came to a gentle slope by the river and stuffed a few mouthfuls of dry food into his mouth, but his eyes were always fixed on the looming islands opposite.
Looking at the vast expanse of white, one can't tell the difference between east, west, north and south, let alone the situation on the opposite island.
Below the gentle slope, the comrades in the company were busy working on the shore.
They used local materials and used arm-thick logs and ropes made of rattan to build simple rafts. They then stacked and fixed the rafts together to strengthen them into small boats that could carry more than a dozen people at a time.
Due to the serious shortage of kayaks, the superiors ordered the soldiers to seize the time to build a large number of landing boats in case of emergency.
There are hundreds of large and small islands in the delta, but they are not far from each other. The waters here are also relatively calm. As long as there are no big storms, you can use such a simple boat to cross the water and land.
It can be seen that this project has been carried out for a long time, and dozens of wooden boats have been placed in the water on the shore. This is just the result of dozens of people from their reconnaissance company.
Although the soldiers had built many ships during this period, the attack order had not yet been issued, which made some people who wanted to fight anxious, Qiu Lin was one of them.
After breakfast, Qiu Lin ran into the team with a gun on his back. He ignored the other companions and walked straight to Chen Xinmin.
"Company commander, are there any orders to attack today?"
Seeing who the person was, Chen Xinmin, who was working shirtless, rolled his eyes and said helplessly: "No, why do you ask this every day? Do you really want to fight?"
"We've been here for almost half a month, why haven't we gone to the island and killed those bastards?"
Qiu Lin muttered, and asked again expectantly: "Company commander, why don't I take advantage of the heavy fog today and take a squad over to investigate?"
Chen Xinmin threw the wood in his hand aside and said sternly: "No! No one can act without permission from the regiment. Did I say that your skin is itchy? Why can't you stay so long? Do you have that kind of skill? Can't you help me here? How can I act like a platoon leader?"
As he said that, he raised his hand and hit Qiu Lin on the head, and looked at the latter with hatred.
Qiu Lin did not hide. He rubbed his forehead and continued: "Our reconnaissance company is supposed to find out the enemy's situation for the large army. How can we do this carpentry work every day? How can we know the situation of the little Japs on the other side if we don't do something?"
There's nothing wrong with that. To be honest, Chen Xinmin was so miserable during this period. He built rafts and made boats every day that his hands were calloused. He didn't see any orders from his superiors to attack. Instead, he asked them to continue to stand by. It was really annoying. Puzzled.
"Okay, okay, I'm not satisfied with you having a good life for a few days. Do you have to have bullets flying on your scalp and a grenade in your crotch to feel comfortable?"
However, as a company commander, he couldn't complain in front of the soldiers, so he had to be patient and comfort them.
Seeing that his persuasion was fruitless, Qiu Lin had no choice but to retreat lonely, looking at the heavy fog in the sky and sighing helplessly.
The surrounding soldiers were silently doing their work, each with their own thoughts in mind.
In fact, most of the soldiers in the company did not want to continue fighting. Only people like Qiu Lin who harbored some deep hatred in their hearts would be so aggressive. Or maybe he just wanted to finish the war quickly so he could go home early.
I have been fighting for two or three months in a row since I came to Ayeyarwady Province, and now I have finally calmed down for a while. Who is willing to go to the island to fight with the little devils? You must know that the landing battle is quite cruel.
After the last battle on the Pasen River, their reconnaissance company was only transferred to the rear for a few days to repair. After adding some soldiers, they continued to fight with the large forces launching the general offensive.
Some time ago, the new army continued to advance and had more and more encounters with the Japs. Their 213th Regiment was the vanguard of the division and naturally bore the brunt.
After several battles, the instructor and two platoon leaders also died. The formation of the reconnaissance company has been ups and downs. The disabled are replenished, and the disabled are replenished.
Now there are less than 80 people in the company, and there is no replacement for the junior officers. Chen Xinmin is the company commander and instructor, and other positions are temporarily taken over from the surviving veterans.
Even the young Qiu Lin was assigned the position of acting platoon leader, but he was still a second-class soldier.
Watching the thin and lonely figure gradually go away, Chen Xinmin sighed and lit a cigarette, feeling bitter and helpless.
This boy is exactly the same as when he first joined the army.
When I first entered the battlefield, from the initial nervousness and fear, to the numbness and hollowness after seeing blood and killing people...
Watching one comrade after another die next to you, the powerlessness and self-blame, mixed with the fear of death, this feeling is as uncomfortable as it is.
After closing his eyes, all that comes to mind are familiar faces. Every time he wakes up from a nightmare, he wants to pick up his gun and kill all those damn enemies.
Some people die and leave nothing behind; some people are still alive but their hearts are dead.
These big-headed soldiers are all worthless...
Those who can still persevere may be just because they still have unfinished obsessions to support them. In a place like the battlefield... it is too easy to change a person's personality.
…
In the New Army Headquarters, Fang Jingyao was slightly lost in thought as he looked at the orders from the commander-in-chief that he had just received.
There were only a few words in the telegram: Destroy the remaining enemies as soon as possible and end the battle in Irrawaddy Province. The main force of the team returned to the Heihe base to reorganize and wait for combat missions.
This is a new situation happening in the rear. Otherwise, how could Liao Mingyu give him such an unreasonable order? Fang Jingyao squinted his eyes and thought.
However, the problem is before us. It is impossible to deal with those Japanese troops in a short time without paying a heavy price.
Even though the New Army beat the Japs badly, their own casualties were not much better.
There are only a few of the three infantry divisions in the army that are relatively well-organized. There are a lot of wounded, and there are holes everywhere in the army. The army can only be temporarily compressed and reorganized after the battle is over.
Moreover, after days of fighting, the morale of the soldiers was low, but their emotions were high. After all, they were just a team of new recruits. It was simply unrealistic to expect them to be like the main division.
This is also one of the reasons why Fang Jingyao has not ordered an attack for a long time. The landing operations are no better than usual. It can be said that the new army has no experience at all. The consequences of going to the island to play hide and seek with the little Japanese are unimaginable.
Now that the Japanese army is a vicious dog in a dead end, it is enough to maintain a blockade and siege on the other side. The Japanese who lack medical treatment and food will be self-defeating in less than half a month, and they will starve to death.
At this time, it would be the next best thing to let the troops attack directly. Everyone knows the principle of jumping over the wall in a hurry. If you really force the opponent to have no choice, it will be a situation of death and defeat. The gain outweighs the loss.
(End of chapter)
