heavily clouded.
Thunder and lightning.
Around four o'clock, it seemed to be almost dark.
It hasn't rained for a year, and just when I was looking forward to it, God just threw hail.
Fortunately, the hail didn't last long.
The boundless green gauze tent is swaying in the strong wind and heavy rain.
As the surface soil absorbs water, it swells and becomes loose.
Every step he took would crush hailstones into the ground, followed by mud.
A team was hit by hail and still struggled to move forward in the violent storm.
Hu Yi's already soaked military uniform clung to his body, swaying regularly with the strong back muscles.
The criss-crossed and raised water folds on the back are constantly changing shapes.
The road is not easy to walk on, and every time you set foot, it creaks.
The leggings were covered with mud, the cloth shoes were full of water, and the ground was full of hailstones, making it impossible to go barefoot.
As a last resort, he had to pull out the military cap from his backpack and put it on his head to avoid being blinded by the rain falling from his head.
The walking team began to twist.
The mules and horses shook their heads from time to time to shake off the rainwater that slipped into their eyes.
The long queue behind was directly following the footprints of the front.
"Three miles ahead is Xiaoguo Village. When you get to the village, you can find a dry place to warm up." The militia captain explained to Hu Yi.
"Everyone, please work harder, we still have three miles to go." Luo Fugui raised his voice and muttered: "There seems to be no sign of his grandma's rainstorm stopping."
east.
A team of more than 200 people who completed the task of luring the enemy marched hard in the storm pushing bicycles, carrying rifles and machine guns on their backs.
It's not far from the scheduled assembly point.
It was obviously a hot day, but it was so cold that I was shivering all over.
Gong Shaofeng's arm was injured, the bandage was soaked by the rain, and there was a sharp pain in the wound.
Looking at the sorghum fields blown down by the strong wind, Gong Shaofeng went crazy with heartache.
He was even more anxious and asked Li Xiang next to him: "Captain Li, how far is it?"
Li Xiang led the team and followed behind, leaving the team and standing on the roadside: "The rain was too heavy and I can't see the mark left by the battalion commander and others on the ground, but he should be near the assembly area."
Gong Shaofeng held his arms and sighed: "This heavy rain really comes at the wrong time."
Suddenly there was a faint surprise cheer from the front.
Li Xiang raised his head and asked loudly: "What's the matter?"
A figure ran over from the front, stepping on the hailstones with one foot high and one foot low: "Report to the company commander, the battalion commander and the others are resting in Xiaoguo Village."
Xiaoguo Village.
The militiamen who had just entered the village crowded into a few temporary thatched huts to dry their clothes.
They worriedly discussed the impact of this heavy rain on the summer harvest.
The room was quite steamy because there was a fire.
On a hot day in July, we gather around the fire to warm ourselves up.
No one expected to encounter such extreme weather.
Some militiamen kept adding firewood to the fire, and thick smoke billowed in the house.
If not for the few villagers in the village who contributed their own firewood, it would be impossible to build a fire.
There were so many wounded that they crowded the village houses.
Most of them were shirtless and kept coughing. Finally, they couldn't help shouting: "Auntie, can you put less wet firewood? If I didn't die on the battlefield, I would be smoked to death by you."
Finally, some of the slightly injured people couldn't help it anymore and came out of the house to get some air.
Stand against the wall to try to keep the wound from being exposed to the rain.
I didn't stay for two minutes and hurried back to the house. In this damn weather, I was shivering from the cold in the middle of summer. No one would believe me.
The treatment of the puppet soldiers was extremely poor. They were locked in a room without a roof, stripped naked and danced on the floor.
Because it's cold.
If there is another hailstorm at this time, everyone will probably be crushed to death here.
The puppet soldiers did not complain because the Eighth Route Army soldiers who captured them next to them were also suffering from the rain and cold.
The seizure this time was not satisfactory. Nearly a hundred mules and horses plus carts were carried, more than 60,000 rounds of 79 bullets, and more than 50 grenade boxes, which was almost the ammunition supply for two regiments of puppet troops.
There was no explosives at all, not even a spare barrel for the light machine gun.
What remains are still food, body bags, stretchers, and the only thirty-odd marching tents that have been put to great use.
It was already crowded with people.
In one of the tents, Hu Yi had a dark face. He had just received the column order from the correspondent not long ago.
The team was required to immediately move westward and wait for an opportunity to launch an attack on the railway line.
It was raining heavily and it was difficult to march. This order was really good.
Hu Yi is different from many commanders. He is not the kind of person who must obey orders unconditionally when his superiors give them orders.
Besides, if there is no explosives, how about using grenades to blow it up?
The order was issued when it was raining, but the superiors certainly did not expect such heavy rain.
It didn't take long.
Gong Shaofeng arrived with Li Xiang and Captain Wang of the assault regiment.
There is not even a place to stay in the village.
Seven or eight people were crowded into Hu Yi's small tent.
They all had their backs pressed against the tent, and it was freezing cold.
Gong Shaofeng didn't say much: "The orders from superiors must be implemented."
Luo Fugui occupied at least three places by himself and immediately rolled his eyes: "After the hail melts, the roads and alleys will be muddy. Can we still walk?"
"Hey, Captain Luo, if you say so, then we will fight the Japanese when it snows?" Gong Shaofeng did not give Luo Fugui face.
Hu Yi ignored the bickering between the two and looked up at Gong Shaofeng: "Can we get explosives?"
"I can't do it." Gong Shaofeng shook his head: "It's not difficult to destroy the railway. All you need to do is knock off the connecting screws on the rails, mobilize the masses, and lift all the rails and sleepers away!"
"Can you still do this?" Hu Yi was stunned for a moment. In his impression, to destroy the railway, one should use explosives to blow up the railway bridge.
"Of course, we did it once last year. Besides, if we go there, maybe the friendly forces have explosives?"
"Friendly forces?" Hu Yi suddenly remembered something: "You mean the traffic sabotage team?"
"Yes, they can't do big things with a small number of people, but they have a lot of good stuff in their hands. I've cooperated with them a few times."
Hu Yi thought for a while, and it was obvious that his superiors did not tell Captain Gong that many people in the friendly sabotage team were actually his own: "You are injured, so you should stay."
"It's nothing like an injury. I'm very familiar with this area. I'll send some armed militiamen to the Longwangmiao Town in the first subdivision with food and escorting the captured puppet troops later. This time it's your command. Let's go into battle lightly." Strength is respected in the military, and the combat effectiveness of the guard battalion goes without saying. Gong Shaofeng expressed his respect for Hu Yi.
"Okay then, I think the soldiers may not be able to bear it after being exposed to the rain for so long."
"Hey, our lives are not that precious! It's just a raindrop."
The rain was still falling, with no sign of stopping.
The militiamen, the civilian husbands, and all the puppet army prisoners with their hands tied behind their backs disappeared at the end of the green gauze tent.
A team of more than 400 people began to set off from the village.
This time it was really dark.
It finally gets bright.
In a village more than ten miles east of the railway.
The rain still didn't stop, but it was much lighter.
I walked most of the night last night and arrived near the railway line a little late.
Hu Yi did not intend to destroy the railway from Anxian County to HD County, but set his sights on the Minghe River Railway Bridge north of HD.
Hu Yi was naked and had a marching blanket draped over him.
Sitting in the corner of the main hall of the fortress household, I half-closed my eyes and thought about how to cause maximum damage to the Japanese Railway at the minimum cost.
There were soldiers sleeping all over the room.
There is a stove burning in the middle.
The wooden sticks around the stove were covered with steaming military uniforms, pants, bandages...
Gong Shaofeng was originally dissatisfied with Hu Yi for not ordering a rush march to the assembly area.
Until the underground comrades sent the column leader to issue an order to change the plan.
Because there was a sudden heavy rain yesterday, the railway attack was postponed until the rain stopped.
In everyone's experience, summer rainstorms are unlikely to last long.
Two soldiers were lying not far from the railway line, one wearing Hu Yi's raincoat and the other wearing Li Xiang's raincoat.
I watched a long military column passing by on the Minghe River.
(End of chapter)
