The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Begins in Songhu

Chapter 670 Joins (Bonus Chapter for Very Robust Performance)

The three green signal flares that rose into the air in succession were so conspicuous that not only the time travelers, KL warriors, and the bearded brothers could see them, but the other Japanese soldiers and puppet troops could also see them.

One could even surmise that this signaled Hu Biao and his men's imminent retreat after their success.

Upon hearing the 'chirp' signal, Umezu Mijiro, who had been retreating with the guards, suddenly stopped.

However, after turning around and looking up at the signal flare in the sky, he knew what it meant.

Thinking back to how he was originally full of confidence, thinking that he would definitely be able to take down Hu Biao and his partners tonight, but the final result was like this, he felt inexplicably angry.

He forcefully shook off the arm of the man who was pulling him along, and shouted wildly:

"Not good! Hu Biao and his men are trying to escape. We must immediately turn back and organize troops to intercept them. We absolutely cannot let them get away."

To be honest, Umezu Mujiro's insight is indeed sharp, and his orders are quite wise.

Under tonight's circumstances, it's definitely impossible for them to completely capture Hu Biao and his men, but it will still cause considerable trouble for their retreat and result in more casualties.

However, he underestimated the psychological trauma and fear that had been inflicted on his subordinates and even himself by everything that had happened before.

Upon hearing this, a colonel next to him couldn't help but shudder, clearly thinking of the terrifying scenes he had experienced before, and he had no desire to turn back and participate in the battle again.

After hesitating for a second or two, he still began to offer his advice:

"Commander, Hu Biao is an extremely treacherous man."

If anyone else had done this, it would indeed have been a signal that they wanted to escape; but if it were Hu Biao and his group, it might have been a trap, a plan to lure us in and ambush us.

I think it's better to avoid trouble. No, it's better to be cautious and wait until reinforcements arrive, the unrest in the city is quelled, and more troops are freed up.

Faced with his subordinates' advice, Umezu Mijiro instinctively wanted to object.

However, before speaking, perhaps recalling the perilous situation he had just experienced and not wanting to go through it again, the commander of the Kwantung Army sighed and abandoned his words.

With his head bowed and silent, the colonel immediately understood his commander's thoughts and continued the retreat, pulling on Umezu Mijiro's arm.

The order for that organization to hunt down and intercept Hu Biao and his group was not issued.

Thanks to this, although Hu Biao and his men encountered some battles during their retreat, they were only scattered and chaotic soldiers.

Not only were they easily killed, but they also replenished their weapons and ammunition from the corpses of Japanese soldiers and puppet troops during their retreat.

Finally, just as Hu Biao, Annie, and their group were about to rush into the dark wilderness outside the city...

Hu Biao glanced at his wristwatch by the light of the fire in the city and found that it was 10:11.

By this time, the unrest in the city had subsided somewhat, but it was still ongoing, and it was unclear when it would completely cease...

*****
At 1 a.m., Hu Biao and his group of more than 900 people began their evacuation from Lianhua Mountain toward Changbai Mountain.

The original campsite at Lianhua Mountain was the agreed-upon meeting point after their withdrawal from Changchun City.

Basically, by this point in time, everyone who could evacuate had already done so. There might be a few people who hadn't arrived yet, but in order to leave as soon as possible and reach the safer depths of Changbai Mountain, they couldn't worry about that.

When they left, they naturally took with them a bunch of gifts and prey, including gold dust, old ginseng, and tiger penis.

Oh, right! The hostages for those young women and wives weren't taken away. After giving them some dry food and travel expenses, they were simply sent away.

Or what? You think you can actually demand a huge ransom?

It should be noted that the above figure of over nine hundred people is the sum of those who were brought together by Mo Shuiyan and the wizard to create the avalanche, and those who were led by Ji Shouxing to snipe the Japanese reinforcements.

So, after excluding those people, of the nearly 1600 brothers who were causing trouble with Hu Biao and his group in Changchun, only about 500 survived, and all of them were wounded.

It can be said that every unit in KL, as well as every bandit group on every mountain, suffered heavy losses.

No one blamed Hu Biao, the time traveler, for such an injury or death; instead, their eyes were filled with deep respect.

Even if Hu Biao waved his hand and ordered them to lead the charge back to Changchun, none of them would flinch. The reason was simple: tonight they had accomplished a miracle.

With a force of only about two thousand men, they wreaked havoc at the headquarters of the Japanese Kwantung Army; they not only retrieved the bodies of General Zhao and Yutou, but also achieved astonishing results.

Even in the midst of the chaos, how many Japanese civilians died and how many houses were burned down?

Even excluding the puppet troops of the Iron Stone Unit, the losses of those black-skinned dogs, just the regular Japanese soldiers, if you add the results of the avalanche.

A rough estimate suggests there are at least three or four thousand people.

Such a victory alone would make the KL warriors present feel it was all worthwhile; and it would allow the bandits from various factions to boast about it for a lifetime.

In comparison, the casualties they suffered were entirely worthwhile.

On the other hand, while it is true that these people suffered heavy casualties, the casualties among the famous Hu Biao, Commander Hu, and his comrades were even more terrifying.

Especially when Hu Biao received one military officer's certificate after another from others.

In a very short time, Hu Biao had a thick stack of information in his hands, which moved all the KL warriors and bearded men present.

The images of those officers leading the charge and fighting vividly flashed before my eyes; who would dare, and how could even the slightest resentment arise...

At 7:12 a.m., the sky finally began to brighten.

Hu Biao and his group of over nine hundred people had already traveled dozens of miles along the foothills of Changbai Mountain. Once they plunged into the vast mountains, with their rich survival experience in the forests, they no longer needed to worry about being chased by the Japanese.

Most importantly, when they stood on a hilltop and looked around with binoculars, they found no trace of the Japanese pursuing troops.

This means that at this point, they are completely safe.

After climbing over a large rock, Hu Biao first solemnly clasped his hands in a salute to the group of bandits before speaking:

"Brothers from all the mountains, your righteous help this time will be remembered by me, Hu Biao, and all my comrades. If there is any need for us in the future, we will do our best to help you."

We were originally planning to hold a feast for several days to treat all the brothers to good food and drink, as a way of expressing our gratitude.

But all good things must come to an end, and the Japanese will likely pursue us relentlessly, so it's better to part ways and avoid trouble.

"Oh, right! We have some medicine on hand that's incredibly effective for injuries and certain inflammations. Everyone should take some with them; it's a small token of our appreciation. We shouldn't delay."

As they were talking, Annie, Mina, and the others, who had already received instructions from Hu Biao, took small bags containing medicine and stuffed them into the hands of the bandits on various hilltops.

As for the KL warriors, they naturally received a share as well, but they would not be separated from Hu Biao and the others for the time being.

They would follow Hu Biao and the others to a certain place in the Lesser Khingan Mountains to bury General Zhao's head and body together, as a way of sending General Zhao off on his final journey.

However, the group of bandits present fell silent in the face of Hu Biao's statement.

Until Lu Dazhi, this young man, stammered as he spoke to Zhang Da'erduo, the second-in-command of Black Bear Ridge and the only surviving leader, he finally made his request:
"Second, second-in-command, I want to leave the village and join KL to fight the Japanese."

I originally wanted to follow Commander Hu and his men, but they probably had important things to do and couldn't take me with them; so I thought I'd join KL and continue fighting the Japanese.

Faced with the boy's request, Zhang Da'erduo said, "No."

Before Lu Dazhi could continue pleading, he laughed and said, "Because of our Black Bear Ridge, we all need to join KL to fight the Japanese; we also need to avenge our leader. What role can a half-grown boy like you play?"

The words had barely faded when a man from Songfeng Ridge, whose entire household was now wiped out, also shouted:
“Count us in Songfeng Ridge, we also want to avenge our leader and Boss Niu.”

Such voices then rose one after another, with at least 8% of the men present willing to join KL in fighting the Japanese.

Throughout this process, Hu Biao and the others remained silent, yet they were inexplicably moved.
These bandits, driven by a sense of brotherhood or simply by their dislike of the Japanese invaders, chose not to compromise and became an important force in the resistance that persisted in the three northeastern provinces throughout history.

They were definitely not good people, but they were heroes too...

(End of this chapter)