Liang Jian: Lao Li, I'm really not a military expert

Six hours after Lin Zhenhua led his men away, the stench in the air gradually dissipated. Hirata Kojiro breathed in the fresh air with deep gulps. He had never felt the air so sweet as he did now, and he almost burst into tears with excitement.

Kojiro Hirata stood up and looked at the devastated battlefield, the dead imperial warriors, and Ono Taro's unwilling eyes. He felt a little guilty. He was a deserter this time. In order to avoid punishment when he returned, he took out the gun box at his waist and fired several shots at himself, but none of them hit the vital parts. He then found some gauze, wrapped himself simply a few times, lit a fire, roasted two cans and ate them.

After a night's rest and an early meal, Yamamoto Ikki led his special forces team into the mountains at five in the morning and began to chase after the traces left by Ono's squadron.

At around nine o'clock in the morning, he saw a group of Zero fighters flying in the sky and ordered the radio operator to turn on the radio to inquire about the situation.

The radio operator immediately began to call the fighter fleet. The commander of the air squadron, Jiro Hirata, turned on the transponder and replied loudly: "This is the 22nd Air Squadron. I am the squadron leader Jiro Hirata. I have received an order from the headquarters to reinforce the Ono Squadron!"

The radio operator immediately reported the situation to Yamamoto Ikki, who took over the headset of the radio: "I am Colonel Yamamoto of the Yamamoto Special Forces. Hirata-kun, can you tell me the specific location and current situation of Ono's squadron?"

Jiro Hirata's voice echoed through the transponder: "Colonel Yamamoto, according to our search just now, Ono's squadron has been wiped out. They are about five hills away from you. If you speed up your march, you should be able to reach you tonight."

"Also, I want to ask you for a favor. My younger brother, Hirata Kojiro, is also in Ono Squadron. I hope you can help me find him and see if he is still alive, so that I can report to my uncle, General Tada!"

Yamamoto Ikki did not refuse and agreed neatly: "Hirata-kun, please rest assured, I will look for your brother. If he is still alive, I will bring him back safely! Hirata-kun, I also have a favor to ask of you. I hope you can help us find the missing Eighth Route Army headquarters!"

Jiro Hirata's voice came from the headset: "Colonel Yamamoto, I am here to find the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army and prevent them from escaping. This time we have a total of nine Zero fighters, and we will carefully search the surrounding 100-kilometer area. We will notify you in time as soon as we find the enemy, so please make sure to keep in touch!"

Yamamoto Ikki replied with a "OK" and terminated the communication between the two sides. He shouted to the members of Yamamoto's special forces: "It is very likely that all members of the Ono Squadron have been killed. The enemy's firepower is very strong. It has been eight hours since the battle between the two sides. We don't have much time left. We must catch up with the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army before tonight, capture and eliminate them, and completely solve the problem of the Eighth Route Army in the occupied area."

Yamamoto Ikki did not tell everyone that the enemy ahead was most likely not the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, but the news from Ono's squadron last night made him feel a little confused. He was not sure and could only take one step at a time for the time being and wait until he caught up with the Eighth Route Army squad ahead.

"Everyone listen to my orders, set off immediately and start a six-hour forced march!"

At Yamamoto Ikki's order, the Yamamoto Special Forces began to march quickly. At this time, Lin Zhenhua had already walked out of the Luliang Mountains. Their first goal was to return to Lijiazhuang. In order to avoid being caught up by the Japanese with sharp noses, Lin Zhenhua deliberately took a detour and walked for several more hours. Finally, in the evening, he arrived at a small forest ten miles away from Lijiazhuang.

Looking at the strong wind blowing in the sky and the gloomy sky, Lin Zhenhua finally breathed a sigh of relief. As long as there was a moderate snowfall tonight, all the traces they had left behind would be covered by the snow, and it would be harder than climbing to the sky for the Japanese to find them.

"Comrades, hurry back to Lijiazhuang. It's going to snow today. Snow means a good harvest. This is definitely a good sign for us!"

Encouraged by Lin Zhenhua, the soldiers endured hunger and walked for an hour and a half. They finally arrived at the entrance of Lijiazhuang Village before dark. When the platoon leader guarding the entrance saw Lin Zhenhua and others returning, he jumped out of the trench excitedly, gave Lin Zhenhua a big bear hug, and said excitedly: "Captain Lin, you are finally back. I have been worried about you these days. I haven't slept well every night because I was afraid that something might happen to you. Seeing you return safely, I can finally report to the regiment commander and don't have to worry anymore!"

Lin Zhenhua patted the platoon leader on the shoulder and said tiredly, "Platoon leader, quickly arrange for someone to cook. We have been on the road for several days in a row without a good rest. We fought a battle with the Japanese this morning. We simply ate some dry food at noon and haven't had dinner yet!"

The platoon leader replied "OK" and immediately led a squad of soldiers to the kitchen to start cooking. Lin Zhenhua arranged for the soldiers to pull the things back to Lijiazhuang first, and then arranged accommodation for each platoon of soldiers. After a simple hot meal, they fell into a deep sleep.

Yamamoto Ikki, who was chasing Lin Zhenhua and his group, arrived at the site of the previous battle at three o'clock in the afternoon and met Hirata Kojiro, whose face turned blue due to being injured and frozen.

"Hello, please tell me your name and position, I need to verify it!" Yamamoto Kazuki asked directly without asking anyone else.

"Colonel, my name is Kojiro Hirata. I am affiliated with the North China Command. My position is operations staff officer and my rank is lieutenant colonel!" Kojiro Hirata replied while enduring the pain.

Yamamoto Ikki made a signal, and the telegraph operator verified the identity of Kojiro Hirata and arranged for the medical staff to re-bandage Kojiro Hirata. Ten minutes later, the information verification was completed and confirmed to be correct.

"Hirata-kun, I'm Yamamoto Ikki from the Yamamoto Special Forces. Can you tell me about the previous battle here? I need to understand our enemies so that I can better eliminate them when I meet them!"

"I have just sent a telegram to your brother Jiro Hirata. He should have received the news that you are still alive. When he was checking the information just now, he also informed General Tada of your situation. It is estimated that troops will come to pick you up soon. You will stay here for more than a day at most, and then you can leave this damn snowy mountain!"