Devil's Army

The second regiment commander led his troops to continue marching northward. After nearly two hours, he smelled a hint of danger and immediately stopped the troops.

"Commander, are you afraid there is an ambush ahead?" asked the battalion commander who followed.

"This road is the main road from Niangniangong Town to Jianye Town. We have been walking for such a long time, but we have not met many local people. The intersection ahead is narrow, and there are many trees on both sides. I suspect there are Japanese ambushes."

"How about I bring someone up to take a look?"

"Go ahead and be careful."

A battalion commander ordered the first company to go forward and explore the way.

The company commander arranged for the first platoon to search carefully from the front of the road, and the second and third platoons to search from both sides of the road. If the first platoon encountered an ambush, the second or third platoon could come forward to support at any time.

A platoon leader led the soldiers in their platoon and explored forward cautiously.

Suddenly, a group of birds flew up not far ahead, and the branches were blown by the wind, making a rustling sound.

The platoon leader immediately made a gesture to lie down.

The entire platoon of soldiers quickly lay down and prepared to shoot.

But the soldiers lay down for a while, and there was no other movement in front of them except the rustling sound of branches in the wind.

The second squad leader stood under the tree where the birds were startled, looking around and asked the first platoon leader in confusion:

"Platoon leader, there's no one here, how could the bird be startled and fly away?"

"Aren't we human?" the platoon leader asked angrily. A flock of flying birds made them worry for nothing.

The first company successfully passed through this dangerous section of the road, and then waved to the battalion commander at the other end of the road.

The second regiment commander saw it, waved his hand, and the main force continued to move forward.

After walking for a while, a few ordinary people came over carrying things.

"My fellow villager, why are so few people walking on this road now?"

"Don't mention it, the damn Japanese blew up that wooden bridge. We don't come here often, so we didn't know. Local people don't take this road anymore." An elderly man complained.

"So how do the people of the two towns interact with each other now?" asked the second captain.

"Either we go in a circle and go around Yanjia Town, which is thirty or forty miles away, or we take a ferry."

“It’s quite troublesome.”

"These beasts eat human food but do nothing for human's benefit." The old man shook his head helplessly.

The soldiers remained silent after hearing this, for they knew that the Japanese would never consider the interests of the common people.

After recaptured Jianye Town, they built a simple wooden bridge across the Xiaoling River to facilitate travel between the residents of the two towns.

The troops walked for nearly half an hour and the Second Regiment arrived at the west bank of Xiaoling River.

The wooden bridge connecting Niangniangong Town and Jianye Town had been blown up by the Japanese. There were only a few wooden stakes standing alone on both sides.

The weather was not cold enough, the water in Xiaoling River had not frozen yet and was flowing rapidly.

The second commander took out a telescope and observed the east bank of Xiaoling River.

I saw that the Japanese had set up a row of barbed wire by the river and built a lot of fortifications on the other side of the river, and were fully guarding the west side of Xiaoling River.

"Commander, will you do it?" The second battalion commander asked the second regiment commander while looking at the east bank of Xiaoling River.

"No, we are not familiar with the water conditions of Xiaoling River. The weather is quite cold now and we cannot wade across the river. And we can't find so many boats to cross the river at once."

"Then I'll go find some fellow villagers nearby to find out more?"

"Okay, take a few more people with you to avoid running into the devils. We'll camp tonight in the Niangniang Temple Village we just passed."

Not long after the second battalion commander and his men left, the second regiment commander also led his troops back to Niangniangmiao Village.

When the second regiment leader and his men first arrived at Niangniangmiao Village, they caused a commotion: villagers running and shouting, women looking for their children, children crying... one after another.

The second regiment commander ordered: All soldiers should immediately withdraw from Niangniangmiao Village and station outside the village.

After a while, the villagers gradually calmed down when they saw that the soldiers did not harm them. Some brave villagers even hid at the entrance of the village to observe the Second Regiment.

"Commander, why are these villagers so afraid of us?" A battalion commander who had been stationed at the base for a long time and was accustomed to the close relationship between the military and the people asked in confusion.

"This is the Japanese-occupied area. The villagers are frightened by the Japanese invaders. When they see someone holding a gun, they naturally become afraid."

The battalion commander turned his head and looked towards the village with sympathy.

Two villagers who were lying at the entrance of the village and looking towards the Second Regiment happened to meet the eyes of the First Battalion Commander. They hurriedly retracted their gazes and ran back to the village.

At dinner time, the aroma of food from the second gang’s room wafted into the village.

Many children were at the entrance of the village, sniffing the fragrance of the vegetables.

Some soldiers who were sitting near the entrance of the village called the children to come and eat.

The children were a little excited and moved their little feet forward, but their parents behind them would not let them pass and hugged them tightly from behind.

The second regiment commander called two female medical soldiers and asked them to take some dried fish and bacon to the children.

The dried fish and bacon prepared in the kitchen exuded an enticing aroma in the wind that hit my nose.

The female medic accepted the task with a smile, took the dried fish and bacon, and turned towards the child.

Who knew that the parents behind the child saw the two female soldiers coming towards them, and they all ran away into the village with their children in their arms, disappearing without a trace.

Only two smiling female medical soldiers, carrying dried fish and bacon, were left at the entrance of the village.