Devil's Army

After the Japanese retreated, the team members cleaned up the battlefield, but they were no longer as excited as before. Some team members carried down the mountainside with heavy hearts the bodies that had been chatting about everything yesterday but were now cold, and placed them on the roadside at the entrance of the mountainside.

Yuan Wanting also rushed over from Hujia Village and raced against time to rescue the wounded in the infirmary.

Wang Zhuangfei and the rest of the team also rushed back to the entrance of Hejiazhao Village through the small road. When he saw Leng Feng, he saluted and said with a guilty look on his face:

"I'm sorry, Captain. I failed to stop the Japanese. The correspondent Xiao Wang who was sent back to report the news was also knocked over by the Japanese along with his vehicle."

"It's not easy for you either. The Japs are a mechanized force. You don't have anti-tank weapons, so you can't stop them at all." Leng Feng patted Wang Zhuangfei's shoulder and comforted him.

In this battle, Wang Zhuangfei's Fourth Battalion suffered heavy losses, with more than half of the members of one battalion being killed. Fortunately, the Gray Wolf's First Battalion had strong fortifications, so the losses were acceptable.

Leng Feng withdrew the Fourth Battalion back to the village for rest and recuperation, retained the organization of the Fourth Battalion, and promised that new recruits would be given priority to the Fourth Battalion.

Li Guozhu's Third Battalion exchanged guard with Wang Zhuangfei's Fourth Battalion and were stationed in a small woods outside Tieling County.

After lunch, Leng Feng called the captains and vice-captains of each team to hold a post-war summary meeting. Since the Second Battalion did not participate in the battle, Leng Feng did not call Wenlang and Wulang back for the meeting.

At the meeting, Captain Li Guozhu believed that the main reason why this battle was so passive and the losses were so heavy was the lack of intelligence. If they had known in advance that the Japanese were coming to encircle and suppress them, and had prepared a response plan in advance, they would not have been so passive.

Wang Zhuangfei suggested installing a telephone line between the Xiaoshulin position and the Hejiazhai headquarters so that urgent matters could be reported by phone. Then, something like what happened today would not have happened.

"You only see the surface phenomena of things, but not the deeper reasons." Leng Feng retorted.

"Indeed, if our intelligence is accurate, making preparations in advance can indeed reduce casualties, but can it stop the attack of the Japanese tanks? If we deploy more than 600 people from your two battalions in fortifications in the woods, can you stop the attack of the Japanese tanks and infantry?" Leng Feng asked Captain Li and Captain Wang.

Li Guozhu looked at Wang Zhuangfei and shook his head, saying, "It should be unstoppable." Then he said, "What did we use to blow up the enemy's tanks today? We can arrange it in advance!"

"You found a Japanese soldier ahead. Do you want to notify the artillery to fire and blow him up?" Gray Wolf asked after he and Leng Feng looked at each other.

"We can't use a cannon to blow up a Japanese soldier, just use a dagger. If all else fails, can't a single shot solve the problem?" Li Guozhu asked puzzledly.

"The air-to-air missile on the belly of the Golden Eagle is specially designed to deal with aerial targets, such as airplanes. Using it to blow up a tank is like using a cannon to blow up a sentry. It's a waste. And if the Japanese tank's iron plate is thicker, the Golden Eagle's air-to-air missile will not be able to do anything to it because the explosive charge in its explosive part is not large."

Li Guozhu and Wang Zhuangfei looked at each other and nodded as if they understood.

"The Japanese came with more than 500 people and two small tanks this time. If they come with 5,000 people or even 10,000 people next time and with tanks with thicker armor, do you think we can still withstand it? Can we retreat if we are surrounded in the village?" Leng Feng asked.

After hearing Leng Feng's words, Li Guozhu and Wang Zhuangfei shook their heads without even thinking.

"So the underlying reason is that the strategic space of Hejiazhai is too small, and there is a serious lack of room for maneuver. If I were the Japanese, the best way would be to set up a few cannons at the mountainside pass, and directly bomb Hejiazhai village to pieces. There would be no need to even cross the mountainside pass."

When Li Guozhu and Wang Zhuangfei heard Leng Feng's plan, they broke out in cold sweats.

"So next I want to find a base that has a lot of strategic room for maneuver."

"Captain, do we have to abandon the Hejiazhai base?" Li Guozhu asked nervously.

"We won't give up here. We will leave at most one battalion here to garrison, and the rest will retreat to the new base. Only one small team will be left to monitor the small woods in front of the county town. If there is any situation, report it in time and retreat. If we encounter the enemy in the mountain pass, we will fight if we can defeat them. If we can't, we will retreat to the new camp with the villagers."

"Where is the new base?" asked Li Guozhu.

"It has not been confirmed yet. I heard from He Shanmao that there is an Oroqen tribe more than a hundred miles east of here. There are dense forests and the terrain is dangerous. I want to go there in a couple of days to explore the way."

"I have heard of the Oroqen tribe. They are brave and good at fighting, and their terrain is also very dangerous. The Qing Dynasty sent troops to encircle and suppress them many times in the past, but they always retreated in vain. But they are very xenophobic, and it is not easy to unite with them to fight against Japan." Wang Zhuangfei said.

"Things are done, solutions are thought out. There will always be a way when you reach the mountain. Let's take it one step at a time." Leng Feng said, lighting a cigarette.

"Captain Wang, go to Fengtian to look for Master Li from the arsenal tomorrow. We don't have many LR-4 and Type 95 bullets left, so we must find a way to produce them as soon as possible."

"Yes," Wang Zhuangfei stood up and responded.

Leng Feng waved his hand and asked Wang Zhuangfei to sit down and asked:

"Anything else? If not, then we'll adjourn the meeting! I'll talk to He Shanmao to learn about the situation of the Oroqen tribe."

Everyone stood up and walked out of the war room one after another.