Bright Sword: Japs, times have changed

The 38th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army advanced at full speed and successfully joined up with the remnants of the 4th Brigade three hours after receiving the order.

As soon as the two sides met, Yuanping Koizumi was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling, thinking that the remaining troops were now protected, and if there was any action next time, the reinforcements would take the lead.

On the other hand, the face of the commander of the 38th Infantry Regiment, Ishiyama Heiji, was very ugly. The order he received was that the 4th Brigade was in a life-and-death crisis and he was required to lead his troops to provide full support.

Worried about delaying the best time for support, Ishiyama Heiji abandoned most of the team's supplies on the way, and even temporarily placed the excess ammunition and heavy machine guns on the roadside.

I thought I would pick it up again when I came back to continue the mission after the support was completed.

But now, the remnants of the 4th Brigade were seen resting safely here, even making a fire and cooking.

Ishiyama Heiji was furious, but he was facing Haradaira Koizumi, the brigade commander, a higher rank than him. He could only suppress his anger and asked, "Brigade commander, my troops have been ordered to come to support us. Where is the enemy?"

After saying this, Ishiyama Heiji pretended to look around.

Harahira Koizumi replied calmly, "Mr. Ishiyama, look at my troops. They had just finished a brutal battle with the enemy before you arrived. I believe you know Lin Qiang's independent battalion better than I do. Even with his full firepower, I was able to save a third of my troops. This is the result of my proper command."

"We really needed support before, but you came too late, and now the battle is over."

After hearing this, Ishiyama Heiji did not become more angry, but instead showed a hint of joy: "In that case, Your Excellency, the Brigade Commander, please withdraw to the county seat. We still have a mission to continue."

When Haradaira Koizumi heard that Ishiyama Heiji was leaving, how could he agree? He had to hold him back until the headquarters gave the next combat instructions before he could decide whether to let him stay or go.

If Ishiyama Heiji took his troops away at this moment, and a combat order came soon, the remaining troops of Harahira Koizumi would probably be destroyed.

Harahira Koizumi immediately frowned and said, "Ishiyama-kun, are you really going to disobey your superiors? The situation is complicated now. You can't leave. You need to stay here and wait."

Ishiyama Heiji secretly resented this, but outwardly he replied respectfully, "Brigade Commander, our mission is urgent. Any delay could lead to unforeseen consequences."

Harahira Koizumi was the brigade commander, a major general, and had absolute command over his subordinates. He snorted coldly, "This is a military order. If you dare to leave, you will be disobeying orders."

Ishiyama Heiji knew that forcing the issue wouldn't work, so he thought of a plan. "Commander, we can set up camp here. However, our troops have been on a rapid march, and most of their supplies have been abandoned. Would you mind allowing us to return to the county seat for resupply?"

After hearing this, Harahira Koizumi sneered in his heart. How could he not know what Ishiyama Heiji was planning?

But he feigned contemplation, and after a moment he slowly said, "Mr. Ishiyama, the situation is tense right now. The county's supplies are limited, and there may be enemy ambushes along the way. We shouldn't act rashly. However, the brigade commander, mindful of your unit's hard work, can allocate some supplies to you for emergency use."

Upon hearing this, Ishiyama Heiji immediately became anxious. "Commander, I'm afraid this isn't appropriate. Your troops have just been through a major battle and are in urgent need of supplies. How can you give them to me? Let me go back and get them. I'll be careful on the way."

Harahira Koizumi's face darkened. "No need to say more, Ishiyama-kun. This matter is settled. Come on, take some of the seized supplies and send them to Ishiyama-kun's camp."

Ishiyama Heiji gritted his teeth secretly. It seemed that this old fox was determined not to let him go. The entire route from Hulukou back to the county town was their occupied area. Now there were heavy troops entering the county town. Would he be ambushed if he went back?

This is a lie that is so low that it cannot be any lower. I am afraid only Harahira Koizumi can tell it.

But Ishiyama Heiji had to believe this lie, for no other reason than that Harahira Koizumi was one level higher in rank.

Facts proved that Yuanping Koizumi was right. The Taiyuan Command did issue a combat order again, but it was not aimed at the Lin Qiang Independent Battalion.

"Brigade Commander, we have received an order from the Taiyuan Headquarters. Commander Yoshio Shinozuka has ordered the 4th Brigade to immediately move to the Dagu Town area to assist the reinforcements from the Ping'an direction in breaking through the blocking forces of the 358th Regiment of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army. If possible, annihilate the 358th Regiment in one fell swoop."

Ishiyama Heiji was delighted. Isn't this the task he had received before?

It was just a good reason to continue the mission and pick up the supplies that were temporarily abandoned along the way.

Ishiyama Heiji asked impatiently, "Brigade Commander, how about I lead the team to clear the way ahead? We might be ambushed when we pass through the Eighth Route Army's defense zone."

"Your unit just finished a battle and needs time to rest. Once it's safe, I'll send someone to notify you. How about that?"

"Yoshi."

Harahira Koizumi didn't think much about it, thinking that this was exactly in line with his ideas, so he nodded in agreement without much thought.

Seeing Haraira Koizumi nod in agreement, Ishiyama Heiji secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If he was found to have abandoned supplies, Haraira Koizumi would definitely ask for back the supplies he had just distributed.

Ishiyama Heiji had no intention of returning these supplies, so he considered them as travel expenses.

Ishiyama Heiji led the team to march ahead, advancing quickly just to pick up the abandoned supplies as soon as possible.

On the other hand, half an hour after Ishiyama Heiji left, Harahira Koizumi also began to arrange his troops to march towards Dagu Town in a hurry.

When Ishiyama Heiji arrived at the place where the supplies had been abandoned, he found that they were gone. He stared with wide eyes and looked around angrily.

It turned out that the 38th Regiment had just abandoned its supplies when they were picked up by the guerrillas of the independent battalion. At that time, the guerrillas thought it was the advanced Japanese troops and they tried to test them for a long time before they dared to show up.

Now that the supplies are really lost, the team will find it difficult to compete with the 358th Regiment with just this little firepower, not to mention the addition of an independent battalion of the Eighth Route Army.

It would be difficult to win such a battle with only the weapons in hand. Ishiyama Heiji was considering whether to return to the county town for supplies.

But in this case, he could not explain why the team was intact and no fighting broke out, but most of the supplies they carried were lost.

When he was in a dilemma, the 4th Brigade sent people to ask whether it was safe. Ishiyama Heiji gritted his teeth and decided to go to Dagu Town. He would use the 4th Brigade as the vanguard, while he would wait for the opportunity to seize the first credit.

"Please tell the brigade commander that the front is safe and we can march."

In this way, two Japanese soldiers with their own ulterior motives led their troops to Dagu Town. At this moment, the battalion commander Zhang Dabiao was still happy about completing the task of the regiment commander and had not yet realized that the crisis was coming again.