The War of Resistance: My Expedition, My Country

The small village of Wa Miao lacked any respectable architecture, consisting mostly of the low-stilted bamboo buildings common in Southeast Asia. While exquisite, these structures were vulnerable to artillery fire and bullets. The original population was small, only a few thousand. Such a town offered no advantages to defenders, and could even be considered a difficult target to defend. However, Qin Shi concentrated the majority of his defenses in the town, a move that greatly confused the attacking Japanese army.

According to Oharazawa, if the Imperial Japanese Army entered the town, it would mean the end of the Battle of Wamiao. In his view, the town was the last line of defense, and the enemy was foolishly pinning all their hopes on it. So, without hesitation, he ordered a large battalion to launch an all-out attack, determined to completely destroy this unit of the 200th Division and never allow it to escape from his sight.

Oharazawa's heart was filled with confidence and pride. He believed his troops were powerful enough to easily break through the enemy's defenses. The enemy's decision to hold out in such a vulnerable town was undoubtedly a suicidal act. He anticipated an easy victory to further enhance his achievements. He also longed to demonstrate his prowess and authority to the rest of the Japanese army through this battle.

However, Qin Shi took advantage of the Japanese army's arrogance and his understanding of the essence of jungle warfare. The 2nd Battalion had already set up a tight net in this disorganized and simple town, waiting for the Japanese army to rush in!

As expected, Captain Doze led a large group of Japanese troops into the town. This town, which had been shattered by the bombardment, was now strangely quiet. The town seemed completely deserted, exuding an indescribable eeriness.

Duoze was worthy of being the elite of the Japanese army. He immediately ordered the soldiers to disperse and advance slowly in a defensive posture. The three small teams served as the spearhead of the large team, clearing the way in front in a V-shaped formation.

Kojima Tomoka, Maehara Ichiro, and Shiota Guibu were in the lead. The rest of the squad had already scaled the surrounding low-rise buildings, circling from either side. Kojima glanced at his comrades, whose expressions confirmed they had spotted no enemy and no unusual activity. With their companions' support, Kojima and the other three sped up, sprinting several meters forward. Just then, the ground beneath Kojima's feet suddenly gave way. He stumbled, his foot sinking, and Kojima felt he had stepped on a metal object. "Oh no!" he cried, as if he had stepped on a mine. Not daring to lift his foot, Kojima called to his comrades behind him, "Back off! There's a mine!" Maehara and Shiota immediately retreated a few steps and lay down, signaling to the other soldiers that there was a mine. The Japanese soldiers scrambled for cover. The squad leader quickly followed and questioned him. After mumbling something to him, the squad leader signaled to Doze for the engineers to come forward.

Two engineers cautiously approached the island, surveyed it with a detector, and carefully scraped away the dirt beneath Obara's feet, revealing a hard rock. At the engineer's signal, the squad leader ran up to the island, slapped him twice, and ordered them to continue.

Kojima felt inexplicably punished, and while stroking his burning face, he continued forward with Maehara and Shiota. After a few steps, his feet stepped on the soft ground again, and one foot sank in again, more obviously this time. There was a slight sound of a mechanism being activated underground, but before he could sound the alarm, he could only hear violent explosions coming from the low buildings on both sides and behind him.

"Boom—boom—boom—" A series of explosions disrupted the advancing Japanese army formations. From time to time, people were blown into the air, and from time to time, people were knocked down by the blast waves of the surrounding explosions. The Japanese soldiers who were running around once again set off more serial mines, shrouding the entire town in smoke. Duoze waved his hand and ordered the large group of people to retreat from the town. But behind them, where there was no abnormality when they had just entered, a burst of fierce gunfire suddenly rang out. "Da da da—", "Tu tu tu—", "Boom boom boom—", countless Chinese soldiers rose from their bunkers and fired machine guns, submachine guns, grenades, etc. at the group of devils.

In the chaos, Doze was killed by a sniper from the 2nd Battalion. He became the second captain of the 112st Battalion of the th Regiment to be killed in action in recent days! He was among several Japanese squadron leaders and platoon leaders killed or wounded by snipers. The eyes of the Japanese soldiers were filled with fear and despair. They panicked and fled in all directions, trying to find safety, unable to organize an effective counterattack.

Led by some veterans, the Japanese army finally took advantage of their numbers and rushed out of the town. They did not dare to stay in the outer positions and retreated all to the place where they were before the attack.

Obara Zemu watched all this happening in a daze. After learning what happened from a surviving squad leader, Obara screamed wildly and ordered the artillery to blow up the entire town!

Boom—boom—boom—"After a burst of artillery fire, the town of Wa Miao was left with no decent houses except for a few Western-style buildings. Qin Shi and the other soldiers of the 2nd Battalion had already withdrawn from Wa Miao and were lurking in the jungle on both sides of the road, more than 100 meters behind the temple.

After a round of reorganization, the Japanese army reoccupied the town, leaving behind a pile of corpses. Oharazawa had to order the first battalion to temporarily stop the attack and rest, treat the wounded, and deal with the bodies of the dead.

By this time, the sky was gradually darkening, becoming gray and hazy. An atmosphere of oppression and exhaustion permeated the battlefield. Japanese soldiers dragged their feet and sat lazily on the ground, as if they had grown tired of this war. Their faces revealed fatigue and helplessness, and their eyes showed a hint of confusion.

An electric bonfire burned in the camp, and the cooks busily prepared dinner and distributed it to the hungry soldiers. Some soldiers took out their lunch boxes or water bottles and heated them by the bonfire, hoping to warm themselves. They sat around the fire, eating in silence, without much interaction, as if lost in their own thoughts.

In this seemingly peaceful moment, Liu Wu, who had been waiting for a long time, keenly sensed the enemy's weakness. He knew now was the perfect time to launch an attack. Liu Wu immediately ordered the teams to set up their catapults and prepare improvised flying mines, such as grenades or other explosives, Molotov cocktails, and explosive-coated grenades. With a single command from Liu Wu, the flying mines were launched high into the air, flying towards the Japanese artillery formation.

"Boom—boom—boom—" A series of deafening explosions suddenly rang out, shattering the evening tranquility. Countless bombs rained down on the Japanese artillery positions, sending up a vast cloud of dust and flames. Simultaneously, the detonated shells triggered a chain reaction, plunging the entire artillery position into chaos and devastation.