Bright Sword: Construction starts from southeastern Shanxi

In the Taigu battlefield this time, the 781st Regiment had already started fighting and retreating, and began to retreat along the predetermined direction. After half a day, the four battalions took turns to fight, and finally got a good feel of the Fifth Division's offensive. Finally, they pretended to be defeated and began to evacuate the county.

In the 5th Division, Itagaki Seishirō was also shocked. Based on an afternoon's attack, Itagaki Seishirō quickly determined that the defending Chinese army was less than 5,000 people, but they were well-equipped and well-trained. In one afternoon, although the Imperial Army had the advantage in artillery fire, the number of casualties was completely beyond his expectations. In just one afternoon's attack, the casualties were almost two battalions, which was unimaginable before.

He immediately wondered what unit could be so powerful. The destruction of the 79th Regiment last year and the massive loss of weapons and equipment immediately struck him, and he immediately identified this unit as belonging to the 389th Brigade.

Suddenly, he was filled with curiosity and a competitive spirit towards this unit. At the same time, he began to order his troops to intensify the offensive and hold on to this retreating unit. This battle must eliminate this part of the unit and that soldier.

Then, a strange scene appeared on the battlefield. The 781st Regiment began to retreat along the planned route, and the Japanese army followed closely behind. The scene appeared as imagined before, and most of the 5th Division's troops began to slowly lure south.

At 10:00 PM, the Japanese in Jinzhong began loading coal onto the train carrying the equipment, preparing for departure. Initially, some in the Japanese General Staff believed the situation was unsafe and that the transportation should be delayed. However, someone suddenly argued that the situation was unpredictable and that the transportation should be delayed. Since there were no large Chinese troops on the Zhengtai Line, the transportation should be carried out immediately. A delay could lead to serious trouble if the Chinese discovered the situation.

So, after listening to everyone's discussion, Kozuki Seiji decided to start secretly transporting equipment to Yangquan as originally planned, and then transport weapons and ammunition supplies for the three divisions from Yangquan, as well as various artillery guns and ammunition needed for the independent mixed brigade that Kozuki Seiji had applied for to be established in Shanxi. He had previously thought that this matter was of great importance, but on second thought, transporting it on time could avoid being noticed by the anti-Japanese armed forces active in the rear.

It has to be said that Zeng Jiwen understood the psychology of the Japanese army very well. According to Zeng Jiwen's idea, as long as all the forces of the Eighth Route Army believed by the Japanese army were exposed and other Chinese troops were in the south, Xiang Qingyue Si would definitely not miss this set time and seize this opportunity to transport this batch of important supplies and equipment.

At 23:30, Zeng Jiwen led the entire 389th Brigade out along the Zhengtai Road in Shanxi Province, ambushing in various locations in sections.

At 40:00, news arrived from Jinzhong and Jingxing that three Japanese trains were heading towards Yangquan. Everything was proceeding smoothly according to plan.

At 5:50, the Jinzhong-bound train arrived at Yilingzhi Town, and the Jingxing-bound train arrived at Chengjia Station. The ambush signal was given, and the various stations were immediately attacked by the 389th Brigade. Simultaneously, Shouyang was attacked by the 80th Regiment, and Niangziguan was attacked by the 81st Regiment. Meanwhile, the 389th Brigade began to intercept trains on both sides, and quickly eliminated the Japanese troops escorting them.

In the direction of Yilingzhi Town, as the train carriages were pried open one by one by the Eighth Route Army soldiers, many skilled workers and engineers who were once from the Taiyuan Arsenal were revealed on the train. These people were also dragged away by the Japanese army and forced to migrate to the Northeast.

However, when the workers and engineers on the train saw that they were rescued by the Chinese army, they immediately found Zeng Jiwen through the Eighth Route Army soldiers and asked for guidance and help in dismantling the transportation equipment.

Zeng Jiwen was overjoyed when he heard this. He roughly estimated that there were more than 500 workers and a dozen engineers. The leaders were unmatched. One was Liu Guifu and the other was Zhang Kai.