The Mysterious Soldier of the Anti-Japanese War

Lei Tao drove his truck steadily to the Japanese artillery position. As soon as the truck stopped, he quickly got out and scanned the surroundings. There, Japanese soldiers were like busy ants, shuttling back and forth to carry supplies. The artillery pieces shone with a cold metallic luster in the sun, like silent beasts.

At this time, the artillery technical officer came running over with an unhappy look on his face to complain: "Why is it so slow? All the shells of this caliber have been used up! You are missing the opportunity to fight!" His eyes were full of blame, but he did not doubt the identities of Lei Tao and others.

Lei Tao, secretly delighted but outwardly apprehensive, replied in Japanese, "I'm truly sorry. We encountered some minor trouble en route, but the ammunition has arrived safely." He bowed slightly in apology as he spoke, quietly observing the artillery positions from the corner of his eye. He spotted several massive artillery pieces in the center, their barrels slightly raised, facing toward Tengxian. Surrounding them were boxes of ammunition of other calibers. Nearby, several tents likely served as command posts and stored important supplies.

After exiting the vehicle, Lei Tao calmly directed the Li brothers to carry the shells. He shouted in Japanese, "Carry carefully, handle with care," while quietly approaching the pile of shells. Once the surrounding Japanese soldiers were distracted by the Li brothers' movements, he picked up the shells, cleverly using the shell boxes as cover, and slipped into the pile like a ghost.

After Lei Tao entered the shell pile, he carefully half-crouched down, quickly scanning his surroundings. After confirming that there was nothing unusual, he slowly reached into his arms with his right hand, tightly grasping the time bomb. Then, he carefully took the time bomb out of his arms, slightly bent his arm, and held the bomb tightly against his side to prevent it from being accidentally seen by people in the distance.

He began to move, each step carefully lifted and lowered, fearing the slightest sound. When he approached a shell, he first gently placed it on the ground, then squatted down and carefully felt around the bottom of the shell, searching for the most concealed and stable place. His eyes were focused and determined, but beads of sweat unconsciously formed on his forehead.

After determining the correct spot, he held the time bomb in his hands and slowly placed it on the bottom of the shell. Then, with his fingers, he gently adjusted the angle of the bomb so that it fit snugly against the shell, leaving no noticeable gaps or protrusions. After placing one, he didn't stand up immediately. Instead, he remained crouched, scanning his surroundings once more and listening carefully for any sounds outside. After confirming that it was temporarily safe, he slowly stood up, crouched low, and quickly moved between the shells, searching for the next suitable placement. He repeated these cautious steps until he had successfully placed several time bombs.

After placing the bombs, Lei Tao quietly walked away from the ammunition pile, a subtle hint of nervous anticipation on his face. He winked at the Li brothers, who sped up the movement of the remaining ammunition. They also deliberately created chaos, knocking over some ammunition boxes and drawing the attention of the surrounding Japanese. Seizing this opportunity, they quietly moved toward the edge of the artillery position, preparing to escape.

Meanwhile, Japanese artillery positions were busy preparing for the next round of bombardment, unaware of the impending danger. Officers shouted orders, and soldiers ran back and forth, carrying supplies.

As Lei Tao and his team approached the edge, they encountered a small patrol of Japanese troops. Lei Tao's heart suddenly tightened, but he quickly calmed down and said in Japanese, "We've just completed our mission of transporting the ammunition and are preparing to return to report." The patrol leader looked them up and down as if examining prey, his eyes full of suspicion and vigilance.

At this critical moment, the delayed ignition device that Li Shuiniu had cleverly installed earlier suddenly played a huge role, successfully attracting the attention of the Japanese army. You know, in the chaos of transporting the shells, the resourceful Li Shuiniu took advantage of the situation and quietly slipped away to a more secluded corner on the other side without anyone noticing, and quickly set up a simple but very effective delayed ignition device.

The device was meticulously constructed from some hay and some kindling he had secretly scavenged from the Japanese camp. After careful consideration and precise calculation, Li Shuiniu carefully activated it. Just as the set time arrived, the hay instantly ignited with a loud whoosh and burst into flames.

Driven by the night wind, the ferocious flames, like a roaring beast, soared upward at an astonishing speed. The orange-red glow was striking and dazzling against the pitch-black night, illuminating the darkness of the night sky. Simultaneously, the faint smell of burning flames gradually wafted away, filling the air.

The patrol's attention was instantly drawn to the fire and the noise, and expressions of surprise and confusion crossed their faces. After a moment's hesitation, the captain immediately led his team in a run toward the fire to investigate. Lei Tao seized the opportunity and, like agile cheetahs, led the Li brothers around the patrol, disappearing into the darkness.

They seized three Japanese war horses and quickly fled from the Japanese artillery position. However, before they could relax, they heard the sound of hurried horse hooves and shouts of Japanese soldiers from behind, and a Japanese cavalry unit was chasing them.

"Oh no! We're being targeted by the Japanese cavalry!" Lei Tao shouted. "Buffalo, Sheep, prepare for battle!" He unhooked his semi-automatic drum crossbow from his horse. The Li brothers reacted quickly, drawing their weapons with fearless eyes.

Lei Tao reined in his horse, slowing his pace. He leaned sideways, aiming his repeating crossbow at the pursuing Japanese cavalry. He took a deep breath, steadying himself, and pulled the trigger. The crossbow bolt whizzed, whizzed, whizzed, sending several Japanese cavalrymen screaming and falling from their horses. Li Shui Niu and Li Shui Yang also galloped, firing as they went. Li Shui Niu's roar mingled with the crackle of the crossbow bolts, each arrow carrying immense force and a potent neurotoxin, piercing the bodies of the Japanese cavalry. Li Shui Yang was even more agile, skillfully maneuvering on horseback to accurately dispatch the approaching enemy.

Although the Japanese cavalry was briefly disorganized after the surprise attack, they quickly regained their footing, continued their pursuit, and dispersed to encircle the enemy. Seeing the situation was dire, Lei Tao shouted, "Don't fight too long! Fight while running! Retreat to the left valley!" The three men adjusted their horses and galloped into the valley.

While fleeing through the valley, Japanese cavalrymen fired their horse rifles. Bullets whizzed by, and Lei Tao shouted, "Be careful to avoid the bullets!" while executing a difficult tactical evasive maneuver on horseback. He yanked on the reins, the horse's front hooves rising. He leaned against the horse's side, letting the bullets grazed him. Then, he clamped his legs around the horse's belly, turned toward the boulder, and using the momentum to propel himself up with one hand, he flipped into the air, landed steadily on his horse, and galloped away.

Li Shuiniu responded exceptionally well. He quickly crouched down at the sound of gunfire, then, lying on his horse's back, fired a few blind arrows in the direction of the Japanese fire, then jerked his horse's hips to accelerate. As the bullet approached, he leaned to the right, hooked his foot in the left stirrup, and swung like a pendulum, sending the bullet careening past him.

Li Shuiyang was agile and nimble, constantly changing direction on horseback, leaning left and right to make it difficult for the Japanese to aim their bullets. When a bullet came, he leaped off his horse, ducked in mid-air, then adjusted his stance and landed back on his horse to fire back.

They fled to the valley pass. Lei Tao knew that if he didn't strike hard at the Japanese cavalry, the open field would be hopeless. He decisively stopped and pulled several stun grenades and flashbangs from his backpack. The sound of Japanese cavalry hooves shook the ground. With a determined and fearless look, Lei Tao repeatedly pulled the safety pin and hurled them at the Japanese cavalry pursuing him at the pass.

Instantly, the valley pass was engulfed in intense light and the roar of a massive explosion. The Japanese cavalry and their horses, charging in the forefront, were caught off guard. Over half the horses, startled, neighed and leaped, throwing the cavalry off and running. The Japanese cavalry were dazed, their ears ringing, their eyes blinded, their weapons dropped, and in the chaos, they collided with one another, falling to the ground and shouting and wailing.

Lei Tao took advantage of the chaos and shouted, "Hurry!" The three of them galloped back into the valley. After a brief period of confusion, the Japanese cavalry regained order. The commander brandished his sword and roared, urging the remaining cavalry to continue their pursuit, but their morale was greatly reduced and their speed slowed.

Lei Tao and his men raced along the winding paths through the valley, exploiting the complex terrain to create distance. Sometimes they traversed narrow mountain paths, sometimes skirted boulders and woods. As they hurried, Lei Tao pondered a strategy for escaping the enemy. He knew being pursued wouldn't last long, and he needed to find a perfect spot to completely shake them off.

Suddenly, a river appeared ahead, crossing the valley. The water rushed, gleaming silver in the moonlight. Lei Tao came up with an idea and shouted to the Li brothers, "Let's go through the river. That will erase the horseshoe prints and make the Japanese cavalry lose their trail." The Li brothers nodded in agreement.

They drove their horses into the river, their legs soaked by the icy water, but they ignored the cold and braced themselves against the current. Their horses struggled forward, splashing high into the water. Lei Tao kept looking back, watching as the Japanese cavalry reached the river's edge, gazing bewilderedly at the vanishing hoofprints. After a long pause, they reluctantly withdrew.

Lei Tao and the other two breathed a sigh of relief, and after walking a short distance along the river, they reached the shore. They were exhausted, but their hearts were filled with the relief of having survived the disaster and the joy of having completed their mission.

They used the terrain to distance themselves in the valley, and then saw a river and decided to jump in to erase the horseshoe prints. After entering the water, they continued forward despite the cold. The Japanese cavalry chased them to the river, but gave up because there were no horseshoe prints.

After landing, they did not stay for too long, just took a breath, and then rushed towards the next target without stopping. At this moment, the countdown pointer of the time bomb located on the Japanese artillery position slid silently to zero.

There were only a series of "boom, boom, boom..." explosions, like the collapse of the sky and the cracking of the earth. The loud noise shook the earth and seemed to tear the whole world apart. In an instant, flames shot up into the sky, instantly illuminating the dark night sky, like a dazzling red sun suddenly rising.

The massive shockwave from the explosion, like a surging tsunami, spread wildly in all directions with overwhelming force. The surrounding large-caliber howitzers, once so imposing, seemed dwarfed and fragile before this immense force. Gun barrels, like fragile branches, were bent and deformed by the force, some even snapping instantly with a heart-wrenching crack. The heavy guns, unable to withstand the violent force, were toppled to the ground, sending up clouds of dust.

At the same time, nearby ammunition crates were not spared. The blast wave tossed them high into the air before crashing heavily to the ground. The crates ruptured, and the shells within tumbled out, scattering everywhere. Ignited by the impact and the sparks, these shells exploded one after another, creating a series of violent explosions. In an instant, the entire artillery position was completely engulfed in flames, plunging it into a sea of ​​fire and utter chaos.

The Japanese soldiers screamed in terror and fled in all directions, but the relentless flames and continuous explosions left them with nowhere to escape. The shouts and explosions intertwined, filling every inch of the air and making people shudder.

Miles away, Lei Tao and his two companions, upon hearing the earth-shattering explosions from afar, felt an indescribable surge of relief and pride. They knew full well that the operation they had just carried out, at the risk of their lives, had successfully dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese army. At least for now, the Sichuan Army brothers in Teng County no longer had to endure the painful torment of the rain of shells. Thinking of this, their pace quickened a bit...