I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

The battle lasted until the sun was setting. The Japanese officers suffered heavy losses under the threat of crossbows, and the battlefield was in disarray for a considerable period. The Mo Dao Regiment seized the opportunity to reap a large harvest! Afterwards, the brothers ran out of ammunition, crossbow bolts, and grenades, and had no choice but to engage the Japanese in hand-to-hand combat with their Mo Dao! The advantages of the Mo Dao were fully utilized by the brothers, cutting through enemy lines like vegetables, forcing the Japanese to retreat to the riverbed. Led by a Japanese lieutenant, they fled in panic!

Tatsuo Shigeshita ultimately couldn't escape the crossbow's onslaught and was pinned to death by a long arrow in the riverbed! Afterwards, it was estimated that more than 10,000 Japanese soldiers were killed in this battle, while the Mo Dao Regiment itself suffered losses of over 5,000! The entire valley was littered with corpses. When cleaning up the battlefield, some brothers discovered that all the Japanese corpses were missing a finger. Later, they learned that the Japanese hadn't had time to collect the bodies, so they cut off a finger and took it back to Japan for burial, which could be considered as their souls returning home!

Dear readers, the story has come to an end! Originally, I planned to finish it after a million words, but unfortunately, it's difficult to write something new in this genre, and the daily readership was pitifully low, so I couldn't continue! I want to say thank you to all the readers who supported this book! Thank you for reading, commenting, and donating! I considered incorporating all your suggestions, but after several attempts, I wasn't satisfied and revised it back. Please forgive me!

The initial motivation for writing this book came from seeing a report in the *Nanyang Daily* about the final battle of the War of Resistance against Japan. As a native of Neixiang, I was ashamed to admit that the final battle took place in my hometown! This inspired me to write a story about it. Below, I will quote reporter Qin Jun's report to present the true history to everyone.

During the fourteen-year War of Resistance against Japan, historians generally believe that the Chinese army fought 22 major battles on the main battlefield, one of which was called the "Battle of Western Henan and Northern Hubei".

The "Battle of Western Henan and Northern Hubei" is referred to in different works as the "Battle of Northern Hubei and Western Henan", the "Battle of Western Hubei", the "Battle on Both Sides of the Jingjiang River", the "Battle of Laohekou", the "Battle of Xixiakou", and the "Battle of Nanyang".

I agree with the theory of the "Battle of Nanyang".

何也

In this battle, China deployed 148,000 troops, while Japan deployed over 70,000. Approximately 100,000 Chinese troops were stationed in Nanyang, and about 50,000 Japanese troops were deployed there (40,000 in Wanxi and 10,000 in Nanyang). The battle not only began in Nanzhao County in the Nanyang region but also ended at Ma'anqiao in Neixiang County. Moreover, its main battlefields were in Neixiang and Xichuan, with a focus on Xixiakou.

This battle began on March 22, 1945 and ended on August 19, 1945, lasting nearly five months. Its length and intensity were "unprecedented in the eight-year history of the War of Resistance Against Japan" and "no less significant than the Battle of Taierzhuang".

Huang Runsheng, a direct participant in the Battle of Nanyang, said in his book "The Last Battle of the Eight-Year War of Resistance - The Battle of Xixiakou" that "the Battle of Xixiakou was the most intense battlefield in the Battle of the Western Henan and Northern Hubei, and it was also the battle that Chinese soldiers should be most proud of."

In the Battle of Xixiakou during the Battle of Nanyang, there were four major battles—Chongyangdian, Doufudian, Dahengling, and Matouzhai (Foubenjuanshan). The Chinese army fought very bravely and tenaciously, and achieved brilliant results.

I. The Battle of Chongyangdian (April 1st – April 7th): After seven days and nights of fierce fighting between Chinese and Japanese forces, "our army ultimately defended Kuiwen Pass, annihilating over 4000 Japanese soldiers, including the commander of the 110th Division, Shimoeda Tatsuo; Battalion Commander Kunimoto Masaji; Acting Battalion Commander Koiso; and Captain Matsu." This number of enemy casualties was recorded in the book "Records of Japanese Operations in China," edited by the War History Office of the Japanese Defense Agency, and is clearly a detailed historical fact. "This unprecedented victory was no less significant than the Battle of Taierzhuang."

II. The Battle of the Tofu Shop (May 3-7): The Japanese troops attacking the tofu shop were the 163rd Regiment of the 110th Division. This regiment was a mountain warfare unit trained by the Japanese army. The main force of our side was the 110th Division of the 85th Army, whose commander was Liao Yunzhou, who was known for his bravery in battle. After fierce fighting, the Japanese "battalion commander, Major Inagaki, was seriously wounded, and two company commanders were killed in action," abandoning a large number of corpses and weapons as they fled to Bawangzhai. "The officers and soldiers who broke through the enemy lines felt as if they had been resurrected when they reached the rear." When our side cleared the battlefield, "1130 enemy corpses, 289 dead horses, 3 mountain guns, 3 light and heavy machine guns, 173 rifles, and 41 mules and horses were found."

III. Battle of Dahengling (May 6-9): The Japanese forces attacking Dahengling were the 139th Regiment of the 110th Division; our main force was the 28th Division of the 9th Army. Afterwards, Wang Yingzun, commander of the 28th Division, wrote an account of the battle as follows: "With the assistance of air force artillery fire, our troops advanced bravely, disregarding sacrifice, charging and fighting fiercely, forcing the enemy to retreat step by step… The Japanese positions were littered with corpses, many hanged in the forest, and countless horses, guns, ammunition, and clothing were abandoned. Most surprisingly, among the enemy's abandoned bundles was the enemy's right hand, with a sign bearing the deceased's name. It was later learned that after the enemy was killed, the deceased's right hand had to be sent back to Japan to be returned to the deceased's family." In this battle, more than 1000 Japanese soldiers were killed, but "we also paid a heavy price, with two battalion commanders killed, one deputy regimental commander seriously wounded, and more than 4000 officers and soldiers below the rank of company and platoon leader killed or wounded."

IV. Battle of Matouzhai (Canbenjuan Mountain) (April 14 – May 18): The Japanese army, "when attacking Matouzhai, specifically dispatched a battalion of 15cm howitzers from Laohekou to bombard the village fiercely. Over a thousand trees on the mountain were blasted into pieces, and the shells created countless craters and dust." "When the enemy bombarded, our officers and soldiers concealed themselves in bunkers behind the mountain. When the enemy shelling ceased and their infantry began climbing the mountain, we concentrated our attacks by throwing grenades and Lafayette mines, annihilating the enemy halfway up the mountain… Enemy casualties were plentiful. Our officers and soldiers ground the dust from the mountain into fine ash and dumped it on the hillside. When enemy soldiers climbed the mountain, their legs sank into this loose dust, rendering them unable to move, and they were used as human targets by our machine guns." This battle is recorded in the Japanese war history—"The Chinese translation of *The Japanese Army's Operations in China: The Expeditionary Forces Before and After Surrender*, in the section 'The Battle of Laohekou'." Chapter One, page 496, records: "Although our army repeatedly launched night raids, they were all in vain... The phrase 'Is it impossible to capture Yamajim (i.e., Matouzhai)?' became a code word among officers and soldiers, and also a synonym for suffering." On April 27, the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 139th Regiment launched a fierce attack on Matouzhai under the cover of 15mm howitzers, but were attacked by Chinese grenades, suffering heavy casualties, and still failed to capture it. In May, reinforcements were sent, and the attack was launched again, but still failed to capture it, and many of the battalion commanders and below were wounded.

In the above four major battles, a number of Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded.

The four major battles mentioned above were important components of the Battle of Xixiakou. It was "one of the most influential battles in the later stages of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japan… The safety of Xixiakou was crucial for Xi'an, which was then the rear area of ​​the resistance. This victory prevented the Japanese army's westward advance and completely shattered their dream of 'opening up the Henan-Shaanxi Highway, advancing on Xi'an, and threatening Chongqing.'" "It defeated the Japanese invaders' dream of dominating East Asia with the last shot, bringing Japan's western front of World War II to a close here." Conversely, if the Chinese military and civilians had not stopped the Japanese army at Nanyang, they "would very likely have advanced westward along the Henan-Shaanxi Highway, crossed the Qinling Mountains to invade Xi'an, and even divided their forces to advance directly on Hanzhong, threatening Chengdu. Last winter, the situation in the Guangxi-Guizhou campaign was a case in point…" If the Japanese army had crossed Nanyang and advanced westward, the history of China's War of Resistance might have been rewritten.

The Battle of Nanyang was the longest of all the battles in history, and its intensity was unprecedented. Everyone knows that the Japanese army never left corpses on the battlefield, but in this battle, they not only did so, but repeatedly. Initially, they would cut off a limb from the dead and take it back to Japan to be given to the deceased's relatives. Later, they didn't even bother to cut off a limb, "only taking a thumb to make up the numbers." Still later, they didn't even care about the wounded, fearing they would become prisoners of war in China; during the retreat, they simply gathered some wounded soldiers in one place and burned them alive—more than 600 people were burned!

Moreover, Japan is a nation that refuses to admit defeat easily. Even in the universally acknowledged Battle of Taierzhuang, where they suffered a crushing defeat, they refused to admit defeat, instead calling it a strategic retreat. However, during the eight-year War of Resistance against Japan, there was one battle in which Japan admitted defeat: the Battle of Nanyang.

The Battle of Chongyangdian in the Battle of Nanyang is described on page 613, line 11 of the Japanese military's operational record in China, "The Expeditionary Army of Showa 20" (Showa 4): "The 139th Infantry Regiment, which began its attack on April 1, failed to reach its intended destination—Xiping Town. Suppressing its impatience, it halted its advance along the Chongyangdian-Tongshuying line. Had it has rushed to pursue to Xiping Town, not only would the 139th Infantry Regiment have been completely annihilated, but the entire 110th Division would likely have been wiped out as well." This passage is something never mentioned in any other Japanese military history.

In the Battle of Xixiakou during the Battle of Nanyang, Japanese advisor Fan Jian, in his book "Records of Japanese Operations in China," not only frankly admitted the arduousness of the battle but also, for the first time, expressed the bitterness of "heavy losses." This is rare in other battles.

The Battle of Tofu Shop in the Battle of Nanyang was also acknowledged in Japanese war history. "The phrase 'Is it impossible to conquer Yamai-gan (i.e., Matouzhai)?' became a code word among officers and soldiers, and also a synonym for suffering."

The once invincible Japanese army fought bitterly for nearly five months but failed to break through the defenses of Nanyang. While there were many reasons for this, the five most important ones are as follows:

First, it stemmed from the strong resistance of the Chinese army, which was able to fight to the death by taking advantage of favorable terrain.

Second, the Chinese army enjoys unwavering trust from its highest commander down to its soldiers. Those who serve as commanders on the battlefield are able to remain calm and focused, and make decisive and timely decisions, creating favorable opportunities for our army and inflicting heavy blows on the enemy.

Third, the close cooperation between the Air Force and the Army ushered in a new era of joint land-air operations since the start of the War of Resistance. Furthermore, the use of tank-mounted anti-tank guns played a crucial role in the war against Japan.

IV. Unprecedented cooperation between the military and the people. Wang Zhonglian, the actual commander of the Battle of Xixiakou, said: "During the eight years of the War of Resistance against Japan, we fought battles in 12 provinces. Only in the counties of Wanxi Neixiang, Zhenping, and Xichuan did the military and the people cooperate seamlessly, unite sincerely, and fight the war to the end."

Fifth, the Chinese Communist Party and the guerrilla forces under its leadership played a crucial role. Liao Yunzhou, the commander of the 110th Division, the main force of the Kuomintang's resistance against Japan, was himself a Communist Party member.

The victory in the Battle of Nanyang marked the most glorious chapter in my country's modern history of resisting foreign aggression. However, due to political and other reasons, most of the war histories published in the past regarded the Battle of Zhijiang as the last battle of the eight-year War of Resistance against Japan. In fact, the last battle was the Battle of Nanyang.

Perhaps it was fate, or perhaps it was just a coincidence!

抗日战争始于1937年7月7日的宛平县卢沟桥，但很少有人知道，抗日战争结束于1945年8月19日的宛西芦沟村马鞍桥。

1. The Lugou Bridge was where the first shot of the War of Resistance against Japan was fired.

2. Ma'an Bridge marked the end of the War of Resistance against Japan.

3. Geographically, the War of Resistance Against Japan began at Lugou Bridge in Wanping County and ended at Ma'an Bridge in Wanxi. Looking at these place names at the beginning and end, both contain the character "宛" (Wan), namely Wanping and Wanxi; more specifically, both contain the character "桥" (bridge), namely Lugou Bridge and Ma'an Bridge. Expanding further, both Lugou Bridge in Wanping County and Ma'an Bridge in Lugou Village, Wanxi, not only contain the character "宛" but also the characters "卢" (Lu) and "桥".

Moreover, the main force of the Japanese army attacking Xixia was the 110th Division, and one of the main forces of the Chinese army in the War of Resistance was the 110th Division.

Whether it was fate or coincidence, it doesn't matter. What matters is how we study this history. If we still don't know the location of the last battle of the eight-year War of Resistance, wouldn't we be ashamed of the brave warriors and martyrs of the War of Resistance?

It is gratifying that in recent years, the Battle of Nanyang and the Battle of Xixiakou have received high attention from all sectors of society, both nationally and within Henan Province. In particular, the Henan Daily Press Group and the Zhongyuan Publishing and Media Group have consistently paid close attention to and conducted follow-up research on Nanyang's status and role in the War of Resistance Against Japan. Recently, these two largest cultural institutions in the province jointly sent personnel to Nanyang to conduct in-depth investigations and research, interviewing many participants in the Battle of Nanyang and professional researchers, and holding symposiums, obtaining a wealth of firsthand materials. They also contacted experts and scholars from Japan and Taiwan, veterans of the battle, and experts and scholars from the Central Party History Office, Renmin University, National Defense University, and the Academy of Military Sciences, obtaining a large amount of valuable information. Without their preliminary work, it would have been impossible for us to compile such a nearly 300,000-word book on the Battle of Nanyang in such a short time. We are deeply grateful for this!

The Battle of Nanyang was the last major battle between Chinese and Japanese forces before the end of the War of Resistance against Japan. It was an important part of the Chinese War of Resistance and will be recorded in the great annals of the Chinese people's War of Resistance against Japan, along with the Battles of Xifengkou, Taierzhuang, Wuhan, and Changsha!

This is an honor for the people of Nanyang, and also an honor for all the people of China!

We should remember the honors, but we should also remember the shame.

Lenin famously said, "To forget the past is to betray."

During World War I, Japan's aggression against Nanyang and China brought immense suffering to the people of Nanyang and China.

According to incomplete statistics, during the Japanese invasion of Nanyang, they committed atrocities including arson, murder, rape, and looting, resulting in injuries, deaths, and the flight of countless people. They also left 12% of the total arable land abandoned, and lost houses, farm tools, livestock, and clothing. Their actions regarding the rape of women were particularly heinous; wherever they went, they raped women indiscriminately, not even sparing elderly women over seventy. The exact number of Nanyang women who suffered at the hands of the Japanese army is unknown, but statistics from Dengxian (prefecture) alone indicate at least 500. We must remember this humiliation, invigorate our spirits, and strive to develop our economy and science and technology, making our due contribution to realizing the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!