The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

Seeing Xue Boling's frustrated expression at his unfulfilled ambitions, Long Fei spoke earnestly.

"Commander Xue, I admit that most of the Nationalist troops were very brave, but some of them were really not worth praising."

"Most importantly, your National Revolutionary Army is riddled with factions, which are suspicious of each other and shirk responsibility. Many units are not focused on how to fight the Japanese, but only on preserving their strength."

"I met General Gui of the 27th Army once during the Battle of Nanjing."

“At that time, he abandoned his troops and retreated first, so it is not surprising that he was ineffective in this battle and was defeated in one blow.”

"As for Commander Huang of the Eighth Army, he actually used the excuse that the radio station was destroyed and he could not make contact to abandon the city and flee. Such a general who runs away should be killed to appease public anger and to boost morale."

Xue Boling also said angrily, "Kill him, he deserves to die. This kind of coward and scoundrel is a sinner against the nation and a disgrace to the country."

"I have sent a telegram to the leaders of the Nationalist government, demanding that the two be severely punished."

Long Fei couldn't help but chuckle: "Commander Xue, do you think the Nationalist government leaders would take action against his trusted confidants and cronies?"

“This…” Xue Boling was speechless.

"If you don't believe me, you'll see. In the end, the serious crimes will be punished lightly, and they might even find a scapegoat."

Long Fei had some recollection of what happened next; Gui Paopao and Huang Paopao were only dismissed from their posts.

Gui Paopao's subordinate, Major General Long Muhang, commander of the 88th Division, became a scapegoat and was sentenced to death by a military court for unauthorized retreat.

"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Since Commander Xue has gone to so much trouble to come all night, I'd like to have a frank discussion with you."

Upon hearing this, Xue Boling hurriedly nodded: "Alright, Commander Long, please speak."

Long Fei took a sip of tea and said slowly, "Since the Battle of Shanghai, your National Army's strategy and tactics have been simple and crude, only knowing how to passively defend."

"You know perfectly well that your weapons and equipment are outdated and that your individual soldier combat capabilities are inferior to those of the Japanese, yet you still only know how to fight offensive and defensive battles and positional warfare."

"In this way, even if you manage to achieve individual victories, they will be won at the cost of soldiers' lives, and will be absolutely pyrrhic victories."

"The enemy suffers 800 casualties while we suffer 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, or even 5,000 casualties. Such a victory comes at too high a price."

"Therefore, I hope that Commander Xue can summarize and innovate, so that he can achieve victory at a lower cost when facing the enemy in the future."

"Hiss... Summary... Innovation..."

Xue Boling muttered to himself as he quickly began to think.

Although Long Fei knew the principle that a loud drum doesn't need a heavy hammer, sometimes using a heavy hammer might achieve unexpected results.

So Longfei decided to reopen old wounds and rub salt into them.

"Commander Xue, back then you had an army of 400,000, and you had the advantage in both manpower and weaponry."

"How come they failed to eliminate 30,000 people, but instead were led by the nose by the enemy, and ultimately exhausted and returned empty-handed?"

"During this period, you summarized so many classic tactics and battles, such as crossing the Wujiang River, crossing the Chishui River four times, forcibly crossing the Dadu River, seizing the Luding Bridge, and crossing the Jinsha River.

This incident can be said to be a pain that Xue Boling will never forget, and it is a past event that he has never wanted to mention.

Now, the scars have been ruthlessly reopened by Long Fei, causing not only excruciating pain but also the humiliation of being slapped in the face.

Xue Boling's face immediately turned red, and his breathing became noticeably rapid.

Seeing this, Wang Yaowu was thinking about how to ease the awkward situation when Long Fei spoke again.

“Commander Xue, I’m bringing up these past events not to embarrass you, much less to humiliate you.”

"The Japanese attack tactics are very rigid. In that case, why can't your National Army incorporate tactics such as mobile warfare and guerrilla warfare into the basics of positional warfare and offensive and defensive warfare?"

"If individual combat capabilities are poor and weaponry is inadequate, then we should make up for these weaknesses in other ways."

Xue Boling, who was feeling ashamed, was deeply moved by Long Fei's words.

"Commander Dragon, what you said makes a lot of sense."

"Well, Commander Xue, I hope that in the future when you fight the Japanese, you can be more flexible and mobile, such as launching surprise attacks to harass the Japanese supply lines or supply bases."

"For example, they can make long-distance, wide-range infiltrations, circling around to the back or sides of the Japanese to harass and attack them."

"We could even gather some soldiers with special skills, give them special training, and then send them deep behind enemy lines to carry out sabotage or even assassinate enemy leaders."

Xue Boling and Wang Yaowu's eyes lit up at Long Fei's suggestion.

Xue Boling slapped his thigh excitedly and said, "Commander Long, that's brilliant! What you said is truly enlightening. A single conversation with you is worth more than ten years of study."

Suddenly, Xue Boling remembered something and blurted out a question.

"Commander Long, I know that you previously assisted the Fifth War Zone in annihilating two Japanese divisions and two independent mixed brigades at Taierzhuang."

"I heard you've used new weapons. Can you tell me what kind of weapons they are?"

Long Fei shook his head and said, "Commander Xue, weapons are important, but strategy and tactics are even more important."

"I did use new weapons, but only if you can lure all the Japanese soldiers to the designated area."

The art of war, as described in Liu An's "Huainanzi: Military Strategy" from the Han Dynasty, is to "show the enemy gentleness and meet them with strength, show them weakness and take advantage of them with power."

"At that time, I could have been with the National Revolutionary Army to hold off the Japanese 5th and 10th Divisions at Xiangcheng and Liangxiadian."

"But I showed them gentleness and weakness, and took the initiative to retreat and let the Japanese in, and let the retreating troops go around to the outside of the Japanese, forming an encirclement."

"Finally, when the Japanese become arrogant and overconfident and reach the gates of Taierzhuang, we will meet them head-on with force and strength, concentrate our superior forces and all our weapons, and wipe them all out."

Xue Boling stared at Long Fei and stood up excitedly.

"Commander Long, I never expected that you would have such superb military skills at such a young age. I am truly ashamed of myself."

"This trip was worthwhile. Can I summarize your tactics at Taierzhuang as: luring the enemy deep into our territory, winning over their flanks, retreating for a decisive battle, and then encircling and annihilating them?"

Long Fei was indeed impressed by Xue Boling's reaction; he had actually summarized it so succinctly.

"Clap clap clap, Commander Xue's summary is very accurate. I've given this tactic a name: the Heavenly Furnace Tactic."

"The final encirclement and annihilation site is the furnace, and the troops surrounding the Japanese are the raging furnace fire. Let the Japanese be burned to dust by our rage in the furnace."

At this moment, Xue Boling and Wang Yaowu couldn't help but applaud.

"What a brilliant Heavenly Furnace Strategy! Thank you, Commander Dragon Legion, for your generous guidance."

The three of them continued their lively conversation, chatting until dawn.

At this moment, Xue Boling said apologetically, "We've disturbed Commander Long for the night. Thank you very much. We'll take our leave now. We'll meet again someday."

Long Fei raised his hand to stop him, saying, "I know Commander Xue is eager to kill the enemy, and you are unwilling to accept the defeat in the Battle of Lanfeng this time."

"Here's what we'll do: my Dragon Flame Legion will gift your First Army Corps a batch of weapons and equipment. I hope you'll teach those little devils a lesson in Wuhan."

This was an unexpected surprise for Xue Boling.

"Really? Thank you so much."

At this moment, Long Fei solemnly reminded him, "However, I have a request, and I hope Commander Xue can give me a guarantee."

"What guarantee? Commander Dragon, just say it. As long as I can do it, I will definitely agree."

Long Fei then said, "These weapons and equipment are for you. First, you must kill more Japanese soldiers. Second, you must not use them against the troops at Baotashan except to deal with the Japanese soldiers."

Xue Boling immediately nodded and promised, "No problem, I promise you."

However, Long Fei still issued a final warning.

"I believe Commander Xue's guarantee, but I'll also make this clear from the outset: if you break your promise to me, don't blame my Dragon Flame Legion for annihilating you."

Long Fei's words not only exuded domineering power but also carried a hint of murderous intent.

Xue Boling felt a chill run down his spine, and Wang Yaowu's heart also tightened.

They knew that Long Fei definitely had the ability and would definitely keep his word.