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

The brothers of the 32nd Army had just received their brand-new weapons, and before their excitement had even subsided, each of them received a military pay of thirty silver dollars.

This made them extremely happy, and many soldiers couldn't help but shed tears.

Long Fei instructed Xu Peng to arrange for several thousand people to teach them how to use these new weapons on-site.

Due to time constraints, Xu Peng only instructed them to teach them how to use it; live-fire exercises would be conducted after they arrived in Shanxi.

Just as everyone was preparing for lunch and the army was about to set off, Commander Shang came to find Long Fei with two other men.

It turned out that Bao Gang, the commander of the Independent 46th Brigade in Kaifeng, and Zhang Zhankui, the commander of the 14th Cavalry Brigade, had received news that the entire 32nd Army had joined the Longyan Legion.

These two brigades are currently under the command of Commander Shang's 20th Army Group. After receiving the news, the two brigade commanders hurriedly exchanged opinions and decided to join the Dragon Flame Legion as well.

Therefore, the two brigade commanders rushed to Zhengzhou to find Commander Shang and made their request.

Commander Shang then led them to find Long Fei.

Upon meeting Long Fei, Commander Shang introduced him, and Bao Gang spoke impatiently.

"Commander Long, I have long heard of your Dragon Flame Legion. This time you wiped out the Doihara Division, restored the face of the National Army, and demonstrated the might of our Chinese army. I, Bao Gang, admire you the most."

"I've learned that the 32nd Army has joined your Dragon Flame Legion. I also want to lead the Independent 46th Brigade to join you, so I can fight the Japanese devils with you in the future. Are you willing to accept us?"

Before Long Fei could answer, Zhang Zhankui, the brigade commander of the 14th Cavalry Brigade, interrupted.

"Commander Long, I share the same opinion as Brigade Commander Bao: the National Government's command in battle is incompetent, and they keep losing battles."

"Your Longyan Legion is invincible in fighting the Japanese. I, Zhang Zhankui, am willing to lead the 14th Cavalry Brigade to join your Longyan Legion and fight the Japanese with you. I hope you will accept us."

Long Fei glanced at Commander Shang, who nodded with a smile, and then readily agreed.

"I want any unit that is truly dedicated to fighting the Japanese. Congratulations to the two brigade commanders for making a wise decision. I sincerely welcome you to join us."

Seeing that Long Fei readily agreed, Bao Gang and Zhang Zhankui were so excited that they almost rushed forward to hug him.

"Alright, thank you, Commander Long. I'll send a telegram right away and have the troops assemble in Zhengzhou immediately."

Long Fei thought for a moment and said, "Don't make the troops travel. My First Army and Second Army are in Shangqiu and Lanfeng. I'll have them go to Kaifeng, and then we'll set off together for Shanxi."

"Going to Shanxi?"

Bao Gang and Zhang Zhankui were both puzzled. They had just won a great victory, so why were they withdrawing?

"Yes, that's right. Go to Shanxi. There's no time to explain the specific reasons now. Your weapons, equipment, and pay will be issued to you once we get to Shanxi."

Seeing that the two were hesitant, Commander Shang quickly reminded them.

"Brigade Commander Bao, Brigade Commander Zhang, since you have decided to join the Dragon Flame Legion, you must unconditionally obey the orders of the Dragon Legion Commander and not ask any questions."

"Yes, understood, we will obey orders without question."

After lunch, Long Fei bid farewell to Commander Shang and then led his troops northward.

Meanwhile, the First and Second Armies also received orders to abandon Lanfeng and Shangqiu, rush to Kaifeng to join the Independent 46th Brigade and the 14th Cavalry Brigade, and then march north, where the two sides met in the Taihang Mountains.

A day later, the troops entered the Taihang Mountains. Because the mountain roads were impassable for vehicles, Long Fei and the others went far away and stored all the trucks in the system warehouse.

From then on, they relied entirely on foot, which naturally slowed down their marching speed.

Two days later, after arriving in the mountainous area around Changzhi, the main force successfully joined up with the First Army, the Second Army, the Independent 46th Brigade, and the 14th Cavalry Brigade.

The entire army then continued to advance towards their designated position in the mountainous region near Heshun and Xiyang.

Because this place is closest to Yangquan and Taiyuan, it will be convenient to launch the operation.

On this day, the troops were marching when they arrived at a place called Junji Pass.

Long Fei ordered the troops to rest on the spot, and everyone drank water and ate compressed biscuits and canned food.

Suddenly, many people noticed thick smoke rising about a few kilometers to their left.

Before Long Fei could speak, Xu Peng hurriedly went to a high place and picked up a telescope to observe, but unfortunately the distance was too far, and apart from the rising smoke, he found nothing else.

Long Fei had already located the place where the thick smoke was rising on the map; it was a place called Giethoorn.

Xie Qiang then volunteered and asked Long Fei for instructions.

"Commander, shall I take some men to scout ahead?"

Long Fei thought for a moment and then ordered, "I suspect that the Japanese have entered Giethoorn. Here's what you'll do: take a regiment from the 1st Special Operations Division and go there to handle the situation on the spot. Remember to bring walkie-talkies and radios. The main force will continue marching. Once you're done, you'll catch up with the main force as quickly as possible."

"Yes, I promise to complete the mission."

After saying that, Xie Qiang happily led the First Special Operations Division off.

Long Fei believed that with the strength of a regiment of the Special Operations Division, dealing with an entire Japanese regiment would be no problem, so there was nothing to worry about. He soon ordered the troops to continue advancing.

Although it was a mountain road, Xie Qiang led his troops and arrived at the outskirts of Giethoorn in less than half an hour.

After Xie Qiang picked up the binoculars and observed, he found that, just as Long Fei had predicted, there were indeed quite a few Japanese soldiers in the village.

These Japanese soldiers were setting fires everywhere. Xie Qiang estimated that there was probably a company of them.

"Prepare for battle. The First and Second Battalions will quickly encircle Giethoorn from the left and right flanks, while the Third Battalion will advance from the front. Snipers, find your positions for cover and launch the attack simultaneously at the sound of gunfire."

Xie Qiang was worried about the safety of the villagers, so he didn't have time to send anyone to conduct close reconnaissance. Besides, the number of Japanese soldiers was not even enough to fill a gap in his teeth.

Therefore, Xie Qiang made a decisive decision to surround the Japanese troops, launch a surprise attack, and quickly end the battle.

More than ten minutes later, the First and Second Battalions reported that they were in position.

Xie Qiang led the Third Battalion to approach quietly, then picked up a Thompson submachine gun and pulled the trigger to empty the magazine.

Xie Qiang's magazine took down at least six or seven Japanese soldiers.

As Xie Qiang fired his gun, more than a thousand soldiers opened fire from all directions simultaneously and then quickly stormed into the village.

The 1st Special Operations Division was only equipped with a small number of M1 Garand rifles, while the vast majority of its adversaries were equipped with submachine guns and machine guns.

The Japanese squadron in the village was completely powerless against such overwhelming firepower.

Within minutes, Xie Qiang's side had occupied the entire village and killed all the Japanese soldiers.

Just as Xie Qiang was secretly pleased, a soldier with an expression of extreme grief and indignation reported to him.

"Commander, this village has been ravaged by the Japanese. Over there... it's piled high with the corpses of our fellow villagers..."

"What...take me there quickly..."

A surge of rage rose within Xie Qiang, and he shouted for the soldiers to lead the way.

Soon, Xie Qiang was taken to a pond. The pond, which was several hundred square meters in size, was filled with the bodies of the murdered villagers. At a glance, there were at least two or three hundred bodies.

Xie Qiang was in immense pain and frustration. His eyes were bloodshot, his fists were clenched, veins were bulging, and his teeth were grinding together.

"Sigh, I'm still too late..."