Resistance against Japan: Starting with the local militia

Chapter 186 Attack Stalled

P.S.: Dear readers, I'm so sorry for the poor update schedule in December. I'm guilty. Please rest assured, I will definitely finish this book!

"Reporting to the Commander, the troops have begun their withdrawal," Staff Officer Ozawa reported as he ran over.

"Hmm, where are the rearguard?"

"The first squadron is responsible for bringing up the rear."

"Okay, speed up the retreat."

"Hay."

“Suzuki-kun, you can rest assured now,” Masato Ikeda said with a smile.

"I feel much more at ease now." Ichiro Suzuki looked at the retreating troops in front of him.

"Bang, bang, bang." As the two were watching the troops retreat, they suddenly heard the sound of artillery shells being fired in the distance.

"Oh no, that's the sound of a Type 92 infantry gun." Ichiro Suzuki made the judgment immediately upon hearing it.

"Take cover!" As soon as Masato Ikeda finished speaking, shells from the Type 92 infantry guns fired by the militia roared toward the Japanese garrison.

"Boom, boom, boom." Explosions rang out continuously from the Japanese army camp.

A Japanese troop transport vehicle that was retreating was fortunately hit by a shell. In an instant, the flames of the explosion shot into the sky. The Japanese soldiers who were originally in the troop transport vehicle had already been blown down to the vicinity of the vehicle. The Japanese soldiers who were lucky enough to survive lay on the ground, maimed and screaming incessantly.

"Baka yarou!" Ikeda Maken was furious as he looked at the military camp that was under fire from the militia.

"The militia has gone too far! Staff Officer Ozawa, organize an attack!" Ikeda Maken, who had already suffered several losses at the hands of the militia, said with his eyes red with anger.

"Ikeda-kun, you must not! This will only play into the Minzuan's scheme. They are now hoping that we will take the initiative to attack them. Our top priority is to preserve our strength and retreat immediately."

"Judging from the sound of the cannons, the enemy has deployed at least eight Type 8 infantry guns. The force attacking us must be the main force of the militia!" Suzuki Ichiro said, pulling Ikeda Masato aside.

"Officer Ozawa, stick to the original plan and organize the troops to retreat at an accelerated pace." Suzuki Ichiro couldn't care less about anything else and immediately shouted to Officer Ozawa beside him.

At this moment, under the persuasion of Ichiro Suzuki, Masato Ikeda finally calmed down. Indeed, as Ichiro Suzuki said, the militia must have made full preparations to dare to attack them now!

"Suzuki-kun, I will avenge this!" Ikeda Masato said viciously.

"Don't worry, Ikeda-kun. Once the Sakai Regiment arrives, they will crush this militia like moths to a flame."

“Suzuki-kun, once the militia finishes shelling, they will definitely launch an attack. I will take men to cover the retreat. You take the troops and retreat to the county town first. Make sure to ensure the safety of those five Type 92 infantry guns,” Ikeda Maken said after calming down.

“Let me do it. After all, you are the commander-in-chief of the troops. I’m better suited to this kind of cover mission.” Ichiro Suzuki agreed with Masato Ikeda’s suggestion.

“Suzuki-kun, don’t argue with me. When it comes to defense, you can’t compare to me. I was one of the top students in the defense course at the Imperial Army Officer School. Besides, I was the one who planned this defensive fortification.”

"Besides, the militia is my old rival. I have to regain some face. I can't keep losing like this!"

Masato Ikeda patted Ichiro Suzuki on the shoulder, signaling him to retreat immediately with his men.

"In that case, I will follow your orders, Mr. Ikeda. I will lead my men to retreat immediately. Take care, Mr. Ikeda."

"Thank you for your kind words. See you in the county town."

"Okay." After saying that, the two went their separate ways.

"First Company, Second Company, follow me and hold off the enemy!" Masato Ikeda immediately notified his First Company and Second Company to move into their defensive positions as soon as the shelling ended.

Meanwhile, in the front-line command post, Tang Xiaohu was using binoculars to observe the movements of the Japanese army camp.

"Battalion Commander, the artillery battalion did a great job! They blew the Japanese devils up and down!" the deputy battalion commander said.

"The regimental commander made a brilliant move, catching the Japanese off guard. It's just a shame the Japanese had already started to retreat; otherwise, the artillery fire would have been even more effective."

"How long will the shelling last?" Tang Xiaohu asked casually.

"Three minutes left," the deputy battalion commander said, pulling out his pocket watch.

"What are the positions of each unit?"

"All units have reached their designated attack positions," the deputy battalion commander reported.

"Alright, pass the order: launch the attack immediately after the shelling ends."

"Yes."

Shortly after the deputy battalion commander issued the order, the artillery battalion's fire ceased as scheduled.

"Charge! Kill those little devils!" The First and Fourth Battalions, which had been preparing for the attack, charged towards the Japanese camp the moment the artillery fire stopped.

The battle quickly escalated to a fever pitch.

On the Japanese side, two companies of Japanese soldiers, under the command of Masatoshi Ikeda, displayed tremendous fighting power, and the militia's attack was thwarted, even though the militia had occupied all of the Japanese outer positions.

However, Masato Ikeda relied on the inner ring of positions to firmly hold this area and block the militia's attack.

"Damn it, we've run into a tough nut to crack." Tang Xiaohu immediately ordered a halt to the attack when he saw that the assaulting troops were being held back.

"Battalion Commander, how do we stop the attack? I'll lead a charge and make sure we take the Japanese position this time," the company commander asked urgently on the phone.

"No reason why, just stop the attack and obey orders," Tang Xiaohu said sternly over the phone.

"Yes, Battalion Commander, I will obey orders without hesitation," the company commander replied reluctantly.

"Okay." Tang Xiaohu slammed down the phone after saying that.

"Battalion Commander, why do we stop the attack? I think if the troops launch a few more waves, we can definitely take down the Japanese position," the deputy battalion commander asked in return.

"No, doing that would cause too much damage. I just observed from the front lines that the Japanese positions are not so easy to breach, and our opponents are extremely good at defense. If we continue to attack, we will be the ones who suffer."

"Do you remember the task the commander gave us?"

"I remember, the commander told us to kill as many Japanese soldiers as possible while preserving our strength."

"Yes, if we continue the attack, even if we win, it will be a partial victory, which will benefit our overall defensive operations, since they still have a regiment of Japanese soldiers behind them."

"If we suffer too many casualties here, we'll be in trouble later in the battle," Tang Xiaohu continued to explain.

"Understood, Battalion Commander. So, what's our next step?"

"Report the battle situation to the regimental headquarters and see what they say."

"Yes, I'll report right away."

Meanwhile, in the militia command post, Zhang Haoshan hurriedly walked up to Tang Weiguo and reported.

"Commander, Tang Xiaohu's attack was thwarted, and the planned battle was not achieved. Half of the Japanese troops have safely retreated."

"Yes, I saw it. Tang Xiaohu did a good job. We should order a halt to the attack." Tang Weiguo nodded in satisfaction with Tang Xiaohu's order.

"I didn't expect that this Japanese unit, while not very good at offense, would fight such an outstanding defensive battle." Although the Japanese were the enemy, Tang Weiguo did not hold back his praise.

"Yes." Zhang Haoshan nodded in agreement.

"Therefore, we must never underestimate the Japanese," Tang Weiguo warned again.

"Commander, I understand. We will definitely give it our all."

"Ah."

"Commander, what's our next step? According to Battalion Commander Niu's report, he has led the reconnaissance battalion to lie in ambush near the county town. Should we notify Battalion Commander Niu and ambush this retreating Japanese force on the way?"

"No, that won't do. If the reconnaissance battalion is exposed, and the Japanese in the county realize that there's another unit near the county, they'll be on guard, and our plan to raid the Japanese armory will fall through." Tang Weiguo directly rejected Zhang Haoshan's suggestion.

"Commander, should we just let this Japanese unit go?"

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. We need to hurry and set up defensive positions for the other sites."

"Yes, I'll arrange it immediately." Zhang Haoshan continued to arrange the new battle plan.