activa-t Chapter 736: Crush and Feed the Dog
Chapter 736: Crush and Feed the Dog
"Impossible!" Yao Ziqing screamed, causing his wound to ache and causing him to break out in a cold sweat. However, his eyes remained stubborn, "I saw it with my own eyes! They took me on the run all night long!"
Captain Zhao... The place they found... there's no way there are any brothers from my battalion!
"It wasn't them who carried me out... That equipment, that speed... That way they disappeared, there's no way!"
"Ziqing!" Lu Guoquan held him down, his voice filled with unquestionable seriousness and deep apology: "Calm down first! Don't get excited! The wound is important!
I understand... I understand too well the grief and indignation in your heart!
The entire battalion was wiped out, and you were the only one rescued. The guilt and pain you felt were enough to distort anyone's perception!
Add to that the severe concussion and the aftereffects of the poison gas..."
He paused, took a deep breath, and his face revealed an immense guilt and sorrow that was difficult to conceal: "And... and I still have something to apologize to you!"
Yao Ziqing stopped struggling and stared at Lu Guoquan.
"After receiving your request for help, I... I immediately ordered Sun Xuehai to lead a battalion of reserve troops to reinforce Baoshan at all costs! But..."
Lu Guoquan's voice was filled with powerlessness and resentment, and his eyes were red: "Not long after they set out, they encountered intensive strafing and bombing by the Japanese air force!
The Japanese warships' artillery on the sea also carried out ultra-long-range intercepting shooting!
The entire reinforcement route turned into a death zone!
Battalion Commander Sun...is seriously injured!
The troops... The troops suffered heavy casualties and simply... were unable to break through the Japanese fire blockade!
By the time the news got back, it was already too late…” He slammed his fist on the crumbling door frame next to him: “It’s my fault for not sending the troops! It’s my fault for not providing enough rescue!”
This is why you were trapped alone, and ultimately... ultimately led to such a tragedy!
It is I, Lu Guoquan, who have let you down! I have let down the hundreds of loyal souls of Baoshan Camp!"
This belated, bloody truth was like the last straw that broke the camel's back, completely crushing Yao Ziqing.
His stubbornness and eagerness to prove that he had seen the surreal scene were instantly overwhelmed by greater sorrow, powerlessness and a heart-wrenching sense of absurdity.
On the one hand, the brigade commander brought up the harsh reality of the blocked reinforcements, acknowledging the mistakes made at the command level, offering a harsh, realistic explanation that added a layer of despair to the tragic and heroic perseverance.
On the other hand, his unforgettable experience, which he firmly believed in, was considered by everyone to be a post-traumatic hallucination, whether it was the foreign-looking soldiers who saved him or the doomsday blow that turned the tide of the battlefield.
The brigade commander did not question his loyalty or the bravery of the Baoshan Battalion, but he only questioned the authenticity of his last experience.
And, he was given an explanation that barely made sense in medicine and on the battlefield: shell shock, traumatic hallucinations, and gas-induced hallucinations.
"The reinforcements... were blown up by the Japanese..." Yao Ziqing muttered to himself, as if he had lost all his strength. He slowly fell backwards, staring blankly at the beams covered with cobwebs.
How do we explain the huge, charred and silent area surrounding the core position of Baoshan and all the broken limbs?
Could that also be the "masterpiece" of the Japanese army?
But the brigade headquarters obviously did not have relevant battle report intelligence support.
And what about those "foreign fighters"?
Captain Zhao and his men did see the bodies of the men from the Third Battalion...
Is this a coincidence? Or a cover-up?
Or is it an illusion of "reasonableness"?
A severe headache came over him, and the wounds all over his body burned his nerves.
The images of reality and memory collided and tore apart wildly in my mind.
The brigade commander's apologetic eyes became blurred, and Captain Zhao's solemn figure gradually became distorted.
He felt as if his whole body and soul were sinking into a cold, dark, bottomless abyss filled with huge mysteries.
Yao Ziqing suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, which fell on the blood-stained bandage on his chest, and he lost consciousness instantly.
This time, coma seemed to be his only way to escape this cruel logical collapse.
Only the calm, almost inhuman eyes of the "foreign fighter" before he disappeared, like a ghost, stared at him coldly in the deepest darkness.
Beside him, Brigade Commander Lu Guoquan was calling out anxiously, "Medic! Quick! Come quickly!"
His voice was full of regret and confusion. What he saw was a heroic battalion commander whose spirit was severely traumatized and whose memory was confused.
And in Yao Ziqing's heart, there was only a silent, huge, unspeakable emptiness and fear.
The simple blood-stained map that he had been holding in his hand without letting go quietly slid to the floor and unfolded wrinkled. The name of Baoshan Town was circled in blood and marked crookedly on it.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Luodian!
In Baoshan, Yao Ziqing led the entire 3rd Battalion to contain the main force of the Japanese army.
This town has been reduced to ashes!
Every brick and tile is soaked with the blood of loyal souls!
The 18th Army! The backbone of the Civil Engineering Department! Nailed here like a nail! Even with our last lives as sandbags, we must block the Japanese advance westward.
Never! Never! Retreat! Even if there is only one person left!
"Report!" The tattered curtain of the headquarters was suddenly thrown back! A combat staff officer, soaking wet and with his hat missing, was as pale as paper. He pointed southeast, his voice shrill and distorted with extreme tension and fear.
"Division Commander! It's bad! We just... just received a report from the Luodian forward observation post. The Japanese... the Japanese army! The Japanese Asama Detachment!
I don't know where it came from! It has already broken through the Zao River and is heading towards Chen Xing!
Moving northward!
There are signs of cutting off Yuepu's connection with Luodian and making a detour towards Dachang!"
The news was like a bombshell, instantly silencing everyone in the command post!
Even the iron-like expression of Division Commander Peng Shan showed a very slight fluctuation!
As a graduate of the first class of the Whampoa Military Academy, he instantly realized that something was wrong.
Japanese Army Asama Detachment!
If they were allowed to break through Zhuozaobang and successfully move northwards, deep into the direction of Dachang!
That means the left wing of the 18th Army in Luodian battlefield has been torn apart!
The consequences could be disastrous!
The entire command post was dead silent; even the sound of raindrops falling through the cracks could be clearly heard.
All eyes were focused on Peng Shan. The heavy pressure was like a substance, making it hard to breathe.
"Hahahaha!" A wild and even somewhat happy laugh suddenly burst out from Peng Shan's mouth!
The laughter seemed particularly abrupt and strange in the dead silent command center, shaking the dust in the corner of the wall.
The staff officers were stunned.
Some even thought that the commander was under too much pressure and had gone insane.
The laughter gradually died down, but Peng Shan's face glowed with excitement as if he had met a worthy opponent, and his eyes were dancing with fanatical light!
He slammed his palm heavily on the map where the breakthrough of Zhuobang was made! The force was so great that it made the table buzz!
"Well done! Brilliant!" Peng Shan practically cheered, his eyes gleaming with insight: "Okamura Neiji, that old fox! He can't sit still anymore!
"Does he think that by releasing a poisonous needle, he can bypass the iron wall of my Luodian? He is dreaming!"
He turned abruptly, his eyes shooting like lightning at the combat staff officer who had just brought the bad news, and his tone was firm: "Send an order! Immediately notify the Xiachu Central Unit of the 98th Division!
Use some of your forces to continue to delay the enemy in front of you! Main force! Main force, immediately move towards me! Maintain mobility!
Before the staff officer could digest the order, he suddenly pointed in the direction of Hu Lian's brigade on the map and said, "Send a message to Brigade Commander Hu!
"Open up the north wing towards Yuepu! Open the hole wider for me! Make it look like the north wing is empty!"
He looked at the hole on the map that had just been torn open by the Japanese Asama Detachment, and a cold smile appeared on his face, like a hunter setting a trap: "Aren't they trying to stab me in the left back?
Good! Let him in! I want to see if his small group of people dares to get into the pocket I have prepared for him!
Entering the meat grinder of Luodian…” Peng Shan’s voice suddenly turned icy: “I’ll grind him into pieces, skin and bones, and feed him to the dogs!”