Chapter 45: A coincidence?

"What? All of Tsukada's team was killed?" Captain Hashimoto looked at the signalman in front of him in disbelief after receiving the news.

"Yes, just now, several natives reported that the Tsukada squad was attacked by the Chinese Expeditionary Force and all of them were killed." The signalman said cautiously. In fact, he was also very puzzled.

It is incredible that the imperial army, which has always been invincible, was completely wiped out.

You know, a small team is enough to chase down a battalion of British troops.

They didn't encounter any decent resistance along the way.

"Baga, bring those natives here. I want to interrogate them personally." Captain Hashimoto said in a cold tone with a flash of coldness in his eyes.

"Hay."

Not long after, several natives who came to inform were brought before Captain Hashimoto.

Looking at the natives in front of him, Captain Hashimoto tried hard to force a smile and asked.

"Who killed the imperial army?"

"Jiligulu, jiligula..." several natives spoke hurriedly in their native language.

Fortunately, the Japanese army also brought an interpreter.

"Expeditionary Force? Sichuan Army?" Captain Hashimoto frowned slightly. He had known about the expeditionary force for a long time.

At this time, southern Burma had already become the territory of the Japanese army. After losing Rangoon, the British army had no choice but to request an expeditionary force to enter Burma to fight.

Who would have thought that while they were still chasing the British army, they would turn around and run into the expeditionary force.

"Give them some rice balls and let them rest first." Due to the requirements of publicity, Captain Hashimoto could only patiently ask someone to send some food and drinks.

After the natives left, Captain Hashimoto opened the map and began to check it.

"Captain, something seems wrong." A lieutenant asked in confusion, looking at the map.

"What's wrong?" Captain Hashimoto looked at his subordinate in surprise and motioned for him to continue.

"Could it be a trap? A trap to lure us in?" The lieutenant thought for a moment and then expressed his thoughts.

"No, I don't think it's a trap." Another team leader denied his opinion and picked up a pen to draw a straight line on the map.

"According to intelligence, the expeditionary force set out from Wanding, which is at least hundreds of kilometers away from us. Even if they travel day and night, it is impossible for them to arrive here so quickly."

“The only possibility is that this expeditionary force is traveling down the Salween River with a secret mission.”

"Otherwise it is hard to explain why the entire Tsukada team was annihilated."

"They don't want their whereabouts to be revealed," Captain Hashimoto followed.

"Your Excellency is wise. The reason why the natives are still alive is probably because they think that they hate us. Little do they know that these natives have already stood on the same front with us, and their whereabouts have long been revealed."

"At present, the main force of our Imperial Army has captured Yangon and is launching an attack on Toungoo, while the 200th Division of the Expeditionary Force is heading towards Toungoo, obviously to replace the British troops in Toungoo."

Don’t blame a Japanese lieutenant for knowing so much; it’s simply because Yamashiro’s intelligence work was so poor.

Many times, the Japanese army learned about the plan as soon as it was formulated.

The Japanese army had long known that the expeditionary force was gathering in the Wanding area.

He even planned the marching route of the expeditionary force after entering Burma.

It can be said that the Japanese army made sufficient preparations to take over Burma.

You can tell from a small lieutenant.

"The Chinese are so cunning that they are no match for us on the front lines, so they will start with our logistics."

"So I guess they definitely want to cut off our logistical supplies."

"Once there is a problem with our logistics, the plan to attack Tonggu will fail."

After this analysis, Captain Hashimoto was shocked.

You know what, it's really possible. After all, if we go south along the Salween River, we can get behind Tonggu.

Once there is a problem with logistics supply, the so-called offensive plan will become a joke.

Thinking of this, Captain Hashimoto lost his previous calmness and even became a little panicked.

"Send the situation here to His Excellency the Major immediately." Captain Hashimoto thought for a moment, then immediately asked the signalman to send a message, and at the same time ordered the troops to assemble and pursue the expeditionary force.

According to information provided by the natives, this expeditionary force had about a thousand people and was well-equipped.

All he had to do was to follow the enemy, wait for the main force to arrive, and then eat up the enemy in one breath.

On the other side, Cun Yunsheng and others were bored and waiting for the Japanese army to take the bait.

"Commander, do you think these Japanese soldiers will be fooled?" Meng Fanle asked the question that everyone was wondering.

"It depends on how much weight the natives hold in the hearts of the Japanese." Cun Yunsheng said casually.

"Don't worry, the Japs will definitely come, but I don't know if they can attract the big fish."

He was 100% sure that the Japanese would chase after him, but he didn't know how many people would come.

Just in case, the guard company and the artillery company stayed behind.

"How big is the big fish you are referring to?" Meng Fanle asked curiously.

"At least he has to be a colonel, right? Otherwise, he's not a big fish. It would be better if he were a major general." Cun Yunsheng had no interest in officers below the rank of colonel.

"You are so bold to even dream of becoming a major general." Meng curled his lips in annoyance, thinking that his commander was daydreaming.

Cun Yunsheng didn't care about Meng Fanle's sarcasm, but picked up the map and started marking the locations.

"Once we have dealt with this group of devils, we will move our troops south."

Cun Yunsheng’s words made everyone a little confused.

Heading south?

"Go south? Going further south is Tonggu, right? Isn't a war about to break out there?" Meng Fanle asked in confusion.

"That's right, let's find a way to find the Japanese's lair." Cun Yunsheng said indifferently.

Directly raid the Japanese's lair?

Isn't this a bit too big?
"Commander? We only have more than 2,000 people? Not 20,000. Are we just going to rush into the Japanese's lair?" When he heard that they were going to rob the Japanese's lair, Meng Fanle's tone was not as arrogant as before.

If there were more than 20,000 people saying this, it would still be considered a bold statement.

Two thousand people, isn't this just seeking death?
"What's wrong? Are you scared?" Cun Yunsheng asked instead of answering.

"Commander, you look down on us. We are not afraid of death, but we don't want to die unclearly." Meng Fanle shook his head and said.

"It's very simple. A war is about to break out in Tonggu, and the Japanese Army's 18th Division will be the main force." Cun Yunsheng said lightly, and everyone fell silent in an instant.

"Commander, our regiment is going to fight against an entire division of the Japanese? Isn't this too crazy?" Lin Yi also asked.

Hearing this, Cun Yunsheng shook his head and said.

"You think it's crazy, but the Japanese would never have thought that someone would be so bold as to attack their lair."

"The main force of the Japanese is heading north, leaving the rear empty. This is the best time to raid their lair."

"Commander, you are really crazy." Lin Yi was shocked by Cun Yunsheng's plan. He did not expect that his commander would be so crazy.

But I have to say, although this plan is crazy, it is really exciting.

If successful, their Sichuan Army will become completely famous.

At the same time, it will become a thorn in the eyes of the Japanese.

"It's exciting, really exciting. Commander, are you still planning to recapture Yangon?" Meng Fanle looked at Cun Yunsheng and said unhappily.

(End of this chapter)