PFC Chapter 104 The Loss Ratio of a Failed Battle
Chapter 104 The Loss Ratio of a Failed Battle
"Bai... Bai translation."
Zhou Huaiqi greeted them as he walked forward.
The air reeked of alcohol, and Zhou Huaiqi was filled with trepidation.
Damn it, if we have no other choice, we'll have to kill him. We absolutely cannot expose Battalion Commander Wang.
Kill this kid, and say he was drunk and caused trouble, and his gun went off accidentally.
However, when he got closer, he found that the translator's face was flushed, and his eyes were somewhat glazed over, making him look drunk.
The translator, Bai, put his hand on Zhou's shoulder, his breath reeking of alcohol, and said with a chuckle, "Chairman Zhou, Shanxi Fenjiu is just so delicious, it tastes like home!"
"..."
Zhou Huaiqi understood, and his anxiety subsided.
He also smelled the stench of urine, turned his head and saw, good heavens, that this guy had actually urinated all over the pillar next to him, and there was a pile of vomit next to him.
Zhou Huaiqi thought to himself, "Damn it, this guy's still drunk. He scared the hell out of me."
"Translator Bai, you've had too much to drink. Let me help you back to rest."
The translator, Bai, was also taken back by Zhou Huaiqi amidst some stumbles and misunderstandings.
It was all a false alarm! Zhou Huaiqi made up his mind that next time he met Wang Yousheng, he must observe carefully before taking any action.
Day two!
The sounds of gunfire continued to erupt outside the village.
In particular, the sound of the Japanese heavy artillery could be heard from Daxia Village, which was dozens of kilometers away from the front line.
While the front lines are fighting, the logistics base in Daxia Village is also very busy.
Various supplies were continuously sent to the front lines, and at the same time, many wounded soldiers were being discharged from the front.
The Japanese field hospitals and logistics bases were packed with people inside and out.
Early in the morning, Taro Kameda was woken up by the guards.
He had been having sex all night and couldn't sleep at all. He stayed up until the early hours of the morning, still half asleep and half awake.
He thought to himself that the imperial warriors, having fought through the night, must have reaped considerable rewards! Judging from the sound of cannon fire, they had at least completed the encirclement and suppression of the bandits in the North China mountains.
"Guards! All departments of the Operations Staff are to convene in the Operations Hall in ten minutes!"
Inside the room, Taro Kameda gave a command.
"Hai!"
After the guards withdrew, Taro Kameda hurriedly put on his general's uniform. Looking at himself in the mirror, he saw that the uniform was straight and upright, and the general's medals on his shoulders shone brightly.
He revealed a satisfied smile, his four large gold teeth gleaming in the morning light streaming in through the window.
Ten minutes later, in the Zhou family hall, several operations staff officers from the division had already taken their positions.
Looking down at the crowd, Taro Kameda demanded, "What are the results of the battles fought by the various units under the division?"
An operations staff officer immediately responded: "Reporting to the general! The Third Brigade has completed the encirclement of the west. Yesterday, it encountered an attack by the Eighth Route Army, but the troops' advance has not slowed down. They have now captured three villages west of Wanjia Town."
Another operations staff officer followed up with a report: "The 2th Brigade sent the latest battle report this morning, stating that they have completed the encirclement of the southern area of Wanjia Town and have already occupied two villages."
Next, the other staff officers reported on the casualties and battle situations of the two brigades.
As Taro Kameda listened, his brows furrowed.
In one night, Yu Sakurai completed the first step of his "Iron Wall Encirclement" plan, taking control of five villages.
In other words, the 6th Division, under the leadership of Yu Sakurai, broke the sweeping record of the First Army in North China.
The two divisions of the First Army have carried out countless sweeping operations over the years, but have never managed to encircle the enemy territory in a single day.
This time, the 6th Division broke the record, not only completing its tactical deployment within a day but also capturing five villages. Sakurai Yu's advance speed was still very strong.
However, Taro Kameda did not pay attention to this.
Taro Kameda then asked, "What is the casualty ratio?"
The communications soldier replied: "The Third and Fourth Brigades annihilated a total of over 1,600 Chinese troops. The Third Brigade suffered over 200 casualties, and the Fourth Brigade suffered over 300 casualties, a casualty ratio of 3:1."
"Hmm?" Taro Kameda looked surprised. "Why are the Fourth Brigade suffering such heavy casualties? The warriors of our Great Japanese Empire should achieve a kill-to-loss ratio of 5:1 or higher when fighting on the Chinese battlefield. That is the kind of achievement that the warriors of the Empire should have."
The operations staff officer continued, "General, the Eighth Route Army that the Fourth Brigade encountered this time was extremely formidable. The Fourth Brigade launched three assaults, but encountered fierce resistance from the main force of the Eighth Route Army. The two sides fought fiercely for a day and a night, and the Eighth Route Army only withdrew from the position this morning..."
"What? That means the Fourth Brigade hasn't advanced an inch in the direction of Wanjia Town! What kind of local Eighth Route Army did the Fourth Brigade encounter?"
The staff officers dared not speak, clearly unaware of the Eighth Route Army's designation.
Taro Kameda's expression turned grim.
He then asked, "What about the prisoners? What about the Chinese women?"
The communications soldier said tremblingly, "All five villages were empty. No civilians were captured. The Eighth Route Army retreated quickly and didn't leave behind a single corpse..."
"Baka!"
At this rebuke, the group of operations staff all lowered their heads and dared not utter a word.
Although the two brigades occupied five villages in a day, what was the use? Not only did they fail to completely defeat the Eighth Route Army's armed forces, they also failed to capture a single civilian.
The Fourth Brigade also suffered such a high casualty ratio.
In Taro Kameda's view, this was not the 6th Division's fighting style; Yu Sakurai was still a bit too aggressive.
He muttered to himself, "What's wrong with Sakurai-kun? What's the use of just occupying a few villages? The Great Japanese Empire wants supplies and it wants to annihilate the Chinese army. We need both."
"General Shinotsuka's orders were that the primary objective of this operation was to capture and kill Chinese men and abduct Chinese women."
"Sakurai-kun has clearly gone against General Shinotsuka's wishes."
After he finished speaking, a short staff officer, less than 1.5 meters tall, stepped forward and began to tattle.
"General, yesterday when Chief of Staff Sakurai led the troops to advance, he did not kill or plunder any Chinese civilians."
"When the Fourth Brigade passed through Sanxing Village, the villagers were right on the right side of the main force of the Eighth Route Army. A small force could have intercepted and killed them, but Chief of Staff Sakurai did not do so. Sakurai was eager to engage the main force of the Eighth Route Army."
"..."
Enraged, Taro Kameda shouted, "Immediately telegraph Chief of Staff Sakurai and order him not to forget our objective: we must fight the Eighth Route Army and kill the Chinese civilians as well. We cannot just occupy uninhabited villages."
"Hai!"
……
Half an hour later, in Sanxing Village, west of Wanjia Town.
The village had been occupied by the Japanese and turned into the temporary command post of the Fourth Brigade.
Under the command tent, Yu Sakurai looked at the phone call from Taro Kameda, his expression quite grim.
The several operations staff officers standing nearby dared not speak, for they all understood that Sakurai Yu and Kameda Taro did not have a good relationship.
A moment later, Sakurai Yu threw the telegram on the ground and sneered, "Hmph, conservative fellow."