At Ning Zhiheng's command, the entire special operations team was mobilized, with thirty military vehicles setting off at top speed towards Nanbai Village.
When the vehicles could no longer proceed, the entire team disembarked and, led by several guides, proceeded on foot towards the target location.
Ning Zhiheng called the Zuo brothers over and instructed them: "Take twenty team members and go to the entrance of Nanbai Village. Once the fire starts burning here, immediately eliminate that contact point and make sure no one escapes."
"Yes!" The Zuo brothers nodded in acceptance and selected twenty skilled team members to sneak towards the entrance of Nanbai Village.
Ning Zhiheng led the main force to the designated position, the passage connecting Caopingbang and the northern land, which was about 600 meters wide. Ning Zhiheng's men, including the student soldiers, numbered a total of 500. It could be said that with their firepower, they could completely seal off this pocket.
Ning Zhiheng and all the others were in place, and he couldn't help but nod in satisfaction. They had now trapped the Guchuan Brigade in the Caopingbang area, and they couldn't escape!
He checked the wind direction; in late autumn, the wind in Shanghai was mostly from the northwest, which was perfect for using the wind to spread the fire from north to south.
"Make your move!" Ning Zhiheng immediately gave the order. There was no time to lose.
The team members immediately took action, rolling the gasoline drums over and dumping them along the 600-meter-long blockade line.
"Pour it out again, don't be stingy, make the area even bigger!" Ning Zhiheng frowned and ordered as he watched his team members' actions.
The initial stage of setting a fire is the most important. The larger the initial fire, the drier the surrounding reeds become, and the more intense the fire will burn, causing even more reeds to become drier and more flammable, ultimately creating a vicious cycle.
Meanwhile, lifted higher and higher by the hot air, the flames will spread everywhere with the help of the wind, eventually becoming uncontrollable.
Gasoline was still very precious at this time, and the team members were initially reluctant to use it. However, after hearing Ning Zhiheng's order, they disregarded their concerns and poured all the gasoline they had on the ground.
"Team leader, we've really lost out this time. So much gasoline, it'll cost a fortune to transport it back!" Huo Yueze couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.
Ning Zhiheng turned to look at him and said with a smile, "Trading this gasoline for a Guchuan Brigade is a good deal!"
Huo Yueze chuckled and then said, "That's true. But team leader, we've already emptied these three large warehouses. There are still quite a few warehouses along the river. Shouldn't we think of a way to get a few more? These are all gold mines. It's frustrating to just look at them without being able to get our hands on them!"
Ning Zhiheng nodded after listening. He had been considering what Huo Yueze had said. Transport had been suspended for several days, the situation was deteriorating, and the time for retreat was fast approaching. He needed to find a way to get more supplies back. He couldn't just watch these treasures fall into the hands of the Japanese.
"I'll figure something out! Time waits for no one, we can't delay any longer!" Ning Zhiheng said in a deep voice.
At this moment, the team members all retreated. Ning Zhiheng stopped talking to Huo Yueze and checked his watch. It was 2 PM. He then gave the order: "Ignite!"
At a command, several ignition points were set ablaze simultaneously. Fueled by the gasoline, the fire quickly surged towards the target. Almost instantly, several massive fireballs burst into flames, forming a raging inferno in the gasoline-splattered burning zone. The air was thick with the pungent smell of gasoline. The crimson flames, carried by the northwest wind, swept wildly towards the grassy bank, relentlessly devouring everything in their path.
The fire spread so fiercely in the blink of an eye that even Ning Zhiheng and the others were caught off guard. After all, they had never operated the fire themselves before, and they were truly caught off guard by such a situation.
"Quickly, everyone, clear the reeds around us and create a firebreak. We can't let this fire burn us down too." Sun Jiacheng, who had been through many battles, quickly ordered the reeds to be cleared.
The other team members were also startled. Upon hearing Sun Jiacheng's order, they quickly took action. Fortunately, they were upwind and relatively far away, so they were able to respond in time and control the spread of the fire.
Ning Zhiheng frantically pulled up the reeds in front of him, his hands covered in mud, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Damn, we really used too much gasoline. We were thinking of setting fire to our camp, but we almost set ourselves on fire!"
At this point, the fire quickly grew to a considerable size and rapidly moved towards Caopingbang. The thick smoke and flames had already attracted the attention of the Tanikawa Brigade.
The sentries who had been positioned deep in the reeds immediately emerged from their hiding places and ran all the way back to Caopingbang to report to Tanikawa Kazuma.
Meanwhile, the plainclothes team members hiding in the houses at the entrance of Nanbai Village rushed out of the houses, pointing at the increasingly fierce fire and shouting anxiously. However, they did not notice that danger was already approaching from their side. Zuo Gang, who was lying in ambush, fired the first shot, hitting one of the plainclothes team members in the back. Instantly, gunfire erupted, and bullets from all around rained down on the plainclothes team members, causing blood to splatter everywhere as they fell to the ground!
At this moment, all the members of the Tanikawa Brigade ran out of the shed where they were hiding. As the flames drew ever closer, the temperature around them rose rapidly, and the air became scorching and stifling.
Kazuma Tanikawa's face turned ashen. He knew the terrain of Caopingbang well. The fire was spreading from the land, and with water on three sides, there was no way to escape.
As the saying goes, water and fire are merciless. The fire spread slowly, but in reality, it progressed extremely rapidly. By the time the Tanikawa Brigade was at a loss, the burning fire had already penetrated into the interior of Caopingbang, setting the outermost sheds ablaze. The thick smoke produced by the fire was carried by the north wind and enveloped the entire Caopingbang.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
