"Baka!"
"Baka!!"
"Baka!!!"
Upon seeing the contents of the telegram, Yoshio Shinotsuka, Shunsuke Nishimura, Shoji Ono, Sasaki, and others were furious.
They never expected Chen Ergou to be so arrogant, to dare say such things!
"I kill you!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka roared, drew his command sword from his waist, and charged out menacingly.
"General, please don't act rashly!"
Sasaki grabbed Yoshio Shinotsuka and loudly urged him on.
"Get out of my way, Sasaki!" Yoshio Shinotsuka shouted furiously. "I'll kill him! Kill that little bastard! Kill him!!!"
"General, calm down, calm down!"
Shunsuke Nishimura grabbed Yoshio Shinotsuka's other arm. "Charging out is just suicide. Didn't we agree to commit seppuku? Let's do it honorably."
"Seppuku!"
"Seppuku!!"
Masao Takahashi and Shoji Ono said loudly.
"..."
Yoshio Shinotsuka was silent for a few seconds, then nodded. "Alright, I'll commit seppuku! But I'll do it under the First Army flag, or I won't!"
"Hi!"
The group nodded in unison.
August 14th, 1930, noon.
After three days of fierce fighting, the entire First Army of the Japanese invaders along the line from Saiyu Village to Pingding was annihilated.
Among them, the 36th Division, the 37th Division, and the 16th Independent Mixed Brigade were all annihilated.
The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Puppet Army Divisions were either killed or surrendered.
In front of the flag of the First Army of the Japanese invaders south of Taiyuan, Yoshio Shinotsuka, Shunsuke Nishimura, Shoji Ono, Sasaki, and others knelt before the flag.
Next to each of them was a white towel and a command sword.
Yoshio Shinotsuka's eyes widened, and he said through gritted teeth, "Seppuku!"
"Hai!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka picked up his command sword.
Shunsuke Nishimura, Sasaki, and the others picked up their weapons.
"Your Majesty the Emperor—Banzai!"
"Your Majesty the Emperor—Banzai!!"
"Your Majesty the Emperor—Banzai!!!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka, Shunsuke Nishimura, Shoji Ono, and others raised their swords and slashed their own abdomens with force.
In an instant, blood gushed out!
Yoshio Shinotsuka, Shunsuke Nishimura, Shoji Ono, and others all lay in pools of blood.
Immediately, melodious music began to play in front of the military flag.
A song about seppuku lingered in the air above Taiyuan.
On the evening of August 14, the main force of the North China Field Army surrounded Taiyuan City.
The final assault was launched at 9 p.m. and ended at midnight.
With this, the war in Shanxi came to an end.
The First Army was annihilated!
Two days later, the Eighth Route Army Headquarters, the Supreme Command of the National Revolutionary Army, and the Second War Zone Command jointly issued a commendation order:
"In view of the numerous crimes committed by the Japanese army during the war of aggression against China, our Chinese army and people fought bravely and severely punished the invaders!"
"...On October 14, 1930, the Second War Zone annihilated the entire First Army of the invading Japanese forces in Shanxi Province. Its subordinate units included the 36th Division, the 37th Division, the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade, the 16th Independent Mixed Brigade, the 1st Puppet Army Division, the 2nd Puppet Army Division, the 4th Puppet Army Division, special attack units, and independent garrison units..."
"Several hundred high-ranking Japanese generals were killed, including Yoshio Shinotsuka, commander of the First Army; Shunsuke Nishimura, chief of staff; Masahiro Ono, chief of operations; Masao Takahashi, chief of intelligence; Sasaki, chief of the Special Attack Section; Kenta Takahashi, commander of the 36th Division; Shigeji Nishimura, commander of the 37th Division; Isamu Hiratsu, commander of the 4th Brigade; and Teiichi Inoue, commander of the 16th Brigade."
"It severely damaged the Japanese Second Army, which consisted of the 21st Division, the 32nd Division, the 108th Division, the 1st Independent Mixed Brigade, the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade, and the 5th Air Squadron."
"A total of Japanese soldiers were killed, 114 tanks were destroyed, 89 aircraft were destroyed, 366 trucks, 571 artillery pieces of various types, and countless ammunition were captured."
"This created a glorious achievement in the history of our army, the first time that an entire Japanese army corps was completely annihilated!"
"This has greatly boosted morale and the morale of the troops and the people... It is hereby commended! And the entire army is notified of this praise!"
"In recognition of this great victory achieved by the Second War Zone, the Second War Zone Commander-in-Chief, Lao Yan, is hereby awarded the titles of 'Famous General of Shanxi and Suiyuan' and 'Unparalleled National Hero' as a reward."
"Chen Ergou, commander of the Independent Regiment of the 386th Brigade of the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army of the Second War Zone, is hereby awarded the rank of Second-Class General and the Order of the Blue Sky and White Sun."
"This is a special commendation! A special award!"
The commendation order, once issued, brought jubilation throughout the country and sorrow to the Japanese army.
Major newspapers and media outlets rushed to interview and report on it.
In just half a day, the streets and alleys of Taiyuan City were filled with newspaper slogans.
"A rising star is emerging at the age of twenty!"
"A pillar of the nation at the age of twenty!"
"A hero, a true hero!"
"From now on, who will dare to look down on the Chinese nation?"
"..."
That evening, the international community highly praised the Chinese nation's performance in resisting Japanese aggression!
Warmest congratulations!
………………………………
Taiyuan, North China Field Army Headquarters.
After capturing Taiyuan, General Political Commissar Li Chenggang moved the headquarters of the Wu'an Township to the former site of the First Army.
"Smack!"
Lin Feng threw the commendation telegram on the table, exclaiming, "What the hell?!"
"Why should this old Yan reap the benefits after all the hard work we've put in?"
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