Episode 35
Owing to the outbreak of the Pacific War,
Headquarters will transfer troops from China.
Thus, in North China,
order has to be restored immediately,
and your commando should play a key role.
Your primary task
is to destroy the Eighth Route Army
led by Weiguo in Hill Hutou.
Your commando should be ready
within 3 day. -OK.
My troops
are always ready for combat.
The vehicles for transfer
will arrive at your camp
by 11 o﹑clock,
and your troops
will set out at 12 in the noon.
You will be appointed as
the Chief of Staff in Combined Brigade
in Laiyang, Shandong Province.
You will be in charge of
the mop-up operations in Hill Hutou.
Takeshita, remember,
please take it as a training for your troops,
for after this task,
your target will be HQ of Eighth Route Army.
Yes.
Comrades,
the training is over now
for the Independent Regiment.
It is time for a real combat.
Intelligence from underground party
shows that a squad of Japs
will be out of Taifeng
to relieve the garrison in a strongpoint.
I will lead an ambush
with the 1st and 2nd Company of 1st Battalion
as an examination of the training.
Regt Commander Zhou,
let me go with you.
As a key figure in the regiment,
I wanna get to know
the fighting tactics of Independent Regiment.
OK.
Director Zhang,
the ambush is set in this road,
the only way to get out of Taifeng,
flanked by slopes of 100 meters.
The 1st and the 2nd Coy
will lurk on both sides of the road,
and the commanders
will be you and I.
We will place mines on the road,
and when Japs﹑ trucks trigger the mines,
we will launch an attack.
Since the ambush
is too close to Taifeng,
we must finish the attack quickly
with superior firepower.
What we are gonna do is to make an ambush
under the nose of Japs.
Understand?
Yes.
Order the troops to set out immediately.
OK.
Regt Commander, Japs are coming.
Be ready for combat.
Listen carefully.
No one shall shoot until Japs trigger the mines.
OK.
Shit. Which son of bitch shot just now?
Attack.
1st Coy, attack.
Attack.
Fire.
Charge.
Regt Commader, Regt Commander.
2nd Coy is charging.
Dali Yang, fuck you.
Charge.
Comrades, charge.
Save the wounded. Hurry up!
Hurry up!
Pl Leader.
Why on earth did you charge?
Who told you to shoot?
It was Director Zhang who shot.
And it was he who ordered to charge.
I wanted to stop him
but it was in vain.
What are the casualties?
Eight men are dead. 13 are severely injured.
Over a dozen men are lightly injured.
Casualties were mainly caused by the charge
and bayonet combats.
What do you think of it?
It was a perfect combat, right?
What is the matter?
Withdraw.
Regt Commander Zhou.
Did you order to fire
this morning?
Yes, I did.
And I also ordered to make the bugle call.
I found that Japs were so cowardly
that they were in disorder
on hearing the bugle call.
But we agreed that
the 1st and 2nd Coy would fire simultaneously
after the Japs triggered the mines, didn't we?
At that time, Japs were totally unprepared,
so I thought it was the perfect time to fire.
OK.
You said it was the perfect time to fire.
Let me ask you a question.
2nd Coy had machine guns and cartridges.
Why didn't you use these weapons?
If you could have killed the Japs
with bullets at close quarters,
why did you use bayonets?
I wanted to save the bullets.
The bloody bayonet charge
is said to be a good tradition of our army.
So we should hold on to the tradition.
To save the bullets? Aren﹑t the lives of soldiers
much more valuable than bullets?
I think
casualties are unavoidable in a combat.
And in this fight,
over 70 Japs were killed,
while only 8 of our men were dead,
and over 30 were injured.
It can be said that we﹑ve won the combat.
True. Casualties are unavoidable,
but by no means should anyone be injured
because of the foolishness of the commander.
Weiguo Zhou,
please mind your wordings.
You﹑re talking to me about the fuck wordings.
They were my soldiers.
They had their families,
and they were sent to me.
And now you are telling me that
with 70 enemies killed,
eight lives are taken for no reason.
Two companies of our people
were fighting only one squad of Japs,
and I can't believe we actually lose 8 men.
You.
Renjie Zhao. Let me tell you.
I let you join the battle out of respect.
If you don﹑t know how to fight,
please stay where you are.
Reporting to duty.
Regt Commander.
The militia caught a suspicious man
around the hill,
with a letter for you.
Is it from Bt Commander Liu?
No. This man entered
the mountain area from Qifengkou.
He said that he was here to send a letter
from your old friend in Laiyang.
I don﹑t know of an old friend in Laiyang.
Well...I don't know.
Where is the letter?
Unfold it for me.
Dear Weiguo,
several years have went past,
since we last met in Berlin,
and we haven﹑t got a chance for reunion.
It is such a pity!
I always sign at the recollection
of your manners of speaking and smiling.
Now, I﹑m overjoyed to learn
that you are an officer in Hill Hutou.
At 10th February,
I will make tea for you at Mid-Hill Pavillion
twenty miles away from Qingyuan.
With exceptional wisdom and braveness,
you will not deny me of my request.
This short letter cannot possibly express
how I have been missing you.
Your Younger Brother, Takeshita.
Where is the messenger?
He is in Village Lilong.
Tell the Commissar I will be back at night.
Yes.
I﹑m Weiguo Zhou.
You brought the letter to me, didn﹑t you?
Yes, I did.
I was sent here by my master as a messenger.
I did not expect that I was detained.
The Chinese have a tradition of courtesy.
The act of detaining me
can by means be taken as a friendly gesture.
Sit down.
Takeshita has become a master.
I should give him my congratulations.
I have to thank you in his name.
There is an old saying in Chinese,
﹒The messenger shall be spared in a combat.‧
As you are here just to send a letter,
we will not harm you.
I will ask you a few questions.
If you tell me the truth,
I will let you go.
Officer Zhou, you have such great power.
I was wondering why Takeshita sent you here,
and now I know. You﹑re trying to sound me out.
Officer Zhou, you are straightforward.
Whenever my master talks about you,
he is full of praises and admirations.
You are eager to flatter me.
I don﹑t know whether I should be pleased or not.
Officer Zhou, you are mistaken.
I meant what I said.
My master deems that
his contact with you in Berilin
is his happiest memory.
And the fact that you ended your friendship
is the greatest pity in his life.
For all these years,
every time my master mentions you
to his subordinates,
he cannot help signing.
I have never seen
my master express a higher admiration
to anyone else than he does to you.
It is most horrible to be cherished by a theft.
I don﹑t feel comfortable
to be in the reminiscence of your master.
Officer Zhou,
you may disrespect me,
but you should not disrespect my master.
What are you gonna do now?
Are you gonna stand up
and draw your sward?
You are an old friend of my master.
I don't dare to be disrespectful.
Good.
A wise man knows when to retreat,
although I don﹑t think of you
as a wise man at all.
You must have heard
from Takeshita about my swordsmanship.
Officer Zhou, you cannot deny
your swordsmanship
originates from
our faction.
I do admit
I learnt it from Takeshita.
I﹑m Weiguo Zhou.
I﹑m not like the mean Japanese,
who have learned swordsmanship
from China
and insist that it is their own creation.
How shameless!
Officer Zhou,
besides great swordsmanship,
your eloquence
is also impressive.
I intended to have a friendly talk,
but you were dishonest.
I just want you to tell me the truth.
Why on earth Takeshita wanna see me?
Just answer me this one question.
I have said that he misses his old friend,
and he wanna talk with you about the old days.
Isn't this a good reason?
OK.
Tell your master
although I don﹑t miss him very much,
it is all right to meet him.
My master will be overjoyed
to learn this.
But tell him to be careful.
Why?
You said yourself
he would be overjoyed to see me.
As extreme joy often ends in sorrow,
he may get into trouble after being overjoyed.
You﹑d better let him be careful.
-Zhao Jie. -Here.
Blindfold him and tie up his hands and feet.
Take him out of Qifengkou with a wheelbarrow.
Yes.
Don﹑t you think you need further consideration?
I am just gonna meet an old friend.
But he is Japanese.
Chu, I don't need to be reminded of this.
Weiguo Zhou.
Fine. Stop it. Calm down.
Commissar.
I﹑m as calm as I can be.
Look at him.
Weiguo,
don﹑t you know
Chu is worried about your safety?
Oh, thank you, Chu Zhang.
I wonder why Takeshita
arranges the meeting in Half-Hill Pavilion,
which is in the region of Bingquan Tang.
It is normal.
Takeshita has just come to Laiyang,
and he doesn﹑t have time to figure out
the surroundings of Hill Hutou.
No.
-Correspondent. -Here.
Send a message
to Bn Commander Liu of KMT army
that the Japanese army may strike Hill Qingyuan.
-Also, ask Jie Zhao to be here. -OK.
Takeshita
is telling me
Hill Qingyuan will be seized by him.
Don't worry.
Half-Hill Pavilion is 10 km from the town.
I don﹑t think Japs dare to be in combat there.
And
Half-Hill Pavilion is at Hill Qingyuan,
which is not in the garrison area of Zhihui.
So, even if Hill Qingyuan is stricken,
Zhihui will be not be affected.
Sir,
thank you for your concern for Zhihui.
In fact,
if Takeshita seizes Hill Qingyuan,
it is like pushing a nail
into the chest of the KMT army,
thereby separating their troops.
I don't think
Bingquan Tang will fight with the Japanese army.
That is to say,
after striking the KMT army,
Takeshita will focus his forces to attack us.
I know Takeshita.
He would take any risk
to do something
he can benefit from.
According to you,
if Takeshita seizes Hill Qingyuan,
we will be in an unfavorable situation.
Reporting to duty.
Regt Commander, did you ask for me?
Let the task force be in the highest alert.
And ask Dali and Shuisheng
to each take a combat squad
and go to the defense area of 2nd Battalion
for reinforcements.
OK.
What are you going to do?
You should not ask what I am gonna go.
You should ask what Takeshita is gonna do next.
Who is it?
It﹑s me. Oh. You are all here.
Regt Commander Zhou, you are back.
Were you looking for me?
I...I wanna discuss...the thing happened today.
Director Zhang, it was my fault.
We are comrades,
so regardless of the disagreement between us,
I should not have treated you in that manner.
Regt Commander.
No. Regt Commander.
Actually, I am here to apologize to you.
I was feeling bad
when you criticized me this afternoon.
I was irrational at that time.
But when I went to the medical unit
and saw the wounded,
I realized the gravity of the matter.
Had it not been for my false command,
we wouldn't have suffered such a great loss.
I
should be responsible for this.
I've worked underground for several years,
so I am experienced in that battlefield,
but it is not the same
with frontline battlefield.
At the front,
I am a new-comer.
I should learn from you,
and I shouldn﹑t have pretended to be an expert.
So, please accept my sincere apology.
Director Zhang, please don't say so.
Renjie Zhang,
thank you.
Your conduct shows us
the magnanimity of a CPC member.
It was my mistake.
I should admit it.
A member of the Communist Party
should have the courage to admit his mistakes.
Yeah.
Having the courage to admit his mistakes.
It's easier said than done.
Few people really manage to accomplish it
as you did.
The issue also makes me realize
that I am not fit for being a commander.
So
the focus of my work
will be to assist Commissar Li
in enhancing political awareness,
in order to build a brave troop
led by the Communist Party
in Hill Hutou.
Yes.
We all know
you are highly competent in this job.
I believe the Independent Regiment
will become a troop
with the will of iron.
Also,
Regt Commander, you are graduated from
Whampoa Military Academy
and received further education in Germany.
And you are experienced in the battlefield.
I hope to learn from you.
You flattered me.
We will cooperate with each other.
Oh, after saying what I want to say,
I feel much better now.
I have to go.
Sorry for interrupting you.
OK.
See you.
Intelligence offered by the garrison
suggests it's the defense area of the enemy.
Our task is fire reconnaissance.
Find out about
the defense in Hill Hutou,
and try to get important intelligence.
Everyone should be alert.
Keep a distance in your search.
If you meet a sentry,
use the sword.
Try to avoid shooting.
Yes.
Action.
Who is it? Password?
Oh, no. Be ready for combat.
Fire.
It proves Pl Leader﹑s prediction.
We have just been sent here,
and we encounter a night raid.
The Japs come at the right time.
Dali.
It is weird.
Listen to the gunshots.
It is strange.
Judging from the gunshots,
there are only a few Japs,
but the firepower is really strong.
Yeah.
Listen carefully.
Apart the machine guns,
there is a gunshot,
a gunshot we﹑ve never heard before.
Yes.
This team of Japs are not ordinary Japs.
Coy Commander Sun,
where are you here?
How the situation in the 4th Coy?
There aren﹑t many Japs.
It seems there are over 10 of them,
but the firepower is fierce.
Japs are in the grove to the east of village.
We have charged four times
only to be fought back.
Six men have been killed in our company,
and over 10 severely injured.
And, the 5 to 6 sentries at the entrance
may also have been killed.
Coy Commander Sun,
withdraw your soldiers immediately.
Don﹑t fight face to face with the Japs.
Guard the entrance of the village.
Don't allow the Japs to get in.
And we will take care of the rest.
Our task force will fight these Japs.
We will see
who they are.
OK. You must be careful.
These Japs have a strangely fierce firepower.
We got it.
Send a message to Regt Commander
telling him we﹑re in combat with the Japs.
OK.
Shuisheng.
Let﹑s see the firepower of the Japs.
According to Coy Commander Sun,
they seem to be devils.
OK.
Dali,
take 5 men with you and outflank from the left.
I﹑ll take 5 men and outflank from the right.
Pay attention to mutual support.
OK. Comrades, go.
Dali. Be careful.
You too.
Fire.
Japs.
I am curious to know
whether you are three-headed devils.
Shoot.
Snipers.
How can snipers be here?
Withdraw.
Hurry up.
They﹑ve escaped. Chase them.
Let﹑s go.
Come in.
Regt Commander.
4th Coy of 2nd Bn reports
that a small group of unknown Japs
launched a night raid in Village Shimen.
Shuisheng and Dali have been in combat.
The situation is unknown.
Unknown Japs?
Yes. There were a small number of Japs,
but they were equipped with good arms.
Takeshita. Finally, you have acted.
-Jie Zhao. -Here.
Assemble the task force. Let﹑s go to the village.
Spread out.
How can there be snipers in Eighth Route Army?
Fuck you.
Take cover.
Attack.
Where are our men?
Commander, we are outflanked.
Listen to the gunshots.
There are Czech machine guns
and box cannons.
Our enemies have good firearms.
Let me destroy them.
No.
We are in a disadvantaged situation,
and we﹑ve lost a few people.
Our task is to reconnoiter.
Tell everyone to withdraw.
Yes.
Attack.
Pl Leader.
Reporting to duty.
It was a surprise strike.
4th Coy suffered losses.
Six men were killed; 10 severely injured;
and over 20 wounded.
Only 2 members of the task force
were slightly injured. We killed 4 enemies.
The squad of Japs that attacked us last night
were no ordinary Japs.
They had a strong firepower.
Look at their equipment
and the guns.
I﹑ve never seen them before.
Made in Germany.
Where do the Japs come from?
They are equipped with German guns.
If my guess is right,
they are the special troops of Japs.
The commander is my old classmate,
Takeshita.
Our equipment
cannot even compare with theirs.
Regt Commander,
we﹑ve just got
a message
that the base of Qingyuanshan guarded by
2nd Bn, 1st Regt of Qingyuan garrison
was stricken last night by Japs.
The base of Qingyuanshan was seized.
Hill Qingyuan was seized.
Yes.
Currently, Bn Commander Zhihui
is preparing for a counterattack
to take back the lost base.
-Jie Zhao. -Here.
-Get things ready. Let's go to Hill Qingyuan. -OK.
Everybody.
-Set out. -Yes.
Zhihui,
I am late.
The base of Qingyuanshan was lost last night,
which unsettled the whole line of defense.
Although you sent us timely intelligence,
the 2nd Bn, 1st Regt responsible for defense
dismissed the threat of the Japs
for Hill Qingyuan was difficult to access.
Eventually, Japs raided from back hill.
2nd Bn Commander was executed
for the breach of duty.
Now, the defense of Qingyuan garrison
has fallen into a disadvantaged situation at once.
I guess
Takeshita has a special force
trained for mountain warfare.
A special force.
You﹑ve mentioned that the hill is hard to access.
The back hill is almost inaccessible,
and the Japanese launched a night raid
from the back hill. It would have been
impossible without mountain troops.
Thanks, Brigadier.
Come on.
For the victory of Takeshita,
cheers!
Come on.
I owe you a lot.
It was because you sent 2 infantry detachments
to attack Hill Qingyuan from the front
that I managed to win the combat.
Takeshita.
You deserved the victory.
The headquarters
sent you to Laiyang.
When I first learned
you planned a night raid from the back hill,
actually,
my first impression was
wow,
it was such a risky plan.
I didn't imagine that you would succeed.
Come on.
For a young talented commander
of the Imperial Japanese Army,
cheers.
Cheers.
Thank you, Brigadier.
I believe your special troop
will destroy
the Eighth Route Army in Hill Hutou.
Please be assured
we won﹑t let you down.
Brigadier,
what surprised me
was that in the reconnaissance of Hill Hutou
I lost 7 of my men.
Takeshita.
I know you set high standards for yourself,
but you shouldn﹑t blame yourself for this.
The remaining 5 members told me
that in Hill Hutou
there was also a special force
with amazing firepower.
I believe
you will be able to
destroy this force led by Weiguo Zhou.
Come on.
Let﹑s drink a toast to Imperial Japanese Army.
Cheers. Cheers.
Cheers.
Understand?
I will repeat once again,
First, for now on, the regiment
is in first degree readiness for combat.
All the troops will get into the base area.
Always carry the gun with you.
Be fully alert, even at night.
Yes.
Second, after the reconnaissance last night,
it is probable
that Japs will access here from a new path.
Take a close look at the map of Hill Hutou
and find out all the passes, valleys, and cliffs,
even the ones treaded by few people.
Guard these spots.
Yes.
Get everything ready. The meeting is over.
Jie Zhao.
Here.
Ask Dali, Zhuzi, and Shuisheng
to come to my room 10 mins later.
OK.
Shuisheng, Zhuzi.
Set out after midnight
to reconnoiter around Hald-Hill Pavilion.
Kill any Japanese snipers
that you discover,
and then find a secret hiding place for yourself,
where you will keep an eye on Takeshita.
Yes. Yes.
Remember,
do not shoot at him
unless I gesture you to do so.
OK.
Dali, you will follow me tomorrow.
Do you know who I will be meeting?
Are we gonna
meet the commander of Japs﹑ special force?
Good.
Don﹑t rejoice too soon.
Let me tell you two things.
First, don﹑t take the box cannon.
Instead, take the rifle with you.
Why?
What if we are to fight at close quarters?
It will be unfavorable for us.
Second, don't bring too many magazines.
Only one will be enough.
Why, Pl Leader?
Let me tell you.
When faced with the enemies,
you should never
let your real situations be disposed.
What do you mean by not
letting my situations be disposed?
Think it over yourself.
Don﹑t stay up late. You'll rise early tomorrow.
I﹑ll go now.
Sir.
Why is Yi Chen here?
Don﹑t you remember
the order for combat readiness
is sent to the village?
Of course, she knows about our situation.
Talk to her.
OK.
Yi Chen.
Don't tell me you are all right.
You did it several times before.
I won't say that I am all right this time.
What on earth are you worried about?
Come to Village Zhao first when you are back.
I﹑ll be waiting for you there.
OK.
-Dali Yang. -Here.
-Let﹑s go. -OK.