After Okamura was struck by gunfire and fell, Yamaguchi no longer had the heart to continue the battle. As Yamaguchi ordered a retreat, the cries to withdraw grew ever louder. Nearly six hundred Japanese soldiers, organized into two companies, had launched only a single charge before scurrying into an emergency retreat. Because the terrain was low and recessed, Zhang Xingguo’s machine gun company caught the Japanese in a highly vulnerable position; even while retreating, many were struck by stray bullets. The Japanese machine gun platoon, tasked with providing cover, fired wildly toward Zhang Xingguo’s positions, barely managing to buy enough time for the withdrawal. Surrounded by many of his men, the wounded Okamura was carried away as he bled profusely.
"Open fire! Don’t let those bastards go!"
Inside the 2nd Battalion’s positions, the soldiers who had been struggling to hold off the Japanese offensive were stunned to see the aggressive enemy suddenly turn and flee in a scramble. The soldiers were already burning with hatred, and the preceding Japanese artillery barrage had claimed the lives of countless brothers-in-arms. With old scores and new grievances adding up, the men had only one thought: beat the drowning dog and do not let a single Japanese soldier escape! The eight hundred soldiers in the 2nd Battalion were Cheng Dongxing’s core force, mostly veterans whose marksmanship and firepower were far from poor. As the Japanese retreated further away, those covering the…
Chapter 82