Bright Sword: This unit is really ruthless

Chapter 417 Walk Carefully

Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang looked at Zhang Ling with tears in their eyes, then turned and ran into the depths of the woods.

Zhang Ling struggled to stand up, pulled out his pistol, and pointed it at the pursuing devils...

A ferocious wolfhound jumped out from the darkness and pounced fiercely at Zhang Ling...

The gunshot came suddenly, and a sharp whistle echoed in the cave. Wang Hu's body fell to the ground with a bang, and the splashing blood stained Zhang Ling's face red. He stood there in a daze, his ears buzzing, and he couldn't react for a while. Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang were even more frightened, and they huddled in the corner and trembled.

Several figures appeared at the entrance of the cave, holding guns and walking in cautiously. The leader was the soldier who had come to take over the arsenal before, and at this moment he had a barely perceptible sneer on his face.

"Captain Zhang, I'm sorry, Captain Wang tried to embezzle the gold and abscond for fear of punishment. We have been ordered to shoot him dead." The soldier spoke in a flat tone, as if he was narrating a trivial matter.

Zhang Ling wiped the blood off his face, anger boiling in his heart, but he knew that now was not the time to vent. The other side had more people and was obviously well prepared, so a head-on fight would only lead to death.

"I see," Zhang Ling suppressed his anger and said calmly, "Thank you for your hard work."

The soldier glanced at the gold on the ground, and a trace of greed flashed in his eyes: "Captain Zhang, these golds..."

"Of course we have to hand them over to the division headquarters," Zhang Ling said first, "I'll have someone count them and then register them."

The soldier was obviously not satisfied with this answer, but he also knew that it was not wise to turn hostile now. He could only nod and signal his men to move the gold away.

Zhang Ling and the other two watched helplessly as the gold was taken away, their hearts aching. The treasure they had worked so hard to find was just handed over to someone else.

After the soldiers moved the gold, they left the cave. Zhang Ling and the other two stood in the empty cave, looking at each other, feeling a deep sense of powerlessness.

"Battalion Commander, what should we do now?" Xu Erniu asked with a sad face.

Zhang Ling took a deep breath and tried to keep himself calm: "Let's get out of here first."

The three of them left the cave and returned along the same route. Along the way, they were all silent, each with their own thoughts.

After returning to the camp, Zhang Ling immediately summoned all the soldiers and announced a shocking news: he decided to leave the National Army and form an independent army!

The soldiers were stunned. They didn't expect Zhang Ling to make such a bold decision.

"Battalion Commander, this... this is not good, right?" a soldier said hesitantly.

"What's wrong with that?" Zhang Ling asked, "We worked so hard to fight the Japanese, but in the end we can't even have a full meal. Why?"

"But...if we leave the National Army, we will become rebels..." said another soldier worriedly.

"So what if they're rebels?" Zhang Ling sneered, "I'd rather be a free bandit than be bullied by the national army!"

Zhang Ling's words resonated with the soldiers, and they expressed their support for Zhang Ling's decision.

In this way, Zhang Ling led his soldiers, left the National Army, and began their journey of independence.

They occupied the mountains and became the kings, robbing houses and becoming well-known bandits. They were ruthless and unscrupulous, but they also had their own principles: they only robbed corrupt officials and killed traitors and running dogs.

Their deeds gradually spread and attracted the attention of the Nationalist and Japanese armies. The Nationalist army sent troops to encircle and suppress them, and the Japanese army also sent troops to attack them.

But Zhang Ling and his soldiers defeated the enemy again and again with their familiarity with the terrain and extraordinary courage.

Their ranks grew larger and larger, and their momentum became more and more powerful. They became a special force in the anti-Japanese battlefield, causing headaches for both the national army and the Japanese army.

......

One day, Zhang Ling was drinking in the mountain village when he suddenly heard a noise coming from outside.

"What's going on?" Zhang Ling asked.

A soldier ran in and said breathlessly: "Report to the battalion commander, a woman came down the mountain and said she wanted to see you."

"Woman?" Zhang Ling was stunned for a moment, "What woman?"

"She said her name was Liu Ruyan and she was the leader of Qinglong Village," the soldier replied.

Zhang Ling's heart was moved. Qinglong Village? That was the largest bandit nest nearby. It was said that the village leader, Liu Ruyan, was a beautiful and unparalleled female bandit leader. She was ruthless and murderous.

"Let her in." Zhang Ling said.

The soldier took the order and left. After a while, a woman in red came in.

The woman was tall, with a charming face, a pair of bright and vivid eyes, and she exuded a mature and charming temperament.

Zhang Ling looked at the woman in front of him and couldn't help but secretly admire in his heart: She is indeed a beauty!

"Are you Zhang Ling?" the woman asked in a clear and pleasant voice.

"It is me," Zhang Ling said, bowing. "What advice do you have for me, Village Master Liu?"

Liu Ruyan smiled sweetly: "I heard that Captain Zhang is brave and good at fighting, so I came to visit him today. I hope to cooperate with Captain Zhang and fight against Japan together."

Zhang Ling sneered in his heart. Cooperation? I'm afraid it's not that simple, right? This woman must have bad intentions.

"Cooperation? How do you cooperate?" Zhang Ling asked calmly.

Liu Ruyan walked up to Zhang Ling, stretched out her slender hand, gently stroked Zhang Ling's cheek, and exhaled sweetly: "As long as Captain Zhang is willing to submit to me, I promise that you will get everything you want..."

The gunshots outside the cave continued, crackling like popcorn. Zhang Ling stood there in a daze, blood splattered all over his face, warm and smelly. Wang Hu's body fell at his feet, his eyes wide open, and he died with his eyes open.

"Battalion Commander...Battalion Commander...Battalion Commander Wang is dead!" Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang finally reacted and pointed at the corpse on the ground tremblingly.

Zhang Ling wiped the blood off his face, took a deep breath, and forced himself to calm down. Now was not the time to be afraid. There were constant gunshots outside, and it was obvious that another group of people had come, and they were not friendly.

"Damn it, what's going on?" Zhang Ling cursed under his breath.

"Battalion...Battalion Commander, what should we do now?" Xu Erniu's voice was tearful. He had been timid since he was a child, and now he was so scared that he almost wet his pants.

"What should we do? What else can we do! Hide first!" Zhang Ling grabbed Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang and dragged them behind the gold box.

"Shut up, everyone. Don't make a sound if you don't want to die!" Zhang Ling warned viciously.

The three men hid behind the golden box, not daring to make a sound. Listening to the gunshots and shouts outside, their hearts were in their throats.

The battle outside seemed to be fierce, with gunshots, explosions, and screams one after another, and the entire cave began to tremble.

Zhang Ling secretly wondered who these people were from. Were they from another group? Or were they... the Japanese?

Thinking of the devils, Zhang Ling's heart sank. If they were really devils, they would be in big trouble.

As time passed, the gunshots outside gradually became less frequent, and finally stopped completely.

The cave was dead silent, with only the breathing of the three people audible.

"Battalion...Battalion Commander, is there no movement outside...is there no movement outside?" Xu Erniu asked in a trembling voice.

Zhang Ling didn't say anything. He pricked up his ears and listened carefully to the noise outside. After confirming that there was no danger, he slowly stuck his head out.

Outside the cave, there were more than a dozen corpses lying in a mess, the ground was dyed red with blood, and the air was filled with a strong smell of blood.

Zhang Ling walked to the cave entrance cautiously and carefully observed the surrounding situation. After making sure there was no ambush, he called Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang out.

"Battalion Commander, these people...who are these people?" Li Dazhuang asked, pointing at the corpses on the ground.

Zhang Ling shook his head: "I don't know. Judging from their attire, they don't look like the National Army, nor do they look like the Japs..."

"Then...who are they?" Xu Erniu asked curiously.

Zhang Ling did not answer. He walked to a corpse, squatted down and examined it carefully.

The corpse was wearing a black uniform, holding a strange-shaped gun in his hand and a samurai sword hanging on his waist.

"This...this is...Japanese?" Xu Erniu said in surprise.

Zhang Ling shook his head: "No, the Japanese are not that tall, and their skin color is not that white..."

"Then...who are they?" Li Dazhuang asked in confusion.

Zhang Ling stood up, brows furrowed, and he had a bad feeling in his heart.

"I...I seem to have seen this kind of uniform somewhere..." Zhang Ling muttered to himself.

Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his head and he remembered something.

A few months ago, he read a report in the newspaper that a mysterious force had appeared in the Northeast. The members of this force were all wearing black uniforms and their weapons and equipment were very advanced.

At the time, he thought it was just a fabrication in the newspaper and didn't take it seriously.

But now, seeing these corpses in black uniforms, he finally understood that the reports in the newspapers were true!

This mysterious army really exists!

And, they showed up here!

"Battalion Commander, what's wrong with you?" Xu Erniu asked with concern when he saw that Zhang Ling looked upset.

Zhang Ling took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "We are in trouble..."

"Trouble? What trouble?" Xu Erniu and Li Dazhuang asked in confusion.

"This army is not an ordinary army..." Zhang Ling pointed at the corpses on the ground and said slowly, "They... They are a... ruthless army..."

As soon as Zhang Ling finished speaking, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the cave entrance...

The three were startled and quickly hid behind the golden box, holding their breath and not daring to make any sound.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and finally stopped at the entrance of the cave...

A tall man in a black uniform appeared at the entrance of the cave...

He held a strange-looking gun in his hand and scanned the cave with cold eyes...

"Come out, I know you are hiding in there..." The man spoke in fluent Chinese, his voice was low and hoarse, as if it came from hell...