Chinese troops of the National Revolutionary Army fire on Japanese positions during the Battle of Changde, the strategic city in the heart of China??? rice-growing area. Although the Japanese army initially successfully captured the city, the Chinese 57th Division was able to pin them down long enough for reinforcements to arrive and encircle the Japanese. The Chinese Army then cut off the Japanese supply lines, forcing them into retreat. Changde, Hunan, Republic of China. November 1943.