Chapter 8: Damaging the Japanese Warplane!

Liang Guoping was indeed a graduate of the Japanese Army Officer School.

After firing two rounds of artillery, he immediately ordered his subordinate mountain artillery battalion to relocate their position.

Soon after, a series of explosions erupted behind them.

“Those damn little devils move even faster than I imagined,” he snarled.

“Captain, could this really be the elite artillery unit you mentioned?”

“Exactly. Their artillery commander, when he studied in Japan, was probably my instructor.”

Liang Guoping spat out the dirt that had fallen into his mouth and growled fiercely, “But now, this unworthy student will have a taste of the artillery of the Jin-Sui Army!”

“Order the men to take up position at the secondary artillery emplacement, set up the guns quickly, and be ready to provide support at any moment!”

“Yes, sir!”

Gunfire erupted continuously. On the forefront of the 358th Regiment’s position, the battle raged fiercely. The two sides were locked in intense combat.

Meanwhile, at the 427th Regiment’s position, there wasn’t even a trace of the enemy—no sign of the “little devils” anywhere.

Li Da-shan, commander of the 427th Regiment, watching the 358th Regiment fiercely slaughter the enemy, immediately made a call to the command post of Brigade Commander Liang, requesting permission to launch an offensive.

Upon hearing that the Japanese attacking forces were firmly engaged with the 358th Regiment, Brigade Commander Liang hesitated not a moment.

He ordered part of the main force of the 427th Regiment to make a flanking maneuver, striking the Japanese from the side to relieve pressure on the 358th.

After issuing the command, Brigade Commander Liang called the 358th Regiment’s command post directly.

Upon receiving the call, Fang Ligong reported Liang’s plan to Chu Yunfei.

“Commander, if the 427th Regiment intervenes, the pressure on our front lines will ease significantly.”

“Then let our troops seize the opportunity, hold them in place, and buy time for the 427th’s counterattack.”

“Yes, sir!”

In terms of equipment, the 358th Regiment was armed with locally made Type 65 rifles—copies of the Type 38 rifle. However, because of limited industrial capacity, the performance of these rifles lagged slightly behind.

Still, this did not mean that the Jin-Sui Army’s main force was inferior in small arms firepower to the Japanese.

Take, for example, the locally produced Czech-style 6.5mm machine guns, which were highly favored by front-line soldiers due to their rapid rate of fire and precision.

The 358th Regiment’s firepower configuration was exceptionally strong, making it impossible even for the elite Independent Mixed 11th Brigade to gain any advantage.

With their repeated setbacks on the front and attacks coming from the flanks, Suzuki Shigeyasu, commanding on the Japanese front line, cursed the incompetence of his air support.

Had their cover been effective, how could the attacking “locust army” soldiers have failed to break through the enemy lines?

Damn Chinese!

Facing threats on the flanks, Suzuki immediately ordered his troops to retreat.

Captain Qian Bojun of the first company seized the opportunity decisively. At his command, the company’s two infantry platoons, covered by light and heavy machine guns, launched a countercharge.

Before leaping out of their trenches, they followed their training to the letter—disengaging the safety and rushing forward.

For a moment, the piercing bugle calls echoed continuously, and the cries of battle filled the air.

Fang Ligong stepped forward beside Chu Yunfei. The two stood side by side, gazing out over the distant battlefield.

A gentle breeze brushed their faces, and Fang Ligong sighed, “Commander, it seems the Japanese aren’t as tough as we thought.”

Suddenly, a harsh roar sounded from above.

Both men turned to the northeast.

A squadron of six Japanese light bombers was heading toward the Ruyue Pass.

Fang Ligong’s expression darkened. So many friendly troops had been sent out, yet before even encountering the enemy, the Japanese air force had already inflicted heavy casualties through bombing.

The Japanese held air superiority, their greatest advantage against the Jin-Sui Army being their ability to continuously launch bombing runs on the positions.

The power of their aerial bombs was sufficient to destroy most trenches and fortifications.

Still worried, Fang Ligong said, “Commander, our troops are advancing in pursuit... if Japanese reinforcements arrive and counterattack with air support overhead, the pursuing units could suffer heavy losses.”

“Don’t rush, Ligong—let the bullets fly a little longer.”

“Commander, the situation doesn’t look good. Should we take cover?”

Chu Yunfei shook his head. “What’s there to panic about? The Japanese planes are still far from us! Order the anti-aircraft units—those little devils have let their guard down. Open fire immediately!”

“Yes, sir!”

Chu Yunfei and Fang Ligong entered the forward command post.

The Japanese, caught in a pincer attack, saw their air support overhead and their morale instantly wavered.

“It’s our planes!”

“Hah!”

Some desperate Japanese even waved at their aircraft while retreating.

Before the reinforcements could even clarify the precise locations of friend and foe, the anti-aircraft units, already prepared, opened fire on the Japanese planes.

“Ratatatatat!”

“Boom boom boom!”

“Clang clang clang!”

“Looks like we’ve hit one!”

“If we don’t shoot one down, it doesn’t count. The commander said before, anyone who brings down a Japanese plane gets a reward of three thousand silver dollars!”

“Brothers, fire with everything you’ve got!”

“Company commander, look! A Japanese plane is on fire!”

“Quick, order the troops to focus their fire on that plane!”

The light and heavy machine gunners of the 358th Regiment had all been trained in anti-aircraft fire.

Although they couldn’t guarantee shooting down those damn little devils’ planes, their fire was enough to keep the Japanese cautious.

The anti-aircraft company’s large-caliber machine guns posed a deadly threat, making it almost impossible for the enemy to drop bombs safely.

After barely one circle of circling, one enemy plane was hit and caught fire.

The Japanese commanders were competent enough to realize they could no longer waste time.

Hurriedly, they dropped their bombs on an uninhabited mountain ridge and fled the battlefield as fast as they could.

Thus, the air unit—once the Japanese’s great hope—had utterly failed.

The morale of the Japanese puppet troops, initially raised by the air support, plummeted once more.

“Report, Commander, Staff Officer. The Japanese planes have withdrawn. We’ve damaged one enemy plane, but whether it was shot down remains unclear...”

“Hmm.”

Fang Ligong was puzzled. “Commander, during our main engagement with the Japanese forces, they did not display the formidable combat abilities we expected... Their offensive power was not as overwhelming as predicted and not invincible.”

“Why, then, did our comrades in Datong perform so poorly?”