Songhu: Never Give Up

The densely packed Japanese soldiers screamed and rushed towards the 1st Battalion's position, while many of the defenders were still buried in the loose soil. Those soldiers who were lucky enough to escape the bombing were using all their strength to help their comrades escape, and they did not take the surging Japanese soldiers seriously at all;

The soldiers defending the third trench rushed to the flying thunder cannon position at the first moment. Some were thrown out by the shock wave, and some were buried by loose soil.

They used all their strength to dig out the "barrel" and were surprised to find that it was still a gasoline barrel, and its durability exceeded their imagination.
After they were cleaned up, they were found to be still usable, except for one door which was severely deformed by the explosion. After being rounded off with stones, it was indistinguishable from a new one.

There are too many Japanese troops, and they have already prepared themselves to lose the second trench. Whether they can stop the Japanese troops depends on these six flying thunder cannons. The captain is very curious.

The shrill whistles rang out one after another. The Japanese troops had already advanced to the range of the machine guns. Under the command of officers at all levels, the light and heavy machine guns that could still be used were already spraying bullets at the Japanese troops.

This time the Japanese also used tanks to lead the way. They had gone all in and naturally would not keep the tank squadron, their most important card. However, the formation was much sparser, and with the ones that were not deployed the first time, there were only 17 tanks left.

The anti-tank trenches were also flattened by the bombing. They were pushed into a horizontal line and rushed forward with murderous intent. They really only cared about eating and not fighting. They thought that the defenders' anti-tank guns had been destroyed by the aerial bombardment.

When the battalion commander saw the Japanese had deployed tanks, he immediately sent out the fire-shooting platoon, but this time they only stayed on standby in the third trench, and their effective range could reach the first trench.

The first trench had been abandoned long ago, and now it was all about the defense of the second trench, where two companies were stationed, the strongest in the entire battalion;
The focus of the Japanese attack was still on the left wing. There was only one battalion on the right wing and three infantry battalions on the left wing. They aimed to make a breakthrough at the key point.

Fearing the loss of the frontline positions, the 1st Battalion Commander Wu Qiujian ordered the artillery battalion to fire at the Japanese infantry with all their might. The 4 75mm guns, 6 mortars, and 6 infantry guns became the nightmare of the Japanese infantry, and each round of artillery fire would knock down dozens of Japanese soldiers.

Colonel Itanishi, who was furious, immediately ordered the regiment's artillery to open fire. Rows of shells hit the defending artillery battalion, destroying three artillery pieces in a short time.

Wu Qiujian, feeling pained, cursed the Japanese ancestors for eighteen generations, then ordered the guns to be turned towards the Japanese artillery. The two sides engaged in an artillery battle, resulting in casualties on both sides.

Without the suppression of artillery, the Japanese infantry continued to charge towards the defenders' positions. They charged aggressively under the cover of 17 tanks, not taking the defenders seriously at all.

The defenders' heavy machine gun bullets could only leave a shallow dent on the tank's frontal armor;
Although the Maxim heavy machine gun/Type 6 heavy machine gun can theoretically penetrate 15 mm steel plates, the Type tank is equipped with mm thick, sloped armor on the front, so it is unrealistic to penetrate the tank with machine gun bullets.

Seeing that the defenders had no way to deal with them, the Japanese tank drivers excitedly screamed in the cab and charged at the defenders' positions like a group of wild bulls.

Soon they broke through the first trench, leaving the useless infantry behind.

Then they rushed to the second position where the most troops were stationed. The vehicle-mounted machine guns kept firing at the defenders. Most of the soldiers in the first and second companies who were stationed in the position had been killed or wounded, but they still fought to the death.

Some had already bundled the grenades into cluster bombs, waiting for the tanks to rush into the trenches and die together with the Japanese.

The company commander roared:
"Brothers, the Japanese can't break through our position unless they press over our bodies!
Let’s be brothers in the next life and fight the devils together on the road to the underworld!”

The remaining soldiers of the first and second companies were ready to die on the battlefield. They lay quietly in the trenches, holding the fuse in their hands, waiting for the final moment to come.

The distance between the second trench and the third trench was 150 meters, which was the best range for the musket. Experienced shooters could hit the target every time.

The 16 40mm rocket launchers of the firepower company were ready long ago. When the Japanese tank rushed to the distance of only ten meters from the second trench, the signal gun in the hands of the company commander Qiao Wanchun sounded. Three shots as a signal!

The 16 main shooters couldn't wait to lean out, took simple aim and pulled the trigger. Due to the narrow observation port, the Japanese tank soldiers did not notice the rocket launcher operator more than a hundred meters away. They were in a complete blind spot and were simply sitting ducks.

It wasn't until the rocket hit them, easily tore through the tank's front armor, and then exploded in the cab that they realized they were being targeted by the god of death.

One after another, the defenseless tanks exploded and caught fire, which frightened the Japanese infantry behind them so much that they screamed "Ah meow die" reflexively.

"Kill the chickens - quickly protect the tanks!"

The other surviving tanks didn't know what had happened. They were horrified to find that their companions were blown up one by one. Some of them recalled the horrible experiences before and felt a chill for no reason.
The captain immediately ordered the driver to reverse and escape from this death zone, but it was too late.

The main shooters replaced the rocket and shot at them again. Their efficiency was so high that the Japanese tank commander was terrified as if he had seen the god of death.

The company commander, who was ready to die with the enemy tanks, was surprised to find that the enemy tanks were being blown up one by one, as easily as shooting down a target, and shouted excitedly:
"Brothers, there is nothing to be afraid of the Japanese iron bastards. They have already been dealt with by the brothers in the firepower company.

Next, it's our turn to deal with the Japanese infantry and let them have a taste of our bullets!"

"beat!"

Without the suppression of tanks, the defenders, led by two company commanders, continued to pour bullets on the Japanese infantry, mowing them down row by row.

The remaining five Type 5 tanks had no intention of continuing the fight. In order to escape, they even drove at full speed into the Japanese infantry blocking their way, crushing these unfortunate guys into pulp.

Just like that, another of their tanks was destroyed, and in the end only four escaped. Their tracks were full of body parts of the Japanese infantry, but the Japanese infantry did not dare to complain.

"Bakayaloo, these cowards!

Warriors, even without chariots, our infantry can still capture the Chinese positions. Kill the chickens for us!"

Major Fukushima angrily ordered an attack. He had no way to deal with the tanks, so he could only drive the infantry to attack the defenders' defense line.
The regiment commander had given him a death order, requiring him to command the three infantry battalions on the left wing to attack. If he failed to capture the defenders' positions, he would have to apologize to the emperor.

They were all going to die anyway, so they might as well give it a try. After all, they had more than 2 men, while the defenders only had a few hundred men. The several-fold advantage in numbers made him confident.

Beat a fight, bike change bike!
Driven by Major Fukushima, thousands of Japanese soldiers rushed to the second trench. The remaining 100 or so soldiers from the first and second companies fought hard, spraying rows of bullets at the Japanese soldiers.

While mowing down a large number of Japanese soldiers, they were also hit by them. Casualties were increasing rapidly, and the Japanese soldiers soon rushed into the position, and the two sides engaged in brutal hand-to-hand combat.

(End of this chapter)