Bright Sword: I am an undercover agent in the puppet army

Chapter 88 Infantry-Artillery Coordination, Li Yunlong: With the assistance of the Lone Wolf Staff, our independent regiment finally fought a successful battle
Xu Yang said unhappily: "This is a different time. First of all, the defense force of the Black Water River stronghold is not as strong as that of the Niangzi Pass stronghold.

Secondly, the New 1st Regiment had already been fighting with the Japanese at that time, which attracted a large number of Japanese troops and firepower, so we were able to achieve miraculous results and destroy them in one fell swoop.

Now, the independent regiment has not launched an attack yet. If we drive the armored train directly into the station and take advantage of the Japanese inside the station being caught off guard, we may be able to inflict heavy damage on them in the first wave of fire attack, but we ourselves will definitely be finished.

The Japs only needed a few explosive packs to blow up the train, and even the howitzers might not have a chance to fire.

But if you stop 1 kilometer away, the situation will be completely different.

At this distance, the Japanese infantry can pose no threat to us, but our howitzers and heavy machine guns can deliver devastating blows to the targets in the Niangzi Pass stronghold. "

Shi Yibiao said, "No way, battalion commander, I think your worry is completely unnecessary. When the machine guns sounded, the Japanese soldiers would not hide in the bunkers, but would still rush forward foolishly?"

Xu Yang rolled his eyes at him and said unhappily, "Don't think of the Japs as being the same as you. They are not puppet troops, but a group of war machines that have been brainwashed by militarism and the spirit of Bushido and have become possessed. The hail of bullets will only make them even crazier.

At least that's what it must have been like at the beginning of the war."

Shi Yibiao stopped talking. He had indeed put himself in the shoes of a Japanese soldier just now.

Tian Shuisheng has been on the battlefield for many years and has witnessed the madness of the Japs, but in terms of fighting will, he is no less than that of the Eighth Route Army.

Niu Dazhuang spoke up again at an inopportune moment: "Captain, do we really want to fight the devils?"

Xu Yang was so angry: "Do you think there is still a way back now? Do you think that if you show your loyalty to the devil now, the devil will let you go?"

Niu Dazhuang: "It seems that we have no choice but to go all the way. But when the fight breaks out later, Captain, you must not abandon us and run away."

"Do I look like that kind of person?" Xu Yang's expression was distorted, and he felt that Niu Dazhuang had completely disgraced him.

Niu Dazhuang: "No, because you are exactly that kind of person! You have abandoned us and run away on your own many times in previous wars."

"..."

Xu Yang simply ignored Niu Dazhuang. What did he, 'Xu Yang', do to him?
He turned on the tail searchlight, flashed three light signals, two short and one long, and finally shone the light directly at a wilderness a hundred meters away.

Soon, a tall figure stood up from the wilderness.

"Lone Wolf Staff Officer, is that you?" the tall figure asked loudly with a thick Henan accent.

"It's me!" Xu Yang raised a homemade megaphone and shouted, "Take the artillery company and get in the car quickly!"

Xu Yang had already informed Li Yunlong through the radio, asking the artillery company to make preparations in advance and get on the vehicle to operate the howitzer.

Although the Independent Third Battalion has some artillerymen, they are all half-baked. Professional matters should be done by professionals.

After receiving Xu Yang's reply, the independent regiment's artillery company commander Li Sanpao turned around and waved his hand, and dozens of artillery veterans stood up from the wilderness one after another.

With professional artillery operators, there was no need for Xu Yang and his men to drive into the station and fire at close range like they did at the Blackwater River stronghold.

After all the soldiers of the artillery company got on the train, Xu Yang pointed both searchlights at Niangziguan Railway Station. The strong white light illuminated the entire Niangziguan Railway Station as if it were daytime.

If the Japanese soldiers in the train station hadn't known that it was the armored train's searchlight, they would have thought it was daybreak.

Although Kato Takao said that he would not let the repair personnel in the station provide help to the armored train unless the deer apologized, when the train stopped completely, the old Japanese still sent several subordinates to check and inquire.

Under the strong light of the searchlight, the Japanese soldiers felt that their eyes were almost blinded. They could only curse and keep their heads down as they hurried on.

Ma Tong saw the devils and asked, "Battalion Commander, the devils are coming."

Xu Yang: "Don't panic. It will take some time for the artillery company to get familiar with the howitzers. Let's wait until the enemy gets closer."

After waiting for a few more minutes, Li Sanpao called from the phone on the train: "Lone Wolf Staff Officer, everything is ready, please give instructions!"

Xu Yang: "You can fire now!"

"Yes!"

Li Sanpao agreed, then hung up the phone and directed several main gunners to pull the firing rope of the howitzer.

There were only a few muffled "bangs", and four high-explosive grenades, dragging a conspicuous tail flame in the night sky, rushed towards Niangziguan Railway Station.

"Boom!"

"Boom, boom, boom!——"

All four high-explosive grenades hit the target accurately. They are indeed professional artillerymen with excellent quality.

Except for one shell that missed slightly and only blew a small window in the target turret, the other three shells all hit the center of the bottom of the turret.

Faced with the flat 105mm caliber howitzers, the Japanese brick-concrete gun towers and bunkers were almost indistinguishable from those made of paper.

Accompanied by a series of explosions, the three artillery towers all collapsed and turned into ruins.

At the same time, the heavy machine guns on the armored train all roared violently.

"Tu Tu Tu!"

"Da da da!--"

The first to bear the brunt of the attack were the Japanese soldiers who came to check the situation. Before they could react, they were turned into a hornet's nest by the dense rain of bullets, with blood and flesh splattered everywhere.

More bullets poured into the station, covering the interior, continuing to suppress the Japanese.

"Baga! What are those idiots on the armored train doing?"

Kato Yingnan looked at the collapsed artillery towers and cursed angrily. His whole face was distorted and ugly like a ghost.

However, the armored train's attack did not stop because of his anger. After a few seconds, several more explosions rose up from the artillery towers and bunkers. Broken bricks and stones flew all over the sky under the influence of the explosion shock wave and fell everywhere. Some pieces even fell near Kato Ying'ao.

At this time, he knew the reason very well and angrily cursed: "Baga! Damn it, are these idiots all pigs? They even lost a strategic weapon like an armored train. Why don't they just die!"

The deputy next to him said weakly: "Sir, what should we do now?"

Kato Takao: "Send a telegram immediately to report this situation to the regiment and brigade headquarters!"

"Hi Yi!"

The Japanese deputy bowed his head heavily and said with a grim expression: "But our headquarters has been blown up by the enemy."

"..."

After being depressed, Kato Yingnan was extremely grateful. If he had not come to the platform to pick up the car but stayed in the command center, he would have been killed in the explosion by now.

On the other side, the battalion led by Zhang Dabiao was less than 500 meters away from the outer defense line of the Niangziguan stronghold.

The searchlight on the Japanese artillery tower was destroyed along with the tower.

The lights went out, and the soldiers of the independent regiment all disappeared into the darkness.

Invisibly, it gave them a lot of sense of security, and many new recruits immediately straightened their backs and strode forward. However, the darkness only made the Japanese soldiers unable to see them, but it did not mean that the bullets could not hit them.

"Bend over, don't stand up!"

"Bend down, bend forward..."

Zhang Dabiao, Shen Quan, Wang Huaibao and others became anxious when they saw this. They could only yell at the top of their lungs again and again, asking the recruits to bend down, but it was of no use. Firstly, the recruits had no memory, and secondly, some of them could not hear their voices at all.

After all, in addition to the continuous roar of machine guns on the chaotic battlefield, there would also be violent explosions from time to time, completely covering up the voices of Zhang Dabiao and others.

The new recruits forgot the battalion commander's previous instructions and continued to do as they pleased.

The only lesson humanity can learn from history is that it never learns.

Many common mistakes made by new recruits are that no matter how the veterans remind them, most of them will turn a deaf ear to them and let the advice go in one ear and out the other.

Only after bleeding will you learn your lesson and be obedient next time.

It doesn't matter in normal times, but in wartime, these problems will be fatal because bullets will not turn around just because you make a mistake and give you a chance to try again.

Neither can the shells!
Many recruits never got another chance.

At this moment, the new recruits of the independent regiment not only walked with their backs straight, but also advanced faster and faster.

"Bend down! Bend the fucking back! Walk slower, spread out, spread out, beware of the enemy's counterattack fire!"

Zhang Dabiao pulled off his hat and slammed it to the ground, he was so anxious that he almost shit himself, but it was still useless.

The recruits moved very quickly, and soon they were less than 300 meters away from the blockade ditch of the stronghold.

At this moment, the lights in front suddenly lit up again!
But this time, what lit up was not a high-power searchlight, but the Japanese's flashlight.

Dozens of beams of light shone at the same time, and the soldiers of the independent regiment who were rushing in the front were immediately exposed to the sight of the Japanese.

Immediately afterwards, dense bullets whizzed in.

When the distance reached 300 meters, the hit rate of the Japanese light and heavy machine guns and rifles increased significantly, especially the light and heavy machine guns.

Some veteran Japanese machine gunners could even operate heavy machine guns for burst attacks, which not only corrected the trajectory to reduce ammunition consumption and barrel temperature, but also greatly increased lethality.

"Tu Tu Tu!"

"Da da da!--"

“Pah, pah, pah, pah!——”

Tongues of fire spewed out, and countless bullets came towards them with the sound of "whooshing" through the wind.

The veterans of the independent regiment have rich combat experience and know how to defend not only against artillery but also against guns.

They were already hunched over, keeping a high level of alert, so they reacted quickly.

Almost the moment the light beam came, they all lay down quickly, and the bullets all passed over their heads, so there were no casualties.

But the new recruits were in trouble. When the light beam came on them, they were stunned for two seconds before they remembered the combat experience and battlefield rules that the regiment commander Li Yunlong had told them before the battle.

Two seconds may not seem long, just a split second, but it is deadly enough.

With just one round of fire, at least dozens of recruits fell to the ground screaming.

However, not many were actually killed, most were just injured.

The Japanese army's rifle and light machine gun bullets had a caliber of only 6.5mm, and the heavy machine guns had a caliber of only 7.7mm, which was smaller than the caliber of the National Army's weapons. Of course, the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army's imitation Japanese equipment was not included.

A smaller caliber means greater penetration.

Many soldiers of the independent regiment suffered penetrating wounds. In the past, when there was a shortage of medical care and medicine, such injuries would have been fatal even if they did not cause inflammation.

But in recent months, the Independent Regiment has won many victories and seized a large amount of spoils, including medicines.

Moreover, with the continuous use of Japanese yen and with the assistance of patriotic people from all walks of life across the country, a large amount of medicines were also flowing from all over the country and even the world to the Eighth Route Army's base.

Therefore, the Eighth Route Army is not short of medicines at present, and has even obtained a lot of anti-inflammatory drugs such as sulfonamides.

"Stretcher team, stretcher team, quickly carry these wounded away!"

Zhang Dabiao, Shen Quan and others carried the wounded away with gloomy faces.

When the new recruits saw their injured comrades beside them, they were terrified, but they also finally learned their lesson. They lay on the ground and wished they could burrow into the dirt.

However, no one was frightened and turned around to run away.

On the armored train, Xu Yang was observing the Niangziguan Railway Station with a telescope. When he saw the Japanese suddenly exposed their machine gun fire point, he immediately grabbed the phone and shouted, "Li Sanpao, there is a bunker at twelve o'clock, with at least two heavy machine guns deployed inside!
There is also a bunker at two o'clock with several light machine guns inside!"

"Blow up these two bunkers for me immediately!"

"Yes!"

Li Sanpao's voice came from the other end of the phone.

Soon, two shells flew out with terrifying screams. The huge recoil of the shells out of the gun made the whole train tremble slightly.

One shell hit the bunker accurately, bricks and stones flew everywhere, and the machine gun inside was silenced. The other shell missed the target slightly, but it also landed inside the stronghold, killing a number of Japanese infantrymen.

"Li Sanpao, what the hell are you doing? One of your shots went astray! Move the firing parameters one notch to the left!"

A few seconds later, two more shrieks were heard, and this time both shells hit the target accurately.

"Great! Hit it! The next target is still at the twelve o'clock position, about 30 meters forward..."

Under Xu Yang's guidance, four howitzers were placed horizontally to carry out targeted elimination of the exposed Japanese firepower points.

Looking at his own firepower fortifications being destroyed continuously, the captain of the 22rd Battalion of the nd Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army, Kato Takao, was filled with anger but could not think of any means of counterattack.

Because there were no anti-tank guns at all in the train station stronghold, there were some Type 92 infantry guns and Type 97 light mortars, but they were simply unable to counter the howitzers deployed in the bulletproof train with only half of the firing hole exposed.

Soon, more than a dozen firepower points northwest of the Niangziguan stronghold were all destroyed, which meant that there were only a few light and heavy machine guns deployed by the Japanese on the western border of Niangziguan left. There might be one or two unexposed bunkers, and some light machine guns deployed in foxholes and circular fortifications.

However, facing the fierce and surging offensive of the Independent Regiment, it was no longer enough to reverse the situation.

"Blow up the tracks! Blow up all the tracks!"

Kato Takao gritted his teeth and ordered...

(End of this chapter)