Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

Chapter 237: Fire! Killing in the Storm

Wow——!
Just then, it started to rain.

Matsusaka Jiro stood on a makeshift wooden platform, although he was soaked by the rain.

but,

It was like he wasn't affected by anything.

Clang——!
I saw the samurai sword at his waist unsheathed and one hand raised high at an angle.

Then, he said loudly to all the members of the Matsusaka Corps:

"All the soldiers of the Kwantung Army, listen up! We have fought many battles with the Daqian Army, and they are no match for us!"

"But the Ximentang Righteous Group we are facing today is the most elite force of the Daqian Dynasty!"

"They defeated the Western coalition forces and, relying on their powerful artillery, drove our troops stationed in Weihai out of Shandong!"

"In today's battle, we must take Qingdao!"

"After you take over the city, I will allow you to sweep it for a day. Loot everything, kill everything, and burn everything—!"

"If anyone retreats in the face of battle and is afraid of death, he will be killed without mercy!"

finished,

I saw an old man being tied up and dragged to the wooden platform by several Japanese soldiers who were as short as carrots.

Pfft!
A Japanese soldier kicked the old man's foot, making him kneel in front of Matsusaka Jiro.

puff--!
Matsusaka Jio took a pot of wine from the hand of Major Fujita Tsuyoshi next to him.

He tilted his head back, took a sip, and sprayed it on the samurai sword in his hand.

in fact,

At this time, the spring rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the wine could not be sprayed on the blade at all.

But this is a knife-sacrificing ceremony after all.

The sharp samurai sword emits a breathtaking cold light in the spring rain.

The old man knelt on the ground and yelled at Matsusaka Jiro:

"You Japanese beasts will be punished!"

"Even if I become a ghost, I won't let you go--!"

Matsusaka Jiro looked at the old man in front of him expressionlessly, and swung the samurai sword in his hand down.

Swish-!
With one slash of the sword, the force is as unstoppable as a bamboo breaking through!
The old man's head fell to the ground instantly, cut in half!

The extremely sharp Japanese samurai sword did not leave a single trace of blood on it.

Puff-!
The old man's body fell in a pool of blood, and the blood spread around under the washing of rain.

After a while,
A pool of blood surrounded the old man's beheaded body.

The 20,000 Kwantung Army soldiers present were silent, as if they were already accustomed to everything they saw.

They smelled the blood, and the violent nature in their hearts was aroused at this moment.

However, on the other side, many people in the Daqian army saw the old man lying in a pool of blood, with tears in their eyes.

The old man who was beheaded and sacrificed was named Liang Yunzhan.

He was originally a counselor stationed in Weihai of the Daqian Dynasty, but ever since the Japanese bombarded Weihai, Shandong.

Liang Yunzhan was the first to surrender and succumbed to the Japanese swords.

This time, the Matsusaka Corps of the Kwantung Army's Fifth Fleet set out from Lushun and brought with them the 5,000 Daqian troops that Liang Yunzhan surrendered.

Originally, Matsusaka Jiro only used these "fake soldiers" as cannon fodder.

but,

Unexpectedly, at an internal military meeting, when Matsusaka Jizo announced the capture of Qingdao City, he ordered all soldiers to burn, kill and loot for a day.

Liang Yunzhan actually stood up to oppose!

Matsusaka Jiro holds meetings to issue orders rather than discuss with others.

He didn't expect that someone would dare to oppose his order, and it was a Daqian person.

then,

Matsusaka Jizo was furious and directly detained Liang Yunzhan.

We are sending troops to attack Qingdao City today, and we will use him as a sacrifice!

"attack--!"

After the sword sacrifice, Matsusaka Jiro swung the samurai sword in his hand and ordered an attack on Qingdao.

-

Chen Jie stood on the city wall at the south gate of Qingdao.

He had already received the news when the Fifth Fleet of the Oriental Ocean set out from Lushun in Northeast China.

He originally thought that the Japanese's target was Weihai and Yantai in Shandong.

Therefore,
He ordered Ximen Tang's "War Department" and "Bear Department" to garrison in Weihai, Yantai, and Dongying.

but,

He didn't expect that the Japanese would take a detour and come to Qingdao.

The sudden counterattack caught Chen Jie off guard.

The garrison in Qingdao consisted of only 5,000 men from Ximen Tang's "Eagle Division".

The others were stationed in Qingzhou and Jinan areas.

These two days,
Chen Jie happened to be at the shipyard in Qingdao, inspecting the installation of naval guns.

The first batch of twenty-four naval guns has been produced and can be installed on a converted merchant ship.

Since the merchant ship only has a displacement of 1000 tons, it cannot be equipped with large-caliber heavy artillery and can only serve as a light and fast gunboat.

Chen Jie was a little worried about the installation of the naval guns, so he rushed here from Qingzhou.

but,

What he didn't expect was that the Fifth Fleet of the Eastern Ocean actually landed in Qingdao.

He put down the telescope and looked up at the sky.

This heavy rain came at a really bad time, and the view was obstructed.

One kilometer away, it was gray and I couldn't see the specific situation clearly.

Under such circumstances, Simon Hall's artillery was greatly restricted.

If you are not sure of the enemy's specific situation, indiscriminate bombing will definitely not work, as it will be a pure waste of artillery shells.

at this time,

News came from the east gate of Qingdao City that the vanguard of the Kwantung Army had already arrived at the city!
Chen Jie came down from the south gate wall and rushed to the east gate without stopping.

Looking through the telescope, I saw a vanguard battalion of the Kwantung Army, about a thousand people, divided into six columns, advancing towards the city gate in a fan-shaped formation about 800 meters away.

They marched very quickly.

Boom—boom—!
The sound of artillery fire rang out from far away, where the heavy rain obscured our view.

The Kwantung Army's artillery opened fire first.

However, it was obvious that the Japanese were unable to see the location of the city wall clearly, and the accuracy of their artillery was very poor.

Most of the artillery fire exploded fifty meters outside the east gate.

Only sporadic shells hit the city walls.

The entire east gate was hit by artillery shells and shook violently.

The vanguard battalion of the Kwantung Army, with messengers constantly waving flags, and under the cover of artillery, they braved the pouring rain and continued to approach the east gate of Qingdao City.

"Brother Zhang, are the mortars and heavy machine guns ready?"

Chen Jie asked Zhang Changfeng who was standing next to him.

Zhang Changfeng nodded and replied:
"Master, don't worry. The East Gate is our key defense area. We have two hundred mortars and five Maxim heavy machine guns!"

"If the Japanese want to break through our Qingdao defense, it depends on how many lives they have to pay!"

Chen Jie nodded and was very satisfied with the 'Eagle Department'.

After several months of training, Zhang Changfeng has now gotten rid of his gangster air.

He transformed into an excellent general.

no way,
In Ximen Hall’s competition mechanism, everything is based on military merit.

Xiong Chao from the Bear Department and Yan Kuangtu from the War Department are both military men.

Only Zhang Changfeng from the Eagle Division came from a gangster background.

If he doesn't change and improve himself, he will be easily eliminated.

Therefore,
Regarding the various training materials provided by Chen Jie, as well as the explanation videos of various modern tactics.

Zhang Changfeng is the one who studies most seriously.

Chen Jie said coldly: "Very good! I will credit you for the first achievement in defending Qingdao this time!"

"The Japanese have entered the range of the machine guns. We can open fire now. First, a round of artillery fire. Indiscriminate attack."

"They thought that the heavy rain blocked our view and we couldn't use our artillery!"

"Today, let them have a taste of what it feels like to be bombarded indiscriminately."

Zhang Changfeng nodded and stood at attention: "Yes, sir!"

Next,
He came to the fortifications and shouted to his subordinates:

"The Japanese have entered the 500-meter range, all heavy machine guns are ready to fire!"

"Adjust the mortars to provide indiscriminate coverage within two to five kilometers."

“Begin preparations—!”

In Qingdao City, the "Eagle Division" stationed 5,000 people, with a total of 300 mortars and 10 heavy machine guns.

The west gate was garrisoned with 50 men, mortars, and two heavy machine guns;
There were one thousand men stationed at the South Gate, with 50 mortars and three heavy machine guns.

There were two thousand men stationed at the east gate, with 100 mortars and three heavy machine guns.

The remaining one thousand men were mobile forces, ready to support the three city gates at any time, and were equipped with 100 mortars and two heavy machine guns.

Since the Japanese appeared at the East Gate,
All the mobile forces rushed to the East Gate to provide support.

have to say,

Ximen Hall's mobile forces are highly mobile and can be deployed at any time.

After hearing Zhang Changfeng's order, the artillery began to adjust the distance of the artillery.

Although you cannot see what is happening one kilometer away, with full firepower coverage, you don't need to know the specific location.

The machine gunner found a suitable location and set up the heavy machine gun.

Next to them were boxes of bullets and boxes of artillery shells.

These are placed behind the bunkers, so even if the Japanese artillery attacks, the shells will not cause damage.

The Matsusaka Army suddenly launched an attack on Qingdao in the heavy rain.

This was beyond Chen Jie's expectations.

Due to the heavy rain, the visibility was greatly affected. Without observing the enemy, they would naturally not easily use artillery.

Although the Kwantung Army launched the attack on Qingdao City in heavy rain, it was also greatly affected.

Their advance speed was much slower.

But as long as he could limit Ximen Hall's artillery, Matsusaka Jiro felt that it didn't matter if he was a little slower.

only,
I'm afraid Matsusaka Jiro will be disappointed this time.

Because with the appearance of the Kwantung Army's vanguard battalion, the direction of the Kwantung Army's follow-up troops can be roughly determined.

Ximen Tang was not worried about the consumption of artillery at all.

Two hundred mortars carried out indiscriminate bombing behind the vanguard of the Kwantung Army.

In this case, although the lethality of the mortar would be reduced, it could still cause fatal damage to the Kwantung Army.

As the angle of the mortar was adjusted, the heavy machine gun was ready.

Zhang Changfeng held up the banner in his hand and shouted:
"fire--!"

Boom—boom—!
Two hundred mortars roared towards the area behind the vanguard battalion of the Matsusaka Legion.

With an ear-piercing roar, the sky and earth were shrouded in earth-shaking artillery fire.

Bang bang—bang bang—!
This was followed by a fierce burst of heavy machine gun fire.

this moment,
The first head-on confrontation between Ximen Tang and the Japanese coalition forces officially began.

With the mortar's indiscriminate fire coverage, shells continued to explode along the Matsusaka Corps' marching route.

"ah--!"

"idiot--!"

The Matsusaka Corps was stunned by the explosion.

Screams, wails, and heart-wrenching pain echoed in the wind and rain.

Simultaneously,

The vanguard battalion of the Matsusaka Corps, which was at the forefront, fell one after another under the fire coverage of heavy machine guns.

Five heavy machine guns fired fiercely, which was terrifying.

Many elite soldiers of the Kwantung Army were shot through the shoulders and chests by bullets!

Simultaneously,

In the area covered by the mortars, many Japanese soldiers were knocked to the ground by the shock waves of the shells.

The shrapnel and lead balls from the shells tore their arms and legs apart.

Many Japanese soldiers were beheaded and their bodies were not found in this fierce artillery attack.

Some soldiers were even torn to pieces by shrapnel from the shells, falling to the ground with a thud, motionless.

Blood continued to gather in the rain, and the air was filled with a strong smell of gunpowder from an artillery explosion.

The breath of death spread around.

Some of the injured Japanese soldiers were hiding behind obstacles or lying on the ground.

Although they had been hit by the projectiles, they were not hit in vital parts of the body and were only slightly injured.

but,

The severe pain made them scream in agony.

There were even many Japanese soldiers rolling on the ground in pain.

The rain mixed with blood looked extremely miserable and unbearable to look at.

In this batch of artillery shells, lead bullets were added to increase the lethality!

The Japanese soldier was hit by lead bullets, which were stuck in his body.

As the rainstorm grew heavier, they rolled on the ground in pain.

In this case, even if they were not killed on the spot by the artillery, their wounds would become infected.

The Japanese have not yet developed antibiotics.

As long as the wound is infected and the lead bullets aggravate the ulceration of the infected wound, they will be dead.

The first round of shelling achieved very good results.

but,

The storm blocked the view, causing most of the shells to explode into uninhabited areas.

But even so, after the bombardment, more than 3,000 people from the Matsusaka Corps were killed or injured.

in addition,

The 1,000-man vanguard battalion of the Kwantung Army, who were at the forefront, were completely wiped out by heavy machine guns.

The first round of shelling is over.

Zhang Changfeng ordered all artillerymen to begin adjusting the angle and distance of the artillery again.

He also noticed that during the previous bombardment, there seemed to be a slight deviation in the range of full firepower coverage.

The heavy machine gunner began to cool the barrel and clean up the surrounding shell casings.

The Maxim heavy machine gun is water-cooled, and needs water cooling after fierce firing.

Otherwise the barrel will easily burn red and become soft.

"idiot--!"

The second son of Matsusaka, the commander of the Matsusaka Regiment, couldn't help but cursed angrily.

The current situation is very unfavorable to the Kwantung Army.

But all this was within the plan of Matsusaka Jiro and Fujita Tsuyoshi.

They knew that Ximen Tang's combat capability was extremely strong and that they possessed extremely powerful artillery.

Moreover,

Simon Hall is now the keep, occupying the defensive works of the city wall.

What Matsusaka Jiro didn't expect was the Maxim heavy machine gun, which was the latest heavy machine gun equipped by the British Empire.

Why did Ximen Tang have so many of them in Qingdao?

After the first round of artillery attacks, the Kwantung Army had already detoured from the side and, taking advantage of the heavy rain that interfered with vision, entered within 800 meters of the city wall.

As long as you charge within the 200-meter range of the artillery, you will enter the blind spot of the artillery.

Although great damage will be caused during the charge.

However, Jiro Matsusaka did not allow the Kwantung Army's vanguard to continue the attack during the second charge.

Instead, let Daqian's "fake army" attack from the front to attract Ximen Hall's firepower.

As long as he could bypass the artillery blind spot of the city wall, Jiro Matsusaka was confident that he could directly destroy the defense of Qingdao City's east gate.

Although Ximen Hall has a lot of artillery, the East Gate is so large that it is impossible to fully cover it.

Moreover, just now through the telescope, Matsusaka Jiro and Fujita Tsuyoshi had already seen the location of Ximentang's artillery and heavy machine guns.

at this time,

The vanguard of the Kwantung Army were seen erecting thickened steel shields.

The steel shield is more than ten centimeters thick and is fixed with a trolley underneath.

Each team of ten people is behind the shield and can block the attack of heavy machine guns after entering the city wall.

Ximen Tang wanted to defend the East Gate with only 3,000 men in order to stop the 20,000 elite Kwantung Army of the Matsusaka Legion!

Let them know today how powerful the Kwantung Army is!
As long as we can break into the east gate of Qingdao City and stop the heavy machine gun attack from Ximen Hall.

Matsusaka Jizo believed that he had at least an 80% chance of taking over the east gate of Qingdao City and occupying the entire Qingdao Prefecture.

Next,
I saw the winding direction on both sides of the city wall.

Amid the sound of artillery fire from Ximen Hall and the crazy firing of heavy machine guns.

Hundreds of steel shields stood in front, detouring into the city walls of Ximen Hall from both sides of the east gate.

They continued to fire back at the east gate.

At the same time, the Japanese heavy machine guns also began to fire crazily.

have to say,

Matsusaka Jiro's ability to command corps' combat capabilities is very strong.

Exploit strengths and avoid weaknesses!

He made a roundabout move and used the Daqian "fake army" to attract Ximen Tang's firepower head-on, which actually allowed him to reach within 50 meters of Qingdao city wall with the least casualties.

The two hundred cannons of Ximen Hall at the east gate were useless at this moment.

The five heavy machine guns were blocked by the opponent's shields and lost their power.

The rain is getting heavier at this moment——!
The elite troops of the Matsusaka Corps stepped on the accumulated water and advanced vigorously towards the east gate of Qingdao City!
but,

Although the Matsusaka Corps blocked Ximen Tang's heavy machine guns.

But Matsusaka Jiro overlooked Ximen Tang's other powerful weapon - the grenade!

(End of this chapter)