Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 238 Enemy Plane Attack
Wang Feng: "Order the engineering corps to begin preparations for the large-scale construction of pontoon bridges to cross the river."

"How's the situation on the First Column?"

Zhao Fangyuan: "No telegrams have been sent yet. Zhang Hu is personally directing operations on the front line. Presumably, the Sixth Division will not be able to break through the defenses in a short time."

Wang Feng: "Okay, keep a close eye on things, and report any unusual situations to me immediately."

Zhao Fangyuan: "Yes!"

------

July 15, 6:23 AM.

Zhang Hu walked out of the command post and came to the front line. He randomly found a high place, raised his binoculars, and looked at the Japanese positions opposite.

"Damn those Japanese devils, they're really cunning!"

"A ring-shaped fortification. They're clearly the attackers, yet they're afraid we'll use a flanking maneuver."

Wu Guangsheng, standing beside him, glanced at the time and said, "In another ten minutes or so, the Japanese will launch a new offensive."

Zhang Hu put down his binoculars: "What's there to be afraid of? We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Judging from the scale of the attack, the Japanese must have withdrawn a brigade to the rear for rest and reorganization."

"Have our reinforcements arrived yet?"

Wu Guangsheng: Not yet!

Zhang Hu pulled a cigarette from his pocket: "Tell them to speed things up, don't delay the battle!"

Originally, when Wang Feng led his troops away from Madang Fortress to the Anqing front, he only brought four battalions of the First Column. Now, two more battalions have been sent to serve as supervisors on the Anqing defense line. The First Column, which is stationed at the Qianshan position, actually only has two battalions.

Fortunately, there were still two divisions of the 84th Army.

Otherwise, even the most elite of the two thousand men wouldn't be able to withstand the attack of a single Japanese Class A division.

Zhang Hu: "When will the artillery battalion arrive?"

Wu Guangsheng sighed: "It will probably take three or four days. There have been frequent heavy rains in this central region recently, and the roads are difficult to travel on, very muddy!"

Zhang Hu looked up at the sun: "Yeah, that's true. And this day, I've never felt this hot when I was in Shanxi!"

It was still morning, but whether it was from exercise or something else, his forehead was already covered in a thick layer of sweat.

Suddenly, a messenger ran over: "Reporting, sir, an urgent telegram from the commander-in-chief!"

Wu Guangsheng took it and glanced at it.

Zhang Hu asked anxiously, "What's wrong? What's wrong? What are your orders, sir?"

Wu Guangsheng's expression was strange: "The commander ordered us to widen the battle line, saying that Japanese warplanes might come to bomb us in half an hour?"

Zhang Hu frowned: "Aircraft bombing? Let me see it!"

Wu Guangsheng handed it over
In a short while, Zhang Hu scanned the entire text of the telegram: "Pass down the order and then relay it to the 84th Army!"

Wu Guangsheng nodded: "Okay!"

--------

The timeline has been moved slightly forward.

After having breakfast, Wang Feng, as usual, sat in the command room to observe the situation at the front.

Anqing.

Although there were some setbacks, the 27th Group Army withdrew in a relatively timely manner.

The 133rd Division, which stayed behind to cover the rear, suffered nearly a third of its casualties. Some regiments and battalions were broken up, but the other two divisions were still relatively intact.

The losses are significant, but still within an acceptable range.

Zooming in, when Wang Feng saw the corpses of Nationalist soldiers scattered all over the ground, he couldn't help but curse Yang Sen in his heart once again.

That bitch raised a beast, all he thinks about is having three wives and four concubines. Even when he was on the front lines and running away, he didn't forget to take his eleven concubines with him!

This kind of officer should be shot on the spot!

After venting his anger, he shifted his focus to the Qianshan defense line.

After the First Column and the 84th Army took over the positions, the situation took a slight turn for the better, but it was unlikely to last long.

Even if the First Column is strong, it only has two battalions, all of which are infantry units. The artillery battalion is still on its way.

The 84th Army had two divisions in Qianshan, which were quite powerful. The Guangxi Army divisions were much stronger than the Sichuan Army divisions.

However, it still falls short compared to a Class A division.

Moreover, the 6th Division did not exert its full strength, and about a brigade was resting behind the front line.

Wang Feng rubbed his temples and continued to zoom in until he saw the command post of the Sixth Division.

Division Commander Shiro Inaba sat in a chair, squinting as he read a telegram.

Wang Feng became interested, adjusted his perspective, and saw a string of Japanese characters on the telegram.

Since the Battle of Ikegawa, he had consciously begun to learn some Japanese, but due to limited time, he certainly didn't have time to learn it comprehensively.

Therefore, he only knew some terms related to war, and even those were only half-baked; he would learn a few and forget the rest.

"Navy. Aviation?"

"bombing?"

Wang Feng frowned, feeling somewhat uncertain. He immediately exited the view and found a Japanese dictionary he had been using to prop up the corner of the table.

He quickly flipped through the pages and found some words.

"Sir, what are you looking at?" Zhao Fangyuan walked over with a pot of hot tea and asked curiously.

Wang Feng had no time to respond and immediately switched to an overhead view.

By this time, the telegram had already been circulated to several staff officers and was about to be put into a file, so he immediately moved it there.

I've retranslated it.

"Naval air force, are you coming to bomb the Qianshan defense line?"

An idea arose in his mind.

Zhao Fangyuan poured a cup of hot tea for him: "Sir, I'll keep an eye on the front lines. You haven't slept for two days, why don't you take a rest?"

Wang Feng switched perspectives and took out a cigarette from his pocket: "No need, go and send a telegram to Zhang Hu, telling him to be on alert for Japanese warplanes bombing!"

Zhao Fangyuan didn't think much of it: "Understood!"
It is perfectly normal to be wary of potential aerial bombing when one has not yet gained air superiority.

Wang Feng added, "Tell them to widen the battle line and pay attention to the safety of the artillery positions!"

The artillery battalion of the First Column was not present, but the two divisions of the 84th Army still had several 75mm mountain guns.

After explaining everything, Wang Feng continued to focus on the overhead view.

------

After half an hour.

Above Tongling, fighter jets blotted out the sun, their propellers spinning rapidly as they flew westward.

In the center of the flight formation, twelve bombers were tightly surrounded by more than twenty fighters.

Based on the soldier tags on the interface, Wang Feng easily obtained the specific information about this air formation.

Japanese Naval Air Force
Tainan Air Force
Base: Tainan; Formation aircraft: 12 Type 96 land-based attack aircraft
Type 96 carrier-based aircraft × 24

Is it really Japan's Kaiko Airlines?
Wang Feng was somewhat surprised, as he had always fought against Lu Hang in previous battles.

As for HNA, this is truly the first time I've encountered them.

"This can hardly be considered a coastal area anymore, can it?" he muttered to himself.

With this in mind, Wang Feng manipulated his consciousness to open the detailed information of the Type 96 land-based attack aircraft on the overhead interface.

"4000-kilometer range?"

"800 kg payload?"

Wang Feng raised an eyebrow.

I remember that the mainstay bomber of the Japanese Army Air Force, the Type 97 heavy bomber, had a maximum range of only 2500 kilometers.

Back in Shanxi, when the unit was still the Provisional Brigade of the North China Combat Group, I was really badly frightened by those bombers.

Wang Feng frowned: "It really did fly over from Taiwan! These long-range, land-based bombers are not easy to deal with!"

With 12 bombers, each carrying 800 kilograms of bombs, just by counting on your fingers, this batch of bombs alone could drop at least 9.6 tons of bombs on the Qianshan defense line.

This was just one wave of bombing.

An aircraft carrier can carry a limited number of fighter jets, so its sortie frequency is not very high. It is greatly affected by weather and hydrology, but it is still manageable.

However, these land-based bombers, by utilizing land-based airfields, are significantly more efficient in both attack and in terms of sortie frequency.

Wang Feng was unsure whether the Japanese Navy had only dispatched a bomber squadron.

Perhaps there are several bomber squadrons on their way.

Zhao Fangyuan rushed over: "Sir, a telegram from the 23rd Army Group!"
"The air defense sentries they set up spotted a formation of Japanese warplanes!"

Wang Feng came to his senses; it wasn't surprising that frontline troops could obtain this kind of intelligence.

As the war has dragged on, although the various units have suffered more losses than wins, they have also gained a lot of experience.

Most front-line troops lacked anti-aircraft weapons and were unable to cope with the rampant Japanese warplanes overhead.

If we can't afford to fight, can't we at least avoid it?

When constructing a defensive position, a large number of air defense sentry posts are often set up around it.

This is not difficult. All you need to do is assign a few soldiers with good eyesight and hearing to hide in the shadows and observe the situation in the sky from time to time.

Of course, this method cannot guarantee that enemy aircraft will be detected 100% of the time.

Some bombers fly at altitudes of several thousand meters, making them completely invisible to the naked eye.

However, it is quite effective against some low-flying aircraft.

Zhao Fangyuan: "The Japanese warplanes are flying at low altitudes, they're completely disregarding us!"

Wang Feng: "The invading enemy planes are most likely from the navy. There is no gratitude between the Japanese army and navy, only resentment. Maintaining low-altitude flight is probably a show of force."

At crucial moments, he had no time to dwell on these things.

"Issue an order to the Qianshan defense line to be cautious in dealing with enemy bombing, and to hold the line at all costs. Not a single soldier shall retreat without my order!"

Zhao Fangyuan: "Sir, our fighter jets have taken off from Nanchang Airport. The expected mission is to bomb the 6th Division's logistics supply depot. Will we run into the invading Japanese planes?"

The telegram did not specify the number of Japanese aircraft detected. In fact, the sentry was already incredibly lucky to detect the enemy aircraft at all. To find out the exact number, the soldiers would have to have "eyes in the sky".

But if you think about it, the Japanese army would definitely have had a lot of warplanes when they launched a major offensive against Wuhan.

During the recent bombing of Wuhan, according to incomplete statistics, the Japanese army dropped at least 300 tons of bombs on the day of the most intense air offensive.

How many planes must have been deployed!
The bomber formation that took off from Nanchang Airport was only escorted by twelve fighter jets. If it really encountered the Tainan Air Group, it would probably be in grave danger.

Zhao Fangyuan sighed: "Alas, Japan has a complete aviation industry system. If a fighter jet crashes, they can simply rebuild it. Our fighter jets were all provided by the Soviet Union. Every one we use is one less we have. Even if we can achieve a 1:2 kill ratio, we'll still be the ones who suffer."
"Sir, you're right. In the end, great power wars come down to industrial strength!"

Wang Feng hesitated for a moment: "This plane has no communication facilities. Once it takes off, it will lose contact with the ground. There's nothing we can do now, let's just wait and see!"

------

Qianshan front line.

Qin Lianfang, commander of the 84th Army, looked worried.

"Sir, you should take shelter in the fortifications. The Japanese bombing is too intense!" The staff officer, covered in sand, rushed over and shouted at the top of his lungs.

Qin Lianfang: "What are you afraid of! The Japanese bombers come and go quickly. After the bombing is over, the Japanese will pounce. At this critical moment, the defense line must not have any flaws!"

Upon hearing this, the staff officer fell silent, stood quietly beside Qin Lianfang, and raised his binoculars to observe the battlefield ahead.

The 84th Army's command post was located far behind the main bombing range, but aerial bombs are not indiscriminate and fall freely from high altitudes, so it is inevitable that some will miss their target.

"boom--!"

As the two were talking, a 60-kilogram aerial bomb fell to the northwest side of the military headquarters.

A brilliant burst of light erupted from the explosion, and the wooden semi-underground command post where Qin Lianfang was located shook violently, with countless grains of sand falling from the ceiling.

"Damn those Japanese devils!" Qin Lianfang coughed twice. "Guards! Guards!"

The staff officer felt a little dizzy and swayed a couple of times in place: "Sir/Mass."

Qin Lianfang hurriedly waved his hand: "Cough cough, quick, carry Staff Officer Wu out and send him to the friendly forces' field hospital!"

"Quick!"

The guard was also seriously injured, his ears were ringing, and it took him a long time to catch his breath before he heard Qin Lianfang's shouts.

"Yes!"

Qin Lianfang turned her head and looked out through the lookout hole.

The entire headquarters of the 84th Army was bombed twice, and the explosive power was about the same, so it should be the same type of aerial bomb.

The communications station was intact, but the logistics station's buildings were destroyed, and the condition of the supplies and soldiers inside was unknown.

As for the several temporary air-raid shelters that had been built, one of them completely collapsed, and the sappers frantically picked up shovels and were urgently trying to salvage it.

The other locations were not in serious condition, and staff officers have been emerging from inside to return to their posts and command the battle.

"Reporting, sir!" the operations section chief shouted as he ran over.

Qin Lianfang: "I'm not deaf yet, keep your voice down!"

Operations Chief: "Sir, urgent telegram from the front: after the aerial bombing ended, the Japanese army, taking advantage of its artillery superiority, launched a fierce attack on our forward positions!"

After receiving the telegram, Qin Lianfang glanced at it and said, "These little devils, they just keep using the same three tricks over and over again, they don't have any tricks up their sleeves!"

"Order the frontline troops to fight back! Kill as many Japanese soldiers as come! No one is allowed to withdraw without my order!"

The operations chief saluted: "Yes, sir!"

It doesn't take a while.

The communications section chief limped and hopped onto one leg to the command room, followed by the operations section chief, who looked hurried.

Communications Chief: "Sir, the 173rd and 174th Divisions are in dire need of help!"

The operations chief added, "The 6th Division may have deployed its entire force. Based on the available intelligence, our defenses may be breached within two days!"

(End of this chapter)