Spy Wars: Return of the Red Luan

Chapter 186 The God of War Severely Damages Carrier-Based Aircraft

On February 23, 1932, three Japanese aircraft carriers and warships carrying the army arrived at the mouth of the Yangtze River. Two divisions landed and immediately deployed.

That evening, carrier-based bombers tentatively flew to the positions of the 19th Route Army and the 9th Army. The anti-aircraft guns on both sides were hidden, and important military facilities and command posts were also disguised. The bombers dropped a few bombs and returned empty-handed.

On the morning of the 24th, the first wave of bombers took off with bombs, preparing to indiscriminately bomb the positions of both armies.

After three days of rest, Liu Junze was in high spirits. From the moment he heard the distant buzzing of the bomber formation, he calmly lifted the camouflage cloth covering the anti-aircraft gun and began loading ammunition.

Shells were precious, and the brothers of the 88th Division were only given two basic loads, 24 rounds. Liu Junze instructed the brothers in the guard team to disperse the shells to the surrounding area to avoid a huge loss if they were hit by bombs from bombers and exploded.

The first row of bombers flew at low altitude as if they were in an empty field. After taking aim, Lao Liu estimated the range and ignition time, and without any hesitation, he fired the first shot. The arrogant bomber flying the fastest in front of him exploded in the air.

"Wow!! Beautiful!"

"Brother Liu! That's amazing!"

"Beautiful my foot! You all better get out of the way!"

"Quick, give me another one!"

By the time the escort brought the second shell, the first rank of bombers was already overhead and dropping the bomb! The bombs flew towards the rear positions.

Liu Junze estimated the bomb's trajectory and concluded that the chances of it hitting him were slim. He quickly loaded the bomb, yelling, "Quick, shake it! Left! Left!! I'll do it!"

"Ready! Release!"

"You son of a bitch, get down here!"

In the blink of an eye, the second squadron of bombers entered firing range, and the second shell hit again! Another plane exploded in mid-air!
"Master Liu! Sharp!"

"Quick! Quick! Quick! Get out of there!"

"Get down!"

"You idiot! What are you getting so excited about! Get some cover!"

"Quickly, shake it! Shake it hard! To the right!"

This time, without Lao Liu having to shout, the second guard team had already brought the shells to Liu Junze. Lao Liu then directly directed the loading, aiming, and range calculation.

"Ready! You son of a bitch! Fire!"

"boom!"

Holy crap! That's amazing!

"There aren't enough anti-aircraft guns!"

After the first three volleys of Japanese bombers finished and returned, during the brief respite, Army Commander Cai Tingkai watched his excited group of brothers from his bunker and felt a little tempted to join them.

If you could be this accurate with every shot, I'd be happy to load the ammunition for you myself.

"Hurry! Where's the cold water? Water it! Water it!"

"Alright! Get out of the way! The second round is coming! Load! Load! Quick!"

Three bombers returned in the first salvo, and before the "danger here" signal could be relayed back, the second salvo of bombers leisurely arrived.

"Holy crap! This round has twice as many rounds as the last one! Everyone, take cover!"

"You son of a bitch! Come on!"

"Ready! Release!"

"Quick! Stop looking! Load the ammunition! Everyone over there, get the hell out of the way! It'll explode if it falls!"

This time, an unlucky plane was hit in the tail and crashed behind the position. The fifth round of ammunition was loaded.

"Sway to the right! Quick! Quick! I'll do it!"

"Let go! Holy crap!"

Another plane exploded in mid-air.

"Don't you fucking stand there! Sprinkle water to cool it down! Load the ammunition!! Tilt it a little to the right!"

"Come on, you little devil, let grandpa take you home! Come on, slowly, okay, let go!"

Yet another plane explodes in mid-air!
"Did he miss the target? Definitely! How many shots did he fire?" General Cai turned to ask his adjutant, though he himself knew perfectly well that six guns, six cannons, and not a single shot was wasted.

"Lieutenant, come with me to the 88th Division's position to borrow artillery shells! I can see that these two basic units aren't enough for Lao Liu to build."

At the Miaohang position of the 88th Division, the position was also riddled with holes from bombing, with wounded soldiers everywhere and smoke rising everywhere.

Cai Tingkai came to borrow artillery shells. Of course, everyone knew that there was a high probability that he would not return them, but borrowing was still better than being dignified.

The Fifth Army Commander, Zhang Zhizhong, simply didn't believe it. "Don't brag. Six cannons taking down six planes? Are you saying my guns are just firewood?" He thought. "Damn it, the two divisions' five cannons only managed to leave two planes behind in the first round."

Cai Tingkai thought to himself, "We're going to be shooting down Japanese planes anyway, so what difference does it make where we are? We have plenty of artillery and shells here. If we bring Lao Liu over, we can shoot down even more planes."
"Hey Lao Zhang, can I borrow your radio? I'll have them send the Cannon God over."

"Then you need to hurry. Once the three bombers have dropped their bombs, the ground troops should be coming up."

Since no one there knew how to use the anti-aircraft gun, Liu Junze, upon receiving the notification, simply had the truck load the anti-aircraft gun and the remaining shells onto it and head towards Miaohang.

By the time Liu Junze arrived, the six anti-aircraft guns had been deployed as he had requested, and the flight path had been cleared. The second wave of Japanese bombers didn't arrive. That's a bit strange, isn't it?

The strange thing is that the Japanese side reported that the naval carrier command lost two aircraft in the bombing raids on Miaohang and Jiangwan, but lost six in the raids on Zhabei!
The command commander decided to launch a second round of all-out bombing of the Zhabei position, but the three aircraft carrier captains had different opinions, believing that the situation in Zhabei was unclear and that they should not act rashly. They suggested sending a few reconnaissance aircraft to check first.

After much arguing, they finally decided to launch a full-scale bombardment of Miaohang and Jiangwan this time.

On the Fifth Army's prepared position, Liu Junze saw a dark mass approaching from afar, buzzing in the air.

"Guys, the food's served!"

Six cannons, two at a time. Liu Junze aimed at the two fastest-moving cannons first, depending on the distance. After firing two shots, he didn't care whether he hit them or not, and ran to the next spot. The artillerymen there would drag the two cannons into the alleys on either side for maintenance, according to the plan.

After the first round of fire was over, when Liu Junze turned around, the first two cannons were pushed out again.

"Number 1, tilt to the left; Number 2, stay still! Load! Lower the muzzle slightly, ready, Number 1, fire! Number 2, fire!"

Thus, Liu Junze and the artillerymen had no time to check the results of their battles. Like an assembly line, they would finish attacking one location and then drag the remaining troops into hiding.

Commander-in-Chief Jiang Guangnai and Army Commander Zhang Zhizhong, who were watching through binoculars in the distance, were stunned! Not only was the operation incredibly smooth, but the accuracy was absolutely phenomenal!
15 out of 18 shots hit their target!
"I want this artillery god; you'd better find a way to get him for me!"

"Stop dreaming and talking nonsense! Prepare for ground warfare, the Japanese are coming."

"Several Japanese planes have escaped; they must have spotted the location. The anti-aircraft guns over there need to be moved immediately!"

"Artillery repositioning!"

Exhausted, Liu Junze was carried onto a truck by the guards and sent back to the Zhabei position.

This was a special instruction from Commander Cai: bring them back immediately after the battle, not a second longer!

According to the count of the Japanese naval bombers returning, 15 fewer bombers were lost in this round. Based on the descriptions of the three who managed to escape, there were exactly six anti-aircraft guns at that location.

"Next round, fly to higher ground and concentrate bombing on that area."

"By the time you arrive, they've already moved. The Nationalist army is cunning."

(End of this chapter)