Blood-Red Front

14th Brigade Headquarters.

"Brigade Commander, the casualty statistics are in. The total number of casualties is 250."

Looking at the report in his hand, Okazaki roared, "Baka! We haven't even met the enemy yet, and we've already paid the price of one and a half companies!"

"How are the other units' offensives going?"

"The 9th Division is launching a strong attack on Chunhua, the 16th Division has broken through Jurong and is advancing towards Tangshan, and the 13th Division has also broken through Longtan."

"Baka..." Gangqi was even more annoyed. The other troops were making good progress, but he was stuck in Niutou Mountain.

The chief of staff noticed Okazaki's headache and suggested, "Brigade Commander, why don't we leave one regiment to hold them off from the front, while the rest of the main force maneuvers to the flanks?"

"If we can coordinate with the 9th Division to directly capture Yutai, we can sever the connection between Niutou Mountain and Kyoto."

"No." Okazaki shook his head. "The reason we launched the Battle of Kyoto is to completely destroy the Xia Kingdom's will to resist, thereby forcing them to surrender."

"If we take shortcuts, the Xia Kingdom is likely to refuse to submit. If we cannot force the Xia Kingdom to surrender quickly, the war will consume a large amount of our military strength."

"And most importantly, if we can't take Niutou Mountain, we can't completely cut off the retreat route of the Xia army in Kyoto."

Occupying Yutai would indeed sever the connection between Niutou Mountain and Kyoto, and complete the encirclement of Kyoto, but the Chusheng Army would also be attacked from two sides.

Once Niutou Mountain and the Xia army of Kyoto launch a pincer attack, a breakthrough can be easily achieved.

The encirclement of Binxi failed, and the encirclement of Wufu Line also failed. If even the main force of the 15 Xia troops in Kyoto cannot be completely annihilated, let alone forcing the Xia Kingdom to surrender, the subsequent battles may not be able to be fought at all.

"Where is the heavy artillery regiment now?" Okazaki asked.

"They are advancing overnight and are expected to reach their designated position by dawn."

"Yoshi..." Okazaki nodded.

"Tell them to set up their cannons immediately upon arrival and bombard the Xia army's forward positions together with the mountain artillery regiment."

"In addition, request air support from higher authorities to carpet bomb the Xia army's reverse slope positions."

"Without permanent concrete fortifications, it is wishful thinking to think that a reverse-slope position can stop our army's attack."

"Tomorrow, we must break through the Xia army's defensive lines!"

"Hi!"

……

Meanwhile, Qian Xiwei and Lin Zhiyuan arrived at the top of the 14th Brigade.

Hearing the approaching engine sound, Okazaki frowned.

"Is this the sound when the 11th Regiment was bombed?"

"That should be it." The chief of staff nodded. "But there were 12 back then, and now there's only 1."

"All departments, turn off your lights immediately and implement a blackout," Okazaki ordered.

"Nighttime bombing, without ground guidance, let's see how they manage to bomb."

The 14th Brigade Command Post, which had been lit up, was soon plunged into darkness.

From the air, watching the lights on the ground disappear, Qian Xiwei shouted, "The Chu Sheng Army has already noticed. If you want to blow them up, you'll have to guess what's coming."

"How do I use this sight?"

The lights-out by the newly promoted army did indeed plunge the ground into darkness, but it was crystal clear on Lin Zhiyuan's mini-map.

"I'm currently traveling at 120 kilometers per hour. You can adjust the scale to 120 and aim and drop the bomb."

The mechanical sight was very simple, and Lin Zhiyuan understood it at a glance.

Once the location of the 14th Brigade Command Post on the minimap was within the aiming scope, a series of mortar shells were fired.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"...

The explosions formed a continuous line.

Listening to the roar gradually fading into the distance, the chief of staff said, "It seems like all the enemy bombs were thrown at the command post."

"They probably planned this all along," Okazaki analyzed.

"A general order is issued to the entire army: from now on, all units must implement a nighttime blackout, and blackout curtains must be hung in command posts to prevent any light exposure."

"Xia Jun's planes are small planes with a low bomb load. Unless it's a precision bombing, they won't cause much of an impact."

"Hi!"

Okazaki's judgment was correct. There were no lights on the ground, and the U2 bombs had very little payload, so the bombing did not cause many casualties.

However, this does not mean that the impact of bombers is small.

After landing, Qian Xiwei and Lin Zhiyuan flew back with the bombardier while they still had plenty of fuel.

The bombing might not kill many new recruits, but the impact was significant.

The newly recruited soldier survived a bombing raid, cleaned up the scene, and was just about to go to sleep when the sound of a tractor came again, followed by a series of explosions.

Okazaki initially dismissed it, but later he almost went crazy.

"Baka! Baka yarou! Bring in the anti-aircraft guns and searchlights! I'm going to kill this damned mosquito!"

Everyone knows how annoying it is to have a mosquito buzzing on your head while you're sleeping.

However, even with the emergency support of 20mm anti-aircraft guns, it still had no effect.

Bombing is not reconnaissance and does not require circling. Qian Xiwei made no sound when gliding at high altitude. By the time the engine restarted, it was already in the acceleration and withdrawal phase, and the searchlights could not find her.

The newly promoted soldiers could only rage helplessly on the ground.

Because of the short distance, Qian Xiwei calculated the amount of oil and fried the food for five rounds before finally stopping, by which time it was already 4 a.m.

Seeing Qian Xiwei and the bombardier walk into the command post, Lin Zhiyuan immediately greeted them.

"Please have a seat. The conditions are simple, but I have prepared a few simple dishes. I hope you will not find them offensive."

As he spoke, Lin Zhiyuan gestured to Shang Kebing, who then pushed a small cart over.

Lin Zhiyuan sat in the middle of the table, while Qian Xiwei, Mu Ya, and Shang Kebing sat on either side.

Looking at the seven or eight plates on the table, Qian Xiwei smiled and said, "There's chicken, fish, and meat; that's already quite impressive."

Lin Zhiyuan raised his teacup. "Drinking alcohol is forbidden in the army, so I will use tea instead. Thank you both for your great help."

After exchanging pleasantries and putting down their teacups, Lin Zhiyuan asked, "Is there any way to apply for an aircraft to stay with the 404th Squadron?"

Tonight, Lin Zhiyuan truly experienced the benefits of airplanes.

If Lin Zhiyuan had his own aircraft, his battlefield control capabilities would be greatly enhanced.

"Impossible." Qian Xiwei shook her head. "Let alone those imported high-end aircraft, even the U2 trainer aircraft would not be deployed to the division level."

"The General Staff is planning to establish a night bomber regiment, but they haven't gathered all the aircraft yet."

"Okay, I'll think of another way."

Lin Zhiyuan picked up his chopsticks. "Eat, eat."

However, to Lin Zhiyuan's surprise, Qian Xiwei rolled her eyes and put a chicken wing on his plate.

"Chicken wings are delicious, Zhiyuan, have a chicken wing."

Before Lin Zhiyuan could speak, Mu Ya had already placed a chicken leg into his bowl.

"The chicken drumsticks are delicious."

"The chicken wings are delicious."

"The chicken drumsticks are delicious."

"Chicken breast is delicious."

"The fish is delicious."

"The braised pork is delicious."

Lin Zhiyuan kept piling more and more food into his bowl, and even Shang Kebing secretly put a chicken butt into Lin Zhiyuan's bowl.

Seeing this scene before him, Lin Zhiyuan felt like his head was about to explode.

Muya, Muya, can't you see that Qian Xiwei is doing this on purpose?

And Shang Kebing, what are you doing getting involved? Are you even qualified?

"Eat quickly!" Mu Ya and Qian Xiwei urged in unison.

"Eat, eat..."

Lin Zhiyuan picked up his chopsticks with tears in his eyes.

……