Blood-Red Front

"Has the newly promoted soldier gone mad?"

Guan Jianchu was somewhat bewildered by the 41st Regiment's change in combat tactics.

The tactics of the newly promoted army have always been to bombard the infantry with artillery, and if the infantry cannot advance, they will retreat and bombard them again.

Although the 41st Regiment had changed to a step-by-step approach, its basic tactics remained the same.

But now, the newly promoted soldiers show no sign of retreating. The area in front of the position is already littered with corpses, and those behind them are still advancing.

The light machine guns of the 6th Regiment even began to experience barrel explosions due to continuous firing.

Lin Zhiyuan, who was also observing the battle, said, "I think the Chu Sheng Army is planning to forcibly take over the hilltop position before dark."

"Should we send the 502nd Regiment as reinforcements?" Guan Jianchu asked.

Although the enemy's infantry guns and two mountain guns had been destroyed, this was not enough to erase the gap in combat effectiveness between the two sides' soldiers.

When the newly formed army was 200 meters away, their hit rate was extremely high. In addition, with the bombardment of mountain guns and heavy artillery, the 6th Regiment suffered considerable casualties.

Upon hearing about the 502nd Regiment, Lin Zhiyuan hesitated. This regiment was full of new recruits, and Lin Zhiyuan was really not confident that they would be fighting such a tough battle right from the start.

Noticing Lin Zhiyuan's hesitation, Guan Jianchu whispered, "I've seen the 502nd Regiment. Although they are new recruits, their morale is very high, and the junior officers are mostly radicals, so their organizational ability shouldn't be a problem."

"Then let them go." Lin Zhiyuan nodded. "Have the 502nd Regiment cooperate with the 6th Regiment to launch a counterattack and drive the enemy down the mountain."

If there are no problems with organization, the troops are not likely to be defeated; at most, they will just be less accurate in their attacks.

Currently, the 404th Detachment mainly relies on various mortars and grenades for killing, so the accuracy of their shots is not particularly important.

"Understood, I'll go to the front lines to take command."

Guan Jianchu strode out of the command post.

Upon receiving the order, Gu Zhizhen, the commander of the 502nd Regiment, immediately summoned several battalion commanders.

"Didn't you always complain that you were the stepchild, saying that the 3rd and 6th Regiments were fighting hard at the front, while our 502nd Regiment was stuck on the sidelines?"

"Now is the time to show our strength. The command has issued an order for the 502nd Regiment to support the 6th Regiment's position."

Upon hearing Gu Zhizhen's words, the three battalion commanders immediately started arguing.

The 6th Regiment's defensive line is very long, but only the position of the 1st Battalion of the 6th Regiment is currently in the most danger. It is obvious that they need to provide support to this position.

However, this position cannot accommodate the entire 502nd Regiment; at most, only one battalion can accept this mission.

Hearing the three of them clamoring to be the first, Gu Zhizhen slammed her hand on the table. "Stop arguing! You all have a chance this time!"

Everyone's eyes turned to Gu Zhizhen.

"The newly promoted troops at the front are like madmen; once they've taken a position with their lives, they won't easily retreat."

"I estimate that the 502nd Regiment will all have to be deployed one after another." Gu Zhizhen's expression was very serious.

The three battalion commanders understood what Gu Zhizhen meant.

"Commander, just give the order."

"It's true that our 502nd Regiment has many new recruits, but I can guarantee that not one of them is afraid of dying."

"That's right, we must show them that our 502nd Regiment is not made of clay."

Gu Zhizhen ordered, "The First Battalion shall proceed immediately, and the rest of the troops shall advance to their reserve positions and await further orders."

"yes!"

……

With the arrival of reinforcements from the 502nd Regiment, Ma Daxi, who had been under immense pressure, breathed a sigh of relief and immediately decided to launch a counterattack.

As the bugle sounded, the two battalions launched a counter-attack from the left and right flanks against the advancing Elementary School Battalion.

However, to Ma Daxi's surprise, this counterattack did not suppress the Chusheng Army as it had before.

Instead of suppressing the attack, the Chu Sheng Army continued to send reinforcements to the front lines.

Seeing the unusual actions of the newly promoted army, Guan Jianchu, the commander at the front, kept drawing reinforcements from the 502nd Regiment, trying to drive the enemy back.

Meanwhile, the newly promoted army was also continuously increasing its troop strength at the front line.

As a result, both sides received more and more reinforcements. At first, reinforcements came in company by company, but later entire battalions were sent to reinforce the troops.

Despite both armies possessing formidable firepower, a fierce hand-to-hand battle erupted between tens of thousands of soldiers on a gentle, oval slope less than 800 meters long from east to west and less than 400 meters long from north to south, in front of Niutou Mountain.

Both sides charged in turn, and blood flowed everywhere.

The fierce battle lasted for an hour, and as the sun gradually set, the 41st Regiment finally retreated with great reluctance.

At this point, the soldiers on both sides were almost completely exhausted from the fighting.

……

Inside the 14th Brigade headquarters, Okazaki met Inayoshi again.

"Inayoko-kun, can the 41st Regiment still fight?"

"Please rest assured, Brigade Commander," Inako said solemnly. "The 41st Regiment still has 2400 men, and its combat effectiveness has not been affected."

"One day, 1,000 casualties, can the 41st Regiment really still fight?" Okazaki asked again.

Before the two sides even officially engaged in combat, the 41st Regiment had already lost several hundred men to various artillery attacks.

The attack that day resulted in over a thousand casualties. Even though the 41st Regiment was a Class A regiment and had been reinforced with 3800 men after the Battle of Lujia Town, it would probably be difficult for them to withstand such casualties.

"I have already replenished the supply troops and all non-essential personnel to the front line, and we can launch another large-scale campaign." Inayoshi said with certainty.

"Very good." Okazaki nodded. "Truly worthy of being a warrior of the Empire."

"I have already requested permission from my superiors that a large number of bombers and fighters will support our operations tomorrow. I hope the 41st Wing can achieve victory."

"In addition, I will transfer another 500 people from the logistics unit to you."

"Hi! Thanks, brigade commander!"

……

At this time, Lin Zhiyuan also arrived at the front line.

"What are our casualties?"

"The 1st Battalion of the 6th Regiment has less than 300 men left, while the 502nd Regiment has suffered more than 1,000 casualties," Guan Jianchu reported.

Looking at Gu Zhizhen, Lin Zhiyuan couldn't help but praise, "The 502nd Regiment performed very bravely and fought very well."

The 502nd Regiment was full of new recruits, and new recruits are very prone to breaking down in close combat. Lin Zhiyuan was really worried at the time.

In such a large-scale battle, if any part of the front collapses, the entire battle line will crumble.

Gu Zhizhen said calmly, "Commander, although the 502nd Regiment is a newly formed unit, our courage is no less than anyone else's."

Lin Zhiyuan nodded in agreement, indicating that the 502nd Regiment could indeed take on the role of a main force regiment.

"What are your thoughts on the current situation, and what do you think the newly promoted general's next steps are?"

"Judging from today's battle, I'm afraid the newly promoted army won't give up until they take the position. Tomorrow's battle will definitely not be easy," Gu Zhizhen said. "But please rest assured, sir, the 502nd Regiment will absolutely not back down."

"Which military academy did you graduate from?" Lin Zhiyuan asked.

"I never attended a military academy."

"Never attended a military academy?" This surprised Lin Zhiyuan.

"I made contributions during the Northern Expedition, but later I was transferred to the local security force for some reason."

"I understand. Do a good job, and I promise no one will be able to bully you in the future." Lin Zhiyuan patted Gu Zhizhen on the shoulder.

Although Lin Zhiyuan was the youngest of all officers above the rank of colonel in the 404th Detachment, no one refuted his statement.

"Thank you, sir."

Pointing to a small mound next to the 1st Battalion of the 6th Regiment, Lin Zhiyuan said, "I'll give you another task: build a fake position on that nearby hilltop."

That earthen mound used to be a flanking machine gun position, but now it has been added to the coordinates of the newly promoted artillery. Every time the artillery fires, it will inevitably hit. The machine gun team on the position has been moved, and Lin Zhiyuan plans to make use of it.

Upon hearing Lin Zhiyuan mention a fake position, Gu Zhizhen immediately understood his intentions.

"I will personally lead the digging to ensure it is indistinguishable from the real thing, but I will still need the cooperation of the 6th Regiment."

"Ma Daxi, you need to cooperate with Commander Gu to camouflage the First Battalion's position," Lin Zhiyuan said directly.

"yes!"

Ma Daxi had no objection to cooperating.

His 1st Battalion will be reinforced tonight, but these new recruits have only been training for half a month and have just learned how to fire a gun. If there is a way to reduce the number of bombs they take, that would be ideal.