Even if I'm a useless bum at Whampoa Military Academy, I'll be invincible in the War of Re

Hongmaoling, Hill 227, the forward position of Laohudong

Platoon leader Yang Guai was leading his soldiers, concealed in the trenches on guard duty, when the communications officer arrived to report:

"Platoon leader, a Japanese search party of about 50 men has been spotted ahead, advancing in an attack formation, about half a mile away."

Seeing that the Japanese soldiers were about to reach the foot of the mountain, Yang Guai roared:

"Brothers, the Japanese are coming! Prepare for battle!"

At the foot of Hongmaoling Mountain, dozens of Japanese soldiers arrived with murderous intent and arrogance. The leader of the group was a squad leader, and they belonged to the Ninth Division.

Because the 16th Division was decimated by the guerrilla detachment and needed time to replenish its ranks, the Japanese forces that were to launch the main attack on Zijin Mountain were replaced by the 9th Division. Together with the 18th Division, they were known as the "Twin Pillars" and were attacking Nanjing from both sides.

The 9th Division was fighting well in the outer battles. At its peak, Ando's squad had chased down an entire battalion of the Nationalist government, so he didn't take Tiger Cave, this small hill, seriously at all.

The Taiping Gate of Jinling City is right in front of us, only three kilometers away. We can get there in one go.

They advanced in a four-pronged attack formation, quickly coming right under the noses of the second platoon. Yang Guai shouted coldly:

"Brothers—fight!"

The medium machine gun in Xiaohubei opened fire first, firing a long volley of bullets at the Japanese soldiers, instantly taking down four or five of them like a string of candied hawthorns.

Ando's squad finally paid the price for their arrogance. The second platoon opened fire immediately, with dozens of machine guns and rifles spraying bullets at the Japanese soldiers, wiping out most of them in just one encounter.

Lieutenant Ando was lucky to escape unscathed, but he was still humiliated. At first, he was unconvinced and ordered the remaining twenty-odd Japanese soldiers to fight back.

As a result, they were pinned to the ground by the second platoon, suffering seven or eight casualties. They didn't even fire many shots, and Lieutenant Ando's helmet was blown off.

Less than five minutes later, Lieutenant Ando realized the reality and brandished his Nambu pistol, shouting:

"There's an ambush! Reverse course!"

The remaining Japanese soldiers scrambled away from the engagement, leaving only fourteen men from a squad of over fifty.

Seeing a large number of Japanese soldiers rushing towards them, Yang Guai roared:

"Brothers, retreat!"

Their mission was to keep watch on the perimeter. After winning the skirmish, the second platoon decisively withdrew to the Tiger Cave front-line position, where there were strong bunkers and trenches.

The main force of the Japanese troops arrived one after another, but they did not rush to launch an attack. Battalion Commander Masashi Nomura first slapped Lieutenant Ando a few times and cursed:

"You idiot! You've disgraced the 36th Regiment! How dare you come back alive!"

Lieutenant Ando was so ashamed that he immediately apologized to the Emperor, which earned him several more slaps.

"Baka yarou! This is the behavior of a coward! Warriors of the Empire should die on the road to victory!"

Lieutenant Ando bowed repeatedly, like a chick pecking at rice.

"How many Chinese did you encounter, and what was their equipment like?"

Lieutenant Ando was about to say a few dozen people, but then changed it to two or three hundred, otherwise the battalion commander would have really chopped him up.

"Good heavens, a company has more than a dozen machine guns. Is this the strength of the strongest German-equipped division in China? My Nomura Battalion will have a go at them."

After Major Nomura finished speaking, he dismissed Lieutenant Ando. He had no intention of killing Ando; it was quite an achievement that he had returned alive.

Lieutenant Sakai Yuto said solemnly:

"Nomura-kun, the Training Corps defending Zijin Mountain is no ordinary force. Their status in the Chinese army is equivalent to the Imperial Guard Division. Fully equipped with German weapons, their total strength is close to 30,000. They'll be a tough opponent!"

Major Nomura wasn't arrogant enough to challenge the Training Corps with a single battalion. The 36th Infantry Regiment was no stranger to German-equipped divisions; they had fought Song Yingguo's 36th Division at Huishan Wharf after landing, and had a vivid memory of it.

"Mr. Sakai, I have never underestimated the Training Corps. After the disastrous defeat at Shanghai, many of the Chinese elite units were reduced to mere frames. They had to recruit a large number of new soldiers, resulting in a severe loss of combat power."

Hill 227, also known as Tiger Cave, is just a small hill with a radius of two or three hundred meters, and the garrison would not exceed one battalion.

Each regiment of the Training Corps has more than 3200 men; it's impossible to deploy them all at Tiger Cave. Sakai-kun should be confident that Nomura's battalion can capture the position of a single Chinese battalion, right?

Captain Sakai straightened his neck and said:

"That's natural. Although the Training Corps is elite, Nomura Battalion could easily take on an entire regiment of them one-on-one."

"Alright, let's get started! Send a company to find out what they're capable of first."

Captain Sakai hummed in agreement and left, immediately dispatching a company to advance along the ridge from west to east, with the No. 1 bunker, defended by the 1st Platoon of the 3rd Company, being the first target.

The second platoon, where Yang Guai is located, is a reserve force that can be reinforced through the longitudinal trenches if necessary.

The Tiger Cave position has six main and secondary bunkers. The first to third main bunkers are arranged along the mountain ridge steps, which corresponds to the three lines of defense. The headquarters of the isolated battalion is located in the third main bunker.

The three auxiliary bunkers are a forward outpost 300 meters to the northeast, a flank watchtower 200 meters to the south, and a rear flank bunker 800 meters to the southwest. They are used for communication and cover, and the auxiliary bunkers are mainly used to protect the flanks.

Platoon leader Su Xilin placed a squad inside the No. 3 main bunker, equipped with one Browning medium machine gun, two captured Type 91 light machine guns, and one Type 92 heavy machine gun. It had five firing ports and observation ports, and was under the command of deputy platoon leader Chen Jiali. This was the stronghold of the first line of defense.

The main force of the platoon hid in the trenches on both sides, and after they took over, they dug cat-ear holes on the back.

Chen Jiali observed the enemy situation from the lookout point and repeatedly instructed machine gunner Ding Hao:

"Don't rush, let it get closer before you attack, follow my orders!"

At the foot of the mountain, more than 100 Japanese soldiers cautiously approached. They formed three echelons: front, middle and rear. Riflemen were in front, followed by machine gunners and grenade launchers. The formation was about 150 meters wide from north to south and 80 meters deep, almost filling the front of the Tiger Cave defense line.

Only after the skirmishers advanced to within 100 meters did Chen Jiali order them to open fire.

The main gunner, Ding Hao, couldn't wait any longer and fired a long string of bullets at the Japanese soldiers, taking down several of them.

His gunshot was the order, and the entire platoon opened fire, a dense hail of bullets raining down on the Japanese, with firepower far exceeding that of the Training Corps.

The Takahashi squadron was already on high alert, but they were still hit hard, suffering forty or fifty casualties in a short period of time, almost a squad.

Eiji Takahashi was so frightened that he immediately lay down on the ground, letting the bullets whiz past his head, his face turning extremely pale.

The machine gun crews trailing behind set up their light machine guns and unleashed a barrage of bullets at the No. 1 main bunker. The bullets struck the 80-centimeter-thick reinforced concrete without leaving even a small dent.

The main bunker attracted most of the firepower, leaving the Japanese soldiers with no choice but to take hits. In less than fifteen minutes, the Takahashi Company had suffered more than half of its casualties.

Captain Sakai was terrified and quickly tried to dissuade him:

"Nomura-kun, the Chinese bunkers are too strong. Have Takahashi Company withdraw immediately and wait for the infantry artillery squad to come up before engaging in battle."

Although Major Nomura was unwilling, he still ordered a halt to the attack, saying:

"The infantry artillery squads are insufficient. Send a telegram to the regimental commander requesting tactical guidance!"

Captain Sakai frantically requested reinforcements. Shortly after the Japanese infantry withdrew, artillery shells began to rain down. Could the main fortress withstand the Japanese bombardment? How will the guerrilla detachment further annihilate the Japanese? Exciting plot unfolds continuously. Add to your bookshelf so you don't get lost.