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

At the front lines of Tiger Head Mountain, bullets rained down, and the Japanese offensive seemed to be paused instantly. Rows of charging Japanese soldiers fell, and Colonel Fu Rong's facial muscles twitched as he watched; it was the same familiar sight.

The defenders' firepower was terrifying; in just one encounter, nearly 30% of them were killed or wounded, and the rest lay trembling on the hillside.

The Japanese soldiers were spontaneously retaliating, but they were suppressed by the defending troops' firepower. Colonel Furong roughly counted that there were seven or eight heavy machine guns alone, and their long tongues of fire were terrifying to behold.

Ando's heavy firepower also joined the battle, with several Type 92 heavy machine guns firing from a kilometer away, the bullets kicking up dust on the defenders' positions.

The Type 92 infantry guns were sneaking around, firing a shot every now and then, with their main target being the defenders' heavy machine guns.

The First Battalion also had its own heavy firepower, even more than Ando's battalion. It had dedicated gun emplacements, located far from the three trenches, between the forward positions and the main positions. A separate trench was dug for the artillery, which could move and hide along the trench.

Four 20mm mortars were assigned to primarily target the Type 4 infantry guns, while two Type 2 infantry guns were specifically assigned to target heavy machine guns, demonstrating a clear division of labor.

After the mortar group locked onto a Type 92 infantry gun, the platoon leader gave the order, and four shells drew beautiful parabolas in the air, instantly covering the area where the target was located.

The infantry gun was destroyed, and 15 gun crew members were either killed or wounded. Mosonchi praised the work, saying he had never fought such an exciting battle.

The Japanese Type 92 heavy machine guns were also destroyed one after another. The 1st Battalion completely suppressed Ando's battalion in terms of heavy firepower. The company that launched the probing attack suffered heavy casualties. Major Ando's face turned green, and he cursed:

"You idiots, a bunch of useless trash!"

"Withdraw! Call in artillery fire and wipe them out!"

Major Ando had no choice but to end the probing attack early, and the remaining infantry retreated in disarray, abandoning half a company and leaving many seriously wounded soldiers behind.

The piercing sound of iron whistles rang out from the front lines. These whistles were all redeemed by Zhao Yunwen in the system and were equipped to the squad.

Upon hearing the whistle, the soldiers swiftly slipped into the anti-artillery shelters built into the mountainside. It was simple: just dig a hole in the trench on the side facing the mountain, big enough to hide three people.

The brothers of the First Battalion had barely taken cover when a barrage of artillery shells came crashing down. This time, the shells were much more targeted, and almost all of them landed on the front-line positions.

Li Youde huddled in the artillery shelter, trembling. He was a new recruit added to the Training Corps before the Battle of Nanjing. Because the Fourth Regiment had been defending the First Peak, he was lucky enough to survive.

Strictly speaking, he is now a veteran, but he is still afraid of artillery. Those things whizzing around overhead are terrifying to anyone.

The other two were defeated soldiers gathered in Xiaguan. They were both veterans. Sergeant Zhang Kezhong was the squad leader and came from the 87th Division. Corporal Yang Shibiao came from the Second Army Corps.

Zhang Ke took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, took a few deep drags, looked at Li Youde with disdain, and then handed the cigarette to the latter.

"Bear-like, one puff and you won't be scared anymore!"

Li Youde, having smoked half a cigarette, didn't mind the dirtiness and took a big, defiant drag, choking so badly that tears streamed down his face and he coughed several times.

The two veterans laughed maliciously, which made Li Youde feel very embarrassed. It's just a cigarette, how could it kill someone?

Li Youde forced himself to inhale a few more times despite feeling uncomfortable, coughing as he did so. This time, Zhang Ke didn't laugh at him.

The shells were still whizzing around. After smoking half a cigarette, Li Youde was noticeably less trembling than before. As a man, he also had his pride.

The three were lucky; the shells only fell on their heads before the whistle blew.

Zhang Ke, who had previously maintained a nonchalant demeanor, roared:

"The Japanese are coming up!"

He shouted as he rushed out, quickly found his position, and aimed his gun at the Japanese soldiers.

The other two followed suit. Private Li Youde was determined to get revenge on the veteran. He was a soldier from the Training Corps. When had he ever been looked down upon?

Under Li Youde's gun, a dense swarm of Japanese soldiers surged forward, numbering at least several hundred.

The Japanese soldiers were practically charging right on the artillery positions; as soon as the artillery fire extended, the skirmishers advanced right up to them.

The defending troops were firing freely, and Li Youde quickly spotted a Japanese soldier with a Japanese flag on the tip of his gun. The guy was very slippery and looked like an old Japanese soldier.

Li Youde had calculated the lead time perfectly, and gently pulled the trigger. The Japanese soldier was killed instantly, as if he had deliberately run into a bullet.

He glanced smugly at Zhang Ke, his smugness written all over his face, and the latter's gaze towards him changed.

With just this one shot, Li Youde no longer needed any protection within the group.

The rifles used by the Fourth Regiment were still the old German-made ones, imported short-barreled Mausers, which were very powerful and almost guaranteed to kill anyone who was hit by one of their bullets.

Zhang Ke killed two Japanese soldiers in succession, then turned his gun on an officer. Unconvinced, Li Youde also picked a machine gunner. Gunfire rang out all around, bullets whizzed by, and people fell from time to time after being hit.

The firepower of the 4th Regiment's company level was significantly enhanced. The three 60mm mortars could effectively suppress the Japanese machine guns, which is why the riflemen were able to fight with ease.

The Japanese riflemen were known for their excellent marksmanship, but the Fourth Regiment could train the brigade's soldiers, and later it was supplemented with a large number of defeated soldiers from the Central Army, so their combat effectiveness was no less than that of the Japanese.

With advantages in heavy firepower and terrain, the Japanese were at a disadvantage in the exchange of fire, with the exchange ratio approaching 3 to 1.

Li Youde's second shot missed the machine gunner; the distance was too far, exceeding his capabilities.

However, the Japanese machine gunner's arrogance didn't last long. He was hit by a 60mm mortar shell flying from behind, and both he and his gun were destroyed, which greatly excited Li Youde.

Inside the Second Brigade's field command post, everyone was equally relaxed. The Fourth Regiment had fought well, and Qiu Fengzi was beaming with pride, saying cheerfully:

"Commander, after the recent training, the combat effectiveness of the Fourth Regiment has improved significantly. One battalion can now hold off an entire Japanese infantry battalion, which was unimaginable before."

Qiu Fengzi recalled the Battle of Zijin Mountain, where nearly 30,000 members of the Training Corps were relentlessly suppressed by the Ninth Division, suffering nearly half casualties.

Zhao Yunwen smiled slightly and said:

"Brigade Commander Qiu, this is just the beginning. Once our equipment and training improve, the Japanese tactics will no longer work. We Chinese are born warriors and will not lose to the Japanese."

Encouraged, Qiu the Madman shouted:

"Those Japanese devils boasted that they would wipe out China in six months. I went through a period of depression before, but things have changed since I started working for the commander. Now I'm full of confidence in driving out the Japanese devils!"

The others echoed his sentiments. This wasn't because Qiu was trying to curry favor; the more they learned about the guerrilla forces, the stronger their sense of identification with them became.

Unlike the Eighth Route Army, which had the magic weapon of the Party commanding the gun, Zhao Yunwen had to raise the banner of nationalism and cultivate a personality cult if he wanted to unite the army.

An army without faith cannot win battles. The guerrilla column's faith was nationalism and the supremacy of national interests.

At the front lines, Ando's battalion continued its offensive. The 4th Regiment Commander, Sui Youlan, did not send reinforcements to the front lines, nor did he rush to use the heavy firepower of the regimental artillery company. He had to hold out for three days, and he couldn't reveal all his cards on the first day.

Major Ando didn't have that much patience. With the regimental commander watching from behind, he felt humiliated and urged his soldiers to continue advancing, intending to use Bushido to defeat the defenders.

Seeing that the Japanese were still advancing, the battalion commander not only showed no concern, but also shouted excitedly:

"Brothers, beat them to a pulp!"