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

Yanggu Town, Japanese defensive positions

The gunfire in Lanfeng made Yuichi Okamoto restless. He wanted to lead his troops to provide support several times, but he held back.

The commotion was too great; there were dozens of artillery pieces involved. This level of combat was not something a single battalion could afford to cause trouble in.

The gunfire lasted for two or three hours before finally stopping. Major Okamoto's expression grew even more grim, but he still clung to a sliver of hope and said to his adjutant:

"Suzuki-kun, have the scouts we sent out not returned yet? It's dawn, the Chinese must have given up the attack."

Lieutenant Suzuki Yu, however, was not as optimistic, shaking his head and saying:

"Not yet, there must be a problem. My instructions to them were to return within an hour, regardless of whether they could find any information."

It's well past the agreed time, so he probably won't be able to come back.

Lanfeng is equally important to the Chinese; they won't give it up easily. I fear they've already captured Lanfeng.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible! There is an entire infantry regiment in Lanfeng City. The Chinese do not have the strength to wipe them out in such a short time."

Major Okamoto, being too close to the situation to see clearly, while Captain Suzuki, observing from the sidelines, had a clearer perspective and said in a deep voice:

"Okamoto-kun, the Chinese certainly don't have the strength to wipe out the 2nd Infantry Regiment, but the 2nd Regiment might break out after being unable to withstand the immense pressure."

Major Okamoto still refuses to accept reality:

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

"The 2nd Regiment is one of the top 10 regiments in the Empire. How could they possibly give up their position on their own? Lord Yokoyama can't afford to lose face like that."

"Okamoto-kun, it's no big deal to back down when you're outmatched; it's better than total annihilation."

Now we should think about ourselves. The Chinese have captured Lanfeng; they won't let us go, and they might be here any minute!

Lieutenant Suzuki remained very calm. His first thought was the safety of the Yangguji-Shuangtaji line. Although they were an infantry battalion, they had suffered heavy losses in the previous battles and were now less than a thousand men.

Major Okamoto wasn't stupid; he just didn't want to accept reality. Lieutenant Suzuki was right: once the 2nd Infantry Regiment retreated, it would be their turn next.

He had to make a decision: to fight or to retreat.

Before this, he had never considered abandoning the position. Now it was different. Even the 2nd Infantry Regiment had to avoid his sharp edge. What resources did he have to hold on to the bitter end?

"Suzuki, in your opinion, can we hold out until reinforcements arrive? Yanggu is easy to defend and difficult to attack; it withstood an attack by tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers before."

"Okamoto-kun, times have changed. Before, the Imperial Army had an infantry brigade and a heavy artillery regiment. Now we have less than a thousand warriors."

Major Okamoto roared at the top of his lungs:

"We have to hold this position! If the Chinese want our ground, they'll pay with their lives!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the booming sound of artillery fire filled their ears. Okamoto and Suzuki's expressions changed drastically. Just as they feared, their worst fears came true. Chinese artillery shells had already crashed into Yangguji.

It wasn't human lives, it was artillery shells!

Major Okamoto rushed out of the command post in a panic, just as a volley of shells flew over their heads and landed about 200 meters to their side and rear.

Several houses were razed to the ground, and the Japanese soldiers hiding inside were blown to pieces. Fortunately, the Li family compound where the command post was located was not hit.

The Li family was the largest landlord in more than a dozen surrounding villages. They were a family of scholars and officials, and their ancestors included many high-ranking officials and countless scholars who passed the imperial examinations.

The Li Family Compound was built by them at great expense. Due to the constant warfare in the Central Plains, the Li Family Compound was built in the style of a fortified village, which could withstand attacks from bandits.

After the Japanese crossed the Yellow River, the head of the Li family received the news and fled west to Zhengzhou to avoid disaster, leaving the compound as the Japanese command post.

The 27th Brigade deployed a tight defense at the Li Family Compound, making it the core position of Yangguji. The 27th Army had not been able to get close to it before.

Major Okamoto observed the battle through his binoculars. At the town entrance, several hundred elite Chinese soldiers were charging in under artillery fire. Shuangtaji was also under siege. The Chinese were launching a full-scale offensive, deploying a total force of up to two thousand troops.

Major Okamoto's expression turned unusually grim, all traces of his previous arrogance gone. He had witnessed a machine gun emplacement being destroyed, using a Type 92 infantry gun.

He knew better than anyone the power of the Type 92 infantry gun. A place like the Li family compound could withstand the bandits' attacks, but it couldn't withstand more than a few shots from the Type 92 infantry gun. A medieval shield couldn't possibly stop modern artillery.

Now his only reliance is the trenches that are spread throughout the village and connected to the houses. The Chinese would have to pay a heavy price to take it over.

On the outer perimeter, the Kono Company had already lost two trenches. The Chinese soldiers rushed over again. Although there were only a few dozen of them, their formation was well-organized and their squads coordinated skillfully.

The attacking force was the 7th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 343rd Regiment. Company Commander Xu Feng was covered in gunpowder and blood, some from the Japanese and some from his own body.

The 7th Company only deployed one infantry platoon as the spearhead, followed by two more infantry platoons. Due to the cover of buildings, this gave the Japanese the illusion that there were dozens of men.

The first platoon adopted the standard platoon attack tactics of the 107th Division, with riflemen in front and machine gunners behind, in groups of three, forming an attack formation of three groups, with small attack formations nested within large attack formations, and people everywhere you looked.

They advanced very quickly, with the platoon leader in the lead column—a tradition of the 107th Division, where officers led the charge.

When the Japanese machine guns opened fire, Fan Da shouted for his men to lie down. Three men were still hit, one dead and two wounded. The wounded were quickly taken away, and the part-time medic risked his life to stop the bleeding and provide first aid.

The platoon's only M1919 Browning medium machine gun quickly returned fire, sweeping bursts of bullets at the Japanese soldiers. The goal was not to achieve many victories, but to suppress the Japanese firepower.

The combatants in each group spontaneously opened fire on the Kono Company's position, and the two sides fought fiercely, suffering casualties on both sides, with the Japanese having the advantage.

This was the first time Kono had seen this kind of fighting style in the Chinese army. It was very similar to their tactics, and in the shootout, their marksmanship was even on par with his.

The attacking force consisted of only a few dozen men, but their firepower was not much weaker than that of a single company.

To enhance the firepower of the infantry company, the battalion split up the machine gun company and transferred it to the infantry company, so Kono Company also had two Type 92 heavy machine guns.

After a brief stalemate, Captain Kono was horrified to discover that his two Type 92 heavy machine guns were completely outmatched by the Chinese heavy machine guns.

He then dispatched a grenade launcher team to assist in the battle, attempting to destroy the medium machine gun of the 1st Platoon of the 7th Company.

Company Commander Xu Feng also wanted to shoot down the Japanese machine gun. He turned his head and shouted to the communications officer:

"Quickly notify the artillery platoon and have them use mortars to take out the Japanese machine guns!"

The communications officer took out a signal flag from his person, ran to the back of a house facing away from the Japanese position, and sent the company commander's instructions to the fire platoon.

The observer reported the instructions to the platoon leader, who then ordered the artillery to fire.

The Japanese heavy machine guns were firing merrily when a volley of shells flew over from a high point several hundred meters away and hit the target precisely.

The Type 92 heavy machine gun, weighing over 60 kilograms, was overturned, resulting in the destruction of the gun and the death of the crew.

Captain Kono's eyes were filled with astonishment as he spoke to the squadron commander:

"The Chinese have mortars! Quickly request tactical guidance from the battalion commander!"

After losing a heavy machine gun, the Japanese machine gun firepower became noticeably less intense, firing only a few bursts before moving to a different firing position, which was quite frustrating.

At the headquarters of the Yudong Corps, Xue Boling was in a state of utter chaos, as the loss of Lanfeng City had disrupted all his plans.

The 27th Infantry Brigade, which had previously been blocked at Yangguji, advanced rapidly, showing a tendency to sever the connection between the 74th and 71st Armies. Xue Boling planned to encircle and annihilate the Doiyu Division, while the Japanese planned to divide and conquer them one by one.

Xue Boling frowned and asked again:

"It's almost nine o'clock, hasn't Zhao Yunwen arrived at the battlefield yet? Has there been any new telegram reply?"

Chief of Staff Wu quickly replied:

"The 107th Division is on a rapid march and communication is difficult. Let's wait a bit longer."

"They're dragging their feet. Urge them a little longer. We don't have much time left to change our strategy. If we haven't recaptured Lanfeng City by nightfall, we must immediately activate the second plan. We absolutely cannot let that old devil Doihara escape our net."

Changing the formation is very risky, involving a reshuffling of hundreds of thousands of troops, and it would be easy for the Japanese to find a weakness.

No sooner had he finished speaking than the communications director came running over with cheerful steps. Xue Boling suppressed his anger and maintained the dignity of a commander.

The communications director wasn't afraid of Xue Laohu's wrath this time; he had a fire-extinguishing weapon at his disposal.

"Commander-in-Chief, the 107th Division has achieved a great victory! They have recaptured Lanfeng!"

The command center seemed to have suddenly stopped, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.