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

For the sake of balance, the 107th Division was given a high position, and Zhao Yunwen was happy to have some peace and quiet. He then deployed the 11 105mm Type 92 cannons captured this time to the troops.

He didn't know much about the cannon's performance, so he turned to the system for help:

"Could you look up information about the Type 92 cannon for me?"

[Diameter: 105mm;]

Barrel length: 4725mm, 45 times the barrel length of the cannon

Combat weight: 3700–3730 kg

Total towing weight during march: 4335kg

Field of fire: Pitch -5° to +45°; Horizontal range 18° to the left and right, totaling 36°. The narrow field of fire is a major defect.

Rate of fire: 6–8 rounds/min for rapid fire, 2–3 rounds/min for sustained fire.

Range and propellant charge classification: Charge 1 (full charge): Type 91 sharp long-range grenade, 15.76 kg, maximum range 18100–18200 meters; Charge 2 (half charge): Type 91 ordinary high-explosive grenade, 16 kg, maximum range 13000 meters, for conventional suppression of infantry positions.

Zhao Yunwen found the technical parameters quite impressive; the maximum range of 18.2 kilometers was terrifying, and the power was astonishing. However, what he was most concerned about was the mobility, so he asked:

"Can it be disassembled and transported by mules or horses?"

[Sorry, this won't meet your needs. The gun itself weighs 1180 kg, and the total towing weight is 4.3 tons. It can only be moved as a whole and cannot be disassembled into smaller parts for transport. The standard mode of transport is a tracked tractor, with an alternative of 8 draft horses to pull it as a whole. It is only suitable for flat roads in eastern Henan; it is completely unusable on muddy, sloping, or mountainous roads.]

Zhao Yunwen immediately lost interest; it looked good but was useless. He couldn't handle the current conditions, so he considered selling it to the system and asked:

"How much would each cannon cost in silver dollars?"

[The complete set of combat units costs 50,000 yen. At the current exchange rate, 1 yen is approximately equal to 1 silver dollar, meaning 50,000 silver dollars. I can provide the unit prices of some common artillery pieces for comparison: a German-made 75mm Krupp field gun costs approximately 10,000 silver dollars each, a Type 92 infantry gun costs 7000 silver dollars each, and a Min-made Type 20 mortar has a transfer price of 400 silver dollars. These are peacetime prices; during wartime, the black market has a significant premium. For example, a Min-made Type 20 mortar can reach 800 to 1200 silver dollars on the front lines. Host, a friendly reminder: the system only buys back at 30% of the market price.]

"System, why don't you just rob someone? Each 105mm cannon on the black market is worth at least 7 silver dollars, maybe even 10, but you can only sell it for 1.5 silver dollars."

[Host, no one on the black market can afford your cannon. Each shell costs 70 silver dollars. Even if you could afford it, its mobility wouldn't be sufficient, unless someone of Xue Boling's caliber is willing to take it.]

Zhao Yunwen was in a dilemma. He was unwilling to sell it to the system at a low price, but he was afraid that Xue Boling would cheat him and might not want it because he thought it was too bulky. He had to trick Xue Laohu into buying it.

If he wanted Lao Xue to pay a high price, he had to show the value of the 105mm cannon. He recalled another time when the US sold arms, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up. If that was the case, then he would target the Japanese heavy artillery brigade. A plan aimed at selling cannons grew wildly in his mind like weeds.

At Luowang Station, the 74th Army was continuously attacking the Japanese defense line. The Japanese 150mm heavy howitzer group kept shelling the attacking soldiers. One shell could take away half a platoon. This was even after Division Commander Wang Yaowu had deliberately instructed them to keep their distance.

The heavy howitzers were too powerful, and the main assault regiment suffered heavy casualties. The brigade commander complained to Wang Yaowu about his predicament.

"Commander, let the brothers retreat. The Japanese firepower is too fierce. Leave some seeds for the brothers."

Wang Yaowu didn't want to fight like this either, but Army Commander Yu Liangzhen gave a death order that Luowang Station must be captured at all costs.

Thinking of this, Wang Yaowu said with a gloomy face:

"Withdrawing is impossible. The commander-in-chief and the military commander have given us a death order. We only have one day left. There is no other way but to launch a full-scale attack."

You can think of other ways. Spread out your skirmishers a bit more, and I'll have the military artillery regiment provide you with a few more rounds of fire support.

With the Japanese heavy artillery suppressing the enemy, I dare not fire too much; the rest will have to be paid with your lives.

Wang Yaowu rarely fought such a devastating battle, but this time, in the plains, he didn't have a good solution.

Seeing that Division Commander Wang had given them some support, the brigade commander said no more and turned to leave resolutely.

Wang Yaowu watched the brigade commander's departing figure, his face cold as he gave the order:

"Order the artillery regiment to fire at the core position of the station, just six rounds, don't let the entire regiment get caught up in it, otherwise the commander will skin me alive."

This wasn't Wang Yaowu being petty; the Japanese had high-altitude balloons, making it easy for them to target the artillery regiments.

Before long, the army's artillery regiment's dozen or so German-made 75mm howitzers bombarded the Japanese positions, causing the Japanese to scream in terror. Many of their fortifications were also destroyed, greatly boosting the morale of the main attacking regiment.

After several rounds, the artillery support ended, and the artillery regiment hurriedly harnessed the artillery pieces to mules and horses to move them, fearing that they would be caught by the Japanese.

The Japanese retaliatory artillery fire came faster than they expected. Before the artillery regiment could completely withdraw, the first round of heavy shells came crashing down and destroyed one artillery piece.

This is only the first round of calibration rounds. Once the Japanese have finished calibrating, the destructive power of the second round will be absolutely beyond what the artillery regiment can withstand.

Fortunately, the 150mm heavy howitzer has a slow rate of fire, averaging less than two rounds per minute. With the correction time, this is enough time for the artillery regiment to move to a distance of several hundred meters.

The second round of shells arrived as scheduled, causing the ground to shake and creating more than a dozen deep craters in the artillery positions.

The artillery regimental commander took a deep breath, still shaken. If he had been a little too busy, or had been greedy and fired a few more rounds, the entire regiment would have been in serious trouble.

A dozen kilometers away, a huge convoy carrying 11 heavy artillery pieces was swaggering along the highway, and the Japanese balloons noticed it but didn't pay any attention.

The Nationalist Army didn't have this at all; it could only be the Right Army.

The Japanese soldiers on the balloon were wondering where such heavy artillery came from when a Hawk III fighter plane suddenly appeared in the clouds. This was the standard-issue fighter of the Nationalist Army, which terrified the Japanese soldiers, who screamed in panic.

"Where did this Chinese plane come from?"

It's no wonder they're making such a fuss; the Japanese had long since seized air superiority over the Central Plains, and there wouldn't be any Chinese warplanes in the sky.

The plane caught the Japanese off guard, firing machine guns in succession and shooting down three of their balloons before disappearing into the clouds before the Japanese fighter planes arrived.

The Japanese soldiers roared in fury, while Zhao Yunwen wore a sinister smile. The system's voice then rang out:

[Host, you're too stingy. Using Hawk 3 won't save you much experience points; it only costs 800 points in total.]

Zhao Yunwen shook his head and said:

"You don't understand. This is to avoid attracting the attention of the Japanese. Both sides are watching, and we have many high-ranking officers on our side, so it's difficult to explain. As long as we complete the mission, that's fine. Next, it'll be the heavy artillery group's turn to perform."

At this time, the 11 newly captured cannons of the 107th Division had been deployed, their dark muzzles pointing directly at the Japanese heavy artillery positions, where there were dozens of 150mm heavy howitzers.

The 107th Division's heavy artillery group was more than 16 kilometers away from Luowang Station. The Nationalist government no longer had artillery beyond that range, and the 2nd Heavy Artillery Brigade was firing recklessly, completely unaware of the danger.

The brothers of the 2nd Heavy Artillery Battalion adjusted their firing parameters according to the coordinates transmitted by the reconnaissance. Everything was ready except for the final push.

Zhao Yunwen raised his hand to check the time and loudly gave the order:

"fire!"

The radio quickly relayed his instructions to the 2nd Heavy Artillery Battalion, and as a series of muffled artillery shots rang out, the earth trembled.

Eleven shells whistled towards the Japanese artillery positions, accurately hitting the target area and instantly destroying seven artillery pieces.

The Japanese commander was dumbfounded and stammered:

"Baka yarou! Enemy attack! The Chinese have heavy artillery! Relocate immediately!"

The Japanese artillerymen, disregarding their own casualties, hurriedly began to dismantle the supports, but unfortunately, these heavy artillery pieces were not so easy to move.

A minute or so passed quickly, and before the Japanese troops could even put away their support structure, a second volley of shells flew over, carrying the scent of death.

The ear-piercing sound of air being torn apart filled the commander with despair:

"Baga, it's over!"

"Boom boom boom..."

More than a dozen cannons were engulfed by the thick smoke from the explosion. The commander collapsed to his knees, his eyes losing their luster. He wished he had been blown to pieces rather than witness such a cruel reality.