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

Kaifeng City, heavily fortified.

The 5th Division, which had already received reinforcements, launched an offensive on the eastern front. Seishiro Itagaki personally took command, and Noboru Kunisaki was determined to avenge his previous defeat.

The main force of the 10th Division also arrived one after another. The 323rd Infantry Brigade faced two first-class divisions directly, and the pressure was unimaginable.

Inside the command post, Brigade Commander Qiu Fengzi stared intently at the map, his brow furrowed. The chief of staff, looking worried, said:

"Commander, the 16th Division on the southern front has also returned. They should be able to reach the outskirts by nightfall at the latest, launching a three-pronged attack. Kaifeng is in grave danger!"

Qiu the Madman shouted coldly:

"Three top-tier divisions are attacking my brigade from both sides. Those little devils really think highly of me!"

There's not much to say. We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Tell the brothers to be mentally prepared to fight the Japanese to the death!

The communications officer rushed in to report:

"Chief of Staff, urgent telegram from division headquarters."

The chief of staff took the telegram, dismissed the communications officer, and then said:

"Commander, good news! We don't need to fight the Japanese anymore. The division commander has ordered my unit to retreat to Zheng County."

After reading the telegram handed to him by Chief of Staff Ma Weilan with suspicion, Qiu Fengzi's brows instantly relaxed. It would be best if they could avoid a desperate battle; no one wanted to fight a war that would wipe out their entire family.

"Chief of Staff Ma, now is not the time to retreat. We must hold out until after dark, otherwise the Japanese will become more aggressive and chase after us relentlessly."

Ma Weilan wholeheartedly agreed, and continued:

"The 16th Division on the southern front has not yet moved into position. The 5th and 10th Divisions are obviously waiting for the 16th Division to cut off our retreat. The number of troops committed to the attack is not large, and it should not be a problem to hold out until nightfall."

Qiu the Madman also understood this point and said:

"The Japanese devils are up to no good, and they've been badly beaten before, so they're hesitant and timid. This is our chance."

Tell Regiment Commanders Li and Sui to be aggressive and ruthless; the fiercer the fighting, the less the Japanese will dare to go all out.

Ma Weilan accepted the order and left, while Qiu Fengzi was already figuring out how to retreat.

In the east of the city, Kunisaki Noboru was getting restless and sent over a thousand men to attack the defending troops, bombarding the 645th Regiment's position with artillery shells as if they were free.

After the main force of the division arrived, Kunisaki Noboru's posture became noticeably stronger; cannons are a man's source of confidence.

Although only two battalions of the 5th Field Artillery Regiment arrived, the combined fire of 32 75mm howitzers was still incredibly powerful. Many of the positions that the 645th Regiment had painstakingly built were destroyed, and the regiment suffered over a hundred casualties.

When the 105th Heavy Artillery Battalion arrived, the pressure on the 645th Regiment would be even greater, and the dozen or so artillery pieces in the artillery company didn't dare to make a sound.

As soon as the artillery fire spread, thousands of Japanese soldiers surged forward, a stark contrast to their previous cowardly demeanor.

Regiment Commander Li Xikai of the 645th Regiment shook off the dust from his body, exhaled a strong breath of stale air, and cursed:

"Damn it, that's quite a big deal. It blew me up for half an hour. It's time for me to collect some interest."

Chief of Staff, signal the artillery group to fire twelve rounds first, bombard them!

He had already received a telegram from the brigade headquarters, instructing him to stop hiding his intentions and fight with full force.

The artillery power of the 645th Regiment was far inferior to that of the Japanese, but they could still make their presence felt by hiding in the city and moving away after the fighting was over.

Kaifeng is an ancient capital of eight dynasties. It has high walls and thick walls, with a moat outside the city and an outer city and barbican inside. Even if it faces modern artillery, it can withstand it for a while.

The city's residents had already been evacuated, and underground air-raid shelters had been built beforehand, so hiding a dozen or so cannons wouldn't be a problem.

Once the artillery received the order, it opened fire on the Japanese infantry. Rows of shells rained down from the sky, causing the Japanese soldiers to fall and scream in agony.

Kunisaki Noboru felt a sudden pang of fear. The 107th Division indeed still had the strength to counterattack. He secretly rejoiced that he hadn't sent more troops up, otherwise the losses would have been even greater.

"Quickly, open fire and retaliate! Target the city! Bomb them to death!"

The infantry suffered heavy losses, and the Japanese then retaliated with artillery fire, blasting the city walls and buildings inside the city to smithereens and destroying hundreds of houses.

Seeing that the defending army's artillery fire was suppressed, the Japanese infantry charged even faster, and the 645th Regiment's position was right in front of them.

The 645th Regiment's positions had long been ravaged by bombing, which gave the Japanese confidence, and they were eager to rush in and wreak havoc.

"Tap tap tap..."

"Tap tap tap..."

Countless bullets splattered across the dilapidated position. The Japanese soldiers instinctively tried to lie down, but they were far too slow. Many unlucky ones were hit and fell, either dead or maimed.

The 645th Regiment unleashed its full firepower, and Kunisaki Toru closed his eyes in agony. He had underestimated the resilience of the defenders.

With such intense firepower, a group charge would be suicide; taking Kaifeng would be no easy task.

"Let the warriors retreat! The artillery continues to destroy the Chinese positions and flatten them!"

Kunisaki Toru roared at the top of his lungs; this was his last act of defiance.

Li Xikai watched the Japanese soldiers recede like a tide, secretly rejoicing that his gamble had paid off and that he could now retaliate against the Japanese.

On the defending positions, the whistles of the artillery fire rang out, and countless figures nimbly slipped into the artillery bunkers, racing against death.

Shells whistled in, kicking up clouds of dust, and flames roared across the surface of the positions, billowing smoke.

The soldiers huddled in the narrow artillery shelters, silently praying for the protection of all the gods and Buddhas in the sky, whether it was Guanyin Bodhisattva or the local earth god, just to put their minds at ease.

The Japanese shelling didn't last long; after all, shells cost money, and they just needed to save face for Kunisaki Noboru.

Not to mention Kunisaki Noboru, even Doihara Kenji restrained his temper quite a bit when it came to the 107th Division, as he was also waiting for the 16th Division to make its detour and arrive in time.

The battlefield fell silent, the smoke cleared, and several Japanese soldiers, carrying white flags, walked toward the 645th Regiment's position, demanding to collect the bodies.

It is already mid-June, and the weather is hot. Corpses exposed in the wild will decompose very easily.

The Japanese were pretending to collect corpses; their real purpose was to rescue the wounded and buy time. They couldn't save face if they didn't attack. People who didn't know the situation might think that the Itagaki Division was afraid of the 107th Division.

"In compensation, the Imperial Army promises a ceasefire until dawn tomorrow, and your army can also handle the fallen soldiers and evacuate the wounded."

The Japanese soldiers seemed to be considering the interests of the 107th Division. Li Xikai, commander of the 645th Regiment, snorted coldly.

"What a fucking shameless person!"

The chief of staff leaned closer and said:

"The Japanese are clearly trying to rescue their wounded. Should we attack?"

Li Xikai had a higher position; he had long received Qiu Fengzi's military orders, and the Japanese move was exactly what they wanted.

By the time the armistice ended, the 323rd Brigade was already deserted, and its losses were minimal.

Thinking of this, he suppressed his urge to wipe out the Japanese devils and said to his chief of staff:

"Let the Japanese devils gain some advantage; rescuing those seriously wounded would only be a burden. Tell the Japanese they can take the bodies, but leave the guns and ammunition—they're our spoils of war!"

The Japanese negotiators returned with a satisfactory reply, and then sent dozens of men to carry the corpses, all unarmed and without any weapons.

The 645th Regiment was also discreet; not only did they not fire, they also turned a blind eye to the fact that the soldiers were taking advantage of the situation to evacuate the wounded.

The Japanese soldiers grew bolder, and the second batch of men they sent increased significantly. They collected all the corpses left on the battlefield, some of which were already rotting and infested with maggots.

Both sides were worried about triggering an epidemic. The Japanese even brought disinfection supplies and equipment, and the people collecting the corpses dressed like zombies.

The 645th Regiment was also busy, rescuing the wounded, burying the remains of their comrades, and disinfecting the battlefield.

A ceasefire would be acceptable to both sides, allowing each to get what they wanted.

Before they knew it, it got dark, and the Japanese soldiers were still burning the corpses.

As agreed by both sides, the 645th Regiment sent some personnel and mule carts to collect the spoils of war, and the Japanese did not engage in any underhanded tactics.

These are all gentlemanly agreements, and no one will break them; otherwise, they can forget about doing it again, and it would be embarrassing if word got out.

Under the guise of burning corpses, the Japanese soldiers even performed a ritual, and afterwards they would grab a handful of ashes, put them into a pottery jar, and take them back to their hometown to enshrine them.

It didn't matter whose father they were supporting; the Japanese didn't care about that.

At 2 a.m., when all was quiet, the 323rd Brigade quietly abandoned the city under the cover of night, taking all the wounded and supplies with them, leaving only an empty city for the Japanese.

Qiu the Madman turned back for one last look at the ancient capital, now stained red with blood, solemnly saluted, and silently swore an oath:

"I'll get my revenge!"