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

Chen Zhaohan had just stabbed another Japanese lieutenant to death with his bayonet when he heard the sound of artillery shells piercing the air. He only had time to roll into the trench before more than a dozen shells rained down from the sky, instantly killing dozens of people, including Guangxi soldiers and Japanese soldiers.

The ruthless Japanese launched a suicidal artillery barrage, with more than a dozen regimental guns relentlessly raining down shells on the 1034th Regiment's positions, inflicting heavy casualties on the defenders.

But they did not back down; they continued to fight the Japanese under heavy fire until they perished together.

The number of Japanese soldiers on the position was decreasing, and the defending troops were almost wiped out, but the bright blue sky and red flags still stubbornly flew high, and the position remained as long as the soldiers were there!

After the shelling ended, all the Japanese soldiers on the position were dead. Chen Zhaohan shook his head, shook off the loose dirt, and struggled to his feet.

He was temporarily deaf and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"Anyone still breathing, give me a shout!"

More and more people got up from the battlefield. Having just escaped death, their eyes were almost devoid of life.

Someone shouted:

"The Japanese devils are coming up again!"

The soldiers, who had been in a daze, were instantly filled with fighting spirit and threw themselves back into the bloody battle.

Li Yu'an, commander of the 1033rd Regiment, from the headquarters of the 517th Brigade, came to volunteer for battle:

"Deputy Division Commander, let me lead the men to replace Regiment Commander Chen and his men, so we can leave some seeds for the 1034th Regiment!"

Zhou Yuan, deputy commander of the 173rd Division and commander of the 517th Brigade, showed a fleeting hint of reluctance in his eyes, then hardened his heart and said:

"This is a national war, why are you keeping seeds?!"

"Send a battalion from your regiment as reinforcements; you must hold out until nightfall."

Tell Chen Zhaohan to hold out until nightfall and relieve them!

Li Yu'an excitedly accepted the order and left. The deputy division commander still cared about his brothers. With a battalion of reinforcements, Old Chen could hold out until dark.

On the 1034th Regiment's position, Chen Zhaohan led his soldiers in another desperate fight against the Japanese. Just when he thought he was about to die on the position, a deafening battle cry came from behind him.

Chen Zhaohan's tiger-like eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he shouted excitedly:

"Brothers, reinforcements have arrived! Kill the Japanese devils!"

Two days later, the 21st Group Army Command

Chief of Staff Wang Zanbing came to report:

"Commander, the 173rd Division has repelled the Japanese attack for the seventh time, but most of its officers and soldiers have been killed or wounded, and three trenches have been lost. Commander He requests reinforcements."

Liao Lei did not rush to express his opinion, but instead turned to Zhao Yunwen and asked:

"General Zhao, what do you think?"

Zhao Yunwen pulled his gaze away from the map and said in a deep voice:

"Since most of the trenches have been leveled, let's just have the 173rd Division abandon the forward positions and retreat to the main positions."

Chief of Staff Wang Zanbing interjected:

"If that's the case, the defensive depth will be greatly shortened, and won't that leave us with no room to maneuver?"

All eyes turned to Zhao Yunwen; clearly, the question raised by Wang Zanbing was exactly what everyone was worried about.

Zhao Yunwen said, referring to the map:

"Commendations, there has never been an impregnable fortress since ancient times. Simply defending is not enough; we must have appropriate counterattacks."

This open area between the main position and the front line is easy to attack but difficult to obtain. Since the Japanese want it, let's give it to them!

We clench our fists to generate more power and deliver a powerful punch.

Withdraw the 173rd Division and have the fresh 171st Division continue to wear down the 9th Division's strength and morale on the main position for another two days.

Two days later, a counterattack was launched, with the 176th Division taking the lead, and the 173rd Division and the Security Regiment cooperating in the operation, to give the 9th Division a heavy blow. The specific battle plan was...

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Liao Lei couldn't help but exclaim in praise:

"General Zhao has quite a few clever ideas in his head. The key to this battle lies in whether the Security Corps can make a proper infiltration and outflank the Japanese to attack their division headquarters."

As long as the Japanese are thrown into disarray, the 176th, 171st, and 173rd Divisions are confident that they can defeat the main force of the 9th Division.

Are you sure you can do that?

Zhao Yunwen pointed to the map and said:

"The headquarters of the Ninth Division was located in Mengjiazhai, directly east of Dachang. This place was once the headquarters of the Eighth Army and had relatively complete fortifications. It was less than five kilometers away from Dachang."

The security force is a small target, and it shouldn't be a problem to infiltrate under the cover of night. I will personally lead the team to complete this mission.

This counterattack must not only crush the 9th Division, but also seize the opportunity to destroy its heavy artillery positions and break the fangs of the Japanese devils!

The 9th Division's artillery group posed a significant threat to the 21st Army. Most of the 173rd Division's casualties were due to artillery fire. When Liao Lei heard Zhao Yunwen's plan to destroy the Japanese artillery group, he said with anticipation:

"It would be best if we could seize some of it; I'll still pay you to buy it all at a 30% discount."

Zhao Yunwen smiled happily. He was heading straight for the Japanese artillery positions. The 9th Artillery Regiment alone had 48 75mm mountain guns, and the Heavy Artillery Regiment had 16 105/150mm heavy guns.

Once the Japanese are defeated, these cannons will belong to the Security Regiment. His time capsule is large enough to hold all these cannons, and he can leave a dozen or so for the 21st Army Group.

Thinking of him, he readily agreed:

"Don't worry, Commander, I will capture as many spoils as possible and won't let the ocean go to waste."

Everyone burst into laughter after hearing this. After all, the Security Corps was a guest force; if they were to risk their lives for someone, they had to give them some benefits.

Besides, it was traded for cannons, so no one had any objections. The Guangxi clique wasn't short of money—they were short of cannons.

Before the Japanese launched a new offensive, the 173rd Division voluntarily abandoned its forward positions.

When they went up, there were more than 7000 men, but when they retreated, only 4 remained, and everyone was wounded. More than 3 died in battle.

The Japanese didn't gain any advantage either. The 35th Infantry Regiment, which was the main attacking force, suffered nearly 2,000 casualties, including dead and seriously wounded. The 7th Regiment suffered 1,000 casualties. The ratio of enemy to friendly casualties was at most 1:1.5, which was quite remarkable.

The 35th Regiment had been replenished twice. Seeing that the defending troops had finally retreated, Toshio Muraji ordered the main force to occupy the forward positions.

He then reported his victory to Yoshika Ryosuke, claiming that he had eliminated more than 1 defenders and suffered 800 casualties himself. He said he was advancing towards the main position of Ōba and would take Ōba within three days.

Toshio Muraji has become noticeably more low-key, no longer boasting about conquering Oba in a single day.

At the same time, the 11th Division launched a fierce attack on the Yunzaobang defense line. The 174th Division, which retreated to the south bank, calmly fought back and blocked the Japanese troops north of Yunzaobang.

The 11th Division only provided support and did not exert its full strength, while the 9th Division made a breakthrough on the Eastern Front.

The 35th Infantry Regiment then launched a fierce attack on the main position at Dachang, while the 19th Infantry Regiment attacked the right flank of the Hunan Army's defense. Only the 7th Regiment, which had been decimated, remained near the 9th Division headquarters, with only a little over 2,000 men after reinforcements.

The 171st Division of the 7th Army was a fresh force with formidable combat power. Under the command of Major General Yang Junchang, the division commander, they calmly fought back and used the pre-built earth and wood fortifications to fight the Japanese to the death along the Hulizhai-Gejiapailou line.

The two-day battle saw numerous close-quarters and bayonet charges, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides.

Muraji Toshio was finding it difficult to hold on and requested tactical guidance from the division headquarters.

Yoshika Ryosuke transferred over a thousand men from the supply regiment and the engineer regiment to supplement the 35th Regiment.

This replenishment essentially drained the surplus forces of the 9th Division. The 9th Supply Regiment, with 3,000 men, was now an empty shell, the Engineer Regiment had only 500 men left, and with the addition of the 9th Cavalry Regiment, the force protecting the division headquarters was less than 4,000.

The perfect opportunity to strike back has arrived!

On the left flank of the main force, Zhao Yunwen led 4 soldiers of the Security Corps, who had been resting for several days, and disappeared into the night...