Siheyuan (traditional courtyard house): Starting with the Korean War, returning home to take charge

After days of sniping and artillery fire, the American soldiers on the opposite side finally learned their lesson. During the day, they remained huddled in their fortifications, even jogging with their backs bent as they carried supplies. But these piecemeal victories were nothing compared to the increasingly intense daily struggles within the Shangganling tunnels. Having suffered losses during the day, the enemy unleashed their fury at night, with undiminished artillery bombardment and probing attacks. The pressure on the tunnels remained heavy enough to bend their spines.

He Yuzhu stopped trying to squeeze into the crevice at the forefront. It wasn't out of fear; Old Geng and Political Commissar Zhao nearly knelt before him—"Commander, if you keep pushing yourself like this, what will happen to the thousands of men in the regiment if something goes wrong?" He had to admit they were right. The sniper squad was already operational, and he had to shift his focus back to the overall situation. But the restlessness and helplessness in his heart, like weeds that couldn't be extinguished, grew wildly and relentlessly.

That afternoon, the division headquarters phone rang unusually clearly. The communications staff officer's voice was laced with excitement: "Regimental Commander He! Good news! Reinforced artillery has arrived—it's the 'Katyusha' rocket artillery regiment! There may be operations tonight. Your regiment's mission: provide forward observation and assessment of the artillery's effectiveness! Listen carefully, at all costs, keep your eyes right under the enemy's nose!"

"Katyusha?" He Yuzhu was taken aback. He had heard of this name when he was studying in the rear. It was a Soviet-made rocket launcher, whose salvo was like a storm of steel, with terrifying power. But it was also precious; after firing, it had to be moved immediately, otherwise it would become a sitting duck for enemy heavy artillery.

"Understood!" He suppressed the shock in his heart, "Immediately send up the most capable people."

Wu Dayong was summoned quickly. His arm injury had mostly healed, he had lost weight, but the fierceness in his eyes was even more intense.

"Select the soldiers under your command who have the sharpest eyes, the fastest legs, and the toughest lives. Three groups, two men each." He Yuzhu marked several concealed observation points near the enemy's front line on the map. "The mission is singular: keep a close watch on the enemy's positions, focusing on troop assembly areas, ammunition depots, and temporary command posts. As soon as the 'Katyusha' fires, I want you to see the impact point immediately, assess the damage, and then retreat like ghosts. Remember, you're here to watch the 'fireworks'—seeing the 'fireworks' explode only completes half the mission; the other half is bringing the message back alive."

Wu Dayong licked his chapped lips and nodded: "Don't worry, I'll personally lead the first group."

He Yuzhu stared at him for two seconds, then finally patted him on the shoulder: "Come back alive."

Night is the best cover, but also the most dangerous. Wu Dayong, with six reconnaissance soldiers, disappeared into the darkness like a drop of water into the sea. He Yuzhu stayed at the regimental command post, talking to the radio and the intermittent telephone, feeling that time was as thick and heavy as clotted blood, flowing extremely slowly and heavily.

In the dead of night, around two or three in the morning, when people are at their most drowsy, without any prior warning, even the usual test firing was skipped, suddenly, from the far rear of the battle line, came a series of muffled rumbling sounds—not like the shrill whistles of heavy artillery, but more like the simultaneous growls of countless steel behemoths.

Immediately afterwards, the night sky was torn to shreds.

Not just scattered streaks of light, but dozens, even hundreds, of meteors trailing orange-red flames, hurtling towards the enemy lines in low arcs with mournful shrieks. The sight was both magnificent and terrifying, sending chills down one's spine. In the blink of an eye, the opposite hillside and the valley behind were completely engulfed by continuous bursts of flame! Firelight soared into the sky, and the tremors were as intense as if the earth were being turned upside down, as if the entire land was being torn apart by an invisible giant hand!

"Good heavens..." In the command post, a young communications soldier stared blankly at the boiling inferno outside the observation hole, not even noticing the pencil slipping from his fingers.

He Yuzhu was also deeply shaken. This was "Katyusha"? This power... it was simply beyond human comprehension. He could almost see the hellish scene beneath the sea of ​​fire.

The radio crackled with the shouts of Wu Dayong and others, intermittently mixed with the roar of explosions:

"Hit! Target area fully covered!"

"The enemy's assembly point...it's finished! It's all been destroyed!"

"Ammunition pile detonates! Chain reaction explosion!..."

His voice held a mixture of excitement and fear—the sheer scale of the destruction, even from their own side, inspired a primal sense of awe.

The volley lasted only a dozen seconds. But in that brief moment, the enemy lines were as if they had been ruthlessly plowed by a giant plow, and the flames and thick smoke lingered for a long time.

"Observation team! Evacuate immediately! Follow the pre-arranged route, quick!" He Yuzhu roared into the radio. He knew that retaliation was imminent and would be ruthless.

Sure enough, less than five minutes later, the fierce whistling sound returned from the direction of Shangganling and crashed into the area where the "Katyusha" had been launched earlier. The enemy was hurt and went berserk.

He Yuzhu had just caught his breath, thinking Wu Dayong and his men could take advantage of the chaos to retreat, when another urgent call came in. The division headquarters transferred him directly, their tone urgent: "Regimental Commander He! The 'Katyusha' relocation route has been partially damaged by retaliatory artillery fire, and some vehicles are trapped! Your unit is closest; immediately organize forces to clear the route at all costs and cover the evacuation! Repeat, at all costs!"

"Understood!" He slammed down the microphone, turned, and roared, "Sapper Company! Assemble! Bring all your tools, explosives are fine! Guard Platoon, follow me!"

The engineering company commander, surnamed Lei, was a man from Northeast China. He and He Yuzhu had known each other since they were apprentices at the steel mill, and later joined the army together, becoming old comrades-in-arms. Without saying a word, he spat out a mouthful of saliva, ordered his men to carry pickaxes, shovels, and several packets of small explosives for clearing the way, and followed He Yuzhu out of the command post.

The road, nestled in a mountain valley several miles away, was originally a barely passable dirt road, but now it was riddled with potholes and wrecked by retaliatory artillery fire. A section of the roadbed, four or five meters long, had completely collapsed, with a large, blown-down tree lying beside it. Several Katyusha tractors and ammunition trucks were stuck in the middle, the drivers jumping up and down in frustration, while artillery vehicles continued to surge in from behind, their horns blaring incessantly. To make matters worse, enemy calibration shells had begun falling towards the area; though still not precise, they were clearly being tested, and the next wave of bombardment could arrive at any moment.

"Old Lei! You take some men to clear the landslide and fill the pit! I'll take some men to move that tree! Hurry!" He Yuzhu roared, snatched an entrenching axe from the guard, and lunged at the tree trunk that was blocking the road.

Company Commander Lei responded like a thunderclap: "First and second platoons, follow me and fill the holes! Third platoon, help the regimental commander!"

Everyone worked like madmen. The sounds of picks and shovels scraping against each other, the dull thud of axes cutting into wood, and the whistling and explosions of approaching shells mingled together in the valley. Dirt and gravel flew everywhere, and everyone's face and body were quickly covered in mud and sweat.

He Yuzhu swung his axe wildly, hacking at the tree trunk, sawdust flying everywhere, his hands trembling from the impact. Only one thought occupied his mind: Faster! Faster! These "Katyusha" slugs were the hardest fists right now; they couldn't be allowed to fall here!

"Commander! Watch out!" A guard beside him lunged forward and shoved him aside. Almost simultaneously, a shell exploded nearby, the blast wave carrying mud and rocks crashing down on him. He Yuzhu's ears rang, and his vision went black.

He scrambled to his feet, shaking his head, and saw that the guard's arm had been cut open by shrapnel, and blood was flowing freely. Before he could even check, his eyes darted around—Company Commander Lei was still there, brandishing a shovel and cursing, urging his men on. He felt a little relieved.

But the next instant, an exceptionally sharp whistling sound came from afar and grew closer!

"Fire! Take cover—!" The roar exploded.

He Yuzhu instinctively threw himself to the ground. A massive explosion erupted twenty meters away from the section of road under repair, the ground trembled violently, and scorching blasts and deadly shrapnel swept across the area.

After the explosions subsided, he looked up, shook off the loose dirt, and frantically searched for Company Commander Lei. Then, his gaze froze.

Company Commander Lei lay motionless beside the half-filled crater, half-buried by the collapsed earth, still clutching the shovel tightly in his hand.

"Old Lei—!" He Yuzhu screamed and rushed over, desperately digging through the mud with his hands. Lei's face was revealed, ashen and gray, his eyes still open but lifeless, his chest a bloody mess, only a trace of unfinished curses lingering at the corner of his mouth.

He Yuzhu's hand froze in mid-air. His blood seemed to freeze instantly, then surged to the top of his head. He knelt there, staring at that familiar face, all sounds fading into silence, leaving only the frantic pounding of his heart in his chest, hollow and heavy.

"Company Commander!" "Old Lei!" Several engineering company soldiers cried out and surrounded him.

He Yuzhu suddenly woke up, taking a deep breath of the air filled with the smell of gunpowder and blood. He reached out and gently closed the eyes of Company Commander Lei, who was unable to close them, and slowly stood up, his facial muscles taut like rocks.

"Keep repairs going!" The voice was hoarse and unfamiliar. "Clear the road! Quickly!"

The remaining engineers and guards, their eyes bloodshot, pounced on the unfinished work like mad beasts. Perhaps it was Old Lei's spirit watching, or perhaps it was their survival instinct kicking in, but before the next wave of more precise enemy coverage could fall, they managed to level the collapsed roadbed and push the obstructing giant tree to the side of the road with incredible speed.

The Katyusha convoy roared as one vehicle after another bumped and jolted across the deadly intersection, retreating to the safer rear.

He Yuzhu stood by the roadside, watching the taillights of the last car disappear into the darkness. He turned and walked back to the body of Company Commander Lei, slowly squatted down, and gently took the shovel covered in mud and blood from the tightly clenched hand.

Wu Dayong and the others had retreated sometime earlier and stood silently watching from a distance. No one spoke; only the howling wind over the scorched hills and the sporadic distant artillery fire tore at the heavy night.

[Successfully completed key artillery fire guidance and emergency road repair missions, ensuring the safe transfer of vital support firepower.]

[Guiding a salvo from Katyusha rockets, causing heavy casualties to the enemy (assist).]

[Gain Battle Points: +100,000 (assists counted, dynamic efficiency bonus).]

Battlefield Points: 7,038,398 + 100,000 = 7,138,398 points.

The score jumped to over 7.13 million. He Yuzhu gripped the cold shovel handle tightly, feeling no joy whatsoever. Only the stinging pain from the rough wood rubbing against his palms, and the hollow pain in his heart as if a piece of flesh had been forcibly ripped out, were real and sharp.

The roar of war shook the heavens and the earth, and its price was always to fall silently beside some nameless bomb crater, still holding unfinished work in their hands.