Chapter 29: Firepower Assault on the Transport Convoy

While the Independent Regiment moved toward the blocking position to the south, the soldiers of the Recruit Platoon immediately occupied the ambush points selected by Zhang Yun. These positions had already been reinforced by the Independent Regiment's soldiers; they not only offered excellent concealment but also provided an ample number of firing points for light machine guns.

The Independent Regiment possessed only two machine guns, yet they had prepared over a dozen firing positions. Each machine gun was assigned several mobile firing points—a strategy born from bloody lessons and hard-earned experience.

Previously, the Eighth Route Army lacked the heavy firepower to suppress the enemy, possessing only a handful of heavy machine guns and a small number of light machine guns. In such lopsided encounters, the Japanese grenade launchers served as the core of their tactical firepower. Many machine gunners were neutralized by enemy grenades after firing only a magazine or two, leading to heavy casualties.

On the battlefields of the War of Resistance, not only the Eighth Route Army but even the Central Army and various warlord factions often suffered such disastrous losses. At the Battle of Shanghai, countless light and heavy machine gun positions were destroyed by Japanese grenade launchers. Consequently, domestic light machine gunners had to learn to move their positions after firing a single burst to evade enemy grenade fire.

It is worth noting that the grenade launcher is a weapon that relies heavily on the operator's experience and intuition. In the early stages of the war, the Japanese army was filled with veterans whose grenade accuracy was lethal, giving them a significant advantage in platoon-level engagements. However, after Japan opened the Pacific theater and transferred large numbers of these veterans to the South Pacific—where they were subsequently decimated by American forces—the quality of the Japanese troops in China declined, and the grenade launcher became far less effective.

As for how the American GIs countered the Japanese grenade launchers? Initially, the GIs were also blindsided and suffered heavy losses from the precise grenade fire. However, they soon discovered the weapon's limitations: while its effective range was about 700 meters, average soldiers could only fire accurately within 400 meters. As long as they had enough light and heavy machine guns and M1 Garands, and kept the Japanese at bay, the grenade launchers could not exert their power.

Once those veteran Japanese soldiers proficient in grenade ballistics were mostly dead, the new operators lacked the same lethality.

Of course, Zhang Yun currently lacked a sufficient supply of light and heavy machine guns or M1 Garands, but he had an abundance of snipers and mortar shells. The Japanese transport convoy consisted of about 120 men, with a maximum of three grenade launcher teams. He tasked his mortars and snipers with suppressing the enemy's grenade operators, while his machine gunners provided heavy fire support and his riflemen engaged in defensive fire.

This was sufficient to achieve fire superiority over the Japanese convoy, even if it was a bit costly in terms of ammunition.

After a while, the scout up ahead waved his hand and immediately retreated.

The Japanese had arrived!

The Recruit Platoon and the local militia remained deathly silent, all hiding behind the slope of the hill. The deputy platoon leader, Liu Changqing, clutched a broom-handle Mauser, his hat adorned with grass, hiding in the brush. He lifted his head to watch the slowly approaching convoy, waiting quietly. With a single order, his soldiers would rise and open fire.

The mortar squad had set up a concealed position 400 meters behind the western ridge. Zhang Yun, accompanied by his communicator, had retreated to the side of the last remaining mortar crew, led by Wang Chengzhu. He observed the enemy closely through his binoculars. Wang Chengzhu, the legendary sharpshooter of the *Bright Sword* world, kept measuring the distance to the Japanese using the sights of his Type 80 mortar, mumbling numbers under his breath.

Everything was ready.

As the Japanese drew closer, Zhang Yun could clearly see the details through his binoculars. A hundred or so puppet soldiers marched in the front, followed by over 100 Japanese troops and several dozen more puppet soldiers escorting about 40 mule-drawn carts. There was a gap of about 50 meters between the two groups. There were no Japanese trucks to be seen; they had likely been destroyed in previous ambushes by the Eighth Route Army and guerrilla forces.

"The Japanese are sticking to their usual tricks. Zhuzi, ignore the puppet soldiers in the front for now. Once the main Japanese force enters the kill zone, fire on them immediately. Don't worry about the supplies or the mules," Zhang Yun instructed.

Wang Chengzhu nodded, "Understood, Platoon Leader," though he muttered to himself, "It’s a shame about the mules. One shell is going to wipe out a whole bunch of them."

"Haha, don't pity them. The more you pity them, the more the Japanese will use them as cover," Zhang Yun laughed. "See those Japanese soldiers in the middle with the grenade launchers? Hit them first. Mind your lead."

"Just leave it to me, Platoon Leader," Zhuzi said, brimming with confidence in his marksmanship.

He moved both hands with practiced speed, adjusting the mortar's direction and elevation. Once set, he whispered, "Shell." The second gunner quickly passed him a fused shell. Zhuzi took a deep breath, eyes fixed on the Japanese movement, and suddenly dropped the shell into the barrel.

*Thump—whoosh.* A shell was launched. Zhuzi immediately loaded a second one. *Thump—whoosh.*

The Japanese transport troops were clearly not as elite as those at the Xiyang County seat; they showed no alarm even upon hearing the whistling of the incoming shells. It was only after the first shell exploded near the main Japanese contingent, blowing a ring of soldiers to pieces, that they reacted.

"Take cover! Take cover!" the Japanese shouted while scrambling to counterattack. Some dove against the rocks and returned fire with their rifles, while others used the carts and dead mules as barricades to set up their Type 11 light machine guns. The puppet soldiers nearby were thrown into total disarray.

"Fire!" Seizing the opportunity, Liu Changqing emptied his Mauser into the Japanese ranks, 20 rounds fanning out across the enemy line. The soldiers rose, their barrels poking out from the slope as 10 light machine guns unleashed a concentrated barrage on the Japanese rear. Meanwhile, the riflemen of the Recruit Platoon focused their fire on the puppet soldiers in the front.

Under such a sudden, intense assault, the puppet soldiers fared even worse; dozens were killed or wounded instantly, and the rest were pinned to the ground, unable to lift their heads.

The ambushed Japanese troops, however, demonstrated the discipline of veteran invaders. Three Type 11 machine guns were quickly brought into action, their crews laying down suppressive fire, while the infantry returned fire with their rifles.

Unfortunately for them, their core firepower—the grenade launcher teams—had been targeted by Zhuzi’s shells, leaving those veteran operators dead on the ground.

Shells continued to rain down on the Japanese and puppet soldiers, creating massive explosions. Each blast sent hundreds of fragments tearing through bunkers and bodies alike. The shockwaves kicked up clouds of dust, and the battlefield was soon shrouded in smoke and debris.

The 10 light machine guns of the Recruit Platoon held their positions, pouring out a continuous stream of bullets, while the riflemen fired relentlessly. The Japanese and the more loyal puppet troops continued to trade fire with machine guns and rifles.

Bullets whizzed over the soldiers' heads or kicked up dirt and debris in front of their positions.

Ultimately, the Recruit Platoon possessed far more machine guns than the enemy, coupled with the advantage of the ambush terrain and artillery support. As more and more Japanese and puppet soldiers fell, the gunfire gradually subsided. Only the snipers remained vigilant, firing whenever they saw a Japanese soldier struggling to move.

Among the puppet troops in the front, a dozen men crawled on the ground with their hands raised, shouting, "Grandpa Eighth Route, have mercy! We surrender! We surrender!"

Zhang Yun returned to the front line from the mortar position. Assessing the situation, he ordered, "Squad Leader 1, take your men down to sweep the battlefield. Watch out for wounded enemies. Squad 2 and the snipers, stay back and keep watch. If any Japanese soldier moves, finish them off." The two squad leaders nodded. Dabao, the leader of Squad 1, carefully led the veterans down, while the recruits remained in their positions.

Deputy Platoon Leader Liu Changqing moved along the line to check for casualties and ammunition expenditure. Fortunately, only a few recruits were injured, and one had been killed in action.

However, the ammunition consumption left Liu stunned. In just a few minutes, the 300-man platoon had burned through over 3,300 rounds of machine gun ammunition and 1,000 rounds for their Hanyang rifles. Spent casings littered the ground everywhere. The mortar squad’s empty shell crates were piled high—they had expended 87 rounds.

Captain Wang of the Heshun County Guerrillas, who had been watching in stunned silence, finally regained his composure and volunteered to lead his team down to clear the battlefield and inventory the supplies.

With Zhang Yun’s approval, Captain Wang and over 200 militiamen rushed down. They brandished broadswords and spears, disarming the surrendering puppet soldiers and collecting rifles and machine guns from the Japanese corpses. The veterans kept their rifles trained on the bodies, wary of any wounded enemies feigning death to take a potshot.

The battlefield, just moments ago silent, became a hive of activity. Militiamen dug pits, hauled away bodies, gathered scattered weapons and ammunition, and inspected the mules and carts.

At this moment, Zhang Yun’s Loot Bonus System began refreshing its data.

Loot from this battle:
Weapons: 140 Type 13 rifles, 4 automatic Mauser pistols, 43,234 rounds of 7.92mm rifle ammunition, 234 rounds of 7.63mm pistol ammunition, 1.25 ZB vz. 26 light machine guns, 1,276 Gong-style hand grenades, 1.5 grenade launchers, 100 Type 92 infantry gun shells, 80 Type 41 75mm mountain gun shells, 48 dedicated grenade shells.
Currency: 12g gold, 0.94kg silver, 330 Japanese Yen, 234 in military scrip, 456 in Fapi.
Food: 4.34 tons of flour, 12.4 tons of meat.
Metals: 1.2kg copper, 4.8kg iron...
Building materials: None.
Other: 14.5 damaged carts, 23 bolts of cloth, 110 gas masks, 92 ammunition belts, 98 ammunition boxes, 1 pair of binoculars, 1 watch...

Zhang Yun scanned the list. In reality, there should be about 260 intact rifles, 50 to 60 damaged ones, and perhaps 80,000 to 90,000 rounds of ammunition, along with 200 Type 92 shells and 160 Type 41 shells. These supplies were likely intended as reinforcements for the front-line regiments. The fact that the shipment was so small suggested the transport unit was terrified of Eighth Route Army ambushes and had been sending small, cautious batches to minimize losses.

As for why the meat in the loot bonus outweighed the flour, Zhang Yun silently looked at the mules and horses that had been shredded by artillery fire and felt a pang of regret.

Thinking it over, the unit had just arrived in Heshun County and hadn't yet begun the main assault on the enemy's main force or the county seat, yet they had already used so much ammunition. As he calculated the usage, he mentally triggered the system, and on the carts appeared another 10,000 rounds of 7.92mm pointed ammunition, 400 rounds of 80mm mortar shells, and 200 rounds of 82mm mortar shells.

Why would the Japanese be transporting mortar shells? They likely used captured mortars themselves and needed rear supply lines to deliver the ammunition. If not, go ask the Japanese...

Everything had settled down. The militiamen and the Recruit Platoon were cleaning up the battlefield, occasionally letting out cries of surprise.

"There are so many shells and bullets here!"
"Japanese rifles!"
"Binoculars, Japanese binoculars!"
"There's a watch here—and it’s still ticking!"

The Heshun County militia had never seen a scene like this. With machine guns and artillery roaring, bullets and shells flying, they had killed so many Japanese and puppet soldiers in just a few minutes, capturing numerous carts and a massive haul of supplies.

Many were still in a daze; they had prepared themselves for a brutal melee, ready to charge down with their broadswords, spears, and hunting forks. But the Recruit Platoon’s surprise attack was faster than they could have imagined, and the abundance of captured goods was beyond their wildest dreams.

One cannot blame the militia for their lack of exposure. While the Eighth Route Army had destroyed far larger enemy transport units, the main force was poor and large in numbers; they usually finished the cleanup before the militia could even arrive, leaving the locals only to help bury the dead.

Now, seeing Japanese corpses dressed in clean uniforms, wearing watches, and still warm, was a sight the militiamen had truly never witnessed.

Squad Leader Dabao excitedly gathered the weapons. Preliminary counts showed 89 Arisaka rifles, 178 Hanyang/Chiang Kai-shek rifles, two Type 11 machine guns, over 100,000 rounds of ammunition, nearly a thousand shells, and plenty of food and mule meat. The mortar shells, in particular, delighted the soldiers.

With so much ammunition, they would have much more sustained artillery cover!

The militiamen had begun processing the dead mules. Of the 40-odd animals, only two could stand, and another two might recover from their injuries; the rest would have to be butchered for meat. Though the meat from mules killed by artillery had a bit of a gunpowder stench, no one in the country today would turn their nose up at it.

Suddenly, from the direction of the blocking position not far away, came the rumbling of mortar explosions, followed by the faint sound of intense gunfire.

The Japanese reinforcements had arrived!

"The enemy arrived too quickly. This doesn't look like a reaction to our attack on the transport unit, but rather a standard rendezvous with a Japanese unit," Zhang Yun judged silently, yet he remained unhurried.

If the Independent Regiment couldn't hold the position with the help of two mortars, then Colonel Kong should just go home and hold his babies.