Chapter 34: Infantry Guns Flank and Annihilate the Enemy

While Zhang Yun was busy helping the recruit platoon and the militia forces re-equip, while also teaching the militia members how to handle, fire, and maintain their rifles, the soldiers of the Independent Regiment remained steadfast at their blocking position.

To say they were "steadfastly holding the position" might be a slight overstatement. In reality, the soldiers of the Independent Regiment were simply sipping horse meat soup while fiddling with their newly issued ammunition, occasionally glancing at the movements of the Japanese fortifications across the way.

Regimental Commander Kong Jie was not a timid man. Seeing that the Japanese had retreated into a defensive position and remained motionless, he ordered Shen Quan to lead a company to approach and assault the enemy. To support this, he even ordered the mortar squad to provide a barrage of covering fire.

However, the Japanese were indeed well-trained. In a very short time, they had constructed earth-and-timber anti-artillery bunkers and used one heavy machine gun and four light machine guns to suppress Shen Quan’s offensive. The Independent Regiment lost seven or eight soldiers in quick succession without being able to get close to the enemy's front lines.

Left with no choice, Kong Jie used artillery cover to pull Shen Quan and his men back.

After all, these Japanese soldiers were still elite troops. Though few in number—no more than eighty or ninety including the wounded—they possessed skilled tactics, ample ammunition, and precise marksmanship, and they were highly professional at digging earthworks. In just two hours, they had constructed anti-artillery bunkers and firing points on the hillsides and roadsides along the Ping-Liao Highway, turning their position into an airtight defense.

The battle reached a stalemate.

Kong Jie was not particularly anxious. Like Regimental Commander Li Yunlong, he was a veteran commander who had joined the army during the Huangma Uprising. Having fought north and south for over a decade, he was accustomed to the victories and sacrifices of the battlefield. Although they had suffered a minor setback, his mission was only to block enemy reinforcements and cut off their logistics.

Now that his Independent Regiment had successfully blocked the Ping-Liao Highway, completed the brigade’s mission, and managed to hold off the enemy reinforcements while securing so much captured material, Kong Jie was quite satisfied.

...

"This is a Type 92 battalion gun! Platoon Leader, where did you capture this?" shouted Wang Dachuan, the mortar squad leader who had been urgently recalled from the front lines, as he saw the scattered parts on the ground.

"Haha, a Japanese squad tried to infiltrate our lines, but we ambushed and wiped them out, so we just happened to capture this piece," Zhang Yun said with a smile. "Take a look, can you assemble it? Do you know how to fire it?"

"Of course I know how to use it! The three of us learned this gun back in the Northeast. It has a low profile and limited range, but the shells are devastatingly powerful. Platoon Leader, this is the Japanese 'battalion artillery'; it’s rare to capture these in the country right now. By the way, how much ammunition do we have?"

"Enough for you to use," Zhang Yun declared boldly. "As long as you’re with me, you don’t need to worry about ammunition."

"Platoon Leader, you said it yourself! Just watch me," Wang Dachuan said. He personally stepped forward and, along with the other soldiers, carefully began the assembly.

Before long, the low-profile gun was fully assembled. Wang Dachuan skillfully operated the controls, adjusted the muzzle, and opened the breech to inspect it carefully. Satisfied, he stood up.

"Report, Platoon Leader! The battalion gun is ready to fire at any time. Awaiting your orders!"

"Good work, Dachuan." Zhang Yun patted Wang Dachuan on the shoulder, then pulled him over to a rock, pointing toward a slope about two kilometers away. "Dachuan, what do you think of that spot? Can you hit the Japanese position from there?"

Wang Dachuan looked through his binoculars at the location Zhang Yun pointed out—a hill on the northeast side of the Japanese position, roughly two kilometers away.

"No problem. This gun has a range of 2,800 meters, and since we’ll be firing from a higher elevation, hitting a target at 3 kilometers will be no issue at all."

Hearing this, Zhang Yun immediately ordered: "Good. Dachuan, pick your men from the artillery squad and set up a firing position there. I’ll have the second squad leader, Old Hu, send infantry to protect you, and I’ll arrange for the transport team to bring 100 shells. Watch for my signal flare. As soon as it goes up, use precision fire to destroy their bunkers and heavy machine gun nests. Afterward, I’ll have the mortars bombard their position continuously, and our infantry will charge in. We’ll wipe this bunch of Japanese out once and for all."

Upon hearing he was to fight the Japanese, Wang Dachuan was overjoyed. "Platoon Leader, just watch us! This Type 92 will have no trouble with their bunkers. They’re just earth and wood; they won’t withstand 3.8-kilogram shells. Plus, firing from the flank will really give those devils a headache."

Zhang Yun smiled and urged Wang Dachuan to select his men and depart. The Japanese still didn't know that the recruit platoon had captured one of their Type 92 battalion guns; otherwise, they would have retreated to the county seat already. Simple bunkers could not withstand such artillery.

He guessed the Japanese had been waiting for their infiltrating squad to reach the hills east of the Independent Regiment to use a battalion gun to suppress the 82mm mortars. But now the tables had turned; it was the recruit platoon's turn to use that same type of weapon to shell the Japanese.

Watching Wang Dachuan and his artillery crew drag the gun away, followed by over 50 infantrymen from the 1st and 2nd squads and 30 militia members carefully carrying shells, Zhang Yun led the rest of his platoon toward the Independent Regiment’s blocking position.

Seeing Zhang Yun arrive with so many men, Kong Jie and Shen Quan met them with surprise.

"Platoon Leader Zhang, you’ve brought so many men—are we launching a full-scale assault on the Japanese position?"

Zhang Yun didn't mince words and told the Regimental Commander his plan. Kong Jie exclaimed in astonishment: "You captured another Type 92 battalion gun? My god, are you a lucky star reincarnated? How do you manage to capture such good things wherever you go?"

Zhang Yun sighed, his face darkening. "We are proletarian soldiers; we don't believe in feudal superstition. It was my brilliant strategy that calculated the enemy would deliver a small piece of artillery right into my hands."

Shen Quan looked at them with envy, while the recruit platoon's deputy leader and two squad leaders stood by with their hands on their hips, smiling silently.

*That year, with my hands in my pockets, I didn't know what an opponent was!*
*Follow the Platoon Leader, and loot will be everywhere!*

Zhang Yun calculated the time it would take for Wang Dachuan and his team to get into position, then stopped joking and laid out his attack plan.

"Regimental Commander Kong, I’ll use the battalion gun to take out their bunkers and heavy machine guns first, then use mortars to shell them relentlessly. After that, I’ll use six light machine guns for cover, led by six other light machine guns and over 20 Mauser rapid-fire pistols to spearhead the charge. My recruits will move in to finish the fight with superior firepower. Your men have been blocking them for a long time; you can take a breather in the back."

Kong Jie would never agree to such an arrangement. He tapped his pipe and said: "How can that be? We fought the Japanese earlier and lost seven or eight men; the soldiers are boiling with rage. How can we just sit back and watch you charge? We’re going too. As for the battlefield spoils, we’ll split them fifty-fifty. That’s fair, right?"

Zhang Yun was left speechless. These "Iron Triangle" brothers from the *Sword* (Liang Jian) were truly meticulous when it came to accounting. Whoever said Kong Jie was honest—he only appeared that way because he couldn't get the better of Li Yunlong. But when it came to taking advantage of him, Kong was not hesitant at all.

"My dear Regimental Commander Kong, I’m the one providing the heavy gun and the shells. How can we split it fifty-fifty? How about this: you give me all the mountain gun shells you’ve captured previously, and all the spoils from this battle go to you. How does that sound?"

Kong Jie asked curiously: "What do you want mountain gun shells for? We don't have any guns that can use them."

"Oh, I think I’ll have a mountain gun in a few days, so I’m just preparing in advance. After all, I have a transport team now."

Kong Jie was momentarily choked, his face darkening slightly. "Fine, it’s a deal! We were worrying about how to transport those shells anyway."

A while later, Wang Dachuan’s battalion gun was in position and ready to fire.

Zhang Yun and Kong Jie observed the Japanese position from the command post’s lookout. Seeing the artillery was ready and dusk falling, Zhang Yun didn't delay and ordered the signalman to fire a green flare into the sky.

On the hillside, Wang Dachuan had already adjusted the gun to aim at the Japanese bunkers. Seeing the flare, he shouted: "Ammunition ready! High-explosive shell, load, fire!"

The artilleryman pulled the lanyard. With a "thud," the 3.8-kilogram projectile flew straight toward the Japanese position, exploding directly on their bunker. Not long after, a second shell landed accurately on the heavy machine gun nest, sending the gun and several gunners flying.

The Japanese fell into chaos. Although they quickly identified the artillery position, there was nothing they could do about it.

Some Japanese infantrymen rushed toward the hill, but the mortar squad was ready. A dozen shells landed right among the Japanese who had left their bunkers. The attacking force was decimated by the dense barrage.

Wang Dachuan continued to fire the battalion gun with steady rhythm, systematically shattering the enemy's bunkers while the mortars poured fire onto the Japanese position, causing heavy casualties.

Suddenly, the bugle for the charge sounded. Nearly 500 soldiers from the Independent Regiment and the recruit platoon charged the Japanese position, covered by the dense fire of eight light machine guns from the rear.

Under the flank artillery fire and dozens of mortar shells, the Japanese could not mount an effective resistance, and their line was broken quickly. A few tried to flee to the rear but were cut down by the soldiers who had already breached the perimeter. The nearly 90 Japanese soldiers were easily annihilated by the recruit platoon and the Independent Regiment on the Ping-Liao Highway.

As the sunset bled across the sky, amidst the smoke, dust, blood, and broken limbs, the soldiers cheered and leaped for joy, celebrating their hard-won victory!