gnovel Chapter 64: Repelling the Japanese Army and Supporting the 88th Division's Position
Chapter 64: Repelling the Japanese Army and Supporting the 88th Division's Position
That was enough. Both Suematsu Shigeharu and Isoda Saburo believed that once they entered close combat, it would be the domain of their Imperial Japanese Army.
The Chinese soldiers on the other side were generally thin and weak, lacked bayonet fighting skills and experience, and were also severely lacking in strength.
Even if someone is taller, they are often at a disadvantage in close combat.
Moreover, they believed that with the support of the Bushido spirit, their soldiers would be fearless in the face of death.
Two companies of Japanese soldiers swarmed onto the flank positions like a swarm of bees.
Li Jianghe held a telescope and stared at the Japanese troops through the observation hole.
"Have the bombs been planted?"
"It's buried."
As Long Wenzhang said this, he patted the detonator next to him. As long as he pressed the detonation rod, all the Japanese soldiers on the outer perimeter of the position would be blown into the air.
"Detonate."
Li Jianghe gave the order.
"Okay!"
After saying that, Long Wenzhang slapped him down.
"boom!!!!"
A deafening roar came in an instant, as if it would tear people's eardrums and shatter their internal organs.
On the outer perimeter, the Japanese soldiers waving the Rising Sun flag and shouting "Banzai!" were lifted into the air by more than two thousand kilograms of high explosives planted by the engineering corps before they could even shout a few words.
Hundreds of bombs exploded one after another, and the resulting violent shockwaves, like sharp blades, tore apart the bodies of the Japanese soldiers who were closer and sent those who were farther away flying.
In an instant, the entire position was reduced to shattered flesh and blood, and corpses that flew into the air and fell to the ground along with the scorched earth.
Shigeharu Suematsu, who was originally full of confidence and thought he could take the outer positions and continue to attack the Yuhuatai rear positions, stood there stunned when he heard the explosion, his fingers holding the binoculars trembling slightly.
Saburo Isoda opened his mouth wide and finally swallowed.
He hadn't expected that the enemy had planted so many explosives on the position before they left.
These explosives must weigh at least a thousand pounds. Where did the enemy get so much from?
So much explosives cost Li Jianghe a lot of merit points, but it was well spent.
The instant the explosion ended, Li Jianghe was the first to jump out of his position, roaring out:
"Brothers, kill!!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Ruifu, Lin Yongzhi's First and Second Battalions, and Xu Dingguo's Fifth Regiment of the Guangxi Army all jumped out of their positions and charged towards the remaining Japanese troops.
Thousands of soldiers charged out and rushed into the outer perimeter of the position in the blink of an eye.
The Japanese army had already lost one-third of its troops in the explosion, and the remaining two-thirds were still recovering from the shock.
Even before the smoke of battle had dissipated, shouts of battle could be heard.
The next moment, countless grenades rained down on them like hail.
"Boom!!!!!"
After the grenade explosions ended, all the Nationalist soldiers charged straight in.
The Japanese soldiers had just gotten up from the ground when their bayonets pierced their chests.
"Pfft!!!!"
The ruptured heart spurted blood the moment the bayonet was pulled out, splattering it onto Yang Ruifu's face.
His face was contorted with rage as he continued forward, bayonet in hand.
Seeing this scene from not far away, Lin Yongzhi thought to himself, "This Battalion Commander Yang looks so refined, but he's like a demon in close combat."
With the commander leading the way, the soldiers naturally dared not lag behind.
Submachine guns, bayonets, and even broadswords were all used against the Japanese troops at this moment.
"Pfft!!!"
"Da da da!!!"
Gunshots, the sound of bayonets piercing bodies, screams, and roars mingled together.
The Japanese army did not retreat. These elite Japanese troops possessed extremely high discipline and a passion for hand-to-hand combat.
"Seven lives for the country!!!! Long live the Emperor!!!"
The Japanese commander, brandishing his lieutenant's sword, led the charge forward.
The Japanese soldiers, also carrying Type 38 rifles, charged forward and fought fiercely with the Nationalist troops who were like tigers descending the mountain.
Seeing the soldiers on both sides locked in fierce combat on the flank, Suematsu Shigeharu immediately roared in anger:
"Reserve force! Send the reserves to the front! As long as we can hold them off in close combat, these enemies are no match for us!"
"Hai!! Reserves, attack!!!"
At Saburo Isoda's roar, the Japanese reserve troops charged toward the flank positions like a pack of wolves.
Li Jianghe picked up his binoculars and saw the Japanese reserve force charging towards them.
"Pillar, fire! Don't let a single Japanese soldier get close!!!"
Behind them, on the artillery positions, 26 cannons were positioned in perfect unison, and they began to bombard the Japanese reserve force.
"BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!"
The continuous barrage of shells quickly blocked the Japanese support routes, preventing them from advancing.
However, the number of Japanese troops on the flanks was decreasing at a visible rate.
The Nationalist army was so enraged that they had completely forgotten what death meant.
White blades go in, red blades come out, or so the Japanese army did.
But they still charged forward, either pulling the pins on grenades to die alongside the Japanese soldiers, or dragging their intestines down and tearing at the enemy's throats with their teeth.
They turned their teeth and fingers into weapons, using them to bite and scratch, ending the lives of their enemies with the most primitive means.
More than ten minutes later, the last Japanese soldier was also stabbed through the chest, the Rising Sun flag fell in the wind, and cheers from the Chinese army rang out on the battlefield.
Seeing this, Li Jianghe knew that the flank position had finally been held.
Before he could even catch his breath, he heard a voice coming from behind him.
Han Xianyuan, his face covered in blood, ran over and said in a nearly hoarse voice:
"Commander Li, we can't hold on much longer!!! Requesting reinforcements!!!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jianghe glanced at Long Wenzhang and said:
"Bring the guard battalion and come with me!"
After saying that, he decisively led the guard battalion and charged toward the 262nd Brigade's position.
Compared to Li Jianghe's well-equipped forces, the 262nd Brigade at Yuhuatai only had a little over two thousand men, and had suffered considerable losses in previous battles.
Although Li Jianghe later reinforced his troops, the Japanese artillery bombardment had caused them heavy losses, nearly a quarter of their forces were wiped out.
The Japanese army has now completely occupied the outer positions and is advancing towards the positions on the top of the hill.
The two sides fought fiercely on the battlefield.
Zhu Chi held a large sword in his hand and led his brigade in a fierce battle with the Japanese army.
That broadsword had cut off countless Japanese soldiers' heads, and its blade was dulled in the fighting, yet it still managed to knock a charging Japanese soldier to the ground.
"Pfft!!!!"
That was the sound of a blade cutting through a human body.
Hua Pinzhang was not far from him, holding a Type 24 rifle with a bayonet attached, cursing as he took down a Japanese soldier.
"You son of a bitch, I'm your ancestor in a melee!!"
At that moment, three Japanese soldiers charged at Zhu Chi simultaneously.
Upon seeing this, Zhu Chi raised his broadsword high once more.
But then he realized that the bayonets were coming from three directions at the same time, making it difficult to parry or dodge.
"kill!!!!"
Zhu Chi did not back down. This man, who could fight even with his intestines spilling out, swung his broadsword and charged forward bravely.
Even if it means death, he will press forward! He will die on the front lines!