under fire

boom.
A thunderclap suddenly echoed across the calm river surface.

A massive column of water lifted the patrol boat, seemingly trying to break free from the constraints of gravity and leave the river surface.

The stern of the boat was nearly a meter above the water when it suddenly crashed back into the water.

Waves several meters high surged on the nearby river surface.

The sounds of debris such as boat parts, weapons, and ammunition hitting the river surface could be heard from time to time.

The explosive charge that exploded underwater did not emit any sparks. The rear section of the more than ten-meter-long wooden patrol boat with an iron hull was directly broken in two after the explosive charge exploded, with only the outer iron plate connecting them.

After the surging waves spread out, the patrol boat slowly sank halfway into the river.

Near the explosion site, the river surface was littered with pieces of wood and severed limbs, which swayed with the dark water.

Explosive smoke and water mist filled the river surface.

"Alert! Increase alert!"

Someone, seemingly recovering from their shock, suddenly shouted in alarm.

All the gun barrels instinctively pointed at the spot on the river surface, illuminated by the searchlights of the hastily approaching gunboat, where smoke and mist filled the air.

On the large transport ship, Captain Sato was shocked by the immense power of the Eighth Route Army's underwater explosive charges.

He immediately ordered the fleet to weigh anchor and leave, and then ordered the elites to keep throwing grenades into the river.

The muffled explosion forced the three Eighth Route Army soldiers who were attacking the fleet to the surface.

Seeing the three Eighth Route Army soldiers who had been stunned by the grenade and surfaced in the water, he felt a sense of relief.

Just as he was about to send his men to bring the Eighth Route Army soldiers floating on the river over, a burst of gunfire erupted from the boat next to him.

It was his own lieutenant who led the warriors who had regained their senses to fire at the Eighth Route Army soldier who had been stunned and floated to the surface of the river.

Within the circle of the searchlight, he could see that the three Eighth Route Army soldiers were all strapped with explosives, and capturing prisoners at this point was too risky.

Sato had no idea that the three he saw were not the only ones who had been knocked unconscious by the grenade!

Many more Eighth Route Army soldiers were stunned and sank to the bottom of the water, sacrificing their lives.
So what he saw was that those despicable Eighth Route Army guerrillas carried out a surprise attack by throwing explosives at the boats, but only managed to destroy one iron-hulled patrol boat.

For a large transport fleet, the losses are still within an acceptable range.

Gunfire grew closer in the open area east of the canal.

The Eighth Route Army is launching a frenzied attack.

The Japanese major, who had been abruptly awakened from his sleep, stood on the gunboat, observing through binoculars while listening to his subordinates' reports.

They roughly figured out what happened on the canal while he was sleeping.

The fleet of ships that had set sail continued to drift northward with the current.

What puzzled him was that the main force of the Eighth Route Army had already been transferred westward, and the remaining guerrilla forces knew they could not possibly be a match for the Imperial Army, so where did they get the courage to come and die one after another?

A small wooden boat carried Captain Ito aboard the gunboat: "Major! The Eighth Route Army should be with the traffic sabotage squad..."

After listening to the report, the major frowned. At his level, he knew much more.

The reason why the imperial army could run rampant on this land was not entirely because the imperial army was truly invincible, but because the Chinese people were not united.

The Nationalist army was not scary; they were just chickens and dogs. On the contrary, the guerrilla tactics of the steadfast Eighth Route Army were very troublesome.

To use a Western proverb, it's the story of a lion fighting a mosquito.

No, the Eighth Route Army can't fly. It should be called a battle between lions and mice!
On the battlefield, these rats usually burrowed into the ground, and the Imperial Army had no way to deal with them.

However, this large-scale reopening of canal shipping is crucial for the transshipment of the empire's strategic materials.

When chickens, dogs, and rats team up, they will certainly stop at nothing to carry out their destruction to the very end.

Therefore, the Imperial Army must teach them a great lesson!

Therefore, the major decided to inflict a bloody blow on them!
Immediately send a telegram to the North China Command requesting that nearby troops be dispatched as reinforcements.
He did not intend to leave overnight.

He believed that the Eighteen Autumns Extermination Plan implemented by the headquarters should have already eliminated most of the Eighth Route Army.

The recent large-scale sweep along the canal and the relocation plan have even replaced the villages along the canal with relocated good citizens.

After daybreak, with the help of aircraft in the sky, we will continue our journey for another day and enter the no-man's land after the successful execution of the Eighteen Autumn Extinction Plan.

When they had finished their whispered questioning and exchange with the captain...

The commander of the puppet army stationed on the east bank of the canal contacted a small wooden boat to come to the gunboat.

Two Japanese soldiers dragged the puppet soldier who had come to request reinforcements onto the boat. The man looked at the Japanese major, his legs trembling, and mustered his courage: "Sir, a large number of Eighth Route Army soldiers have appeared to the east. The battalion commander requests reinforcements from the Imperial Army."

He originally thought that the Japanese would refuse his request for help.

However, the major agreed immediately without even thinking about it.

This made the puppet troops who came to ask for help suddenly feel
The Japanese soldiers didn't seem that difficult to communicate with.

The major knew very well that without the puppet troops fighting on the shore, it would be impossible to survive.

The elite Imperial Army soldiers on the boats on the river would inevitably become easy targets for those hyena-like Eighth Route Army guerrillas.

Therefore, he had to send reinforcements. Even the artillery observers on the gunboats went ashore with the reinforcements.

The major realized that they were being attacked from both the east and the west, and that the Eighth Route Army in the east had already approached the canal embankment.

The attack on the transport fleet by the Eighth Route Army was not unexpected.

He immediately ordered the gunboats to provide fire support to the puppet troops on the east bank.

Immediately, the major issued a third order: all ships were to drop anchor.

The Imperial Army soldiers on the ship immediately took small boats to reinforce the puppet troops on the east bank.

The number of troops that landed was small, only a small squad.

The troops were divided into three groups. First, mortar positions were set up on the river embankment, and then the Eighth Route Army line that attacked the river embankment for more than 500 meters was opened fire.

Reinforce the two machine gun positions already established on the flanks of the puppet army with firepower, and provide fire support for the puppet army that is constantly retreating.

...

Only a loud explosion was heard from the river.

No matter how much he hoped, he never heard a second explosion.

The squadron leader had already realized that the plan to raid the fleet had failed.

My mind went completely blank.

The superiors ordered that the enemy's transport ships be annihilated at all costs.
As the Japanese gunboats in the canal began firing, muffled explosions of shells echoed across the open ground.

Finally, they woke the detachment leader from his daze.

Suddenly, a whooshing sound came from the sky, and the soldier next to him immediately tackled the detachment commander to the ground: "Take cover!"

The Japanese mortars that came ashore and the mountain guns on the gunboats in the river opened fire one after another, although the firing rate was not high.

However, they still managed to defeat all the Eighth Route Army troops that were attacking.

Perhaps the Japanese soldiers thought the shells for the Type 92 infantry gun were very valuable, as they could hardly hit their targets accurately in the dark.

After firing four shells, they stopped firing, leaving only the Japanese mortars and grenade launchers that had come ashore to continue firing arrogantly from time to time.

As a result, the shells that landed were not densely packed, but rather scattered.

Immediately, the Japanese light and heavy machine guns also ceased firing.

Only occasionally were rifles fired as a warning.

...

A squad of young soldiers from the county brigade hurriedly crawled towards the enemy in the fields.

"Damn it, there are landmines!" The county brigade soldiers at the forefront panicked, never expecting that the enemy would also plant landmines.

Looking at the grenade in front of him that was smoking after he triggered it, he, who had little experience, tried to stand up, turn around and back.

Several bullets flew through the darkness not far away, one of them hitting him in the back.

Immediately afterwards, a loud bang was heard behind me.

A cloud of dust rose, and the warrior lay a bloody mess in the wilderness.

"There's an ambush ahead! Go in!" a county brigade soldier shouted in a trembling voice, then pulled out a grenade, detonated it, and threw it not far ahead to the spot where the rifle had just fired.

The ghostly ambushers in the darkness also threw several grenades near the explosion site.

Boom. Boom.
The grenades thrown by both sides struck each other in the darkness, sliding a distance on the hardened sand before arrogantly emitting smoke.

Boom boom boom.
Another soldier from the county brigade was knocked down.
"Squad leader, those puppet troops are lying in ambush! We can't go any further! Otherwise, we'll all be wiped out here!" The soldier responsible for observation, who was spread out to the side, shouted as he lay in a shallow crater formed by an artillery shell explosion.

"The squad leader said he would spare no effort..." The squad leader's reply was resolute.

Da da da.
Suddenly, the rapid-fire of a Czech light machine gun rang out from the darkness ahead.

Someone was immediately hit by the bullet.

The remaining soldiers gripped their rifles tightly, burying their heads halfway in the ground, with no chance to retaliate.

They were helpless as the enemy's alternating machine gun fire tore at their heads again and again.

The constant sacrifice of comrades left the remaining soldiers filled with anger, so much so that they couldn't even raise their guns and had no way to avenge their fallen comrades.

After a while, the machine gun fire gradually subsided.

"I am Ma Liang. This area is now under the command of the training team. All personnel from the county brigade must retreat immediately."

Hearing the sounds coming from behind, the battlefield observation post lying in the shallow pit breathed a sigh of relief.

When he shouted for the squad leader to retreat.

But they found no one responding in the darkness.

After shouting three times, he finally understood something.
The machine gun fire suppression from the puppet troops lying in ambush in the darkness was extremely effective.

All but himself of the platoon that participated in the attack have been wiped out.
Not far behind the observation post, a voice kept growling: "Grenade launchers ready, target one, 80 meters at 1 o'clock. Target two, 90 meters at 11:30." (End of Chapter)