Comrade, your ingredients are too complicated.

The whistling sound of artillery shells cut through the sky. Commander Takemura Yukibei of the 17th Infantry Regiment of the Eighth Division of the Japanese Army was lying on the beach with his mouth full of salty sea water and sand.

The explosion just now caused a rain of mud and sand in the beach area, and the flying shrapnel almost cut off his neck.

Looking around, Laizhou Bay was littered with discarded Type 38 rifles, steel helmets, and corpses. Some corpses were neatly lined up and covered with waterproof cloth.

Many more were scattered everywhere, maintaining the postures of death.

Protecting the fourth chief of staff, the old devil bandaged his own wounds while swearing and roaring:
"Baga, the incompetent 23rd Division, can't they completely nail down the pursuing Eighth Route Army and prevent the enemy from affecting the efficiency of the retreat of the main force?"

"We have concentrated the heavy firepower and anti-tank weapons of five divisions, and even divided up half of our precious anti-aircraft guns, but we are still being beaten back!"

"The navy idiots are also a bunch of rubbish. What on earth are they doing? It's only a 70-nautical-mile round trip, why haven't they returned in six hours?"

As the saying goes, brothers should settle accounts clearly. When the Bohai Task Force of Japan solemnly stated the rescue conditions, the remaining four lieutenant generals and division commanders actually argued over the choice of the rear guard, and even almost fought each other.

They all have their own selfish motives, and everyone wants to preserve their strength as much as possible, so no one is willing to take on the responsibility of covering the rest of the group.

If it weren't for the mediation of the Imperial Headquarters and Umezu Mijiro, the Japanese devils would probably not have come up with a solution that would convince the public until now.

As for which unlucky guy won the prize in the end and "took the initiative" to take on the task of covering the rear?
That is naturally the 23rd Mechanized Division.

Who made them run the fastest when they were defeated? Now they are the most fully organized troops among the five divisions.

Upon hearing the complaints from his own wing commander, the chief of staff at the side hurriedly covered his partner's mouth to prevent their already low morale from being severely hit again.

After making sure that no one was eavesdropping nearby, he thought for a moment and then began to persuade:

"Takemura-kun, the enemy's pursuit force is as large as five main divisions, not to mention the Eighth Route Army's elusive air force and paratroopers."

"After losing air superiority and running out of reserve forces, it is not easy for the 23rd Division to hold on until now with a group of remnants."

A higher-ranking official can crush a person, not to mention that there are three colleagues around him who are eyeing him covetously.

Although he was extremely reluctant, Nishihara Kanji still commanded his 23rd Mechanized Division and some of the remaining troops to build a deep defense position in the southern part of Laizhou Bay with amazing efficiency.

This place is close to the port and has the navy and brother troops to provide supplies, so no matter how fierce the battle is, we will not run out of ammunition and food.

Faced with this tough battle of desperate action, the Shandong Provincial Military District really had no good solution for the time being and could only continue the fierce attack step by step.

However, it is only a matter of time before the defense line is broken through.

Just as the two old Japanese were whispering, the outlines of several warships appeared vaguely on the sea level in the distance.

The desire for life made the devils agitated.

"Colonel! Look over there! That's the navy's ship!"

"Let's leave quickly. We can't let other divisions take away our chance to retreat this time."

As soon as these words were spoken, the commander of the regiment, Takemura Yukibei, immediately raised his telescope and looked towards the sea level more than ten kilometers away.

After seeing the Bohai Task Force led by the Kashii, he immediately showed an ecstatic expression, as if he could escape in the next second.

"Pass my order! Everyone, bring your boarding tools and charge towards the pier immediately!"

"Remember, cruisers and destroyers are your first choice. If you can't get on, consider retreating on a small boat."

After the first round of rescue operations, the Japanese army and navy quickly realized one thing:

The lack of fleet capacity was not the most serious challenge they faced. The real difficulty was the lack of shuttle boats to transfer soldiers from the beach to the warships.

In order to improve the efficiency of retreat, the Japanese found almost everything that could float.

Even wooden boards, beams and doors were used by them as temporary springboards.

"Run, run quickly!"

"The Nitto Maru can carry 35 people at a time. Please feel free to board the ship, warriors. I guarantee with my ten years of experience at sea that I can bring everyone back safely!"

"Here, there's still room in Matsue Maru, and we can get another twelve people on board!"

Unlike the warships with deeper draft and slower movement, the fishing boats and civilian transport ships that responded to the call were like a school of agile sea fish, rushing to the beach without hesitation.

The "civilians" on the ship spoke with thick Kyushu and Shikoku accents and shouted loudly at the beachhead, trying to awaken the soldiers' fighting spirit with their familiar local accents.

For a moment, the smoke from Laizhou Bay seemed to burn through time and space.

The Japanese pirates' maritime threat during the Jiajing period is now re-emerging in the waves of the 20th century under the shadow of giant steel warships.

"Yoshi! As expected of a citizen of our country, you are so full of energy!"

"According to the current progress, the fleet can at least pick up two divisions of army idiots today. As long as the Eighth Route Army's air force doesn't come to cause trouble, we may even have a chance to complete the mission ahead of schedule!" "By the way, has the Navy sent back any news? Is the bombing of the enemy airport going smoothly?"

Outside the bridge of the Kashii cruiser, Vice Admiral Wada Miken loosened his tightly grasped telescope. The salty sea breeze rolled up the wrinkles under his snow-white gloves, but it could not smooth out the sneer engraved into his nasolabial lines.

Last night's bloodless rescue operation made the Japanese intoxicated with the illusion of victory.

He originally thought that his fleet would have to fight several bloody battles before it could take over the army, but he never expected that the Eighth Route Army only sent out sporadic harassing bomber groups.

Hearing the inquiry from his immediate superior, the communications chief immediately stepped forward. He first handed over the intelligence, and then began to report:

"Your Excellency, Lieutenant General, the Navy's Matsumura Squadron, the Kwantung Army's Land Aviation Falcon Squadron, and the 3rd Flying Division's Type 97 Group have already taken off in stages an hour ago according to the plan."

"But even with the latest Zero Fighter Type 22 and Type 32, its air combat performance still lags behind the Eighth Route Army's new fighters."

"The warriors' intensity is ultimately unable to make up for the technological gap."

A military career that lasted for thirty-one years taught Wada Sanken one thing: false battle reports are often more deadly than 406mm naval guns.

In the eyes of the old Japanese, the army was foolish. They were not human beings anyway, so they deserved to die. They were considered responsible for sending a telegram.

The battle reports sent to the headquarters can also be exaggerated. After all, good-looking battle records can reasonably embellish the navy's reputation and also gain more military funds for the navy.

However, the battle situation sent to the fleet commander must not be false. It is the basis for deploying the next action and cannot be exaggerated in the slightest.

What if a lieutenant general or even a general is killed due to negligence? Wouldn't that mean a complete loss?

It was precisely because of this rigor that the communications chief of the Kashii dared to withstand the pressure and report the situation of the air raid truthfully to Miken Wada.

Hearing this, the old devil fell into a brief silence.

He always felt as if he had forgotten something, and an indescribable sense of threat always lingered in his heart.

Considering the disadvantage in intelligence and the amazing performance of the Eighth Route Army Air Force in the first half of this year, Wada Sanjian hesitated for a moment and then gave the order:

"Pass on my order. The former Southern Expeditionary Fleet will immediately switch to an air defense formation and must be prepared for air combat at all times.

"Let's leave the rescue operation to the original dispatching fleet. Anyway, those gunboats and coastal defense boats can hold a lot of people, so it won't be a problem to pick up two or three regiments at a time."

"If the enemy air force never shows up, send three cruisers and the remaining destroyers to participate in the rescue operation."

"Hi!"

······
It is just as the saying goes, advance and retreat, as fast as the wind.

Under the threat of death, the Japanese soldiers on the beach of Laizhou Bay burst out with amazing mobility. Even the flying general would be ashamed of his exaggerated retreat speed.

Seeing that most of the soldiers of the 8th Division had already boarded the ship, naval commanders such as Miken Wada finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, it seems that the warriors of the Navy Aviation have completed their mission brilliantly. Although they were unable to bomb the Eighth Route Army's permanent airport, they have successfully pinned down the enemy air force."

"Good, very good. Without any worries, the fleet can carry out its mission."

"Let the fishermen transport the army here, and pick up another regiment, and we will set off for Hebei Province in the Republic of China!"

Just as the old devil was giving orders, a series of dragon roars suddenly came from the sky in the southwest. The sound waves tore through the clouds and shook the imperial emblem on the bridge of the Kashii.

After a while, the clouds were torn apart like torn silk, and the "Green Scale Dragon Claw" pierced the sky with lightning.

Only a part of the endless "dragon body" was exposed, but it was enough to force the Bohai Task Force and the Kwantung Army to surrender suddenly.

At this moment, Wada Sanken finally figured everything out.

In addition to fighters and close support aircraft, the Eighth Route Army Air Force also has a large number of strategic bomber units. The effect of horizontal bombing against the fleet is indeed very poor, but the number of bombers is sufficient.

"Enemy attack! Enemy air force is attacking!"

"Leave the port, all ships leave the port immediately. Don't worry about the army, if they don't maneuver, they will all be killed here."

"Anti-aircraft gun crew! Full alert!"

Compared to the anxious Japanese Navy, the Kwantung Army, which had long been accustomed to bombings, reacted faster.

As soon as they saw nearly a hundred Lancasters appear, they simultaneously removed the camouflage of all anti-aircraft gun groups and fired Japanese and French shells of various calibers into the sky.

It's a pity that facing the flight altitude of 6 or 7 kilometers, small and medium caliber anti-aircraft guns are simply not up to the task.

Even the 88mm guns have to fight in groups to affect strategic bombers, so what can the 25mm and 37mm small water pipes do? (End of this chapter)