The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 409 Get in the car and attack!

The Japanese light armored vehicle squadron that had been advancing triumphantly all the way was cleanly and neatly annihilated by the flat anti-aircraft guns. The flames and smoke from the Type 94 light armored vehicles that were pierced and exploded shot straight into the sky, not only catching the eyes of the anti-aircraft artillery company and the special forces company directly under the assault corps that had just achieved the record of destroying the enemy's tanks, but also being witnessed by the Japanese infantry that were following up in the rear.

"Sir, look, it looks like our light armored vehicle squadron!"

In an open area two kilometers away from the zone where the Japanese light armored vehicles were destroyed, a Japanese adjutant pointed at the thick smoke rising from the place where the Japanese light armored vehicle squadron was destroyed, and said to Hata Shigekazu beside him with sweat on his back.

Shigekazu Hata, who was waving his command knife to organize the troops to charge, just glanced at the smoke in the distance and did not care too much about the destruction of the light armored vehicle squadron.

After all, Hata Shigekazu was determined to die and was ready to fight to the death. His brain was extremely congested and it was impossible for him to adjust the offensive of his troops because of the destruction of the vanguard light armored vehicle squadron. All he could think about was charging! Go! Attack the Chinese army's position!
Hata Shigekazu was stunned for a moment, then continued to shout with red eyes: "Charge! Charge!"

"Onboard! Kill!"

"Must win!"

Seeing their supreme commander leading the charge, the Japanese officers and soldiers of the two infantry battalions following Hata Shigeichi also gathered their strength, deployed battle formations, and launched an overwhelming attack with roars.

More than 2,000 Japanese soldiers were fully deployed in battle formation, with their bayonets flashing coldly, and they rushed along the route that the Japanese light armored vehicles had just attacked.

The two Japanese soldiers shouted "Kill!" and launched a swift charge, and the sound of footsteps even made the ground in the wilderness tremble slightly.

In the anti-aircraft artillery company's deployment position, the officers and soldiers who were still immersed in the joy of victory in annihilating the Japanese light armored vehicle squadron were soon broken by the loud shouts of the Japanese army.

Seeing more than 2,000 Japanese troops scattered across the wilderness and rushing in from the distant horizon, not to mention the ordinary soldiers, even He Wei was dumbfounded.

What He Wei saw when he raised the telescope was a real "Banzai Charge" by the Japanese Army. The riflemen held their Type 38 rifles with bayonets, and the officers and non-commissioned officers waved their command sabers, roaring and shouting in a shrill voice that echoed repeatedly in the wilderness. They swarmed madly towards the anti-aircraft artillery company and the special forces company directly under the assault corps. The scene was truly shocking.

"Captain, we have stirred up a hornet's nest."

Zhao Zhanhai was also shocked. This experienced and battle-hardened Chief of the Combat Training Section of the Commando Corps' Staff Office was staring at the yellow wave of people swarming on the horizon with his eyes wide open. He said to He Wei.

The officers and soldiers around were also extremely shocked.

The more than one hundred officers and soldiers of the anti-aircraft artillery company, including the company commander Huang Diaoqi, had never seen such a large-scale Japanese infantry charge and they were all a little panicked.

Although the gunners of the four anti-aircraft guns had gradually turned the flattened muzzles of the anti-aircraft guns toward the direction of the Japanese infantry charge, a feeling of panic inevitably spread in the anti-aircraft gun company.

In comparison, the performance of the special forces company directly under the assault corps was much better. Under the command of officers and sergeants, the veterans of the special forces company drew their bayonets, took the initiative to occupy advantageous positions on both sides of the anti-aircraft artillery company's positions, and crawled on the ground to prepare for a desperate battle.

Just after encountering 17 Japanese light armored vehicles, more than 2,000 Japanese infantry rushed out. Faced with the sudden change in the battle situation, He Wei was surprised but did not panic, and he quickly figured out the Japanese intentions.

According to the intelligence previously compiled by the General Staff, the core infantry combat force of the Hata Detachment may only have about 3,000 people left, which is at most the combat effectiveness of an infantry regiment.

That is to say, the more than 2,000 Japanese soldiers who are now charging wildly on the open ground are most likely the few remaining main infantry forces of the Hata Detachment.

It can be seen that while he was preparing to launch an attack on the position of the Hata Detachment, the Japanese commander of the Hata Detachment also made the same choice as He Wei. He organized an offensive operation at a desperate risk and chose to launch an attack on the open area near the Big and Small Bear Mountain Heights in an attempt to break through the Chinese army's defense line with the Big and Small Bear Mountain Heights as the core.

So, we have the current encounter.

If He Wei's judgment was correct, then the situation he was facing now was that the main force of the Japanese Hata Detachment, which should have been hiding in its position and waiting to be attacked by the main force of the assault corps he sent out, had left its guarded position and all or most of them had gone out to attack their own defense line near the Big and Small Bear Mountains.

And because both sides coincidentally chose the same time to launch the attack, the main force of the Japanese army, reinforced by more than a dozen light armored vehicles, encountered the small force of the anti-aircraft artillery company led by He Wei and the special forces company directly under the assault corps here.

Seeing the Japanese infantry rushing closer and closer, He Wei knew that he was in big trouble. After thinking for a while, he gritted his teeth and said to Zhao Zhanhai: "Zhanhai, go send a telegram to the main force of the corps and transfer Hu Zhaowu's third battalion to reinforce us!"

Zhao Zhanhai nodded and said, "Captain, the number of Japanese troops rushing towards us is estimated to be no less than 2,000. According to the intelligence we have obtained before, these Japanese troops are likely to be the main force of the Hata Detachment. How about we transfer all the three infantry battalions and other main forces of our headquarters to reinforce them?"

Seeing the Japanese army rushing over without regard for their lives, He Wei also got angry and shouted, "No need. Just transfer the third battalion. The first battalion, which serves as the reserve, will take over the third battalion's position as the main attack battalion. The first and second infantry battalions will be the main attack forces. We will still launch the attack according to the original attack plan with the cooperation of the artillery battalion and other units. They fight theirs and we fight ours. I can't get away now. Let the commander of the first battalion, Fu Chen, be the commander of the attack on the main position of the Japanese army. The attack on the main position of the Japanese army will continue. We will attack as we should!"

"Yes!"

The battle situation changed rapidly. The main force of the assault corps, which was supposed to confront the main force of the Japanese Hata Detachment in the position, was caught off guard. However, the anti-aircraft artillery company and the direct special forces company led by He Wei collided with the Japanese attack force that was dozens of times larger than their own!
The main forces of both sides launched attacks on the enemy at the same time, but they both avoided the main forces of the other side!

Faced with this situation, He Wei also came up with a very crazy response tactic. Since the small force he led encountered the main force of the Japanese army, he might as well fight a bloody battle with the Japanese army on the spot.

Anyway, it was too late to retreat, so he could only fight the Japanese on the spot. With only his anti-aircraft artillery company and a special agent company, he would definitely not be able to stop the attack of more than 2,000 Japanese troops. However, if he commanded properly, it would definitely not be a problem to hold the Japanese back for a while. Taking advantage of the time difference of holding the Japanese back, he would call back the Third Infantry Battalion of the Assault Corps, which was originally used to launch the main attack on the Japanese frontal position.

Humph, when the third battalion comes to support, it is not certain whether these two thousand Japanese will eat up He Wei, or He Wei will eat up these two thousand Japanese!
The attack on the main position of the Japanese army must continue. Since the Japanese army has transferred its main forces away from its positions, the defending forces in its positions should be very weak at this time. Therefore, He Wei does not intend to give up the attack on the main position of the Japanese army.

The anti-aircraft artillery company, the special forces company and the 3rd Infantry Battalion of the Assault Corps, which was about to be transferred to provide reinforcements, fought fiercely with the main force of more than 2,000 Japanese troops who were attacking. At the same time, the 1st and 2nd Infantry Battalions of the Assault Corps, the artillery battalion, the engineering company, the communications company and other main forces launched a fierce attack on the Japanese positions which were most likely very empty.

The battle on two fronts, the fight with the main force of the Japanese army and the main attack on the Japanese positions, was carried out simultaneously. On the one hand, after the special service company, the anti-aircraft artillery company and the 3rd Infantry Battalion of the Assault Corps that soon came to support joined forces, although they were still at a disadvantage in terms of manpower against the more than 2,000 infantry of the Japanese army, they could at least protect themselves without any problem, even if they could not wipe out all the Japanese troops.

Secondly, the Japanese main position with weak defense force would most likely not be able to withstand the fierce attack of the main force centered on the 1st and 2nd Infantry Battalions of the Assault Corps. Once the Japanese main position was breached, the more than 2,000 main Japanese troops who launched a fierce attack on He Wei would be like grasshoppers in autumn after losing their base camp and starting position, and would not be able to jump for long.

At that time, the initiative of the battle will still be in He Wei's hands.

According to He Wei's tactics, it is still unclear who will win the battle!
The most critical part of He Wei's tactics lies in whether the anti-aircraft artillery company he personally leads and the special forces company directly under the assault corps can withstand the attack of more than 2,000 Japanese troops before the 3rd Infantry Battalion of the assault corps arrives for support.

Facing the swiftly attacking main force of more than 2,000 Japanese troops, if they wanted to rely on the limited strength of their anti-aircraft artillery company and special forces company to hold out until the third battalion came to support them, they had no choice but to fight to the death, to meet the enemy head-on, to fight bloody battles, and to fight to the death!
With a plan in mind, He Wei stabilized the situation, raised his arm, and shouted with full energy: "Pass my order, all members of the special forces company gather here to receive my order, and the anti-aircraft artillery company will immediately open fire and attack, using fierce flat-barrage firepower to block the Japanese infantry!"

"Yes!"

A staff officer from the Combat Training Department ran to the Special Agent Company to pass on the order. The anti-aircraft artillery company commander Huang Diaoqi also nodded and said, "I will give the order to open fire immediately!"

"Wait! Captain Huang, please gather your company's tracked tractors and drivers together, and hurry!"

He Wei called Huang Diaoqi again and added.

Although he was puzzled as to why He Wei mobilized the anti-aircraft artillery company to tow the tracked tractor for the anti-aircraft guns, the battle situation was urgent and the safety of the entire anti-aircraft artillery company depended on He Wei, the senior commander of the infantry unit. Therefore, Huang Diaoqi readily carried out He Wei's order and sent a messenger to notify the tractor to assemble.

Huang Diaoqi then ran to the telephones leading to the various gun positions and shouted orders, "All companies, target the enemy infantry, open fire!"

Following Huang Diaoqi's order, the four 75mm anti-aircraft guns began to roar again. White smoke came out of the muzzles of the anti-aircraft guns, which were equipped with explosive grenades. The four 75mm anti-aircraft guns began to bombard the Japanese infantry assault group at a distance of meters.

Faced with the fierce offensive of the Japanese infantry, the gunners of the anti-aircraft guns knew that rate of fire was of vital importance, and as soon as they began shooting, they burst out with a firing rate that was almost the theoretical limit.

Anti-aircraft shells equipped with air-burst fuses whizzed towards the Japanese infantry attack formation, accurately exploding with soul-stirring sparks above the Japanese charging formation. Amidst the earth-shaking noises, the infantry charging torrent of more than 2,000 Japanese infantrymen was instantly enveloped by the barrage of bullets produced by the large-caliber anti-aircraft guns.

The 75mm anti-aircraft shells that exploded in mid-air instantly sent out countless special shrapnel like flowers scattered from the sky. These sharp shrapnel, which were originally used to destroy the structure of the aircraft, suddenly burst into a cloud of blood mist after hitting the Japanese infantry, knocking a large number of Japanese soldiers to the ground.

Occasionally, a few shells lost their accuracy and exploded on the ground, producing dense shrapnel and shock waves that blew many Japanese soldiers into the sky.

The gunners who were firing were quickly firing shells at the rushing Japanese troops, while constantly adjusting the left and right firing ranges of the anti-aircraft guns. Shells were constantly fired and the gun bodies were constantly swinging.

Four anti-aircraft guns, each spaced one hundred meters apart, quickly formed an anti-aircraft shell fragmentation killing belt that was almost as wide as the Japanese infantry charge formation.

When the torrent of Japanese infantry charges collided with the shrapnel zone formed by the rapid flat firing of four large-caliber anti-aircraft guns, the effect was extremely tragic.

Rows and groups of Japanese soldiers were hit by shrapnel and fell in a pool of blood. All kinds of strange screams rang out one after another.

Boom
Boom
The ground near the gun positions of each anti-aircraft gun was soon filled with golden anti-aircraft shell casings. The Japanese army was destined to pay a bloody price in the collision between their flesh and blood and the steel shells.

However, despite the heavy casualties and greatly reduced speed of the charge, the charging Japanese troops showed no signs of retreating, and continued to charge despite the barrage of bullets and shrapnel formed by the anti-aircraft guns' direct fire.

Amid the Japanese army's crazy shouts of "Long live the Emperor" and "Onboard", the attacking Japanese troops continued to advance, shortening the distance to the anti-aircraft artillery company at the cost of their lives being swallowed by artillery fire, charging forward again and again, leaving pools of blood with every step.

The four 75mm anti-aircraft guns of the anti-aircraft artillery company fired continuously at the maximum rate of fire. The gunners, whose arms were already sore from exhaustion, tried their best to repeatedly load shells and eject shell casings. The huge recoil mechanism of the anti-aircraft gun moved repeatedly while firing, and in a very short period of time, it launched more than two hundred 75mm high-explosive shells, forming a bloody road of death made up of shrapnel and shock waves between the anti-aircraft gun company's firing positions and the Japanese infantry.

Even so, the Japanese troops, suffering heavy casualties, continued to approach the firing positions of the anti-aircraft artillery company.

In the face of more than 75 Japanese infantrymen who completely disregarded casualties, fully deployed their battle formations, and launched a desperate charge, even four Bofors mm large-caliber anti-aircraft guns at full firepower could not completely stop the Japanese army's frenzied attack.

At the same time, He Wei had already led the assembled officers and soldiers of the special forces company to the tractor of the anti-aircraft artillery company which had also gathered together.

He Wei looked at the fifteen steel-wheeled crawler tractors produced by the British Vickers Company and shouted to the officers and soldiers of the special forces company and the fifteen drivers of the anti-aircraft artillery company: "Brothers, it's time to fight to the death. Everyone get in the vehicles and drive the crawler vehicles into the Japanese charge formation. Drive up, charge into the Japanese formation, and fight to the death!"

(End of this chapter)