The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 410: Nationalist Army Version of “Armored Grenadiers”

As soon as He Wei gave the order, the officers and soldiers of the special forces company shouted in response and rushed to the tracked tractor with their weapons in hand. However, the faces of the fifteen tracked vehicle drivers of the anti-aircraft artillery company turned pale.

A driver with the rank of sergeant stammered to He Wei, "Sir, this is a tracked vehicle used to pull artillery. We can't, we can't charge into the Japanese infantry formation."

Snapped

As soon as the driver finished speaking, He Wei picked up a 20-gun and fired a shot at his instep. The bullet grazed the driver's instep, raising a pile of dirt and dust. The sergeant in shock screamed in a cold sweat.

"Fuck it, stop talking nonsense and do whatever you're told to do, or I'll kill you first."

After firing the shot, He Wei shouted loudly.

The commander of the special forces company, Yang Biao, also raised his gun to the fifteen drivers fiercely and shouted, "Did you hear me? Our commander ordered you to drive your cars towards the Japanese infantry assault formation. If you dare to delay, we will send you to hell immediately."

The car drivers of the National Army's artillery units are different from the gunners and combat soldiers of general infantry units. They have always been pampered and lazy because of their driving skills.

The salary of an ordinary driver is higher than that of a platoon leader in an infantry unit. He lives a comfortable life and does not have to take on combat missions. His work style is generally not very good. He Wei now lets these young soldiers drive tracked tractors to charge into the charge formation of the Japanese infantry. Naturally, these people are a little scared.

However, after being frightened by He Wei, the drivers had to get on even if they didn't want to, and they all obediently climbed into the cab of the crawler tractor.

He Wei then shouted to the officers and soldiers of the special forces company: "Brothers, get in the cars, charge into the enemy's infantry assault formation, and use machine guns and mortars to hit them hard!"

“Get in the car, get in the car!”

"quick!"

Soon, the officers and soldiers of the special forces company boarded the vehicles and climbed onto fifteen British Vickers tracked tractors. On average, each tracked vehicle carried almost a squad of soldiers from the special forces company.

The 34mm mortars, MG general-purpose machine guns and other supporting firearms from each row of the special forces company were all loaded onto the vehicle by the officers and soldiers of the special forces company.

At this point, facing the banzai charge of more than 75 Japanese infantrymen, even though the mm anti-aircraft artillery company's direct firepower was fierce enough, it could not stop the desperate attack of more than Japanese soldiers.

Even if the special forces company participated in the battle and resisted on the spot, it would not be possible to completely stop the Japanese attack with its machine gun and mortar firepower. At most, it could only delay the attack of the Japanese infantry for a while, but it would not be possible to completely disrupt or block the Japanese desperate charge, nor could it hold out until the third battalion of the assault corps returned for support.

However, the fifteen tracked tractors of the anti-aircraft artillery company, carrying the infantry of the special forces company, directly rushed into the infantry attack formation of the Japanese army. Relying on the mobility of the tracked vehicles and the fierce infantry firepower of the special forces company, they rushed into the infantry assault formation of the Japanese army and attacked and rushed around, perhaps even playing a role in blocking and disrupting the Japanese army's charge.

He Wei's tactics are somewhat similar to those of the German Army's armored grenadiers who fought on half-track vehicles during World War II. However, He Wei has no idea what effect these fifteen tracked tractors used to tow anti-aircraft guns will have, so he can only go ahead with it.

Fifteen tracked tractors started up one after another. Amidst the roars, the steel-plate road wheels wrapped with tracks moved rapidly, like an arrow shot from a bow, carrying the officers and soldiers of the special forces company and rushed towards the infantry charge column of more than 2,000 Japanese troops.

The tracked vehicle where He Wei was located was the first to rush out. The strong wind blowing in the face with the smell of blood and gunpowder constantly irritated He Wei's nerves.

The structure of this tracked tractor is very simple. Although it is a tracked vehicle, there is no complicated structure inside the vehicle. It only has a cab and several rows of open seats for the passengers. The vehicle body is protected by simple steel plates. The size of the vehicle body is similar to that of the Japanese light tanks. It is much larger than the 17 Japanese Type 94 light armored vehicles that were destroyed on the battlefield. It is quite imposing when it is speeding away at full throttle.

"Driver, outflank the Japanese charge formation!"

He Wei picked up his twenty-gun and shouted at the driver.

Immediately, the speed of the tracked vehicle increased suddenly, and it began to outflank the Japanese assault formation. On the tracked vehicle with He Wei were the messenger Tao Heiwa and a general-purpose machine gun squad of the special forces company.

Just as the tracked vehicles were flanking the Japanese attack formation, the machine gunners of the general machine gun squad had set up their MG34 machine guns, and the other soldiers in the squad also grabbed their weapons and prepared for battle.

So, the car that He Wei was in took the lead, rushing forward from the flank of the Japanese infantry assault formation and killing their way into the Japanese infantry assault formation.

The long and intense firing by the anti-aircraft artillery company had created black clouds of bullets above the Japanese infantry charge formation. The smoke and dust produced by the exploding shells had greatly obscured the Japanese army's vision.

Therefore, when the tracked vehicle where He Wei was rushed into the flank of the Japanese infantry attack formation, the Japanese army was caught off guard. As soon as the tracked vehicle rushed in, it knocked a Japanese soldier to the ground. The soldier screamed and was crushed into a bloody paste by the steel tracks of the tractor. The Type 90 steel helmet and Type 38 rifle on the head of the Japanese soldier also turned into scrap iron and rotten wood amid the horrible sound of steel twisting.

"Fight!"

He Wei roared, picked up his 20-shot submachine gun and fired a burst of shots, knocking down several Japanese soldiers.

Soon after, the MG34 general-purpose machine gun on the vehicle also sounded. The machine gunner yelled and pulled the trigger, swinging the gun continuously to fire, knocking down rows of Japanese soldiers. Many Japanese soldiers were charging desperately, but they did not expect that a tracked armored vehicle loaded with Chinese officers and soldiers actually came in from the side of the attack formation, out of the smoke, and immediately suffered heavy casualties.

bang bang

Da da
Boom
As soon as the machine gun on the vehicle sounded, the Czech-made vz24 rifles and machine guns in the hands of other soldiers also opened fire at full power and began to shoot fiercely. Some soldiers also threw grenades, which exploded in the Japanese attack formation.

"Go left! Go forward!"

"Go to the right!"

While He Wei was firing, he kept giving orders to the driver. The driver of the tracked tractor had never seen such a scene before. His face turned pale and he was sweating. However, the driver's cowardice at this time had a very good effect.

Because of excessive tension and timidity, the driver almost lost his own active thinking and could only continuously and mechanically execute He Wei's orders.

Therefore, under He Wei's command, the vehicle kept adjusting its driving direction, sometimes rushing forward, sometimes turning, in short, it fired and rushed indiscriminately in the Japanese army's charge formation, messing up the Japanese infantry charge formation.

After the tracked vehicle that He Wei was riding charged straight into the Japanese infantry charge formation, the officers and soldiers of the anti-aircraft artillery company that were firing fiercely at the Japanese army all looked at the tracked tractor that He Wei was riding rushing around and continuously mowing down the Japanese army with fierce firepower. They were all dumbfounded. They didn't expect that the tracked tractor that was usually used to tow artillery could be used in this way?
Many officers and soldiers of the anti-aircraft artillery company also cheered loudly, and the commander of the anti-aircraft artillery company, Huang Diaoqi, immediately ordered the company's four anti-aircraft guns to stop firing in order to avoid accidentally injuring the fifteen tracked tractors that were about to engage in a fight with the Japanese army. After the roar of the anti-aircraft guns came to an abrupt end, the roar of the engines of the tracked vehicles, the screams and roars of the Japanese soldiers, and the dense gunfire of various automatic firearms of the special forces company followed.

Then, the remaining fourteen tracked vehicles followed suit and went around the flank of the Japanese assault formation and attacked it. The special forces company officers and soldiers riding on the tracked tractors opened fire with all kinds of firearms including pistols, rifles, machine guns, light machine guns, general-purpose machine guns, grenades, and even mortars, launching a fierce fire attack on the Japanese troops who were charging desperately.

Fifteen tracked vehicles suddenly rushed into the Japanese infantry charge formation and disrupted the Japanese infantry charge formation in an instant. With the Japanese army's fighting will and desperado-like banzai charge tactics, although the anti-aircraft artillery company's bombardment was fierce and caused heavy casualties to the Japanese army, it did not completely stop the Japanese charge.

But after these fifteen tracked vehicles carrying infantrymen broke into the Japanese infantry assault formation, the situation on the battle changed completely.

Fifteen tracked tractors rushed into the Japanese infantry attack formation, like tigers out of a cage, and embedded themselves into the enemy group from both wings.

Bullets and mortar shells fired from tracked vehicles continuously hit the Japanese attack line. Various machine gun bullets, pistol bullets, grenades and mortar fragments after the explosion knocked down large groups of Japanese soldiers, pierced their flesh and blood, and set off a bloody storm.

Coupled with the constant impact of the tracked tractor itself, the Japanese soldiers were swept down, knocked down, and crushed in piles.

On the tracked vehicles, the MG34 general-purpose machine guns of the three general-purpose machine gun squads of the three infantry platoons under the special forces company contributed the most sustained firepower output, constantly spurting out tongues of fire, forming scarlet bullet marks and fire streams, reaping the lives of the Japanese soldiers one by one.

Although the fifteen tracked tractors that rushed into the enemy group were not as unmanned as before, they still had an advantage over the Japanese infantry who were made entirely of flesh and blood, and soon created a mess of corpses in the Japanese charging formation.

Wherever the tracked vehicle passed, the Japanese soldiers howled in agony, leaving behind a trail of corpses. The steel tracks rolled over the corpses of the Japanese soldiers and the bodies of the wounded, and amid the screams and the sounds of breaking flesh and bones, the track plates were covered with thick pieces of blood and flesh. The blood and minced meat were like a meat grinder that had just ground meat, carrying the broken bodies of the Japanese soldiers and the squeezed blood, leaving a trail of bloody tracks on the ground.

The sudden appearance of the tracked tractor not only caused considerable casualties to the Japanese army, but also brought them great mental shock.

After all, no matter how strong the Japanese army's combat qualities and fighting spirit were, anyone would tremble when a dozen tracked tractors suddenly appeared and rushed forward like crazy!
The Japanese attack formation, which had been advancing steadily, began to become chaotic. In the center of the Japanese attack formation, the Japanese soldiers who were directly hit by the tracked vehicles shouted and scattered. The Japanese infantry in the front had to stop the attack and turned around to deal with the fifteen Chinese army tracked vehicles that were like killing gods.

The Japanese attack formation was completely disrupted, the steadily advancing offensive came to a halt, and the entire formation became a mess.

The officers and soldiers of the anti-aircraft artillery company that stopped firing did not just stand there to watch the fun. Instead, after the Japanese army's formation was disrupted, they picked up their rifles and fired a few shots at the Japanese army from time to time.

Although the anti-aircraft artillerymen's shooting skills were very poor and their hit rate was extremely low, the Japanese attack formation was completely messed up. Therefore, the officers and soldiers of the anti-aircraft artillery company managed to knock down some Japanese soldiers by relying on random shooting.

There were fifteen tracked vehicles that suddenly appeared in the center of the formation, and there was gunfire harassment from the anti-aircraft artillery company in front of them, making the Japanese army extremely embarrassed.

For the Japanese army, the sudden arrival of these fifteen tracked vehicles instantly changed the situation on the battlefield. If the fifteen tracked vehicles that had already rushed into their offensive formation were not eliminated, the Japanese army's offensive charge would have no way to continue, and the tactical goal of relying on the charge to break through the Chinese army's defense line would certainly not be achieved.

At the forefront of the Japanese attack formation, Hata Shigeichi looked at the Chinese army's tracked tractors that suddenly appeared from nowhere with bloodshot eyes, waved his command knife and shouted: "Shoot down these armored vehicles! Hurry up!"

There was no need for Hata Shigekazu to give special orders. After suffering considerable casualties and the initial panic, groups of Japanese troops had already begun to swarm forward and attack the tracked tractors.

Some raised their guns and fired at the tracked tractors, some rushed forward with grenades to organize the explosion of the vehicle, and some simply held their bayonets, waved their command knives, and rushed directly towards the tracked vehicles, shouting and yelling, attempting to directly stab and hack the Chinese officers and soldiers who were firing on the vehicles with their bayonets and sabers.

For a time, the battle was extremely brutal. A large number of Japanese troops gathered around the crawler tractors from all directions and launched a siege with roars.

Da da da

Da da da

He Wei half-crouched and fired two rounds of 96-gun bursts, knocking down two Japanese soldiers. The messenger Tao Heiwa beside him also fired hard with a Mauser C34 pistol. The general-purpose machine gunner behind him kept shaking the MG machine gun, firing at the Japanese soldiers who were swarming around and besieging him.

Suddenly, a burst of gunfire rang out. He Wei only felt a surge of heat and air around him, and the steel plate of the tracked tractor in front of him burst into dazzling sparks.

Immediately, two screams were heard. A soldier from the special forces company who was firing a rifle next to He Wei had a bullet piercing his helmet and fell powerlessly beside He Wei. Red blood mixed with white hot brain matter splattered all over He Wei's face.

An ammunition handler who was sorting ammunition boxes for general-purpose machine guns was also shot twice. He screamed and fell on the tracked vehicle, then fell off the vehicle, rolled on the ground, and was soon stabbed into a sieve by several Japanese soldiers who rushed over frantically with bayonets.

Immediately afterwards, an explosion was heard. A grenade thrown by a Japanese soldier exploded not far away. The hot air wave mixed with smoke and dust rolled towards the tracked vehicle. Several small shrapnel also hit the steel wheels of the tracked vehicle, making an unpleasant and harsh sound.

Without having time to wipe off the blood of his fallen brothers, He Wei crouched down and loaded the twenty-gun in his hand with bullets, then took out an opened grenade, yelled, squatted again, threw the grenade, then put the twenty-gun flat, held the trigger tightly, and fired rows of bullets at the rushing Japanese army.

Papapa

Papapa

Amid the dust raised by the exploding grenade, another burst of screams from the Japanese soldiers was heard. He Wei fired a row of pistol bullets and knocked down several more Japanese soldiers, but soon, more Japanese soldiers rushed towards the tracked vehicle howling.

Under the frenzied siege of the Japanese army, the battle situation had become extremely critical. He Wei only felt that the Japanese army was rushing towards him from all directions.

When he had used up all the bullets in his pistol again, He Wei didn't even have time to change bullets. He directly took four Gong-made long-handled grenades from the equipment of the dead soldiers around him, pulled the strings and threw them out at the same time.

Boom boom, another explosion was heard.

At this moment, He Wei had no time to think about anything else. His mind was full of killing! killing! killing! Kill all the Japanese soldiers around him!

Suddenly, a shocking shout of killing suddenly rose from the distant horizon. He Wei turned his head and saw that thousands of officers and soldiers of the assault corps wearing imitation German helmets and unique tactical vests deployed in battle formation and rushed over shouting and killing.

(End of this chapter)