Anti-Japanese War: My equipment is infinitely refreshed

When the German army successfully resolved the threat of Soviet fighter planes with sophisticated tactics and advanced weapons, the focus of the battlefield quickly shifted from the sky to the ground. For a time, the Soviet ground forces were caught in the fierce bombing of the German army.

Bombs rained down on the Soviet positions with sharp whistling sounds.

The earth was shaking violently, and dirt and rubble were thrown high into the air, forming huge mushroom clouds.

The Soviet soldiers fled everywhere, looking for shelter, but the shadow of death followed them all the time.

Some people were instantly covered in blood and flesh under the impact of the bombs, some were buried by the collapsed fortifications, and groans of pain rose and fell amid the sound of the explosions.

The battlefield was littered with broken limbs and burning vehicles, a scene of hell on earth.

However, Soviet Lieutenant General Rebalko was no ordinary man.

At this critical moment, he stood on the command vehicle with a firm and resolute look in his eyes. Without any hesitation, he immediately issued an order: "Armored forces, launch an attack on the German positions!" In his mind, he had already formed a set of combat ideas: as long as the two armies came into close combat, the German fighter planes would be afraid to act rashly and would not dare to bomb at will.

Moreover, he firmly believed that as long as the German fighter planes ran out of fuel, they would naturally leave, and the Soviet army would then be able to regain the initiative on the battlefield.

The staff officers beside Lieutenant General Rebalko were busy and nervous, their foreheads were covered with sweat, and the telegraph machines in their hands kept ticking, quickly conveying various instructions.

After hearing the order, the soldiers acted quickly.

The tank engines made a deafening roar, like the roar of ancient beasts.

These tanks were like steel monsters, spewing thick black smoke and rushing towards the German positions.

The tank drivers had firm eyes and held the joysticks tightly, with only one belief in their hearts: win!
However, Colonel Hartmann of the German Army was no ordinary person.

He was a famous air combat ace in the German army, with rich combat experience and keen insight.

When he saw the actions of the Soviet armored forces, the corners of his mouth rose slightly, revealing a confident smile.

He was well aware of the Soviet army's intentions, but he would not let them succeed.

Colonel Hartmann made a quick decision and decisively led the me262 squadron, like a group of black falcons, flying towards the artillery positions behind the Soviet army.

The me262 fighter plane roared through the sky, its fuselage gleaming with a cold metallic luster under the sunlight.

After arriving at the target area, Colonel Hartmann gave the order: "Attack!" The fighter plane quickly dived down, with a sharp whistling sound piercing the sky. Bombs fell from the bomb bay of the fighter plane and hit the Soviet artillery position accurately.

Suddenly, the Soviet artillery positions were ablaze with flames and explosions. One after another, the artillery pieces were destroyed in the bombing, the barrels twisted and deformed, and the gunners fled in all directions, some were blown to pieces, and some were looking for places to hide in fear.

The Soviet army's originally fierce artillery fire finally stopped, and an atmosphere of despair filled the smoke on the battlefield.

The outstanding performance of the Air Force on the battlefield was like a shot in the arm for the German troops on the ground, greatly boosting their morale.

When the soldiers of the German 5th Infantry Division saw that the Soviet artillery fire stopped, the flame of hope rekindled in their eyes, and their counterattack became more and more fierce.

The soldiers shouted slogans, their voices resounding through the sky: "For the empire, for victory, charge!" They raised their weapons and launched round after round of attacks on the charging Soviet army.

Some soldiers held rifles and shot at Soviet soldiers accurately; some soldiers held machine guns and fired wildly at the enemy.

Under their tenacious resistance, the Soviet army was repelled again and again. On the battlefield, Soviet corpses piled up like mountains, and the blood dyed the earth red. Finally, under the support of the air force's strafing and bombing, the Soviet army finally couldn't hold on, gave up the attack, and began to slowly retreat.

"What are the infantry losses?" Admiral Hott asked solemnly.

At this moment, he was standing in the operations room of the army headquarters, and the map was densely marked with the troop deployment and combat situation of both sides.

"The losses were not great. With the Panzerfaust, they destroyed a lot of Soviet tanks, almost hundreds of them. The Soviets suffered a big loss this time." The chief of staff replied excitedly. His face was filled with joy, and he was very surprised that the infantry division could achieve such a record.

He knew very well that it was almost impossible for the infantry division to repel the attack of the armored division in normal times. Even if they managed to defeat it, they would inevitably suffer heavy losses. However, this time, not only did they not lose too many troops, but they destroyed a large number of Soviet tanks, which was undoubtedly a very good record.

"It's really a good thing, but the quantity is too small. If there are tens of thousands of them, we don't have to be afraid of Soviet tanks at all." Admiral Hoth said with emotion.

There was a hint of regret in his eyes, knowing full well that the Panzerfaust played a huge role in this battle. If there were enough of them, the German army would be more adept at fighting against Soviet tanks.

"Yes, it's just that the number is small. If there were more, it would be enough to cause trouble for the Soviet army. I think Lieutenant General Rebalko must be feeling distressed now." The chief of staff said with a chuckle.

"It will definitely hurt a lot. After all, they were annihilated not long ago, and now they lost so many tanks. They must be doubting whether they are qualified to lead troops into battle." Admiral Hoth joked in a good mood.

There was a hint of joking in his words, and in the tense atmosphere of war, there was a rare hint of relaxation.

"Where is Field Marshal Manstein's 2nd Panzer Group?" Admiral Hoth asked, as if he suddenly remembered something important.

There was a hint of anxiety in his eyes. After all, in this fierce battlefield, the more troops there are, the greater the chance of winning.

"The vanguard will probably need several hours." The operations officer replied immediately. There was a hint of helplessness in his voice, and he was also very worried about the delay in the arrival of reinforcements.

"Why does it take so long? It's been so long since we sent out our request for help." Admiral Hott said somewhat dissatisfiedly.

His brows were tightly furrowed, and he was very annoyed at the slow movement of the reinforcements.

In this ever-changing battlefield, every second is crucial, and the late arrival of reinforcements may reverse the situation. "There is no way, there are too many guerrillas in the rear, constantly harassing the railway lines, causing many railway lines to be destroyed, so there is a delay." The combat staff hurriedly explained.

He knew very well how Admiral Hoth felt at the moment, and he also understood that the harassment by the guerrillas had greatly hindered the advance of the reinforcements.

These guerrillas were elusive and often attacked railway lines at night, causing great trouble to the German army's logistics supply and reinforcement mobilization.

Hearing this, Admiral Hoth's face turned even uglier: "These useless people in the rear can't even deal with a group of guerrillas, what are they for?" His tone was full of anger and dissatisfaction. In his opinion, it was unforgivable that the rear troops could not even complete such basic tasks as ensuring the smooth operation of the railway lines.

"It's been too long since they've fought a war, and they don't know how to fight anymore. We should send them to the frontline, where they can train for a while and then they can fight when they return." The chief of staff echoed. He was also disappointed with the performance of the rear troops, and believed that only by sending them to the frontline to experience the baptism of war could their combat effectiveness be truly improved.

"That's a good suggestion. I'll report it to the Supreme Command later." Admiral Hoth nodded. He thought the chief of staff's suggestion made sense and decided to report the matter to his superiors.

"Order all troops to stop the Soviet attack. Reinforcements will arrive soon." Admiral Hoth ordered loudly.

"Yes!" the staff officers responded in unison and quickly passed the order down.

However, the situation on the front line did not ease because of this order.

The soldiers of the German 5th Infantry Division had just had a short rest when the Soviets launched another charge. The soldiers looked at the dense Soviet tanks attacking them again, feeling helpless.

"Can't we have a good rest?" a young soldier said tiredly. His face was covered with dust and his eyes revealed deep fatigue. He had been fighting for several days in a row and his body and spirit had reached their limits.

"It's them again. Aren't they afraid of being beaten?" Another soldier frowned and said. There was a hint of doubt in his tone, and he was very puzzled by the Soviet army's tenacious attack. In his opinion, the Soviet army had suffered heavy losses and should temporarily withdraw and readjust its deployment.

"These bastards, we must teach them a lesson this time." An old soldier clenched his weapon and said with gritted teeth. His eyes revealed a firm determination, vowing to fight the Soviet army to the end. This old soldier has participated in many battles and experienced countless life-and-death tests. His hatred for the Soviet army has penetrated into his bones.

The battle soon entered a fierce state again. However, the situation this time was different from the past. Lieutenant General Rebalko was angry, and his heart was filled with humiliation and anger.

As an armored corps commander, it should have been easy for him to lead the armored division to attack the infantry division position. However, reality dealt him a heavy blow. Not only did he fail to capture the position, but nearly 200 tanks were destroyed by the enemy.

If this gets out, how will he, the commander of the armored corps, keep his dignity?

You may even lose your job and have to go home to hug your kids. I'm not kidding.

If Zhukov hadn't saved him in the last disastrous defeat, he would have been transferred to the reserve and gone home to take care of his grandchildren. If he suffered another disastrous defeat this time, he would definitely be demoted to the bottom and would be no better than a private.

Therefore, in order to seize the position as quickly as possible and save his reputation and position, he got angry and issued an almost crazy order: "All the troops in your hands, press forward!"

Nearly 1,500 tanks lined up on the battlefield without any tactical formation, rushing towards the German positions like a torrent of steel. They had only one goal, which was to crush all the enemies in their way.

The roar of the tanks was deafening, and the tracks rolled over the ground, raising a cloud of dust. The Soviet soldiers shouted slogans and followed the tanks, their eyes full of enthusiasm and determination.

Seeing the aggressive Soviet army, Major General Berents, commander of the 5th Infantry Division, had a terribly gloomy face.

He knew that his army only had 5,000 men left. Facing such a large number of tanks, if he continued to fight, he would definitely be annihilated. Major General Berents was an experienced general. He knew that retreat was the only option in this situation, but it was extremely difficult for him to give the order to retreat.

"There are too many of them. We can't stop them this time. Send a telegram to the army headquarters and request retreat." Major General Berents said in a low voice.

His eyes revealed helplessness and despair. As a general, giving the order to retreat was the last thing he wanted to do, but in this situation, he had no choice.

Soon, Admiral Hoth received the telegram. When he learned that the Soviet army had deployed more than a thousand tanks, he was also shocked.

"Is Rebalko crazy? Throwing all his energy into the attack?" Admiral Hoth couldn't believe his ears, his eyes were full of surprise and confusion. He could never have imagined that Lieutenant General Rebalko would do such a crazy thing.

"General, the reserve forces should be mobilized, otherwise the front-line troops will not be able to hold on." The chief of staff advised hurriedly.

His face was full of anxiety, knowing that the situation was critical and that a decision had to be made as soon as possible. The Chief of Staff had always been General Hoth's right-hand man on the battlefield, and his suggestions often played an important role at critical moments.

General Hoth still had the 12th and 19th Armored Divisions in his hands, with about tanks and only enough fuel for one charge. Originally, he was planning to wait for reinforcements to arrive and then launch a counterattack to deal a fatal blow to the Soviet army.

As a result, the development of the situation now does not allow him to wait any longer, and he must mobilize the reserve forces in advance, otherwise the front-line positions will definitely not be able to be held.

Moreover, retreat is not such a simple matter. Without cover, infantry cannot outrun tanks.

"Send a telegram to the Air Force for help." Admiral Hott said with a frown.

He hopes that the Air Force can lend a hand again to ease the pressure on the front line. The Air Force played an important role in the previous battles, and he expects the Air Force to create miracles again.

"The Air Force has returned to the airport to refuel and is temporarily unable to provide support." The Chief of Staff reminded. Upon hearing this news, Admiral Hoth felt even more depressed. He knew that he could only rely on the troops in his hands.

"Okay, then we will deploy all the reserves and order the 12th and 19th Armored Divisions to join the battle immediately. No matter what the cost, we must inflict heavy damage on the 3rd Guards Tank Army and let Rebalko know that we are the king of tanks." Admiral Hoth said coldly. His eyes revealed a firm determination and strong fighting spirit, vowing to fight the Soviet army to the death.

"Yes!" The chief of staff took the order and quickly conveyed Admiral Hoth's order.

Upon receiving the order, Major General Ziegler of the 12th Armored Division, who had been waiting impatiently, immediately shouted excitedly: "All troops attack, target the Soviet 3rd Guards Tank Army." His voice was full of passion and fighting spirit, as if he had seen the dawn of victory.

Major General Ziegler was a young and promising general who was eager to make achievements on the battlefield. This battle was a great opportunity for him.

"Yes!" The soldiers shouted in unison, their voices resounding through the sky. Two hundred Panther tanks roared in unison, and rushed towards the Soviet tanks in the distance. (End of this chapter)