Zhu Tian: Beginning to Cross the Changjin Lake

Chapter 244: Iron Battalion Commander, Rich Loot!
At dusk on December 12, the Volunteer Army mobilized three artillery divisions to launch a fierce bombing on the enemy's defense line.

Amid the rumbling of artillery fire, the third battle slowly began.

With the assistance of friendly forces, the Volunteer Army launched a large-scale counterattack simultaneously along a front line stretching hundreds of kilometers.

The Volunteer Army's offensive was swift and unstoppable. The Imjin River defense line carefully built by Lieutenant General Ridgway was soon completely broken through by the heroic Volunteer Army.

In just ten minutes, the 38th Army built a pontoon bridge, and the troops crossed the Imjin River one after another and launched a fierce offensive against the enemy.

Li Moyin brought the task force to the 38th Army again.

Li Moyin found Li Guotao and said, "I have already agreed with the military leaders that our task force will go to the front."

"The enemy suffered heavy losses in the first two battles and has not yet fully recovered. After our army launched the attack, the enemy has shown signs of collapse."

"If we are slow, we might not even be able to see the enemy's shadow, so we must push forward as much as possible."

Li Guotao said excitedly: "Captain, just wait and see! When it comes to running, who can outrun us? We guarantee that we can get to the front."

run away?

Why does this sound so awkward?

Li Guotao was too busy to care about these details and shouted, "The task force will set off immediately and penetrate the enemy's rear."

"Yes!"

Following Li Guotao's order, the task force soldiers immediately rushed onto the pontoon bridge and quickly crossed the Imjin River.

Then, under the leadership of Li Guotao, the soldiers rushed all the way south.

Just as Li Guotao said, the task force is still very fast.

Although they started a little slow, they soon caught up with the front line.

In the distant sky, patches of fire kept appearing.

The dense gunfire and explosions were getting closer and closer, and the soldiers were very excited.

Li Guotao shouted loudly: "Comrades, keep charging forward, rush forward to kill the enemy and make meritorious service."

"Kill~!"

The soldiers' morale was boosted, and each of them rushed to the battlefield with all their might as if they had been injected with chicken blood.

These soldiers of the task force are all veterans who have survived hundreds of battles. The battlefield is the most suitable stage for them. The smell of gunpowder on the battlefield can only make them more excited.

Li Guotao had amazing physical strength and was the first to rush forward.

The troops in the front are attacking the enemy's line of defense, and the battle is very fierce.

The enemy's firepower was very fierce. Li Guotao saw from afar that the muzzle of an M2 heavy machine gun on the opposite side was constantly spitting out flames, and the dense bullets blocked the soldiers' attack route.

Li Guotao raised his gun and shot without saying a word, all in one smooth motion.

Although it was several hundred meters away, for Li Guotao, this distance was not too far.

With a dull "bang", the hot bullet directly penetrated the enemy's helmet, and blood mixed with brain matter spurted out.

The enemy machine gunner was killed instantly and the gunfire finally stopped.

Seeing this, Captain Cao, who was lying on the ground on the battlefield, shouted loudly: "Good fight, comrades, follow me!"

"Kill~!"

The volunteer soldiers who were originally suppressed stood up, raised their guns, and fired at the enemy positions.

The assistant shooter next to him wanted to take over the shooting, but was shot to death.

Amid the deafening shouts and cries of killing, the brave volunteer soldiers rushed forward quickly and threw grenades one after another.

In an instant, dozens of grenades fell on the enemy positions.

"Boom~! Boom~!"

Violent explosions rang out one after another, flames rose into the sky, and the enemies on the position were immediately blown to the ground, with many killed and wounded.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the soldiers successfully rushed to the enemy's front line. The resisting enemy was quickly eliminated, and the brave soldiers continued to charge and fight forward.

Li Guotao rushed forward while continuously shooting with his gun. All the enemies he targeted were shot in the head and killed immediately.

At this moment, two enemy tanks suddenly appeared in the front left, rumbling out and blocking the attacking troops.

The anti-aircraft machine gunner on the roof of the car fired fiercely at the volunteer soldiers who were rushing up.

The soldiers rushing in the front were knocked down in an instant.

Li Guotao raised his gun and fired without saying a word. With two shots, he killed the anti-aircraft machine gunner outside first.

Li Guotao shouted loudly: "Bazooka, kill those two tanks for me."

The anti-aircraft machine gun was destroyed, but the machine gun in front of the tank was still firing fiercely.

Wu Qianli carried a bazooka and rushed quickly to the front and side of the tank, seizing the opportunity and taking decisive action.

"Chirp~!"

With a sharp whistling sound, a rocket hit the enemy tank. With a loud explosion, the tank was destroyed by a shot and caught fire where it stopped.

At the same time, Mei Sheng on the other side also shot down another tank with one shot.

Captain Cao, who was originally suppressed by the tanks, was about to send a demolitionist to blow up the tanks. When he saw two tanks being destroyed one after another, he was overjoyed and jumped up from the ground.

"Comrades, keep moving forward!"

"Kill~!"

Captain Cao turned his head to look at Li Guotao who was catching up from behind and asked, "Which unit are you from?"

Li Guotao replied: "From the task force!"

Captain Cao was delighted when he heard this and said with a smile: "I have heard of you guys, and you really are as famous as they say!"

Li Guotao smiled and said, "Thank you for the compliment! Which department are you from?"

Li Guotao observed the situation on the battlefield. The enemy's blocking position had been completely breached. The remaining enemies were either eliminated or surrendered directly. The battle came to a temporary end.

Captain Cao smiled and said, "The commander of the 114st Battalion of the 342nd Regiment of the th Division."

Li Guotao was slightly surprised when he heard this. Wow, this is another special meritorious person and a first-class combat hero.

Li Guotao asked excitedly: "Are you Captain Cao?"

Captain Cao smiled and nodded.

Li Guotao smiled and said, "I've heard of Captain Cao's name for a long time. You really live up to your reputation."

Captain Cao smiled and said, "Don't flatter me."

There are many heroes in the Volunteer Army, and there is no shortage of combat heroes in all units, but those who can earn the title of first-class combat hero in such a brutal battle are absolutely rare.

For a combat hero like this, Li Guotao had nothing but admiration.

Although Li Guotao is now very powerful and has made great military achievements, he knows that he was originally a useless person. If it were not for the system, he would be a complete loser.

Therefore, Li Guotao still has great respect for these true heroes.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, and then a messenger came running over and said loudly: "Report to the battalion commander, the superiors have instructed us to continue to penetrate southward and directly into the rear of the enemy."

Li Guotao's eyes lit up when he heard this. According to his memory, it was during this battle that Captain Cao's First Battalion performed outstandingly and made great achievements. Captain Cao was therefore awarded the title of 'Iron Battalion Commander'. Captain Cao was also excited and said, "Tell the superiors that our First Battalion will complete the mission."

At this time, Li Moyin and his men also caught up from behind. Li Guotao said, "Captain, Captain Cao's First Battalion has been ordered to serve as the spearhead battalion and continue to penetrate the enemy's rear."

"I think we should just follow them!"

Li Moyin nodded and said, "Okay!"

At this time, Captain Cao had already called an emergency assembly for the first battalion and prepared to set off.

The soldiers simply cleaned up the battlefield and then gathered again.

Li Guotao walked over with Li Moyin and said with a smile: "Captain Cao, this is our Captain Li."

Captain Cao quickly stood at attention, saluted, and said, "Hello, Commander."

Li Moyin quickly returned the military salute and said with a smile: "Captain Cao, our task force would like to follow your battalion and obey your command. What do you think?"

Captain Cao was overjoyed when he heard this. He had just seen the strength of Li Guotao and his men. Now with the addition of such an elite force, wouldn't that be even more powerful?

Captain Cao smiled and said, "That's great, but I don't dare to give you orders, Commander!"

Li Moyin smiled and said, "You are the battalion commander, and it is only right for us to obey your command."

"Our task force also has about a company of combat personnel. We will act with you and fully cooperate with you to complete the mission."

Captain Cao said excitedly: "With the commander in charge here, we are more confident."

"Next we will continue to attack southwards."

Captain Cao said this as he glanced at the corpses on the ground. They were all foreigners with big noses.

Then he said, "I originally thought that these were puppet troops, but I didn't expect that they were all foreign devils."

Li Guotao smiled and said: "It doesn't matter whether they are American or puppet troops, as long as they are enemies, we just need to kill them."

Captain Cao smiled and said, "Comrade Guo Tao is right. No matter who he is, as long as he is an enemy, we must resolutely and thoroughly eliminate him."

The troops quickly gathered and then set out to continue their attack southwards.

As the spearhead battalion, the 1st Battalion has already run to the forefront of the entire division and even the entire army.

They ran quickly southward and encountered some defeated enemy soldiers along the way, who were also easily eliminated by the soldiers of the first battalion.

The troops continued all the way until they arrived at the Hanxiongchuan River.

It was the middle of winter and the temperature at night reached minus 20 degrees Celsius, which was extremely cold.

However, the river was not completely frozen and no passable bridge was found nearby.

Captain Cao looked at the map and said, "According to the intelligence we got before, the river is not too deep and we can swim across it."

Li Moyin nodded and said, "It seems that this is the only way. Let's do it the old way. Take off your clothes and put on your cotton clothes after the war."

Captain Cao gritted his teeth and said, "Take off your clothes and put them on your head."

"Cross the river!"

"Yes!"

Li Guotao also loudly ordered: "Those in the task force, take off your clothes and cross the river immediately."

"Yes!"

Afterwards, the soldiers took off their cotton coats and trousers, put them on their heads, and waded across the river carefully. The freezing cold water did not dampen the soldiers' enthusiasm.

The river was not very wide to begin with, and part of it had already frozen. However, a small section in the middle of the river had not completely frozen due to the water flow.

The soldiers quickly crossed the river, wiped the water off their bodies with towels, and quickly put on their cotton coats.

All cotton-padded jackets are worn as outerwear because the lining is white, which makes it easy to hide in the ice and snow.

After crossing the river, the troops continued to move forward, making detours and interspersing movements.

"Report, an enemy camp has been discovered ahead."

"Go over and have a look!"

Li Guotao followed Captain Cao to a slope in front. They all lay on the ground and raised their binoculars.

Just a few hundred meters away was an enemy camp. The camp was in chaos and a large number of American soldiers were preparing to move.

Li Guotao put down the telescope and said with a smile: "We are lucky this time. This is a heavy artillery camp of the enemy. The artillery is easy to deal with."

Captain Cao laughed and said, "Besides, they are still preparing to retreat. If we attack them suddenly and catch them off guard, and then kill them, all these cannons will be ours."

Li Guotao said: "Captain Cao, give the order!"

Captain Cao glanced at Li Moyin next to him, and Li Moyin nodded slightly.

Captain Cao immediately ordered: "Company 1 and Company 2 will outflank from the left and right wings, and Company 3 and the task force will attack from the front. We must not let any enemy escape."

"Yes!"

Following Captain Cao's order, the troops immediately took action.

Several mortars were also placed on the slope, ready to provide artillery support at any time.

Under the cover of night, the soldiers quickly approached the enemy camp.

When they were still dozens of meters away from the enemy's position, the enemy on the position suddenly discovered the approaching volunteers and immediately sounded the alarm.

When Li Guotao heard the alarm, he raised his gun and shot decisively.

With a few gunshots, several searchlights were extinguished one after another.

Captain Cao shouted loudly: "Bugler, blow the charge!"

"All battalion charge!"

"Tick-tick-tick-tick..."

The loud charge horn sounded, and the brave soldiers shouted loudly and rushed towards the enemy camp.

As the soldiers rushed forward, they raised their guns and fired at the enemy positions.

At the same time, several mortars behind also opened fire.

With a sharp whistling sound, the shells fell into the enemy camp one after another. Violent explosions rang out, and the enemy, who were caught off guard, were blown to the ground, with many killed and wounded.

Originally, the enemy was preparing to retreat, but the volunteers suddenly launched an attack and the enemy was immediately thrown into chaos.

Especially the loud charge horn, which sounds like the call of death to the enemy.

This group of enemies were originally artillerymen with weak combat effectiveness. Faced with the fierce offensive of the Volunteer Army, they could not resist at all.

The heroic volunteer soldiers successfully broke into the enemy camp. The fleeing enemies were shot to death one after another, and their bodies were scattered all over the ground. Some enemy soldiers, seeing the bad situation, were so scared that they raised their hands and surrendered.

The battle went very smoothly. The soldiers basically encountered no decent resistance and successfully wiped out the enemy.

Our army won a great victory in this battle, annihilating more than 330 US troops, seizing more than 40 light and heavy machine guns, more than artillery pieces of various types, and more than trucks.

Captain Cao looked at all the spoils and shouted excitedly, "Haha! I'm going to be rich now."

(End of this chapter)