Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Shaoguan, South China.

This once important town in northern Guangdong, which has weathered a thousand years of storms, has now been completely transformed into a scorched, carnage-like scene.

After seven days and nights of bloody fighting, almost no intact walls could be found in the entire city.

Thick gunpowder smoke mixed with the acrid smell of burning corpses condensed into a thick layer of haze under the gloomy sky, which even the midday sun could not penetrate.

South Gate position.

Or rather, it was once a pile of rubble and ruins at the South Gate.

The remnants of the 478th Regiment of the 160th Division were lying dead behind the barricades made of bricks and the bodies of their comrades.

Due to the intensity of the battle and the heavy casualties.

Originally intended as a rear-area rest unit, they were now thrown back into the battlefield.

Battalion Commander Lin Zhenwu's left arm was wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, and his face was covered in a mixture of blood and soot.

He gripped a large, blunt-bladed knife tightly in his hand, and beside him lay an M3 submachine gun whose magazine had just been emptied.

"boom--!"

A 75mm mountain gun shell exploded less than 20 meters from the barricade.

The scorching heatwave, mixed with sharp shrapnel, instantly tore the two soldiers who were carrying ammunition to shreds.

Blood rain and pebbles rained down from the sky, pelting down on them.

Lin Zhenwu forcefully spat out the sand from his mouth without even blinking.

As a "veteran" and a regimental commander.

He understood this perfectly well.

Sacrifice is always a central theme of war.

Lin Zhenwu peered through the gaps in the sandbags, his eyes fixed on the dark, dusty expanse at the end of the street ahead.

"Go on the bayonet!"

His hoarse voice was still very loud in the aftershocks of the explosion.

Inside the trenches.

The remaining hundred or so men silently drew their bayonets and slammed them into the barrels of the Hanyang rifles.

The clicking sound of metal rubbing together continued incessantly.

The soldiers did not shout battle cries.

Perhaps the exhaustion from days of fighting had worn down their last bit of strength.

But they still showed contempt for death.

This same contempt extended to the attacking Japanese invaders.

Before long, at the end of the line of sight, the earthen-yellow figures reappeared like a tide.

A complete infantry battalion of the Japanese 104th Division, under the cover of three Type 94 light armored vehicles, began its fifth group assault of the day, treading over the rubble and debris scattered on the ground.

The heavy machine guns on the Type 94 armored vehicle spewed fire wildly, sending rubble flying across the already dilapidated barricades.

"Does the grenade launcher still have shells?"

"Have!"

"Then blow up those tin cans for me!"

Several grenade launchers slammed into the Japanese ranks with short, sharp whistles.

However, this level of counterattack seemed somewhat ineffective against the Japanese army, which had armored cover.

Japanese infantrymen, armed with Type 38 rifles, approached with menacing expressions.

150 meters
one hundred meters
Above the clouds.

Suddenly, a deep and violent roar came from the sky.

The sound initially resembled a swarm of angry wasps, but in the blink of an eye, it transformed into thunder that tore through the sky!
"Om-!"

The thick, lead-gray clouds were forcibly cut open.

Twelve P-51 Mustang fighter planes painted with the Blue Sky with a White Sun emblem, like twelve silver lightning bolts, swooped down from a height of ten thousand feet with an extremely fierce killing intent.

Following closely behind.

There were eight B-25 Mitchell medium bombers.

This is a mixed strike formation of the Chinese Air Force that took off from Hengyang Airport!

Since the start of the Battle of Shaoguan.

As long as the weather in South China permits, these eagles with absolute air superiority will descend upon this scorched land on time.

"It's our plane!"

A young Guangdong soldier excitedly ripped off his blood-stained military cap, leaned back in the trench, pointed to the sky, and roared loudly.

Lin Zhenwu's eyes blazed with fanaticism as he grabbed his rifle: "Brothers, the Air Force brothers are here to back us up!"

In the sky.

The lead P-51 fighter jet suddenly leveled its nose at an altitude of less than 800 meters above the ground.

The six M2 Browning light and heavy machine guns on both sides of the wing opened fire simultaneously.

The machine gun ammunition belts intertwined in mid-air, forming six blazing whips that lashed down on the Japanese charging formation with overwhelming force.

Those three swaggering Type 94 light armored vehicles, with their thin top armor, were as fragile as paper toys in the face of 12.7mm armor-piercing incendiary rounds.

In just a few seconds, the armored vehicle was riddled with bullets.

The fuel tank was instantly ignited, and three orange-red fireballs exploded in the middle of the street, turning the Japanese crew inside into charred remains.

The Japanese infantry on the ground were thrown into chaos by the metallic storm that felt like divine punishment.

Rows of Japanese soldiers were shot in half by heavy machine gun fire, their limbs flying everywhere in the muddy streets.

Immediately afterwards, a group of B-25 bombers flew low overhead.

The bomb bay door on the belly of the aircraft was flung open with a loud crash.

Dozens of specially made napalm bombs spun and landed precisely on the Japanese army's assembly points and artillery positions behind their lines.

"Boom! Boom! Boom—!"

Once viscous, gelatinous gasoline comes into contact with air, it immediately bursts into an unquenchable raging fire.

Clusters of mushroom clouds, hundreds of meters high, rose into the sky.

The Japanese artillery positions instantly turned into a living hell. The gunners who fled in all directions were engulfed in flames, and their shrill screams even drowned out the roar of the aircraft engines.

The air blockade, lasting only fifteen minutes, completely thwarted this extremely deadly wave of Japanese offensive.

After shaking its wings, the air force formation pulled up its nose and disappeared into the distant clouds.

The ground was littered with the corpses of Japanese soldiers and the wreckage of burning tanks.

Lin Zhenwu collapsed onto the muddy ground, panting heavily.

However, the strange, burnt smell in the air lingered in his mind.
……

Underground air-raid shelters in Shaoguan city.

Fourth War Zone Forward Command Post.

The massive tremors caused soil to continuously fall from the top of the air-raid shelter, landing on the blood-stained military map.

Wu Shi stood in front of the map, his hands gripping the edge of the table tightly, his eyes bloodshot.

A person strode in, his face as somber as the leaden sky outside.

"Seat Master."

The man who came was Huang Tao, the commander of the main force stationed in Shaoguan. His voice was unusually dry: "Although the support from the air force brothers repelled several of the enemy's main attacks, the Japanese army's numerical advantage is too great."

He picked up a red and blue pencil and drew several alarming gaps on the map.

"Two regiments of the 104th Division, despite suffering heavy casualties, have forcibly crossed the Zhenjiang defense line."

"The 155th Division defending the west gate has suffered more than half its casualties, and its position has been cut off. The high ground in the southern suburbs has also just fallen."

Huang Tao raised his head, his gaze both sorrowful and resolute: "We are surrounded on three sides, and we can only hold out for two more days at most."

"The Japanese army will definitely commit all its reserves to the next general offensive." Wu Shi took a deep breath and slowly straightened up.

He drew the Browning pistol that had been with him for many years from his waist.

With a "whoosh".

The crisp sound of a bullet being chambered was unusually jarring inside the narrow air-raid shelter.

"Gather all the gun-wielding personnel in the headquarters, including the civilian staff, cooks, and guards."

Wu Shi's tone was surprisingly calm, without a trace of fear, only the final sense of destiny of a soldier.

"Our Guangdong Army has fought some famous and tough battles, as well as some humiliating ones."

"But now, we have a choice: to be remembered in history or to be infamous for eternity. You can choose for yourselves."

He holstered his pistol and glanced at each officer present: "Once the West Gate falls, I'll lead you all into street fighting and bayonet charges against the Japanese."

Huang Tao stood at attention, his back ramrod straight, and gave a firm military salute: "I swear to live and die with Shaoguan!"

The atmosphere inside the command post was extremely somber; everyone was silently checking their weapons, awaiting the final battle.

however.

The gears of fate often take a sharp turn at the most desperate moments.

It was exactly 5 p.m.

A fierce wind swept up dark clouds, dragging the entire city of Shaoguan into an early night, thus bringing the battle to an end.

The general offensive prepared by the Japanese army did not take place as planned.

The next morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

Commander Shigeji Suzuki of the Japanese 104th Division stood on a high ground, raised his sword, and issued the final order for the general offensive.

Shortly after the combat troops launched their attack.

"Boom—Rumble!!!"

A muffled thunderous sound, unlike the 75mm mountain guns of the Japanese army, rolled in from the south of Shaoguan City.

The voice was extremely deep and resonant, as if even the earth itself was trembling.

Shigeji Suzuki turned his head sharply, his pupils contracting suddenly.

That's the sound of heavy artillery!
Followed by.

Dozens of shells, trailing a piercing whistling sound, crashed into the Japanese artillery positions and reserves in the southern suburbs!
Although not very precise, the Japanese suffered considerable losses under the barrage of fire.

"Boom! Boom! Boom—!"

The violent shockwave from the explosion overturned many of the Japanese artillery pieces and tore hundreds of Japanese soldiers who were in formation into a cloud of blood mist.

"What's going on?!"

Suzuki Shigeji was utterly horrified and shoved aside his adjutant: "Where did those Chinese get their heavy artillery?!"

On the southern horizon.

The roar of the engine surged in like a tsunami, drowning out the sound of the wind and rain.

Amidst the pervasive smoke and mud.

Dozens of M3 half-track armored vehicles and Dodge 10-wheel trucks bearing the Kuomintang emblem roared through the rain!
These steel behemoths did not slow down at all, like an extremely sharp dagger, they plunged fiercely into the weak rear of the Japanese army from the south!

On the train carriages, rows of Chinese soldiers wearing M1 steel helmets leaped off the vehicles like tigers descending from the mountains.

Their American-style raincoats fluttered in the wind, and the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifles and Thompson submachine guns in their hands gleamed with a cold metallic sheen.

This is the Second Reorganized Brigade of the National Revolutionary Army!

This was originally a core elite force that guarded the border and had just completed its first wave of American-equipped replacements and a complete reorganization.

After receiving a top-secret military order from the General Headquarters, they were rushed into the battlefield by train, traveling day and night!

On the lead half-track command vehicle, a burly man with a shaved head and wearing a military overcoat ripped off his peaked cap, revealing his signature bald head.

Liu Yuzhang, commander of the reorganized 2nd Brigade!
He casually grabbed an American Thompson submachine gun from his waist.

"We're not late!"

Liu Yuzhang spat and roared in a booming voice, "Run them over and kill these little brats!"

With Liu Yuzhang's roar.

The four main infantry regiments of the reorganized 2nd Brigade, in accordance with the original battle plan, moved like a giant steel fishing net to encircle the rear of the Japanese 104th Division.

"Rat-a-tat-tat-tat—!"

The vehicle-mounted M2 Browning heavy machine gun began firing wildly, its large 12.7mm bullets cutting Japanese infantrymen who tried to block it in half.

The infantry squad's Type 31 rocket launcher operators quickly took up high ground, and the rockets, trailing plumes of flame, accurately targeted the hastily constructed machine gun nests of the Japanese army.

Firepower generation difference.

This is an absolute, irrational, and overwhelming force.

The Japanese 104th Division was thrown into extreme chaos after suffering this sudden and devastating blow.

They were originally hunters who were hunting in Shaoguan, but within minutes they became prey, slaughtered unilaterally by heavy firepower.

"Baka! It's the main force of American weapons!"

Suzuki Shigeji watched as his proud infantry regiment fell in droves like wheat being harvested under the continuous fire of the Garand rifles, his face ashen.

"retreat!"

"Immediately turn eastward into the mountainous region!"

Faced with such overwhelming firepower, the Bushido spirit appears pale and laughable.

Without hesitation, Shigeji Suzuki issued the order to "retreat".

……

Inside an air-raid shelter in Shaoguan.

Wu Shi was stunned when he heard the sudden change in rhythm of the gunfire outside, which became unusually dense and muffled.

"This gunshot isn't from our Hanyang rifles or Czech-made rifles!"

Wu Shi rushed to the cave entrance and looked at the flames soaring into the sky in the southern suburbs.

A communications staff officer scrambled into the air-raid shelter, tears of excitement mingling with mud streaming down his face.

"Sir!"

"Reinforcements! They're our reinforcements!"

The staff officer's voice was quite loud, almost splitting as he shouted, "The Second Reorganized Brigade has arrived!"

"Their vanguard completely routed the Japanese troops in the southern suburbs!"

The Browning pistol in Wu Shi's hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

He suddenly turned around and embraced Huang Tao tightly; the eyes of the two battle-hardened veterans reddened at the same time.

Shaoguan has been saved!
It not only saved Shaoguan, but also proved the grand military reforms promised at the Cairo Conference by the General Staff.

That is, the massive "60th Division" re-equipment plan has taken root and sprouted on this land in just over a month.

Two hours later.

Liu Yuzhang stepped over the Japanese corpses scattered on the ground, touched his bald head, and strode into the dilapidated city gate of Shaoguan.

He walked up to Wu Shi, snapped to attention, and gave a crisp military salute, his eyes revealing an undisguised fierceness.

"Liu Yuzhang, commander of the Second Reorganized Brigade of the National Revolutionary Army, has been ordered by the Supreme Command to lead his troops to wipe out these scoundrels!"

Liu Yuzhang's voice was firm and resonant, exuding the unique arrogance of this brand-new elite unit.

"Commander Wu, the main force of the Japanese 104th Division has been decimated by our brigade, and the bastards are fleeing into the mountains!"

Wu Shi looked at the reorganized brigade in front of him, which was completely transformed from top to bottom and whose firepower was even comparable to that of a previous army, and nodded repeatedly.

He gripped Liu Yuzhang's hand tightly and took a deep breath.

"it is good!"

"What a fine Second Reorganized Brigade!" (End of Chapter)