Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 127 Aerial Threat
A communications officer approached Su Yaoyang and shouted, "Report... Battalion Commander Duan called and said that the Japanese army has dispatched at least one battalion to launch a fierce attack on the Second Battalion's position. The offensive is extremely fierce."

Su Yaoyang, who was looking down at the map, looked up and asked, "What are the casualties in the Second Battalion?"

"The second battalion commander said that they had suffered more than 100 casualties, but at least twice as many enemy soldiers were killed or wounded."

"understood."

Su Yaoyang waved for the other person to leave, and then raised his wrist to check his watch.

It is now 8:27 a.m., less than two hours since the Japanese launched their attack.

In other words, in less than two hours, the Second Battalion alone suffered more than 100 casualties, not counting the casualties on other positions.

But his troops in Taierzhuang numbered only about two thousand. If the casualties continued at this rate, his entire force would be wiped out by nightfall at the latest.

He grabbed the black telephone on the table, intending to connect the operator to the command center, but then put it down.

He knew very well that although Li Zongren was stationed in Xuzhou, the only troops he could currently mobilize were Chi Fengcheng's 31st Division and his own security regiment.

However, the 31st Division, with its original 8,000 men, was reduced to less than 3,000. It had only been a few days since it withdrew to rest and recuperate, and its strength had not yet been fully replenished. Even if it were to be pulled back, it would probably not be of much use.

The only fighting units in their own security regiment were the 2nd, 4th, and 6th infantry battalions, which had only been in the village for a few days. The remaining 1st, 3rd, and 5th battalions and the tank company were still resting in Xuzhou.

Right now, the only unit I can actually manage is the guard company directly under the regimental headquarters.

Damn it, if you piss me off, I'll send another batch of sarin gas to the artillery battalion and suffocate you bastards.

But he dismissed the thought as soon as it crossed his mind.

The Japanese had just signed a treaty with the Chongqing government agreeing not to use chemical weapons, so they couldn't afford to act recklessly.

If we really push the Japanese too far, and they go berserk and start throwing poison gas bombs into major cities, then we'll be in big trouble.

This thing is a double-edged sword; it should only be used as a last resort.

After thinking for a long time, Su Yaoyang sent a telegram to the security regiment camp outside Xuzhou City, ordering the tank company to stop resting and to have John lead the tank company to wait outside the south bank of the canal.

He then ordered Li Gaoyuan to be ready to stop resting and to rush to the aid of Taierzhuang at any time.

Not to mention Su Yaoyang's busy troop deployment and preparations to risk everything, in the Japanese command post outside Taierzhuang, when Nakajima Kesago received the casualty figures reported by Shinohara Jiro, the commander of the 30th Brigade, he was also taken aback.

"Six hundred and twenty-five casualties?"

Looking at the report in his hand, Nakajima Kesago felt uneasy.

Only a few hours have passed, and half a battalion has already been killed or wounded. If the fighting continues at this rate of casualties, the 30th Brigade will be wiped out in less than two days.

He blinked, and with some disbelief, he shouted at the staff officer, "Did you verify the authenticity of this intelligence?"

"Yes... Your Excellency, Division Commander."

The staff officer also said with a bitter expression, "After receiving the report from Brigade Commander Shinohara, I personally verified it twice and only handed it over to you after confirming that it was correct."

"How could this be?" Nakajima Kesago roared. "How could the Chinese army be so powerful?"

"This attack only lasted two hours, and we've already lost most of our battalion. Are they all invincible gods?"

The staff officer swallowed hard. "Brigade Commander Shinohara said that the Chinese defenders on the other side have extremely sophisticated light weapons. They not only laid a large number of landmines in front of their positions, but also used rifles with an extremely high rate of fire, and had a large number of light and heavy machine guns. It would not be an exaggeration to describe it as a hail of bullets. In addition, the Chinese troops are hiding in fortifications, so they can shoot at us at will, which is why we have suffered such heavy casualties."

"idiot!"

Nakajima Kesago was furious. He had just put on a great show with Nagase Takehira. If the people of the 10th Division knew that he had suffered a great loss as soon as he attacked, where would he put his old face?

Although he was hot-tempered and cruel and liked to implement the "three alls" policy, he was still smart; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to become a division commander.

Why did Terauchi Hisaichi order him to come and reinforce the 10th Division? Wasn't it because the 10th Division had suffered heavy casualties after fighting for more than half a month?
If he couldn't take Taierzhuang like the 10th Division, would he also be sent back to the mainland like that unfortunate brigade commander before him?

With this in mind, he forced himself to calm down and think of a way to break the deadlock.

Increasing troop strength is impossible. Taierzhuang is only so big, and a brigade is already the limit. Any more would just be handing over kills to the enemy.

After a while, he said to his staff officer, "Order Brigade Commander Shinohara to stop the attack. I will have the Army Air Force conduct another round of continuous bombing of Taierzhuang. We will continue the attack after the bombing is over."

"Hai!"

Under the command of Nakajima Kesago, the Army Air Force once again launched a bombing raid on Taierzhuang.

Since the Chinese army had already lost air superiority, the Japanese army dispatched sixteen Type 96 attack aircraft and four Type 97 fighters, a total of twenty aircraft, without any scruples, to launch a fierce bombing raid on Taierzhuang.

The roar of twenty Japanese warplanes tearing through the clouds was so loud it hurt people's eardrums.

The shrill cry of the Type 96 attack aircraft as it dove down was like a blunt knife scraping across the back. The blast wave ripped off the roofs of the few remaining tiled houses, and broken tiles mixed with straw and wood chips slammed against the charred earthen walls.

Su Yaoyang lay in a bombed-out house, observing the sky through binoculars.

What neither Nakajima Kesago nor the air force knew was that after suffering several heavy losses at the hands of Japanese aircraft, Su Yaoyang had also become ruthless.

In the past two days, he expanded the air defense battalion into a large organization of six companies.

To date, it has been equipped with fifty-eight 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns, which have been deployed in Taierzhuang and along the canal.

As Japanese planes lowered their altitude to prepare for bombing, the gun positions of the three anti-aircraft gun emplacements in the northwest corner suddenly spewed flames.

Four bursts of black clouds forced a Type 96 attack aircraft to make a sharp turn, its wings scraping the city wall and dropping a string of bombs in a panic.

As soon as the Type 96 attack aircraft turned, another anti-aircraft gun deployed on the south bank of the canal opened fire.

A barrage of shells followed the plane, and as smoke and shrapnel exploded outside the porthole, the pilot saw the aluminum sheeting of the left wing tear like rice paper.

Hydraulic oil splattered on the windshield, the viscous liquid mixed with a pungent, burnt smell obscuring half of the view.

The joystick suddenly vibrated violently in his palm, the intense vibrations making both his hands numb.

At this moment, he could clearly see the shimmering light on the canal surface beneath the wing growing larger and larger in his slanted field of vision, and the severed wing was spinning as it plummeted into the river.

"Bagaya Deer!"

The pilot cursed and clenched the control stick, oblivious to the roar of the anti-aircraft guns chasing the out-of-control aircraft. A violent explosion rang out at the tail of the fuselage, and the entire plane crashed into the ground with a deafening bang...

(End of this chapter)