Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 145 Abacus Beads
The piercing alarm ripped through the sky, freezing many soldiers who were bending down to pick up their weapons in place.

Most of the soldiers were veterans who had experienced several major battles and life-or-death struggles. Upon hearing the sound of the plane's engines, they immediately threw away their spoils and scattered in all directions.

The distant roar of engines echoed as the Type 96 attack aircraft tore through the clouds like a vulture, the bombs beneath its wings gleaming with a cold metallic sheen in the sunlight.

"Buzz..."

The lead Type 96 attack aircraft shook its wings, and two 25-kilogram Death Bombs slammed into the ground with a whoosh. Unfortunately, the plane was diving too far, and the two bombs were dropped into the moat.

"Boom boom..."

A violent explosion accompanied by turbid water waves carrying mud and sand shot into the sky, and the shockwave slammed a soldier who had no time to dodge against the broken wall.

"idiot……"

The pilot, who had just dropped the bomb, saw that his bomb had landed in the moat. He cursed in frustration, then yanked the control stick toward his abdomen with his right hand while simultaneously pushing the throttle valve to its limit with his left.

The cabin was instantly filled with the roar of the engines. The sound of the two Mitsubishi engines was like that of an enraged beast, making the screws on the dashboard tremble.

As the 7.6-ton bird struggled to raise its nose, the back of his head slammed heavily against the headrest, and the dull pain of the seatbelt digging into his shoulder mixed with the smell of engine oil filled his nostrils.

The clouds outside the windshield began to tilt, and the airflow cutting through the wings screeched against the skin.

Just as the climb pointer passed the 200-meter mark, five or six orange-red fireballs suddenly burst open on the ground.

The rearview mirror reflected the serpentine trajectory of the tracer rounds, and the blue flames spewing from the machine gun muzzle remained on my retina.

Amidst the whistling of sharp words, several shells flew past the left wing of the aircraft, the aluminum skin instantly twisting and curling like tin foil, and the sound of metal tearing came through the fuselage, like someone scraping his spine with a steel file.

"Oh no... The Chinese have anti-aircraft guns!"

The sudden ground-based anti-aircraft fire caught the air force commander off guard.

Anti-aircraft guns are a rare commodity for the Chinese army, even rarer than artillery, and this is no exaggeration.

As of this year, China, a vast country, has only a handful of artillery pieces, fewer than a hundred, and most of them are deployed in important cities such as Wuhan and Chongqing.

Seeing anti-aircraft guns in a place like Wutai County is as rare as seeing pandas.

The first gun to fire was not the Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft gun, which was the first to be equipped in the anti-aircraft battalion, but the newly equipped Oerlikon 20mm anti-aircraft gun.

Although this 20mm anti-aircraft gun is not as powerful or long-range as the Bofors anti-aircraft gun, its greatest advantage is its lightness and maneuverability.

Weighing only 68 kilograms, it can be placed on a jeep and follow the troops throughout the journey, effectively protecting the airspace below 1,000 meters for the troops.

Just like now, when the Bofors anti-aircraft guns of the air defense battalion couldn't arrive in time, the air defense company equipped with Oerlikon anti-aircraft guns temporarily took on the heavy responsibility of air defense.

"Dong dong dong dong..."

The ground-based anti-aircraft fire became increasingly intense, with 20mm shells being fired into the sky, creating barrages across the heavens.

The Type 96 attack aircraft, having just finished dropping its bombs, trailed a charred contrail and spun as it plummeted like a crow with a broken wing.

The pilot gripped the control stick tightly, his distorted face reflected in the cockpit window, fear and resentment intertwined in his pupils.

"boom……"

Ultimately, the attack aircraft, fully loaded with 7.6 tons of cargo, crashed to the ground and transformed into a blazing fireball.

"Pull him up...pull him up..." "Take cover from anti-aircraft guns...take cover from anti-aircraft guns..."

The airborne commander was both heartbroken and furious to see his plane, which had just dropped its bombs, shot down by ground-based anti-aircraft fire.

But he suppressed his anger and ordered the aircraft to cease bombing and ascend to 3,000 meters before seeking a suitable altitude to continue bombing.

On a high slope a few miles away from Wutai County, Li Yunlong stared at the swarms of aircraft circling in the sky and the barrage of artillery shells exploding in mid-air, as if they were free. His mouth was agape, wide enough to fit a duck egg.

Zhang Dabiao next to him wasn't much better off; his eyes were wide open like copper bells.

Looking at the Japanese bomber group circling in the air, unable to find an opportunity to dive and bomb, Li Yunlong let out a long sigh.

Li Yunlong wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and muttered, "Damn it, I misspoke earlier. These people aren't just nouveau riche, they're practically gods of wealth! In just over ten minutes, they've fired more shells than I've ever seen in my entire life. If only I had such good equipment."

Zhang Dabiao said helplessly, "Commander... come on, even if these things were given to us for free, we still couldn't afford them."

I just did the math, and these anti-aircraft guns have a firing rate of at least three to four hundred rounds per minute, so ten guns would fire three to four thousand rounds per minute.

If we calculate based on half an hour of air defense, ten cannons would use at least 100,000 shells.

At this rate of warfare, let alone our new 1st Regiment, even if we sold our entire 386th Brigade, we still couldn't afford it.

Li Yunlong glared at Zhang Dabiao and said irritably, "Zhang Dabiao, you're just ruining my mood. Even if I can't afford it, can't I even think about it?"

Zhang Dabiao chuckled, "Commander... since we've seen enough, let's go. I have a feeling that the Nationalist army on the other side doesn't seem very easy to deal with."

Li Yunlong glared and said, "So what if they're hard to deal with? I'm not someone to be intimidated. If you piss me off, I'll beat them all up too."

Back when I was crossing the grasslands, I... well... never mind, let's not talk about that.

Zhang Dabiao, bring your troops and come with me…

"Commander...where are you going?" Zhang Dabiao asked, puzzled.

"Where are you going... You're so dense." Li Yunlong cursed, then whispered, "Don't you think about it? That unit caused such a commotion in Wutai County, how could the Japanese not send reinforcements?"

"If I hadn't encountered such a lively scene, I would have let it pass. But now that I've come across it, how could I, Li Yunlong, not lend a hand?"

"Stand up for them?" Zhang Dabiao looked at his commander in surprise.

Others may not know, but doesn't he understand?

Would someone who would pluck a handful of feathers from a passing goose, like their own leader, really be so kind as to help out?

Seeing Zhang Dabiao's still puzzled look, Li Yunlong was furious and cursed, "Are you stupid?"

You've seen the strength of that team down the mountain; they took over a county town in less than an hour.

Keep in mind that Wutai County had over 600 garrison troops, and the weapons they captured alone were enough to arm an entire regiment.

Judging from the nouveau riche attitude he's putting on, if we do him a favor, he'll feel bad asking us for help for nothing after the war is over, right?
They should at least give us something... If they could give us a few hundred guns, wouldn't we be rich?

"Hey..." Zhang Dabiao almost burst out laughing. His commander's scheme was so cunning that the beads were practically bouncing off his face.

(End of this chapter)