Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 34 Heavy Artillery?

The church was shrouded in thick smoke, and the air was thick with the acrid smell of gunpowder.

The once majestic and magnificent building is now ravaged by gunfire, with black scorch marks on the gray walls and several glass windows shattered, leaving only crumbling remains.

The ground around the church was littered with corpses, some of them soldiers in Japanese uniforms and others of Chinese soldiers in German field uniforms. Their faces were contorted, as if silently telling the story of the horrors of the war.

The weapons scattered on the ground gleamed coldly: broken rifles, discarded grenade pins, and several unexploded grenades lying quietly to the side, like silent witnesses to a nightmare.

In the distance, the booming of cannons echoed through the air, tearing through the thick smoke, while streaks of fire rose around the church, leaping like ghosts, making the battlefield appear even more sinister and terrifying.

Yuichiro Nagano stood not far away, his long-tense expression gradually relaxing. As he looked towards the church, a hint of a smile finally appeared on his face, a smile reflecting his anticipation and sense of victory.

This place, which brought casualties and humiliation to the 11th Infantry Regiment, is about to be conquered by him and his soldiers.

He looked around and saw his own soldiers, under the cover of heavy machine guns, grenade launchers and artillery, gradually approaching the church that was said to be hiding a large number of beautiful female students.

Yuichiro Nagano had already planned that after capturing the church, he would take several female students from the church back to the regimental base to comfort the hardworking warriors of the 11th Regiment.

As the highest-ranking officer of the 11th Regiment, it's not unreasonable for him to select the two most beautiful girls first, is it?

Just as Nagano Yuichiro was feeling quite pleased with himself, Hasegawa, who was standing by the window of a house about a hundred meters behind him, put down his binoculars and let out a soft hum.

His deputy, the company commander who had come with him this morning, said somewhat indignantly, "Deputy Captain, after the battle, I suggest you go into the church first. We must not let Colonel Nagano act recklessly."

Hasegawa paused for a moment, then asked in return, "What reason do I have to stop Nagano-kun after I go in first?"

The victors naturally have the right to choose their spoils first. Regardless, we have indeed failed today. Nagano and his men paid a heavy price to capture that church; that cannot be denied.

"But……"

The squad leader got anxious and tried to speak, but Hasegawa interrupted him with a gesture.

"Alright, that's enough. It's decided then. At worst, I'll explain it to the detachment commander myself when we get back to headquarters."

"Hai!" The squadron leader was still somewhat indignant. He wanted to say something more, but under Hasegawa's stern gaze, he had no choice but to shut his mouth.

Just as the squadron leader was sulking with his head down, a deep whistling sound broke the silence, as if foreshadowing some ominous sign.

Immediately afterwards, a dark figure suddenly descended upon the open space in front of the church, sending chills down everyone's spines like the arrival of death. A deafening explosion then tore through the air.

A violent explosion followed by thick smoke rose up, and the huge shockwave instantly blew three Japanese soldiers who were taking turns providing cover as they advanced into the air.

When the three Japanese soldiers crashed to the ground, they were already three corpses.

Hasegawa's expression immediately changed, and the lieutenant beside him cried out in disbelief, "Heavy artillery... the Chinese heavy artillery!"

Both men were experienced soldiers who were extremely familiar with the sound of artillery. They could roughly determine the caliber of the attacking artillery and even predict the distance of the shells from their impact point simply by the whistling sound of the shells in the sky.

Not to mention the shockwave and thick smoke from the explosion; even those more than a hundred meters away could clearly feel it. It was definitely a shell with a caliber exceeding one hundred millimeters. Hasegawa grabbed the lieutenant's arm and angrily said, "This is a test firing by the Chinese artillery! Immediately notify Nagano-kun to have the 11th Regiment withdraw, or it will be too late!"

"Boom...boom..."

Hasegawa, as expected of a mid-level officer with extensive battlefield experience, reacted exceptionally quickly. Unfortunately, less than a minute after he spoke, shells began to fall one after another.

Each shell that crashed down was accompanied by a deafening roar and scattered debris, turning everything around into ruins.

The Japanese troops, who were originally advancing towards the church in skirmish formation, suffered greatly under such bombardment.

苏耀阳这次给重型迫击炮连装备的M2型107毫米迫击炮其实还有个别名，叫做M2型4.2英寸（107毫米）化学迫击炮。

Originally designed to launch chemical munitions (such as poison gas shells), it was later converted to launch conventional high-explosive shells due to restrictions imposed by international conventions and the needs of actual combat.

Due to its large caliber, its high-explosive shell weighs 12.7 kg, and its power far exceeds that of the 81 mm mortar of the same period.

Its blast radius can reach 50 meters, and targets within that range will be severely damaged.

Without proper fortifications, almost no one within a radius of tens of meters could survive.

Shells kept exploding around the church, and the Japanese army's originally smooth attack formation instantly became chaotic.

Even more deadly was that, because the Japanese attack formation was relatively dense, almost every shell could take the lives of several Japanese soldiers, and for a time the battlefield was filled with the screams of Japanese soldiers.

Guns and corpses were scattered everywhere; some uniforms were torn to shreds, and some faces were distorted by the explosions. The horrific scene was too gruesome to bear.

"Retreat quickly...retreat quickly..."

The sudden artillery bombardment not only inflicted heavy losses on the attacking Japanese 11th Regiment, but also caught Nagano Yuichiro, who was just about to savor victory, completely off guard.

"Commander, the Chinese reinforcements have arrived! It must be the Chinese reinforcements! What should we do?" The regimental chief of staff rushed over to ask.

"Immediately order the troops to retreat in alternating shifts and cease all attacks," Nagano Yuichiro immediately issued the order.

"Hai!"

It must be said that Yuichiro Nagano's order was issued very promptly, and the 11th Regiment, as expected of a veteran and strong unit, executed it very decisively and resolutely. However, two legs are still much slower than artillery shells.

Shells rained down on the Japanese troops, the raging barrage of metal bullets and the massive shockwaves claiming the lives of Japanese soldiers, making their retreat extremely difficult.

Just as the Japanese troops of the 11th Regiment were hastily retreating, a deep, rough voice rang out from more than 200 meters away from them.

"Fix bayonets on rifles, pull the pins on grenades halfway! Just like in the past, each squad combat team closely follows their squad leader or deputy squad leader!"

The newly appointed platoon and squad leaders were shouting loudly, saying they were just waiting for the shelling to stop so they could charge toward the church.

(End of this chapter)