Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 394 392 Taishan Walkie-Talkie, Real Combat Test, Railway Guerrilla Behind Enemy Lines

X-ray eyes!
A very peculiar yet useful ability made Fang Wen extremely happy.

He happily experimented with different visual methods to test the limits of this ability and how to use it.

Being able to penetrate a solid wood coffee table is not its limit.

Then he looked at the desk.

His desk has a metal bulletproof layer; I wonder if it can be penetrated by X-ray vision.

The first attempt was unsuccessful.

Fang Wen thought it was a problem with energy output; different penetration intensities required different amounts of energy.

Immediately, the injection of faith energy was increased, and the mysterious bead responded once again.

This time, he saw it.

The line of sight penetrated the metal bulletproof plate, and the almost transparent desk revealed its internal structure, showing the items in each drawer, as well as the weapons and mechanisms hidden in the compartments.

What if we increase the injection volume further?
He stood in front of the partition wall, looking at the steel safe behind it.

This is quite difficult; the metal is too dense and very thick, so the energy required to see through it increases exponentially.

But after a certain amount of energy was injected, his vision still penetrated the safe and he could see what was inside.

This ability has many uses in wartime, and Fang Wen was somewhat reluctant to absorb its energy.

In the end, he gave up on using the mysterious bead as a power bank and instead took it out and made it into a necklace to wear around his neck, so that he could use this ability to deal with any situation that required it.

Obtaining a rare treasure that further enhances one's personal abilities is a great joy for Fang Wen.

But in the grand scheme of the war, it becomes insignificant.

The war was still escalating, and Japanese troops were spotted in the Huai River basin and Shandong province.

Much of eastern China was engulfed in war.

Today's China doesn't lack an air combat hero, but rather needs more military strength.

Therefore, Fang Wen once again focused his attention on research.

With his newfound abilities, he provided researchers with valuable insights through his observations at the microscopic level of semiconductor component design.

With his involvement, the manufacturing technology of semiconductor components has made remarkable progress.

The fabrication technologies for components such as rectifier diodes, detector diodes, Zener diodes, switching diodes, and isolation diodes have been completed.

With these basic component manufacturing technologies, mass production of semiconductor radios became feasible.

Now, all that's left is for the students from Kunming who have mastered basic electrical knowledge to graduate.

The three-month training period means they won't graduate until April.

It's currently mid-February, so there are still two months to wait.

Therefore, Fang Wen dispatched all other preparatory work for the factory construction to other departments. Once everything is ready, all that is needed is for personnel training and onboarding.

At the same time, he did not forget the enemy-occupied base in Fuping.

Now that spring has arrived and flowers are blooming, and the ice and snow have melted, the Japanese army has finally sent troops to attack the Taihang Mountains.

The Eighth Route Army, which was holding out behind enemy lines, had already engaged in battle with the enemy.

As the only air force base behind enemy lines, it's time to strike the enemy hard and cooperate with friendly forces.

Immediately after arranging matters in the rear, Fang Wen flew back to Fuping with a batch of individual soldier communication equipment samples.

2 month 16 day.

A seaplane landed on the river at Fuping Airport.

Fang Wen got off the plane and entered the airport conference room with Wu Yingzong, William, Pan Jiafeng and others who were there to greet him.

In the meeting room, Wu Yingzong explained the current situation to Fang Wen on behalf of everyone.

"Commander, we have now discovered several small groups of Japanese troops in Fuping, but they have all been repelled by our troops. Our friendly forces have also discovered many traces of Japanese troops. After exchanging information, we have concluded that this is the Japanese army scouting the deployment of troops in the Taihang Mountains, and that a larger-scale attack is coming soon."

Fang Wen nodded, "The Japanese army will definitely come in to fight. We can't just passively resist; we have to take the initiative. This time I brought new equipment, which will better enhance the coordination between infantry units."

As he spoke, he took out the infantry communication equipment made by the research institute and introduced it.

"This is a Taishan infantry handheld walkie-talkie; you can call it the Taishan walkie-talkie."

The walkie-talkie he showed was 15 centimeters long, 6 centimeters in diameter, and weighed 2.5 kilograms.

Although it is much bulkier than future mobile phones and even early mobile phones, it is already the most advanced wireless communication device of this era.

Its internal space contains a receiver and transmitter, as well as components such as batteries, microphones, and headphones.

The bulky and large radio frequency amplifiers, oscillators, mixers, intermediate frequency amplifiers, detectors, amplifiers, and AC audio amplifiers of the original vacuum tube equipment have been reduced in size by several times and integrated into an aluminum plate in the form of integrated circuits.

This enabled an infantryman to make remote calls using a handheld device.

With it, along with signal relay stations or signal relay vehicles, infantry communications for wide-area, deep-penetration operations can be achieved.

Upon hearing Fang Wen's introduction, the officers' eyes lit up with excitement.

Having participated in numerous actual combat operations and frequently conducted exercises, they are well aware of how important this equipment is for infantry.

In particular, Fang Wen mentioned that it can also cooperate with air forces to conduct voice communication.

This will allow the Taishan Independent Regiment to fully utilize its advantages.

Therefore, they were very excited to learn how to operate this device.

Fang Wen continued to explain and demonstrate to them.

The Taishan walkie-talkie comes in two types: a 2-meter-long straight rod external antenna and a regular short antenna.

The short antenna enables communication within a 2-kilometer range, making it suitable for interaction during frontline operations.

After the external antenna is attached to the pole, another soldier needs to hold it up to keep it upright, which can increase the communication range to 5 kilometers.

If there are signal relay stations or signal relay vehicles, the communication distance can be doubled, theoretically achieving a network coverage area of ​​up to 50 square kilometers.

In addition, the Taishan walkie-talkie is equipped with two types of power sources: a hand-cranked generator, which provides 10 minutes of communication time after each power-up, and dry cell batteries. However, because there are no dedicated walkie-talkie batteries, the efficiency is not high; two dry cell batteries can only provide 30 minutes of communication time.

Therefore, this equipment typically requires a hand-cranked generator for power, with dry cell batteries only used during wartime. The officers listened attentively to Fang Wen's explanation, taking careful notes.

Subsequently, Fang Wen handed over the ten laboratory prototypes he brought to the officers for practice, and then had them teach them to the junior officers.

(The SCR-536, the world's first handheld walkie-talkie for individual soldiers, was equipped by the U.S. military in 1942 and was comparable to the Taishan walkie-talkie.)

The ten Taishan walkie-talkies are just prototypes; their effectiveness needs to be proven through multiple real-world applications.

Under the current circumstances, the probability of the Japanese army appearing in Fuping is very small. On the contrary, the Eighth Route Army has launched various forms of guerrilla tactics behind enemy lines and frequently engages in battles with the Japanese army.

In addition, Fang Wen originally set up an air base in Fuping with the intention of cooperating with the Eighth Route Army in combat.

Immediately, he prepared to arrange for a team of soldiers from an independent regiment to join the Eighth Route Army's operations behind enemy lines, carrying walkie-talkies.

This matter required their consent, and after some telegram exchange, they replied.

[Our unit is preparing to dispatch multiple guerrilla units behind enemy lines to operate along the Pinghan Railway, sabotaging telecommunications, bridges, railways, and other transportation facilities in enemy-occupied areas to prevent the Japanese army from advancing south.]

If your department is willing to cooperate, you may also participate in the operation.

Sabotaging enemy-held railways—isn't that just railway guerrilla warfare?
Fang Wen immediately agreed and specially selected 100 elite soldiers from the Third Battalion of the Independent Regiment, led by William, to go to Quyang to participate in the operation.

After the personnel assembled at the seaplane airport, they boarded three gunboats and took off.

Quyang County is located on the edge of the Taihang Mountains, bordering Fuping County. The plane flew downstream along the Shahe River.

Downstream in the Quyang section of the Dasha River, Fang Wen piloted the lead aircraft, leading the other two aircraft in a circling maneuver.

With his mechanical senses activated, he searched for possible backup personnel near the river.

Soon, he spotted a group of people waving at the sky from the riverbank.

Furthermore, a T-shaped table made of stacked stones was placed on the ground.

Once the secret code was matched and it was confirmed that the person was a member of the Eighth Route Army, Fang Wen immediately led the way to land the gunboat on the river.

Three gunboats landed one after another on the Dasha River, creating such a large splash that the Eighth Route Army soldiers who came to meet them were stunned.

The young soldiers discussed among themselves:
"What a huge thing."

"I heard that its weapons are incredibly powerful; bullets can penetrate steel plates and even explode."

"I also heard the squad leader say that during the Taiyuan North Blocking Battle, the bombs they dropped could burn a large area and produce a lot of smoke, which knocked out a large number of Japanese devils."

The officer in charge shouted, "Alright, stop arguing. Stand at attention, straight! Don't let the Independent Regiment look down on us."

The soldiers immediately became serious, lined up, and greeted the friendly forces of the Taishan Independent Regiment who were disembarking from the plane.

All 100 soldiers who were involved in the railway guerrilla operation behind enemy lines disembarked from the three planes.

Fang Wen also got off the plane and handed over the duties to the Eighth Route Army.

He shook hands with the officer leading the other team: "Hello, I am Fang Wen, the commander of the Taishan Independent Regiment."

"You must be Fang Wen!" The officer stood at attention and saluted. "Thank you for your support in northern Shanxi, especially at Yangmingbao. I was fortunate enough to participate in that battle as a member of the ground forces. It was truly an eye-opening experience; I never knew war could be fought like this."

Fang Wen smiled and said, "This is the application of technology in war. We are only lagging behind the great powers, but Chinese civilization has a long history. Every time we fall, we get back up and become the strongest civilization."

The officer liked Fang Wen's statement and agreed, saying, "Yes, we will eventually rise up."

Subsequently, Fang Wen handed over the reins to him.

"This unit of one hundred men is equipped with American Thompson submachine guns, two combat-capacity magazines, fragmentation grenades, and various battlefield support tools, as well as half a month's worth of marching rations. In addition, they are carrying infantry communication equipment, which we hope you will make good use of. Also, if you need air force support, please notify us by telegram."

Listening to Fang Wen's introduction, the Eighth Route Army officer was astonished. These individual soldier configurations were simply too elite. It was likely that even the Nationalist government's army was not as well-equipped as these 100 men.

He asked, "I've heard of the Thompson submachine gun. It's an automatic weapon that does have a strong suppressive effect in close combat, but it also consumes a lot of bullets. I estimate that they'll run out of bullets after just one battle, so it's better to use a rifle."

"Don't worry, their logistics and supplies, as well as yours, will be taken care of by our Independent Regiment. I will airdrop supplies to you every now and then," Fang Wen replied with a smile.

Then, waving his hand, the crew of the gunboat unloaded a batch of supplies from the aircraft and piled them up in front of the officer.

Fang Wen continued, "These are the first batch of military compressed rations and 7.92mm bullets I'm giving you. Supplies will be replenished via airdrop in the future."

"Oh, I can't accept this." The officer scratched the back of his head.

The soldiers behind him grew anxious.

"Company commander, you're sorry, but we are."

Subsequently, these supplies were given as a greeting gift to the guerrillas behind enemy lines.

Fang Wenze gave William a final explanation.

"When you are operating behind enemy lines, do not have any worries about your rear. Remember that we have good mobile forces to support you. You should take advantage of information gaps to fight with superior force, especially by maintaining smooth air-to-ground communication."

William nodded seriously. Although he was originally a German officer, after living in China for so many years, he considered himself half Chinese. He had no resistance to fighting the Japanese army and would absolutely obey Fang Wen's orders.

Afterwards, Fang Wen bid farewell to the troops, returned to the plane, and took off.

They watched as the three gunboats flew away.

Led by William, 100 soldiers of the Independent Regiment followed the Eighth Route Army's support team to the meeting point of the guerrillas behind enemy lines.

There was a team of over three hundred people there.

After a brief introduction, William joined the action meeting.

One of them drew a simple map on the ground with a stick.

"We are here now, within Quyang County. According to the plan, our first destination is Xinle Station, which is located here."

His explanations are easy for those who are familiar with him to understand, but difficult for outsiders to comprehend.

An officer wearing glasses explained to William: "Hello, I am the political instructor of the county brigade. Let me introduce the battle plan to you. Our target, Xinle Station, is located north of Shijiazhuang and is one of the stations on the Pinghan Railway. The Japanese army uses this railway to continuously transport troops and supplies southward, putting great pressure on southern Shanxi and the area north of the Yellow River in Henan. If we attack one of the stations, we can disrupt the efficiency of the supply transport."

William nodded: "I understand. Please allow me to offer my opinion on this operation."

The commanders in the room all looked at William, who had a foreign face, waiting for him to explain.

Upon hearing this, William said, "Our Taishan Independent Regiment has brought new equipment to participate in guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines. This equipment will play a role in the battle. It is called the Taishan walkie-talkie. It weighs 2.5 kilograms, is carried by a single soldier, and can make voice calls within a range of 2 kilometers, so that combat teams in different areas of the battlefield can understand each other's situation in a timely manner."

The commanders present were all Red Army soldiers with many years of combat experience. They were skilled in mobile warfare and understood the importance of being able to understand the situation of friendly units in a timely manner during battle.

Immediately, he became very interested in the Tarzan walkie-talkie that William mentioned.

(End of this chapter)