Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 578 Rocket Barrage Fire on Manshi Road, Reporter Hansen from the United Front

Quyang County is located in the western part of the North China Plain, on the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains, and backed by the Fuping Mountain area.

It is the border between the Jin-Cha-Ji base area and the Japanese-occupied area.

Relying on the Taihang Mountains, the Eighth Route Army controlled this area, radiating outwards to the Pinghan Railway and continuously threatening the Japanese war zone and rear supply lines.

Given the current national situation, it is truly remarkable that the Eighth Route Army could achieve such a feat.

Now, the Eighth Route Army, equipped with various new types of equipment from Taishan Military Industry, is preparing to fight a battle against a large Japanese force in the Quyang area.

As a result, troops that had been establishing bases behind enemy lines in Fuping, Tangxian, Wanxian, Dingxian, Wangdu, Xinle and other places began to gather in the Quyang area.

The troops were stationed outside the city, and the soldiers curiously looked at the five captured military vehicles covered with black cloth, wondering what they were for.

Meanwhile, high-ranking officers from various units met at the Quyang wartime command post to discuss how to launch an attack on the Japanese army.

Inside the wartime command post in Quyang, the sand table is covered with small red and blue flags, marking the terrain and roads within Quding County.

The commander of the Third Military Sub-district presided over the meeting, surrounded by officers from the Independent Fourth Regiment, the First Battalion of the Second Regiment, and the Quyang County Guerrilla Brigade, among other troops transferred from the area.

Fang Wen from Taishan Military Industry also participated, serving as a military technology consultant and pilot.

The commander pointed to the three characters "Manshi Road" on the sand table: "Comrades, a Japanese division of 8000 men has come with heavy firepower. Their purpose is definitely not to attack Quyang, but to enter the mountains through Quyang and control the road out of the mountains in the Fuping area on the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains. The staff has been surveying the terrain for three days and finally decided to set up an ambush here. Everyone, please share your thoughts—Commander Li, you are very familiar with the local situation, so please share your thoughts first."

Commander Li of the Independent Fourth Regiment stood up, leaned forward, and pointed to the mountain ridges on both sides of the canyon: "Manshi Road connects Dangcheng to Kounan Pass. It is a vital transportation route in and out of the mountains. The mountain ridges on both sides are very steep. If the Japanese infantry want to rush up, they have to climb up the rocks. As long as we set up our heavy machine guns on them, the people below will be sitting ducks. I think the blocking effect here will be very good."

However, some people raised a different opinion: "Commander Li is right, but the Japanese army has several thousand troops, and they also brought tanks and armored vehicles. Although the road at the bottom of the valley is narrow, if the tanks break through, our ambush will be scattered."

"You can use the Taishan single-soldier rocket launcher to deal with Japanese tanks; if they get close, use explosive charges."

"The effective range of the individual rocket launcher is 200 meters, and the mountain ridges on both sides are also about 200 meters high. It is possible to attack their tanks by launching it from the mountain."

During the argument, the commander raised his hand to stop it, saying, "This time we are going to use a new type of weapon. Now, let Fang Wen from Taishan Military Industry explain it. Everyone should be very familiar with him. He is a very capable pilot, a patriotic businessman, and the controller of Taishan Military Industry."

The argument immediately stopped, and everyone looked at Fang Wen.

Fang Wen stood up and said:

"Our Taishan Military Industry's 'Storm' rocket launcher has an effective range of 2000 meters, which can cover the entire Manshi Road area. Furthermore, we use high-explosive shells. Although high-explosive shells do not have armor penetration, as long as they hit armored targets, they can still cause great damage to the tank tracks and the combat personnel inside the vehicle. In addition, we have also mixed in some incendiary explosive rockets. In that kind of terrain, once a continuous flame is formed, coupled with smoke, it will have a great impact on the Japanese army."

He paused for a moment, then said, “But there is a problem. Because the rockets have a large area of ​​impact after they are launched, some of the warheads may hit the ridges on both sides. Therefore, I suggest that before the ambush begins, all units should wait here until the cluster of rockets has been launched before launching the attack from this location.”

He pointed to the area on both sides of the mountain ridges near the launch point, which was a pre-designed blind spot where the rockets would not be affected by the salvo.

Fang Wen's description greatly surprised the officers present.

They had never seen a rocket swarm launch and were skeptical of Fang Wen's description.

To cover such a large area of ​​the canyon with artillery fire, a great many cannons would be needed to achieve that effect, and they would have to be large-caliber cannons.

Could it be that Taishan Military Industry produced so many artillery pieces all at once?
One officer asked, "What is a Storm rocket launcher? Aren't rockets the kind you carry on your shoulder?"

Fang Wen patiently explained, "Man-portable rockets are just one type. I'm talking about large-caliber rockets, which come in two versions: 82mm (24 rounds) and 132mm (16 rounds). They're fired in a single salvo, covering a very large area."

The officers present were all beneficiaries of Taishan's military equipment. The new weapons from Taishan had greatly helped them in the battle, so they began to believe Fang Wen's words.

Subsequently, the staff officer of the Third Division explained the details of the plan.

To lure the Japanese troops into the ambush, bait was needed.

The bait was to pretend to be a defeated Eighth Route Army unit in Quyang, so that the Japanese army would not suspect anything and would rush into Manshidao.

Since the goal is to temporarily abandon Quyang to lure the Japanese army into the ambush, local preparations are essential. These include the temporary evacuation of villagers and residents along the way, as well as the hiding of various supplies. The Japanese army must not be allowed to gain any advantage in Quyang.

After the staff officer finished explaining, the commander of the Third Division assigned the task. As the person in charge of the rocket launch, Fang Wen had only one task: to lead the convoy to Manshi Road in advance to prepare.

The meeting concluded, and the officers left to begin preparations.

Fang Wen also got up to leave, but was stopped by the commander: "Xiao Fang, there's something else I need to talk to you about. I'm planning to arrange for a foreign journalist to cover the launch of the Taishan Storm rocket. What do you think?"

The weapons produced by Taishan Military Industry are not yet well-known worldwide.

Fang Wen had always wanted to increase the international reputation of Taishan military equipment, and had even considered conducting exclusive interviews with some military observers and reporters from major newspapers.

But this kind of thing is not easy to handle. Europe is preoccupied with its own problems because of the Nazis, while the United States, due to its neutral stance, prohibits interviews with countries at war.

So where did this reporter come from?
Fang Wen couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

The commander smiled and said, “This man is called Hansen, a United Press correspondent in China. He originally stayed in Beiping. At the beginning of this year, he set off from Beiping and went to the Jizhong base area to conduct interviews. Later, he came to Fuping and Quyang to collect news materials about the War of Resistance. Our militia arrested him, thinking he was a Japanese spy. After the misunderstanding was cleared up, he stayed in the base area and wrote articles about our situation, which he sent to the United Press.”

Fang Wen from United Press International (UPI) knows this. It's an American international news agency.

However, unlike the Associated Press's membership model, it adopts an "open access" model, providing content to all media outlets and charging only for submissions.

Although this model lacks the news monopoly of the Associated Press, its "inclusive model" has enabled it to rapidly capture the market share of small and medium-sized media outlets, especially in local newspapers in Europe and the United States, where its penetration rate is extremely high.

This is exactly the model Fang Wen wanted; perhaps he could use Hansen's press release to raise the profile of Taishan Military Industry.

Then the ensuing World War II in Europe would have made arms sales even easier.

Fang Wen then agreed to the reporter's interview request.

After the pre-battle deployment meeting concluded, all departments immediately began operations.

Fang Wen led five military vehicles covered with black cloth towards the northwest of Quyang County.

Inside the truck bed sat technicians from Taishan Military Industry, the first generation of rocket soldiers from the Eighth Route Army, and a foreign journalist named Hansen.

The convoy bumped along the dirt road slowly.

This is an ancient road that has existed for a long time, with smoothed bluestone slabs that have sunk into the soil.

Upon reaching the western ridge of the Manshidao Canyon, Fang Wen instructed the technicians to push the launcher into a pre-designated natural cave, and then directed the soldiers to camouflage it with straw and branches.

This would prevent detection by Japanese aircraft and allow for pre-launch testing at the cave entrance. "Mr. Fang, can this thing really put thousands of Japanese soldiers to rest?" The platoon leader of the guard platoon sent by the Second Regiment to assist in the guard duty squatted outside the cave, looking at the rockets, and couldn't help but ask Fang Wen.

He had seen Taishan Military Industry's individual rocket launchers before, but this "big guy" in front of him still made him unsure.

Fang Wen smiled and said, "The warheads of these two long-range rockets are different from those of man-portable rockets. To ensure the impact effect, the explosive charge is equivalent to ten hand grenades. After a salvo, even the toughest Japanese tanks will be turned into scrap metal. Not to mention those Japanese soldiers."

Just then, the messenger came over with a telegram, bringing the latest news on the Japanese army's movements: "The vanguard of the Japanese army has passed Dingxian and is heading towards Quyang. Our men are beginning to prepare for a 'collapse'!"

Fang Wen immediately instructed the technicians to activate the launcher's preheating device. Orange-red indicator lights lit up one after another in the cave, like clusters of flames waiting to spread.

(Schematic diagram of the stone path)
Outside the east gate of Quyang County, soldiers are busy "acting out" a play.

"Brothers, don't act too fake. Make the Japanese think we really can't beat them!" Battalion Commander Zhao of the Third Battalion instructed.

One soldier said, "We understand. We used to see the Kuomintang army running away, so we just copied them."

Others laughed, but it was indeed the easiest to imitate.

An hour later, the vanguard of the Japanese army appeared. The tracks of the tanks rolled over the dirt road, raising clouds of dust. The Japanese soldiers were aggressive and looked like they had victory in their grasp.

A battle was about to break out, and fierce fighting ensued.

But not long after, the Japanese army discovered that their opponents had actually retreated.

Watching the Eighth Route Army soldiers run northwest, they even left the grain bags they "didn't have time to take" by the roadside.

Major Sato, commander of the Japanese vanguard, sat in his tank, watching the scene through the periscope. A cold smile crept onto his lips: "The Eighth Route Army is indeed pathetic. Pursue! After taking Quyang, go straight into the mountains for a sweep!"

The Japanese army marched through Quyang County in a grand procession. In their pursuit, they did not even carry out their routine looting of villages along the way, and thus failed to notice that the villages along the way were already deserted.

At 1 p.m. sharp, the creaking sound of tank tracks echoed through the Manshidao Canyon.

The advance troops scouted through the gravel path, while aircraft came from the air to conduct reconnaissance.

Compared to their previous defeat in the west, the Japanese army was much better prepared this time.

Even so, they found nothing.

There were no signs of an army ambush on the mountain ridges on either side.

The aircraft conducted repeated reconnaissance missions from the air but found nothing unusual.

Everything indicates that this place is safe.

Therefore, the Japanese division commander ordered the entire army to set off.

The long column of Japanese troops entered the stone path.

Inside a cave on the other side of the mountain ridge, Fang Wen held a telescope, looking at the densely packed Japanese soldiers and trucks in the valley below through the lens. He took a deep breath and gave the order: "Attention, firing personnel, listen to my command, fire in batches, first the 82mm, then the 132mm, from near to far."

"Prepare—release!"

As Fang Wen shouted, the technicians in the cave and the rockets pulled the launch lever on the launcher base, which had already been adjusted for direction and range.

In an instant, 24 82mm rockets roared out, trailing white flames as they swept across the canyon and hurtled towards the leading Japanese tanks.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" A series of loud explosions resounded in the valley. The two leading tanks were instantly engulfed in flames, their tracks snapped into pieces, and they lay sprawled on the roadside, billowing black smoke.

Before the Japanese troops could react, 16 more 132mm rockets followed. These larger-caliber rockets bypassed the vanguard and landed in the middle of the Japanese ranks, sending debris and shrapnel flying as the high-explosive warheads detonated.

The valley floor was instantly engulfed in flames. Japanese soldiers fled in all directions, but were trapped in the narrow canyon area and could only scream in agony amidst the flames.

"Well done!" the soldiers on the northwestern mountain ridge cheered.

One veteran was so excited that he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "This thing is ten times more powerful than a mortar! If a few more rounds come, all the Japanese will die inside!"

"Don't even think about it. Where would we get so much ammunition? Even the Japanese couldn't do it. But this is enough."

The spectacular display of rockets raining down was soon over, and it was time for the ambush troops to take action.

Soldiers from the Independent Fourth and Second Regiments, who had been lying in ambush on the mountain ridges on both sides, were now pushing aside the grass covers on the hidden communication trenches and charging down.

They quickly took their positions at their designated posts and launched an attack on the Japanese troops below the mountain.

The sounds of bullets and grenades exploding mingled together. The Japanese troops, already in disarray from the rocket attacks, were further thrown into chaos by the attacks from higher ground on both sides.

A force of several thousand men could easily descend into chaos, and the Japanese troops at the front and rear immediately lost contact.

However, some Japanese officers attempted to reorganize a counterattack, but the Eighth Route Army targeted and shot these Japanese officers.

The Japanese advance unit commander, a major, miraculously survived the rocket bombardment and escaped from the tank, hiding behind a truck. He looked at the horrific scene before him, his face ashen.

He couldn't understand how the Eighth Route Army, which had clearly "retreated," could suddenly have such strong firepower.

In a secluded observation point on the western ridge of Manshi Road, Holdohansen held up his camera, his hands trembling with excitement.

When he came here with Fang Wen, he was still skeptical about the "Storm Rocket," but when he saw the rockets rising into the sky with their tail flames and heard the explosions at the bottom of the valley, he was stunned. He had seen German artillery in Europe, but he had never seen such dense and rapid firepower coverage.

“Mr. Hansen, take cover. The Japanese might retaliate,” a soldier sent to protect him said, handing Hansen a helmet.

Hansen didn't take the helmet; he continued pressing the shutter, capturing the scene of the rocket launch, the sea of ​​fire at the bottom of the valley, and the figures of the Eighth Route Army soldiers rushing out of the trenches in the distance.

The battle lasted until the afternoon, when the Japanese troops finally fled Manshi Road, leaving behind a trail of corpses.

Hansen did not stop his wartime interviews, but instead went into the canyon to record the scenes.

By evening, his notebook was filled with densely packed text:

"In May 1939, in Manshi Road, Quyang, the Eighth Route Army used a new type of weapon—the 'Taishan Storm' rocket launcher. A salvo of 24 rounds from the 82mm version and 16 rounds from the 132mm version had an effective range of 2000 meters, covering an area of ​​half a canyon. This weapon did not require a complex and heavy carriage and could be transported by truck, yet it could exert a greater power than large-caliber artillery..."

(End of this chapter)