Even if I'm a useless bum at Whampoa Military Academy, I'll be invincible in the War of Re

Company Commander Tian Yong breathed a sigh of relief. The Japanese had finally retreated. After six hours of fierce fighting, they were so hungry that their stomachs were practically sticking to their backs, and they didn't even have time to drink water.

Tian Yong roared at the top of his lungs, his voice practically crackling with smoke:

"Hurry up and eat some dry rations, quickly retake the position, and each platoon should take stock of personnel and equipment!"

The soldiers then realized they were hungry and took out their field rations to replenish their energy with the cool boiled water in their canteens.

The squad and platoon leaders were taking inventory of personnel and equipment and reporting to Tian Yong:

"There are 27 men left in the platoon who can fight, and 8 seriously wounded. There are two light machine guns (M1918) left, the heavy machine gun (M1919) has been destroyed, and there is 30% of the ammunition left."

"The second platoon has 33 men who can still breathe. There's one light machine gun left, and the heavy machine gun can still fire. The ammunition is almost gone."

"The third platoon has 36 survivors, two light machine guns, one heavy machine gun, and less than half of their ammunition."

"The firepower platoon consists of 25 men, 3 mortars, and 1 heavy machine gun."

Tian Yong did some mental calculations. Including the 7 survivors from the company headquarters, there were a total of 136 people left. More than 40% of them were wounded, and no one dared to mention the lightly wounded.

The company had a full complement of 210 men, and 64 of them were killed. Many of them were old comrades who had broken out of Nanjing, and some were even veterans of the security regiment. It was a terrible tragedy.

The Second Company had never suffered such heavy casualties before. The predecessor of the 644th Regiment was the First Regiment of the Guerrilla Column. They did not participate in the Nanjing street fighting and were ordered to wait on the outskirts.

The army that broke out of Jinling was reorganized and replenished with a large number of veterans from Jinling. Previously, the maximum number of casualties was 30%, but this time it exceeded 50%.

Not counting those who were evacuated, there were more than a dozen seriously wounded soldiers lying on the front line, some of whom had suffered broken bones!

Tian Yong had no time for sadness; he roared at the top of his lungs:

"Platoon leader, hurry up and send the seriously wounded brothers down. There's no time to waste. The rest of you, restore the position."

The Second Company was always at the forefront and suffered the most casualties.

Just as Tian Yong finished giving the order, the battalion's communications officer arrived with dozens of men, shouting excitedly:

"Company Commander Tian, ​​these raw recruits were given to you by the battalion commander, sixty per company. You can't be too picky!"

Tian Yong was overjoyed. Considering that the messenger was a timely help, he didn't expose the fact that the messenger was still a novice and gave him plenty of face.

Sixty new recruits—the battalion commander really went to great lengths this time. He pulled aside the communications officer to ask and found out that only the six infantry companies of the first and second battalions had that many.

There are a total of 500. The remaining 140 will be assigned to the 3rd Battalion and the Artillery Company. With these 60 new recruits, the 2nd Company's organizational structure can be restored to 90%.

In high spirits, Tian Yong tossed two cans of luncheon meat to the communications officer, who happily ran off, proving the trip was worthwhile.

Several platoon leaders looked at Tian Yong expectantly. Although the new recruits were not as good as the veterans who had sacrificed their lives, as long as they knew how to fire a gun, it was better than nothing.

"Each platoon should have 15 men. Quickly organize them into groups, assign veterans to keep an eye on them, and try to keep them alive as much as possible."

The new recruits were distributed before Tian Yong even had a chance to warm up to them, and the rest were handed over to the squad and platoon leaders, who knew what to do.

Liu Daikui was assigned to the 7th Platoon of the 2nd Company. Platoon leader Li Weidong flashed a mouthful of white teeth and casually handed him a can of luncheon meat, still warm from Liu Daikui's body, something he usually couldn't bear to eat.

"Kid, you'll be following me from now on. I'm your squad leader, Li Weidong. Just call me Squad Leader Li."

The other two recruits looked at Liu Daikui with envy, wondering what kind of luck this kid had to have a squad leader protecting him.

Li Weidong glared at the veterans, and the two squad leaders reluctantly took out their supplies and gave each of the new recruits a can of beef, not wanting to show favoritism.

"You all need to hurry up and fill your stomachs. Who knows when the Japanese will come up again? You need to have a good meal."

Liu Daikui felt that what he said sounded strange, but the temptation of canned meat was real. In his previous security regiment, he could not even get enough to eat, let alone meat or cornbread.

While the Tiger Legion Training Corps could eat white flour buns, meat was out of the question; priority was given to the brothers on the front lines.

The luncheon meat smelled so good; you could smell it from a distance after opening the lid. Li Weidong's Adam's apple bobbed, and he subconsciously swallowed a few times. He only got one every two days, and he couldn't bear to eat it himself.

"What are you all standing around for! Except for the new brothers, everyone else, get moving! Do I have to ask you to?"

Li Weidong's change of expression was faster than the weather, causing Liu Daikui and the others to immediately stop wolfing down their food. The latter waved his hand and said:

"I wasn't talking to you guys. Take your time eating. There are veterans here, no rush."

Veteran Wu Changshun curled his lip, thinking, "They really do forget the old when new people come along."

The news that the Japanese had quieted down was quickly reported to the officers. Zhao Yunwen's tense nerves finally relaxed, and fatigue instantly filled the corners of his eyes as he yawned repeatedly.

Xie Polu said with concern:

"Commander, why don't you go and get some rest? I'll keep an eye on the command post."

Zhao Yunwen dared not be a hands-off manager; with two divisions hanging over his head at the front, he had to keep a close eye on the Japanese.

The battlefield was ever-changing, and the overall situation was still uncertain. Zhao Yunwen dared not be careless in the slightest and shook his head, saying:

"It's alright, the Japanese are just temporarily quiet. They won't make it to the Jialu River."

How are the preparations going on the Jingshui River side?

Xie Polu quickly replied:

"The 323rd Division is ready and waiting to entertain the Japanese devils."

"Very good. Most of the positions along the Jialu River have been destroyed. The casualties from pushing too far are too great. Let the 322nd Division withdraw tonight!"

The 322nd Division has been holding out at the Jialu River for five days. The soldiers are exhausted and have suffered heavy losses in personnel and equipment. It is time for them to withdraw.

Neither Lu Ping nor Xie Polu raised any objections, and the matter was settled. Before Xie Polu could leave, the communications director rushed in and loudly reported:

"Commander, the cavalry regiment is calling!"

On the northern front, more than 2,000 Japanese soldiers from the 21st Infantry Regiment marched in a mighty force toward the Yellow River dike. After suffering a setback at the front, the Japanese resorted to their tactic of flanking maneuvers.

Regimental Commander Colonel Katano Satomi rode along leisurely on his tall horse, with Senior Staff Officer Major Shinohara by his side, the two chatting casually.

"Shinohara-kun, in your opinion, do you think the Chinese cavalry would dare to come and intercept the Imperial Army?"

Colonel Katano seemed to be testing a junior colleague, or perhaps showing off. Major Shinohara pondered for a moment before saying:

"The era of cavalry is long gone. As long as the soldiers complete their formation, the Type 92 heavy machine gun will be the cavalry's nightmare."

Therefore, whether the Chinese come or not, the effect is the same. The Yellow River dike is crucial to the safety of Zheng County. As long as they have the courage, they will definitely come!

"Alright, let's wait and see!"

Colonel Katano felt a faint sense of anticipation. For thousands of years, cavalry had been the absolute protagonists on the battlefield, delivering a devastating blow to infantry.

Firearms gave infantry the ability to counter cavalry, and it was the pride of infantry to bring them down from their pedestal.

"Commander, they've arrived!"

Shinohara was the first to feel the immense pressure. He looked up at the sky and saw a thick black line rolling in, its speed increasing, and the earth trembling.

"Cavalry, Chinese cavalry! So many!"

Colonel Katano was mentally prepared, but he was still shocked by the appearance of the cavalry regiment.

A huge panic also broke out in the army. The fear of the infantry and cavalry was ingrained in their very bones, a kind of bloodline suppression.

"Quickly, prepare for battle!"

Colonel Katano then realized that the cavalry group had appeared at a precise time, and there were no high ground nearby that would be advantageous for defense.

Following their pre-planned tactics, the Japanese soldiers formed a circular defensive formation on the spot, with all their light and heavy machine guns positioned on the outside and artillery providing fire support in the center, effectively turning themselves into a hedgehog with no way to get a bite out of them.

Colonel Katano eagerly awaited the arrival of the cavalry to charge into the enemy lines, so that they could use machine guns and artillery to kill them. At the critical moment, his own cavalry appeared, and the infantry and cavalry combined to wipe out the Tiger Army's cavalry regiment.

The abacus beads were practically flying into the face of cavalry regimental commander Yao Wangshan when Chief of Staff Zhu Heng coldly chuckled:

"The Japanese reacted quite quickly; it seems they were prepared."

"How could they be so prepared? It's simply malicious. Fortunately, the Japanese devils' schemes couldn't escape the sharp eyes of the commander."

"Playing dirty tricks and schemes, China is the ancestor of the Japanese devils!"

Yao Wangshan was confident and immediately began to change formation, with the two battalions spreading out to the flanks to form the Double Dragons Emerging from the Water formation.

The artillery company also set up its 12 20mm mortars, lined up in a row, their dark muzzles pointing directly at the Japanese.

The 3rd Cavalry Battalion remained in place, ready to deploy.

Seeing that the artillery was ready, Yao Wangshan immediately gave the order:

"fire!"