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

In an unnamed alley, the Japanese soldiers attempting to outflank the enemy from the right flank, who were met with a crushing defeat, were left with more than a dozen corpses and seriously wounded soldiers. The rest lay prone among the ruins.

The 1st Company and the artillery company of the isolated battalion guarded the main road. When the Japanese suffered setbacks in their frontal attack, they sent the Tsuchiya Company to outflank them, but they ended up running into the guns of the 2nd Company.

Company Commander Ya Guai stared coldly at the Japanese soldiers; street fighting was his favorite form of warfare. The Second Company's defensive front was about 300 meters long, divided into north and south sections by longitudinal alleys.

The first row was on the left, the second row on the right, and there were three defensive lines made of sandbags in the middle of the alley. The last line also had two bunkers built with reinforced concrete, and the heavy machine guns inside blocked the entire street.

The Tsuchiya Company quickly recovered and organized a new attack. Hundreds of Japanese soldiers formed an attack formation, filling the Second Company's defensive front.

These Japanese soldiers were well-trained; they moved through the ruins, covering each other as they advanced.

The machine guns inside the bunker spewed fire, sweeping down the Japanese soldiers from their elevated position and pinning them down in the ruins, with men constantly being hit and falling.

The Japanese soldiers then returned fire, but the bullets hit the wall in front of them like a tickle, instead revealing the location of their machine gun.

The Tsuchiya Company had nine Type 9 light machine guns and nine grenade launchers, but no heavy machine guns.

The Japanese tactics were to first use machine guns to suppress the bunker's firepower, and then use grenade launchers to finish it off, assuming it was just a brick and stone bunker.

The machine guns of both sides were exchanging fire, the riflemen lay obediently prone, and Yang Guai was in no hurry; he was waiting for the mortar unit to open fire.

The artillery platoon had three Browning machine guns positioned inside the bunker, and three 60mm mortars firing freely, specifically targeting the Japanese machine guns and grenade launchers.

The bunker firing position drew all of the Japanese heavy firepower, allowing the mortar team to pick off the Japanese machine guns one by one from 300 meters away. In a short while, they destroyed two light machine guns and a grenade launcher, much to Yang Guai's delight, who praised them as doing a great job.

The M2 mortar was simply a godsend for urban warfare. They hid behind ruins and maintained a precise distance of 500 meters, a distance that the Japanese light firepower simply couldn't reach.

With the M2's long-range suppression, many of the Tsuchiya Company's signature tactics could not be implemented, and the grenade launcher was no longer as effective as it was; its range was insufficient, and it would be bombed as soon as it showed its face.

Captain Tsuchiya was furious and sent out a suicide squad to blow up the bunker, with machine guns providing cover fire.

These suicide squad members were all elite veterans, skilled in tactical maneuvers, and extremely agile, making them difficult for machine guns to hit.

Yang Guai remained calm and composed. He had already made arrangements. Before the Japanese soldiers could get close, the scattered and concealed snipers started hunting.

Two snipers per squad, eight per platoon, and twenty-four in the whole company—this was a truly terrifying force.

One by one, the Japanese suicide squad members were shot down to the ground. The gunfire was intermittent, not very intense, but its lethality was astonishing.

There weren't even enough for a dozen or so suicide squad members; they were all shot dead before they even got close to the bunker. Unconvinced, Captain Tsuchiya sent out a second wave, this time even more, but they didn't have enough explosives and could only pick up what was left from the first wave.

The snipers continued their unhurried shooting. The suicide squad's skillful tactics were like slow motion to them, easier than target practice.

This was no longer a battle, but a one-sided massacre. Captain Tsuchiya's triangular eyes were practically spitting fire. He finally understood the Second Company's tactics: each step was intricately linked, with the key being the two bunkers that blocked the Japanese advance.

"Baka yarou! Request tactical guidance from the battalion commander! Blow them up with the Type 92 infantry guns!"

Captain Tsuchiya stopped trying to be brave and sent a communications officer to request tactical guidance, while the others obediently lay on the ground.

Not long after, the Japanese brought in a Type 92 infantry gun and two Type 92 heavy machine guns, greatly increasing their firepower.

Because the city was full of ruins and some houses and shops blocked the view, the Type 92 infantry gun had to fire straight at the bunkers to destroy them, and it was difficult to hit them with curved fire.

The Type 92 infantry gun, nicknamed "Dwarf Tiger," was prone to having its trajectory easily blocked by obstacles when firing horizontally at long distances, limiting it to within 500 meters, which was quite risky.

The infantry artillery unit protested, saying they were only willing to fire indirect fire from two kilometers away, so Captain Tsuchiya had no choice but to give it a try.

He first sent infantry to charge, luring the bunkers to open fire and creating an opportunity for the infantry artillery.

Unaware of the trap, the machine gun crew inside the bunker opened fire on the Japanese soldiers, killing and wounding many of them.

"boom!"

A shell fell from the sky and exploded a few meters behind Bunker No. 2. Shrapnel flew everywhere, hitting the half-meter-thick wall with a thud, but had no effect on the defenders inside.

At a distance of two kilometers, and given the limited visibility in the city, such accuracy is quite remarkable. Hitting the top of a bunker with a diameter of only two meters requires luck.

The machine gunner inside the bunker deliberately stopped firing, and the Japanese soldiers, thinking they had succeeded, charged forward yelling.

Flames erupted from the bunker once more, routing the charging Japanese soldiers who were forced to lie down in disarray.

The Japanese continued firing, launching three shells in quick succession, but none of them hit their target, which greatly annoyed them.

The artillery platoon leader ordered the advance to one kilometer before firing again. The accuracy improved considerably, and finally, a shell landed on top of the bunker.

The defenders inside the bunker were stunned by the shockwave, but the 70mm high-explosive shells were too weak to penetrate the half-meter-thick concrete roof.

To destroy the bunker, the infantry guns could only fire directly from the front; they had no choice but to continue risking closing the distance.

The movements of the Japanese infantry artillery were quickly spotted by observers equipped with binoculars, and the relevant data was transmitted to the mortar unit.

Only 600 meters away, that's suicide!

The mortar platoon leader gave a direct order: the three mortars were to be concentrated together and blow up the Japanese "Dwarf Tiger".

Both sides were making intensive preparations and opened fire almost simultaneously. The first shell of the Type 92 infantry gun was blocked by an obstacle, and before they could adjust, three mortars rained down from the sky.

The 92 infantry gun positions were covered, and the distance of more than 600 meters was the optimal range for the M2 mortars. They were originally indirect fire artillery pieces, and urban obstacles greatly affected them.

The infantry gun was destroyed, blown into several pieces, and most of the fifteen gun crew members were killed or wounded. Captain Tsuchiya was dumbfounded.

"You idiots, a bunch of useless trash!"

The entire battalion only had two infantry guns. He didn't know how to explain this to the battalion commander, and he was too ashamed to ask for tactical guidance again.

The Japanese junior officers were highly skilled in tactics. They had studied full-time at the Army Academy for at least three years, plus two years at the Army Primary School, making them true professional soldiers.

The key is not to provoke them. Once provoked, they will act impulsively, as Captain Tsuchiya did.

He was enraged by the Second Company, lost his rationality, and began to believe in Bushido, ordering the infantry to charge.

The squadron commander tried to stop him, but was met with a rude refusal.

"You idiot, coward! Warriors of the Empire, can't you fight without artillery support?"

"The spirit of Bushido is invincible! Thrust, here we come!"

Hundreds of riflemen, yelling and shouting, charged toward the Second Company's position, densely packed everywhere, their momentum overwhelming.

Yang Guai sneered. In his eyes, it was just a suicide mission. He decisively ordered the firing, and the entire company instantly opened fire, no longer holding back.

Six M1919s, nine M1918s, and a large number of submachine guns and rifles formed an impenetrable firepower network, while three mortars provided long-range fire support. This super-luxurious configuration was a nightmare for the Japanese infantry charging in groups.

Rows of Japanese soldiers fell, hit by bullets; many of them hadn't even fired a single shot.

The two Type 92 heavy machine guns did have an effect, but before they could empty their two ammunition plates, a mortar came crashing down, blowing people and their guns away.

Without heavy firepower support, the Japanese infantry were slaughtered in one-sided battles, their bodies littering the ground. No matter how many charged forward, they all died.

Captain Tsuchiya was dumbfounded; this was completely different from what he had imagined. Bushido was utterly useless.

The executive officer stopped him again, saying:

"Tsuchiya-kun, tell the warriors to stop! If they keep charging, they'll all die!"

"Baka yarou! The Imperial Army is invincible, fearless of death!"

Captain Tsuchiya remained stubborn and, in a fit of rage, roared. The executive officer tried to persuade him again:

"The Chinese have too much firepower! Request artillery fire to flatten them!"

Tuya grasped at a straw, finding an excuse to halt the attack and request fire support from the battalion commander.

Telegrams requesting reinforcements poured into the regimental headquarters like snowflakes, and Colonel Nagano ordered the artillery to open fire, completely disregarding the fact that the two sides were already locked in a fierce battle.

Shells rained down, and the defending troops' positions were once again ravaged by artillery fire.

Regiment Commander Yao Zhiqing could no longer hold back and loudly ordered the artillery company to return fire.

More than a dozen cannons roared, and Colonel Nagano's face changed drastically, screaming in terror:

"Enemy attack!"