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

Nishimura Hideyuki, carrying a rifle, cautiously probed forward. Although the company commander swore that there were no more Chinese on the position, he didn't believe a word of it.

This doesn't mean he didn't believe in the power of poison gas, but rather it was an instinctive sense of crisis. Since the landing in Shanghai, he has survived countless fierce battles thanks to this instinct.

He always felt as if countless eyes were staring at him from the mountains, like thorns in his back, and the further he went, the stronger the feeling became.

The squad leader and platoon leader were like death knells, driving them away. Stopping was impossible; if they angered the platoon leader, he would really chop them down.

Veteran soldiers all have their ways of protecting themselves, and Nishimura Hideyuki was no exception. His eyes searched for shell craters and cover, and his body instinctively hid behind others.

Before they knew it, they had reached the halfway point of the mountain. He vaguely remembered that the defending army's defensive line was just ahead, and the feeling of unease was becoming more and more obvious.

He didn't care about anything else. He pretended to trip over a protruding rock and rolled into the crater he had chosen beforehand.

Gunfire suddenly erupted, and just as Hideyuki Nishimura had predicted, the defending positions spewed out countless tongues of fire in an instant.

His comrades were swept to the ground in rows, including Lieutenant Akita, the squad leader who had been swaggering around just moments before.

Lieutenant Akita had just graduated from the Army War College, his mind filled with thoughts of serving the Empire. However, he didn't even survive his first battle before being torn to pieces by heavy machine gun fire, leaving no intact body behind.

This is war; survival is the most important thing.

Captain Nishimura curled his entire body up tightly inside the shell crater, letting bullets whiz past his head, and an unlucky guy was hit by a stray bullet and fell on top of him.

Instead of getting angry, he moved his body closer to the corpse, making himself even safer.

The defending troops launched a one-sided massacre against the Japanese, especially the M1919 Browning machine guns supplied to them by the Tiger Army, whose firepower was brutal.

Song Yingguo gave all 50 machine guns to the 36th Division, with four assigned to each battalion, forming a heavy machine gun platoon. The terrifying firepower became the Japanese devils' nightmare.

With a combat weight of only 20 kilograms, it can be carried and moved by one person, making it much more survivable than the Maxim heavy machine gun.

It was precisely because of its powerful firepower that the 36th Division dared to bring the Japanese soldiers close at hand. With the concentrated fire of twelve heavy machine guns from each regiment, they slaughtered two thousand Japanese soldiers, leaving them with almost no chance to fight back.

At first, the Japanese soldiers were not convinced and tried to rush forward and use human wave tactics to turn the tide, but they ended up being killed.

After nearly half of his men had fallen, the Japanese officer finally felt fear and shouted an order:

"We've been tricked! There's an ambush! Reverse! Reverse!"

"Hurry up!"

The Japanese lieutenant scrambled down the mountain, no longer caring about anyone else. The order to retreat had been given; whether he could escape or not depended on his own abilities.

Corporal Nishimura had been feigning death, but seeing that the troops had already moved on, he immediately pushed aside the corpses and ran back like a small motor, quickly overtaking the Japanese lieutenant.

Enraged, the Japanese lieutenant kicked him to the ground and cursed:

"You bastard, coward!"

You've completely disgraced the Imperial Army!

This is a classic case of "fifty steps forward, hundred steps back" (meaning someone who criticizes someone who is only slightly better than them). Captain Nishimura didn't dare to refute it. The Chinese had already caught up, and their shouts of battle were deafening.

The lieutenant seemed to have forgotten that he was still on the run. Just as he was about to teach Captain Nishimura a lesson, a stray bullet hit him in the back, and he fell heavily to the ground as if struck by a heavy hammer.

The lieutenant was still alive when a panicked Japanese soldier stepped on his back, causing the lieutenant to excrete.

He desperately wanted to get up and exercise his officer's authority, but his consciousness was gradually fading. Two more Japanese soldiers stepped over his body and escaped, taking him to the Yasukuni Shrine.

The soldiers of the 106th Brigade had never fought such a fierce and exhilarating battle. They slaughtered the Japanese, leaving behind countless corpses and routing them, while their own casualties were almost negligible.

Major General Yamada could hardly believe his eyes. This was completely different from what he had imagined. The 65th Regiment had made him lose face.

"You bunch of trash, you bastards!"

"Get that bastard in the two corners to come see me!"

The chief of staff was so scared that he didn't dare to utter a sound. Major General Yamada was looking for a scapegoat, and he wasn't going to be stupid enough to go and vent his anger on him. Good luck to Ryotaka-kun!

An attack that seemed destined to succeed ended in a dismal failure. Colonel Ryokaku was furious and took it out on the battalion commander who had escaped alive, slapping him repeatedly until his head was swollen like a pig's.

The senior staff officer rushed over to report:

"His Excellency the General requests your presence!"

At the 71st Army headquarters, cheerful laughter could be heard from afar. Song Yingguo exclaimed in praise:

"The 36th Division fought brilliantly this time, annihilating over a thousand enemy soldiers. I'm going to request commendation from headquarters! The gas masks provided by the Tiger Legion also played a crucial role; we mustn't forget them when reporting the victory!"

Chief of Staff Chen Sunong quickly said:

"Commander, please rest assured, we will not forget this. Without these gas masks, it would be our brothers who would be slaughtered!"

Song Yingguo put away his smile and said solemnly:

"Everyone should remember that Commander Zhao and the Tiger Army have done a great service to my 71st Army. If there is ever a time when we are needed, I hope you will not forget what happened today."

The deputy commander then chimed in:

"It wasn't just the gas masks, but also the dozens of heavy machine guns, mortar shells, and bullets—these were a lifesaver for the 71st Army, a true godsend!"

Everyone nodded in agreement. Giving away a large quantity of equipment and ammunition free of charge was almost impossible in the Nationalist army.

Chen Sunong then steered the conversation back to business:

"Commander, the Japanese have failed in their attempt to steal a chicken and have lost their rice instead. They'll probably be quiet for the rest of the day."

We must seize this rare opportunity to retake the position and evacuate all the wounded.

Song Yingguo nodded and said:

"According to the chief of staff, the Japanese will not accept defeat. We must prevent them from retaliating with artillery fire. At the latest, they will resume their offensive by tomorrow. The real battle has just begun."

The atmosphere at the Yamada Brigade headquarters was as oppressive as if someone's father had died. The old Japanese devil Yamada gave Colonel Ryokaku a thorough dressing-down, and everyone else remained silent.

Anger won't solve anything. Once Major General Yamada had vented his anger, Chief of Staff Lieutenant Colonel Noguchi mustered his courage and said:

"General, the Chinese have very strong defenses on Fujin Mountain. We did not expect that they were also equipped with a large number of gas masks. This was due to an intelligence failure. Our Yamada Regiment is a victim."

Lieutenant Colonel Noguchi casually shifted the blame to the intelligence department, whose pre-war intelligence indicated that the 71st Army was severely depleted of equipment and lacked even a single 75mm cannon.

But now, not only does it have a Schneider artillery group, but it also has a large number of gas masks, which means that the 13th Division will find it difficult to win with special ammunition.

Major General Yamada finally calmed down and said with a cold face:

"Noguchi-kun, do you have a plan to defeat the enemy?"

Lieutenant Colonel Noguchi already had a plan in mind, and when Yamada asked, he quickly replied:

"General, since we cannot break through from the front, let's outflank them from the flanks."

The artillery group deployed by the Chinese on Hill 203, north of the highway, posed a great threat to the Imperial Army. Every time the warriors attacked, they were suppressed by flanking fire and suffered heavy losses.

"It would be better to wait until dark and send a large battalion of brave warriors to sneak over and take out the Chinese artillery positions."

Major General Yamada finally smiled. This was a common tactic used by the Japanese: if a frontal assault didn't work, they would try a flanking maneuver.

However, to complete a rapid infiltration, the artillery groups on Hill 203 must be dealt with first; the flanking maneuver will not be effective.

Having thought this through, he made up his mind and immediately gave the order:

"Two-Cornered Guy, I'll give you one more chance to prove yourself. After dark, your unit will launch a feint attack on the Fujinshan position."

They kept attacking until 2 a.m., then stopped, to lull the Chinese into a false sense of security.

At the same time, send a relatively well-organized battalion to quietly infiltrate Hill 203 and destroy the Chinese artillery positions. Do you understand?

Colonel Ryōgan, with his extensive combat experience, quickly sensed an opportunity and excitedly exclaimed:

"General, I understand. As long as we capture Hill 203, the Imperial Army can use it as a breakthrough point to send elite troops to outflank Fujin Mountain and attack from both sides. We will definitely be able to defeat the 71st Army!"

"General, this plan is brilliant, truly ingenious!"

Major General Yamada said smugly:

"You do have some knowledge, but the prerequisite is that you must first capture Hill 203. I've given you the opportunity, so I hope you won't disappoint His Majesty again."

"Hai!"

Colonels Ryoga strode away, exuding murderous intent, while Major General Yamada turned his gaze to the northwest, where the breakthrough lay.