Chapter 37: Fierce Battle (Part 2)

  At 2:30 in the afternoon, the Japanese 36th Division began crossing the river and launched an attack.

  About two squads of Japanese troops took the lead in crossing the river by more than a dozen small fishing boats, rushing straight to the Jingjiang Wharf on the north bank. In less than half an hour, the two vanguard squads of the Japanese army had approached the Jingjiang Wharf, and the main force of the Nakagawa Detachment also boarded large ships, surging towards the north bank with great momentum.

  Niudaren wanted to fire a few shots to stop the Japanese army from crossing the river.

  However, Yue Weihan never gave the order. The recoilless gun was used to attack dense infantry formations or large fixed targets, and its killing power was still good. But if it was used to attack moving targets on the river surface, the hit rate would be unacceptably low. Moreover, the artillery company's ammunition was limited, and good steel should be used on the blade of a knife, not wasted recklessly.

  Of course, if there were warships, Yue Weihan would not mind sinking the little devil's ferry in the middle of the river.

  Unfortunately, the two war-defense guns in Baoshan Camp were not brought out. During the breakout of the Fourth Warehouse, due to inconvenience in carrying, the Maxim gun and Type 92 heavy machine gun were all blown up together.

  On the river surface, two vanguard squads of the Japanese army have approached the northern shore.

  The Japanese army's tactics were very simple, which was to use two vanguard squads to take the dock first, clear the obstacles for the main force to land, and once the main force could land smoothly and quickly deploy the attack formation, then this battle would be really suspenseless.

  Yue Weihan did not deploy troops on the dock.

  The reason is simple. Jingjiang dock protrudes from the riverbank for nearly 100 meters, and it's open and exposed. If troops are deployed on top of it, they will be subject to a three-sided attack by the Japanese army crossing the river. With the combat effectiveness of the Ichikawa detachment, deploying any number of people on the dock would be suicidal. This move not only cannot stop the Japanese from landing but may also severely damage the morale of the Baoshan regiment due to heavy casualties.

  This absolutely unprofitable business, Yue Weihan would certainly not do.

  When the vanguard of the Japanese army was still 40 or 50 meters away from the Jingjiang dock, the heavy machine guns on the top of the small hill opened fire first. The four Maxim heavy machine guns fired wildly at a speed of 600-700 rounds per minute, pouring bullets onto the river surface, causing water to splash everywhere. More than a dozen Japanese soldiers crouching at the bow of the ship were instantly shot into sieves.

  However, the Nakagawa United Team is indeed an elite team of regular troops, with excellent tactical skills and sharp counterattacks.

  The vast majority of the devils quickly jumped into the icy river, swimming and pushing the boats forward at the same time. A small number of devils lay down in the cabin vacated by their companions, set up a light machine gun and a grenade launcher to counterattack. Suddenly, there were several muffled explosions, and a row of grenades whizzed towards the mountain on the right side.

  A few seconds later, several huge red lights burst out on the right mountain top, with mud splashing in all directions. The heavy machine guns on the mountain top immediately fell silent. Yue Weihan raised his binoculars and saw that the two Maxim guns on the mountain had been overturned, and the gunner and deputy gunner had been blown to the ground.

  Yue Weihan estimated that the two heavy machine guns were only overturned by the blast wave, and as long as they were lifted up, they could continue firing. However, the problem was that all the gunners and deputy gunners in the machine gun position had been knocked down by the explosion fragments. The performance of the little devil's grenade was not to be underestimated, with at least 48 fragments exploding at once.

  "Damn it, this little devil's slingshot has really become a treasure!"

  Yue Weihan couldn't help but furrow his brow at the sight. This little devil's grenade launcher was accurate, he knew that much - during the Battle of Baoshan, he had witnessed the prowess of the 68th Brigade, with nearly a 90% hit rate within 500 meters. But this was the 36th Brigade, and they were on a ship! Yet they still managed to be so accurate, taking out the heavy machine gun position on the right side of the mountain with just one burst of fire - it was truly unbelievable.

  Hua Hanlin also took a cold breath and said, "The devils' small cannons are really getting more accurate."

  No sooner had the words fallen than the devils' grenade launchers went off with a loud bang, and the two Maxim heavy machine guns on the left hillside suddenly fell silent. The heavy machine gun positions on both sides of the mountain were knocked out one after another, and the pressure from the Japanese army was greatly reduced. The speed of the fleet's advance also accelerated rapidly, and in an instant they rushed onto the dock.

  "No way, can't let the little devils get a foothold on the dock!"

  Yue Weihan said, throwing away the binoculars and pulling out two grenade launchers from his armed belt, shouting loudly, "Guard company, assemble!"

  "General, I'm going!" Flower Hanlin rushed to Yue Weihan's side, waving his arm and shouting angrily, "Guard company, follow me up!"

  No sooner had the words fallen than Hua Hanlin darted out of the command center with the agility of a monkey, and the guard company that had been waiting outside immediately swept towards the Jingjiang Wharf hundreds of meters away like the wind. Beside him, Cao Xinglong hastened to say: "Commander, shouldn't we let the 1st Battalion go instead? The guard company's strength may not be enough."

  Yue Weihan waved his hand and said coldly: "The 1st Regiment is the general reserve, it absolutely cannot be moved unless there's an emergency of over 100,000!"

  "Hey!" Cao Xinglong punched the sandbag heavily and immediately picked up the binoculars to observe the battle situation outside.

  At this time, the two Japanese vanguard squads had already launched an attack formation. Since all the buildings on the dock had been demolished by the Baoshan Regiment in advance, there was no shelter or cover. The Japanese army couldn't find any cover and somehow managed to lift the ferry onto the dock, then used the hull as cover while pushing forward and exchanging fire with the Baoshan Regiment.

  The two infantry squads of the Japanese army were indeed very powerful, but in terms of both manpower and firepower, they were at an absolute disadvantage compared to the Baoshan Regiment. In particular, the dozens of light machine guns on the positions of the 1st and 2nd battalions of the Baoshan Regiment fired fiercely, causing the entire dock to be splintered, inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese army.

  Moreover, light machine guns are not comparable to heavy machine guns. Heavy machine guns are too cumbersome and difficult to move, making them easy targets for the enemy's grenade launchers. In contrast, light machine guns can be easily carried and moved around, allowing soldiers to quickly reposition themselves when under attack. As soon as the enemy launches a grenade, experienced soldiers will immediately pick up their machine guns and relocate, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the enemy's attacks.

  However, the two vanguard squads of the little devils still pushed forward fearlessly, their goal was clear, to occupy the entire bulge where the dock was located before the main force arrived, so that the main force could quickly disembark through the dock and rapidly deploy to launch an attack.

  If Nakagawa's main force successfully deploys an attacking formation on the north shore, Bao Shan Tuan will be completely finished!

  Even if the Nakagawa Alliance had less than 2,000 people at this time, it was still a piece of cake to defeat the Bao Shan Tuan's more than 3,000 defeated soldiers in a head-on battle!

  Yue Weihan saw this point clearly, so he ordered Hua Hanlin to lead the guard company to launch a desperate counterattack, no matter what the cost, to drive the Japanese vanguard back into the river. In this way, when the main force of the devils arrived, they would not be able to quickly land at the dock, unless they retreated. Otherwise, the Japanese could only deploy their attack formation on both sides of the riverbank.

  Once the Japanese army is forced to deploy on both banks of the river, this battle will be easy to fight. The muddy beach will become the greatest enemy of the Japanese army, and the Japanese soldiers trapped in the mud will become the best shooting targets!

  Soon, the guard company of Hua Hanlin rushed to the river bank and immediately unfolded a charging formation towards the Japanese vanguard squad at the top of the protruding part. The guard company was a reinforced company with four infantry platoons, with more than 200 men, and this guy charged forward with quite a momentum.

  However, the Japanese army's vanguard was completely unaffected. Except for a few grenade launchers that were still suppressing the machine guns on the small hill in front of them, all four Type 99 light machine guns and all the Type 38 Arisaka rifles turned towards the charging formation of the Guard Company. The Guard Company quickly suffered casualties, and the number of casualties was increasing at an alarming rate!

  Just as Cao Xinglong was getting anxious, a crisp gunshot suddenly rang out in his ear, and the machine gunner of the Japanese army's vanguard fell to the ground. Turning back to look, he saw Yue Weihan calmly pulling the bolt, raising his hand again with a "bang" sound, and the second light machine gun of the Japanese vanguard also fell silent.

  At this time, the dozens of light machine guns in Baoshan 1st and 2nd camps no longer dodged east and west, but concentrated their firepower to suppress the Japanese army's firepower on the dock, all for the sake of covering the guard company's desperate charge.

  Along the riverbank, Flower Hanlin led the guard company in a desperate charge. Since it was a charge, there was no need to dodge or hide anymore, and they couldn't stop to fire their guns either. Providing covering fire was someone else's job; the guard company had only one task: Charge! They charged forward at full speed, getting tangled up with the enemy!

  As for whether the enemy's bullets hit or not, it all depends on each person's luck!

  Anyway, there are only two outcomes: if you don't charge forward, you'll definitely die; if you do charge forward, you might still have a chance to live!

  After suffering nearly a third of casualties, the Guard Regiment finally approached the Japanese vanguard.

  "Brothers, kill!" Flower Hanlin shouted hoarsely as he ran swiftly, the guards behind him suddenly let out a loud howl, each one like a wolf sniffing blood, their mouths wide open revealing cold and sinister fangs, their expressions ferocious beyond measure.

  The vanguard of the Japanese army across from them remained as calm as a mountain.

  Until the last row of guns was fired, the Japanese commander suddenly drew his sword and held it high. The devils who were originally half-kneeling on the ground shooting with their rifles then quickly drew out their bayonets and attached them to their guns, and then pulled back the bolt to eject the bullets. Immediately after, the Japanese commander thrust his sword forward fiercely, and the remaining sixty or more devils suddenly let out a beast-like howl, brandishing their bayonets as they ferociously charged towards the guard company.