Chapter Seventeen When the Professor Taught

  September 20, 1938.

  Hubei Huangshi Fuchi Port

  Hata Shigeyuki stood behind the position, occasionally taking out his binoculars to gaze forward... It had already been three days. Under his command, the Hata detachment had made considerable progress and had driven the Chinese army to the other side of Fuchengkou. At this rate, it was estimated that in a few more days, he would be able to capture this strategic location.

  "I heard that Fuchikou was the garrison of Gan Ning, a great general of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period, known as the 'Key to the Chu River'. I wonder what expression the commander of the Shina army will have when he hears that this place has fallen."

  Next to Hata Shūichi, another Lieutenant General Iida Shōjirō put down the binoculars in his hand and began to show off his knowledge. The Japanese are contradictory like this, on one hand they can't stop showing contempt for China as it is now, but on the other hand they take pride in learning Chinese culture.

  "If I were commanding native soldiers, you would now see the expression of a Chinese commander." Hata Shigeyuki was still observing the battle situation in front of him through binoculars. In fact, he didn't have much to command at this time either. Although his troops were a Taiwanese brigade, their combat effectiveness was not inferior to that of the Chinese army, and even higher. Moreover, all levels of commanders were Japanese officers with high combat literacy, knowing what to do on the battlefield. And he had always been proud of the achievements of this brigade named after his own surname.

  The Hata Detachment was originally known as the Shigeto Detachment and was formed on September 7 of last year with the 1st and 2nd Regiments under the Taiwan Defense Command, the Taiwan Mountain Artillery Regiment, and the newly established 1st and 2nd Sanitary Units, the Taiwan Temporary Automobile Unit, and the 1st and 2nd Transport Surveillance Units. The detachment was led by Major General Shigeto Chiaki with a total strength of approximately 14,000 personnel, equivalent to half of a Japanese division or one division of the National Revolutionary Army.

  On September 9, the Shigetō Detachment was officially assigned to the Shanghai Expeditionary Army. On the 14th, the Shigetō Detachment moved towards Changshu via Kuanshazhen and then rested in place. On November 13, it landed at Baikou with the 16th Division and occupied Changshu on the 19th. Part of the 9th and 16th Divisions captured Wuxi on November 25, allowing the Shigetō Detachment to depart from Wuxi and advance west along the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway. On December 5, the Shigetō Detachment occupied Danyang and also occupied Jurong on the same day. Two days later, the army headquarters reorganized the Shigetō Detachment and two other detachments into the Fifth Army, preparing to land on the south China coast. Therefore, the Shigetō Detachment did not participate in the general attack on Nanjing.

  On December 22, the Japanese military decided to postpone the landing in South China, and the Shigeo Detachment returned to Taiwan for reorganization. On February 15 of the following year, Japan abolished the Fifth Division, and on the 22nd, the Shigeo Detachment was transferred to the Central China Expeditionary Army, with Heitaro Kimura replacing Shigeo Chikahiko as commander. In June, the Kimura Detachment began to assemble in Hefei, and on July 4, it was incorporated into the 11th Army of the Central China Expeditionary Army, preparing to attack Wuhan. According to the battle plan, the Kimura Detachment advanced westward along the Yangtze River with other units of the 11th Army, occupying Anqing and Jiujiang successively. By mid-August, they had reached the northern part of Ruichang. On August 16, the 11th Army ordered an attack on Ruichang, and the Kimura Detachment joined forces with the Maruyama Detachment of the 9th Division to launch a pincer movement from the north and east. On the 24th, Ruichang fell. The Kimura Detachment was ordered to rest in place. On September 7, the 11th Army ordered the Kimura Detachment to attack the area northwest of Ruichang. On the 11th, the Kimura Detachment launched an attack on the mountainous region northwest of Ruichang and occupied the line from Mashan to Yanjia Mountain that night. On the 12th, the Kimura Detachment advanced another two kilometers. By the 13th, they had left Ruichang 20 kilometers behind. On the 14th, the Taiwan Infantry 2nd Regiment's Eternal Unit, under the command of the Kimura Detachment, captured Matou Town with the cooperation of other units and the navy. On the 15th, the Kimura Detachment conquered Kaojiake in its entirety. On the 16th, a right-wing group consisting of the Taiwan Infantry 1st Regiment, the 2nd Regiment's Eternal Unit, and a small unit from the Mountain Artillery Regiment attacked Fuchikou...

  It can be said that since its establishment, this detachment has been glorious in battle.

  Unfortunately, although his military exploits were brilliant, Hata Shūichi was always proud of these achievements, but in his heart he still felt a sense of regret. Because this was an army with mainly soldiers from Taiwan, although they wore the same uniforms as the regular Japanese army, and all the officers were Japanese, but in Hata's eyes, they were still not comparable to the regular Japanese army. He even thought that it was because the soldiers were not Japanese that they had hindered his advance, otherwise he would have already crossed the Fuchikou River, occupied Huangshi, crossed over all obstacles and pressed on to the three towns of Wuhan.

  "These Taiwanese soldiers are of course no match for native soldiers. However, under the command of our officers, they have managed to fight this well, which is quite good enough. And I believe that before long, you will have the opportunity to command native soldiers." said Inada Shojiro with a smile.

  "I hope so." Hata Shigeki hummed, "It's just a pity that the Chinese have mobilized four more armies. The 9th Division is currently engaged in fierce battles with them in Yangxin and Daye, and it's impossible for us to receive support from them in the short term. Otherwise, we could launch a general offensive against the enemy right now."

  "But now we are still on the offensive, and when the time comes, we will complete the task of capturing this strategic location with our own strength. Isn't that more worthy of pride?" said Inada Shojiro.

  "Fuchikou is important, but I hope we can go straight to Wuhan." said Hata Shigekazu.

  "I think this is a common idea among all commanders," said Inada Shojiro with a smile.

  "Of course, I..."

  "Boom——"

  Hada Shigekazu's words were cut off by a loud, dull thud from the battlefield ahead, and before he could react, the dull "rumble" sound continued to echo, even several miles away, he could feel the tremors of the earth.

  "What's going on with the artillery? Who told them to open fire?"

  Hata Shigeki was furious. He saw through the telescope that his soldiers had already charged forward and were only over 200 meters away from the Chinese army's position, such a close distance would easily lead to friendly fire...

  "This doesn't seem like our cannon!" Inoue Shojiro was also startled at first, but after careful consideration, he felt that something was off. "The sound is different!"

  "Is it a Chinese person?"

  The two men exchanged a glance and simultaneously raised their binoculars... The Chinese army still had cannons, and Fuchigou was such a strategic location... But the problem was that in these few days of attack, the number of times the Chinese artillery fired could be counted on one hand, and it had never been so dense before. But just now, the continuous "rumbling" sound, even if not carefully counted, probably had at least thirty or forty rounds... How many large cannons did the Chinese army have? Even if they had them, how could they afford to use them like this?

  "The troops are still on the offensive."

  In the telescope, after being stunned by a brief bombardment, the Taiwanese soldiers of the detachment continued to launch an attack on the position of the Chinese army under the coercion of Japanese officers. With the same uniform as the mainland troops, the same roar, and even the same tactics... In general, the Chinese army would, as usual, hold their ground tightly, first lying down on the ground to shoot, and when the detachment soldiers rushed forward, they would jump up for close combat, either driving away the detachment soldiers or being driven away by them. But this time it was different. Hata Shigetaro and Ineda Shojiro saw that from the enemy's position in front of them, suddenly "thrown" out were black things one after another. Although they couldn't see clearly what those things were even with a telescope, the effect after they landed was obvious... They clearly saw that with a series of dull explosions, the detachment soldiers who were charging forward were either directly blown away or simply blown to pieces, and apart from this, those soldiers who were farther away and hadn't been affected by the explosion also fell directly to the ground after the explosion and never got up again.

  "Our army has recaptured most of the positions in Fuchi Kou, Yangxin and Daye, and heavily defeated the Japanese Army's Botian Brigade and 9th Division, killing over 3,000 enemy soldiers and wounding countless others."

  Wuhan Xingying, Tang reported the latest battle report to Chiang Kai-shek, and it can be seen that he is now in high spirits.

  "More than three thousand? Are there really so many?" Chiang Kai-shek asked in a low voice.

  "Principal, the students have checked, a total of 2,974 people." Tang Zong replied. He could understand Chiang Kai-shek's question. Although they had been fighting against the Japanese army for more than a year, from Shanghai to Xuzhou and now Wuhan, the National Army had fought several large-scale battles against the Japanese army, but never before had they annihilated so many enemies in one battle... The victory won by Li Zongren at Taierzhuang, where he commanded the entire Fifth War Zone troops, was a great triumph that boosted morale, with over 2,000 Japanese soldiers killed and less than 3,000 wounded. But this time, the Third Army Group plus four other armies had actually killed nearly 3,000 Japanese soldiers in one battle, no wonder Chiang Kai-shek didn't believe it, and even he himself didn't believe it, otherwise, he wouldn't have sent someone to investigate again. It's worth noting that such behavior is very offending to the frontline commanders.

  "Are you sure there are that many?" Chiang Kai-shek still couldn't believe such a result. Three thousand Japanese troops! Although the war has been going on until now, the National Army has already eliminated tens of thousands of enemy soldiers, but this is just one battle... Can people believe it if I say this?

  "Rest assured, Principal, I can guarantee it," Tang Zong said again.

  “…just because of that 'Flying Thunder Cannon'?” Chiang Kai-shek finally believed, but he still felt like it was a fantasy... He was very clear that Sun Tongxuan's Third Army Group had been struggling to hold on under the attack of the Hata branch and the 9th Division, if not for him gritting his teeth and transferring four armies over, that direction would have fallen long ago. But even so, Sun Tongxuan still frequently sent out distress signals, requesting support. But now, they suddenly launched a counterattack... Had Sun Tongxuan been possessed by his old superior Han Fugu? But even if he was possessed by a ghost, what could Han Fugu do? He didn't fire a single shot and lost the Yellow River strategic location, lost the scoundrel of Shandong province, how could he defeat the Japanese army and make them suffer such huge losses? If it wasn't Han Fugu's spirit possessing him, then it could only be those few hundred barrels of gasoline that were sent over for support a few days ago... Honestly, if not for Tang Xiang and Dai Li's strong recommendations, he wouldn't have agreed to use that thing in battle... Could that thing really be used in war?

  "Principal, according to the report of the Third Army Group, the 'Flying Thunder Cannon' generally has a range of only 150-200 meters, but its explosive power is enormous, with extremely destructive power against the Japanese army's defensive facilities. Moreover, its killing range is also terrifying, even surpassing that of heavy artillery. Students have also heard that many Japanese soldiers who were killed had their bodies intact on the surface, but their internal organs were shattered..." Tang Zong continued.

  "Is it really that fierce?" His internal organs were all shattered? Even Chiang Kai-shek, who had seen and experienced much, couldn't help but take a deep breath of cold air.

  "In close combat, they're not to be underestimated. The Japanese army was caught off guard and forced into close combat, which is why their artillery couldn't be used effectively, resulting in them suffering losses. However, from a student's perspective, even if they had been able to use their artillery, it probably wouldn't have made much of a difference, considering our army had already withstood their firepower earlier... Not to mention, these shells are far more expensive than dynamite packs." Tang Zong said.

  "Have Sun Tongxuan write a report on the specific power and combat effectiveness of the 'Flying Thunder Cannon'." Chiang Kai-shek said.

  "Yes."

  "Who was it that invented the flying thunder cannon?" Chiang Kai-shek suddenly asked.

  "Qin Wei." Tang Zong replied.

  "Ah, Qin Wei," Chiang Kai-shek nodded, "what is he doing?"

  "He was originally going to flee abroad, but now... he has become a professor at Chongqing University!"

  "Huh?"