Chapter 1 A Line of Japanese Devils

A line of Japanese devils had just rushed in from the West Gate, but were immediately suppressed by a barrage of bullets.

They had to retreat into the city gate.

At this moment, a line of Japanese devils rushed in from the breached city wall to the west.

Further away, several more lines of Japanese devils rushed in.

They simultaneously launched an attack on the fortress guarded by Regiment Commander Shu Anqing.

The Japanese devils had machine guns, grenade launchers, and they even dragged in a Type 92 battalion gun.

A full company, more than one hundred and eighty Japanese devils, attacked the fortress defended by only a dozen soldiers.

The Japanese devils’ machine guns and cannons suppressed the machine gun fire of the Nationalist soldiers defending the fortress.

A fortress was sometimes like a besieged city: those outside wanted to get in, but those inside couldn’t get out.

Now, Regiment Commander Shu Anqing and the dozen or so soldiers defending the fortress wanted to break out.

Originally, there was another fortress not far from this one, in the city wall, acting as mutual support.

But when the city wall collapsed, that fortress was completely buried by the falling debris, making it impossible to enter.

Now, with the Japanese devils approaching the fortress from a blind spot, Regiment Commander Shu Anqing and his men were in imminent danger.

But there was no coordination from the outside; the Japanese devils had already surrounded the fortress.

Regiment Commander Shu Anqing watched helplessly as the Japanese devils threw grenades through the firing ports.

A soldier suddenly jumped on top of one of the grenades.

A muffled sound rang out, and the soldier's body shuddered violently.

Unable to hold on any longer, the soldiers stopped defending the fortress to the death.

They opened the iron gate of the fortress and sprayed machine gun fire outwards.

The Japanese devils’ machine guns, which had been waiting outside, immediately opened fire.

The soldiers of this platoon, braving the Japanese devils’ machine gun fire, charged out.

Having paid the price of six comrades' lives, the platoon finally broke out of the fortress.

They finally escaped the besieged city, and managed to get Regiment Commander Shu Anqing out, but he was wounded in the breakout.

Such events happened many times today. The officers and soldiers of the 128th Division, after entering the fortresses, discovered when they were attacked by the Japanese devils that:

Many of the fortresses were isolated, and when surrounded by the Japanese devils on all sides,

They basically had no choice but to break out.

Deputy Regiment Commander Yang Zhengyin was killed in action during one such breakout.

Lin Fan and the soldiers of the Special Operations Company did not enter those fortresses.

Instead, he chose a building in the south of the city, and the entire Special Operations Company spread out within the city.

Coordinating with the soldiers of the 128th Division inside the fortresses, they calmly opened fire on the Japanese devils who charged into the city.

Today was the day for those thirty-nine core members to shine.

Niu Dongxing and the others were now wielding dual guns: the pistols they had brought themselves,

And the rifles issued to them after joining the Special Operations Company.

Lin Fan knew that these men were good shots, so he had issued them all rifles.

The Type 38 rifle was accurate, with a true trajectory, and powerful.

It could reach a distance of up to one thousand meters, making it ideal for long-range sniping in this situation.

Now, those thirty-nine men, plus Lin Fan, made forty.

They quietly concealed themselves and opened fire on the Japanese devils who had just rushed in from the South Gate.

The Japanese devils had just rushed into the city and were immediately suppressed by the machine guns inside the fortresses.

The cold shots fired by Lin Fan and his men did not attract the attention of the Japanese devils.

Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen, with his squad, entered Jiaxing City through the gap in the South City Wall.

As soon as his squad entered the city, they saw a fortress fifty meters ahead, firing at the city gate.

Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen immediately led his squad to charge towards the fortress, but had barely taken a step when they were suppressed by fire coming from a new firing port in the fortress.

The squad of fifty-four men immediately dispersed under Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen's orders, changing their route of attack.

The machine gun in the fortress kept firing.

Just as the soldiers in Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen's squad split into three groups,

Someone fell.

They had been shot!

As if this kind of thing was contagious.

After the first one, there came a second, and then a third.

Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen nervously concealed himself, peering forward to observe.

The machine gun across from them was firing non-stop. Could it be a machine gun?

Just as he was observing, several more soldiers in his squad fell.

This time, Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen could finally confirm: the attack was not coming from the fortress.

But he realized it a little too late. Three hundred meters away, Lin Fan gently squeezed the trigger.

Squad Leader Yamaguchi Bigen was also "infected" and fell headlong to the ground.

His squad of fifty-four men had been in the city for less than ten minutes and had already lost half their numbers.

Niu Dongxing hit another Japanese devil again.

He was extremely happy. This feeling of hitting Japanese devils from three hundred meters away was fantastic.

Those Japanese devils died without even knowing where the bullets came from.

Lin Fan and the soldiers of the Special Operations Company stayed in the south of the city, constantly firing at the Japanese devils who charged in.

The 767th Regiment was guarding the only retreat route for the entire division, the Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge.

Now, it had become the place of the most intense attacks by the Japanese devils.

Enemy planes were constantly dropping bombs on the railway bridge, and all that was left of the entire railway bridge were a few steel rails.

Even so, the Japanese devils’ infantry were still fiercely attacking the regiment guarding the bridge.

They wanted to completely surround the 128th Division in Jiaxing City.

At this time, Jiaxing City was already surrounded on three sides.

The friendly forces originally guarding this defensive line had all retreated, and today only the 128th Division and the Special Operations Company remained.

The battle continued until 3:00 PM, when Gu Jiaqi sent a telegram to the rear headquarters: "Out of ammunition and men."

Finally, he received an order from the rear, authorizing the 128th Division to retreat.

However, in the current situation, it was impossible for the 128th Division to retreat.

Gu Jiaqi had no choice but to order: "The entire 128th Division will look for an opportunity to retreat after nightfall."

Although the Japanese devils did not know the 128th Division's plan, their attacks did not let up for a moment.

Especially on the Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge.

If the 128th Division wanted to retreat from Jiaxing, they had to repair the railway bridge.

The soldiers of the Engineer Company carried wooden planks onto the railway bridge, but had only managed to lay down five meters when

The Japanese devils’ attack planes and fighter planes all swooped down to strafe.

The engineers of the 128th Division on the bridge had nowhere to hide and no way to resist.

They braved the Japanese devils’ rain of bullets and continued to erect the wooden planks.

Dense bullets struck the bridge, striking the bodies of these brave men.

As the first batch of soldiers fell in a pool of blood, the Japanese devils’ bombers began to dive again, dropping bomb after bomb.

The wooden planks that had just been laid down, less than ten meters in length, were broken by the bombs and cannon fire and fell into the river.

The second batch of engineers followed in the footsteps of their fallen comrades, carrying wooden planks onto the railway bridge and continuing to lay them down.

When the Japanese devils’ planes came again, the engineers of the 128th Division quickly retreated back to the bunkers beside the bridge.

They retreated, but the wooden planks that had just been laid were once again ignited by the Japanese devils’ planes.

The Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge could not be repaired, and the regiment commander had no choice but to report the situation upwards.

Upon receiving the news, Division Commander Gu Jiaqi had no choice but to transfer the Special Operations Company from the south of Jiaxing City to the head of the Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge.

He knew that the situation in the entire city was not optimistic, and only the south of the city, guarded with the assistance of the Special Operations Company, had not allowed the Japanese devils to advance a single step.

In the other three directions in the city, the Japanese devils had been steadily advancing, and the Nationalist army’s defensive line had been shrinking.

Gu Jiaqi had only one request for Lin Fan: "Ensure the construction of the 128th Division’s engineers and protect the railway bridge from being destroyed by the Japanese devils."

Lin Fan asked in a low voice: "Division Commander! Are there any shells left?"

Gu Jiaqi shook his head: "No!"

Lin Fan replied loudly: "I guarantee the completion of the mission!"

The Special Operations Company, after receiving the mission, retreated from the urban street battles under Lin Fan’s leadership.

When they arrived at the railway bridge, it was already the fourth time the engineers had attempted to lay the planks.

Here, the 767th Regiment had been blocking the Japanese devils’ infantry attacks,

Trying to create opportunities for the Engineer Company.

However, everyone was helpless against the Japanese devils’ planes flying in the sky.

Flying Squadron Captain Gotō Hori Taku was on his third mission to Jiaxing City today.

He was piloting an attack plane with four machine guns on it.

The previous two times, Flying Squadron Captain Gotō Hori Taku had fired every last bullet into Jiaxing City before flying back to resupply.

He loved watching the soldiers on the ground as they were sprayed with bullets from the four machine guns, their blood splashing everywhere.

He had just returned to the airfield and switched to a plane with full fuel and ammunition.

Gotō Hori Taku saw that another layer of wooden planks had been laid on the railway bridge that had just been destroyed.

"This team is really tenacious!

It's been several times already, and they're still doing such useless work," Gotō Hori Taku thought to himself.

"Let me make them go from disappointment to despair!" Gotō Hori Taku made up his mind.

This team had no anti-aircraft guns, and his eight planes were here to provide support.

They hadn't even been hit by anti-aircraft machine gun bullets, which showed that this team didn't even have anti-aircraft machine guns.

Gotō Hori Taku didn't understand how a team with such equipment had managed to hold up the Empire's army here for seven days.

No matter how confused he was, Gotō Hori Taku maneuvered his plane into a dive.

This was not the first time he had attacked the target called the Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge.

He was already very familiar with it. Regarding this bridge, Division Commander Ushijima Sadaharu had ordered: Blow it up! Block it! Do not let a single defending soldier cross the river.

The division commander wanted to annihilate this team here today!

To achieve this goal, Flying Squadron Captain Gotō Hori Taku's entire squadron was cooperating with the 18th Division all day today.

"It's time to open fire." Flying Squadron Captain Gotō Hori Taku pressed the fire button.

The four machine guns on his plane immediately began to spew flames.

Spraying towards the ground, but the bullets fired from his plane were not yet able to hit the target.

"Wait two more seconds, until the plane dives lower, and then I can hit those soldiers scurrying around on the railway bridge," Flying Squadron Captain Gotō Hori Taku thought to himself.

Lin Fan watched as the Japanese devils’ attack plane once again swooped down to strafe the soldiers on the railway bridge.

He immediately began to act:

With one hand holding the mortar tube, he threw a shell into it with the other.

The Special Operations Company now had only fifteen shells left.

But in this situation, Lin Fan had no choice but to use them.

The diving attack plane was less than one hundred meters above the railway bridge.

The four machine guns under the belly of the plane spewed out four tongues of fire, spraying the river surface and splashing countless water droplets.

The soldiers of the Engineer Company had already started running when they saw the Japanese devils’ plane begin to dive.

Liao Feichen was a soldier in the Engineer Company, and it was now his squad's turn to rush up and lay the wooden planks.

When the Japanese devils’ plane came, Liao Feichen and his squad had already begun to retreat.

But they could never outrun the speed of the plane.

Listening to the machine gun's "Da-da-da! Are you afraid?" sound.

Whether these soldiers were afraid or not, they rushed towards the air raid shelter not far away.

Liao Feichen also followed behind his comrades, running as hard as he could.

Just then, a loud noise suddenly came from behind.

While running, Liao Feichen couldn't help but

Turned his head to look in the direction of the loud noise.

After just one glance, he stopped running and shouted excitedly: "Brothers! No need to run, the Japanese devils’ plane has been blown up."

In fact, he was not the only one who turned his head. The soldiers of the Engineer Company felt a wave of air pressure coming towards them.

Everyone turned their heads and saw the Japanese devils’ plane skimming low over the railway bridge.

And plunging headfirst into the river.

Liao Feichen and the others quickly rushed back and began to lay the wooden planks nervously.

When the Japanese devils’ planes returned to Jiaxing one after another, they saw that the bridge that Division Commander Ushijima Sadaharu had strictly ordered to be blocked was actually almost completely repaired.

How could this be?

The planes swooped down one after another, trying to destroy the railway bridge again.

But this time, they failed.

Lin Fan was hiding, quietly hiding under the eaves of a house.

He only moved slightly when he saw the Japanese devils’ plane diving.

And firing a shell.

Now, the entire Special Operations Company had less than ten mortar shells left.

He could only use these few shells in the places where they were most needed.

And now, shooting down these Japanese devils’ planes was what Lin Fan felt was most needed.

When six Japanese devils’ planes had already crashed in Jiaxing, the Japanese devils’ planes in the sky stopped diving.

Half an hour later, the wooden planks on the entire Sixty-Seventh Railway Bridge were finally laid.

Gu Jiaqi ordered: "Send the wounded and the medical team over first."

The sky was slowly darkening, and the Japanese devils’ attacks in Jiaxing City slowly stopped.

Street fighting in the city at night was very suitable for the 128th Division.

The Japanese devils did not want to give the 128th Division this opportunity.

Seeing that the railway bridge had been repaired, the Japanese devils attacking here became even more frantic.

The Sato Detachment was attacking here, and they saw that six planes had already crashed here.

And then, no matter how they called, the three planes circling in the sky refused to come down.

They were unwilling to carry out the mission of destroying the railway bridge.

Then they could only let the infantry carry out this mission.

Detachment Commander Sato Satoshi urged his soldiers to advance.

Just then, a shell exploded in the middle of the Japanese devils’ attacking formation.

Then came the second and third shells.

When the first shell exploded, Detachment Commander Sato Satoshi groaned in pain in his heart: Here it comes again!

He had not suffered such accurate bombing for two days.

Even so, when Lin Fan fired the first shell, Sato Satoshi guessed: This was that mysterious team.

Lin Fan fired all the remaining shells in one breath.

Suddenly, a gap appeared in the front of the 767th Regiment's position.

The Sato Detachment's attack was finally forced to a halt.

Detachment Commander Sato Satoshi looked at the darkening sky, afraid that another attack would be met with the same shelling.

He had no choice but to order: "Withdraw from the battle!"

"I will be back tomorrow!" Detachment Commander Sato Satoshi vowed secretly in his heart.

The sky was completely dark.

The entire 128th Division was retreating overnight.

They were retreating to Linping to rest and reorganize.

Lin Fan and the Special Operations Company could only follow this team to Linping for the time being.

Since Lin Fan left Shanghai with the Special Operations Company, the road to wealth he left behind had allowed everyone in Du Mansion to make a fortune in these days.

General Manager Izumiyama Kohei of Mitsubishi Bank finally discovered something was wrong on the 11th: his bank had cancelled the withdrawal limit these days, and the Empire had actually controlled the entire Shanghai.

The number of small deposit slips used to withdraw money had decreased a lot, but the number of large deposit slips used to withdraw money had not decreased every day.

These slips were all between 100,000 and 500,000.

The withdrawal amount was at least five million in legal tender every day.

It was said that in the current situation, even ordinary people knew that the Empire had won the war, and there was no risk in keeping money in the Imperial Bank.

Why were those large deposit slips still being withdrawn non-stop?

When he began to check the accounts with his most trusted subordinates,

Gao Hongbo panicked immediately.

He had been preparing to leave for a long time, but the tens of thousands of commissions he made every day made him reluctant to give up.

Now that Bank General Manager Izumiyama Kohei was personally leading people to check the accounts,

Gao Hongbo immediately smelled something ominous.

A few days ago, he had already taken advantage of the great evacuation to transfer his wife and children to Hong Kong.

His whole family was preparing to settle down there.

He had become a de facto lone wolf, making money alone in Mitsubishi Bank.

There was only one road in front of him: escape!

After he escaped from the Japanese Concession under the guise of going to the toilet and entered the Public Concession,

He immediately spent three times the price to buy a ticket to Hong Kong that day.

At this time, General Manager Izumiyama Kohei had already found out that all the large deposit slips these days had been handled by one person: Gao Hongbo!

But this handler was just in the bank, and within a few minutes,

He disappeared!

Although he didn't know why, General Manager Izumiyama Kohei immediately ordered people to carefully check these deposit slips.

There was nothing wrong with the deposit slips!

But so many deposit slips, and all of them were large slips with no root, and all of them were taken out by one person.

This was wrong! Very wrong!