Chapter 144 Counterattack

His instinctive action prevented Company Commander Lu from continuing his pursuit, and at that moment, more Japanese soldiers rushed up.

Company Commander Lu had no choice but to temporarily release the Japanese soldier he had already castrated and turned his blade towards the newly arriving enemies.

Company Commander Lu's bravery greatly excited Company Commander Chu Xiuxian and his men. They had seen Company Commander Lu charge forward and, in the blink of an eye, stab two Japanese soldiers to death.

This was truly inspiring, and for a moment, all the soldiers shouted, "Kill!"

Company Commander Chu Xiuxian and his men usually shouted "Bravo!" at the opera house. Now, shouting "Kill!" alongside the soldiers of the Second Company filled them with even greater excitement and boiling blood.

The sounds of battle shook the hillside. At the foot of the hill, Captain Koike Hideki was filled with regret. He had been worried that sending too many troops at once would increase unnecessary casualties during the attack.

Therefore, he only sent one company as the vanguard. He never expected the Tenkai Ryunosuke Company to suffer so many casualties.

Now, the Tenkai Ryunosuke Company was engaged in close combat with the Nationalist soldiers defending the hilltop. If he had sent more troops earlier, the hill would have been captured.

What could he do now? He could only order Captain Sato Shunichi to immediately lead his troops up the hill to reinforce the embattled Tenkai Ryunosuke Company.

When Captain Sato Shunichi led his troops up the hill, the Second Company's heavy machine guns and machine gunners immediately began to spray the Japanese soldiers with bullets.

As soon as the attack began, the machine gunners and artillerymen of both companies received orders to provide fire cover. Now was the time for their machine guns to come into play.

Although Captain Sato Shunichi's company was more than two hundred meters away, the combined machine gun fire of the two infantry companies suppressed their advance to a crawl.

Captain Koike Hideki watched the close combat on the hillside, where the Tenkai Ryunosuke Company was in dire straits. He was extremely anxious!

But now his troops were too far away, and he could only worry helplessly.

He could only urge Captain Sato Shunichi's troops to speed up their advance, but Captain Sato Shunichi's troops were suppressed by the intense machine gun fire and dared not accelerate.

This speed was deadly, and of course, few Japanese soldiers were willing to risk it.

Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke charged towards Company Commander Lu. He had seen that this Nationalist soldier was the most ferocious. He intended to crush the momentum of the Nationalist troops.

In such a short time, the few remaining soldiers of the Takahashi Juichiro Platoon, who had been at the forefront, had been stabbed to death. Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke's plan to establish his authority by killing and intimidating the Nationalist soldiers had failed.

This meant that the remaining few dozen soldiers of his company would not survive. But they were already entangled with the enemy, and even if they wanted to retreat, they couldn't.

As Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke charged forward, he passed Staff Sergeant Kitamura Yoshino, who was still clutching his lower body and howling. The cries of this soldier were too miserable, seriously affecting the morale and spirit of the Japanese army.

Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke lightly waved the command saber in his hand, and the sharp blade sliced across Staff Sergeant Kitamura Yoshino's throat, immediately silencing him.

Watching Staff Sergeant Kitamura Yoshino frantically clutching his groin with one hand and his throat with the other, Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke knew that this soldier would not live for more than five minutes.

He ignored Kitamura Yoshino and continued to stride towards Company Commander Lu. Company Commander Lu had already stabbed three Japanese soldiers to death in succession. Before he could catch his breath, another Japanese officer charged straight at him.

It was clear that he was coming for him. Company Commander Lu stopped and assumed a bayonet fighting stance, waiting for the Japanese soldier to approach.

Seeing that Company Commander Lu was prepared for battle, Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke shouted loudly and rushed forward, raising the command saber in his hand, gripping the hilt with both hands, and slashing down at Company Commander Lu with all his strength.

This strike was full of power, like splitting a mountain in half. Company Commander Lu took a step back with his left foot, his upper body posture remaining unchanged, watching as the Japanese soldier's powerful strike cut through the air.

After dodging the Japanese soldier's strike, Company Commander Lu stepped forward, thrusting the bayonet in his hand forward, and shouting loudly, "Kill!"

Now it was his turn to perform. After Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke's full-force strike missed, he watched helplessly as the Nationalist soldier who had just retreated stepped forward, the gleaming bayonet stabbing towards him like lightning.

At this moment, he was still trying to retract his saber with all his might, but it was too late to pull it back. He simply watched as the bayonet pierced his body. Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke even heard the sound of the bayonet rubbing against his bones as it entered his flesh.

Ignoring his command saber, he gripped the rifle tightly with both hands, trying to prevent the bayonet from being pulled out.

Company Commander Lu smiled contemptuously, twisted the bayonet forcefully in the Japanese soldier's chest, and Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke's entire body lost strength under the twist.

His hands could no longer hold the bayonet and wrestle with Company Commander Lu. Company Commander Lu pulled out the bayonet and followed up with another thrust, and Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke fell to the ground.

The fate of his company was the same as his. All the Japanese soldiers of the hundred-man company who fell to the ground were given a final thrust, and the remaining standing soldiers also fell.

Company Commander Lu shouted loudly, "Pick up the weapons and ammunition and retreat back to the defense line!"

Company Commander Chu and his soldiers had learned a lot this time. From beginning to end, they had been acting together with the Second Company of the Special Operations Brigade.

They felt that fighting the Japanese was not difficult at all. Had they really just annihilated a Japanese company so easily?

Back in the trenches, the soldiers still couldn't believe the fact. For them, wiping out a company of Japanese soldiers, even with a full regiment, would be a great victory!

But looking at the Special Operations Brigade soldiers around them, it seemed that killing more than a hundred Japanese soldiers was not a big deal. These soldiers were already crouching on the edge of the trenches, preparing for the next attack.

After the attacking soldiers returned to the trenches, Company Commander Lu ordered the machine guns, which had been suppressing the Japanese soldiers in the distance, to stop firing and let the Japanese soldiers come closer.

Captain Sato Shunichi had been desperately trying to get his troops to charge forward, but they were suppressed by the dense bullets. Now, the Tenkai Ryunosuke Company on the hillside had been completely annihilated.

The Nationalist soldiers who had attacked and fought their way back to the trenches, and at this time, their machine guns stopped firing, clearly intending to lure them in.

Even though Captain Sato Shunichi knew that the troops on the hilltop wanted to let them get closer before attacking, he had to grit his teeth and charge upwards.

This time, Captain Koike Hideki saw that the machine guns on the hilltop had stopped firing, and he immediately ordered, "Captain Shichijo Taro, you will immediately join the attack."

Captain Koike Hideki had seen that Captain Tenkai Ryunosuke's company had been completely wiped out, and he was going to send two companies to attack at once. This time, he was determined to capture the hill.

The Uehara Yosuke Infantry Battalion, which was following behind the tank regiment, was also a mechanized infantry unit. The entire battalion was riding in trucks, following behind the tank regiment.

When the tanks were attacked and stopped, Captain Uehara Yosuke had already jumped out of the truck and rushed to a hidden position on the side of the road, directing the Japanese soldiers to counterattack.

He watched as one tank after another exploded right in front of him, and the Japanese infantry were powerless. They could only watch helplessly as artillery fire from the surrounding hills bombarded the tanks.

The Japanese infantry could clearly see that the Nationalist army's bombing was deliberate, first bombing both ends and then the middle, completely cutting off the tank regiment's escape route.

When Captain Uehara Yosuke poked his head out to assess the situation, several shells landed in the middle of his infantry's truck convoy.

Now their trucks were also burning, and it was impossible to quickly retreat by truck.

However, Captain Uehara Yosuke had no intention of retreating. These Japanese soldiers had come out today to fight the Nationalist army, and now that they had encountered them, they could not let them go.

Moreover, even if the tank regiment in front was bombed, they still had tens of thousands of infantry and the support of a heavy artillery brigade behind them.

Therefore, Captain Uehara Yosuke was not flustered at all. He was very calm.

He could now clearly see that there was a Nationalist army position on the hill above him, and this hill was of course the first priority to be attacked.

Captain Uehara Yosuke immediately ordered, "Captain Kanzuki Kazuo, immediately lead your troops to charge upwards! Be sure to capture the hill as quickly as possible."

"Hai!" Captain Kanzuki Kazuo replied and turned to order his three platoon leaders, "Charge!"

It was not easy to charge upwards from the road along the hillside.

The soldiers of the Fujimoto Masashige Platoon were furious at the sight of the tanks in front of the road constantly exploding and burning. They had been clamoring to charge up the hill and wipe out those despicable attackers.

Now that Captain Kanzuki had given the order, the Japanese soldiers immediately jumped up and charged upwards, braving the sporadic bullets fired from the hilltop. Following behind them were Platoon Leader Nozawa Tsutomu and Platoon Leader Aso Mitsuaki.

The entire Kanzuki Kazuo Company had set off. These Japanese soldiers had not yet been attacked, and their morale was high, charging forward with great enthusiasm.

Captain Uehara Yosuke did not let the other companies of Japanese soldiers remain idle. He ordered the entire battalion of Japanese soldiers to find cover nearby, and machine guns and mortars concentrated their fire on the hill that the Kanzuki Company was attacking.

He wanted to completely suppress the species brigade's already weak fire from the hilltop, creating the best possible attacking conditions for the Kanzuki Kazuo Company.

Following Captain Uehara's order, all the Japanese soldiers' scattered fire was concentrated on the Third Company's position. Third Company Commander Hua Wuque had no choice but to withdraw the artillery fire that was used to attack the Japanese tanks.

He ordered the five mortars and two Type 92 battalion guns in the company to first destroy the Japanese mortars. As for the six heavy machine guns in the company, they were to prioritize sweeping the Japanese machine guns.

The Japanese soldiers who were charging did not have to be concerned for the time being. This time, each company of the Fifteenth Regiment had deployed directional mines in front of their fortifications.

They were not afraid of the Japanese soldiers charging at all. They even hoped that more Japanese soldiers would come. It was the same whether they blew up one hundred or two hundred Japanese soldiers.

The Japanese soldiers of the Kanzuki Kazuo Company, who were unaware of the situation, received the support of the entire battalion's fire from behind, and saw that all the fire from the hilltop, which was not much to begin with, had shifted its target.

Each firing point went to duel with the machine guns of the other companies in the battalion. Of course, Captain Kanzuki Kazuo would not waste such a golden opportunity.

He shouted loudly, urging the Japanese soldiers to hurry up the mountain. Although the steep hillside severely restricted their speed of advance, these Japanese soldiers did not stop at all, panting and struggling hard.

The Fujimoto Masashige Platoon was at the forefront, and in this platoon, Staff Sergeant Numata Yuta was charging at the very front, holding a light machine gun. He only cared about charging forward and didn't care about the situation on the hilltop at all.

From the beginning of the charge until now, Staff Sergeant Numata Yuta had not fired a single bullet from the machine gun in his hand. It was precisely because of this that he was able to charge at the very front, leading the entire platoon, or rather, the entire company, in the charge.

Company Commander Su Bufang, who was fighting alongside the Third Company, saw that the Japanese soldiers were charging very fiercely and said to Company Commander Hua with some concern: "Company Commander Hua, should we fire a few shots at the Japanese soldiers now?"

Company Commander Hua Wuque said with a smile: "Don't worry, attacking the Japanese soldiers now would be like startling the snake in the grass. Let them charge up. I've planted directional mines in front. That's enough for these Japanese soldiers.

Our company's soldiers are also resting, so there's no need to rush to shoot at the Japanese soldiers. We'll blow them up first, harvest this group of Japanese soldiers, and then talk about the next step."

The Third Company's mortars and battalion guns had been targeting the Japanese mortars, and finally silenced the Japanese mortars. Company Commander Hua ordered these mortars and battalion guns to bombard the Japanese heavy machine guns and the concentrated positions of the Japanese soldiers.

Company Commander Su Bufang asked somewhat strangely: "Do you know if Commander Lin knows that you're constantly firing artillery like this? The battle has only just begun. What if you run out of ammunition later?"

Company Commander Hua laughed: "Most of our artillery shells were seized from the Japanese soldiers. We haven't finished using the shells we seized yesterday.

To be honest, the shells seized from the Japanese soldiers are too weak. They're not as good as the shells we produce ourselves.

This is what the brigade commander taught us: If a problem can be solved with artillery shells, don't use people to solve it. If a problem can be solved with bullets, don't use people to solve it.

In our team, the most precious thing is these soldiers. Use more artillery shells to hit the Japanese soldiers and use fewer soldiers' lives to exchange for the lives of the Japanese soldiers. These are all what the brigade commander said."

Company Commander Hua's theory made Company Commander Su listen in a daze. He felt that this was very reasonable, but there were also some things that were wrong. He had not yet figured out what was wrong.

Regardless of what was right or wrong, all actions on this battlefield had to be listened to by Company Commander Hua. This was what the regimental commander had specifically instructed before Company Commander Su and the others entered the battlefield.

This time, they were fighting alongside the Special Operations Brigade mainly to learn, to learn how others fought. On the battlefield, they had to absolutely obey the command of the Special Operations Brigade.

Now, even though they saw the Japanese soldiers charging up all the way without any obstacles, Company Commander Su could only worry, but he did not dare to give orders to his soldiers.

In fact, although the firepower in his company was not as strong as that of Company Commander Hua, the firepower of nine light machine guns was not weak.

However, despite having nine light machine guns, Company Commander Hua did not allow them to fire. All the soldiers were not allowed to look outside. In Company Commander Hua's words, "This is to protect these soldiers and avoid unnecessary casualties."

The soldiers were hiding in the trenches, and they were really safe, but what about fighting the Japanese soldiers? What to do?

The Japanese soldiers of the Fujimoto Masashige Platoon, who had not been attacked at all, were about one hundred meters away from the Third Company's trenches on the hilltop, and they could already see the positions of the six heavy machine guns.

These heavy machine guns were still working hard to sweep the Japanese soldiers in the distance, completely ignoring the Kanzuki Kazuo Company that had charged to a distance of one hundred meters, and did not pay attention to them at all.

Platoon Leader Fujimoto Masashige was very annoyed by this kind of disregard. He pointed to the positions of the six machine guns and ordered: "Shoot!" He was thinking that if they continued to charge forward, these six heavy machine guns would sweep over, and his platoon would definitely suffer heavy casualties.

Staff Sergeant Numata Yuta, who was at the very front of the entire platoon, heard the platoon leader's order and fired his light machine gun while climbing up the hill.

The sound of the machine gun "Da da da! Da da da!" sounded, and his heroic actions made the blood of the entire company of Japanese soldiers boil.

Each of these Japanese soldiers followed his example, firing while climbing towards the hilltop.

There was a thick layer of baffle outside the six heavy machine guns on the hilltop. The bullets hit the baffles, making a clanging sound, and did not cause any damage at all.

However, such dense bullet fire seemed to scare the soldiers on the hilltop, and soon the six heavy machine guns stopped firing one after another.

This made the Japanese soldiers who were still charging extremely excited. Not only were the Japanese soldiers of the Kanzuki Kazuo Company happy, but Captain Uehara Yosuke, who was hiding on the road, was also extremely excited.

He knew that the Nationalist army on the hilltop should have greased the soles of their feet and ran away. They had seen this situation many times in the past few days. It was not surprising.

Captain Uehara Yosuke had already breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, and the entire battalion of Japanese soldiers also stood up from their hiding positions and watched the attack of the Kanzuki Kazuo Company.

Staff Sergeant Numata Yuta had charged to a position less than fifty meters away from the trenches, and the hilltop was still very quiet, and no bullets were fired at all.

This made Platoon Leader Fujimoto Masashige very happy. He drew out his command saber: "Kill!"