the world is at stake

A large number of equipment and tactics beyond the times appeared in the Sino-Japanese war.Airplanes, radio stations, tanks, machine guns, and light artillery, all of these were not available in the past.

The selected ones naturally know the development direction of the "future" war, but to change the concept of an extremely closed group like the military, it must be driven by actual combat.

The intensity of the war in the Liaodong Peninsula is relatively not too tragic, and it is really suitable for military training.Now there are hundreds of German officers on the front line, and there are also casualties.

But the German General Staff still enjoyed it and felt that it was very rewarding.

The Chinese National Defense Force's use of aircraft for anti-ship operations shocked the German Navy, which was blocked by the British Royal Navy, and was already thinking about how to use aircraft for dive bombing and torpedo attacks.

Both parties focus their research on the engine, and they deploy scientific research manpower to cooperate with each other.The new type of aero engine has reached [-] horsepower, and the improvement progress is very fast.

The Chinese National Defense Force uses two types of chariots, wheeled and tracked, which greatly increase the attack speed and break away from the railway restrictions.The German army also felt that they should equip it, but many old German troops are planning to engage in land cruisers in the direction of "multi-turret".

After personally using Chinese steam chariots in the Liaodong Peninsula, the German army corrected the direction of equipment development, decisively cut off its own "cruiser" mode, and reduced the 18-man crew to seven.

Because if you want thick armor, you must reduce the size of the tank, otherwise the expanded space will make the weight of the tank out of control.The flexibility of the rotating turret is irreplaceable, much stronger than the fixed artillery.

In addition, the 'small-caliber rapid-fire gun' also lost to the 'large-caliber heavy gun'-the battlefield environment is changeable, and the need to solve the target with one shot always ranks first.

Actual combat can clear the mind full of imaginings, let the bureaucrats sitting in the office and thinking blindly stand aside, and let the military factory produce equipment that truly meets the needs of the battlefield.

The Chinese and German armies are progressing rapidly.

The first line of defense fell, and the artillery fire from the rear immediately covered the trench, trying to drive out the Wehrmacht who opened the breach.Haumann came from behind, yelling in German.

The interpreter yelled at Hu Dayan: "Blow the trench out of the slope and let the chariot move on."

"If you want to tell me, this is why I risked my life to go over the ditch."

Hu Dayan led the team to clear a section of S-shaped trench, hurried to the chariot, used explosives to blow up the wide and deep trench body, and threw the rough wood and the corpses of the little devils into the trench to fill it up.

More than [-] tons of steam chariots rumbled over, crushing the corpses in the thick wood.The splashed blood and water mixed with the mud, hanging on the joints of the metal tracks as lubricating oil.

The first ditch was lost, and the little devil finally retreated to the second ditch a hundred meters away.

The National Defense Forces at the back finally reacted, rushed up two companies to consolidate the enemy's position, and set up mortars to lob the firepower of the Japanese army on the opposite side.

Hu Dayan somehow remembered that his mission was to rescue the downed pilot.But the battlefield was filled with gunpowder smoke, and all I could see were potholes, broken logs, and fallen corpses.

"Who remembers the pilot in that position?"

The squad deputy followed up with the machine gun team and pointed to the second Japanese trench in Pulandian, "We have to go forward at least 200 meters. But even if the pilot is not killed, he will be captured."

"What did the above say?"

"What can the higher-ups say? Let's try our best to save it."

Hu Dayan cursed and cursed, looked at his brother who was following him, and sighed: "On the way here, the second son suffered a concussion, and Wang Chang's legs and shoulders were disabled. The horse's face was hit by a shell, and only half of his body remained.

But there is no way, the Air Force held up an umbrella for us and reimbursed the little devil for a lot of artillery and machine guns.Otherwise, unsophisticated infantry like us would have been overwhelmed by artillery fire. "

There are still nine infantry squad members left in the 12-man infantry squad, and all their dirty faces are looking at the sergeant squad leader.The squad deputy stood up and said, "Two of the three steam chariots have broken down, and the remaining one can't be counted on.

Even if we go back and say 'can't find', the company can't blame us.Big eyes, this is not a task that must be completed, there is no need to work so hard. "

The brothers were still silent, and it was up to the monitor and deputy to make the decision.

Hu Dayan patted his thigh, and asked the class deputy to go to the company headquarters in person to ask whether the pilot could be saved or not.The class deputy came back after a while, and said with a sullen face:

"I don't know which official gave the order, and another tank platoon was called in to say that it would continue to move forward. In addition, the air force said that the one who was shot down just now was an ace who had shot down five enemy planes, and it would be best if he could be rescued."

"It's too late, this pilot is more expensive than our big-headed soldiers." Hu Dayan cursed, but the order still had to be carried out.

Probably because the superiors paid attention to it, the rescue team changed from a squad to a company, with artillery support.The regiment probably wanted to take the opportunity to push the front line forward by 500 meters and called in the reserve team.

In addition, the German guy Howman volunteered to join Hu Dayan's team.The translator said he wanted to test a new tactic called 'Storm Assault'.The most obvious feature is that its team abandoned the spear.

"Submachine guns, shotguns, 'Madsen', grenades, and '60 mortar' guns." Hu Dayan enthused Howman's team, "If I have such equipment, I dare to attack."

In the sky, several air force formations are cruising along the front line between the enemy and us.

The Japanese military airport in the direction of Lushun has long been bombed by the Air Force of the National Defense Forces. Now the Japanese military aircraft that can fly to Dalian should come from the direction of Dandong.

They are not enough in number, and they can't stay for long. They are often exchanged by the Air Force of the National Defense Forces with a '1:3' or even '1:5' exchange ratio.Forget about the loss of the plane, and the pilots trained by the Americans are also meaninglessly consumed.

Without interference from enemy planes, the Red Warhawk would drop [-] kilograms of white phosphorous arson bombs on the ground.The blasted white phosphorus shone beautifully, covering an area of ​​two to three hundred square meters, which was a natural disaster for unprotected infantry.

For Hu Dayan, the happiest thing is to see the enemy infantry burnt by white phosphorous bombs and have nowhere to hide, howling and running out of the trenches, running and jumping around.

After a long time, the Japanese army tried their best to strengthen their bunkers and retreated underground.Long-range artillery is not very effective against camouflaged bunkers, and must be destroyed visually by the heavy artillery that comes with the steam tank.

When the four chariots started and rushed ahead with black smoke, Hu Dayan raised his hands, "Let's go, brothers. If we can save the pilot today, he must spend the whole month's allowance to invite us." drink wine."

The soldiers echoed and praised in unison.

Haoman wore a helmet and followed Hu Dayan with a smile. Seeing the joyous scene, he said happily in the only Henan dialect he could speak: "My fellow, how are you! How are you! How are you!"

Chapter 80

Four twin-engine monoplane bombers flew slowly at an altitude of 1000 meters.

The pilot had just finished throwing white phosphorus bombs and machine gun fire on the ground.The fuel in the aircraft is still very sufficient, and they can hover on the Pulandian battlefield for two hours, acting as the eyes of the National Defense Forces in the sky.

Misanobu Ono of the 37th Regiment of the Fourth Division of the Japanese Army grabbed a telescope and hid in a front-line observation post camouflaged with chaotic wood and rubble, looking at the sky.

The equipment update of the Chinese National Defense Forces is extremely fast, and it can replace several types of fighters for the Air Force within a year.The triplane that shocked the world last year has now been eliminated and changed to a biplane.

But at the end of the year, through cooperation with Germany to improve the piston-type gasoline aviation engine, the twin-engine monoplane with a metal skeleton and a wooden casing officially appeared.

The complexity of the new aircraft is far beyond that of the past. The internal control is no longer simple ropes and pulleys. It has installed a hydraulic booster device provided by Germany, and added many instruments such as fuel, altitude, and speed, which greatly improved flight safety and controllability.

As soon as this new fighter appeared, it grabbed all orders from the Air Force and civil aviation with its performance of "five hundred kilometers of range and five hundred kilograms of load".

Its flying speed exceeds 280 kilometers per hour, faster than a single-engine biplane, and it can complete air-to-ground missions. It can be called the king of flying-this title can be maintained for about half a year.

Colonel Ono silently stared at the new fighter plane in the sky, and then looked at the ground battlefield ravaged by white phosphorous bombs, feeling dry and bitter.

The dozens of 'Puppy' biplanes Britain supplied to Japan last year have all been exhausted on the battlefield.The dozens of planes that were ordered later can only be used as trainers in China due to their performance lagging behind.

After the Japan-U.S. alliance, the Japanese army began to accept American-made fighters, a biplane nicknamed 'Barrel'.It is characterized by high horsepower, stubby shape, and its performance once surpassed the equivalent model of the Wehrmacht.

The United States also helped Japan train pilots and provided a full set of assistance including logistics.But this could not prevent the Japanese defeat in the air.

The six American-made biplane fighters flying from Dandong were all shot down, and the wreckage was planted on the smoky, undulating battlefield.

Lost six planes and only shot down the opponent's plane. The proportion of battle damage is too large.None of the pilots were rescued, and the next one will be a rookie.

Alas... a purely expendable war is definitely not good for Japan.

Ono licked his chapped lips, touched his waist, and found that his water bottle was empty.He turned his head to look at his orderly and ordered, "Go get me some hot water."

The orderly said 'Hi' and left quickly.

Ono didn't know how the orderly could find hot water, he couldn't figure it out.Without air supremacy, the Japanese army could not light fires to cook, and it was difficult to collect fuel.

The coal warehouses hoarded in Lushun port were bombed by the National Defense Forces, and any moving target in the Japanese-controlled area would attract air strikes.The only way to light a fire is to go to the mountains to find firewood, but it is becoming more and more difficult at present.

Except for a few strong fortresses that can guarantee drinking water and heating inside, the Japanese soldiers in the field positions can't even eat hot meals--there were some American self-heating cans that could be shipped when the sea route was smooth before, but now they are gone.

The Japanese army's endurance has reached its limit.

In contrast, the Chinese army on the opposite side is simply extravagant.Field rations were always found on captives and war dead.Soldiers have at least one hot meal a day, with meat and vegetables.

Ono personally interrogated and searched the captured Chinese soldiers, and he was even able to find cigarettes and vitamin tablets.The former is used to relieve tension and anxiety on the battlefield, while the latter ensures the health of soldiers.

In contrast, Japanese soldiers were treated like beggars, cannon fodder conscripted on five-cent stamps.

After more than ten minutes, the orderly ran back stumblingly, holding a battered tin water jug ​​in his hand, and handed it to Ono with his head bowed.The latter unscrewed the cap and took a sip, then sprayed it out immediately, cursing loudly: "What is this?"

The water was warm, but the smell was muddy and bloody.

The orderly stood with his legs together, and said helplessly, "Sorry, sir, this is all I have. The nearby well was blocked by the violent death squad that infiltrated last night, and they stuffed corpses into the well."

Tail shouted savagely, "Hang all the Chinese in the nearby villages. They are not good citizens, they are all spies, and they are all helping the rioters."

The orderly lowered his head, "The various brigades below are already punishing, but they have killed all they can. Most of the Chinese in the nearby villages have fled."

Ono snorted again.

Since last year, Chinese guerrillas have been appearing elusively throughout the Liaodong Peninsula.They infiltrated through the Qianshan Mountains inserted into the peninsula, and while doing damage, they also organized the evacuation of Chinese residents in towns on both sides of the peninsula.

The central government called on the people in the enemy-occupied areas to resettle in the Northeast, and promised to pay compensation.Not a grain of rice, a room, or a sip of water will be left for the invaders, and all will be destroyed.

As for the traitors who cooperate with the enemy, once they are confirmed, they will be eradicated mercilessly and will be left with a bad reputation forever.

The Japanese army filled up the iron and added the pioneering regiment, and there were less than 10 people on the peninsula.Without the local Chinese to reclaim the land, it was difficult for them to collect food, and all supplies had to be brought from North Korea or from the mainland.

The cost of the protracted war was astonishing—the Russo-Japanese War lasted for a year and a half, costing Japan nearly 20 billion yen, and almost bankrupting its finances.

Now the Sino-Japanese War has been going on for a year, and the innovation of technological weapons has led to more military expenditures.The aid from the United Kingdom and the United States failed to produce much gain, as if thrown into a bottomless pit and wasted away.

In the early days, the Japanese army also organized teams to enter the mountainous areas to attack—there were many people who went, and the guerrillas ran away, and the air force was called to bomb by the way;

Since the middle of the year, the little devil's life in the Liaodong Peninsula has become more and more difficult.It was attacked militarily, cut off logistically, and unable to continue civilly.

By the end of the year, the National Defense Forces not only pressed on to Pulandian, Dalian, but also borrowed ships to transport a small group of troops to Lushun, Jinzhou, for infiltration and sabotage.

Ono personally conducted reverse osmosis operations, and saw that the ships specially used by the Chinese for infiltration—only—several British and Japanese destroyers that were killed by the Air Force in Nanjing last year were actually used as waste.

One of the most representative to be the 'Yamahiko' number.This more than 200-ton torpedo destroyer is the former Tsarist Russian Navy's "Falcon" class "Kogan", which was captured by the Japanese army during the Russo-Japanese War.

Because of interfering with China's unification, the 'Yamayan' was bombed by the Air Force's ricochet in Nanjing.However, the navy later towed the ship back to the ship repair yard and found that its superstructure was destroyed, but the hull and power were still intact.

So the 'Yamabiko' was removed from its superstructure and turned into a high-speed transport ship together with other captured ships.With its high speed of 29 knots, it shuttles back and forth between Yantai, Tianjin and Lushun and other places.

These high-speed transport ships were only used to deliver supplies to the army's combat troops at first, and they could pull hundreds of tons to the front line at a time.Later, the Navy reported that it would form a coastal infiltration force to transfer combat personnel behind enemy lines.

Fighting behind enemy lines does not pursue any particularly large results, destroying roads, cutting off communications, blowing up bridges, burning warehouses, polluting water sources, and assassinating sentries.

Penetration is like mercury pouring down the ground, penetrating into every hole.Every time the damage is not big, but the panic and trouble it creates is not small.Just blocking the well can make the little devil drink 'blood and mud soup'.

Ono has nowhere to scold if he wants to. His eyes are already bloodshot, his tongue is sore, and he is extremely anxious-the Fourth Division is trapped, unable to get away by sea or land, and the range of activities has been reduced again and again, to the point of exhaustion.

Japan wanted to cease war with China several times, at the cost of withdrawing from Liaodong in exchange for the retreat of the Fourth Division.But the Chinese government wants them to get out of North Korea, Taiwan, Ryukyu and other places, and to cede land for compensation.

Xiao Jinlang publicly put forward the conditions for the truce, which was supported by the whole country.The domestic economic growth is increasing significantly, and the common people do not feel any harm in the war.But Japan is absolutely unacceptable to these conditions.

"Your Excellency, the Chinese heavy armored vehicles are coming up again." The orderly thought that he would be slapped at least twice, but he didn't wait for a long time, and when he looked up slightly, he saw a new change in the battle line.

Ono's binoculars scanned the alliance position, and soon found six steam chariots emitting black smoke.Two of them broke down and fell behind to serve as fixed firepower points, while the other four continued to attack forward with a chug.

These ugly steel chariots look clumsy and ridiculous, but the heavy artillery it is equipped with is not easy to mess with.

The Japanese army used cement and steel aided by the United States to strengthen the surrounding defenses of Lushun, and believed that it could withstand the long-term bombardment of field artillery with a caliber of less than [-] mm.

However, in the face of direct-pointing heavy artillery, the permanent fortifications will also be ground down, not to mention the semi-permanent fortifications built by the Japanese army. In case of natural enemies, there is nothing to do.

In the field of vision of the telescope, the slowly moving steam chariot made a clanging sound, stopping and going on the rough battlefield.Every time it stops, it must aim at an exposed firepower point and fire a cannon.

The indirect aiming of long-range artillery is based on probability, and a hundred shells may not be able to hit a small reinforced bunker.But the direct-aiming heavy gun on the tank basically fired one shot at a time.

This high-efficiency killing can greatly speed up the war process, reduce the logistical burden, and incidentally reduce the casualties of the attacking troops-the steam chariot looks ridiculous, its reliability is not high, and it always breaks down.

But as long as you have used it, it is good.

In order to deal with these chariots, Ono thought of many ways, and destroyed several 'monsters emitting black smoke'.But as long as the car body is not blown apart, the National Defense Army division-level repair shop can always find a way to bring it back to the front line.

The turrets of some chariots were blown off, but as long as the walking and power mechanisms were still there, the repairmen would remove the cannons and convert them into infantry chariots to follow the artillery chariots.

Three of the four steam chariots on the charge were 'recycled' infantry fighting vehicles refitted from the wreckage of previously destroyed artillery chariots.

Hu Bigan sat in one of the cars with the whole class, and could hear the sound of flying bullets and fragments clanging outside the car.But he was not happy at all, and the whole class also had bitter faces.

It is a good thing to have a car on the battlefield, but if the car is blind and particularly tall and attracts hatred, it will be different.Infantrymen like to be accompanied by a gun carriage to provide fire support, but they don't want to sit in that iron coffin.

"If I remember correctly, this No. [-] tank has been bombed several times. At first it was still equipped with artillery, but later the turret was blown up by the grenade of the little devil, so it was changed to look like this coffin."

Hu Dayan babbled, enduring the high temperature and exhaust gas inside the car, as well as the deafening noise.

The squad deputy was holding a seized American-made short-barreled '897' shotgun, and was also complaining, "I saw it with my own eyes when I flew the turret. Only one of the 7-man crew survived and burned the boiler. It's a 'one shot' death." goods."

This seemed to be a reminder, and the whole class immediately turned their heads to look at the black stoker behind the carriage.The stoker was like peat, blinking his eyes, showing his mouth and saying happily:

"That's right, it's just hunger. This car has been bombed three times, and every time the other people are all dead, they can survive the hunger. The team is now called hungry 'dog left', saying that the starvation is too great. "

Hu Dayan immediately trembled, hugged the handle of the car and shouted: "It's too late, this car is too frustrating, I want to get off."

Chapter 81 Rescue

Wang Huaimin leaned on a slope and slightly loosened the tourniquet that bound his thigh.He grinned at the intense sting and numbness of blood flow restored to his numb thigh.

Parachutes made of silk and long-staple cotton were scattered dozens of meters away, covering the graves of the mass graves.A biplane fighter fell 400 meters away, and the wooden body was broken all over the ground like a crushed building block.

After the blood flow was restored, Wang Huaimin tied his thigh tightly again to prevent bleeding to death.The wound on his leg was from an air battle.

The American-made "barrel" fighter was equipped with a 12.7mm machine gun, and the broken wooden body gave him a big hole.

When he was hit, Wang Huaimin wanted to fly towards the sea.But he had no height, so he had to parachute, but he landed on the devil's position.There was a Japanese squadron nearby, and they immediately tried to get close to him and arrest him.