Chapter 1 The Observation Group

When Lin Fan led his team to charge, the officers and soldiers of the 524th Regiment on the roof of the Four-Banks Warehouse felt as if they had become a battlefield observation group.

The battle below seemed to have nothing to do with them.

Xie Jinyuan was entrusted with this important task by the division commander because the task of holding the Four-Banks Warehouse was too difficult for the First Battalion.

He was temporarily sent to strengthen and support the First Battalion.

But now, the Japanese have launched two rounds of attacks on the Four-Banks Warehouse.

His command of the entire battle:

Was to say nothing!

To do nothing!

Just quietly be an observer.

Yang Ruifu had the same thought: his First Battalion was the only complete unit left in the city.

Their original mission was to hold the Four-Banks Warehouse for seven days.

When he accepted the mission, he thought it was a difficult task.

He didn't expect that this company commander, Lin Fan, who came from nowhere,

Would gather a group of rabble,

And beat the Japanese until they couldn't fight back.

Such a result was more sudden and quicker than if he had commanded the First Battalion himself.

But: I like it!

Lin Fan didn't have so many thoughts in his mind right now.

He had a clear understanding of the power of the mortar in his hand.

The Type 20 82mm mortar shell has a range of 2,850 meters.

Using it to hit the Japanese tanks could blow open the top of the tanks,

And strike the Japanese inside the tanks.

But it couldn't completely destroy the Japanese tanks.

Now Lin Fan was leading his team to rush over to drive these tanks back.

He wasn't going to destroy these tanks!

Now he was a staunch protector of these tanks.

But Lin Fan really didn't dare to think about how many people in his company could actually drive a tank.

The captain of the Katō Squadron under the Sixth Infantry Regiment of the Japanese army, Katō Taka, his squadron was known for its ferocity throughout the Sixth Regiment.

When the Japanese landed on the banks of the Wusong River, it was he who led his squadron of more than a hundred men to break through the beachhead position defended by a main force regiment of the National Army.

And he persisted in holding this beachhead position for two days and two nights.

Katō Taka's outstanding performance had even caught the attention of Matsui Iwane.

When Katayama Riichirō received the mission today, the first thing he thought of was the Katō Squadron.

To raise soldiers for a thousand days, to use them for a moment!

Now was the time to use them.

The Katō Squadron suffered particularly heavy casualties because its commander was too brave.

Katō Taka himself seemed to have a bulletproof aura. After two months of fierce fighting,

He didn't even have a scratch on his body.

But the soldiers in his squadron changed like running water.

Every time a battle was fought, the first thing the Sixth Regiment did when it received reinforcements was to replenish Katō Taka's soldiers.

In the two months since participating in the Battle of Shanghai, this squadron had been replenished three times.

These reinforcements not only did not lower the level of the Katō Squadron,

But instead made the squadron's spirit of daring to charge and fight even more vigorous.

There was no other reason, just because Katō Taka's deeds had been widely spread on the radio and newspapers in the empire.

All ordinary Japanese people were proud that their sons could enter the Katō Squadron.

The words they said to their sons who could enter this squadron were: You can only die in the Katō Squadron, you cannot leave alive!

Today, Katō Taka was leading his fully equipped squadron behind the tank regiment,

Preparing to attack the group of fortifications in front of the Four-Banks Warehouse,

When, from a thousand meters away, the tanks that could be used as cover were knocked out by shells falling from the air.

The Japanese infantry following behind the tanks also suffered as a result.

Many were killed and wounded by shell fragments.

Such casualties did not cause panic in the Katō Squadron.

They simply rushed out from behind the walking cover, scattered and searched for a path,

Continuing to charge towards the target position ahead.

Katō Taka looked solemnly at the group of troops launching a counter-charge in front of him.

This was the first time he had seen the defending side launch a counter-charge when the two sides were more than a thousand meters apart.

If they wanted to launch a charge like this, wouldn't it be better to attack directly?

Katō Taka thought so in his heart.

But the command knife in his hand was pointing at the National Army soldiers charging in front: "Charge! (殺及及！)"

For him, there was nothing that could stop him from moving forward.

With the commander's order: those hidden, crouching, and using various methods to attack the Four-Banks Warehouse Japanese soldiers,

All rushed out.

They concentrated on charging towards the National Army soldiers rushing towards them.

When it comes to bayonet fighting! I've never been afraid!

A cruel smile appeared on Katō Taka's face.

He had already imagined how his squadron would brutally kill the hundred or so people charging in front of him.

Both sides launched charges one after another.

Lin Fan charged at the very front this time.

Behind him followed all the special company soldiers who could stand up.

When these soldiers followed Lin Fan to launch a charge, it seemed as if there were no Japanese soldiers in the distance.

It wasn't until they followed Lin Fan and charged out more than a hundred meters that

The Japanese soldiers on the opposite side also launched a charge, and the special company soldiers realized that:

The number of Japanese soldiers on the opposite side seemed to be about the same as their own.

With concerns in their hearts, the pace of the charge began to slow down.

Lin Fan seemed to have eyes growing on his back.

He shouted while charging: "A man should be self-reliant!

Look at the other side of the river, how many people are watching you.

Under the expectant gazes of these people, can you allow yourselves to slow down?"

On the south bank of the Suzhou River, although there were no ordinary citizens watching by the river,

There were also many American soldiers watching this battle.

From time to time, there were a few shouts of: "Oh! My God!"

Such shouts rang out.

Behind the building windows and on the balconies by the river bank,

Many ordinary citizens, concealing their bodies, nervously watched the battle on the opposite bank.

Ye Dadan charged with his class, he saw the peeping eyes on the opposite bank.

His heart was filled with heroic spirit: "Charge! If my head falls off, it's just a big scar, I'll be a good man again in eighteen years."

Yang Daren was also shouting: "The foreigners on the opposite side are watching us! If we fight well, maybe we can get into the eyes of the foreigners and let us into the concession."

…

…

No matter what they shouted.

Lin Fan just needed to get them to charge up.

The speed of both sides' charges was very fast.

When the distance of a thousand meters looked like it was only less than two hundred meters left,

Lin Fan began to order in a low voice: "Everyone, get ready to shoot."

They were still charging, and everyone in the special company was still running.

Hearing the company commander's order, these soldiers began to shift some of the energy that had just been focused on running.

Lin Fan looked at the long pile of ruins in front of him, this was the temporary cover he had spotted when he saw the Japanese also launching a charge.

Now was the time to use it.

Lin Fan pointed to the row of ruins: Immediately seize this area of ruins.

Start shooting immediately!

After his order was issued, he was the first to fall to the ground, and the machine gun in his hand had already fired.

The thirty bullets in the drum were fired by Lin Fan in six bursts.

Each burst hit at least five Japanese soldiers.

Captain Katō Taka never thought that: the National Army on the opposite side was so cunning and had no military spirit!

Everyone was charging, why did the National Army on the opposite side suddenly seize favorable terrain and start a defensive battle when the two sides had already charged close?

In this one air raid, the number of Japanese soldiers charging up was reduced by more than half.

Lin Fan wasn't the only cunning god like him.

Among the soldiers who were charging behind him, some had already started preparing when Lin Fan issued the first order.

Feng Junya was such a person.

He clearly knew in his heart that no matter what, this temporarily assembled company could not fight the Japanese on the opposite side with bayonets.

Not to mention that there were a hundred or so Japanese soldiers on the opposite side, even if there were only fifty Japanese soldiers on the opposite side.

The more than a hundred soldiers on the National Army's side couldn't beat them.

When he was charging just now, he was the fastest in the first hundred meters, in the first echelon.

After charging a hundred meters, he found that the Japanese soldiers on the opposite side had all stood up and charged.

There were actually hundreds of Japanese soldiers.

Feng Junya's charging pace slowed down a little.

Gradually, he reached the second echelon.

When the two sides entered the final two hundred meters of head-on collision, he heard Lin Fan's order to prepare to shoot.

Feng Junya's steps were big and fast, and he was about to catch up with the pace of the first echelon.

He wasn't the only one doing this, there were at least ten or so people around him doing the same.

When the gunfire rang out, these ten or so people were the first to fall to the ground.

Regardless of whether they had reached the ruins in front that could serve as cover.

Falling to the ground, they immediately opened fire!

The firepower on the National Army's side instantly turned into raindrops, falling on Katō Taka's entire squadron.

Lin Fan finished firing the machine gun in his hand.

He let go of it smoothly, and at the same time, the rifle behind his back had already come into his hand.

Aiming at the Japanese soldier he had already seen on the charging road, who was short, stocky, and whose height was not as thick as his waist.

It was he who had drawn his command knife and was giving orders just now.

Katō Taka, facing the sudden change, was just about to issue the latest order.

Suddenly, he felt a pain in his forehead, and then he didn't know anything anymore.

Captain Katō didn't issue any new orders.

The Japanese soldiers in the entire squadron continued to charge forward, howling.

Yanashita Tarō was a student at Nagoya High School. When the Battle of Shanghai started, he was still studying at school.

He was going to take the university entrance exam next year.

Kyoto University was his only goal.

All these years, he had been moving towards this goal.

From elementary school to high school, he had always been a student with both good character and excellent academic performance, and his grades had always been in the top three in the school.

In the words of the teacher, the door of Kyoto University was always open to him.

Yanashita Tarō's parents were both small clerks, and their family life had always been relatively smooth.

When the Battle of Shanghai started, the things discussed at home slowly turned into: whether or not to let the Yanashita family's people join the army.

Joining the army was a glorious thing, and there was a country in the east of the sea waiting for their conquest.

There wasn't a single glorious imperial soldier in the entire Yanashita family, which was inappropriate.

As the war on the front line became tense, Nagoya had already summoned reserve soldiers to the front line for the second time.

Such discussions at home became more and more frequent.

Yanashita Tarō was the eldest child in the family, seventeen years old this year, with a fourteen-year-old sister and a ten-year-old brother below him.

When Yanashita Tarō finally made up his mind to join the army of the empire conquering the eastern country,

He had asked his teacher, and the teacher said: Warriors like him who went to the army now could continue their studies after the war.

That was enough!

Yanashita Tarō's decision was approved by everyone in the family.

Yanashita Samura, the father who worked as a small clerk, was so happy that he drank a lot of wine that night after hearing that his son had signed up for the army. He kept holding his son's hand, telling him to be sure to show the prestige of the Yanashita family on the battlefield and not to embarrass Yanashita.

Yanashita Tarō's mother, Noriko, also happily poured wine for her husband and son, encouraging her son to make more contributions on the battlefield and to miss his family.

Even Yanashita Tarō's fourteen-year-old sister, Yanashita Sayaka, said to her brother with envy: "When she grows to sixteen years old in two years,

She will also learn from her brother and go to the East.

To serve the empire!"

The youngest in the family, Yanashita Kazuki, also took his brother's hand: "Leave me a few enemies, and I'll go kill them when I grow up!"

Yanashita Tarō wasn't the only one who signed up!

There were a total of three hundred and sixty-seven boys and two hundred and seventy-seven girls in the entire high school department.

Six hundred and forty students signed up for the army.

Only four cowards didn't sign up.

Yanashita Tarō was fortunate enough to stand out from the six hundred and forty people and become one of the one hundred soldiers sent out by the school.

He was one in a hundred, one of the one hundred student soldiers.

As an excellent student in the second year of high school, he immediately received special care from Katō Taka when he was assigned to the Katō Squadron.

He became Katō Taka's personal communication soldier.

Just now, Yanashita Tarō personally watched a bloody flower explode from the back of his most admired Captain Katō Taka's head.

A big hole appeared on the captain's head.

Then the captain fell to the ground all of a sudden.

The sudden accident made Yanashita Tarō at a loss all of a sudden.

He stood there blankly, looking at Katō Taka lying on the ground, not knowing what he should do next.

Yanashita Tarō's embarrassment didn't last too long.

Lin Fan's next bullet had already flown towards this excellent second-year high school student.

Similarly, a small hole appeared in the forehead, and similarly, the bullet went out from the back of the head.

Wu Xiaobao and Zhao Long, two young soldiers, followed Lin Fan to charge.

When they saw that the machine gun in the company commander's hand was out of bullets and was thrown to the right,

They immediately rushed up, quickly took out six magazines, and loaded them into the drum.

At this time, Lin Fan's rifle had already fired five bullets.

Seeing the machine gun that appeared in the most handy position, he immediately picked it up.

A rifle full of bullets also appeared at the position of the machine gun.

Lin Fan was like a firepower output point, he only cared about maintaining the firepower output.

Wu Xiaobao and Zhao Long assisted in things like loading bullets.

The charging Japanese soldiers on the opposite side finally discovered a fact:

No matter how brave they were, no matter how desperately they charged,

They couldn't move forward any further.

It seemed as if this National Army that had broken out of the position had drawn a line of life and death in front of them.

These Japanese soldiers simply couldn't get past it.

Lin Fan watched as there were only a dozen or so Japanese soldiers left in front of him.

He picked up the machine gun full of bullets and stood up: "Charge!"

This time, Feng Junya, who was still ten or so meters behind Lin Fan, rushed in front of Lin Fan all of a sudden.

It wasn't just this one soldier who rushed in front of Lin Fan.

But there were more than a dozen soldiers who rushed in front of Lin Fan.

Lin Fan saw that the seven soldiers who were full of killing intent towards him were all among these dozen or so people who were rushing in front.

"Maybe I can give these soldiers more opportunities."

Lin Fan didn't fire all the bullets in the machine gun in his hand this time.

He only shot down the Japanese soldiers on the opposite side who wanted to escape and hide in the ruins on the side.

Then he watched these soldiers of the special company fight the remaining nine Japanese soldiers with bayonets.

Feng Junya rushed the fastest and was the first to encounter the Japanese soldier charging at the front on the opposite side.

The Japanese soldier's bayonet thrust towards him, and Feng Junya, who rushed up, could only use the bayonet of the Zhongzheng rifle in his hand to block the Japanese soldier's thrust.

At this time, a bayonet had been inserted into the left chest of the Japanese soldier.

This was the first bayonet that had drawn blood among all the bayonets of the special company.

Lin Fan looked at this soldier who didn't talk about the spirit of Bushido and didn't talk about martial virtues.

It turned out that it was Wei Zishi, who had been looking for an opportunity to stab himself.

This person was really insidious!

But: I like it!

After being stabbed in the chest, the Japanese soldier's eyes showed an unbelievable look.

He cursed loudly in his mouth!

Seeing an opportunity, Feng Junya immediately retracted the bayonet after blocking the Japanese soldier's bayonet, and then inserted it into the right chest of this Japanese soldier all of a sudden.

This time the Japanese soldier couldn't shout anymore.

A series of blood foam came out of his mouth, and the Type 38 rifle in his hand also fell to the ground weakly.

Wei Zishi pulled out the bayonet from the Japanese soldier's chest and saw that the Japanese soldier next to him was concentrating on confronting Pei Xueyi.

The bayonet in his hand immediately stabbed out.

The completely unprepared Japanese soldier became flustered all of a sudden.

The bayonet in his hand came up to meet Wei Zishi's bayonet, but the steps under his feet were moving in the opposite direction.

His center of gravity was unstable, and the bayonet was deflected all of a sudden.

Wei Zishi stabbed him again, and Pei Xueyi was waiting for such an opportunity.

He came up and made up for it with another stab.

This Japanese soldier immediately had no possibility of surviving.

It was just that his mouth was like the Japanese soldier just now, constantly cursing Wei Zishi for not talking about martial virtues!

Except for Lin Fan, none of the soldiers in the entire special company could understand Japanese.

The scolding of these Japanese soldiers could only make these soldiers feel annoyed, and had no other use.

The battle would not stop because of one person's accident, nor would it end because of one person's death.

Lin Fan had already seen that those few people who had murderous intentions were also full of killing intent when they were fighting the Japanese soldiers with bayonets.

They were able to deal with one Japanese soldier with two people, and they would never go up alone.

If they could sneak attack, they would never go head-on.