He and Song, the staff officer, replied, "Chief of Staff Zhang Boting of the Eighty-eighth Division, and Shi Meihai, the third company commander of the first battalion of the Five Forty-second Regiment, are expected to arrive this afternoon.

The situation on the front line changed drastically after the Japanese landed in Hangzhou Bay yesterday.

As a result, their journey here has been slower."

Yesterday, the Japanese Tenth Army landed in Hangzhou Bay, and the situation of the War of Resistance in Central China took a sharp turn for the worse.

Before that, although the National Army had shown signs of decline, it was still able to barely maintain the defense line.

Now, with a Japanese army suddenly inserted behind them, the railway line has been cut off in just one day.

Several important towns have been captured by the Japanese army in succession!

Xu Kang knew that the entire National Army left in Shanghai was now panicking.

Withdrawal was only a matter of time, and the higher-ups should make a decision as soon as possible.

Immediately retreat to the two national defense lines to prepare for defense.

This was not just his own idea; the military conference in the Presidential Palace in Nanjing had already made a decision: all the National Army troops on the Songhu battlefield would retreat to the Wufu Line.

The order has been issued!

Staff Officer He and Song reported, "The training of this special company is very strict, and their weapons and equipment are all Japanese-made.

Moreover, some of the items they brought in are covered.

Could it be that they are…?"

Xu Kang said calmly, "Are they genuine? We'll know this afternoon.

They also know their limits. Since entering the designated camp area, no one has come out.

Nor have they tried to send anyone out to gather intelligence.

From these aspects, they know what's what.

Tell the soldiers to keep a close watch and not allow anyone to enter or leave their barracks.

And no one is allowed to enter their barracks."

Today is November 6, 1937.

Director Pan Hannian, whom Zhang Xiaolin, Kenji Doihara, and Major Yuma Fujiwara had all failed to find, was now across from the Mitsubishi Bank in the Japanese Concession.

Sitting in the coffee shop on the second floor, he listened to a man behind him talking to someone called Shopkeeper Gao.

The two sides were in the process of transferring a large deposit withdrawn from the Mitsubishi Bank.

This was exactly the target Director Pan was looking for.

Right now, he had three million yuan in French currency deposit slips in his arms, ranging from fifty thousand to three hundred thousand yuan each.

After the deal behind him was completed, and one person had already left,

Director Pan walked up to Shopkeeper Gao with a smile, first handing over a deposit slip for one hundred thousand yuan:

"Shopkeeper Gao! Is it convenient to sit down and talk?"

Yesterday, Shopkeeper Gao had earned seven hundred thousand yuan in one day, and his courage had grown a lot.

With this kind of thing, there's only the difference between doing it once and doing it countless times.

Now, seeing a new face appear,

Gao Hongbo was still very vigilant: "Sir, you've got the wrong person."

Director Pan smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Gao is too careful. I just want to withdraw some money.

Shopkeeper Gao handled it when it was deposited.

If I withdraw it this time, it'll be the same as that person just now.

Twenty percent cut."

Gao Hongbo looked at the hundred thousand yuan deposit slip on the table, a little hesitant: "This amount is too small."

The smile on Director Pan's face became even kinder: "To be honest, I've accepted someone else's commission.

There's a total of three million.

But since we're dealing for the first time, shouldn't we build trust slowly?

Why not start with this one hundred thousand?"

That made sense. The two didn't know each other, so the other person wouldn't trust him enough to give him all three million slips at once.

"Thirty percent!" Gao Hongbo finally made up his mind.

Director Pan's hand covered the deposit slip, slowly pulling it back.

Gao Hongbo's expression remained unchanged: "You have to think about it. At the current rate, it would take you ten thousand days to withdraw one hundred thousand."

Director Pan's face showed a hint of pain: "It definitely won't take ten thousand days.

The bank still has to be reasonable!"

"Isn't it reasonable to release ten yuan a day?" Gao Hongbo was still very loyal, trying to justify his boss.

"Twenty-five percent!" Director Pan finally said the percentage with a pained expression.

Gao Hongbo gritted his teeth: "Alright! Seeing your sincerity.

I'll take this slip away. Come with me!

We'll go through the VIP channel!"

Gao Hongbo was not someone who kept all the profits to himself.

Yesterday and today, he had already arranged for all his trusted aides.

From the profits, he gave these people a one percent cut.

In just one day, the entire process was streamlined.

Director Pan looked at the seventy-five thousand yuan in French currency placed in front of him.

The smile on his face became more sincere.

Right there in the VIP room, he withdrew all the two million nine hundred thousand deposit slips from the Mitsubishi Bank.

When Director Pan walked out of the Mitsubishi Bank through another door,

A third of the deposit slips that had taken him a whole day to fake had already been used.

There were still two other banks to go to for exchange.

Carrying the box full of money, Director Pan felt a little unreal.

Ten days ago, he was still asking Du Yuesheng for money to buy equipment, requesting that he send some gas masks and equipment to the soldiers on the front lines of the war.

At that time, Director Pan's money was really tight, and even his own expenses in Shanghai were not guaranteed.

Ever since Lin Fan and his men entered the Public Concession, the money in his hands had suddenly increased.

Now, Director Pan had already met Du Yuesheng once again.

This time, he wasn't going to beg for alms.

He was just going to express his gratitude to Du Yuesheng, and at the same time, he had a large business deal he wanted to give him.

After all, no matter how much money Director Pan had, it could only play its greatest role by being turned into equipment, supplies, and food, and sent to the officers and soldiers on the front lines of the war.

In Du Mansion, everything appeared the same on the surface these past two days.

But in reality, the entire Du Mansion was very tense right now.

Du Yuesheng had already summoned all of his Four Great Kongs and Ten Great Disciples.

He had also heard the news of the Japanese army landing in Hangzhou Bay.

At the same time, he knew that the day he left Shanghai was also fast approaching.

Before leaving, he wanted to make a big score.

After all, there were hundreds of people in the entire Du Mansion who ate with him.

His usual expenses were very high, and when he got to Hong Kong, his income would definitely be much lower.

What's more, money from Japanese banks was free for the taking.

Inside Du Mansion, the counterfeiting assembly line had not stopped since yesterday.

They had people in all three banks, constantly cashing in.

The Central Bank of the National Government also knew that the Japanese army had landed in Hangzhou Bay.

But this did not affect the transaction between the two sides. After sending over 25 million French currency yesterday,

Today, they increased their transport capacity, sending a full 40 million French currency to five Japanese banks.

This money greatly strengthened the confidence of the Japanese banks.

The five Japanese banks finally, on the afternoon of the 6th, raised the limit that depositors could withdraw each day from ten yuan to one hundred yuan.

The people most stimulated by this news were none other than internal bank employees like Gao Hongbo and his group.

This news, announced by the bank to the outside world, meant that their profiteering behavior would soon come to an end.

When Director Pan came over with five million in deposit slips, Gao Hongbo didn't hesitate at all and accepted them all.

Director Pan's slips were all in the tens of thousands, and the highest was still no more than three hundred thousand.

Gao Hongbo didn't suspect anything at all.

He had handled so much money these past two days that he was getting tired of taking his cut.

But he also knew that these days wouldn't last long. The Central Bank of the National Government had been constantly supporting the Japanese banks.

If only this level of support could be reduced.

Zhang Boting arrived at the Jiangyin Fortress with Shi Meihai at three o'clock in the afternoon.

On the way, Zhang Boting had already learned in detail about the origins of the special company and the background of Lin Fan from Shi Meihai.

Although Lin Fan had said that his background needed to be kept secret, Shi Meihai obviously couldn't do that in front of his superior.

Xu Kang received Zhang Boting and Shi Meihai in the fortress headquarters.

Xu Kang knew Zhang Boting, that was for sure.

After a brief conversation, he immediately sent Staff Officer He and Song to invite Lin Fan over to discuss matters.

When Staff Officer He and Song went to invite Lin Fan, they saw that all the soldiers of the special company were standing in the courtyard, concentrating on holding their rifles and practicing aiming.

Hearing Staff Officer He and Song say that Commander Xu had invited him,

Lin Fan smiled and ordered the entire company: continue aiming training!

Feng Junya brought four soldiers up.

Lin Fan said with a smile, "You don't need to follow me here, practice aiming!"

Lin Fan was clear that he could trust the Jiangyin Fortress right now.

He followed Staff Officer He and Song to the fortress headquarters alone.

When he entered the headquarters, Shi Meihai stood up with a smile.

Seeing Shi Meihai's expression, Commander Xu was also relieved.

One of us!

Zhang Boting's reaction was much more intense. The first thing he did when he saw Lin Fan was stand up.

His eyes were wide open: "You! You are..."

Lin Fan first said to Commander Xu, "Commander Xu has invited all his good friends over."

Then he said to Shi Meihai, "Congratulations Company Commander Shi on recovering from your injuries."

Shi Meihai stretched out his hands with a smile and tightly grasped Lin Fan's hand: "Much better! Much better!

Thank you, Company Commander Lin's special company, for what you did at Sihang."

Lin Fan saluted Zhang Boting: "Chief of Staff, we meet again."

Zhang Boting looked at Lin Fan in surprise: "You're the Dragon Head Lin Fan?"

Lin Fan said with a smile, "I was the first one to recognize Chief of Staff Zhang's voice that day.

Didn't I say I knew you?

But the situation was special at the time, so I didn't dare to come forward and salute.

Please forgive me, Chief of Staff."

Zhang Boting returned Lin Fan's salute, and then said with a smile, "In the battlefield, it is impossible to be polite all the time, it has been like this since ancient times.

Company Commander Lin gave us quite a surprise that night.

If people knew that Dragon Head Lin Fan was the company commander of my Eighty-eighth Division,

I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to stay in Shanghai."

After saying that, he laughed heartily.

Lin Fan stood awkwardly to the side, not knowing what to say.

Commander Xu didn't understand, so he quickly asked.

Everyone in the headquarters heard Zhang Boting talk about Lin Fan's exploits in the Great World, where he had kidnapped Zhang Xiaolin and forced him to return the watch he had swallowed, and also compensated Lin Fan with 400,000 yuan.

The entire Jiangyin headquarters listened to Zhang Boting's description of Lin Fan's heroic demeanor in the Great World as if they were listening to a storyteller.

After Zhang Boting finished speaking, he asked Lin Fan, "The Japanese really formed the Tenth Army and landed in Hangzhou Bay.

How did you know in advance?"

Lin Fan smiled bitterly: "I can't reveal the source of the information.

It's a pity that the higher-ups didn't pay attention to that news."

Zhang Boting stopped pursuing the question and continued, "How did you recognize me?"

Lin Fan smiled: "On the banks of Suzhou Creek!

That evening, when you were talking to Regiment Commander Xie, I was hiding beside Regiment Commander Xie.

I heard your voice!"

Shi Meihai also interjected at this time: "It was Company Commander Lin who suggested that I stand up and impersonate Regiment Commander Xie.

Please ask Regiment Commander Xie to hide and answer.

If it wasn't for Company Commander Lin's suggestion, Regiment Commander Xie would have been the one injured that day."

Everyone knew that Shi Meihai was injured, but they didn't expect there to be such a scene.

Lin Fan said apologetically to Shi Meihai, "I really didn't expect that the Japanese diplomat would actually fire a gun in that situation.

I'm so sorry that Company Commander Shi was injured."

Shi Meihai waved his hand with a smile: "A hero should be wrapped in horsehide and returned. Company Commander Lin doesn't need to apologize."

Zhang Boting asked with some confusion, "In the Great World, how did you suddenly come up with an organization called the Dragon Group?

Does it really exist?"

Lin Fan smiled: "It will exist when needed!"

Zhang Boting was very dissatisfied with this answer, but from Shi Meihai's mouth, he already knew that Lin Fan and his special company didn't have much sense of belonging to the Eighty-eighth Division.

He couldn't investigate too deeply.

He had no choice but to change the subject. He thought of the

robbery of the Japanese banks in Shanghai.

Smiling, he asked Lin Fan, "Did your Dragon Group rob the Japanese banks?"

"No! Lin Fan replied decisively."

He didn't want to make this matter public.

Zhang Boting asked suspiciously, "How did you survive in the enemy-occupied area these days after leaving the Sihang Warehouse?"

Lin Fan smiled: "After leaving the Sihang Warehouse, our original plan was to go south and break through the Japanese blockade line.

Return to the National Army's defense line.

When we arrived in Zhenru, we encountered a Japanese transport team resting in Zhenru Town at night.

So we attacked this team.

Only afterwards did we know that this was a Japanese team transporting poison gas bombs.

We still have those shells with us.

They're in the camp."

"We fought a battle with the Japanese in Zhenru and wiped out more than 200 Japanese soldiers.

Afraid of exposing our whereabouts, we had to turn back.

Fortunately, Vice Company Commander Li in the team was very familiar with the Public Concession.

So, some of us entered the concession through the sewers, and some of us entered from land.

Then, what happened at the Great World happened.

It wasn't appropriate for us to stay in the concession as a team.

So we tried to sneak onto a Japanese cargo ship, cleaned out all the Japanese on the ship,

And then hired a team of sailors and asked them to send me here."

Lin Fan's narration was uneventful, but it made everyone here click their tongues in amazement.

This was too legendary!

"You just directly sailed a Japanese cargo ship from Shanghai?" Xu Kang couldn't help but ask.

"No! We bought a set of real cargo ship information from the Americans in advance.

Now this ship is a genuine American shipping company's.

So the Japanese warships didn't come on board to inspect it along the way.

And there are no Japanese tugboats on the Yangtze River today."

When Lin Fan said this, Xu Kang suddenly realized: "The Japanese boats didn't come to provoke us today!"

Lin Fan said with a wry smile: "They all sailed to Hangzhou Bay to send the Japanese to land."

So that's how it is!

Since the special company had been confirmed as one of their own, and this team of more than 100 people had actually independently annihilated a Japanese squadron's transport team,

Such combat effectiveness was very alarming.

Xu Kang immediately said to Zhang Boting, "Chief of Staff Zhang, the Eighty-eighth Division is still on the front line in Shanghai.

Company Commander Lin's detached force might as well stay here!"

Zhang Boting thought that the Japanese had now landed in Hangzhou Bay, and the entire battle situation had undergone a fundamental change.

There were no orders yet as to what the Eighty-eighth Division would do next.

It would be okay to wait until the situation stabilized.

So he agreed with a smile.

Lin Fan, of course, had no objection to this arrangement.

He said to Commander Xu with a smile, "In the next few days, some people will come to join my company.

The combat effectiveness of my company will be improved somewhat.

In addition, I would like to recommend myself to Commander Xu:

I, Lin Fan, am very good at artillery."

Commander Xu asked with a smile, "I wonder what kind of artillery Company Commander Lin is familiar with?"

Lin Fan said confidently, "Artillery that fights the Japanese!"

This was quite a boast, meaning that he was familiar with all artillery.

Commander Xu didn't take it seriously and smiled: "There haven't been any Japanese warplanes flying over today.

Tomorrow morning, please give us a performance, Company Commander Lin."

"It's a deal!" Lin Fan agreed.

"It's a deal!"

Zhang Boting and Shi Meihai, who had originally planned to leave today, didn't leave.

They all wanted to stay and see Lin Fan's performance tomorrow.

Shi Meihao knew about Lin Fan's terrifying accuracy with mortars.

He just wanted to see Lin Fan's divine artillery again.

Zhang Boting was different. He had also heard Company Commander Shi talk about Lin Fan's divine artillery.

But was it really that divine?

It was so divine that it was unbelievable.

Lieutenant Colonel Ito Ibuki, as the flying squadron leader of the Hosho aircraft carrier, had been carrying out bombing missions in various parts of Central China every day.

Today was the same. Their original plan to bomb the Hangzhou Bay area all day had to be suspended after only one sortie.

There were really no more teams to bomb in the Hangzhou Bay area.

Having nothing to do all day made him feel very bored.

Lieutenant Colonel Ito Ibuki liked to fly in the blue sky and then dive down.

Dropping heavy bombs on the heads of the National Army, watching the smoke and explosions rise from the ground.

When the smoke cleared, the large craters and corpses on the ground could make him feel happy.

Today, his joyous activity had been canceled.

In contrast to him were the pilots under his command.

Shinnosuke Tokitsukaze was also a pilot in the flying squadron of the Hosho aircraft carrier fleet.

He didn't want to stay in this team for even a day.

But as a member of the Empire, he knew very well that he could not refuse the tasks assigned by the Empire.

Every time he boarded the plane, Shinnosuke Tokitsukaze was afraid.

Afraid that once he flew out, he would never come back.

Today, he could finally rest for a day.

Although these aircraft carrier pilots couldn't leave the aircraft carrier even when they were resting,

Being able to quietly drink a glass of green wine in the aircraft carrier's restaurant was also a kind of enjoyment!

"I wish we could have days like this every day!" Shinnosuke Tokitsukaze thought to himself.

For most of the pilots, today was a rare day to relax.

They all knew that this was because the Empire's Tenth Army had landed in Hangzhou Bay.

The war was about to end!

These pilots now had only one thought: may these days end sooner!

There were currently four Japanese Navy aircraft carrier fleets docked on the Yangtze River.

Even though Jiangwan Airport had lost more than 30 planes, they still had nearly 200 planes.

Morning of November 6: Lieutenant Colonel Shinnosuke Tokitsukaze received orders: the entire flying squadron would bomb Nanjing and the Jiangyin Fortress.

Especially the Jiangyin Fortress.

The Imperial Navy wanted to enter Nanjing before the Army.

In any case, the Imperial Navy could not enter Nanjing later than those Army fools.

If the Navy wanted to reach the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, it had to take the Jiangyin Fortress.

Therefore, the main bombing target of the planes belonging to the Navy today was the Jiangyin Fortress.

That morning, Lin Fan led the soldiers of the special company to gather and line up early.

They were waiting for the fortress staff officer He and Song to come and lead them to the fortress's anti-aircraft artillery positions.

Lin Fan looked at these advanced German-imported eighty-eight millimeter anti-aircraft guns on the Xiaoshan Battery.

This was one of the most famous anti-aircraft weapons in Germany during World War II.

During the entire World War II, it shot down more than 6,300 Allied aircraft and caused the deaths of more than 8,000 Allied pilots.

This kind of gun could also be used for both high and flat shooting.

It had a fast rate of fire, being able to fire 20 to 25 shells per minute.

The shells weighed 19.2 kilograms, had a high-altitude range of 14,700 meters, and an initial velocity of 1,000 meters per second.

Flat fire could shoot even further, reaching 19,800 meters, close to a 20-kilometer range.

These cannons were perfect for use here.

Anti-aircraft fire could hit enemy planes, and flat fire could be used to strike Japanese warships on the river.

In fact, in recent days, the shells fired by these cannons had not spared the Japanese warships.

Looking at these cannons, Lin Fan was drooling with envy: If he could carry these four cannons with him,

Then he could really go anywhere in the world.

Because of Lin Fan's request yesterday, Commander Xu Kang also came to the Xiaoshan Battery.

Chief of Staff Zhang Boting and Company Commander Shi Meihao of the First Battalion also came along.

Seeing such a luxurious viewing lineup, the soldiers of the special company were only excited.

In their eyes, the company commander's artillery skills were like the scorpion's poop—unique!

The only one!

Lin Fan pointed to the cannon in front of him and began to introduce it to the soldiers of his company.

On the one hand, he was popularizing anti-aircraft gun knowledge for the soldiers of his company.

He was also roughly teaching them how to fire it.

On the other hand, he was also showing his strength to the leaders and comrades who had come to watch.

Otherwise, if you don't know or understand cannons,

People will only let you visit.

Want to get started?

They're afraid you'll break the cannon.

Only 20 of these cannons have been imported nationwide. Jiangyin Fortress and Jiangning Fortress were each allocated 8 cannons, and there were 4 in Nanjing.

Hearing Lin Fan talk eloquently,

Commander Xu finally nodded with a smile: "Is it a mule or a horse? Let's see."