The artillery shells once again flew over the position of the 54th Regiment of Yichang's outer garrison with a roar that ripped through the air, and the sound was astonishing.
"Anti-gun! Anti-gun!"
The officers and soldiers of the 54th Regiment who were hiding in the dilapidated trenches were cursing and crawling to hide in the artillery-proof holes. Many of them were directly thrown into the artillery-proof holes by the blast of air.
The Japanese have controlled the Yangtze River channel downstream of Yichang, and a steady stream of weapons, ammunition and supplies, escorted by gunboats, are transported to the front line by water.
It can be said that the Japs now have sufficient ammunition. In order to invade Yichang before other troops, the Japs 26th Brigade also went all out. After an hour of artillery preparations, tons of artillery shells were poured towards the 54th Regiment.
The positions on the front line of Yaqueling and Tumenya.
In an instant, the garrison positions on the front line of Yaqueling and Tumenya were covered by earth-shattering artillery fire. The positions that had turned into a piece of scorched earth were turned over again, with mud and sand flying, and countless crossbars that guarded the artillery holes were blown away.
.
Although the shell-proof caves were semi-embedded in the ground and covered with crossbars and compacted soil more than one meter thick, many shell-proof caves were still blown over in the face of the fierce Japanese bombardment, and countless remains were destroyed.
The body parts were blown into pieces and flew everywhere.
The officers and soldiers hiding in the bomb-proof cave felt like they were riding on a rickety ship, shaken from side to side by the tremor of the explosion.
Their ears were ringing, and the falling sand quickly covered their bodies with a thick layer of mud. Their noses and eyes were all covered in mud, making them living descendants of earth.
The officers and soldiers hiding in the shell-proof cave no longer bothered to curse the little devils who wasted the shells. The choking smoke was pouring in from the gaps in the quilt that blocked the entrance of the shell-proof cave. There was a cough in the dark shell-proof cave.
Voice.
The observation post left outside had long been blown into pieces by Japanese artillery shells, and the bloody corpses were buried in the sand.
Looking at the Yaqueling and Tumenya positions shrouded in artillery fire, the cold face of Major General Nara, commander of the Japanese 26th Brigade, was full of sneers. Under such artillery fire, the Chongqing Army guarding the positions would definitely be destroyed.
Sexual blow.
Thinking that their 26th Brigade would be the first to invade Yichang, he couldn't help but be excited. As a soldier, there is nothing more proud than capturing an enemy's city.
When the commander of the Japanese 26th Brigade looked at the garrison position shrouded in billowing smoke from the command post at the back and was sure of victory, in the trenches at the front, the Japanese infantry assault troops were ready.
The dark Japanese infantry all had their bayonets unsheathed. Looking around, the trenches were completely bright. They squatted on the ground, waiting for the attack order after the artillery fire stopped.
Among these Japanese regular troops, Japanese Major Makino Kanichi was fully armed, and the wolf squadron under his command also stared at the distant position with murderous intent, like a very hungry wolf, trying to tear the opponent to pieces.
The Japanese artillery fire turned the garrison positions at Yaqueling and Tumenya upside down. After the artillery fire plowed through, the entire position was no longer clearly visible and was in a mess.
"Kill Gai Gai!"
When the Japanese officers at all levels heard the artillery fire, they drew their sharp sabers one after another and waved them forward fiercely. The Japanese like a tide rushed towards the defenders' position from several directions.
It seemed as if centuries had passed for the garrison officers and soldiers hiding in the air-raid shelters to feel that the ground was no longer shaking.
"The Japs are coming! Get ready to fight!"
The officers opened up the sandbags and quilts blocking the outside of the air-raid shelter. Through the thinning smoke, countless Japanese soldiers with bayonets swooped forward and turned to yell at the officers and soldiers who were stunned by the bombing.
The officers and soldiers all suffered temporary deafness in their ears, but they were already veterans who had fought many battles with the Japanese.
Seeing the officer's actions, he knew that the Japanese were coming. One by one, they grabbed their guns and rushed out of the air-raid shelter. The officers and soldiers, covered in dust, lay down one by one, pulled the bolts of their guns, and began to take aim at the Japanese infantry who were advancing very quickly.
.
"boom!"
"boom!"
First there were one or two dull gunshots, and a Japanese soldier was shot and fell to the ground. Then there were more gunshots. The Japanese soldiers were shooting, and the guards and soldiers were shooting. The bullets were flying everywhere, the soil was splashing, and the blood mist filled the air.
.
"Da da da!"
"Teng Teng Teng——"
The light and heavy machine guns that had been moved into the air-raid shelter soon began to roar, and the Japanese grenades and mortars immediately hit them all over the place. For a while, the sound of gunfire was intensive, and screams came one after another.
"Bang!"
More than a dozen Japanese tanks also crushed the mutilated corpses on the ground. The chains were spinning rapidly upwards with blood on them. They fired at various heavy firepower points from time to time. When one shot passed by, the surrounding area was immediately filled with casualties.
"Demolition team, prepare Molotov cocktails and grenades! Go up and blow up the Japanese tanks!"
Seeing the Japs tanks charging towards them like steel monsters, the company and platoon commanders on all defense lines roared.
One by one, the officers and soldiers of the demolition team, clutching Molotov cocktails and cluster grenades, rolled out of their positions in a hail of bullets and rushed towards the Japanese tanks.
"Puff puff!"
The infantrymen behind the Japanese tanks immediately fired at the brothers from the demolition team who were trying to approach. Many brothers were pierced by bullets before they could even rush forward, and fell unwillingly in a pool of blood.
"Wow!"
After paying more than ten lives, a brother finally rushed to the Japanese tank, smashed the Molotov cocktail on the Japanese tank, then fired a grenade and stuffed it into the track.
"Puff puff!"
As soon as this brother finished all this, more than ten bullets hit him at the same time. His body trembled violently, and then he fell down along the tank.
Another brother pounced on it, and with a roar, the explosion sent fire and smoke into the air. Sparks ignited the fuel, and then the entire tank was wrapped in raging flames.
The Japanese soldiers who rushed towards them with bayonets were unable to dodge and were drenched by the splashing fuel. The fire was instantly ignited and they immediately turned into burning men and rolled to the ground. A shrill howl sounded on the battlefield.
The brothers in the demolition team were already risking their lives. One after another, the tanks with Japs in them were enveloped in flames, or their tracks were blown off and they were unable to move, so they could only fire on the spot.
Seeing that the situation was not good, the remaining Japanese tanks immediately turned around and ran away, fearing that they would make the same mistake again.
Without the cover of tanks, the Japanese infantry were living targets. Although they charged fiercely, they were unable to overcome the defenders' staggered firepower network.
The commander of the Japanese Wolf Squadron, Makino Kanichi, also took his men to take advantage of the conventional troops to attract the firepower of the Chinese defenders, and quickly approached the front line of the defenders' positions, eyeing the exposed firepower points of the defenders.
Japanese commander Makino Kanichi made a gesture, and the snipers of the Japanese Wolf Squadron's sniper combat team were also in their positions and ready.
The Japanese commander Makino Kanichi, who was holding a German 98k sniper rifle in his hand, lay down behind a corpse. The crosshairs of the sniper rifle scope were pointed at a defender who was yelling and shooting wildly.
Machine gunner.
Faced with the violent heavy machine gun fire, five or six Japanese soldiers from the regular army were beaten to a pulp and fell to the ground covered in blood.
"boom!"
Japanese commander Makino Kanichi stared at the defender's heavy machine gunner who was shooting wildly, his eyes full of coldness, and he pulled the trigger.
The whistling bullet penetrated the gunpowder smoke, making a pop sound as it penetrated the left side of the Chinese heavy machine gunner's face, and then spurted out from the right face with a large stream of blood, and the roar of the heavy machine gun stopped abruptly.