Chapter 435

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Protagonist:

Lv Muzhi

In the rear of Zoumalin, inside the headquarters of the Japanese Army's 36th Division.

Lieutenant General Jing Guanren stared fixedly at the battle reports of recent days, the veins on his forehead jumping one after another.

Qiu Qingquan's frontal offensive came wave after wave, the firepower simply as if money were no object.

According to Jing Guanren's own estimate, relying on the treacherous terrain of Zoumalin, the 36th Division's ten thousand-plus men could at least hold Qiu Qingquan here for three to four days.

If during these few days Xiyuan Yice's Tank Division could sweep aside Lv Muzhi's main force, Taiyuan could turn danger into safety.

Then all the sacrifices made by the 36th Division would have meaning.

But plans never keep up with changes; the battle report just received made Jing Guanren's heart sink straight down.

"Xiyuan Yice's Tank Division, actually driven back to defend Pingyao by Lv Muzhi's tanks?" Jing Guanren gritted his teeth, his eyes full of unwillingness.

He cursed the Tank Division soundly in his heart; this bunch of tank drivers usually looked down on everyone, but at the critical moment they couldn't take a hit.

If Xiyuan Yice couldn't be counted on, then what was the point of him guarding Zoumalin to guard against Qiu Qingquan's outflanking?

Thinking of this, Jing Guanren wore a worried and bitter expression.

He summoned the Chief of Staff and asked in a stern tone: "How is the situation at the front? Has Qiu Qingquan quieted down at all tonight?"

The Chief of Staff kept his head down: "Division Commander, everything remains the same. Qiu Qingquan's firepower coverage shows no sign of stopping."

"In three days, the troops defending the first line have been rotated five batches; the soil on the positions has been bombed soft."

"If this continues, I'm afraid we won't even have the troops to retreat to the second defensive line."

Jing Guanren waved his hand irritably; just as he was about to say something to boost morale, a dense series of cracking sounds suddenly came from outside the camp.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

This was neither ordinary mountain guns nor dull howitzers, but a strange explosion sound.

Jing Guanren felt the ground beneath his feet turn into a rocking small boat; several rocket shells tore through the night sky and directly smashed into the open space near the division headquarters.

Intense fire rose several meters high instantly, and the shockwave from the explosion shook the headquarters until it creaked.

"What? How did the Youth Army's shells get here?" Jing Guanren looked outside in shock.

His division headquarters was hidden behind a mountain ridge; according to normal ballistics, frontal artillery fire absolutely could not cross the ridge and precisely hit here.

"Did these shells grow eyes and can they turn corners?" Jing Guanren roared in anger.

Before he could figure it out, a Japanese battalion commander responsible for guarding the division headquarters ran in.

"Division Commander! Something big is wrong! A large number of enemy troops have been discovered in our rear, numbering over three thousand; it looks... it looks like the Eighth Route Army!"

Jing Guanren seemed to have heard some huge joke; listening to the rumbling cannon fire outside, he widened his eyes: "Nonsense! How could the Eighth Route Army have firepower of this scale?"

But just as his words fell, another wave of rocket shells howled out from the dense forest behind the mountain, blowing the motorcade beside the headquarters into a sea of fire.

Immediately after, a Japanese squadron leader also rushed in.

"Division Commander, the enemy firepower in the rear is too fierce! Withdraw quickly!"

Jing Guanren bent at the waist and ran out of the headquarters; looking at the raging fires burning all around, his heart sank halfway.

How had the Eighth Route Army gotten behind him?!

Where to run? Ahead was Qiu Qingquan's steel flood, behind was this bunch of Eighth Route who knew where they came from.

"Jing Guanren, Jing Guanren, this time you're really surrounded in an iron barrel and roasted over a fire."

At the same time, on a towering slope opposite Zoumalin, Qiu Qingquan stood shoulder to shoulder with Chen Geng.

Chen Geng was quite pleased with this.

The 36th Division was stationed in Jin Dongnan and was the Eighth Route Army's mortal enemy; now it was about to be annihilated, and Chen Geng was beyond happy.

In the distance, behind Zoumalin, dazzling red light kept flashing, and the cannon fire was deafening.

Qiu Qingquan was equally excited; pointing at that firelight, he shouted: "It worked! Old Senior Classmate!"

"Judging by this commotion, Jing Guanren probably doesn't even know how he's going to die now."

Chen Geng patted Qiu Qingquan's arm: "I told you, for drilling through mountain gullies, my troops haven't feared anyone under heaven."

"Let your Old Lv learn a thing or two!"

Qiu Qingquan didn't respond; turning to look at his Chief of Staff, he ordered in high spirits: "Pass my order: the Youth Army's 5th Division will assault along the entire line!"

"Three Rocket Artillery Battalions, push our artillery positions forward again, and level Zoumalin for me!"

"After dawn, if there's still a single tree visible on the Japanese positions at Zoumalin, I'll smash the Rocket Artillery Battalion Commander's sand jar!"

Chen Geng adjusted his collar to the side and ordered: "Death-Defying First Column! Follow the Youth Army's steps and attack the 36th Division from the front!"

Qiu Qingquan was stunned: "Why bother this? With Eighth Route friendlies attacking from the rear, my Youth Army attacking from the front—this wave of attack should take it!"

Chen Geng insisted: "Where, where, this is a division's equipment after all; I said I'm not running a black market, this food that comes too easily isn't good to eat."

Qiu Qingquan laughed heartily: "Good! Then it's settled! The two armies join hands; tonight we'll send this old bastard Jing Guanren back home!"

As the orders were transmitted, the Zoumalin battlefield entered its final countdown.

Behind the 36th Division headquarters, the Youth Army's Firepower Battalion soldiers pushed one nine-tube 107mm Rocket Launcher after another; the artillery fire completely destroyed Jing Guanren's division headquarters.

At this time, the Japanese defenders on the Zoumalin frontline were already demoralized; the explosion sounds from the rear made them realize their only retreat route had been cut off.

The defensive line, originally as solid as a rock, began to collapse layer by layer under Qiu Qingquan's frontal fierce attack; Japanese routed troops cried for their fathers and mothers as they fled toward the division headquarters.

And near the division headquarters, Kong Jie and Cheng Xiazi were leading people in fierce charges, like two evil wolves that had entered a sheep pen.

Kong Jie held a pistol in his hand, followed by several Youth Army fire teams, clicking his tongue in amazement.

Only to see a Youth Army soldier half-kneeling on the ground, shouldering a Bazooka, steadily pulling the trigger at a Japanese machine gun firepower point.

Whoosh—Boom!

That Japanese machine-gun firepower point spitting tongues of fire was instantly blown into the sky along with its men and guns.

Kong Jie stared wide-eyed, unable to help but roar: "Exhilarating! Exhilarating! What an eye-opener!"

"Comrades, charge with me!"

Cheng Xiazi on the other side wasn't idle either, following several 107 rocket artillery pieces pushed up, pointing at where the Japanese troops were numerous.

"Bomb there, right right right, ten o'clock direction, aim at that old locust tree, about five hundred meters away in the distance, my men reported Japanese reinforcements are coming!"

As the gunners operated, nine gun barrels spewed angry fire dragons, illuminating the entire valley a fiery red.

Firelight reflected on Cheng Xiazi's face.

"Goodness, this thing fires nine shots at once, simply raining shells down!"

"If only we had this equipment during the anti-encirclement campaigns!"

The gunner didn't hear clearly, asking him: "Commander, what did you say?"

Cheng Xiazi gave an embarrassed laugh: "Nothing, keep loading and firing, our Eighth Route Army covers you!"

Battle until dawn.

With the Eighth Route Army's guidance and offensive assistance, Qiu Qingquan's Third Army was like autumn wind sweeping fallen leaves.

The Japanese Army's Jing Guanren 36th Division was thoroughly swept into history's trash can!

Chen Geng commanded Kong Jie and Cheng Xiazi to treat the wounded, while guiltlessly searching and clearing the battlefield, scraping the 36th Division's equipment completely clean.

Qiu Qingquan didn't care about these Japanese equipment, bidding farewell to Chen Geng.

"The Battle of Zoumalin, thanks to Senior Classmate's assistance, Yu'an is extremely grateful!"

Chen Geng joked: "Extremely grateful? That's good, next time have Lv Muzhi prepare a big red envelope for me..."

Qiu Qingquan: "Uh... this..."

"I really like you, you're much more generous than your family's Lu Commander, he gave me nothing last time, speaking of which why is he so stingy now..."

"Can you give me some standard Youth Army equipment next time..."

"No?"

"Haha, actually I don't want it that much..."

Qiu Qingquan: "..."

The obstacles blocking Qiu Qingquan had been cleared, Qiu Qingquan immediately organized vanguard troops, continuing to execute the task of outflanking the Japanese main force.

The vanguard troops headed toward Taigu County, intending to cut off the retreat of the Tank 3rd Division, Infantry 37th and 41st Divisions three units stationed inside Pingyao City, coordinating with Lv Muzhi and Sun Liren, outside Taiyuan City, to completely annihilate Xiao Zhukazuo's main force!