Chapter 439: The Stubborn 18th Division

Mandalay Southern Theater riverbank, turbid waves roiled, the LCI infantry landing craft formation was at full speed reaching the beach.

Jiang Anguo stood at the southern bank command point, his gaze fixed dead on the Japanese Army positions.

This was not the shallow shoal of the Mi River, there were no scattered scouts; it was the 18th Division's hastily built Southern Theater main defensive line: trenches layered upon trenches, machine‑gun bunkers hidden behind the embankment, mortar positions concealed on the reverse slope of the earthworks, and although its manpower was inferior to the Eastern Front, it was still a solid defensive shell.

Relying only on the heavy machine guns and autocannons on the landing craft, attempting to assault this landing point would clearly cause heavy losses on our side.

Once the landing troops seized the beach, they would inevitably face intense killing fire.

Therefore, Jiang Anguo did not order Iron Fist's infantry regiment to charge straight at that point—that would be the most foolish move—but instead directed them to the western landing point, bypassing the temporary Mandalay Southern Theater positions built by Mukoda Koya.

If he had the ability, Mukoda Koya could have built a twenty‑kilometre riverside defensive line, provided he had that many troops to guard it.

Of course, since the Little Devils thought this would be a landing point, they would certainly create a commotion here.

"Jiang Sanpao!" Jiang Anguo snatched the field radio, his shout cutting through the battlefield noise, "Give me full‑power fire! Cover the Japanese Army Southern Theater positions, shield the regiment landing! Flatten all their bunkers, trenches, and mortar sites!"

"Yes! Division Commander!"

On the other end of the radio, Jiang Sanpao's ears rang from the continuous cannon fire, yet he still shouted with full vigor.

He brandished the command flag violently, his face flushed scarlet: "All troops, attention! Target the Mandalay Southern Theater Japanese defensive positions, fire rapidly! Release!"

Shouting orders was now useless; the artillery relied entirely on the command flag.

The pre‑targeted twenty‑four 105 mm howitzers roared in unison, shaking earth and sky.

Boom—! Boom—!

Shells ripped through the low air with a shrill howl, striking the Japanese embankment defenses with pinpoint accuracy.

The first line of fire precisely covered the beachhead machine‑gun points, soil, logs and scrap steel instantly leapt into the air, and the bunker tops were ripped away. Then the barrage extended forward, plowing through Japanese trenches, communication ditches and mortar positions one by one, fireballs exploding in succession, and columns of smoke shooting straight into the sky.

On the landing craft, a regiment of troops crouched on the gunwale, watching the Japanese positions across the river being engulfed by artillery, their morale soaring.

"Regiment Commander! The artillery is pressing too hard!" the soldiers said with a grin.

Iron Fist grinned, drew his carbine: "Brothers! Prepare to charge! The artillery brothers will clear the way for us, flatten the Little Devil Southern Theater positions!"

The artillery fire continued, shells hopping forward step by step, turning the Japanese positions into a sea of fire.

Jiang Anguo stared at the steel fire wall, murmuring in a low voice, "Mukoda Koya, your Southern Theater is broken."

……

Inside Mandalay city, the Japanese 18th Division headquarters.

Mukoda Koya was frantically commanding the Eastern Front defense when he suddenly heard the dense artillery roar from the Southern Theater, his complexion changing abruptly.

He could not understand, because the Southern Theater bombardment—namely the artillery of the Chinese 201st Division across the river—had been continuously attacking the Japanese positions on the Eastern Front.

Why had they suddenly started attacking the Mandalay Southern Theater positions?

"Report! Division Commander! The Mandalay Southern Theater is under a fierce Chinese assault! Their forces are massive, it's the main body of the 201st Division!"

"Nani?!" Mukoda Koya staggered as if struck by lightning, taking a faltering step, "Jiang Anguo... he..."

Almost all his troops were pressed on the Eastern Front, holding back the 200th Division's tanks and heavy artillery; the Southern Theater had only a few Guard Unit troops, unable to stop the main regiment of the 201st Division's fierce assault!

One reason Mukoda Koya dared to concentrate forces on the Eastern Front was that the Mi River south bank still held the 124th Regiment; even if it could not break through the Chinese lines, it could still tie down the 201st Division.

If the Southern Theater fell, Jiang Anguo's unit could surge straight in, forming an east‑west encirclement with the 200th Division, and he would be utterly doomed with no burial ground!

"Baka!" Mukoda Koya gritted his teeth, helpless, "Immediately! Pull troops from the Eastern Front, return to defend the Southern Theater! Quickly!"

The command was as firm as a mountain; the Japanese troops already entrenched on the Eastern Front, exhausted, were forced to split a detachment and scramble to the Southern Theater to block.

……

On the south bank of the Mi River, Jiang Anguo received frontline reports, learning that Mukoda Koya had indeed redeployed troops; his tightly drawn mouth finally relaxed a little.

"Done." He immediately lifted his binoculars to observe, and indeed the Japanese on the Eastern Front began shifting southward.

Thus, the pressure on the 200th Division on the Eastern Front would lessen considerably.

Turning his head toward the Southern Theater, gunfire had thinned considerably, and Yang Zhi's Second Regiment position remained firm. Jiang Anguo slightly frowned, feeling a bit odd:

Japanese 124th Regiment, previously aggressive, eager to move north to reinforce the 18th Division, now suffers heavy losses, yet the gunfire...

Could it be... that Jiro Wakasaki's 124th Regiment has been shattered, completely losing its offensive capability? Or perhaps Shojiro Iida in Yangon...

Jiang Anguo thought briefly, then stopped pondering further.

Right now, the most critical point is Mandalay.

This Southern Theater surprise attack has already succeeded in drawing Japanese attention, forcing Mukoda Koya to split forces, greatly easing the 200th Division's assault...

The encirclement is taking shape, the balance...

The destruction of the Japanese 18th Division is only a matter of time.

As long as Mandalay can be taken, no matter how many Japanese forces come from Yangon...

Day one, capture all outer positions of the eastern suburbs, advancing to the foot of Mandalay's city wall.

The Japanese fell back to defend Mandalay, with the 200th and 201st Divisions' vanguards...

Day two, breach the city wall defenses, storm into the city, and engage the Japanese in...

At the fiercest moment of combat, a two‑story building changed hands seven or eight times. The defending troops were all killed, and the reinforcement units...

Rain, blood, sweat and tears mingled together, soaking every soldier's uniform.

Hunger, exhaustion and pain coiled around everyone like a poisonous snake.

Yet not a single person complained or retreated.

"Brothers! Charge! Take the street ahead!"

"The devils are on the second floor! Throw hand grenades!"

"MG42! Suppress them! Don't let them look up!" "Company Commander fell! Platoon Leader takes over! Keep charging!"

Shouts, gunfire, explosions, bayonet clashes, and screams echoed day and night amid Mandalay's ruins.

Gao Ji led the Regiment, battling the Japanese in the city. His arm was cut by a Japanese bayonet; after a quick bandage, he kept directing the fight.

"Regiment Commander! Left alley has Japanese remnants, about a squad!" the scout ran to report.

Gao Jiren's eyes went cold: "Notify the machine‑gun Squad, set up an MG42 at the alley entrance, seal it off! Infantry will flank from both sides, leave none!"

"Yes!"

Soon, the alley mouth rang with saw‑like gunfire, and the Japanese Army's resistance was shattered in an instant.

Hu Xianqun's Tank 448th Regiment barreled through the city streets.

The narrow streets limited the tanks' maneuverability, but could not stop their firepower. A tank cannon blast demolished a house, and machine‑gun fire swept the remnants in the ruins, clearing a path for the infantry.

The Japanese Army's human‑bombs, under the double interception of MG42 and Tank machine‑guns, could no longer pose a threat and could only die in vain.