Chapter 519: Siege of Pingmana (5)

"Quick! Move faster! Keep concealed, crouch down, why are you sticking your butt up so high!"

"Don't make too much noise, lest the Japanese Army notice!" the First Battalion Regiment Commander Deng Guo whispered to the soldiers, and the soldiers immediately grabbed their tools and began digging with all their might.

Rain mixed with mud splashed all over the soldiers, but they didn't mind at all; each of them gave their all.

As the Iron Shovel swung, soil kept being lifted, and the tunnel gradually extended toward the Japanese Army positions.

"Regiment Commander, the trench is already a meter deep; dig another fifty meters and we'll be beneath the Japanese Army's position!" a soldier reported in a low voice while digging, his face covered with sweat and mud, yet his gaze was firm.

The Japanese Army's positions clearly noticed the Expeditionary Force's activity; the soil in front of the trench swirled, clearly indicating Chinese soldiers were approaching, but there was nothing they could do.

The soil being dug for the trench also blocked the front; in fact the trench depth exceeded one point three to four meters, and half‑crouched, it was very hard for the Japanese to fire.

The key is that the Chinese artillery fire is extremely fierce.

Song Jing Xiu Zhi's Pingmana position could easily withstand 75 mm shells, but for 105 mm mortar rounds, if the Japanese soldiers below stood too close to the impact point.

The light ones would suffer internal injuries from the blast, the heavy ones would be killed outright.

Regiment Commander Deng Guo nodded and whispered, "Very good, everyone push harder, we must speed up and aim to dig beneath the Japanese position before nightfall."

Bang bang!

Gunfire sounded, but it wasn't from our side.

Deng Guo looked up briefly, and a bullet whizzed over his head.

Startled, he immediately crouched down.

The Little Devil's aim was truly accurate; he almost killed me here.

"Everyone stay alert, don't look up, keep digging; the Little Devil seems to have spotted us," Regiment Commander Deng Guo said.

The closer we get, the Little Devil isn't stupid.

"Understood!" the soldiers chorused, and the digging speed increased.

Rain continued to fall nonstop, and the muddy soil made the digging especially arduous.

The soldiers' hands developed blood blisters, their arms grew sore and weak, yet none of them retreated; they had only one thought: dig the tunnel through quickly, break through the Japanese lines, and open a path for the main army's southward advance.

Dai Anlan stood on the high ground, watching the ground forces' operations through a telescope while also observing the Japanese Army's movements.

He saw the Japanese artillery fire gradually resuming, occasional shells landing near the ground forces' work area, kicking up clouds of mud.

Yet the soldiers still held their positions without any retreat, continuing to dig the tunnel with all their might.

"Maintain fire suppression, don't give the Japanese a chance to counterattack," Dai Anlan knew that at this moment the frontline engineering soldiers faced the greatest danger.

If the Japanese were to launch a counter‑charge now, it would heavily damage the First Battalion of the 600th Regiment.

"Division Commander, the Japanese seem to have noticed us; their artillery is now tilting toward our work area!" Liu Shaofeng said anxiously, pointing toward the distant Japanese positions.

Shells whistled in, landing near the work area; many soldiers were buried by mud, struggling to crawl out and keep digging.

Dai Anlan's gaze hardened, and he immediately ordered, "Relay the order: artillery units increase fire coverage, focus on striking the Japanese artillery positions, suppress their fire, and cover the ground forces! Also, have the ground troops accelerate digging and prepare defenses; if the Japanese attack, counter immediately!"

Following Dai Anlan's command, the artillery units again intensified fire, shells whistling toward the Japanese artillery positions; explosions rang through the sky, the Japanese fire was instantly suppressed, and the ground forces' work could continue.

The MG42 machine gun roared again like the voice of death.

The characteristic, fabric‑tearing "zzzz" sound, accompanied by the heavy rain, sounded especially terrifying.

The Machine Gunners, when they saw firelight appear at the distant Japanese positions, at least two machine guns would fire toward the blaze.

Song Jing Xiu Zhi stood in the Pingmana command post, looking through a telescope, and saw the Expeditionary Force ground troops digging a tunnel a hundred meters from the position; his complexion instantly darkened.

He hadn't expected Dai Anlan to be so cautious.

Even though the Japanese positions had already been suppressed by artillery, he still didn't rashly launch a charge.

Instead, he employed tunnel digging to advance covertly and break through his positions.

"Bageya Road! The Chinese actually came up with this method!" Song Jing Xiu Zhi cursed, immediately issuing orders to his staff.

Song Jing Xiu Zhi originally thought the Chinese army would commit massive forces to attack Pingmana.

That hit his expectation, but what he didn't anticipate was the Chinese army boldly digging trenches right in front of his position, inching toward the Pingmana lines.

"Relay the order: have the front‑line squad strengthen vigilance, closely monitor the Chinese tunnel‑digging activity, and if a tunnel approaches the position, immediately bomb it with Hand Grenades and Explosives to destroy it! Also, concentrate artillery fire to bombard the Chinese work area and stop their digging!"

But at this moment, the artillery of the 200th Division remained strong; the Japanese artillery positions were firmly suppressed, unable to counter effectively, and could only watch helplessly as the Expeditionary Force's tunnel inched toward the position.

Dai Anlan looked at the scene before him, his heart filled with certainty.

He knew that as long as the ground troops could successfully tunnel through, they could launch a surprise assault on the Japanese positions and break the stalemate at Pingmana.

However, Dai Anlan now sought stability, turning to the communications soldier and saying, "Send power to the 1st Regiment of the st Division behind us, and have them move toward our forces."

Dai Anlan knew that Iron Fist's 1st Regiment was right behind the Expeditionary Force's main body, and its infantry regiment's firepower was formidable, posing a great threat to the attack on Pingmana.

"Extend the artillery fire backward," Dai Anlan's voice was steady and strong, his gaze fixed on the Telegram in his hand.

This was an urgent Telegram from the front‑line 600th Regiment Regiment Commander Liu Shaofeng, a few brief words bearing the hope of breaking through Pingmana: "Division Commander, the engineering work has reached outside the Japanese First Defensive Line, the trench has reached the front of the Japanese position, requesting orders to attack!"

Dai Anlan slowly lifted his head, gazing at the distant Pingmana shrouded in smoke, the rain still drizzling, yet it could not dampen the resolve in his eyes.

He ordered the artillery fire to extend backward, not a retreat but a carefully considered deployment.

The trench now reaches the Japanese front; further artillery coverage would easily cause friendly fire, so only by shifting the fire to suppress the Japanese rear can safe conditions be created for the ground troops' assault.