Chapter 85: Taunggyi! What?

In fact, Du Lvming had Hu Xianqun's Armored Corps withdraw from Lashu, also because he didn't want to leave the Armored Corps to the Japanese.

Tanks are truly too precious, and in earlier years they also suffered losses to Japanese tanks.

In the Chinese Army, weapons are often far more valuable than lives.

"Brother Hu, if you were a Japanese Army commander and had taken Lashu, you would think we still have forces to the north that could hold back the Japanese advance, but we have no troops behind us."

Jiang Anguo paused, then continued: "Perhaps the headquarters still hopes to withdraw from Myitkyina back to the interior; if the Japanese Army doesn't linger at Lashu and heads straight north, the Fifth Army and the headquarters would be in danger."

Hu Xianqun suddenly realized, not expecting that this younger brother of his had such strategic foresight.

He is a Colonel Regiment Commander, while Jiang Anguo is only a Lieutenant Colonel Battalion Commander.

"Brother, I'm also going all out; this battle has been too pathetic," Hu Xianqun actually had the nerve to disobey the headquarters, which Jiang Anguo hadn't expected.

Jiang Anguo laughed: "Brother, don't worry; when will I ever let you down?"

Jiang Anguo spoke sincerely; he poured his heart out to Hu Xianqun, not only helping repair Hu's tanks but also pulling personnel from the Tank Company to train Hu's Tank Regiment.

After the contact, Jiang Anguo discovered that the troops back home had major issues with tank usage; tanks often acted alone, which is fine when breaking through before the enemy is prepared.

But now the enemy is prepared and has dug trenches; if a tank moves alone, it becomes a live target.

Therefore Hu Xianqun's Tank Regiment conducted some Infantry-Tank Coordination training, not aiming for perfection, only to reduce soldier casualties on the battlefield.

With the support of Hu Luobo, the Armored Corps soldiers trained quite earnestly.

Unfortunately, Hu Xianqun's tanks—four per company—were already few in number, and they were spread out like this.

This is in northern Myanmar, Shanbang Plateau, a mountainous area where tank clusters are hard to employ.

Otherwise, with superior tanks, dividing your strongest firepower into seven or eight parts would be pure sabotage.

Jiang Anguo nodded and said: "Since brother is so determined, it's easy—at Lashu, we must make the Japanese Devil drop a few pieces of flesh."

Hearing Jiang Anguo say they would make the Japanese Devil lose flesh, Hu Xianqun still felt a chill in his heart.

In fact, Hu Xianqun wasn't blindly following; what puzzled him was that his own Supplement Battalion had so many troops it seemed nearly the strength of a whole regiment.

But the person is the senior officer's brother-in-law, allegedly with higher connections, so Hu Xianqun didn't dare ask further.

Curiosity can be deadly, and Hu Xianqun didn't want to be curious.

In the early hours of April 24, Du Lvming led the th Division and Fifth Army's direct units to Taunggyi and launched a fierce assault on Taunggyi.

Eighth Company, Company Commander Quanzong, specialized in mountainous terrain.

"Company Commander, I'm about to suffocate, this back-and-forth travel finally lets us engage the devils; if we couldn't see the devils, many brothers would have complained," Platoon Leader Zhang Shen said.

Quanzong turned his head and said, "Tell the brothers, during the upcoming attack don't act recklessly; advance by squad and platoon units step by step, and no one is allowed to hold me back."

The three Platoon Leaders of the Eighth Company nodded simultaneously; the Eighth Company's firepower was still a bit lacking, with the whole company having only one 81mm mortar, the rest being 50mm mortars.

The rumbling artillery fire had already begun.

DaSuJiaShi sat in the command post, holding a command sword, expressionless, and said: "It seems the Chinese Army has begun its attack."

Regarding the Chinese Army's movements, Colonel DaSuJiaShi had long learned from the Myanmar populace; despite information gaps, he was fully aware of the Chinese Army's strength.

Du Lvming had no choice but to launch a strong offensive; the th Division naturally became the main force, and fortunately Jiang Anguo gave Dai Anlan four Type 92 Infantry Cannons, boosting the th Division's long-range firepower considerably.

He also resupplied the th Division with ammunition once; although 200,000 rounds aren't many for the th Division, each soldier could only get about thirty bullets on average.

A single battle's ammunition might still not be enough.

Later, during the New 38th Division's rescue of Ren'ankiang, because the th Division also sent forces to support, Sun Liren gave the th Division twenty British supply trucks, which contained many good items.

At this point, the th Division was not lacking in weapons and equipment; the only issue was severe combat attrition, with only six thousand combat-ready troops left, and since Tonggu, the th Division had already lost over three thousand men.

With such a high casualty rate, still assigning the th Division the main attack on Taunggyi was undeniably weighty.

Dai Anlan, however, complained not a word, leading soldiers east and west, and continuously held the assault position.

"Artillery, fire toward Taunggyi," Dai Anlan ordered, and the rear artillery opened fire.

The sound of the Type 92 Infantry Cannon was familiar to the Japanese; many officers began to wonder whether the attackers were Chinese or their own men.

DaSuJiaShi also heard the artillery fire; as a commander, he could recognize weapon sounds, "Nani!"

A startled exclamation.

The 113th Detachment's Third Battalion, Battalion Commander SanXiaHeYe, arrived at the command post at this moment and asked, "Colonel, is our enemy the Chinese Army?"

SanXiaHeYe began to feel uncertain.

DaSuJiaShi stood up and said, "Intelligence cannot be wrong; this suddenly appearing infantry cannon must have been captured on the Huaxia Battlefield, order the troops to beware of artillery."

Regardless, the war has begun and leaves no room for doubt; even if there are a thousand questions, they must wait until after the fighting ends.

What DaSuJiaShi didn't expect was how fierce the enemy's artillery was.

Du Lvming even brought along the sole 105mm howitzer from the Artillery Regiment, the German Lefh18-105mm howitzer.

This was one of the few remaining heavy guns in the country.

He also drew from Artillery Thirteen Regiment's First Battalion—just two battalions, four companies, totaling 16 guns.

The limited number of large-caliber guns were rarely used in peacetime, but this time they accompanied the Expeditionary Force into Myanmar.

Du Lvming's Fifth Army directly brought eight 105mm howitzers; the Japanese never imagined that the Chinese Army they faced not only had Japanese Type 92 Infantry Cannons but also the more powerful 105mm howitzers.

At this point, Du Lvming could no longer conserve ammunition; if he couldn't open the supply line from Taunggyi to Lashu, the Expeditionary Force's rear would be in danger.