Chapter 99: Frontline Position, Zai An!

Jiang Anguo led his men, crawling backward, his legs moving first and then his body following.

He didn't dare to expose his head; if he did, there would truly be a risk of a headshot.

He wasn't sure whether the Little Devil on the other side had actually moved.

He didn't send anyone to the opposite bank to look at the Japanese corpses; everything would wait until dawn.

It was too dark, and he also didn't know how many Japanese Army were opposite; since they had stopped attacking, Jiang Anguo didn't intend to go over in the dark.

"Is anyone injured?" he asked, after retreating to a safe spot.

Jiang Anguo began asking about injuries, but embarrassingly he was the only one to tend to himself.

Do you want to say you're scared?

Jiang Anguo himself wasn't sure; he didn't feel fear at all, but was instead very excited.

One hour later, Hu Xianqun's tank company arrived, and Hu Xianqun came along.

They saw Jiang Anguo sitting on the Ammo Box.

"Brother Jiang Anguo, what's wrong with you?" Hu Xianqun walked over and saw Jiang Anguo was bandaging a wound.

Jiang Anguo glanced at the time: 9:10 PM.

"How did you come over by yourself, brother?" Jiang Anguo asked.

Hu Xianqun actually brought a tank company himself; technically a tank company, but only four T26 Tanks, which was already enough.

After Jiang Anguo arrived at Lashu and contacted Hu Xianqun, Hu Xianqun's tank regiment, after some training, had achieved good Infantry‑Tank Coordination.

The only thing they couldn't do was anti‑air defense.

"Sss." Jiang Anguo inhaled a cold breath; he boasted he still had a bit of courage, but stitching without anesthetic was truly painful.

"It's nothing, just got a bite from the Little Devil," Jiang Anguo said.

I moved a tank regiment to assist Company Commander Song's defense; you must know this road is the Japanese Army's essential route to attack Lashu. Otherwise I wouldn't have gone through all this trouble; to hold the rear we still need to push forward, and the positions must advance.

However, if the position is pushed too far forward, it will be too far from Lashu and support will be untimely.

If possible, Jiang Anguo would request air support for defense; there is simply no other way.

Hu Xianqun looked around; his four tanks were at the front of the position, about a hundred meters from the riverbank.

The bandaging was fairly quick, but his left arm was a bit weak and could tear the wound, so he tried to move as little as possible.

Indeed, if Jiang Anguo were only a battalion commander, he could charge forward, but his battalion already has over nine thousand men; continuing to disregard his own safety is too dangerous.

He wasn't sure what would happen to the men under his command if he died.

"Don't worry, Brother Jiang Anguo, as long as you give a word, my entire regiment will obey you," Hu Xianqun said, having already disobeyed orders and no longer caring.

Now no one will supervise Hu Xianqun or the men in Lashu, because units everywhere are fighting independently; even the th Division is already in a state of looking after the front and ignoring the rear.

Jiang Anguo deployed a battalion behind him: a full‑strength Infantry Battalion 653, Infantry Battalion 7, battalion commander Yang Shang, deputy battalion commander Qian Guangjun.

He has already informed several battalion commanders; otherwise this infantry battalion suddenly appearing in the Triangular Area would surely be treated as an enemy.

"Battalion Commander Song, provide tank cover here; otherwise when the Little Devil's anti‑tank guns arrive they'll be destroyed," Jiang Anguo shouted.

"Yes, Commander," Company Commander Song replied.

The tanks crossing to the opposite bank obviously won't work, because if they retreat the bridge over An River becomes a tomb.

The entire Zai An defensive line stretches three to four hundred meters; for such a distance, is a battalion enough? It is enough; if you say it's not enough, then it's lacking.

Company Commander Song is not simply putting all forces up; his plan is to use a company's troops to hold the front line, the foremost position.

If enemy fire is too intense, he will deploy another company's troops.

Reinforcement tactic, exactly, that's the method.

Currently neither Company Commander Song nor Jiang Anguo have data on the Japanese Army; Jiang Anguo only remembers that the Japanese 56th Division will attack Mangshi, Longling, Tengchong.

A division has at least 17,000–18,000 men, so Jiang Anguo is also unclear about the number of Japanese troops in the vanguard.

"Brother, Zai An is really a good spot; with enough troops we could hold it for a month without problem," Hu Xianqun said as he circled with the tank company.

He also found this place truly strategic; besides the road, there's also a railway.

As long as the road and railway are held, the Japanese must cross the river to come over.

At this time, countless explosives are tied to the railway and the bridge; if the Japanese main force dares to cross the river, they will be detonated.

With Yangon's fall, the Myanmar Section of the Dian‑Mian Highway from Yangon to Lashu has lost its purpose; if it's bombed, that's that.

"Sigh, it's not that there's no way; look, the Staff Department has fled, probably back to Yunnan; otherwise the Shanbang Plateau in northern Myanmar, heavily defended, even with inferior weapons wouldn't be lost so quickly," Jiang Anguo said honestly.

The Shanbang Plateau, northern part, sits at 750–1200 m altitude; not very high, but still strategic.

"Battalion Commander, here's the map of the Zai An area," Lin Yi handed the drawn map to Jiang Anguo.

Jiang Anguo spread out the map, took the Flashlight; the defensive line is indeed long, the southern part of the river has a large Reed Swamp, and if the Japanese attack from there it would be a problem.

"Battalion Commander Song, I've brought some landmines; place them here, mark them clearly and record how many you set," Jiang Anguo said, not wanting his men to risk their lives probing mines later.

Holding a 400–500‑meter defensive line is already hard; adding the uncertain Reed Swamp would spread forces too thin.

"Commander, I've already assigned a Platoon to guard there and laid some landmines," Company Commander Song said.

Indeed, being a battalion‑level commander, his grasp of terrain is strong; the effort spent is worthwhile.

The positions are reinforced with sandbags; the trench is still simple, but once fully dug, timber can be used for reinforcement, and there are plenty of trees around.

Two machine gun positions were set up at the railway and bridge, each about a hundred meters apart.

The distance is very far, giving a wide field of fire; once the Japanese prepare to attack, the MG42 becomes a reaper of death.

To prevent enemy tanks from charging from the bridge, Company Commander Song placed a 37mm anti‑tank gun behind the machine gun position, with range and bearing precisely calculated.

Any enemy tank that comes over becomes a hunting target.

Only one Transport Vehicle can cross the bridge at a time; if a vehicle or tank breaks down, the whole bridge is blocked.

The main defensive focus is also on the bridge.

On both sides of the bridge, a machine gun is placed; the front side has two machine guns, and each position is linked by a traffic trench.

A platoon's troops defend this position; Little Japan isn't that easy to kill when they come over, and Jiang Anguo's platoon, with only four MG42s—that's just these forty men—so long as they have enough bullets and the machine guns aren't damaged, there's absolutely no problem holding this ground.

Along the river line, there are sentry positions, each group of three watches a thirty‑meter stretch of river; as long as the Japanese Army dares to cross, once the searchlights flash, all weapons and machine guns fire, and the Japanese Army definitely can't get through.

The river was also wide enough; Jiang Anguo initially thought it was only a little river about ten meters wide, but it turned out to be thirty meters wide, making the river a natural Defensive Line.

There is also a platoon's troops placed slightly farther back, together with the Company Section soldiers, to serve as a support force.