Chapter 24: Grenade Launcher Team’s Assault
“Boom… boom boom…”
The faint light of dawn pierced through the thick smoke of gunpowder, casting onto the war-torn land in front of the church.
Six M2 mortars roared incessantly, their deafening boom seeming to accompany the brutal scenery. The air was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder, making everything around appear exceptionally somber.
The Japanese soldiers, who were cautiously probing in squad units, were suffering greatly. Shells exploded around them non-stop.
Although these mortars weren’t firing accurately, they were very annoying.
The blast waves and flying shrapnel constantly threatened their safety. For safety’s sake, the company commander in charge of directing the attack had to order the squads to disperse.
But at this moment, they encountered another life-threatening situation.
“Boom… boom boom…”
Two more soldiers stepped on landmines. These unlucky fellows were blown to death, their groins and thighs severed by M2A4 anti-personnel mines that jumped half a meter high before exploding.
This type of mine is a jumping mine. When detonated by a fuse, the propelling charge at the bottom of the mine launches a 60mm mortar shell casing into the air, simultaneously igniting a delay fuse. The delay fuse then detonates the main charge in the casing, resulting in a considerable explosive force.
M2A4 anti-personnel mine,
“Ah…”
Looking at the two soldiers on the ground clutching their groins, the company commander in charge also felt a tightness in his own groin, followed by an eruption of anger.
“Grenade launcher team… are you all blind? Bomb those Chinese mortar positions for me.”
However, the grenade launcher team hesitated, saying, “Your Excellency, Commander, we can’t see the Chinese artillery positions at all, so we can’t attack.”
“Then bomb the church for me! We can’t just sit here and do nothing!” The company commander, who had been passively taking hits until now, was almost driven mad and roared his operational order.
“Hai!”
The grenade launcher squad, upon receiving the order, did not dare to hesitate. They quickly set up the Type 89 grenade launcher they carried and fired several shells at the church.
Type 89 grenade launcher
The Japanese Type 89 grenade launcher is very suitable for individual carrying because it uses Type 91 hand grenades as ammunition. The weight of these grenades is only 0.45 kilograms. An ammunition pouch carrying eight rounds weighs only 3.6 kilograms. Including the grenade launcher itself, the entire combat system weighs less than 7 kilograms, significantly lighter than a Type 96 light machine gun’s 10.2 kilograms. Therefore, the Japanese military extensively equipped their troops with this weapon.
“Whoosh… whoosh whoosh…”
“Get down!”
Su Yaoyang, observing the Japanese soldiers opposite with binoculars from atop the wall, was suddenly alerted by a sharp whistling sound from the sky. Immediately afterward, Li Gaoyuan’s voice rang in his ear, and he was then pushed to the ground.
“Boom boom boom…”
Several Type 91 hand grenades exploded nearby, emitting a tremendous roar. The strong shockwave sent numerous fragments of rock and soil flying everywhere. Several small clods of earth even hit Su Yaoyang’s face, causing sharp pain.
“Ptooey… ptooey…”
After the explosions, Su Yaoyang got up from the ground, spitting out the dirt from his mouth and cursing.
Li Gaoyuan, who had also sat up, asked, “Brother Su, are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Su Yaoyang patted his chest and looked curiously at a shallow crater nearby, asking, “Old Li… is that the Japanese grenade launcher?”
“Yes.”
Li Gaoyuan replied while dusting himself off, “The main characteristics of the Japanese grenade launcher are its large firing angle, convenient operation, curved trajectory, and its ability to be carried by individual soldiers and move with front-line infantry. It is extremely effective for killing targets behind fortifications and cover, and its own concealment is very strong.”
“So, you must be careful when you encounter the Japanese from now on. It will be dangerous if you are targeted.”
“What about the Japanese infantry?”
“Infantry?”
Li Gaoyuan paused for a moment. “Let’s put it this way: within a hundred meters, if a Japanese soldier aims for your left eye, they will definitely not hit your right eye.”
“Crack…”
As they spoke, the distinctive crack of a Type 38 rifle finally rang out.
“Quick… quick… charge forward…”
A Japanese unit composed of three combat squads, under the command of a sergeant major, rapidly advanced toward the church using rubble and buildings as cover.
Although mortar shells exploded around them from time to time, it did not affect their speed at all. This clearly indicated they were a unit of highly experienced veterans.
“Halt…”
The sergeant major, running at the front, raised his right hand high. The soldiers behind him immediately stopped.
The sergeant major observed for a moment, then pointed to a wall ahead and said, “See the fortification on that wall? There should be three to four Chinese soldiers stationed there.”
“Squad one, move forward and attack with grenades. Squad two, use rifles. Squad three, provide cover with machine guns.”
“Hai!”
“Crack…”
Soon, soldiers from the second squad on the left flank opened fire first.
The 6.5mm Arisaka rounds instantly struck the wall with loud impacts.
The soldiers behind the wall fortification were clearly startled and retaliated.
“Pah pah pah pah…”
As soon as the defending troops on the wall retaliated, the Japanese squad was taken aback.
The firepower from the opposite side was incredibly strong. The dense bullets pinned down the Japanese squad, over two hundred meters away, preventing them from even raising their heads.
Bullets rained down, striking the earth and rocks with crackling sounds.
The more than ten Japanese soldiers who had initiated the attack could only keep their heads low on the ground, not daring to move.
Finally, a private could no longer bear it and cautiously poked his head out. A muffled “bang” was heard, and his head was instantly struck by a bullet, splattering brain matter that glistened a dark red in the sunlight.
“What is going on? When did the Chinese army’s firepower become so fierce? What weapons are they using?”
The sergeant major was also a veteran of four years in the service, with extensive combat experience. He had fought against Chinese forces no less than dozens of times since arriving in China.
Such a person had a relatively good understanding of Chinese army’s weaponry. The Chinese army was equipped with a motley collection of weapons, almost from every country.
However, their small arms were generally limited to Hanyang 88s, Mauser 98Ks, and the German-style Zhongzheng rifles.
He had never seen a rifle with such a high rate of fire. In less than a few minutes, the bullets from the opposite side had riddled the area where their squad was positioned.
Both surprised and enraged, the sergeant major angrily shouted, “Machine gunner, what are you standing around for? Suppress them with fire immediately!”
“Hai!”
The third combat squad, having just reached their firing positions, quickly set up their machine gun.
“Da da da… da da da da…”
The Japanese Type 11 light machine gun also opened fire…
