Chapter 50: No Time To Lose
Not far from the State Duke’s Mansion, in a small alley, the dim winter sunlight filtered through the overcast sky, casting faint rays on the road surface.
On both sides of the alley were dilapidated blue brick walls, with mottled marks on the walls recording a corner of past prosperity, now shrouded in heavy gunpowder smoke and fear. The air was filled with pungent gunpowder smell and decay, suffocating.
In this quiet moment, bursts of gunfire shattered the silence, accompanied by shrill screams and desperate cries.
The fleeing crowd was like panicked birds, surging into the narrow alley from all directions. They were ragged and terrified, scattering in all directions to escape the pursuit.
In the distance, corpses lay strewn across the streets, some just fallen, others never to rise again.
Deep in the alley was a hell on earth woven from chaos and despair. More than ten Japanese soldiers were wantonly massacring local residents, with shrill screams and pleas for mercy incessant, but to those beasts from the East, these pleas only fueled their arrogance.
In that instant, time seemed to freeze, leaving only the deafening gunfire in the ears and the devastated people struggling helplessly and miserably…
Meanwhile
On a street near the church, dozens of soldiers in German military uniforms were gathered around a Renault tank, curiously looking around, with some bold ones even touching here and there, extremely curious.
John, appointed by Su Yaoyang as the tank commander, was now also dressed in a German military uniform, wearing a tank cap with a headset clipped to it, looking somewhat the part.
Beside him were several tank crew members he had selected, among them the skinny Qiao Erdan whom Su Yaoyang had picked from the routed soldiers yesterday.
“I know you’re all still unfamiliar with this thing, and the boss has given us very little time, so I can only cover the important parts.”
John said to Qiao Erdan and the other four tank crew members in his half-baked Chinese: “To operate this thing, you need five members: commander, gunner, loader, driver, and co-driver.
Normally, as your commanding officer, my position should be commander, but now I can only temporarily serve as driver, since none of you know how to drive this thing.
Now I’ll explain your respective positions in detail, to get this thing moving…”
Not far away on a building, Su Yaoyang, Li Gaoyuan, and Huang Guantao were standing by the window watching John enthusiastically explaining the tank’s structure to the several temporarily selected tank crew members.
Huang Guantao said somewhat worriedly: “Regiment commander, do you think that John can really get this thing running?”
“Who knows.” Su Yaoyang shrugged, “Best if he can, if not, it’s just a waste of a little time.”
“You’re wasting time? You’re wasting an expensive tank, okay.”
Huang Guantao and Li Gaoyuan inwardly grumbled.
By now, they had become somewhat numb to Su Yaoyang’s near-magic ability to conjure things out of thin air; even if he now conjured a warship empty-handed, they wouldn’t find it strange.
However, Li Gaoyuan still asked worriedly: “I’ve seen tanks often enough; after all, our training team had an armored regiment equipped with British Vickers tanks and German Sd-Kfz tanks.
Though I don’t understand tanks, I saw they were always used concentrated together. Even if John can get that tank running, with only one tank, isn’t the number too few?
Just with this one tank, it’ll easily be destroyed by the Japanese.”
“Of course I know that, but what can I do?” Su Yaoyang said helplessly: “We only have this many people; forget tank crew, we barely have anyone who can even drive. Even if there were extra tanks, no one would know how to operate them.
The reason I got this tank is to boost our assault power.
Think about it: during the breakout, with this tank leading the charge, how many brothers would we save?”
“Hmm… that’s true.”
Li Gaoyuan and Huang Guantao both nodded.
As battlefield veterans, they naturally knew that during a charge, having such an impervious iron beast at the forefront could draw so much enemy fire and reduce so many friendly casualties.
At that moment, the rear of the Renault tank below suddenly belched thick smoke, and then the whole tank jolted, scaring the surrounding onlookers to scatter in panic.
Su Yaoyang and the other two couldn’t help laughing, but then they exchanged glances and saw the helplessness in each other’s eyes.
They didn’t blame the soldiers’ timidity, but sighed for their nation’s defense forces.
Tanks had existed for decades, but most Chinese soldiers had never seen one in their lives; it was inevitable to be startled at first sight.
“Let’s go!”
Suddenly, Su Yaoyang lost interest, waved his hand, and led the way back.
As soon as the three returned to the church, they saw a figure hurrying in from outside; on closer look, it was Xu Dapeng, who had just gone out on reconnaissance.
“Dapeng, why are you back so soon?” Li Gaoyuan asked puzzled.
Xu Dapeng’s face was ashen, eyes bloodshot, gasping heavily: “Instructor, regiment commander, the Japanese… the Japanese are massacring civilians in the city, corpses everywhere, the Japanese have gone mad!”
“What… this too?” Huang Guantao was stunned, shocked and furious: “This violates international law; how dare the Japanese?”
Su Yaoyang, who had long known this would happen, painfully closed his eyes. What was coming had come after all; was this calamity still inevitable?
“Why wouldn’t they dare?” Su Yaoyang sneered: “The nation is weak; even if the Japanese do this, what can we do?
Just like when the Japanese fight us, they casually release poison gas, utterly rampant, but do you see them daring to use poison gas against the US, USSR, Britain, or France?
Isn’t it because we lack equivalent countermeasures?”
The two fell silent; the cruelty of jungle law was so bloody at this moment.
Li Gaoyuan suddenly said: “Regiment commander, I think we should break out as soon as possible. Once the Japanese clear out the remaining forces in the city, we won’t be able to leave.”
“That’s what I think too.”
Su Yaoyang nodded, “This matter should be sooner rather than later; I think at most two days, we should break out.”
