Spy Wars: I am the Captain of the Military Police

"There are a lot of Chinese pigs here!"

"Don't waste bullets! Keep searching!"

"Hi Yi!"

The refugees hiding in the passageway breathed a sigh of relief as they watched the Japanese soldiers climb up.

But the next moment...

Glug glug...

Two dark, round lumps were dropped down.

Boom. Boom.

The explosion sounded particularly deafening in the enclosed space of the sewer.

Fragments struck the concrete wall, sending sparks flying, and hit a human body with a dull thud.

Screams, cries, pleas for mercy, and the frantic shouts of the Japanese soldiers above mingled together, echoing and amplifying repeatedly in the pipes, creating an incredibly terrifying sound effect.

The crowd surged backward like a flock of startled sheep, and a stampede was inevitable. Many people were trampled into the sewage and never got up again.

The smell of blood quickly overpowered the stench of the sewage.

The survivors desperately crawled deeper into the darker parts of the pipe, leaving behind a path paved with corpses and blood.

As dusk fell again on the 19th, the fighting in Nanjing did not cease; instead, under the cover of night, it became even more brutal and chaotic.

The battle for control of the Xinjiekou area remains fierce, with the post office building changing hands several times. Both sides are constantly deploying reserve forces, and the corpses almost block the stairwells.

The Central Hospital has been largely taken over by the "rebels," leaving behind only corpses and traces of despair.

Meanwhile, the civilians in the sewers and various hiding places faced yet another night of uncertainty, their fate hanging in the balance, filled with endless fear.

This "hellish street battle" that took place in Nanjing had no concept of a front line; every street, every building, and even every basement could become a battlefield.

The two sides in the conflict share the same origin, yet they consume each other in the most brutal way.

The ordinary Chinese people caught up in it suffered double the hardship. Their lives seemed so insignificant in the infighting among the invaders, like a candle flickering in a storm, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

The entire city has been reduced to a true hell on earth.

. . . . . . . . . . .

Night fell early over Nanjing.

Two days of fierce infighting have left the ancient city like a giant that has lost too much blood, shivering in the cold winter. Only the flashes of gun muzzles and the towering flames from burning buildings testify to the ongoing brutal turmoil within.

The atmosphere near Taiping Gate, located in the northeast corner of Nanjing, was extremely oppressive.

This area was once a relatively weak point for the Central China Expeditionary Army in its attempts to contact the outside of the city or break out to the north, but precisely because of this, it has now become a key area for the "rebels" to besiege.

Outside the city gates stood the elite troops of the 2nd Division of the Kwantung Army, who were eyeing the city menacingly. Inside the city gates, the last mobile force of the Central China Expeditionary Army, and the last mobilizable force under Matsui Iwane's command, was gathered: a tank company of the 9th Division and a complete infantry regiment.

In the makeshift underground shelter inside the Taiping Gate barbican, General Matsui Iwane, commander of the Central China Expeditionary Army, abandoned his usual rage and dejection, displaying an unsettling calm that seemed like a final burst of energy before death.

Under the dim gas lamp, his gray hair was disheveled, and his eye sockets were sunken, but in those bloodshot eyes burned a kind of desperate, crazy flame.

He had just rejected the Chief of Staff Major General Iinuma's renewed suggestions for "negotiation" or "breaking out in a dispersed manner".

"Negotiation? What's there to talk about with those treacherous traitors!" Matsui Iwane's voice was hoarse, yet unusually firm: "To break out in disarray? That would be suicide! The Imperial Army has no commanders who flee without a fight!"

He walked to the table covered with a simple map, and his thin fingers pointed heavily at the location of Taiping Gate: "We still have strength! The tanks of the Ninth Division are the pride of the Imperial Army!"

"If they can break through here, even just a small opening, they can overwhelm the rebel positions and, in conjunction with the 18th and 114th Divisions of the 10th Army, which have retreated to the outskirts for rest and reorganization, and the Kunisaki Detachment, the outcome of the battle will be uncertain!"

He glanced around at the group of pale-faced, shifty-eyed staff officers in the bunker, raised his voice, as if to encourage himself and his men: "Gentlemen! Don't be intimidated by the rebels' bluff! They've gone on a long campaign, and their ranks are far from monolithic!"

As long as we demonstrate the might of the Imperial Army, Tokyo will certainly not stand idly by!

Tonight is the night to turn the tide of the battle! Order the 9th Division's tank company to launch an immediate attack! Infantry to follow and expand the gains! Objective: rout the enemy in front and restore communication with friendly forces!

This order was filled with unrealistic fantasies and the despair of a dying struggle.

But under Matsui Iwane's formidable influence, no one dared to refute him anymore.

The order was passed down quickly.

Iinuma Mamoru opened his mouth several times as if to say something, but in the end he remained silent.

He felt that if he told Matsui Iwane at this moment that the Kunisaki Detachment, forcibly transferred from the 5th Division, had quietly left the battlefield and detoured to pursue the Chinese army, Matsui Iwane would definitely slap himself twice and say he had lost his mind.

Even he couldn't understand the actions of the Kunisaki Detachment. They were practically fighting tooth and nail, yet the Kunisaki Detachment was still single-mindedly focused on advancing.

He was completely oblivious to everything else, focusing solely on the pursuit of the Chinese army, acting like a madman.

At this point, if Kunisaki Noboru, who had already led his men far beyond the Nanjing area, knew of Iinuma Kami's doubts, he would surely tell Iinuma Kami with a smug smile: "Our division commander, General Itagaki Seishiro, once taught me that in war, not achieving merit is a mistake..."

Civil war, win or lose, is a mistake. I came to China to make a contribution, not to be beaten... Fight however you want, I'm not playing along.

If you won't pursue the Chinese, I will. My country is determined to claim the greatest credit! Nobody stop me!

Even dying in battle is an honor!!!

Back in Songjiang, when the 10th Army encountered the mysterious armored division, Kunisaki Noboru was ordered to break away from the 10th Army and act independently. He was fortunate enough to avoid being surrounded by the Chinese army and made meritorious contributions.

Once again abandoning the Central China Expeditionary Army, he embarked on a pursuit alone.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

At 8 p.m. sharp, the heavy and damaged city gate of Taiping Gate was slowly pushed open a crack.

The cold wind, carrying the smoke of gunpowder, rushed in immediately, and the roar of the engine, growing louder as it approached, broke the silence of the night.

Eighteen Type 97 medium tanks and Type 95 light tanks from the 9th Division's tank company slowly drove out of the city gate, like steel behemoths lurking in the darkness.

The tank was painted with winter camouflage, but its outline was still clearly visible against the backdrop of snow and firelight.

Behind the tank followed about two companies of infantrymen, soldiers from the 7th Regiment of the 9th Division, their faces showing exhaustion, fear, and a final glimmer of madness.

Captain Toshio Nishimura, the tank company commander, led the charge in his command tank.

He peered intently through the observation window at the open area ahead, covered in snow and ruins.

This area, located between Taipingmen and Xuanwu Lake, is relatively flat and is an ideal assault route for tanks.