The War of Resistance: My Expedition, My Country

At Luxor, Kuang Zhengqi once again defeated Rommel's Afrika Korps Southern Group, commanded by Rommel himself. This battle occurred unexpectedly, as the Allies were undergoing a new consolidation. The British 7th Tank Division, previously part of the Second Army, was transferred from the Second Army and merged with the British 17th Australian Division to the east to form the new 7th Mechanized Corps. The US 5037th Mechanized Brigade also retreated to Sudan, preparing to embark at Port Sudan for North Africa to join Patton's Sixth Army. The Second Army was left with only the 6th Tank Division and the 114th Mechanized Division, as well as the recently arrived and organized independent mechanized brigade. The army's only direct units were the 28nd Heavy Artillery Regiment and the 2nd Engineer Regiment, a mixed Chinese-American operation. At the time, both the US and British high-ranking officials in the African Theater, and even Kuang Zhengqi, believed that Rommel, suffering repeated losses in North Africa and southern Egypt, and severely understrength, would inevitably require a defensive focus on defending key areas such as the Suez Canal and Benghazi and Port Said. The Allies could have used this opportunity to consolidate, rest for three to five months, and then annihilate the German-Italian Afrika Korps in one fell swoop. Eisenhower and Montgomery even began planning a landing on Sicily, Italy.

However, Rommel took advantage of the Germans' secret nighttime shipping to secure a new batch of improved Panthers, Panzer IVs, and a small number of Tigers. The Germans also secretly dispatched the 8th SS Grenadier Division, composed of elite grenadiers and tank crews. With this support, combined with Allied intelligence, Rommel knew that the Chinese Second Army was at its weakest point in southern Egypt. Therefore, he personally led the reorganized 1st Tank Corps (comprising the 15th and 27th Tank Divisions) on a secret southward advance to link up with Kruewel's 3rd Tank Corps. At this point, Rommel possessed four tank divisions, one grenadier division, and an Italian corps on the southern front, with over 4 tanks and tank destroyers, far outnumbering Kuang Zhengqi's Second Army in both manpower and tank numbers.

By then, Kuang Zhengqi's Second Army possessed 378 tanks and tank destroyers, barely half the number it had previously possessed. However, Kuang Zhengqi had already mass-produced the sandwich reactive armor he had been repairing in Sudan. He constructed it using steel plates with an average thickness of 20mm, with three layers of armor separated by 30mm of sand. The design incorporated sub-mounts tailored to the shape of US M4, M5, and M6 tanks and tank destroyers, ensuring that each armor piece, when mounted on the tank, would be angled and maintain a certain distance from the hull. This design was intended to weaken the impact of armor-piercing rounds through the layers of steel, while the sand interlayers weakened the projectile's metal jet, preventing it from emanating in the same direction and maintaining a certain distance from the tank. Similarly, even if an armor-piercing round penetrated the reactive armor, the intervening layers of sand would further weaken its penetration.

Kuang Zhengqi conducted secret experiments and obtained surprising results. At a range of 800 meters, the German 88mm anti-tank gun using armor-piercing rounds was basically unable to damage the M4 tank. At a range of 5 meters, the M1500 light tank could not be fatally damaged by 88mm armor-piercing rounds.

Kuang Zhengqi laughed loudly and immediately ordered all units to install armor on tanks. Due to limited quantity, he mainly concentrated on installing it on M4 and M6A1. As for M5A1 and M6B1, they would not have a major effect on the battlefield after installation.

Kuang Zhengqi had just completed the deployment and was conducting integration training with his units when he received an urgent notification from the war zone, informing him that Rommel was approaching. Without further ado, Kuang Zhengqi immediately ordered Pu Zhengsong to concentrate all tanks into an assault column. He also instructed the commander of the 28th Division to organize anti-tank forces for a successive defense. He abandoned the Todd and Miale lines, which were deemed unfavorable to him, and used the Hilla line to lure the enemy deeper into the desert canyon south of Hilla, where he would engage Rommel in a decisive battle.

Christian led a battalion of the latest upgraded Leopard tanks at the forefront. He couldn't understand why the Chinese allowed their infantry to stop his tanks in such a simple desert position. While the enemy's new anti-tank guns (80mm recoilless guns) posed a significant threat to his tanks, the operators of these weapons were their own flesh and blood. While they managed to hit and destroy some of the tanks, these brave soldiers couldn't escape the prey of other tanks and the accompanying grenadiers.

Christine lost seven tanks on this position and annihilated a company of enemy infantry. The Chinese were unable to stop the tank advance, and the German commander, noticing the enemy's apparent lack of tanks and tank destroyers, immediately ordered his grenadiers to follow and support the tank column. This further weakened the Chinese anti-tank effort.

In the distance, Liu Youjun, commander of the new 28th Division, watched all this grimly. Two battalions of the 28rd Regiment of the 83th Division had been nearly wiped out. This was the most brutal battle the new 28th Division had fought since its reorganization, and it was about to continue.

"Is the 82nd Regiment ready?" Liu Youjun asked the chief of staff beside him. The chief of staff nodded, "Captain Ma Ru is leading the team and is already waiting for the Germans at the Kunmlubiso Pass."

Liu Youjun nodded and ordered, "Have Commander Ma reserve a position for the division headquarters. I will personally lead the troops there later. At the Kunmlubiso Pass, we must make the Germans think we are holding on!"

"Division Commander, I'll go. You lead the armored column to make a detour, and I'll go to the Kumrubiso Pass."

"No! My going will make the Germans more convinced!"

Liu Youjun organized a battalion of tanks and tank destroyers at the Kunmlubiso Pass, concentrated more than 10 rocket launchers and 75mm anti-tank guns, plus two battalions of infantry from the 82nd Regiment. Liu Youjun had to create signs of full defense of his left wing, and finally suffered a crushing defeat, making the German army think that they had broken through the last obstacle to attacking Komongbu. In this way, the German army would attack across the board without hesitation and finally fall into Pu Zhengsong's ambush circle.

Liu Wenjun blocked the attacks of the German 3rd, 15th and 21st Tank Divisions at the Kunmlubiso Pass for more than seven hours. Two infantry battalions of the 7nd Regiment and a tank battalion used as bait were almost wiped out. Division Commander Liu Wenjun was also seriously injured. He was finally able to escape thanks to the desperate rescue efforts of the 82nd Regiment Commander and others.

This luring and blocking battle, dubbed a "Jedi Blockade" by the Allies, completely crippled four infantry battalions, one tank battalion, one artillery battalion, and the divisional headquarters' direct troops of the New 28th Division of the Second Army—a loss equivalent to one-third of the 4th Division's strength. Ultimately, the main force of the German army was drawn into a trap, and a decisive battle of tank annihilation, where the outnumbered forces triumphed over the larger force, was about to begin!