The War of Resistance: My Expedition, My Country

Chapter 267 The Moment of Crisis

Sure enough, the M6B1 appeared from a low slope again, with its gun pointed at another friendly tank 1000 meters away. The commander was glad that he had made an accurate judgment. He yelled at the driver to stop and instructed the gunner to turn to the 1.5 o'clock direction. The Leopard G calmly adjusted the gun distance, and a high-explosive bomb had already been loaded in the barrel.

"Fire!" the German tank commander roared, his voice brimming with determination and resolve. With the dull crack of a blast, the shell swiftly pierced the barrel, carrying immense force towards the M6B1 tank destroyer. The shell arced through the air like a bolt of lightning, instantly ripping through the air.

Almost at the same time, the M6B1 also opened fire, and a 105mm armor-piercing bullet burst out of the barrel and flew towards a German M1000 modified 4 meters away at an astonishing speed.

The massive recoil from the bombardment lifted the M6B1's entire fuselage. However, this proved to be a stroke of luck for the tank. As luck would have it, it had just dodged the incoming fire from the German Leopard G. The Leopard G's commander stared wide-eyed as his shells missed, his heart filled with anger and resentment.

"Damn it!" he cursed, quickly ordering the driver to reverse, preparing to maneuver to avoid the now-reacting M6B1 tank destroyer. However, fate seemed to be against them. Before they could even take a few steps back, a violent explosion erupted beneath the tank, and a huge flame erupted from the undercarriage, instantly igniting the interior of the tank.

"We've been hit, quickly evacuate the tank!" the commander quickly ordered, then opened the turret cover and was the first to emerge. His actions were swift and decisive, demonstrating the courage and determination of a soldier.

However, before he could jump off the tank, the iconic sound of the American M2 submachine gun rang out, and several bullets rained down. These bullets mercilessly hit his head and chest. He didn't even have time to grunt before he lost control of his body and fell to the ground like a kite with a broken string.

A Chinese soldier quickly climbed onto the tank and threw a heavy grenade into the tank without hesitation. The grenade did not pay attention to the desperate howls of the German soldiers inside the tank, and exploded inside the tank with a "boom".

The 44th Division suffered heavy losses while covering the 2nd Anti-Tank Division's ruthless harvest of German tank clusters. The German commander, Lieutenant General Paulius Yeneumans, knew that he had fallen into the trap of Chinese-style blocking. He had experienced such battles countless times.

He roared angrily: "Damn Chinese, why are you everywhere?"

The chief of staff said anxiously: "General, we can't fight the Chinese here, we must get away as soon as possible!"

Baoweisi Yeneumans gritted his teeth and responded, "I know, but we can't just retreat like this. We must find a way to break through their defenses!"

He immediately ordered his army's mechanized grenadiers to charge forward and try to stop the Chinese anti-tank forces. At the same time, he ordered the tank battalions to turn around immediately and attack Kuwait from the other side.

The German 1st Tank Army began to turn to the offensive. The 44th Division, which had suffered heavy losses, was unable to stop it. The 2nd Anti-tank Division's tank destroyers could not be exposed and directly face the German tank group.

General Li Zongfang anxiously reported the enemy situation to the 34th and 43rd Tank Divisions who were following him via radio: "The enemy has already pressed forward towards Kuwait! We can't stop them, we can't stop them!"

Zhang Lingpu, who was commanding the 34th and 43rd Tank Divisions, shouted, "Do everything you can to hold off the enemy! We'll be there in 20 minutes!"

Kuang Zhengqi, far away in Rumaila, received the news from their conversation. He bypassed Li Zongfang and ordered the 2nd Anti-Tank Division to disengage from the battlefield and, leveraging its speed advantage, rapidly charge toward Kuwait City, ordering them to immediately enter the city and prepare for street fighting. Simultaneously, he reported the battle progress to Wedemeyer, requesting that all available forces in Kuwait City and Kuwait Port be mobilized. The naval warships in the port were immediately dispatched to the perimeter to provide fire support to the port defenders.

Wedemeyer knew this was the most dangerous moment. Without hesitation, he ordered all forces in the port to mobilize, even concentrating some naval sailors. Over 100 tanks that had just arrived were organized and driven to key intersections. Since there weren't enough tank crews, he recruited some artillerymen and had them use the tanks as fixed bunkers, ready to fight the Germans to the death! In hospitals and barracks, large numbers of military police shouted, "Who can drive a tank? We need tank crews!"

Many tank soldiers with minor injuries from the hospital volunteered to join the new tanks, and some armored vehicle drivers were also mobilized to become tank drivers. Kuwait City and Kuwait Port immediately became a huge military camp.

The 2nd Anti-Tank Division arrived in Kuwait City first, which made Wedemeyer breathe a sigh of relief. Robert Cheney, the US garrison commander in charge of the city's defense, immediately dispersed the 2nd Anti-Tank Division into battalions and distributed them to major blocking positions. They were combined with new tank troops who were new to tanks but unfamiliar with combat. Their mission was to hold their positions and hold back the German army.

US and British air bases along the Basra front also engaged in frantic action. Transport planes were racing to ferry the Chinese 13th Division to the airfield outside Kuwait City. The British 3rd and 8th Armies also began withdrawing troops from the front lines, preparing for an assault toward Kuwait. Kuang Zhengqi, clearly aware of the enormous risks posed by the Allies' actions, quickly called General Wedemeyer to offer his opinion.

"Your Excellency, Chief of Staff, I suggest that you immediately order the British 3rd and 8th Armies not to move troops toward Kuwait. They need to hold their positions now, and we must not give the Germans the opportunity to defeat them piecemeal. Also, I suggest that you inform General George Patton that the 5th Army seize the opportunity to engage in a decisive battle with the German southwestern front. The Germans are diverting two armies to attack Kuwait, which is a good time to defeat them."

"General, you should understand that even if the German army breaks into Kuwait and Kuwait Port, with the 7th Army and our 2nd Army blocking the way, plus the defenders of Kuwait City, the German army will not be able to capture Kuwait for a while! As long as the 3rd and 8th Armies hold their positions and the 5th Army defeats the current enemy forces, and does not give the German army the opportunity to reinforce Kuwait, we are confident that we can hold Kuwait City and Kuwait Port!"

"The 28th Army should arrive at the port of Kuwait in one day's sailing time. With the arrival of this fresh force, we can even completely annihilate this German assault column, and the entire war situation in Iraq will be fundamentally reversed."

"Please trust me, trust my judgment. I will fly to Kuwait immediately and I will serve as the commander of Kuwait's defense."