Wisdom

The lieutenant chose the first option—to keep shooting at the machine gunners. Qin Chuan heard a roll of movement on the rooftop, followed by a sharp gunshot.

Qin Chuan couldn't help but admire the lieutenant's sniping skills. The man could shoot accurately while rolling to dodge bullets, and Qin Chuan was certain that the lieutenant had hit his target; otherwise, the Vickers machine gun would have already unleashed its monstrous roar.

But this wasn't a sustainable solution. If they continued like this, both the lieutenant and Qin Chuan would likely end up paying with their lives, and eventually, they wouldn't be able to prevent the British from firing the Vickers.

After some thought, Qin Chuan shifted to a different sniper position, then carefully aimed and fired another shot.

This time, Qin Chuan's target wasn't a person but the Vickers heavy machine gun itself. The bullet hit the thick water-cooling cylinder at the front of the machine gun precisely. Through the scope, Qin Chuan saw the gun's heavy barrel jump slightly before drooping back down.

He noticed a jet of water spurting from beneath it, like a hot spring, leaking water while steaming.

Qin Chuan didn't dare linger, as British bullets were already whizzing in his direction, forcing him to duck back down and wait.

Soon, Qin Chuan's heart sank when he heard the terrifying sound of the machine gun again. Bullets poured like a hailstorm towards the anti-tank guns on the opposite side of the street. Qin Chuan could almost visualize the anti-tank gunners falling in pools of blood, but he was powerless to stop it.

Fortunately, after a short while, the machine gun fell silent.

Qin Chuan guessed that the British soldiers hadn't realized the machine gun's water-cooling cylinder had been damaged, so naturally, after a frenzy of firing, the barrel had overheated and warped, causing it to malfunction.

This kind of malfunction wasn't easily fixed. Even if they managed to refill the water or patch up the cylinder, it wouldn't help... unless they replaced the barrel entirely.

Qin Chuan knew they had finally neutralized this threat.

The anti-tank guns seized this moment to continue firing at their target... In fact, these were the last ten shells the artillerymen had for the anti-tank guns.

Qin Chuan peeked through a crack in the wall to check the impact on the load-bearing wall. It had taken significant damage, with a large crater blasted into it by the repeated hits. However, the building's sturdy construction held, despite the layers of bricks and mortar being pulverized like flour.

Soon, the anti-tank guns fell silent.

Qin Chuan, feeling desperate, rushed back and shouted at the artillerymen a few dozen meters away, "What's going on? Fire a few more shots! It's about to collapse!"

The artillerymen saw Qin Chuan but couldn't hear him over the noise of the battle. However, they could guess his meaning... Their response was to shake their heads and spread their hands.

Qin Chuan understood: they were out of shells!

"Damn it!" Qin Chuan cursed. They were so close, perhaps just a few more shells away... but now it seemed all their efforts had been in vain.

In frustration, Qin Chuan raised his rifle and fired a shot at the crater blasted into the wall.

It was a move born out of anger, but unexpectedly, the school collapsed with a loud crash. The entire west side crumbled first, followed by the east side... leaving only a small portion of the eastern wing still standing amidst the ongoing exchange of fire.

The sounds of gunfire and artillery suddenly quieted down... Partly because the collapse of the school had silenced much of the British firepower, and partly because both sides were stunned by the scene and momentarily forgot to shoot.

After a long pause, the Germans snapped out of their shock, and Basil shouted, "Warriors of the Reich, it's time to avenge our comrades! Attack!"

"Attack!"

"Kill them all!"

...

The German soldiers, shouting battle cries, surged forward like a flood towards the school, now a pile of rubble...

The ensuing battle was straightforward.

The school had been the strongest point of the British defense, a place they trusted implicitly. Because of this confidence, they had made few additional preparations. When the school collapsed, it exposed the weak points of their defense to the advancing Germans, who cut through the British lines like a knife, attacking the vulnerable artillery positions behind them.

This quickly triggered a chain reaction, and soon, the entire British line collapsed as they abandoned their weapons and fled in disarray.

Qin Chuan slumped to the ground, watching the German soldiers swarm forward like ants, and couldn't help but laugh to himself: he never imagined that his stray bullet would be the final straw that brought down the entire building. It seemed that Lady Luck was on his side after all.

A cigarette was offered to Qin Chuan, and when he looked up, he saw it was the lieutenant, with blood streaks on his face, a sniper rifle under his arm, calmly standing beside him.

"Well done, Private!" the lieutenant said.

"Thank you!" Qin Chuan took the cigarette. "You did even better!"

"Maybe," the lieutenant replied coolly, "but I didn't think to shoot at the machine gun's water-cooling cylinder, let alone at the building itself."

"That was just an accident," Qin Chuan replied.

The lieutenant shook his head, then patted Qin Chuan on the shoulder, saying, "A true sniper is a shooter who uses his wits. You'll make an excellent sniper!"

With that, the lieutenant walked away.

"I don't even know your name!" Qin Chuan called after him.

The lieutenant didn't look back, just waved a hand, indicating it didn't matter.

It really didn't matter because this was war. Knowing his name today might mean he didn't exist tomorrow.

So, what mattered was that there had been someone, and something like this had happened. Beyond that, knowing or not knowing made little difference.

It was more than half an hour later when Qin Chuan rejoined his unit... The baker and the others had joined the pursuit of the fleeing British forces after the school collapsed.

Seeing Qin Chuan catching up from behind, Big Bear shouted excitedly, "Hey, look who's here!"

"Our hero!" Werner turned around and embraced Qin Chuan warmly. "Do you know? You made me feel ashamed!"

"Ashamed?"

"Yes!" Werner laughed. "Not long ago, I was bragging about blowing up a building. But now... you've demolished one ten times the size, and with just a rifle!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

"Well done, Frick!" The baker patted Qin Chuan on the shoulder. "But you might not be staying with my unit."

"Why?" Qin Chuan asked, puzzled.

"Because..." the baker replied, "before you came back, the captain appointed you as the leader of Third Squad!"