The attack of the Japanese Army's Class A Division was much more structured, and their artillery preparations were more targeted, focusing the artillery fire on the main entrance of the warehouse;
In addition, they mobilized all the combat defense artillery and infantry artillery directly under the division headquarters and focused on bombarding the gate. Under the bombardment of the Japanese artillery regardless of cost, part of the sandbag barricade blocking the gate was blown down.
The Japanese cheered for a while, and then they struck while the iron was hot and continued to bombard the cave-in regardless of the cost, blowing the gap wider and wider until most of the sandbags were knocked down.
The Japanese seemed not to be content with blowing down the gate. After all, the entrance to a gate was only over three meters, so there was no way for them to deploy their troops;
They concentrated their artillery fire and continued to bombard the wall. This time, the effect was not so obvious. The one-foot-thick reinforced concrete main wall could not be blasted open by small-caliber artillery such as the combat anti-aircraft gun and the 92nd Infantry Artillery.
After two hours of continuous shelling, the Japanese finally gave up their wishful thinking of resolving the battle with cannon alone. After all, those shells also cost money;
As soon as the shelling stopped, a squadron of Japanese troops launched a tentative attack on the front of Sihang Warehouse.
Their skirmisher formations are spread out very widely, and the cooperation between the squads is also very tacit. Some people are often charging while the other part is covering;
Those who charge are very good at using obstacles to protect themselves, and those dense craters have become their first choice.
As soon as Captain Yanagihara jumped into a deep crater, he set up his rifle and carefully aimed at the windows where his head might be exposed;
Yanagihara waved his hand, and the other two members of his group passed him on both sides, and then jumped into the crater that had been selected in advance.
They have a clear division of labor between three people: a commander, a rifleman, and a demolitionist. The commander and rifleman are responsible for protecting and coordinating the demolitionist;
It's not enough to blow open a door. They have to blast the main wall on the front to create more gaps, so that the people behind can take advantage of their strength and rush into the warehouse in one fell swoop.
Yanagi Yuan calculated the distance between them and the building in his mind, and found that there was less than 80 meters left. The Chinese still didn't fire, they were too calm, which made him feel very unsure.
He would rather that the Chinese had already opened fire. At least he could estimate the defenders and firepower configuration. Allowing them to get closer would only show that the defenders were very confident in blocking their attack.
On the third floor of the warehouse, platoon leader Liu Dayong was patiently watching the Japs' performance. There were about a hundred Japs trying to figure out the firepower configuration of the entire regiment, but there was no door;
It was enough to deal with them in one battalion and one company. Liu Dayong's order was to listen to the gunfire of the company commander.
The two companies of the first battalion are deployed on the first, second, and third floors. The first floor is the second platoon of the first company, the second floor is the first platoon, the third platoon, and the company headquarters, and the third floor is the second company and battalion headquarters;
Before, they only had one squad on the first floor. After the Japanese bombed the gate, the first company commander Hu Hao made adjustments and sent all the second platoon down.
They have several barricades on the first floor, all made of sandbags, which can block the enemy's attack route from the gate;
The brothers on the second floor mainly assisted the second platoon in guarding the entrance to the building. Seeing that the Japanese were very close to the building, Hu Hao decisively pulled the trigger of the submachine gun. He preferred the MP28 submachine gun to the Mauser pistol. ——Enjoyable!
One of his short bursts of fire knocked down a Japs leader, Cao, and kicked off their fight against the Japs. The sound of his gun was an order;
The first and third rows on the second floor instantly opened up their firepower, and they swept the Japanese with a single sweep, and a large number of the charging Japanese fell down.
Sakamoto's squadron was already very cautious in the attack, but they still paid a lot of price when the defenders opened fire.
The Sakamoto Squadron had fought against Luo Ying's troops before, and they fought well at that time and did not allow the independent battalion to be wiped out. This time, Major Umezawa once again sent them as the vanguard.
Yanagihara was lucky. He was lucky enough to escape the first wave of fire from the defenders. Now he was hiding in a large crater and was relatively safe;
His two team members were not as lucky as him. When the defenders opened fire, they had just jumped out of the crater to charge, and ran into the fire net. One was killed and the other was injured immediately. The injured was struggling in pain and asking for help from him.
"Yagihara-kun, save me - I don't want to die, my legs - are broken -"
Bullets were flying outside the crater. He didn't dare to rush out to save Ichiro Fujita, who was already a cripple. He immediately cursed:
"Bagaya Road is not a samurai's job!"
He really wanted to give him another shot, but he was worried about being seen by others, so he could only pretend that he hadn't heard his cry for help and expected him to bleed to death.
After a brief panic, the Japanese began to spontaneously fight back at the defenders. Their marksmanship was much more accurate than that of the Marines, so they soon caused casualties to the first company.
Liu Dayong had very rich combat experience. When he saw the Japanese lying in the crater dozens of meters away and fighting back, he estimated the distance between the two sides and shouted loudly:
"Throw a grenade and kill the dog!"
"Be careful not to stick your head out too much. The enemy's marksmanship is accurate!"
Grassroots command requires a loud voice. Liu Dayong, who was promoted from squad leader, has a very high prestige in the entire platoon and has rich practical experience;
Under his shouts, a row of soldiers threw dozens of captured melon grenades at the Japanese, causing the Japanese to cry and howl.
The third row also followed the same example, throwing grenades from a high position, the killing effect was very good, and the Japanese gradually became unable to withstand it.
When Captain Sakamoto saw that his warriors were suppressed by the light and heavy firepower of the defenders, he ordered the machine gun squadron that was cooperating with them to open fire;
Eight 92-heavy machine guns opened fire at the defenders a few hundred meters away, throwing rain of bullets at the defenders. The large-caliber machine gun bullets hit the main wall with a popping sound, and soldiers fell down from time to time after being hit by bullets.
Seeing the Japanese machine gun positions going wild, completely suppressing the firepower of battalions and companies, Luo Ying immediately ordered Ma Biao:
"Take the mortar platoon to the roof and take out the dog-eating machine gun position. Remember to leave after the attack. I will never forget the war!"
Seeing that the defenders' firepower was suppressed by their heavy machine guns, the Japanese screamed excitedly, and under the command of the team leader, squad leader, and squad leader, they began to leap towards the building again;
Seeing that the Japanese were too powerful, Hu Hao did not forcefully fight the Japanese. Instead, he decided to put them into the gate before fighting.
With several machine guns in the second row, they couldn't rush into the warehouse. He shouted loudly:
"Brothers, let them in first, wait for the second row's machine guns to sound, and then follow my order to throw grenades outside together."
The Japanese heavy machine gun fire was indeed fierce, suppressing the firepower of the first and third rows. At the same time, they were also suppressing the other floors, especially the third and fourth floors;
The fifth floor rarely opened fire. The Japanese judged that the regiment headquarters was located, so they deliberately did not attack the fifth floor. However, the cunning Japanese commander Major Umezawa mobilized dozens of sharpshooters specifically to ambush the fifth floor.
Once someone shows up on the fifth floor, their sharpshooters will open fire and kill the defender's commander.
Both sides are competing for wits and courage, each relying on their own abilities to see who sees the right opportunity to kill the other.
Lieutenant Commander Yanagihara followed the Japanese army, and under the cover of heavy machine gun fire, they quickly reached the gate of the ruins;
A large number of sandbags that had been piled in front of the gate were dumped everywhere, acting as obstacles and blocking the enemy's sight. They did not notice the several half-moon barricades inside the building at all.
Their arrangement also happened to be in the shape of a half-moon, with a Czech light machine gun mounted on one barricade;
When the Japs rushed into the building, three machine guns and more than 30 rifles and submachine guns in the second row opened fire at the Japs, instantly knocking down the two dozen Japs rushing in front and scaring the other Japs. They all lay down under the rubble to avoid bullets.
At this moment, gunfire sounded from the roof of the building, and the 6 mortars from the artillery platoon (only 6 of the 9 mortars were brought up) fired three rapid rounds at the Japanese machine gun position;
Major Umezawa's face changed with fright when he heard the sound of shells breaking through the air. He did not expect that the Chinese had been hiding the mortar group. Now he was dumbfounded and roared:
"Bagya Road, artillery group, take cover quickly!"
Unfortunately, his words became an afterthought, as 18 mortar shells covered the Japanese machine gun position in less than a minute;
Almost all the Japanese machine gunners who were fighting Huanshi were sent to the aircraft, and the eight 92 heavy machine guns were almost blown into a pile of parts.
"Bagaya Road, the Chinese bullied others too much. They requested artillery support from the commander of the regiment and blew up the roof of the Chinese building!"
It also takes time to call for artillery support, but the defenders did not give Sakamoto Squadron time. After taking down the Japanese machine gun position, Hu Hao on the second floor gave the order to drop bombs.
"Bagayalu, grenade!"
The soldiers of Sakamoto's squadron, who were suppressed by machine gun fire in the building, were once again hit by grenades and suffered heavy casualties.
"Quickly, turn in!"
