After a wave of casualties in Miyamoto's brigade, more than half of the original brigade of thousands of people had been killed and almost all of the infantry artillery squad had been sent to the ghost toilets of Yasukuni. Anyway, the king of hell in China would not accept them.
The number of casualties in the second and third brigades is also increasing. The average number of casualties is still one squadron, and the total number of Japanese dead has exceeded a thousand. If this were a large Western country, with such a high casualty rate, this unit would have surrendered. Will be hailed as a hero;
But this is the East, and the life-and-death battle between two tenacious nations has just begun. They will not give up until all their combat power is exhausted. Both sides know the basics, so the first battalion commander Chen Wu knows that the Japanese will not easily recognize them. Damn it, their bloody battle has to continue.
The casualties of the 1st Battalion were also very high, reaching 30%, but they could still fight. These were veterans who had survived the brutal and bloody battle in Songhu. This casualty ratio was just commonplace for them. It was only because of orders from the battalion headquarters that they Pretending to be defeated by the Japanese, they retreated several hundred meters and were about to retreat to the center of the city.
The Japs and the remaining 2,000 people were getting more and more excited as they chased after them. At first they were still a little cautious, but when they saw that Huaxia had been completely defeated, there were only 400 or 500 people left. They had an absolute advantage in strength. Everyone looked at them. When it comes to the hope of annihilating the defenders and recapturing the regimental flag;
As long as they take back the alliance flag, they will live! The 65th Wing will also be rebuilt in a high-profile manner, and everyone will no longer have to be a dead soldier...
"Kill the chicken for me, kill all the Chinese people!"
Major Umezawa, captain of the Second Battalion, shouted excitedly. He had suffered from Luo Ying too many times. If he hadn't been lucky, grass would have grown on his grave. In this way, almost all of his Second Battalion were newly recruited soldiers. , the Lone Army Brigade almost replaced the group of beasts under his command, except for him.
Just in response to those words, joy can lead to sorrow. As beautiful as the ideal is, the reality is so cruel. The second battalion in pursuit hit the iron plate. Major Umezawa's face turned pale. He was experienced in the battlefield and heard it. Well, what they encountered this time was not the Chinese who had just been defeated by them, but a new and fully organized force;
The 1st Battalion of the 882nd Regiment, as a reserve force, finally took action. Dozens of light and heavy machine guns and hundreds of long and short guns that had been ambushed in advance suddenly opened fire on the most fiercely pursuing Umezawa Brigade from three directions: left, center and right. After hundreds of Japanese were killed, what Umaze had been worrying about finally happened. Luo Ying indeed hid a main force in the city.
Judging from the firepower configuration of the Chinese people, there were no less than a thousand Chinese troops who suddenly opened fire on them. If the thousands of people exposed before were added, the strength of the lone brigade was finally exposed. As they had judged before, there were about two thousand people. .
He regretted that he chased too fiercely. He should have let the third battalion run in front. Now his battalion kicked the iron plate. In just a short while, he lost nearly a squadron of troops, which was more than before. All losses.
Just when Major Umezawa was considering whether to hold on until the Third Battalion caught up and attacked the Chinese from both sides, a loud bugle sounded from the front, which made his expression change and he cursed:
"Bagya Road, they can actually fight back!"
"Boom boom boom...."
In order to cooperate with the counterattack of the 1st Battalion of the 882nd Regiment, six 90mm mortars from the mortar company of the artillery battalion directly under the brigade also opened fire wildly at the Japanese, firing a 12-round rapid fire, which continued for more than a minute. Fired 72 shells at the Japanese, completely destroying Umezawa's confidence in holding on;
Six mortars are a lot of heavy firepower for the Chinese. Even a regiment of German weapon divisions like the 88th Division only has six mortars. Judging from this firepower configuration, the one who launched a counterattack against them was A regiment of a lone brigade must start to escape - if not run, are they waiting to be completely annihilated?
Major Umezawa decisively gave the order to move in. The remaining Japanese, such as Meng Dahe, shook off their bandy legs one by one and started running. There were also many long-legged Koreans who were the best runners in the world. They ran like tigers and tigers. Those Japanese with short legs and bows were left behind.
"BaGeYa Road, this group of useless sticks can't fight. Each one can escape faster than the other! Wait for me."
Major Umezawa ran and cursed. Now he really misses those warriors who died under the guns of the Chinese. It is too tiring to direct these sticks to fight.
Fortunately, the Chinese were also worried about being counterattacked by the Japanese behind them, so they only chased for two or three hundred meters before stopping and letting Major Umezawa go.
After hearing the intensive gunfire from the front, the Third Brigade on the other side sped up to reinforce the Second Brigade. As for the First Brigade, which suffered heavy casualties, it had already retreated to the second echelon. Only their remaining three and The 400 people were no longer worthy of being the opponents of the Chinese. Major Miyamoto was very wise and ran at the back.
After receiving the support of the Third Brigade, the Second Brigade quickly stabilized its position. Together with the Third Brigade, they launched a counterattack against the defenders from the left and right wings. The two sides once again fought into a pot of porridge.
The Second Brigade lost more than 200 people in the encounter just now. In addition to the more than 100 people who lost before, the Umezawa Brigade has now also lost more than 300 people. There are only 600 combat soldiers left. Only the Third Brigade is still alive. There are more than 800 people left, plus more than 300 people from the First Brigade, a total of more than 1,700 people are left, and more than half of the entire wing has been injured (the wing headquarters is missing).
As for the lone brigade, the 1st Battalion of the 882nd Regiment had almost no casualties. They only fought back against the Japanese. They had been serving as a reserve team before. In addition to the casualties during the bombing, the number of casualties in the entire battalion did not exceed one platoon, and there were more than 700 people left;
The 881st Regiment suffered nearly 40% casualties. Fortunately, more than half of the more than 300 casualties were lightly wounded. Whether they were Chinese or Japanese, the lightly wounded were able to fight. Therefore, the absolute loss of the 881st Regiment was about 220 people. , in addition to the more than 50 seriously injured wounded, there are still more than 530 people in the battalion who can fight;
Including the mortar company, guard company, health team and brigade headquarters directly under the brigade, the lone brigade still has nearly 2,000 people. Its strength has exceeded the 65th Regiment, which suffered heavy casualties. Of course, there are many non-combatants in the lone brigade, so The two sides are very close in strength.
Since more than 1,500 people from the second and third battalions of the Japanese main force launched a full-line attack on the central position of the city, there was no need for the Lone Army Brigade to retreat anymore. All the main force came out to fight the Japanese with steel knives;
The troops and firepower of both sides are almost equal. The defenders have a greater terrain advantage and have complete fortifications, especially a large number of tunnel fortifications, which allow them to receive supplementary personnel and ammunition at any time, taking a great advantage in the exchange of fire.
The Japs are different. The battlefield is so big. More than a thousand people cannot line up and press forward. They have to be divided into echelons. When their second echelon adds troops to the first echelon, they will be attacked by mortars from the defenders. The company's fire interception caused heavy losses.
There was not much difference in strength between the two sides, so they soon fell into a stalemate. Both sides were fighting on the basis of the ruins and remaining fortifications. Although the fighting was fierce, the number of casualties on both sides was not high, and the casualty ratio was basically between two to one. , the defenders took some advantage.
At the Yamada Brigade Headquarters, Chief of Staff Ueinaka Sa came over excitedly and reported:
"Your Excellency General, the city sent someone to report that they have captured the main force of the Lone Army Brigade. There are about 1,500 people left. They are equipped with a large number of artillery. Not only the mortars, but also no less than 10 imperial-made 90mm Mortars, this should be Luo Ying’s last main force.”
Major General Yamada had already felt it in the intensive gunfire in the city. After hearing the words of Lieutenant Commander Kamui, his judgment was further confirmed, and he said excitedly:
"Yo Xi, we previously judged that the Lone Army Brigade had about 2,000 people. After the fierce battle, the imperial army lost more than 1,000 people. Based on the exchange ratio of two to one, the Chinese people also suffered at least 500 casualties, plus the remaining 1,500 men, exactly what we judged to be the enemy's strength;
Now Miyamoto and the others should have attacked the core position in the city. The Chinese had no way to retreat, so their strength was completely forced out. They ordered the mountain artillery brigade to bombard the center of the city indiscriminately, fully supporting the 65th Regiment's operations. "
"General, there are still a large number of warriors from the 65th Regiment in the center of the city——"
Yamada raised his hand to stop Lieutenant Commander Kamei and said coldly:
"They are loyal to the emperor. It is their honor. As long as Luo Ying and others are eliminated, they will use their own blood to wash away their shame. Just carry out the order!"
Shangjing took the order and left. Ten minutes later, just as the two sides in the city were fighting fiercely, rumbles of artillery were heard outside the city. More than a dozen 75mm mountain cannons roared towards them, and some fell into the defenders' positions. , there are also those who fall into the group of Japs...
"The devilish Japs are carrying out an indiscriminate attack. Fortunately, I have been on guard against their attacks and ordered the troops. Except for leaving a small number of troops to monitor the Japs, the others all hid in the tunnels and let the Japs explode. Let's see who Too many deaths!”
As the brigade headquarters anti-artillery bugle sounded, the defenders got into the tunnel one after another, leaving only a few troops to resist the Japanese attack. However, the large Japanese army was blown away by their own artillery fire and fled in all directions. To attack, just find the nearest bomb crater and lie down to save your life.
Old Japs Yamada was cruel. He was planning to make both sides fighting in the center of the city become their dead souls, so the bombardment was very violent. Round after round, no matter the cost or price, countless Japs died in his own hands. under fire;
The defenders also suffered a lot of casualties, but compared to the Japanese, they were not even one-tenth.
"You stupid devil, this indiscriminate attack is really vicious!"
Luo Ying murmured coldly.
