The Japanese captain has now figured out that there must be a tunnel in this village. He ordered the Japanese soldiers to search around, trying to find the entrance to the tunnel and eliminate the enemies hiding in the tunnel to attack them.
Gunshots continued to be heard, and explosions also sounded from time to time. Before the Japanese soldiers could find the entrance to the cave, more than twenty people had been killed or wounded.
The Japanese captain knew that this was not the way to go, so he ordered the troops to evacuate the village immediately.
While the Japanese soldiers were fleeing in panic, the militiamen went up to the roof, shot and dropped bombs at the Japanese soldiers, and killed a dozen more Japanese soldiers.
Militia captain Wang Sanqiang quickly ran out of a house at the entrance of the village and pulled a brick from the wall. From the entrance of the hole, he saw a Japanese officer running out of the village under the protection of a group of guards. The rifle was aimed at his back and shot, and the Japanese officer fell down with a howl.
The Japanese officer who was hit was the captain. The bullet went into his right back. Fortunately, it did not hurt any vital parts and he escaped with his life.
The Japanese soldiers were extremely angry. A group of Japanese soldiers escorted the captain and continued to retreat outside the village. A Japanese squadron leader led dozens of Japanese soldiers to search several surrounding yards.
Not only did they fail to find the tunnel entrance, but several more were killed by grenades thrown from nowhere.
The Japanese squadron leader did not dare to fight, and led the rest of the Japanese soldiers to escape from the village.
When the militiamen saw the Japs fleeing, they also ran to the edge of the village, shot at the Japs from various hidden places, and killed four or five more Japs.
Wang Sanqiang and the village militia only had 11 people in total. After their battle, they killed more than 40 Japanese soldiers. The militiamen were very excited and went around to seize the weapons and ammunition left by the Japanese soldiers.
The Japs ran several hundred meters out of the village and stopped. The Japanese captain had already passed out, but he woke up under the emergency rescue of the medical soldiers.
He was very angry, pointed in the direction of Qiuzi Village, and shouted with all his strength: "Fire, blow up that village for me." After saying that, he passed out again.
The Japanese soldiers were really angry. They set up artillery and fired at the village. After fierce shelling, at least half of the houses in the village were destroyed, and the Japanese soldiers were less angry.
They did not dare to enter the village anymore, so they carried the Japanese captain towards the highway.
The militiamen in Shangqiuzi Village had a great victory and were very excited. After all, they still lacked experience. After the Japs left the village, when they were searching for the weapons and ammunition left by the Japs soldiers, the Japs' artillery shells hit them. They hurriedly escaped. Unfortunately, one militiaman ran a little late and was unfortunately hit by the shells. Taken lives.
After the Japanese soldiers left completely, the militiamen drilled out of the tunnel and continued to search for the weapons and ammunition left by the Japanese soldiers. Although the Japs took most of them with them when they fled, the weapons left by the killed Japs soldiers still gave the militiamen a lot of gain.
They seized a total of 6 38-guns, 328 rounds of ammunition, 16 melon grenades, several complete Japanese military uniforms, and more than a dozen pairs of Japanese leather shoes.
After this battle, the militiamen were very confident in the tunnels in the village.
Wang Sanqiang said: "After the villagers come back, let's dig more tunnels and dig them outside the village. We can also fight the little devils on the road."
Not only this Japanese infantry brigade, but also the troops of the 32nd Guard Division were attacked by militiamen hiding in tunnels in seven or eight villages. Not even a single figure of the attacker was seen. The 32nd Guard Division The regiment alone had lost more than a hundred people.
The news reached Qianye Xunyi's ears, making him very depressed.
He said with emotion: "Since Xu Dalong came here, not only his guerrillas have been so difficult to deal with, but also these unscrupulous people have become such a headache. Even if the guerrillas here are eliminated, it will be difficult to restore the previous security situation. It’s also very difficult to do.”
When the chief of staff heard Chiba Xunyi complaining here, he thought to himself: "Forget about restoring security in the defense area, whether Xu Dalong's guerrillas can be eliminated is still a question. It is really too early to restore the previous security situation now. ”
He said to Qianye Xunyi: "Your Excellency, Division Commander, although Xu Dalong's main force is not in his base area now, they still have local forces such as county brigades and thousands of militiamen hiding in tunnels. It is really difficult to fight with us here. I suggest that when we march again, we try to avoid villages as much as possible, and when we camp, we also choose to stay in the wild to avoid unnecessary casualties."
Qianye Xun nodded and said, "That's all it can do."
The troops guarding the 32nd Division continued to march, and soon after, a large village appeared in front of them.
The anti-Japanese armed forces dug a large number of trenches around the village, and the leading troops had discovered that the trenches were guarded by enemy troops.
This is the main transportation road leading to Guancheng County. If the Japanese army wants to go to Guancheng County, they must capture the village in front.
After receiving the report from the vanguard, Chiba Xunyi did not feel depressed, but became a little excited. This time, the 32nd garrison division and the 21st brigade were attacking Guancheng County at the same time. He was unwilling to advance alone to avoid being attacked by the enemy.
When the enemy blocked him, he did exactly what he wanted. If he wanted to attack Guancheng County, he needed to capture this village. This was a good excuse. The large group of troops could stay here calmly, and there was no need to rush in alone.
Chiba Xunichi issued the order and the 81st Regiment in front launched an attack on the enemy.
Guarding the front trenches and the village were an infantry squadron of the Mawushan guerrillas and two squadrons of the Guancheng County Brigade.
Li Yunlong sent them to stop the enemy here and delay the enemy's attack on Guancheng County.
The Japanese 81st Regiment set up a battle formation and first blasted the defenders' trenches with fierce artillery fire.
This is one of the strategic locations in the Mawushan base area. The trenches were dug by the engineering battalion of the independent brigade. The trenches are very particular. A deep pit with a depth of one meter and a diameter of only one foot is dug between every two shooting positions. This deep pit is used to prevent the enemy from throwing grenades or grenades. When the enemy's grenades or grenades are thrown into the trench, the soldiers guarding the trench can kick them into the deep pit with their feet. Not only will the direct power of the explosion not be exerted, but all the shrapnel will also be shot into the side. In the soil, it can effectively reduce the casualties of the defenders in the trenches.
In order to prevent enemy shelling, the engineer battalion also dug cat-ear holes. Even if the Japanese army dropped mortar shells directly into the trenches, they would not be able to hurt the defenders hiding in the cat-ear holes.
The top of the Maoer Cave is arched and has strong support. The artillery currently equipped by the enemy cannot collapse it at all.
Therefore, the Japanese army's fierce bombardment was completely a decoration and posed no threat to the defenders.
Traffic trenches are also dug in the trenches, which can connect the trenches behind them, which is helpful for mobilizing troops forward and backward, transporting ammunition, and evacuating the wounded.
Each section of the trench is curved. Even if the enemy forces occupy a certain section of the trench, they cannot directly attack the defenders in other trenches.
The Japanese army fired a rumble of artillery fire, wasting a lot of shells in vain. As their infantry advanced, militiamen and guerrillas emerged from the trenches and opened fire on the enemy.
The Japanese soldiers suffered heavy casualties, and soon their attack was repulsed.
Immediately afterwards, the second and third attacks of the Japanese army were all repelled. The 81st Wing lost nearly 200 people and did not make any progress.
The Japanese 21st Brigade entered Guancheng County in a mighty manner. While camping in a village, they were also attacked by militiamen hiding in tunnels, losing many people in vain.
The commander of Yokota's brigade was very angry and ordered the tanks to rampage through the village, crushing the village to the ground.
Despite this, they learned their lesson and did not dare to enter the village again.
At noon, the 21st Brigade camped by a small river and buried pots to make rice.
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Just as the Japanese soldiers had cooked the food and were queuing up to eat, a burst of artillery fire rang out across the river. The officers and soldiers of the Guancheng County Brigade set up two mortars and fired a three-round rapid fire. After killing more than a dozen Japanese soldiers, they mounted the mortars on horses and quickly evacuated.
Although this shelling did not cause too many casualties, the Japanese soldiers wanted to have a peaceful meal but could not. They chaotically organized troops to cross the river to chase the attackers. While crossing the river, they were attacked by cold guns and lost five or six Japanese soldiers.
The commander of Yokota's brigade was really angry along the way. He ordered a large group of Japanese soldiers to cross the river to destroy the enemy.
The thousands of Japanese soldiers in this brigade had no choice but to put down their lunch boxes and waded across the river hungry, hoping to vent their grievances on the enemy troops who attacked them.
When other officers and soldiers of the 21st Brigade saw that they had driven away the attackers, they began to line up and prepare to enjoy their meals.
At this moment, there was another roar of airplanes in the sky, and Bob and others flew back with five bombers. The reason why fewer bombers came out every time than before was because three bombers had mechanical failures, and Bob could only bring five bombers to perform bombing missions.
In order to avoid being hit by the enemy's rapid-fire artillery, Bob and others still used high-altitude bombing.
This time, the Japanese troops were camping by the river, densely packed, and Japanese soldiers were everywhere. Bob and others did not need to aim, they just dropped bombs from the air.
The Japanese soldiers had already suffered a lot and fled in all directions, but their team was so dense that they could not complete the evacuation for a while.
The aerial bombs caused hundreds of casualties to the Japanese soldiers. Many gasoline barrels were thrown into the neatly arranged Japanese convoys. More than 30 cars were burned. A large number of the Japanese soldiers had to walk. '
"Eight will suppress Lu, eight will suppress Lu." Commander Yokota's brigade was so angry that he kept cursing.
The 21st Brigade had no more food to eat, so Commander Yokota led the troops across the river, and the group continued to fight towards Guancheng County.
Xiaobeiling is the main transportation road from Taiyuan to Guancheng County. The reason why it is called Xiaobeiling is that it corresponds to Dabeiling in the east.
Xiaobeiling is a hilly area with a ridge protruding from it, and the road passes through the low-lying hills.
In order to buy time, Li Yunlong put the guard company around him and the main force of the Guancheng County brigade led by Li Jinzhu here to block the attack of the Japanese 21st Brigade.
The battle soon began. Although the hilly areas were not conducive to the actions of the Japanese mechanized troops, the Japanese officers and soldiers could only get off their vehicles and launch attacks on foot. However, the Japanese 21st Brigade was well-equipped and the artillery fire was very fierce. The officers and soldiers of the anti-Japanese armed forces were hit by the enemy's artillery fire. Quite a few casualties.
The soldiers did not flinch and braved enemy artillery fire to repulse the enemy's attacks time and time again.
The reason why Li Yunlong did this was helpless. After passing Xiaobeiling, all the way to Guancheng County is a flat plain, which is very suitable for the actions of the Japanese mechanized troops. Guancheng County is the core of the Mawushan base area. If the Japanese army is allowed to directly attack the county, even if it can defend the county, the county will be destroyed. It will be severely damaged by enemy artillery fire, and the people in the city will also suffer heavy casualties.
Therefore, Li Yunlong used Xiaobeiling to delay the Japanese attack, trying to hold on until Xu Dalong led the main force back.
In the war room of the Mawushan guerrilla headquarters, Li Yunlong leaned on the sofa and insisted on directing the battle. The staff kept passing on the news, and then held up the marked map for Li Yunlong to watch.
At this time, in the war room, there was also a liaison team sent by the World War II District Chief's Department. They saw the arrows marked on the map that represented the enemy's advance, constantly pointing to Guancheng County, and they couldn't help feeling a little panicked.
The liaison team leader asked anxiously: "I wonder how Captain Xu and the others are doing over there. When can they get back to the base?"
Li Yunlong smiled and said: "Don't worry, Brother Dalong and the others will definitely be able to kill the Japanese 16th Brigade, and they will be here soon. Don't worry, we have our people in Wangzhuang Village and Xiaobeiling to stop them. The Japs won't be able to come here for a while.
Besides, even if they come, it won't be a big deal. We will definitely be able to hold on to the county seat until Brother Dalong and the others come back. "
The liaison team leader couldn't help but admire Li Yunlong's calm command when he saw it, and the fear in his heart was reduced a lot.
When he was in the independent regiment, Li Yunlong was the backbone. Now with him by his side, Zhao Gang is full of confidence in repelling the enemy's attack.
He said: "Old Li is right, the captain and the others have already started the battle to annihilate the 16th Japanese Brigade this morning. I think the battle should be almost over now.
When they come back, we will not only be able to hold the base area, but also surround and annihilate the invading Japs. "
At 2:10 in the afternoon, bad news came from the direction of Xiaobeiling. After all, the soldiers of the Guancheng County Brigade and the New 1st Brigade Guard Company could not withstand the attack of the Japanese 21st Brigade and were forced to abandon their positions and head toward Guancheng. Retreat toward the county seat. The Japanese 21st Brigade crossed Xiaobeiling and was attacking towards Guancheng County.
The leader of Yokota's brigade crossed Xiaobeiling in a car. When he saw the plains in front of him, he said proudly: "The terrain in front is conducive to the brigade's operations. When we get to the county seat, we can take it down with a single charge. I want to Look, those nasty guys from the bombing brigade can still move the airport to the sky."
Brigade Commander Yokota hated the enemy air force that bombed them twice. He vowed to destroy the enemy's airfield, capture those pilots, torture the enemy pilots who bombed them, and then execute them to clear his mind. hate.
The commander of the Yokota brigade proudly sent a telegram to Chiba Xunyi, saying that they had broken through Xiaobeiling. He asked Chiba Xunyi in a mocking tone if they could break through the enemy's blocking position. If not, , the 21st Brigade can send troops to support them.
Chiba Xunyi was very angry after receiving the telegram. Although the 21st Brigade was the main force of the field army, Yokota was only a brigade commander after all. Chiba Xunyi was a dignified division commander after all. Yokota treated him like this. The disrespect made Qianye Xunyi very angry.
He cursed randomly for a while, expressing his dissatisfaction with Handa. But he also knew that it was really embarrassing for his division's troops to be blocked in Wangzhuang Village. So he ordered more troops to be deployed to capture the enemy's position as soon as possible.
As the Japanese 21st Brigade gradually approached Guancheng County, the situation became increasingly tense.
Li Yunlong ordered all the troops remaining in Guancheng County to enter their positions and prepare to repel the enemy's attack.
At the airstrip, Bob and others wanted to bomb the enemy again, but they did not have much ammunition left. They only had dozens of gasoline barrels in stock before. Bob flew his plane up Flying into the sky, he wanted to carry out a final blow to the Japanese army.
Bob flew towards Yangcheng County. Not long after, he saw a large group of Japanese troops on the ground approaching Guancheng County.
He flew towards the Japanese marching group, dropped the only gasoline cans, and then flew back to the airstrip.
The American pilots all knew that the Japanese army was approaching Guancheng County and would soon be arriving at the airport, so they couldn't help but feel very anxious. Seeing Bob flying back, they all hurriedly gathered around him and asked him what to do.
At this moment, Zhao Gang rushed over and said to Bob and others: "The captain said that you are all the treasures of our guerrillas. It is too dangerous to stay at the airport. Now you can follow me to the county seat. Don’t worry, even if the Mawushan guerrillas fight until only one person is left, they will protect your safety.”
The American pilots were very moved and wanted to fight the Japanese again. Unfortunately, they were powerless now, so they followed Zhao Gang into the county.
Before leaving, Zhao Gang told a battalion commander of the independent brigade responsible for airport cover that if the Japanese army invaded the airport, they should blow up these planes and never leave them to the Japanese.
The Japanese 21st Brigade is approaching step by step and will reach Guancheng County in half an hour at most.
The people in the county were panic-stricken and sought refuge in places they thought were safe.
Zhao just settled down the pilots and came to the streets. At this time, in addition to the original residents, there were also a large number of people pouring in. The county was full of people. If the Japanese surrounded the county and artillery fire came in, many innocent people would die under the enemy's artillery fire.
Zhao Gang was distraught, sent someone to calm the people, and then rushed back to the headquarters.
After returning to the headquarters, he went directly to the telecommunications room and asked if there was any news about Xu Dalong and the others.
At 3:21 pm, the good news finally came. Xu Dalong did not send a telegram to Li Yunlong and others. He directly sent a clear telegram.
Taiyue Military Region Headquarters.
The commander and chief of staff have been paying attention to the anti-mopping up situation in the Mawushan base area. According to intelligence, the Japanese 21st Brigade and the 32nd Garrison Division launched attacks on the Mawushan base area from Lingao City and Taiyuan respectively.
Xu Dalong, Zhao Gang, Li Yunlong and Kong Jie did not send a telegram to the military region headquarters to explain the situation.
The commander never interfered with the specific combat command of his subordinates, so he did not take the initiative to send a telegram to inquire.
When he learned that a large number of enemy troops were attacking the Mawushan base area, the commander sent a telegram to Xu Dalong, wanting to know about the situation there and asking if he needed help?
However, after the telegram was sent, Xu Dalong did not reply to the telegram.
The commander knew that there were many radio stations in Mawu Mountain, so it could not be because of radio malfunction. Since Xu Dalong and others did not reply to the telegram, there must be some compelling reason for them. Based on his own experience, Xu Dalong and others must have a big war intention, so they implemented radio silence.
The commander and the chief of staff discussed that since Xu Dalong and others had a big battle plan, it was very likely that they had led the main force to leave the base area. The large-scale attack by the Japanese 21st Brigade and the 32nd Garrison Division on the Mawushan base area will pose a serious threat to the base area. According to intelligence, the Japanese troops in the direction of Yucheng are also showing signs of dispatch.
The commander decided to help a group of people.
The Taiyue Military Region is too far away from the Mawushan base area. All they can do is to contain the strength of the Japanese 108th Division in the direction of Yucheng and reduce the pressure they exert on the Mawushan base area.
So the commander and chief of staff discussed and dispatched the main force of the 86th Brigade to launch a harassment operation against the Japanese troops in the direction of Yucheng.
The 86th Brigade divided into two groups and attacked the Japanese 216th Brigade in Yucheng and the arsenal outside Yucheng. They successfully contained the main force of the Japanese 108th Division and supported the anti-mopping operations in the Mawushan Base.
Since he could not contact Xu Dalong, the chief of staff suggested sending the telegram to Li Yunlong or Kong Jie.
Since Kong Jie's New Second Brigade entered the Mawushan base area in advance, they sent the telegram to Kong Jie first, but they were unable to contact him. Then, with the mentality of giving it a try, he sent the telegram to Li Yunlong, and then received a call back from Li Yunlong.
He reported to the commander that Xu Dalong, leading the main force of the New First and New Second Brigades, the Independent Brigade, and Chu Yunfei's 358th Brigade, had left the Mawushan base area and headed to SJZ to ambush the 16th Japanese Eighth Division Brigade.
The battle is expected to begin this morning, but there is still no news from them.
After reading Li Yunlong's telegram, the commander and chief of staff hurried to the combat map.
After careful observation, the commander said with emotion: "Xu Dalong and the others are really generous. They actually made a long-distance raid into Hebei to ambush the Japanese 16th Brigade. This is really a wonderful move. The little devils would never have imagined that Xu Dalong and the others The target of the attack will be the 16th Brigade, which is hundreds of miles away."
The chief of staff also said with emotion: "The 8th Division is a veteran division of the Japanese army, and its combat effectiveness is even greater than that of the Japanese 108th Division and 110th Division. If one of their infantry brigades can be annihilated, it will definitely be a huge blow to the Japanese invaders. A major blow."
The commander nodded and said, "You are right. The Japanese army has concentrated a large number of troops to attack the Mawushan base area. If they can first capture the enemy forces along this route, it will create good conditions for future anti-mopping operations."
The chief of staff said with some worry: "Xu Dalong and the others took a big risk in their decision. Now the Japanese army has launched a large-scale attack on the Mawushan base area. If the Japanese 16th Brigade cannot be quickly annihilated, the base area may be severely damaged." .
The commander said: "I have confidence in Xu Dalong. The Japanese army will mobilize troops to attack the Mawushan base area. Xu Dalong should have already made a pre-judgement. The reason why the Japanese army suddenly attacked the base area means that Xu Dalong and the others have already fought against the Japanese 16th Brigade. Yes, if my prediction is good, there should be news coming soon."
At this time, the phone on the table rang. A combat staff officer picked up the phone and heard the voice coming from the phone. He immediately shouted: "Commander, the division commander's phone number."
The commander walked over and took the call. The division commander said: "The headquarters received information that the Japanese 21st Brigade has left Taiyuan to attack the Mawushan Base Area. The Japanese 32nd Garrison Division is also attacking the Mawushan Base Area. Xu Dalong How is the situation there?"
The commander did not want the headquarters chiefs to worry about Xu Dalong's situation there, so he did not report that Xu Dalong and others had left the base area.
He said: "Commander, please rest assured. Xu Dalong and his colleagues not only have the Mawushan guerrillas there, but also Li Yunlong's New 1st Brigade and Kong Jie's New 2nd Brigade that I sent. There is also Chu Yunfei's 358th Brigade of the Shanxi-Sui Army. , has a huge force and is fully capable of repelling the Japanese attack. Not only that, I have sent the 86th Brigade to attack the Japanese army in the direction of Yucheng, to contain the strength of the Japanese 108th Division and reduce the pressure on the Mawushan base area."
"Five Dynasties Rivers, Mountains and Winds"
