Outside Mangshi, more than two dozen armored vehicles were parked quietly in the open space. Soldiers from the tank battalion were holding tools to inspect several vehicles that were emitting black smoke.
In the recent battle, the tank battalion was destroyed by the Japanese three armored vehicles during the assault, and the subsequent street fighting also allowed the crazy little devils to destroy two of them with suicide attacks.
The tank battalion lost five armored vehicles. In addition, the remaining armored vehicle bodies also suffered varying degrees of damage.
"How's the situation?"
"Battal Commander, the tracks of three tanks are damaged, and the brothers are repairing them. It's just that the No. 13 and No. 20 vehicles can't fire. It seems that there is an engine failure. We can't fix it for the time being..."
Yuan Li frowned and asked casually: "Isn't Qiu Guaizi from the Third Company good at repairing engines? Why don't you go find him?"
"He, he has touched Lao Maozi's tank, and he doesn't know how to handle this German thing." The soldier replied with a frown.
"Nani? The Chinese are firing!?"
Yamazaki Shiro screamed in surprise. Looking at the explosion point of the shell, it was obvious that it was only the power of a 75-caliber artillery.
The smoke of gunpowder was slowly blown away by the wind, but the Japanese attacking team continued to move forward.
In particular, the Third Battalion did not spread its skirmishers too far apart in pursuit of speed. The formation was relatively dense, just to rush to the top of the mountain as quickly as possible.
call out……
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
A moment later, there were three loud bangs again. This time the shell hit directly in the center of the team, and seven or eight little Japs were blown up on the spot.
"Ruined!"
"Quick! Disperse!"
The experienced lieutenant colonel shouted loudly. He could see at a glance that the enemy's artillery was being calibrated, but at this time it was too late to react.
There was some commotion in the formation of the little devils, and before they could react, a scream came from the sky again...
"boom!"
"boom!"
"boom!"
"boom!"
The overwhelming artillery shells were like meteorites falling from the sky. There was thick smoke and chaos everywhere, and the impact point covered the entire third brigade.
The charging Japs had no cover at all. They were instantly blown up by artillery shells and their bodies were scattered. The ground was covered with charred and mutilated corpses and broken figures with broken livers and gallbladders, screaming in agony.
Gathering the strength of the two artillery battalions of the First Regiment and the Second Regiment, 24 Bofors 75 mountain guns began to output firepower crazily.
Twelve 37 anti-tank artillery pieces were also pushed to the top of the mountain and targeted the Japanese machine guns and grenade launchers. Rows of high-explosive steel ball bombs continuously blew up the hot soil, and the shrapnel and steel balls shot through without mercy. All Japanese within range.
At this time, the Third Regiment also joined in the fun. All the artillery on the left wing position aimed their muzzles at the slope where the Japanese army was located. At Chen Jize's order, 12 75mm mountain guns roared at the same time.
The artillery shells that hit from the side completely cut off the retreat of the Japanese army that was still attacking. It was not only those artillery shells that exploded violently, but also the mentality of the second brigade.
For a time, the front of 233 Hill was filled with various explosions. Those shells seemed to be worthless, and the firing density was very high. Countless Japanese soldiers were blown to pieces and suffered terribly.
Especially the third brigade, which had just entered the battlefield, was knocked upside down by a dense barrage of artillery fire before they could show their strength, causing extremely heavy casualties.
Yamasaki's order was no longer needed. The captain ordered the troops to retreat without hesitation, and directly sold the second group that was still fighting fiercely on the mountainside.
You can run as much as you can. If you want to continue charging despite such firepower, you will really be desperate. Their formation is too close, and there is no way to reorganize under the enemy's firepower. They can only first Let’s talk about it later.
"Brothers! No need to be polite to the little devil anymore, give me a good beating!"
Fan Xiangwu raised his arms and shouted, holding his rifle and yelling like a bell: "Fire-breathing soldier! Burn it for me!"
laugh……
laugh……
More than a dozen ambushed fire-breathing soldiers jumped up early, and the gasoline suddenly sprayed forward under the impetus of compressed nitrogen, instantly burning those Japanese soldiers who were still trying to charge into turkeys!
Ah! !
The shrill screams kept ringing out, and the extremely hot flames touched them. The burning people began to "dance on the spot" in swarms. No matter how heart-wrenching they roared, they could not relieve the bone-gnawing and heart-burning pain.
"Come on!"
"kill!"
The soldiers of the Second Regiment, who had been holding back for a long time, rushed up and vented their overly suppressed anger on these little devils.
Explosions roared and gunshots rang out. The position that had been depleted by gunfire once again burst out with dense rain of bullets. The retreat was cut off and there was no hope of support. The little devils with low morale could withstand this sudden burst of firepower. They had no choice but to perish. Two paths are available.
"Co-captain? Co-captain!"
Anxious shouts rang in Yamazaki's ears, but he showed no reaction and just stared ahead in shock.
The staff officer beside him shook him awake and shouted impatiently: "Commander, commander, give the order to retreat! If we don't withdraw the Third Brigade, it will be over!"
"Retreat? Does it matter whether I give the order or not?" Yamazaki muttered after reacting.
Now there is no such thing as a good retreat. There are explosions of fire everywhere on the battlefield, and there is no need to give any orders. The third brigade, which suffered heavy casualties, has already consciously retreated backwards.
The second group, which was still halfway up the mountain, was in despair. The back road was blocked by enemy shells, and they could only retreat to the two wings.
But those heavy machine guns, anti-aircraft guns and mortars on the top of the mountain would not reason with them. The Chinese just beat them on their backs.
It seems that God is against Yamasaki. Just now, the only few infantry artillery pieces on his side were transferred to the 56th Regiment for support. Now there is no way to cover his retreat.
The second brigade withdrew, dying all the way, leaving a large number of corpses on this bare hilltop.
The remaining remnant soldiers finally escaped from the enemy's fire net, but the mountain artillery group began to extend its artillery fire backwards, frightening Yamazaki to quickly call for the troops to retreat desperately.
Who made him so confident that he placed his troops in such a forward position, completely exposed to the firepower of the artillery battalion, and deserved to be crushed by artillery shells.
The 55th Regiment was forced to retreat 5 kilometers. Finally, with the support and cover of its own artillery regiment, it was able to escape the pursuit of the 24 Bofors Mountain Cannons.
After everything calmed down, Yamazaki Shiro was able to take a breath, but when the troop losses were calculated, the horrific casualty figures almost made him suffocate.
More than 900 people in the entire regiment were killed in the battle, and more than 800 soldiers were seriously injured and lost the ability to fight. In just half a day, nearly half of the entire unit was killed or injured. What a fucking joke.
The 56th Regiment did not dare to attack again after seeing their companions retreating. They quickly gathered their troops, silenced their drums and flags, and retreated first before making plans.
…
"Beep beep... beep beep beep..."
In the division headquarters, the sound of telegraph machines receiving signals came and went, and the communications soldiers quickly wrote down the contents of a just-received telegram on paper.
"Reporting to the staff, the Japs have temporarily retreated. Please take a look at the battle report from the front line."
Fang Jingyao quickly took it and checked it carefully. The content of the telegram made his expression even more exciting: "Haha, Xing Fuquan is all right. I didn't expect that he got the good start."
Liao Mingyu was still drawing strategic planning lines on the map, and he couldn't help but curiously asked after hearing this. "Oh? What's going on?"
"See for yourself." Fang Jingyao said as he handed over the battle report.
"Haha, this guy is usually quiet, but he surprised me today." Liao Mingyu took a closer look. Although his words were a bit unexpected, his face showed excitement and praise.
Originally, Liao Mingyu did not have many requirements for the other three main regiments except that the artillery regiment should not expose its firepower. He only had to hold the position at the minimum cost and he could fight them as he pleased.
At noon, Long Wenwen and Meng Fanlie had already taken a lightly armed regiment to borrow a road through the jungle on the left wing, quietly moved their troops to the southwest of the third regiment, and hid in the woods to wait for opportunities.
Because they had to march quickly in the woods and mountains, the regiment gave up most of its heavy weapons. Except for individual weapons and ammunition and three days of dry food, all members brought nothing else. The artillery battalion even stayed behind the 233 Highlands. .
The Japanese army's attack was very fierce. Xing Fuquan simply took advantage of the situation. First, he showed weakness to the enemy and induced the 55th Regiment to launch a large-scale attack. Then he integrated the two artillery battalions together. Finally, he made the final decision at the critical moment and severely damaged the 55th Regiment, which did not know the heights of the sky. .
This time, even Liao Mingyu had to admire him. Such tactics tested the commander's courage and the discipline of the troops.
If the shelling is carried out too early, the tactical effect will not be achieved. If the shelling is carried out too late, the position will be in danger. If you are not careful, it will be fake and the whole position will be lost.
Fortunately, the soldiers of the Second Regiment were very capable of withstanding pressure. Even when they were initially suppressed by Japanese artillery, they did not panic at all and remained nailed to the position.
"Both the 55th and 56th Wings have withdrawn. It is estimated that the Japanese have now understood that these two lines of defense are not so easy to shake." Fang Jingyao sorted out the messy documents on the table and spoke slowly.
"Well, where are Long Wenwen and the others?" Liao Mingyu asked.
"Captain Long has already set out for five hours. He may not be able to be contacted as he is still marching, but he should take the initiative to contact the division headquarters when they arrive at their scheduled location."
Fang Jingyao explained that due to the distance, the division headquarters and the first regiment could no longer communicate using wireless walkie-talkies. If they wanted to get in touch, they could only wait for them to set up a radio station.
"Isn't it possible? We've been gone for five hours and we haven't arrived yet?"
Liao Mingyu was a little surprised. He pulled out a map and observed it carefully: "The location I designated is only six or seven kilometers away from the Third Regiment. It's more than enough to get there in five hours."
Does this kid have any ingenious plans? Liao Mingyu suddenly felt something in his heart. Judging from Long Wenwen's character, it was very likely that he would do such a thing.
"Forget it, let's ignore them for now. How is the situation over there in the open field? Is there anything wrong with the light infantry regiment of the 200th Division?"
Because one regiment was transferred away, there were some vacancies on the right wing of the main position. Liao Mingyu specially transferred an infantry regiment from the 200th Division at the rear just because it made the Gaoji people unhappy.
Now the 200th Division is arranged in the northeast, far away from the entire main battlefield. If Liao Mingyu had not repeatedly assured the Gaoji people that they would be allowed to play later, the fiery-tempered Commander Gao would not have given up.
"Haha, it's interesting to say that the 600 Light Infantry Regiment fought vigorously with the Japanese army. I specially sent people to observe it. Although the battle was not large in scale, they actually held their position firmly."
"No way? That new regiment that has never fought in a battle actually blocked the little devil's attack??"
"Well, that's true."
Speaking of this, Fang Jingyao was a little surprised. The original plan was to send 600 regiments there to defeat.
Because he was worried that there would be flaws in the plan, he did not explain it to them. He only told Dong Han, the leader of the regiment, that he could choose to retreat if the Japanese firepower was too strong.
But when a new regiment faces the wolf-like 18th Division, the result is self-evident.
But the real situation is shocking. The 600 regiment actually withstood the Japanese attack. Could it be that the little Japanese on the opposite side are also letting off steam?
"It's really strange. Since they can defend, they should stay still for now and see what the Japanese plan to do next." Liao Mingyu ordered in a deep voice.
At this time, Dong Han on the 600 regiment position was also a little confused. It could be said that he had been stuck in this mood all day.
First, he was inexplicably assigned to be stationed at this position in the morning. This open area could be regarded as a key point in the entire defense line. No matter what, it would not be his unit's turn to guard such an important place, right?
Then the commander-in-chief issued an order, allowing him to retreat depending on the situation at critical times. What does this mean? So should we keep it or not? It's just confusing.
The most ridiculous thing is that the little Japanese attacking from the opposite side acted as if they didn't know how to fight. After attacking for a whole day, they couldn't even penetrate 50 meters from the position. Each time they retreated halfway through the charge. Moreover, the soldiers' accuracy was amazing. Poor, except for the threat posed by the infantry artillery behind to the 600 regiment, only a handful of soldiers were killed by bullets.
As long as the attacking team suffered more than one-third casualties, they would immediately turn around and run away without delay. This made Dong Han have to sigh: Are you also new recruits?
In fact, just as he thought, the Japanese 165th Regiment attacking the open space on the right wing was a new recruit unit like them.
The entire regiment only has a little over 3,000 people, and it would be good to have 200 veterans who have fought in the war. The rest are all students and farmers who have just put down their books and hoes and have only gone through two short months of basic training.
This also gave the 600 regiment great confidence. In this kind of defensive battle, which was not very intense and the opponent's combat effectiveness was not high, they were completely at home and fought the enemy vividly.
After the 55th and 56th Divisions temporarily retreated, the Japanese army did not launch a new round of attacks, but their artillery poured all their resentment onto the Third Division's positions.
Now that the firepower had been exposed, the three artillery battalions of the main regiment were not to be outdone. They adjusted the angle of the muzzle and began to fight back, and engaged in a fierce artillery battle with the opponent.
Artillery fire filled the sky, and the shells from both sides came and went, endlessly hitting each other. Huge explosions resounded through the sky and never stopped for a moment.
Both sides basically use mountain cannons, but the Bofors is obviously much more accurate than the Japanese Type 94 mountain cannon, and has a slight advantage in range. The disadvantage is that it is much heavier than the latter.
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