Under Tang Jian's instructions one by one, these artillerymen began to operate the Japanese Type 41 field artillery and Type 92 infantry artillery in an orderly manner. In less than two minutes, all artillery positions were ready for artillery bombardment.
It was also thanks to Zhou Wen's quick attack that the Japanese army's 12 field guns and 6 infantry guns were intact. Moreover, since the Japanese army had made preparations for the bombardment before, even the shell boxes had been moved to the gun positions.
The artillery brothers of the mercenary regiment only need to turn the muzzle and set the bombardment parameters to fire, which is quite fast.
As soon as Tang Jian gave the order to fire, twenty artillery pieces instantly sprayed out blazing flames. Twenty artillery shells of various types instantly landed in the center of the Japanese military camp, and shot towards the center of the Japanese army at a rate of one round every 10 seconds. The ground slowly extends towards the south to cover.
The camp of a Japanese brigade only covers an area of a few square kilometers. The west side is now completely occupied by the Chinese army, and other areas of the camp have been bombarded from three directions.
The Second Regiment's three Schneider Mountain Cannons and more than twenty artillery cannons were bombarding the south. The Second Division's six Schneider Mountain Cannons and 18 artillery cannons also turned their muzzles to bombard the central position of the Japanese camp.
Now, to the west, twenty artillery pieces from the original Japanese army position joined this artillery feast that the Japanese army had never seen before, and the entire Japanese army camp became a purgatory of blood and fire.
…
At this time, on the high ground closest to Lengkou Pass in the Cherry Orchard, Commander Huang of the 139th Division and several of his regiment commanders were watching the artillery feast with binoculars.
The officers stood upright like sculptures, motionless, and no one spoke.
It's not that they don't want to talk, but that they don't know what to say for a while.
They were all stunned by the scene before them.
Coupled with the artillery bombardment of the Model Brigade Artillery Battalion on the top of the mountain, Phoenix Mountain has completely turned into a sea of fireworks from the mountainside to the bottom.
Senior officers like them, who have experienced many warlord melees, have not seen the scene of more than 100 artillery shelling at the same time, but it was a battlefield where hundreds of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people fought.
For example, in the Central Plains War a few years ago, the Jin army, which had the most artillery, also had large-scale use of artillery on the battlefield along the Longhai line.
However, in such a small area, they had never seen a battle involving 10,000 people and deployed hundreds of artillery pieces at once, and they had never heard of it.
Even the best-equipped Japanese army in their minds would not be able to invest so many artillery pieces at once in a battle of this scale.
You know, after a series of battles, the total number of Japanese troops at this time was only more than 3,000. When divided equally among the people, it was equivalent to that every 30 Japanese troops had to face an artillery piece with a caliber of 75 mm or more. This was In the minds of these veteran Chinese officers, it can already be described as too luxurious.
But this is the firepower-first tactical idea that Zhou Wen has been pursuing. He may not be able to help other Chinese armies, but for the mercenary group and the model brigade that have become trustworthy friendly forces, he will spend all his money, even if there is a big problem in the future. Shuai is unwilling to strengthen the equipment level of the imitation brigade again, but as long as the commander of the model brigade is still Zhao Changshu, Zhou Wen is willing to pay for it himself.
This is why he always wants to seize any opportunity to make money.
Commander Huang put down the telescope, turned around and ordered to the chief of staff: "Send the signal. My junior brother has almost finished his work. If we don't send troops, I'm afraid we won't even be able to drink the leftover soup. In addition, report to the military seat as soon as possible. The Japanese are almost finished with this campaign plan, so there is no need to keep it secret."
It turned out that before Zhou Wen found Commander Huang and reported his plan to annihilate the 14th Japanese mixed brigade, he asked Commander Huang to keep it secret. Even General Shang Zheng, who was the highest commander of the eastern defense line, had to keep it a secret.
After receiving Mr. Huang's reputation guarantee, Zhou Wencai revealed his plan.
Zhou Wen had already discussed it with Zhao Changshu. If Commander Huang could not keep General Shang Zheng's rear headquarters secret due to the relationship between superiors and subordinates, he and Zhao Changshu would rather work alone than tell the plan.
It's not that Zhou Wen doesn't believe General Shang Zheng, but General Shang Zheng has absolutely no way of hiding the Peking Branch of the Military Commission from such an action that he considers to be groundbreaking.
This has nothing to do with the military operation itself, but with politics.
Especially the 32nd Army, a no-name army that grandma doesn’t love and uncle doesn’t love, and it doesn’t occupy any territory where it can develop itself. Whether it can get urgently needed military pay and supplies, and whether it can get a good territory in the future, all depends on Nanjing. The side’s glance.
So now he has no confidence to conceal anything. Even if he wins the battle, he will make General He in Peiping feel dissatisfied and drop a pair of embroidered shoes. Then he will not be the only one. When one person suffers, his nearly 20,000 soldiers will also suffer.
As for the Peking Branch of the Military Commission, Zhou Wen didn't know if they could keep this plan secret for an hour. In the Peking Branch of the Military Commission, which was established mainly with the Northeast Army General Headquarters, the Japanese spies and pro-Japanese elements should not be too many. In Zhou Wen's view, their level of confidentiality is no different from that of a sieve.
During the Battle of Rehe, only a few hours after Marshal Zhang held a meeting on military deployment, the military department plan for the Northeast Army's defense in Rehe was already completely placed on the desk of the Kwantung Army Headquarters. This is also One of the reasons why the Northeast Army was defeated at a speed that created history.
However, even though Mr. Huang agreed to participate in their plan out of his appreciation and love for Zhao Changshu, a younger brother, and his high opinion of the combat effectiveness of Zhou Wen's unit, he had no confidence at all.
Just kidding, this is a mixed brigade of the Japanese army with more than 5,000 people, dozens of artillery pieces, and aircraft support in the sky at any time. Even when the Northeast Army was at its strongest, I dare not say that a main force of 30,000 people can do it. Defeat the opponent, let alone completely annihilate them.
Therefore, although he agreed to send troops to participate in the war, he repeatedly stated that he would only send troops after seeing the hope of victory. This is not to say that Mr. Huang cherishes his life, but that he does not dare to take risks with his meager wealth.
What's more, if they fail to annihilate the enemy but suffer a defeat, Zhao Changshu's imitation brigade is backed by Marshal Yan in Shanxi and will not receive any substantial punishment. However, he will suffer. Not to mention being punished, General Shang Zheng, the commander of the army, will also be implicated. .
Moreover, Commander Huang also kept in mind that after all, the defensive battle at Lengkou Pass was related to the success or failure of the entire Great Wall Campaign. If Zhao Changshu's model brigade was defeated and fled, his 139th Division would also be responsible for defending the main position of Lengkou Pass. Responsibility.
