At this time, when the puppet Manchukuo army was in danger and in chaos, Zhou Wen led more than 400 brothers from the second detachment, hugged nearly 600 puppet Manchukuo army cavalry, and rode around the 7th Brigade, which was still in chaos. , walking through the dense forest.
When Jiro Kawatani heard the faint sound of artillery in the distance, it had been almost half an hour since he led the engineer regiment.
At this time, the Engineer Regiment was actually seven or eight kilometers away from the 7th Brigade, which already showed how cautious Kawatani Jiro was.
It was already 2 o'clock at noon. When Jiro Kawatani heard the gunshots, he ordered the troops to stop advancing, preparing to wait for the battle report from the 7th Brigade before deciding on their movement.
However, until the sound of mortar explosions ended, no one from the 7th Brigade came back to report.
This is also because Cui Xinwu cooperated with the Japanese army for the first time and was not equipped with a radio. He was temporarily panicked by the mercenary group and actually forgot to report the situation to Jiro Kawatani behind him in time. This led to a misjudgment by Jiro Kawatani.
Jiro Kawatani believed that he had a full understanding of the strength of the Chinese army. If the 7th Brigade was in a bitter battle, he would have sent people to ask for assistance and tactical guidance long ago based on the cowards of the puppet Manchukuo army.
If the 7th Brigade was defeated by a surprise attack by the Chinese army, he should be able to see these deserters from the puppet Manchukuo army by now. If the infantry runs slowly, the cavalry must have run back.
But now that no one has been seen, Jiro Kawatani can only judge that it is sporadic exchanges of fire between the 7th Brigade and the Chinese army, and it is not yet time to see Zhenzhang. Because the 7th Brigade is also equipped with a small number of mortars.
As a result, this misjudgment led him to make a fatally wrong decision.
Jiro Kawatani ordered the engineer regiment to continue to advance and prepare to establish a position in the rear about 1 kilometer away from the 7th Brigade, and then send people to check the fighting situation between the enemy and ourselves in front.
Therefore, when the Japanese engineer regiment formed four columns and continued to march forward, nearly 1,000 cavalry led by Zhou Wen had already bypassed the 7th Brigade and arrived on a hill.
Zhou Wen was riding on a horse, watching the Japanese troops approaching in the distance at the edge of the woods, feeling reassured.
At this time, Tang Jian, who had dismounted, trotted over to him and said softly: "Scholar, don't charge too fast. After my artillery fires eight rounds, you can rush in through the smoke."
You must know that Tang Jian and his mortar company also came here on horseback. They did not carry many artillery shells, and each gun only had about 10 rounds.
Zhou Wen immediately understood what Tang Jian meant. He could only fire 8 rounds, and he had to leave a small amount of shells for emergencies.
Zhou Wen nodded and said: "Then get ready. Don't let the Japanese wake up. Let's pay attention to the word "quick" now."
Although Zhou Wen brought 1,000 men, the machine gun company and artillery company could not follow him during the charge. He could only rely on the more than 150 men of the 1st Infantry Company who were tightly arranged around him.
Mo Dahai had already led two machine gun platoons to bypass the enemy's retreat, and the remaining machine gun platoon was riding behind the puppet cavalry to hold down the formation as a deterrent.
Zhou Wen turned to the shocked Puppet Manchukuo army behind and said: "Now, no one can have any second thoughts. If you don't follow me after I rush in, the machine guns behind me will shoot, or you can follow me and rush in to chop him down." Kill those little devils, or you will be killed by the machine guns from behind."
A few officers of the puppet Manchukuo army quietly turned around and took a look, and saw about 30 national soldiers holding the line behind them. 10 of them had machine guns hanging on their bodies, and the others were holding box cannons and staring at them eagerly.
When I feel desperate, I can only resign myself to fate.
Zhou Wen looked at Mu Qinghe who was following him closely and said, "Qinghe, this time it depends on the effect of your usual training."
Although the horse riding training of the mercenary regiment is a compulsory course in daily life, it is the first time to actually become a cavalry and charge into battle, and Zhou Wen is also a little worried.
You must know that cavalry charge requires more than just being able to ride a horse. It also requires maintaining formation and inherent cavalry tactics, that is, maintaining the speed of the charge.
Regardless of whether the enemy in front of you is dead or not, you have to keep charging forward and penetrate the enemy formation until there are no more enemies in front of you. This is what is commonly referred to in cavalry tactics.
Now Mu Qinghe, the greenness on his face has faded, and he has a mustache on his lips. He stands straight on his horse like a javelin, looking heroic.
There was a hint of fire in his eyes at this time, and he replied confidently: "Scholar, don't worry, the inverted triangle offensive tactic we usually train is actually a type of cavalry tactic. Brothers have already engraved it in their bones. No one will Lost the chain."
At this time, among the Japanese troops, Captain Tanimura Taro, who was walking on his short legs, was still having a sweet dream.
Since the last time he committed violence in Shoantan Village, he has completely let go of the evil thoughts in his heart. He no longer thinks that being a soldier is a hard job, but instead finds fun in it.
That is, the imperial army can do whatever they want on Chinese soil and are no longer subject to moral and legal constraints.
What a thrill and enjoyment this is!
Although he also witnessed the cruelty of the battlefield when the heavy artillery position was shelled by the Chinese army, he did not feel afraid of it. Instead, he hoped that in the next battle, their engineering unit would also be sent to the battlefield.
Of course, it is best not to go to the front line to fight, but to follow the infantry to carry out some tasks of clearing the surrounding areas. That means you can enter Chinese villages and towns again, search for endless treasures, and enjoy straight women with delicate skin...
Then, a dense and rapid scream suddenly came from the sky.
"Mortar, disperse!"
Faced with the sudden attack of artillery shells, whether they were well-trained Japanese troops or the puppet Manchukuo troops who had just surrendered, their first reactions were almost the same as the orders of their superiors.
That's the reminder and then disperse.
This is also the only way for the army of that era to deal with mortar raids since the invention of mortars.
As for whether this method is useful, it can only depend on God's eyes. If this kind of almost vertically falling cannonball explodes next to you, spreading out and lying down will not help.
Taro Tanimura was lucky. Not a single shell fell within a dozen meters around him, allowing him and his 13 men to safely disperse and lie down on the ground.
But for the Japanese troops who formed a four-way march with a distance of no more than 2 meters, the damage caused by the explosion of 12 heavy artillery shells weighing 6.9 kilograms in the center of the formation was huge.
Lieutenant Colonel Mizoguchi Yuki, the commander of the 6th Division Engineer Regiment, who was riding in the center of the queue, became the first victim.
