At 23:00 on August 20, 1940, the new regiment set up an ambush position.
Although it was already late at night, the soldiers in the whole regiment were still in high spirits, and their concentration was not affected at all by staying up late.
In order not to expose their target, all the soldiers in the regiment had to make do with cooking pancakes, rolls and pickles tonight. After all, no matter how powerful the cook was, he couldn't make anything delicious without firing up the fire.
Suddenly, a loud noise came from the Jingxing Coal Mine in the southwest, and the earthquake was felt even in the mountains several miles away. After a few more minutes, the raging fire turned half of the sky red, and black smoke even drifted to their position.
The battalion commander, who was having a midnight snack, choked on the pungent sour smell. He mechanically stuffed the cooking cake into his mouth while looking into the distance in shock.
"My dear, why is this movement so loud? I thought it was an earth dragon turning over."
"Commander Yang is still so powerful. Once he personally directs the battle, no matter what the task is, it will be as simple as chopping melons and vegetables."
Logically speaking, as a member of this raid, Ding Wei should be very happy after learning that the friendly forces had achieved a staged victory in the Jingxing Coal Mine.
But at this time, he frowned and looked to the southwest, as if an enemy would appear there at any time.
"Inform all battalions and prepare for battle. The enemy's reinforcements are expected to be coming soon."
The correspondents who received the order immediately rushed around the standby position.
After a while, the phone in Ding Wei's hand suddenly rang. The new regiment was only assigned two new communicators. In order to obtain the enemy's dynamics in time, he gave the other one to the reconnaissance platoon.
"Captain, a big fish has appeared. There are at least a thousand people in this group of devils. They even pulled out trucks and three-tongues. This time our group can have a good meal."
Before the other party finished speaking, Ding Wei raised the telescope in his hand and looked at the end of the road in the distance.
In order not to arouse the suspicion of the Japanese, Xinyi Tuan knocked down all the street lights in advance.
Because of the distance and the color of the sky, it is not very clear even with a telescope.
However, he still vaguely saw several lights gradually appearing on the mountain road. It has been three years since we fought with the Japanese, and everyone knows that the odd-numbered headlights represent sidecar motorcycles.
After observing carefully for a while, an imperceptible smile appeared on Ding Wei's lips.
Under normal circumstances, each sidecar motorcycle will carry three Japanese soldiers, and their division of labor is very clear.
One Japanese soldier is responsible for driving and the other Japanese soldier is the observer. There is also a Japanese soldier in the truck with a crooked machine gun, which is their focus of firepower.
Under normal circumstances, when these road-opening vehicles pass through a corner or face an area suitable for an ambush, they will sweep up a bomb bucket regardless of the situation.
Even some old Japanese who are too steady will let soldiers shoot at targets such as haystacks, focusing on the word "dog".
After all, the Japs carry a lot of ammunition. If you get something out of ten times, you will earn blood. This is much less than the cost of training a qualified soldier.
The reason why Ding Wei laughed was because the enemy did not shoot randomly at both sides of the road this time, and they did not even arrange for the soldiers who were responsible for guarding the roadside before.
This means one thing, that is, the situation is very urgent, and this group of Japanese reinforcements cannot bother to investigate the danger.
Five minutes later, this group of young people will enter the ambush section of the new group. Under the moonlight, the convoy was moving very fast, seemingly without any concern that the uneven road would cause the vehicle to overturn.
The originally silent valley echoed with the loud sound of engines. This distance allowed Ding Wei to see the infantry squadron following the truck.
Under the light provided by the torch and flashlight, he could even see the fatigue and chaotic footsteps on Xiaori's face.
At this moment, the motorcycle at the front of the Japs hit the mines arranged by Xinyi Group.
It's a pity that the quality of this mine is very average, and it only killed three enemies, but this also forced the reinforcements of the 8th Independent Mixed Brigade to stop.
After the convoy stopped, the engineers came to the minefield ahead with mine detectors at the urging of the squad leader.
In order to ensure the accuracy of mine clearance and to minimize the area to be bombed, these Japanese soldiers crouched down and even used a crawling method to slide the search wire wheel close to the ground.
They maintained a serpentine maneuver in order to clear a minefield passage for one person to move forward. Once this passage was established, they gradually expanded the safety zone to both sides.
Moreover, the engineer team leader of this reinforcement force obviously knew the tactical habits of the Eighth Route Army very well.
This old oil man also sent people to clear mines in the ravines on both sides of the road. This was to prevent soldiers from being driven into preset minefields in search of bunkers during a surprise attack.
Seeing that the landmines that the comrades had worked so hard to lay were marked one by one by the Japanese, a soldier from the Third Company of the First Battalion clenched the FM-24/29 in his hand with some reluctance.
The current little life has come to a standstill, and the enemies under those torches and flashlights are like living targets. He said to the company commander next to him with some confusion:
"Why don't we fight? Is it possible that we will let the enemy clear all our minefields? I feel so sad."
Faced with the questions from his own machine gunner, the third company commander glanced at the opponent with some regret.
"Let them sweep. We have plenty of time to play with them today. The regiment received an order to hold back the Japs' reinforcements. This minefield is a hundred meters long. Let's see how much time the Japs have."
"Everyone, just watch the fun. What's the point of worrying about a bunch of broken landmines? You guys should be better off."
This machine gunner was obviously a new recruit, and his Qi-building skills were not yet up to par. He said a little stubbornly:
"Watching the excitement? Wouldn't it be more exciting if I gave them a shot? My new machine gun hasn't killed any Japanese yet. I heard it's a French product."
After hearing this, the third company commander looked at the nearby soldiers. Nearly everyone was so excited to fight, as if just a spark could ignite it.
"You bunch of new recruits, please be honest! Those who are using new rifles should relax. New weapons do not have safes! Don't misfire!"
"No one is allowed to shoot without my order!"
Facts have proved that there is no problem with Ding Wei's arrangement.
The soldiers led by Mizuhara Yoshige were blocked by the minefield for more than half an hour. The old man was so angry that he beat his subordinates several times.
Seeing that the minefield was immediately dealt with by the Japanese, Ding Wei's eyes flashed and he was ready to give the order to attack. During the demining period, the Japanese almost relaxed their vigilance because they were not attacked.
If you launch an attack now, you can definitely catch them off guard!
"Fight me! Fight to death! No need to save ammunition for the light and heavy machine guns! Let me also use the grenade mortars to beat these sons of bitches!"
After hearing the order, the soldiers holding rifles pulled the bolts and loaded the bullets. Shooting at the Japanese with full firepower, all of them are human flesh and semi-automatic.
In an instant, muzzle fireworks filled the sky on the attack position, and an overwhelming rain of bullets shrouded the Japanese.
The heavy machine gun positions on both sides of the road also showed their fangs.
Six Type 92 heavy machine guns continued to fire at the place where the Japs were concentrated. With the help of elite sub-shooters and ammunition handlers taking turns to reload, the interval between each bullet plate was no more than one second.
At this moment, the cross fire network almost enveloped the entire audience. The familiar sound of the woodpecker in the past has now become a reminder for the young people.
At the same time, one 82mm mortar and four 60mm mortars opened fire simultaneously.
Since Ding Wei was certain that the Japanese would clear the mines first, the bombardment of Zhu Yuan was planned during the ambush stage. The gunners took the shells one after another and fired a wave of rapid fire with perfect coordination.
In just one attack, a third of the dozen or so Japanese trucks were blown up on the spot.
The ambush location chosen by Commander Yang was a unique one. He and the soldiers of the reconnaissance platoon had personally tested it at that time. There were no suitable bunkers on this section of the valley road.
The small ditch that seemed to be effective could not save the lives of a few Japanese soldiers in the new group of fierce and condescending attacks.
Faced with violent storms and sudden impacts, the Eighth Independent Mixed Brigade could only fight back hastily with the help of car bodies. The disadvantage was that the infantry squadron was closer to the truck, otherwise it would have been beaten into pieces on the way to the transfer.
But the Type 97 truck could not protect the Japanese. Most of the steel in the small days was taken away by the Navy. This resulted in very limited resources that the Army could allocate.
Even most tanks are small and fragile, not to mention these trucks made by Isuzu with a load capacity of only 1.5 tons.
Just the bullets that penetrated the wooden carriage body killed many little devils.
Even if a few parts can block rifle bullets, heavy machine guns will teach them how to behave, not to mention the mortar shells that hit them from time to time.
Now the firepower of the new group far exceeds that of ordinary core groups, and can even rival some of the main groups. After all, this is the result of the dual blessings of Li Yunlong and Huang He.
The days of having to rush forward and engage in hand-to-hand combat with bayonets after a round of firepower were completed will forever remain in the winter of 1939.
Ding Wei looked at the Japanese struggling in the sea of fire, his face flushed with excitement. This was the first time he saw the new group with full firepower. He took the chief of staff's arm and shouted loudly:
"It's so enjoyable! It's so enjoyable! This is called fighting! After the attack is over, we'll treat the three heroes of the Dabie Mountains to a drink!"
Only five minutes had passed in the battle, and the reinforcements of the 8th Independent Mixed Brigade were completely overwhelmed. More than a thousand people were distributed in four directions, and the tightly tied pockets made it impossible for the Japanese to escape.
But now there is another variable, that is, there is a major general in this army. Under the command of Mizuhara Yoshige, the Japanese forcibly gathered the strength of a squadron and a half.
One of the Type 92 infantry guns they transferred from the city defense force was broken in the first round of attacks, but even one of them would pose a considerable threat to the new regiment.
Under the firepower of grenades and barrel guns, the Japanese rushed towards the tail attack position. The soldiers of these Type B divisions actually briefly displayed the same combat effectiveness as the permanent or Type A divisions.
Xiaozhi's crazy attack made the chief of staff a little frightened, but Ding Wei had a backup plan. He looked disdainfully at the Japanese assault troops who had obviously been injected with needles.
"The enemy's offensive is very fierce, as if they are crazy. It seems that they have received a death order by fighting so hard. The Jingxing Coal Mine is indeed very important to them."
"I want to see who is more powerful compared to the Japs who took medicine to be brave and fearless of death, and our elite veterans!"
"Commando! Get on me!"
Following the order from his regiment leader, dozens of well-built soldiers rushed forward with their waists down. Each of them was armed with two shell guns and had many offensive grenades inserted into their bodies.
These are the elite of the new group of elites, and each one of them is a warrior who crawled out from the dead.
Faced with the desperate struggle of the Japanese, the commandos threw hundreds of grenades at them. Coupled with a wave of charges from the tail attack troops, the hope of the small life was directly extinguished.
At the same time, the final stage of the battle officially began.
Under the premise of strong firepower, the new regiment is also very particular about the positioning and layout of the firepower structure. Units at all levels cooperated tacitly, not only suppressing the Japanese, but also not wasting firepower.
So far in the ambush battle, only Mizuhara Yoshigege has organized a counterattack, and the rest of the enemies have been dispersed by machine guns and mortar grenades.
With superior strength and firepower, and with Commander Yang carefully selecting the cemetery for the Japanese, the entire ambush took only forty-five minutes.
When Ding Wei and the chief of staff came down from the temporary command post, the soldiers had already surrounded the last dozen enemies. Although it is difficult to capture Japanese prisoners, you still have to try when you have the chance.
Anyway, the enemy has not surrendered. If he dares to resist, he will be killed. With so many pairs of eyes watching, unless these people were Deidara, it would be impossible for them to make waves.
When the two arrived at the scene, three battalion commanders came over excitedly. In order to tell the good news to his regiment commander, the first battalion commander even pulled his own wound.
"Captain! We are really rich this time! Maybe the brigade commander will come to rob you!"
"Not to mention light and heavy machine guns, we also captured two Type 92 infantry cannons here! The Japs must have been stupid because they didn't blow up the cannons."
"Although one door is broken, the logistics department can repair it! And there are a lot of artillery shells!"
As soon as he said these words, the second battalion commander squeezed him away and then continued to add:
"There is a colonel and a major general over there who are surrounded by us! Even if they can't be captured, they are still a big fish in the net! Commander, go and have a look."
This is not something that the three battalion commanders are making a fuss about. After all, it is already the commanding frame of a brigade.
Commanders with the rank of major general, as long as they are not some idiots, are the top military talents of a country. Not to mention the colonel, he is also the backbone of the army.
What's more, from the beginning of the war to the present, the Eighth Route Army has not killed many people above the rank of major general, only eight in total.
When Ding Wei walked over, the soldiers immediately made way for him. When the Japs saw their true master coming, they began to communicate in the language of birds.
After a while, a Japanese translator stood up. This man had an inexplicable arrogance, as if he was surrounded by the Eighth Route Army. He said to Ding Wei in an oyster dialect:
"Our major general has a proposal. I wonder if you have the courage of a soldier to engage in a one-on-one decisive battle with us."
"If you don't agree, we have nothing to do. After all, our soldiers from the Republic of China cannot be like the samurai of our brother country who conquered Japan."
As if to embolden the translator, the officers behind him drew out their samurai swords given by Tian Locust.
This scene really made Ding Wei laugh. He never expected that these enemies were going to die, and he could still act like this. What era are we in now, and we still play medieval duels.
But it seems that there is no chance to capture him. These bastards are good at nothing else, and almost everyone is proficient in suicide. Thinking of this, Ding Wei pointed directly at Mizuhara Yishige and signaled the opponent to come out for a duel.
Although the old devil didn't expect that he would be the first to appear, the other party had already given him a chance. He decided to use the sword skills he had been practicing day and night to defend his last dignity.
After the duel officially started, the old devil tried various steps on his steps, and the katana in his hand almost danced like a flower. But the Eighth Route Army commander on the opposite side remained motionless, holding the big blade as if in a daze.
After more than ten seconds, Mizuhara Yishige completely lost his patience. He rushed towards Ding Wei, his samurai sword shining sharply in the night.
At this moment, Ding Wei directly pulled out his shell gun. With everyone's shocked eyes, he fired three shots, beating Mizuhara Yoshito to his core.
The old devil who fell to the ground took his last breath. He cursed a few words in Japanese tremblingly and then died. At the same time, the translator mustered up the courage to speak out the last words of his major general.
"You bastard Eighth Route Army soldier, why did you use a gun? You have no martial ethics! This is a sacred duel."
Ding Wei looked at the other party's body and smiled evilly. He blew on the non-existent gunpowder smoke at the muzzle and said the classic sayings he learned from Huang He.
"This move is called American Iai. If you are willing to surrender, maybe you can see this move often in the future."
"Little devil, I will tell you now what it means to kill people and kill the heart."
The remaining Japanese officers saw their brigade leader dead and immediately prepared to come forward with their samurai swords to fight. These young people with brain problems all died under the guns of a new group of precise shooters.
It is worth mentioning that the colonel actually sneaked the melon grenade behind his waist, intending to imitate Deidara and explode it. This is art. But facing the soldiers who were on high alert, they were instantly beaten into pieces.
After the battle was completely over, Ding Wei picked up Mizuhara Yoshige and the commander's command sword. He glanced around and looked at all the extremely excited warriors.
"Everyone clean the battlefield! Rescue the wounded! Don't be reluctant to use the medical kit. The logistics department will distribute it after you return. Life is the most important!"
"Take away all the seizures you can! Don't leave a single bullet for the Japanese! We will exchange weapons for pork!"
After a short and efficient count, the new regiment suffered 170 casualties this time.
Among them, 24 were seriously wounded and 47 were killed. In addition, half of the regiment's ammunition reserves were spent, and the support troops of the 8th Independent Mixed Brigade were successfully killed.
(End of chapter)
