As the saying goes, the more veterans, the stronger the combat effectiveness.
When unexpected situations arise on the battlefield, veterans with rich combat experience often become the steadfast anchor of the army.
"Comrades, calm down! Don't panic!"
"The Japanese offensive looks fierce, but in fact it has not achieved any good results. We have more people than them, and our firepower is stronger than theirs. The enemy cannot hold on for long."
"What age are they still using unscientific human wave tactics? Let us use the heavy machine guns and mortars in our hands to teach them how to behave!"
After hearing the words of their old squad leader, platoon leader, and company commander, the soldiers decisively cleared all distracting thoughts from their minds and concentrated on picking up the weapons in their hands to fight back against the enemy.
The heavy machine gun is a magic weapon in defensive operations. Its existence allows the defenders to naturally stand on the upper side.
In the first division, more than forty heavy machine gun positions were deployed on the frontal defense line. In terms of the number of heavy machine guns alone, two main regiments exceeded one brigade.
The Japs don't have tanks, so the attacking infantry can only bear the metal storm with their flesh and blood.
At the same time, the artillery of the two regiments also began to counterattack with all their strength.
"Emergency cum!"
"Push back the Japanese infantry!"
Limited by observation methods, the role of long-range artillery in the first division is limited, but the troops are equipped with a large number of mortars.
The soldiers who were familiar with the terrain gave full play to their firepower advantage. With the help of flares, mortar shells flew all over the sky like no money, causing great damage to the Japanese soldiers.
It is worth mentioning that the artillerymen in the first division are either the backbone of the Red Army or veterans recruited from the Northeast Army, so they are naturally accurate and ruthless in their attacks.
One after another, 60 and 81 mm mortar shells soared into the sky, drawing beautiful arcs, and finally landed on the path of the Japanese soldiers.
Boom boom boom!
Exploding fireballs soared across the plains.
Perhaps because of the night, the accuracy and effectiveness of the artillery shells are worse than during the day, but as long as the quantity is sufficient, the lack of single-shot quality can be made up for.
With the power of 60 meters alone, the killing range is a circle with a radius of fifteen meters. It is definitely the best choice to deal with Japanese pigs.
Coupled with the 81mm and two 120mm, it is disrespectful to Brand to bring the enemy one step closer.
······
Two hours after the battle started, the First Division Combat Command.
Looking at the battle reports coming back from the front line, Commander Yang said with some emotion:
"This Mano Goro is really courageous. His overall behavior is much more reckless than Abe Norihide. He actually let the troops launch a general offensive without any intelligence, and he didn't know what happened to Okamura Neji and Amakasu Jutaro. What order was given?"
"There is a saying, the independent mixed second brigade really has two brushes, and is very proficient in using alternate attacks."
"If this battle had been fought a year ago, it is estimated that my main regiments would have suffered heavy losses, and there would even be a risk of being penetrated by the enemy's defense line in one fell swoop."
In fact, the alternating attack that Commander Yang mentioned has a long history. Its other name is the famous Liao brand French roller tactic!
When the Japanese launched a general offensive, Mano Goro keenly discovered that the Eighth Route Army's firepower was extremely powerful, and the number of heavy machine guns alone far exceeded his own brigade.
In this way, blindly attacking and charging will only ruin your own troops.
As an experienced commander, the old Japanese took countermeasures immediately and switched tactics to a roller-type attack that copied Yu Desan's approach.
The principle of this move is not complicated. The core is to divide the troops into two parts and alternately cover the attack.
After the first-line troops broke through the enemy's defense line, the second-line troops following behind immediately followed up. Then the second line was transformed into the first line, giving the original first line troops time to rest and recuperate while maintaining the offensive intensity.
Throughout the entire attack, the above process is repeated indefinitely.
If the defenders are inexperienced, they will easily be overwhelmed by the endless sea of people.
This tactic seems simple, but in fact it needs to be based on the coordination of troops at all levels, and the independent mixed second brigade just has this qualification.
After hearing Commander Yang's words, 103 showed a disdainful expression on his face. He first moved to the map of the situation between ourselves and the enemy, and then expressed his opinion.
"It seems that Mano Goro is overestimating his abilities. A skinny dog actually wants to have a hard dick."
"His tactics were perfectly restrained by our arrangements. We only need to stick to the original plan for three days. It's a pity. If it weren't for the division commander's plan and the casualties of the troops, I really want to eat them now."
"Bring the battle report from the front line and let me see the details of the battle."
The roller-type attack does have merit. Desan's infantry relied on this method to penetrate most of Western Europe.
However, this move has a fatal weakness. The offensive side will become increasingly weak when dealing with a deep defensive front. After all, the principle of making a strong effort and then failing again and again to exhaustion applies to the army at any time.
The three main regiments in the first division have set up four lines of defense in Lijia Village and Luojia Village.
Facing the Eighth Route Army, which has superior numbers and firepower, the echelon-type roller attack may at best be somewhat effective in the early stages of the war, but it will soon turn into a bottomless pit that consumes troops.
After hearing the words of his chief of staff, someone in the combat conference room immediately handed over the battle report.
"The estimate is 1:6, which is not bad."
"Although there are many puppet troops in this data, overall we have an absolute advantage. It is the first time that the troops have fought positional warfare with the Japanese in the wild. It is definitely a good thing to achieve such a result."
"Pass my order. You must not let down your guard in the second half of the night. There is a high probability that the enemy will destroy the ship."
After dawn, the Eighth Route Army completely occupied the firepower advantage. Coupled with the air force, the Japanese will most likely delay their attack.
As a result, in order to keep up with the progress, Mano Goro is likely to have his five infantry brigades launch the most powerful attack before dawn.
Looking at the map in front of him, Commander Yang asked tentatively:
"Brother, should we use the reserve team?"
"The leaders of the 25th Regiment have been asking me to fight. They want to take over from the Third Regiment and participate in the defensive battle."
"If the enemy launches a complete general offensive, it will form a situation where two regiments fight one brigade + many puppet troops. I am afraid that the pressure on the soldiers will be too great on the front."
The reaction of the reserve team did not exceed 103's expectations at all.
After all, no unit in the Eighth Route Army wanted to miss the opportunity to fight the Japanese, not to mention that the enemy was an old rival in the first division.
However, now is not the best time to use the reserves. The 25th Regiment behind the defense line is the rear to expand the results.
Using the reserve force too early means that a military region will lack the means to deal with emergencies, and may even fall into the dilemma of having no available troops.
After thinking for a moment, 103 said seriously:
"General reserve team, don't move!"
"You have to believe in the veterans under your command. They will definitely be able to complete the mission."
"Don't forget that our purpose is to lure the enemy deep. If the Japanese suffer heavy casualties on the first night, how can we continue the rest of the mission?"
"If the enemy attacks with all his troops, we will give up the first three lines of defense. How can we fish without giving some sweeteners?"
The predecessor of the First Division was the 115th Division Independent Regiment. This unit had only more than 1,700 people four years ago.
Don't underestimate their combat effectiveness just because of their numbers. It is a special organization composed of the backbone of the Red Army, and it is not the same concept as Kong Jie's independent regiment.
In the original timeline, the Hundred Regiment War was regarded as an important military turning point in the first division.
Before that, the soldiers could chase the Japanese and puppet troops in Jizhong, and even make big noises like the Battle of Huangtuling.
At that time, comrades were completely self-sufficient and could continue to expand their base areas without receiving a penny from their superiors.
In the Battle of Lailing between the Hundred Regiments, Division One completed the tasks assigned by the headquarters with quality and quantity. However, the losses of troops at all levels are not optimistic, and several main regiments have sacrificed many combat backbones.
The fierce fighting consumed all the weapons and equipment accumulated over the past three years, and the entire division returned to before liberation overnight.
To make matters worse, the reaction speed of the Japanese was not slow at all.
The enemy launched a retaliatory sweep in late October. Troops at all levels in the first division had to end the battle hastily and quickly return to their base areas to prepare for transfers.
In a sense, this is the gap between industrial and agricultural countries.
The former can quickly mobilize all resources, while the latter can only rely on extremely limited resources in the region. The person being beaten can quickly counterattack, but the active attacker is weakened and loses the ability to organize a battle in a short period of time.
However, the above-mentioned things did not happen in this plane. Last year's attack campaign was all green at the beginning, and only a few difficult counties were yellow.
As for the red bubble?
That was Yoshio Shinozuka's perspective, and it had nothing to do with the Eighth Route Army.
Coupled with the fact that the injured First Army had no energy to launch a retaliatory raid, the fighting backbone of the first division naturally did not suffer much damage.
"Okay, I will give the order to the first and third regiments now, let them act according to the situation and not stick to it."
"Brother, I'm going to contact the First Air Division. We have to put on a show. If the air force doesn't dispatch, the enemy will definitely become suspicious. After all, our Eighth Route Army has to call in air support for everything we do now."
When it came to the Air Force, 103 nodded helplessly.
For him, the biggest problem in this battle is how to put on a good show and let the Japanese attack Shanxi unswervingly.
After all, compared to taking the initiative to send troops to attack, it is more labor-saving to rely on prepared fortifications in advance. As long as the troops stationed in Mongolia can be successfully lured to Xinkou, the war in North China can end early.
"Okay, then let's call in twelve Typhoon fighter jets."
"No, six Hurricanes will do. The independent mixed second brigade has no air defense capabilities. The close support aircraft are no different to them than their biological fathers."
"
It took me five hours to write this stuff, awesome
(End of chapter)
