After two hours of fighting, the first platoon began to alternately cover the retreat, giving up the blocks of the second line of defense to the Japanese;
Ueda Squadron pursued in excitement, but was blocked by a group of mortars. Six mortars fired three rapid fire rounds, catching the Japanese by surprise. They tried to take off again, but there was a cannon company on the Eighth Route Army;
The heavy machine gun was thrown away, but the mortar was still there. It suffered a moderate loss and suffered more than 20 casualties. As a result, the entire Ueda Squadron only had about 60 people left, and they were basically disabled.
The first platoon also suffered more than 20 casualties, and only about 50 people retreated to the third line of defense.
On the third line of defense, there are 80 people in the second row, plus more than 50 people in the first row, and the strength increases to more than 130 people. The third line of defense is located in the central block. There are many more houses on both sides, and the defensive frontage increases. up;
It is more than 800 meters deep, and the houses are mainly made of blue bricks and large tiles. This area is a commercial center. When Liu Town was rebuilt, they, wealthy businessmen, invested their own money to replace the building materials with blue bricks, and some even used concrete;
The Fourth Company had to fight the Japanese in this area. Since Ma Dayuan had experience in previous battles, the two platoons defending the third line of defense were under the unified command of Ma Dayuan, and Zhao Hui's mortar platoon was also reinforced for them.
The Japanese also made adjustments after capturing the second line of defense. The offensive force became the entire second brigade, and they also strengthened two infantry guns and three mortars. The total force was close to a thousand people. They were also cruel!
It was almost noon, and the Japanese decided to call a truce for two hours. The warriors fought fiercely all morning and needed to replenish food. The two sides tacitly agreed to a truce.
The Japanese's lunch was a rice ball and a canned beef per person, which was very rich. The Japanese all had a good time, laughed and laughed, and their morale was good;
Balu Road is much simpler, just fried noodles. During the war, just enough to eat, not so much.
The fried noodles are quite difficult to swallow, but they have enough calories and salt is added when frying. This is the best logistical support that Chinese people can do!
It can save a lot of support force. Each combatant can carry seven days' worth and save some food. Ten days is enough.
After most of the Japs' baggage was bombed, their logistics support was also very tight. If they couldn't get a large amount of food for a week at most, they would have to transfer food from Anping City. By then, it would be the Tigers' special forces and cavalry platoon. It’s time to play, Chuxiong will not let Anping City’s food have a chance to be shipped in!
A war with more than a few thousand people is all about logistics. Now the entire base area has been fortified and cleared. There are five to six thousand Japanese soldiers and horses. People eat what horses chew. How many kilograms of food do they need in a day?
This is Chu Xiong's true intention, to use small-scale battles to continuously consume the Japanese's food and ammunition. Without food and ammunition, the Japanese will have to retreat honestly!
After resting for two hours, the Japanese, who were full of food, drink and energy, began to attack again.
They had given up artillery preparations and went directly to the infantry attack. The benefits of blowing up the Japanese baggage began to show.
In the first round of attacking the Japanese, a reinforced squadron was put in. The commander was still Captain Ueda. This time Ma Dayuan's tactic was to completely let the Japanese in and fight.
In the temporary headquarters, Major General Ushijima was observing the Ueda Squadron's attack through binoculars. Standing next to him was still Chief of Staff Kitahara.
"Kitahara-kun, this area is the core area of Liu Town. Chuxiong will definitely arrange heavy defense. Judging from the battle in the morning, the Chinese people defending Liu Town have a very strong will to fight. Do you think Ueda Squadron can attack it?"
Seeing that the general was testing him again, Beitahara quickly replied:
"Your Excellency General, the front of Liu Town is not wide. The attack of one squadron is already at its limit. Investing too many troops at once will only increase unnecessary casualties."
"After Ueda Squadron strengthened its two infantry guns, its local firepower was much higher than that of the Eighth Route Army. Judging from the first stage of the battle, the casualty ratio of both sides should be close to 1.5 to 1, with the Imperial Army slightly more. This exchange ratio is Chu Xiong cannot afford to fight a war of attrition, so I judge that Chu Xiong may repeat his old tricks and abandon his position."
Kitahara's analysis was recognized by Ushijima. What the imperial army was least afraid of was such a war of attrition. In his opinion, Kitahara still minimized casualties by one step. Even if it was an exchange ratio of 2:1, Chu Xiong could not afford it.
"Kitahara-kun, Chu Xiong is a master of tactics. Why does he still insist on fighting even though he knows that he is fighting at the pace of the imperial army? What is his true intention?"
Ushijima still didn't understand Chuxiong's true intention. He was questioning both the original and himself.
"Your Majesty General, is it possible that Chu Xiong is using his troops to stick to us so that we can't get out to cause trouble for the common people?"
Kitahara's words made Ushijima seem to have found some inspiration. This is really possible!
"Kitahara-kun, you will know if you give it a try. Our entire brigade is now dragged to Liu Town. This is the biggest waste of troops. You send a brigade and let them go to nearby villages in squadron units." Turn around and let the Imperial Alliance Army serve as guides to search for the Chinese people."
"Your Majesty General, your throwing stones to ask for directions is very clever. The actions of the imperial army will definitely be detected by the Eighth Route Army. You can guess Chu Xiong's intentions by looking at their reactions."
Ushijima was very pleased with Kitahara's flattery, and he really wanted to see Chu Xiong's anxious expression.
"Your Excellency, General, Ueda Squadron managed to break in with almost no effort. Is Chuxiong really going to give up on the most important neighborhood in Liu Town?"
Kitahara suddenly shouted in surprise, and Ushijima immediately picked up the telescope to observe, and it turned out that they had all gone in!
Before Ushijima and the others could figure it out, various gunshots rang out in the town, and the crackling sound was very lively.
"Bagayalu, is Chu Xiong going to have a street fight with the imperial army?"
Ushijima, who has always been calm and elegant, couldn't help but exclaimed, this shows that Chuxiong has no intention of giving up the fight for Liu Town with the imperial army, and it is becoming more and more confusing!
The increasingly dense gunfire further confirmed his judgment. Chu Xiong was really going to fight the imperial army in a street fight!
"General, does the plan to send search teams to each village still need to go ahead?"
"Let's take it easy for now. Let's take a look. Our real purpose is to eliminate Chu Xiong. Chu Xiong is in Liu Town. We won't divide our troops for the time being."
Ushijima changed his mind again. Chuxiong was the ultimate target of this encirclement and suppression campaign. If he wanted to fight in the street, the imperial army would accompany him to fight until the end.
"Kitahara-kun, send another squadron in to support Ueda-kun. I want to see if Chuxiong can spread the beans into soldiers!"
"Hey!"
Ten minutes later, another squadron of Japs came in for reinforcements. The scale of the street fighting became larger and larger, as if the whole town was at war. Ushijima's blood boiled when he heard this, and he wished he could lead the team himself.
On the battlefield in southeastern Shanxi, the Niu Dao Brigade had not fought such a regular battle for a long time, and was now accompanying a group of Tuba soldiers in guerrilla warfare!
"Yo Xi, Chu Xiong, you really gave me a surprise!"
