"Boom boom boom..."
"Boom boom boom..."
Covered by three consecutive rounds of explosives, the puppet troops of Zhang Sigou Regiment were blown up to the point of howling like ghosts. Groups of them were knocked down, and many people's internal organs were shattered. When had they ever seen such a huge battle?
The puppet troops finally couldn't bear the fear caused by the huge casualties. They turned around and ran back in a swarm, cursing as they ran:
"Mom is so heartless for pulling a target!"
"Ta-ta-ta..."
"Ta-ta-ta..."
"Bagaya road, no escaping people are allowed to work, otherwise they will all die!"
The machine guns of the Japanese war team rang out, and hundreds of puppet troops were mopped up in an instant. They didn't care which part of the puppet army you were. As long as you escaped from the battle, you would die. Even your own people would not be polite, let alone a group of puppet troops. Two devils.
Zhang Lanfeng became anxious on the spot. They were the Manchu Army, and they came to assist the Japanese in fighting. They were completely different from the puppet troops in the pass. He protested to Lieutenant General Harada Yukichi:
"Sir Harada, how could your people shoot at friendly forces? We are here to assist your army in fighting, but your war supervisory team shot at my people without asking any questions. I want to protest to Commander Xiaozhuo!"
Lieutenant General Harada said disapprovingly:
"Zhang Sang, facing the cowardly Chinese government forces, the imperial army's retreat will also be punished. I treat both the imperial army and the Manchurian Army equally."
"you--"
"snort!"
Zhang Lanfeng suppressed his anger and turned around. He had no choice but to leave angrily with these cruel and murderous devils.
The puppet troops of Zhang Sigou Regiment could not suppress the unreasonable Japanese, so they could only turn around and charge forward.
"Brothers, go ahead, charge into the Kuomintang army's position and reward you with 5 yuan from the ocean!"
"Kill!"
The Manchurian Army was rich and powerful, and they believed that a brave man must be rewarded with a heavy reward. Zhang Sigou could get 5 yuan from him when he made a move, which was enough to buy a life within the pass.
The morale of the puppet army was boosted, and they rushed towards the first battalion's position in a chaotic manner.
First Battalion Commander Lin Xudong saw that this group of puppet soldiers were stubborn and decided to move them closer before dealing with them. He shouted loudly:
"Comrades, bring the two dogs closer before hitting them. Follow my orders."
The puppet soldiers hunkered down and rushed forward while taking cover alternately...
120 meters!
It was quiet on the 78th Army position
100 metres!
Still quiet, the puppet soldiers became bolder, straightened their bent waists, and were ready to sprint!
80 meters!
"Come on!"
Zhang Sigou issued the order to attack, and hundreds of puppet troops shouted and rushed towards the first battalion's position very fast.
"beat!"
Lin Xudong decisively issued the order, and the originally quiet position suddenly became lively. All kinds of light and heavy weapons opened fire in an instant, raining bullets on the puppet troops.
The sickle of death reaped the lives of the puppet soldiers in waves, and the position was instantly covered with their corpses.
Zhang Sigou was also fooled. He did not expect that the Central Army's miscellaneous troops, whom he despised, were so powerful in combat that his regiment could not charge forward at all. Instead, it suffered heavy casualties. If the battle continued, the entire army would be annihilated.
Their current situation is like a mouse that got into a fan, unable to advance or retreat;
Going forward is also death, retreating is also death, and finally tasted the pain of being a dog.
In Manchuria, in order to win over them, the Japanese gave them a high political status. They would never supervise the troops and actually shoot them if they disagreed with them like they do now.
The 78th Army on the ground was far more powerful than he had imagined. The tactics used to deal with the Anti-Japanese Alliance were of no use at all. Not only were they powerful in firepower, but they were also well-trained. There was no way to continue this battle...
"brothers--"
"Snapped!"
A sniper bullet accurately hit him, and he fell down very unwillingly.
After Zhang Sigou was killed, the puppet army finally couldn't bear the huge casualties, collapsed again, turned around and fled back.
Perhaps Zhang Lanfeng's protest had an effect. The Japanese did not supervise the team this time, leaving some seeds for Zhang Sigou.
After collecting the defeated troops and counting the number of people, Zhang Lanfeng felt bitter in his heart. One of his main regiments had more than 2,000 people, but in the end, less than 600 escaped;
You must know that his brigade only had a total of 5,000 people. One of his main regiments was crippled in a single charge. Even the regiment leader was killed. His eyes twitched in pain.
Harada used the puppet troops to roughly figure out the troop and firepower configuration of Highland 918. These puppet troops still had to be different from the puppet troops in the pass. He would not be able to explain to the commander if they consumed too much.
So he gave Zhang Lanfeng a rare opportunity:
"Zhang Jun, casualties are inevitable in war. Our enemy is the Central Army of China. Zhao Sihu of the 78th Army is known as the famous general of China. The first regiment of your army fought well;
Next, the 219th Regiment of the Imperial Army will take over the attack. Take a break and see the bravery of the Imperial Army! "
Zhang Lanfeng looked better now, otherwise he would have really protested to Xiao Zhuoyi Nan. Strictly speaking, they were guest troops and they must not be used as consumables.
"Fujii-kun, order the artillery regiment to fire on Hill 918 and level all the enemy's exposed firepower points!"
Lieutenant General Harada issued the order for the bombardment.
"Boom boom boom boom..."
"Boom boom boom boom..."
The Japanese field artillery unit rained down artillery shells, and Highland 918 was instantly covered by artillery fire.
The trenches were blown down one after another, and the position of the first battalion was blown beyond recognition. Fortunately, the officers and soldiers of the first battalion had already hid in the tunnels, and the casualties were not large.
The troops of the independent brigade system attach great importance to the construction of civil fortifications. In more than a year, the 78th Army has hollowed out almost all the large and small peaks near Langtou Mountain;
Chuxiong, who came from a later generation, knew the importance of tunnel fortifications better than anyone else. The successful experience in Shangganling gave him great inspiration. He fought positional warfare with the Japanese who had control of the air and had a large number of artillery advantages, and built a complete system of civil fortifications and tunnels. Fortifications are crucial.
Shangganling can even withstand heavy artillery over 150 mm, so the Japanese 75 mm artillery shells naturally pose little threat.
The Japanese were very well prepared for this battle in southern Shanxi, especially the artillery shells. Therefore, they changed from the previous pick-and-seek in the artillery preparations. They fought for half an hour, and the shell casings were spread all over the floor.
The first battalion's position was plowed by Japanese artillery fire. Most of the surface positions were destroyed, and a few intact trenches could no longer be seen.
Harada put down the telescope and said to Zhang Lanfeng proudly:
"Zhang Sang, the artillery fire of the imperial army is fierce. There are probably not many people left on the position. Do you want to go up and collect their bodies?"
Zhang Lanfeng shook his head and said:
"Your Excellency, Division Commander, we dare not take credit for the Imperial Army. We should first learn from the Imperial Army how to fight against the Chinese government forces."
Zhang Lanfeng's humility was very useful to Lieutenant General Harada. He did not intend to give up such easy credit to them, and directly said to Colonel Fujii Shiro:
"Fujii-kun, order the 219th Regiment to attack Highland 918. Remember, take no prisoners and avenge the Manchurian Army!"
A few minutes later, a brigade from the 219th Wing rushed towards Highland 918, and the battle for Highland 918 became intense.
"Kill the chicken and give it to me!"
