,
Because the officers and soldiers of the 212th Regiment attracted most of the Japanese firepower, the officers and soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 216th Regiment were able to successfully complete the fortifications.
It didn't take much time to build the fortifications. It only took one afternoon to complete.
I have to say that Li Chunfei does things very quickly and neatly, and he never delays the things he orders.
While the officers and soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 216th Regiment were busy building fortifications, the gunfire from the 212th Regiment never stopped - it can be seen that the fighting was very intense.
The fight has reached this level, both sides are actually in a hurry - why do you say this? The national army is striving for time for reinforcements to arrive and for the time to completely annihilate the Japanese troops stationed in Shanghai; but what about the Japanese army? They are striving to capture Jiangwan Town as soon as possible, respond to the Japanese troops on the front line in Hongkou, and then use the Third Division in the north as the main force to annihilate the National Army in Shanghai!
When the fighting reaches this level, there will be no shortage of fierce battles in Shanghai, such as Luodian.
Since noon, the 11th Division, the trump card of the 18th Army of the Civil Engineering Department, has been stationed in Luodian.
Luodian is the northern gate of Shanghai. How could the Japanese army miss this strategic location? So the menacing Japanese Third Division pounced on Luodian menacingly.
As the trump card among the seventeen standing divisions of the Japanese army, the Third Division is not generally strong in combat effectiveness. Division Commander Susumu Fujita.
The Third Division was one of the first new armies to be restructured and emerged in Japan. At that time, there were only six towns in Japan, and the predecessor of the Third Division, Nagoya Town, was one of them. In the 21st year of Meiji, (i.e. 1888 AD), Nagoya Town was reorganized into the Third Division, so the Third Division was also known as the "Nagoya Division".
The division commander of the Nagoya Division is called Susumu Fujita. He is a typical young figure in the Japanese army. He is fifty-three years old this year and holds the rank of Army Lieutenant General. This is his twenty-third day as the division commander, and he is also awarded the title of Army Lieutenant General. The twenty-fourth day of the rank of lieutenant general.
It is said that there are three things that make a new official take office. Before Fujita Susumu's fire could completely burn out, the Battle of Songhu broke out. I have to say that this was an opportunity for him.
That's right, Susumu Fujita regarded this Battle of Songhu as an opportunity, an opportunity not only to make meritorious deeds, but also to set these fires alight!
Speaking of Fujita Susumu, not many people may know it, but when it comes to his classmates, they are so famous - such as Okamura Neji, Doihara Kenji, Ithan Seishiro, Ando Toshiyoshi, etc.
Susumu Fujita was ambitious and wanted to make great achievements in Shanghai, but he accidentally kicked the iron plate in Luodian.
As Chen Cheng's starting unit, the Eleventh Division's combat effectiveness is not weak. In addition to its equipment being inferior to the Thirty-sixth Division, the Eighty-seventh Division, the Eighty-eighth Division and other German weapon divisions, its fighting will and fighting style All are very tenacious.
When the entire Eighteenth Army was transferred to the Songhu battlefield, Chen Cheng personally came to the Eighteenth Army and said to the soldiers who were about to go to the battlefield: "This battle is a national war, related to the life and death of the Chinese nation. We must not be afraid of sacrifice and learn from the martyrs of Huangpu.”
Everyone knows that going to the battlefield this time will probably lead to no return, but everyone goes to the battlefield with the intention of dying.
I would like to ask, how much advantage can the Japanese army take when fighting with an army that is not afraid of death and whose will to fight is not weaker than theirs?
Since Luodian is the north gate of Shanghai, it must be defended no matter what. Therefore, Zhang Zhizhong issued a strict order to the 18th Army that had just been assigned to the Ninth Group Army: Luodian must be defended, otherwise it will be dealt with by military law!
But what is incredible is that after giving this order, Zhang Zhizhong mysteriously "disappeared"!
Why is it said to have disappeared mysteriously? The reason was that his people could not be found at the Ninth Army Headquarters.
You know, the commander-in-chief of a group army can't find anyone during the war. What's going on? To put it mildly, it was because he had something to do or to inspect the battlefield; to put it lightly, it was dereliction of duty!
Indeed, Zhang Zhizhong is a good person in education. After all, the Central Military Academy has done a good job under his leadership.
But it also has a fatal flaw, that is, it has never tried to independently command a large corps in combat. Looking at its highest position, it is the corps commander, and it has only commanded two divisions to fight independently.
But now? The Ninth Army has more than two divisions, including the three divisions of the National Guard system, plus the four divisions of the 18th Army (Peng Shan's 11th Division, Huo Kuizhang's 14th Division, Huang Wei's 67th Division, Xia Chuzhong's 98th Division), plus Liu Heding's 56th Division, there are already eight divisions.
For a general who has only commanded two or three divisions in combat, commanding eight divisions in combat is an opportunity and a challenge.
Like all opportunities, there are those who succeed in the challenge and those who fail in the challenge. Zhang Zhizhong is one of those who failed in the challenge.
Whether it is the 18th Army or the three divisions from the National Guard, they are the trump card and backbone of the Central Army and the main military force of the entire Huangpu Clan (direct line).
Chiang Kai-shek put almost all the elite members of his direct line into Zhang Zhizhong's hands, which can be said to have placed great expectations on him. However, he disappeared on the battlefield?
As the Ninth Army Group was basically composed of the Huangpu Clan, Chiang Kai-shek was naturally very concerned about it. You know, this was the foundation of his Central Army! Without these elites, would the local warlords still obey him? Will you still follow his orders?
Therefore, after learning that Zhang Zhizhong was not at the headquarters and did not know where he had gone, Chiang Kai-shek made a phone call or sent a telegram almost every forty minutes to inquire about the situation.
However, Zhang Zhizhong seemed to have disappeared without any news. It was not until two days later (that is, the 26th) that members of the Ninth Army found him in Nanyuan.
In anger, Chiang Kai-shek removed Zhang Zhizhong from his post as commander-in-chief of the Ninth Army and asked him to return to Nanjing to report on his duties. He ordered Zhu Shaoliang, a veteran of the party, to serve as commander-in-chief. Deputy Commander-in-Chief Huang Qixiang temporarily acted as commander-in-chief of the Ninth Army until Zhu Shaoliang was appointed commander-in-chief. After taking up the post of commander-in-chief of the Ninth Army in Shanghai, he handed over the command.
Of course, these are high-level matters and have little to do with Zhang Tianhai. He is only responsible for guarding the defense area and preventing the enemy from breaking through the defense line.
During these two days, Zhang Tianhai's life was quite comfortable. After all, the Japanese army targeted the 212th Regiment with its main force, and the fight was brutal.
On the afternoon of August 26, Zhang Tianhai's "good days" came to an end, because after the Japanese army suffered a loss at the front of Fudan University, they became angry and increased their troops, trying to quickly capture Jiangwan Town at all costs.
Now that the Japanese army has launched a fierce attack, it is naturally not limited to the main position of Fudan University. Therefore, Zhang Tianhai's hard days are coming...
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ps: The second update is here!
