Looking at the sparsely one hundred cavalrymen in front of him, Mitsuo Nakazawa's nose almost broke with anger, and he felt as if there were ants crawling all over his body.
There are nearly 1,400 people in the 1st Cavalry Regiment, all of whom are elite cavalrymen of the Locust Army.
The equipment is also extremely luxurious, with 4 cavalry squadrons, 1 cavalry artillery squadron and 1 heavy machine gun squadron.
Logically speaking, the 1st Cavalry Regiment is the easiest unit to break out of the encirclement.
Only these hundred cats and dogs came back?
Mizuo Nakazawa looked at Colonel Hiodeo Miura, the captain of the 1st Cavalry Regiment, with a dark face: "Where is Shinno-kun?"
At that time, Hiideo Miura led the 1st Cavalry Regiment in a head-on confrontation with the Eighth Route Army cavalry.
In just one encounter, more than half of the 1st Cavalry Regiment suffered casualties.
Miura Hinode didn't dare to fight, so he led the 1st Cavalry Regiment to grease the soles of his feet, but the Eighth Route Army's cavalry regiment, about one regiment, caught up.
Seeing that there were not many cavalrymen in the Eighth Route Army, Miura Hinode felt that he could do it again.
After running for more than ten kilometers and out of the range of the Eighth Route Army's artillery and infantry, Hidden Miura led the remnants of the 1st Cavalry Regiment to prepare for a decisive battle with the Eighth Route Army's cavalry.
But the Eighth Route Army was not a fool. When they saw the Japanese cavalry rushing over, they first fired with submachine guns and semi-automatic rifles.
Then he rushed forward with the Yunlong sword in hand and hacked at the Japs. After three rounds, most of the Japs cavalry regiment suffered casualties.
Seeing that he was outnumbered, Miura Hinode sent half of his cavalry squadron to cut off the rear, while he fled with the remaining men.
This escape lasted for dozens of kilometers. As for the cavalry behind them, they were all wiped out by the Eighth Route Cavalry.
Hidden Miura took the remnants of more than a hundred cavalrymen from the cavalry regiment and made a big circle before joining up with the 26th Division and finding Mitsuo Nakazawa.
"Isn't the chief of staff back?" Miura Hinodeo looked startled, then said immediately, "Then the chief of staff has probably died for the empire."
Hiideo Miura recounted how they were ambushed by the Eighth Route Army, first shelled, then confronted head-on by No. 2000 Eighth Route Army cavalry, and then chased.
"waste!"
Mitsuo Nakazawa cursed angrily.
The cavalry regiment should not have behaved like this in this battle. The terrain for the ambush was not too steep. It was completely possible to break through a certain line of defense with a group of cavalry attacks and tear a hole into the encircling infantry.
This way, at least a few thousand more infantry can be rushed out.
However, not only did the cavalry regiment fail to rescue the infantry, but it also suffered extremely heavy losses.
What is the difference between the hundreds of cavalry in front of me and being wiped out?
Mizuo Nakazawa really wanted to kill Miura Hinodeo with a knife.
"Hi!"
Miura Hinodeo had to lower his head, and he felt very uncomfortable.
At that time, he was leading the cavalrymen of the 1st Cavalry Regiment, drinking wine, eating dried meat, and singing Kwantung Army military songs.
Then they were shelled by the Eighth Route Army. Who was provoked?
It was lucky to be able to save even a small life. People like the chief of staff, commander of the 1st Brigade, and commander of the 2nd Brigade would most likely have died for the empire.
"Reporting to the division commander, we are less than 5 kilometers away from the battlefield. The 1st Infantry Battalion is less than 3 kilometers away from the battlefield."
A Japanese combat staff wearing glasses ran over quickly and reported to the commander of the 26th Division, Kuroda Shigenori.
"Has the 1st Infantry Battalion been blocked?" Kuroda Shigenori asked in a deep voice.
"Not yet!" the combat staff replied.
Kuroda Shigenori rolled his eyes and ordered: "Order the 1st Infantry Battalion to stop advancing and stay put while the artillery regiment sets up the guns."
The 1st Infantry Regiment was 3 kilometers away from the battlefield, but it was not blocked by the Eighth Route Army. This was very abnormal.
At that moment, Kuroda Shigenori ordered the 1st Infantry Battalion of the 26th Division to stop advancing.
"Hi!"
The combat staff member suddenly paused and turned around to leave.
Then, Kuroda Shigenori looked at Mitsuo Nakazawa: "Nakazawa-kun, please also set up the heavy artillery of the 6th Heavy Artillery Regiment of your division."
Mitsuo Nakazawa nodded and looked at a combat staff officer on the side: "Order the 6th Heavy Artillery Regiment to set up immediately and raise the observation balloon."
"Hi!"
The Japanese combat staff suddenly paused.
Following the orders of Mitsuo Nakazawa and Shigenori Kuroda, the Japanese artillerymen of the 26th Independent Artillery Division and the 6th Heavy Artillery Regiment began to set up artillery.
The Japanese observers also quickly began to raise observation balloons.
…
7 km away.
On top of a mountain.
The former enemy headquarters of the Eighth Route Army.
"According to observer reports, the leading troops of the Japanese 26th Division, about one brigade in strength, stopped 2 kilometers away from our forward position."
Chief of Staff Wang Dehou reported to Li Yunlong.
"Oh?" Li Yunlong narrowed his eyes, and Wang Dehou immediately pointed out the location of the Japanese brigade on the map.
Since the nearby higher hills were controlled by the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese reinforcements were directly detected by artillery observers as they approached the battlefield.
"Should we order the artillery to fire on this Japanese brigade?" Chief of Staff Wang Dehou asked.
"How far away is the main force of the Japs?"
Li Yunlong asked, raising his binoculars and looking in the direction of the Japs' vanguard.
It's just that the Japs' vanguard is located in a depression, and the Japs can't be seen even with the artillery mirror.
Wang Dehou pointed on the map: "It is at least 5 kilometers away from the battlefield, and it must be 7 kilometers away from us."
"Then order the No. 2 and No. 4 artillery groups of the East and West Artillery Group to fire and hit its vanguard." Li Yunlong calmly ordered with both eyes, "The heavy artillery battalion should not fire yet. We will see how the Japanese respond."
The Eighth Route Army set up a total of five artillery group positions, and they were numbered.
They are the heavy artillery battalion, 1st artillery battalion and 2nd artillery battalion of the New Regiment, as well as the artillery battalion of the Independent Regiment and the artillery battalion of the New Second Regiment.
Two hours ago, Li Yunlong had ordered five artillery groups to set up all the artillery in east and west positions, preparing to receive Japanese reinforcements.
In order to facilitate command, the staff also numbered the positions of each artillery group from 1 to 5.
"yes!"
Wang Dehou turned around and went to give the order.
Not long after the order from the former enemy's headquarters was issued.
The artillery observers at the front conveyed the shooting details of the Japs' vanguard units to the No. 2 and No. 4 artillery group positions respectively.
On the No. 2 gun position.
The gunners of the 1st Battalion of the New Regiment Artillery were ready.
Following the flag order, the order flag in the soldier's hand suddenly dropped.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
There was a huge sound of artillery fire, more than 40 artillery guns fired almost simultaneously, and the fireworks blooming from the muzzles were almost a continuous sound.
More than 40 high-explosive artillery shells soared into the sky driven by propellant, drew arcs in the sky, and finally fell towards the depression where the Japanese vanguard troops gathered.
On the other side, almost at the same time.
On the No. 4 artillery position, the artillery battalion of the independent regiment fired almost simultaneously, and nearly 40 artillery shells soared into the sky.
Boom boom boom...
Amidst the explosion sound like a landslide and the ground cracking, streaks of explosion smoke suddenly rose up from the depression where the Japs were.
Since the precise method is used to determine the shooting elements, there is no need to test fire, and the artillery fire will cover it as soon as it comes up.
A few kilometers away from the rear of the Japs' vanguard troops, the Japs' newly raised observation balloon was only a few dozen meters above the ground, but the Japs artillery observer in the gondola who was observing with the artillery scope couldn't help but say: "Awesome! "
The Japanese artillery observer saw the artillery shells fired by the Eighth Route Army artillery from the artillery mirror. The first round of artillery shells hit the 1st Infantry Brigade of the 26th Division.
The 1st Infantry Group was in a good position in a depression, but the Eighth Route Army's artillery shells seemed to have eyes.
As the dense explosion waves rose up, the unsuspecting soldiers of the 1st Infantry Battalion were blown away and fled.
No matter how powerful the cannon is, no matter how powerful the gunner is, it is impossible to achieve a first hit when hitting a target several kilometers away. It needs to be tested in advance, and then the shooting elements are corrected according to the impact point, and finally the artillery fire coverage is implemented.
The better the gun, and the more experienced the gunner and artillery observers are, the less shells and time will be needed during the test firing phase.
However, the Eighth Route Artillery did not conduct a test firing in advance. The first wave of artillery fire covered it and most of the artillery shells hit the target.
"What a powerful artilleryman."
"How did the Eighth Route Artillery do it?"
With wonder on his face, this Japanese artillery observer began to look for the location of the Eighth Route Army's artillery positions as the observation balloon slowly rose.
The 1st Infantry Brigade of the 12th Infantry Regiment of the 26th Division suffered considerable losses under the bombardment of two regiment-level artillery fires. The Japanese infantry fled in all directions, and the Eighth Route Army artillery observers immediately informed them to stop firing.
The observation balloon rose several hundred meters, and the Japanese artillery observers finally discovered an Eighth Route Army artillery position in the east.
"How many soldiers of the 1st Division are still alive?"
The Japanese artillery observer was about to report the position, but Mizuo Nakazawa's questioning voice came from the receiver.
At this time, Mitsuo Nakazawa was most concerned about the soldiers of the 1st Division in the ambush circle.
The Japanese artillery observers had no choice but to turn their artillery mirrors and look in the direction of the battlefield.
The battlefield was filled with smoke, but no fighting was seen. There was no sound of artillery or gunfire. The densely packed Eighth Route Army was cleaning the battlefield.
If a battle breaks out, the Japanese artillery observer will definitely be able to hear the sound of gunfire from this position.
The Japanese artillery observer took the receiver and microphone and shouted loudly: "Report to the division commander, all the surrounded soldiers of the 1st Division have been killed, and the battle is over! In addition, a large number of Eighth Route Cavalry and tanks are moving towards us. "
"Nani? The battle is over?"
Mitsuo Nakazawa was suddenly startled at first, and then said in an unbelievable tone: "This is impossible? Have all the remaining Locust Army soldiers broken through?"
The Japanese artillery observer stared at the artillery mirror and said: "I saw the corpses of many Locust soldiers."
on the ground.
The Japanese 26th Division and 1st Division headquarters.
Mitsuo Nakazawa put down the receiver and microphone of the radio station angrily.
Kuroda Shigenori advised: "Nakazawa-kun, the scouts of our division have reported that the battle is over. I suggest returning to Datong immediately to avoid being surrounded by the Eighth Route Army!"
Although the attack posture has been deployed, since the battle is over, there is no need to continue fighting.
Any further fighting will only increase casualties.
Kuroda Shigenori really didn't want to fight the Eighth Route Army in northwestern Shanxi.
He just wanted to lead the 26th Division back to Inner Mongolia as soon as possible. The life there was really comfortable, and he didn't want to live a frightened life in northwestern Shanxi.
Mitsuo Nakazawa was furious, but he quickly suppressed his anger. The matter had come to this, and no matter how hard it was to accept, it had to be this way.
"Kuroda-kun, please transfer to Datong."
Mitsuo Nakazawa waved his hand and closed his eyes in pain. At this moment, the old devil was heartbroken.
More than 20,000 elite Locust troops were wiped out in a few hours. The 1st Division had never suffered such heavy losses.
"Yes." Kuroda Shigenori nodded and looked at the combat staff aside, "Give me the order to transfer all troops to Datong immediately. Move quickly."
Facts have proved that no matter how elite the troops are, they will be quickly wiped out once they are ambushed by a well-prepared enemy.
Even the main force of the 1st Division has been wiped out. Now that the main force of the Eighth Route Army is free, they will definitely not be able to defeat them.
"Hi!"
The combat staff officer nodded heavily and turned to leave.
…
The former enemy headquarters of the Eighth Route Army.
"Captain, the forward artillery observer reported that the Japs from the 26th Division and the 1st Division have retreated."
"Are we still chasing him?"
Wang Dehou reported to Li Yunlong.
"What did you say, you retreated?" Li Yunlong's tone was filled with surprise and disappointment.
The artillery, infantry, cavalry and tank units of the new regiment were all ready for a good fight.
As a result, the 26th Division and the 1st Division ran away directly?
After receiving Wang Dehou's affirmative reply, Captain Li said in a disdainful tone: "Kuroda and Nakazawa are not really men. They don't even have the courage to fight us head-on."
"Although the 26th Division and the 1st Division ran away," Zhao Gang said, "our artillery has killed some Japs from the 26th Division, so it is not without gain."
Kong Jie put down the telescope and said: "It must be the Japanese observers on the observation balloon who discovered that the fighting here has ended, so the Japanese from the 26th Division and the 1st Division retreated."
"Observation balloon?" Li Yunlong asked, "Where is it?"
Li Yunlong had been using the artillery scope to observe the direction of the battlefield, so he did not pay much attention to the Japanese observation balloons.
When Li Yunlong led his troops to attack Taiyuan, he shot down a Japanese observation balloon. The Japanese artillery observer fell down and was killed on the spot.
However, the Japanese observation balloon was raised from Taiyuan City and was within the range of the Eighth Route Army, so it was easily shot down.
"Look, Lao Kong, how far is the Japanese balloon from us?"
Li Yunlong looked in the direction Kong Jie pointed, and sure enough he saw the Japanese observation balloon in mid-air, slowly descending.
Because the distance is too far, only a small black dot can be seen.
"The straight-line distance must be at least seven or eight kilometers." Kong Jie put down the telescope and said.
"Forget it..." Li Yunlong said, "Order all ministries to quickly clean the battlefield and transport all the loot back to the base area."
Li Yunlong originally wanted to order the 88th Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion to shoot down the Japanese observation balloons.
But it was too late. By the time the 88th Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion arrived, the Japanese observation balloon had already landed and ran away.
Now that the 26th Division and the 1st Division have retreated, Li Yunlong does not intend to pursue them again.
However, Li Yunlong sent out cavalry scouts to conduct alert reconnaissance in the direction of Datong to prevent the 26th Division and the 1st Division from killing a carbine.
At the same time, the sporadic ambush battles ended completely.
Li Yunlong immediately ordered Wang Dehou to prepare a successful report and report the situation to the headquarters.
(End of chapter)
