I am a Chinese, born as a descendant of the dragon! Yellow skin and black hair are our characteristics! The blood that has been passed down for thousands of years flows in the body, and the glory of our ancestors will be restored by us!! ————"Kongchen Quotations?" revival"
"Uh-huh~!" Hearing a groan of pain, Shen Dongjing gradually opened his eyes from his coma. The dazzling sunlight made Shen Dongjing couldn't help but cover his eyes with his hands.
He vaguely remembered that the blast of air from one shot sent his entire body flying away, and he didn't seem to remember anything after that.
Perhaps seeing Shen Dongjing wake up, the paratroopers on the side became excited, and someone shouted: "Wake up! Chief Shen is awake!"
After being dazed for a while, Shen Dongjing finally saw clearly where he was now. This should be a private house in a small town. It was converted into a temporary field hospital by the airborne troops. Several medical soldiers were busy Treat the injured.
The one who spoke was the soldier who parachuted in with him. He was very happy to see Shen Dongjing wake up and said: "Sir, you are finally awake! You are almost worrying us to death!"
"Why am I here? By the way, how is the situation on the front line?" He took the military kettle handed over by the soldier and took a sip before feeling that the burning pain in his throat was slightly relieved.
"It was Lao Guo who tried his best to drag you back! But... just... just now, he...!"
The young soldier choked up a little when he said this, and shed tears unsatisfactorily. Lao Guo, who had been shot, fell in front of him. Although Ran did not continue to speak, Shen Dongjing also knew what it meant.
At the latest, the brother who was squatting in the trench with him smoking a cigarette was gone in just one day. Shen Dongjing couldn't help but feel a little sad in his heart.
Lao Guo's name is Guo Donglin. He is a man from Guanzhong in Shaanxi and is also recognized as a "good old man" in the company. He speaks a unique Shaanxi dialect. I heard that he came to the south after fleeing a disaster in his hometown a few years ago.
After feeling a little sad, Shen Dongjing returned to normal. War inevitably brings death, and not everyone is lucky enough to survive. Maybe he himself will die on that battlefield that day.
The sound of artillery fire outside was still there, and Shen Dongjing was worried and asked: "Where have the little devils attacked? How is our situation?"
"The brothers have just been pushed back! However, our situation is not good either. We don't have much medicine and ammunition!"
The situation on the battlefield was just as Shen Dongjing expected. The situation was very dangerous. Although the Japanese attack was resisted, the airborne troops themselves also suffered heavy losses. The medicine and ammunition supplies that were airdropped along with them could not withstand several times. Such consumption.
The Hainan Army's First Parachute Division originally had more than 8,000 people before departure. In addition to the paratroopers who had flown to other places, there were still about 6,000 people when they occupied the Zhenjiang Bridge.
However, after fierce fighting, the original number of more than 6,000 people was reduced to 4,700, resulting in more than 2,000 casualties. [Note: Casualties do not mean killed in battle, injured ones are also counted!]
It has only been sixteen or seventeen hours since landing on the ground, and the number of casualties has already reached such an extent. This shows the tragic situation of the battle for the bridge.
——————————[The burning dividing line]——————————
Boom! A cannonball roared in and exploded not far away from Shen Dongjing, and chunks of soil with the pungent smell of gunpowder smoke fell on his helmet.
As this shell hit, more shells roared in like rain. While various Japanese artillery roared, a new round of Japanese attack began again.
As early as half an hour ago, Shen Dongjing, who had just recovered some strength, resolutely returned to the front line of the battlefield. In his words, the brothers were fighting the little devils in the front, so there was no reason for him to hide behind and survive.
"Damn it! It's the Japs' armored vehicles again!" A soldier suddenly shouted loudly, and several Japanese armored vehicles appeared on the opposite side of the smoke-filled battlefield.
As soon as several Japanese armored vehicles appeared on the battlefield, they used large-caliber 13mm turret machine guns to fire wildly at the airborne troop position. An airborne trooper who could not dodge was bitten on the shoulder by a bullet, and fell down with a splash of blood.
Artillery fire covered the airborne troops' positions, followed by a frontal assault by Japanese armored vehicles. The entire battlefield was like adding a spoonful of boiled water to a frying pan and suddenly exploded.
For someone who has never experienced war, it is difficult to imagine the situation of struggling to survive in a hail of bullets.
The air is filled with acrid smoke everywhere, and you can find bullet casings or shell fragments in front of you even if you grab a handful of dirt. Apart from the sound of gunfire, the only thing left in your ears is the miserable screams of the wounded.
Shen Dongjing lay in the trench with his head lowered, bullets whizzing above his head, the flying gravel scratching the skin on his back, and the slightest movement of his shoulder would cause a burning pain.
Shen Dongjing's company defended the west side of the town. The outer positions here were fought over repeatedly by soldiers from both sides. Some of the original residential buildings were destroyed by artillery shells or collapsed under the bombardment like a major earthquake.
The defensive fortifications originally built were also completely lost in the Japanese attack. Under the rubble and broken walls, they became natural defenses for the airborne troops. One or two of them would pop up at any time among these broken walls. An airborne soldier, harvesting the lives of Japanese little devils.
"Use a grenade!" Shen Dongjing yelled, then pulled off the Schroeder tab and threw it out.
Boom! Boom! Boom! A series of explosions and filled with smoke gave the Japanese offensive a slight pause. Taking advantage of the current obstruction, Shen Dongjing led the soldiers to retreat into the town.
The buildings on the outskirts of the town were almost flattened by Japanese artillery fire. It was unwise to confront the armored vehicles in the open area. Therefore, Shen Dongjing led the soldiers back into the town and relied on the buildings to block the attack of the Japanese armored vehicles.
When the Japanese troops invaded the town, the airborne troops began to counterattack. Cold guns, cluster grenades, and all kinds of attacks that could be used were used by the airborne troops.
However, when infantry attacks a tank, it is just a small tank, and the airborne troops themselves suffer heavy casualties. Sometimes it takes more than a dozen brave soldiers to blow up an armored vehicle.
"You little devil! I will die with you." A brave paratrooper suddenly jumped out from the road, rushed towards the Japanese armored vehicle with a bunch of grenades in his arms, but was hit by a machine gun before he could reach the front. The bright red blood flower was torn into pieces as it bloomed.
At this time, Shen Dongjing was hiding behind the wall on the right side of the Japanese armored vehicle. The rain of machine gun bullets was like hail, and the flying bullets left a new layer of traces on the wall full of bullet holes. Shen Dongjing was lying on the ground. Move your body and approach the armored vehicle cautiously.
Finally, when Shen Dongjing moved to the gap in the wall, all the Japanese armored vehicles were exposed in front of Shen Dongjing, and he immediately put the rocket launcher on his shoulder and pressed the launch switch.
Cough~! The rocket shot out from the gap in the wall, cut a white mark in the air, and slammed into the Japanese armored vehicle. The armored vehicle exploded into a big fireball after being hit.
"Well done!" Seeing another armored vehicle being scrapped, Lieutenant Colonel Liu Yuqing, commander of the airborne troops, couldn't help but exclaimed. The airborne troops who saw the armored vehicle explode with their own eyes cheered even more.
For the airborne troops, those armored vehicles were their biggest headache. The airborne troops, who lacked heavy weapons, could only rely on limited rocket launchers or grenades to resist the advancement of Japanese armored vehicles.
After killing a Japanese armored vehicle, Shen Dongjing immediately changed places. After reloading a rocket, he once again aimed at a "more arrogant" Type 92 armored vehicle.
On May 16, the summer heat in Nanjing was as hot as steam.
At the same time that the Hainan Army's First Parachute Division was fighting bloody battles at the Zhenjiang Bridge and the Hainan Army's land forces marched north to join the war on a large scale, the Japanese base camp issued "Mainland Order No. 8": "The commander of the Central China Front Army must coordinate with the navy to capture the enemy's capital Nanjing. !” This was to crush the Chinese people’s spirit of resistance.
From the first gunshot, it marked the beginning of the unstoppable battle to defend Nanjing that Li Weidong had delayed for more than a year. After the battle to defend Nanjing officially started, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized fifteen divisions with a total strength of less than 100,000. People participated in the battle to defend Nanjing.
However, the quality and morale of the National Army units participating in the Battle of Nanjing could not be compared with those during the Battle of Songhu, and the combat effectiveness of the troops was severely reduced.
On May 17, Japanese troops attacked Nanjing from two fronts. Strategic locations outside the city fell into passive defense. As the Japanese army intensified their telegram offensive, the first line of defense outside Nanjing became precarious.
The Hainan Army went north to join the war, and the paratrooper division cut off traffic at the Zhenjiang Bridge, which put great pressure on the Japanese Central China Front Commander Matsui Iwane, so he made up his mind to conquer Nanjing and solve his worries first.
The next day, the Japanese army broke through the Nationalist Army's defense line and arrived at the gates of Nanjing. Japanese commander Matsui Iwane issued an ultimatum, ordering the Nationalist Army to give up resistance and surrender.
Of course, Nanjing garrison commander Tang Shengzhi ignored Matsui's ultimatum and issued the "Weishen Zuozi No. 36" order as a reply that day.
The general content is: "Our army's current occupation of the Fukuo position is the final battle to defend Nanjing. All units should try their best to defend the position with the determination to survive or perish. They must not abandon an inch of land lightly and shake the whole army. If there is any disobedience to the order, they move back without authorization. , we must abide by the order of the committee and handle it strictly according to the law of the company.
In addition, all ships acquired by each army are handed over to the Transportation Command for safekeeping and are not allowed to be detained privately. Song Xilian, commander of the 78th Army, is assigned to take command. Along the river, the police strictly prohibit troops from crossing the river privately by boat. Violators will be arrested and severely punished. If you dare to resist, you will be stopped by force."
Seeing that Tang Shengzhi was so disrespectful, the Japanese commander Iwane Matsui immediately ordered the Japanese troops to launch a full-scale attack on the National Army positions such as Yuhuatai, Tongji Gate, Guanghua Gate, and the Third Peak of Purple Mountain.