"Where are the 55th Infantry Regiment of the 18th Division? Where are they?" Ushijima Mitsuru asked almost dully.
"They should be being attacked by the Chinese!" the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel replied painfully.
As if to prove the wit of the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel, a red light flashed in the distant sky, which should be the color of exploding artillery shells.
"Are the Chinese also taking action over the 18th Division?" Ushijima Mitsuru asked again.
"Yes, Your Excellency, Brigade Commander, Lieutenant General Ushijima Sadao of the 18th Division called. The Chinese on the opposite side rushed out of the position like crazy. The 18th Division is organizing a counterattack to drive those crazy Chinese back. They can't
Draw out the troops that can assist the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade." Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel completely shattered Ushijima Mitsuru's last hope.
Painful, not because he is the last imperial army in this area that can assist the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade.
But based on the current war situation, this Japanese Army Major General, who was definitely a smart man, deduced that he had been deceived by the Chinese.
The Chinese did not flee in despair, they actually marched with a goal. The six consecutive days of hide-and-seek running were just to make him lose his vigilance, and the constant use of sharp single-soldier sneak attacks were just to make him angry and make him make mistakes.
So, the Chinese succeeded. They successfully transferred the infantry regiment guarding the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade. That was their purpose. Only in this way could they attack the Heavy Artillery Brigade.
If the heavy artillery brigade is destroyed, he, the initiator who promised Ushijima Sadao conditions and requested assistance, will be the first person responsible, although Ushijima Sadao cannot escape either.
There was almost no need to read the original text sent by Ushijima Sadao. Ushijima Mitsuru knew that the man more than ten kilometers away must hate him to death, and his tone would never be as understated as what his chief of staff said.
However, he still has a chance to make amends.
The 36th Infantry Brigade's camp is only 12 kilometers away from the heavy artillery brigade in a straight line. As long as the light troops advance at full speed, they may be able to reach the outer perimeter in an hour.
The seven or eight thousand people in the heavy artillery brigade are not pigs. Even if they are all pigs, the Chinese cannot kill them all within an hour, and the Chinese may not necessarily win the final victory.
The fate of the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade, or rather Ushijima Mitsuru's fate, is not entirely in the hands of the Chinese, but in the maneuvering speed of his 36th Infantry Brigade.
The Japanese infantrymen of the 36th Infantry Brigade probably never dreamed that there would be a day when their superiors' official titles could be determined by how fast they ran.
But now, that's it.
"Order the 45th and 47th Infantry Regiment, all lightly armed, to assemble as quickly as possible towards the location of the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade. I will personally award medals to the commanders of the brigade and the troops who arrive on the battlefield first, regardless of their performance on the battlefield.
The general and artillery battalion and other troops arrived soon after." Ushijima Mitsuru calmed down the pain in his heart and quickly ordered. He also bowed to the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel in a rare moment: "Seto-kun, please."
"Your Excellency, the brigade commander, your words are serious." Seeing the brigade commander who usually had everything under control, the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel knew that he was in pain and sighed in his heart, but he quickly bowed in return. "My brigade must be responsible.
Move forward vigorously and annihilate this daring group of Chinese people."
The distance is nearly 12 kilometers. If we still carry all the luggage and heavy firearms, especially in the dark, no matter how hard we run, it will take more than two hours.
Ushijima Mitsuru ordered his two infantry regiments to be lightly armed. According to common sense, this was definitely the most correct choice.
But after this battle, Ushijima was criticized by many military experts because of this military order.
Because in front of the 36th Infantry Brigade, there is not a smooth road, but a blocking defense line built by more than a thousand Chinese troops that took three hours to build. It is really difficult for light infantry alone to overcome it.
As a result, in order to rescue the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade and break through the Chinese defense line, the 36th Infantry Brigade organized three waves of infantry brigade-level "Long Live" charges within half an hour, but they were all repelled.
There is no doubt about the courage of the ‘strongest division on the surface’, but without heavy weapons, they suffered unbearable losses within the first 40 minutes of the battle, even more than the previous battle at Matsue Castle.
Many Japanese military historians believe that Mitsuru Ushijima, as a major general-level commander with rich combat command experience, should have guessed that the Chinese would put down their blocking troops, and he should not have made such a low-level mistake.
Perhaps only the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel and Chief of Staff, who was bowed down by his brigade commander, understood the true meaning of that bow after the war.
Ushijima Mitsuru did not make a stupid mistake at all. He had already thought that the Chinese would have blocking troops, but he had no other choice. If the infantry of the 36th Infantry Brigade still chose to march with various artillery, they might be able to
The blocking enemy was defeated at a small cost, but on the heavy artillery brigade's side, the day lily was probably cold.
For the sake of his official position, he must make an all-out gesture to rescue the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade, even if the 36th Infantry Brigade suffered heavy losses as a result.
Once he can break through the blockage, he will have a chance to make up for the mistakes he made.
Of course, if the 36th Brigade suffered heavy losses and still failed to save the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade, the heavy battle losses would have little to do with him.
The Chinese commander on the opposite side had obviously expected that Ushijima Mitsuru would make such a choice, so he chose to block more than a thousand infantry, which was the strongest force he could reserve from the attack sequence.
.
This is the mutual conspiracy and cruelty on the battlefield.
The lives of soldiers can only be the cheapest consumables on this chessboard that has already lost a sure-kill piece, including him, who personally serves as the top commander of the 36th Infantry Brigade's former army.
After thinking about all this, the Japanese Army Lieutenant Colonel broke into a cold sweat and was extremely grateful that he survived that cruel blocking battle.
It was really an extremely cruel battle, even worse than Songjiang Castle.
But the battle where the first shot was fired was naturally on the battlefield where the 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade was located.
After dealing with the Japanese patrol, accompanied by the gentle chirping of autumn insects, more than 80 infantrymen bent down and trotted all the way from a distance to join Tang Dao and others.
After continuous fighting, the Sihang Battalion once again reduced its strength by sixteen, with five killed and eleven lightly or seriously injured. All the wounded who had difficulty moving were asked to stand by in the rear. Only three people like Gu Xishui who did not affect their movement and shooting were
Only the wounded were allowed to return to the team.
The Sixing Battalion, which has only about 80 people, will serve as the vanguard of the entire army this time.
As the vanguard, the mission of the Sixth Battalion was to break through the Japanese infantry defense position 300 meters in front of the heavy artillery position as quickly as possible.
But that's never easy.
Although an entire infantry regiment has been transferred, a heavy artillery brigade must have its own infantry squadron, and the number may never be too large. However, according to previous reconnaissance, the Japanese commander is very cautious, and there is no guarantee that he will not temporarily use artillery.
Rush into the infantry to supplement the infantry strength of the defensive position.
If you want to break into the Japanese defensive positions in a very short period of time and create a breakthrough for the follow-up army, you must be the strongest force in the advance group.
The Four Lines Battalion, which once blocked the attack of an infantry regiment of the Japanese army in the Four Lines One Battle, said that they are the strongest army in the current area. Even the security battalion and the 67th Army Military Headquarters Guard Battalion that experienced the Battle of Songjiang could not.
There are objections.
Especially their battalion commander, named Tang Dao!
Deputy Battalion Commander, my name is Lei Xiong!
The first company commander is called Leng Feng!
The three commanders were all fully armed at the moment and were at the forefront of the attack formation.
All instructions are issued before entering the battlefield, and the commander is no longer as important as imagined.
Now they are both commanders and soldiers. They will lead their brothers to pry open the weak shell of the Japanese 6th Heavy Artillery Brigade, and then kill all the invaders among them.
"Dona Tower?" A Japanese sentry in the trench may have noticed something was wrong, but he was not sure. After asking softly, the searchlight pole behind the trench quickly moved over.
On the grass, what caught the Japanese soldiers' eyes were dozens of dark blue soldiers crawling on the ground.
"Enemy..." The Japanese sentry shouted with heartbreaking words, still in his throat, before he was shot and fell into the trench.
"Bang!" Yang Xiaoshan killed the Japanese sentry with one shot, and Niu Er over there shot equally decisively and knocked out the bright Japanese searchlight.
"Attack!" was accompanied by the roar of Tang Dao who had crawled more than 30 meters into the Japanese trench.
Two infantry platoons from the Fourth Battalion in the rear, led by Leng Feng and Li Jijin, threw grenades into the Japanese trenches in two rounds.
Slanting behind them on both wings, Cheng Tieshou also led two fire support squads, setting up two MG34 machine guns and four machine guns, aiming firmly at the Japanese trenches that were filled with smoke.
