Chapter 405 There is a problem with this eight-way branch!
Before dawn, the Japanese and puppet troops organized a counterattack in an attempt to recapture the city wall.
But it's a pity.
The Eighth Route Army's firepower was very strong, and there was artillery support outside the city, so the Japanese and puppet troops could not get close to the city wall.
After leaving behind dozens of corpses, the Japanese and puppet troops retreated hastily.
The sky is slightly bright.
The soldiers of the new regiment, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd attack groups were already ready and entered the city under the leadership of the company and platoon commanders.
The soldiers carried a ladder and set it up on the house, entered the house from the second floor, and started fighting with the Japanese house by house.
At the same time, the Eighth Route Army was also advancing simultaneously on the street. When they encountered a enemy position built with sandbags on the street, they did not use infantry to destroy it. They directly asked the members of the Sword Squadron to call for artillery fire.
As a result, the Japanese ambush firepower points set up on both sides of the street were completely useless.
In desperation, the Japs from the Yoshino Regiment and the small number of Japs and puppet troops who retreated from the city wall had no choice but to fight in the streets with the Eighth Route Army.
As a large number of Eighth Route Army soldiers entered the city, the Eighth Route Army attacked the inner city of Taiyuan from all directions, street by house and house by house.
Fighting broke out every moment, and as time passed steadily and cruelly, the streets and alleys of Taiyuan's outer city were eroded bit by bit by the Eighth Route Army.
"Report to the general that the Eighth Route Army has occupied the armory and ammunition depot near Xiaobeimen!"
In the inner city of Taiyuan, in the operations hall of the Japanese military headquarters, a communications lieutenant reported to Yoshio Shinozuka.
A combat staff officer nearby quickly placed a small flag representing the Eighth Route Army on the sand table at the location of the armory and bullet magazine at Xiaobeimen.
The armory and ammunition depot were left behind by the Jinsui Army. After being occupied by the Japanese army, they were used as an ordnance repair shop and a sports ground for soldiers.
The real arsenal of the Japanese army was in the inner city.
The location of Taiyuan Arsenal is also in the outer city, but it is close to the inner city wall.
Yoshio Shinozuka stared at the map. In just one morning, all the streets next to the city wall had been captured by the Eighth Route Army.
The mini flags representing the Eighth Route Army have surrounded the Yoshino Regiment and the inner city. It is estimated that the Eighth Route Army will be able to occupy the entire outer city in just one day.
At this time, Yoshio Shinozuka couldn't help but regret a little.
If I had known this, I should have listened to the advice of my trusted staff and taken a flight from Xincheng Airport to leave Taiyuan when the Eighth Route Army appeared near Xiaodian Town.
However, there is no use regretting now.
The only hope now is reinforcements.
"Where are the reinforcements from the 3rd Brigade?"
Yoshio Shinozuka looked at communications staff officer Toshimatsu Kasai.
Kasai Toshimatsu hurriedly lowered his head and replied: "Report to the general, at 9 o'clock in the morning, the 3rd Brigade has passed through Xinzhou. If there is no Chinese army blocking the way, it is expected to arrive in Taiyuan by dark!"
Yoshio Shinozuka narrowed his eyes.
The 3rd Brigade came to support Taiyuan with 4 infantry brigades and 1 artillery brigade, totaling more than 5,000 people.
There is no doubt that these more than 5,000 people are definitely no match for the Eighth Route Army.
Especially when the Eighth Route Army's siege troops include ace troops like the New Regiment.
However, the arrival of more than 5,000 Japanese soldiers from the 3rd Brigade can greatly reduce the pressure on Taiyuan.
If the 3rd Brigade can enter Taiyuan City, Taiyuan can hold on for at least 2 to 3 more days.
When reinforcements such as the 1st Cavalry Brigade and the 108th Division arrive, the First Army Headquarters and Taiyuan will be safe.
In the final analysis, the 3rd Brigade is just cannon fodder for Yoshio Shinozuka.
Yoshio Shinozuka said: "Order the 3rd Brigade to speed up the march. If we can't reach Taiyuan before dark, Major General Miyazaki will have a disembowelment to thank the Emperor!"
"Hi!"
Kasai Toshimatsu stood upright, lowered his head, turned around and walked out.
…
"Regiment seat, Baozi Mountain has been occupied by an Eighth Route Army. I sent communications troops up to negotiate. This Eighth Route Army is a battalion of Li Yunlong's department."
On a hill behind Baozi Mountain is the headquarters of the 358th Regiment of the Shanxi-Sui Army.
Fang Ligong walked into the headquarters, saluted with a military salute and then reported to Chu Yunfei.
Chu Yunfei also took a fancy to this terrain that was easy to defend but difficult to attack, and wanted to use this echelon to prevent the Japanese 3rd Brigade from going south to reinforce Taiyuan.
"Oh?" Chu Yunfei raised his eyes from the map on the table and looked at Fang Ligong, his tone a little surprised, "It's actually Li Yunlong's army? Li Yunlong's battalion commander has a good vision. Baozi Mountain is indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Great place.”
Fang Ligong said: "That's right, they are Li Yunlong's troops. Their mission is to block the 3rd Brigade for three days."
Chu Yunfei laughed immediately when he heard this: "It seems that Li Yunlong's attack on Taiyuan was lacking in troops. He actually used a battalion to block the Japanese 3rd Brigade for three days."
"Yes, Danza!"
Fang Ligong echoed: "The enemy is the 3rd brigade of the Japanese army. Although it is not the entire 3rd brigade, there are 4 infantry brigades plus 1 artillery brigade, with a total strength of more than 5,000 people. In addition, Miyazaki is not a good old devil.
Damn it, Li Yunlong's battalion might be eaten up by the Japanese 3rd Brigade in just one or two hours."
Chu Yunfei ordered: "Order the brothers to be prepared, match the echelons, and block attacks step by step. After the Eighth Route Army cannot defeat the Japanese and withdraws, our 358th Regiment will continue to fight against the Japanese!"
"yes!"
Fang Ligong stood up, gave a military salute, turned and left.
Chu Yunfei put on a pair of white gloves, with a Browning gun and a Zhongzheng sword presented by Principal Chang hanging on the left and right. His expression was eager to try, ready for a battle with the Japanese army.
He thought to himself, this is such a big favor for Li Yunlong, brother Yunlong, why don't you give Chu some American equipment as compensation?
…
Time passes coldly and steadily.
noon.
The Japanese 3rd Brigade marched all night and in the morning, and the main force of more than 5,000 people finally arrived at Baozi Mountain.
"Report to the general that the reconnaissance cavalry has discovered the enemy's position at Fort Hill, 1.5 kilometers ahead!"
A Japanese staff officer hurried to the command vehicle where Major General Miyazaki was riding, lowered his head and said.
The Fourth Battalion of the New Regiment had built trenches, foxholes and other civil defense fortifications on Baozi Mountain. Naturally, they could not hide from the Japanese's leading reconnaissance cavalry.
Miyazaki Masao was leaning on the Major General's sword with his eyes closed to relax. After hearing this, his eyes slowly opened, and a sharp light flashed between his eyes.
Although Major General Masao Miyazaki looks a bit older, his whole expression is ruthless and resolute.
"Stop!"
Miyazaki Masao said sharply.
"Stop!"
Immediately the Japanese staff officer shouted loudly.
The entire Japanese marching team immediately stopped advancing and ordered to stop.
After ordering the troops to stay put, Major General Miyazaki took the telescope to a position one kilometer away from Baozi Mountain and raised the telescope to take a look.
I saw a hilltop guarding the road ahead, and the enemy had built trenches, foxholes and other civil fortifications on the slope.
Looking through the telescope again, Masao Miyazaki discovered that there were mountains on both sides, and the highway was the only nearby road leading to Taiyuan.
"Artillery Mirror!"
Masao Miyazaki said.
The staff officer beside him hurriedly shouted back: "Artillery mirror, haha, bring up the artillery mirror!"
Several artillerymen hurriedly trotted up to get the artillery mirror, and then set it up in front of Masao Miyazaki.
Through the sight of the artillery mirror, Masao Miyazaki finally saw clearly that there were soldiers running on the position carrying ammunition boxes. Judging from the color of their clothes, it was the Eighth Route Army who was preparing to block the 3rd Brigade.
Miyazaki Masao asked his staff to spread out the map and find the location of Baozi Mountain on the map, which is still 50 kilometers away from Taiyuan.
If he could not reach Taiyuan before dark, he would be ordered to have a disembowelment to apologize.
He knew that Lieutenant General Yoshio Shinozuka was trying to scare him, because at the level of major general, he would not be ordered to have a caesarean section as an apology.
However, Miyazaki Masao knew that Taiyuan must have reached a critical moment at this time.
Putting away the map, Masao Miyazaki called Lieutenant Colonel Yamauchi, commander of the 4th Infantry Battalion, to come forward.
Miyazaki Masao said: "Yamauchi-kun, a group of Tubal Road ahead is blocking our way. Your 4th Infantry Battalion must eliminate this group of Tubal Road within half an hour, otherwise we will have a disembowelment to express gratitude to the Emperor."
"Hi!"
Lieutenant Colonel Yamauchi was stunned, so he had no choice but to agree.
Now the pressure is on him.
Lieutenant Colonel Yamauchi said: "Your Majesty General, I request artillery support from the artillery brigade!"
Miyazaki Masao's tone did not fluctuate at all: "It takes time for the artillery brigade to set up artillery. Your 4th Infantry Battalion will launch a feint attack first to find out the actual situation and the deployment of firepower points on the Eighth Route."
"Hi!"
Lieutenant Colonel Yamauchi lowered his head, turned around and walked towards his troops.
He raised his hand and looked at his watch. He took down the Eighth Route Army position in half an hour. Time was a bit tight.
However, after a probing attack, wait for the artillery to blast the infantry and then charge again, it should be able to defeat it.
Time is tight and tasks are heavy.
Lieutenant Colonel Yamauchi immediately ordered Squadron Leader Sato to lead his troops to launch a probing attack on the Eighth Route Army position.
Under the leadership of Squadron Leader Sato, the Japanese crouched low, holding weapons in hand, and headed toward the Eighth Route Army position in a skirmish line.
…
"Company Commander, the Japs are coming up, 300 meters away from the forward position!"
shouted the observer at the forefront.
The commander of the 13th Company took the last puff of his cigarette, threw the cigarette butt into the trench, and stamped it out completely with his toes:
"The Japanese actually launched an attack without firing. This is quite new."
Immediately he shouted loudly: "Each squad enters their respective positions and listens to my order before firing!"
Following his order, about 300 soldiers of the 13th Company came out of the tunnel in squad units with weapons in hand and entered their respective positions.
After shaking the submachine gun in his hand, the company commander didn't feel nervous at all.
The mountain of Baozi Mountain has been excavated simultaneously from the forward and reverse slopes under the overnight soil work of three companies of brother troops, and finally a stable tunnel was dug out.
Each trench is connected to a tunnel.
The location of the tunnel is very hidden. Not only can the tunnel be protected from artillery, but the wounded can be transported from the tunnel to the reverse slope. The ammunition supply on the reverse slope can be transported along the tunnel to each trench.
Before they even entered the shooting range, Japanese soldiers stepped on the S-shaped mines buried in front of the position one after another.
"Boom, boom, boom!" The landmines are very powerful. From time to time, Japanese soldiers would step on the mines, and then they would be blown up into bloody mist.
However, the enemy's formation was widely spread out, and the mines only made the enemy's formation chaotic.
"Fire!"
When the Japanese vanguard entered a distance of 100 meters, the company commander gave the order to open fire.
6 Maxim heavy machine guns, 16 light machine guns, 16 submachine guns, 16 bazookas, and more than 200 semi-automatic rifles opened fire simultaneously.
Da da da…
Bang bang bang…
Gunshots like exploding beans were heard immediately, and a dense rain of bullets enveloped the Japanese, who fell in large pieces on the spot.
However, the Japs reacted very quickly. When the soldiers in the front row were shot and fell, the Japs behind would either lie down on the spot, or roll over to rocks or mounds in different postures to avoid the rain of bullets.
After completing their evasion, the Japs pushed bullets into their chambers and raised their guns to aim and shoot at the Eighth Route Army position.
The Japanese machine gunners set up light and heavy machine guns in an attempt to suppress fire, but after a few shots from the machine guns, they were accurately killed by Eighth Route Army snipers.
The Japanese grenadier soldier took off the grenade and operated the grenade to knock out the Eighth Route Army's machine gun firepower.
But the next moment, he was blown up into the sky by a rocket flying with tail flames.
The grenade launchers and light and heavy machine guns all failed to fire, and without the firepower to suppress and destroy them, Squadron Leader Sato ordered a retreat without hesitation.
On the way to retreat, some Japanese soldiers stepped on landmines and fell to this land forever.
It was just a wave of probing attacks. Without using anti-slope artillery support, the fourth battalion found a large number of Japanese corpses lying in front of the position.
"Report to the captain, Sato Squadron has more than 110 casualties!"
Squadron Leader Sato, whose face was blackened by smoke, reported to Captain Yamauchi.
"waste!"
"idiot!"
Lieutenant Commander Yamauchi fired his bow left and right, and slapped Squadron Leader Sato twice in the face.
A probing attack actually caused more than half of a squadron's casualties. It was simply a shame!
Later, Lieutenant Commander Yamauchi, carrying his command saber, walked quickly to Major General Miyazaki, lowered his head and said: "General, there is a problem with this Eighth Route Army!"