New Regiment, the Eighth Route Army's frontline headquarters.
Li Yunlong, Zhao Gang, Ding Wei, Wang Dehou and other combat advisers stared at the map on the table, all with smiles on their faces.
"Captain."
"As expected, the political commissar of the 129th Division sent a telegram. Last night, the main force of the Taiyuan Japs, the First Army Headquarters, the 1st Division of the 5th Division, the 28th Division and the 1st Division of the Mixed 3rd Brigade were along the
Zhengtai Road fled towards Ji Province."
"We were ambushed by our troops in the Zhaodongxiang area, and the shelling is still continuing."
"After two hours of shelling, the ambush force will launch a general attack on the Japanese."
Chief of Staff Wang Dehou looked at Li Yunlong and introduced the current situation on Zhengtai Road to everyone.
"Very good."
Ding Wei looked at the map on the table, his eyes shining:
"In this way, our entire Shanxi battlefield will be revitalized and the main force of the North China Front will be eaten up in one battle."
"More importantly." Zhao Gang also looked excited and sounded happy, "The main force of the Japanese took the initiative to withdraw from Taiyuan. In this battle, we can save many soldiers!"
Before the war, Li Yunlong and Zhao Gang had calculated the costs of the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese Army respectively.
If it were a field battle, the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese Army would have a casualty ratio of about 1:4.
The Eighth Route Army in northwestern Shanxi is indeed strong in combat effectiveness, but the combat effectiveness of the 129th Division brothers' troops is only slightly stronger than the Japanese army due to their powerful artillery firepower.
If the Japanese army adopted tunnel and reverse slope tactics, the Eighth Route Army could even achieve a casualty ratio of 1:1 when it launched a forceful attack.
In that case, the Eighth Route Army's casualties would be huge!
The casualties were at least tens of thousands.
but.
Fortunately, Li Yunlong used ground-penetrating bombs and surrounded the Japanese tunnels outside Taiyuan before the Japanese could react.
The Japanese who frightened Taiyuan fled.
As a result, basically all the Japanese in Taiyuan were surrounded by the Eighth Route Army.
Encirclement and annihilation warfare has even lower casualties than frontal field battles!
Li Yunlong stared at the map, a wise expression slowly appeared on his face.
The 129th Division, the New First Regiment and the New Second Regiment combined a total of 100,000 troops and marched to Zhengtai Road to ambush the Japanese. It must be said that it was a risky move.
Because once Yoshio Iwamatsu did not lead the Japanese soldiers from Taiyuan to leave Taiyuan last night.
Instead, they continued to try to rescue the Japanese who were surrounded as they had done a few nights before, and the Eighth Route Army would inevitably fall into a two-sided battle.
With powerful artillery fire and air support, the Eighth Route Army would not be defeated by the Japanese, but it would certainly suffer heavy losses.
Li Yunlong admitted that he was gambling.
But he made the right bet.
Yoshio Iwamatsu, an old Japanese soldier, got scared and led his troops to flee along Shotai Road towards Shouyang. The main force of more than 30,000 Japanese soldiers plunged into the encirclement of the Eighth Route Army.
Li Yunlong looked at Wang Dehou and asked: "Chief of Staff, the main force of the Japanese has escaped from Taiyuan. How many Japanese and puppet troops are there in Tianlong Mountain, Crouching Tiger Mountain and Taiyuan?"
"There are still at most 2,000 Japanese."
Wang Dehou looked thoughtful and then answered:
"However, the telegram sent from the political commissar of the 129th Division did not mention the puppet troops, which means that the puppet troops are all in Taiyuan."
"According to this calculation, there are still 2,000 Japanese and 15,000 puppet troops in Taiyuan now."
As the chief of staff of the New Regiment, Wang Dehou was quite knowledgeable, and he quickly provided data that was close to the truth.
"The total strength is 17,000."
Li Yunlong nodded, stared at the map and thought for a moment, then showed disdain after a moment:
"The puppet army is also called the army? It's just a bunch of people who get paid to eat."
If there were 17,000 Japs, Li Yunlong would pay three cents to the Japs, but there were 15,000 puppet troops among them.
Although many puppet troops were the troops that rebelled against the Jinsui Army.
However, these Jinsui Army troops basically did not really work for the Japanese, and basically only fought against the odds.
In such a strong headwind, if the puppet soldiers still sacrifice their lives for the Japanese, they are seeking death.
Li Yunlong's tone was stern: "Give me the order to have the 1st Battalion of the Combined Infantry, the 1st and 2nd Battalions of Heavy Howitzers, the 150mm Howitzer Battalion, and the 1st and 2nd Battalions of Tanks to attack Crouching Mountain immediately. After capturing Crouching Mountain, then
Capture Taiyuan immediately!"
"In addition, the aviation group is ordered to dispatch attack aircraft squadrons and fighter squadrons to conduct a bombing raid on Crouching Tiger Mountain."
As the most elite ace unit of the Eighth Route Army, the New Regiment must be the first to attack Taiyuan City.
Ding Wei also wanted a piece of the pie, but after thinking about it, he decided not to.
Some of the troops of the New Regiment have been transferred away, and now they have to continue to encircle the Japanese 41st Division. They cannot send excess troops to attack Crouching Mountain and Taiyuan.
"yes!"
Wang Dehou straightened up, turned around and went to deliver the order.
There are some concrete fortifications and many tunnel fortifications in Wohu Mountain.
It was previously defended by an infantry regiment of the Japanese Fifth Division.
A new regiment's attack will inevitably encounter stiff resistance and pay a heavy price in casualties.
But after replacing a small number of Japanese and a large number of puppet troops, the new regiment can capture Crouching Tiger Mountain at any time without paying heavy casualties.
Following Li Yunlong's order.
A battalion of tens of thousands of infantrymen was formed, and under the leadership of Zhang Dabiao, they crossed the Qinglong Mountain position in a mighty manner and headed towards Crouching Tiger Mountain.
In addition, there are 2 tank battalions, 2 heavy howitzer battalions, and 1 150mm howitzer battalion of the new regiment, closely following.
…
More than two hours later.
The new regiment's army pressed towards the Japanese position at Wohu Mountain in the northeast of Taiyuan.
In the headquarters, Zhang Dabiao held up his telescope and looked in the direction of Crouching Tiger Mountain.
In the field of vision of the telescope, Crouching Tiger Mountain was almost in a mess.
Prior to this, aircraft from the New Regiment and the headquarters conducted several air raids on Crouching Mountain, dropping a large number of napalm and aerial bombs.
The two heavy howitzer battalions also fired a lot of high-explosive artillery shells at the Japs' positions in Crouching Mountain.
Some concrete fortifications were destroyed, but there are still many concrete fortifications in Wohu Mountain, as well as a large number of tunnel fortifications.
"It's just a bunch of puppet troops."
"Batalion Commander, give the order."
"Let the tank battalion lead the infantry and capture Crouching Tiger Mountain and Taiyuan as soon as possible. Let's have dinner in Taiyuan City."
Beside Zhang Dabiao, the instructor of the first battalion was already a little impatient.
"Not in a hurry!"
Zhang Dabiao looked at the watch in his hand, his eyes sharp:
"The regiment commander has already called for air support for us. After the planes have dropped incendiary bombs and aerial bombs, the heavy artillery will continue to bombard us for another hour. We will let the soldiers come in depending on the situation!"
"If the Japanese and puppet troops continue to resist, we will continue to call for aircraft and artillery fire reinforcements."
"In addition, each battalion was ordered to set up mountain artillery and mortars and fire into an area one kilometer in front of the Japs position in Wohu Mountain to provide artillery coverage."
The Japanese laid a large number of mines in front of the Wohu Mountain position.
I want the Eighth Route Army to pay a heavy price in casualties when attacking.
but.
The Eighth Route Army was not without its own countermeasures.
You can use artillery fire coverage to blow up the minefields laid by the Japanese and puppet troops in front of the position.
The Eighth Route Army did not have many other weapons, but it had enough mountain artillery, mortars and artillery shells.
Although this tactic cannot clear all mines.
But it can greatly reduce the casualties of soldiers.
The instructor responded, turned around and went to give the order.
At this moment, the buzzing roar of aircraft sounded in the sky, and Zhang Dabiao and several combat staff looked to the sky.
In the northern sky, a new group of 20 fighter jets and 20 attack aircraft were seen flying in formation towards Crouching Tiger Mountain.
After approaching the Japanese and puppet army positions in Wohu Mountain, all the planes began to dive and drop bombs.
Boom boom boom…
The plane passed over Crouching Tiger Mountain, followed by an overwhelming sound of explosions.
Countless explosive fireballs rose up, and explosion waves and air waves spread at speeds visible to the naked eye, along with mud mist and shrapnel.
Most of the Crouching Mountain position was suddenly plunged into a sea of smoke and fire.
Buzz buzz!
After completing the bombing mission, the pilot quickly pulled the plane into the clouds, made a turn, and then flew toward northwest Shanxi.
"fire!"
After the plane dropped aerial bombs and incendiary bombs, the Eighth Route Army artillery began to fire seamlessly.
Following the orders from the artillery battalion commanders.
48 B4 heavy 203mm howitzers and 40 150mm howitzers began long-range artillery fire on the Japanese positions in Crouching Mountain.
soon.
The Japanese camp at Crouching Mountain was suddenly plunged into a sea of smoke and fire.
From time to time, the Japanese concrete fortifications on the ground were hit by 203mm artillery shells, and they collapsed instantly like a piece of wood.
The Japanese and puppet soldiers inside were also torn to pieces by the terrifying explosion wave in an instant.
The Hammer of the Loving Father, a concrete bunker and turret designed to deal with the Japanese.
As for those masonry turrets and bunkers, they are simply not enough to see in a battle of this level.
An aerial bomb can easily destroy it, let alone 150mm and 203mm high-explosive grenades.
…
"How long has the bombardment been going on?"
Zhang Dabiao put down the telescope on his chest, raised the corner of his mouth slightly, glanced at the instructor and then asked.
Today, Zhang Dabiao has also grown into a general who can take charge of his own role.
Commanding 4 infantry battalions with 10,000 infantry as the main elite combat force, there are also 2 heavy howitzer battalions, 2 tank battalions, and 1 150mm howitzer battalion to assist in combat operations.
The total strength exceeds 15,000 troops.
There are also 40 aircraft for air support.
Planes, tanks and heavy artillery assisted in the battle, and the battle was very comfortable.
This force is equivalent to an infantry division, two B4 heavy howitzer regiments, 2 tank regiments, a 150mm howitzer regiment, and a flying regiment.
Equivalent to a compositor.
Zhang Dabiao has never fought such a wealthy battle in his life.
At the same time, Jiefang trucks were going back and forth between the temporary ammunition depot and the artillery position of the new regiment in the rear, transporting high-explosive artillery shells to the artillery position.
On each artillery position, copper shell craters were piled up like hills.
The instructor raised his wrist and glanced at the watch on his hand: "Battalion Commander, it has been 45 minutes since the bombardment started, and there are still 15 minutes until the scheduled bombardment is one hour away."
Zhang Dabiao nodded: "It's not enough. After one hour of bombardment, there will be a pause of half an hour, and then each artillery group will bombard for another half hour."
"Battal Commander, why do you have to stop for half an hour?"
The instructor sounded puzzled:
"Isn't it enough to just bombard it for one and a half hours? Our logistics and supplies can keep up."
Zhang Dabiao smiled slightly, and then said: "In this half hour, let the soldiers from the enemy's Ministry of Industry shout to the Japanese positions and ask the puppet troops to kill the Japanese and atone for their sins."
At present, there are at most one or two squadrons of Japs in the Crouching Mountain position.
But the puppet troops on the battlefield probably number in the thousands.
These Japanese soldiers and puppet troops hide in tunnels or bomb-proof holes. Aerial bombs and heavy artillery shells have limited damage to the Japanese soldiers and puppet soldiers.
but.
A wave of aerial bombs, incendiary bombs, and an hour of heavy artillery bombardment were enough to scare the puppet troops out of their wits.
If there were no Japanese supervision, these puppet troops would have been defeated long ago.
At this time, shouting for the puppet soldiers to kill the Japanese would save them from death. What would the puppet soldiers do?
"clear."
When the instructor heard this, he immediately smiled.
…
Dull and terrifying explosions continued to explode overhead. The Japanese and puppet soldiers hiding in the tunnel were blown away and their scalps were numb.
Compared to the frontline headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, everyone was smiling.
In Crouching Tiger Mountain, in the tunnel where the Japanese and puppet troops were hiding, both the Japanese and the puppet soldiers looked solemn as if they were facing a formidable enemy.
All the main Japanese forces were gone, leaving only two infantry brigades and all the puppet troops.
At present, there is a Japanese squadron and a puppet brigade on Wohu Mountain to resist the Eighth Route Army's attack, with a total strength of more than 3,500 people.
In addition, there are similar Japanese and puppet troops in Tianlong Mountain.
In addition, there are 4 Japanese squadrons and nearly 10,000 puppet troops defending Taiyuan City.
An hour later, the shelling stopped.
The Japanese squadron leader looked at the watch on his hand and saw that the Eighth Route Army's shelling lasted exactly one hour.
The Eighth Route Army is simply too wealthy!
The Japanese squadron leader's face was full of despair.
Merely before probing the attack, the Eighth Route Army sent planes to drop a large number of aerial bombs and incendiary bombs, burning the position into a sea of flames.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Immediately afterwards, the Eighth Route Army used nearly 100 heavy artillery for an hour of shelling! Most of the heavy artillery had a caliber exceeding 200 mm!
The Eighth Route Army's small-caliber artillery did not bombard the Crouching Mountain position at all.
The Japanese artillery regiment has been taken away, and the only remaining artillery pieces are some small-caliber mortars and grenade launchers.
How to fight this?
"The infantry of the Eighth Route Army are coming up. All of them must enter the position. Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed!"
The Japanese squadron leader issued the combat order in a sinister tone.
As a soldier of the Japanese Empire, although the Japanese squadron leader was desperate, he had no choice but to fight the Eighth Route Army until the end.
As the Japanese squadron leader issued the order, all the Japanese and puppet soldiers hiding in the tunnels and bomb-proof holes got out of the tunnels one after another.
The trenches, foxholes and civil fortifications originally constructed had all been blown to pieces.
All you can see are dense shell craters, the smallest of which is several meters deep.
"Fortunately, the Eighth Route Army did not use ground-penetrating bombs today, otherwise..."
The Japanese and puppet soldiers looked at the position that had been plowed by high-explosive shells from heavy artillery and aerial bombs, as if they were mourning for their heirs, and there was a complete silence.
At this moment, more than a hundred heavy tanks drove to a stop more than 100 meters away from the Japanese and puppet troops' forward positions.
Seeing so many tanks, the faces of all the Japanese and puppet troops changed drastically.
The iron covers on the top of several of the tanks were opened, and a curved homemade iron speaker stretched out. While the Japanese and puppet soldiers were confused, a penetrating voice came from the iron speaker:
"Brothers of the puppet army, the Chinese will not fight the Chinese!"
"Now most of the 100,000 Japanese in Shanxi have been wiped out by our Eighth Route Army. Yoshio Iwamatsu and the Fifth Division who escaped last night have been surrounded by our Eighth Route Army on Zhengtai Road and may be eaten at any time."
"Now, there are only two ways before you."
"One is a dead end and the other is a way to live."
"Brothers who want to survive, kill the Japanese around you immediately, so that you can atone for your sins!"
"If you resist stubbornly, the only way out is death!"