Chapter 927: The commander of the 35th Division is killed
"Brigade commander, telegram from headquarters!"
When the 15th Brigade stopped to rest, the radio station that had just been set up received a telegram from the column headquarters. Ding Wei took the telegram and took a look.
"Yes, the superior has changed the order!" Ding Wei thought for a moment and did not immediately execute the order. Instead, he said: "Immediately contact the Northern Henan Army Division to inquire about the current battlefield situation."
"Yes!" the telegraph operator responded and immediately sent a report to the Northern Henan Military Division via the radio.
At present, Ding Wei's 15th Brigade is operating in a decentralized manner, and apart from the brigade, the only troops invested this time are the 7th and 8th Regiments, and the 9th Regiment is in the northern Anhui base area.
At this time, the 7th Regiment, as the vanguard, had moved north from Suixian County to the south of Minquan. It only needed to turn west to reach Lanfeng.
The brigade headquarters and the 8th Regiment moved together, and were farther away from Lanfeng. They had to go from Zhecheng through Suixian County and then march along the route opened by the 7th Regiment.
Not long after, the Henan Northern Military Division sent a reply. At this time, the troops had separated from the battle with the Japanese and puppet troops of the 35th Division.
At this time, several main cadres of the 15th Brigade gathered together, and Ding Weiyi was discussing how to deploy the 15th Brigade next.
Chief of Staff Li Chenglong said bluntly: "Brigadier Commander, since your superiors have orders, just follow their arrangements. There is no need to take risks."
Ding Wei frowned after hearing this and said to Guo Huaiwu, the leader of the 8th Regiment: "Lao Guo, what do you think?"
Guo Huaiwu said: "Brigadier Commander, I read the message in the telegram from the Northern Henan Army Division. The Japanese and puppet troops fighting with them do not have a strong will to fight. They cannot help but fight. There is a real possibility of retreating."
"According to our current marching speed, we can reach Lanfeng before dawn. As long as we can cut off the enemy's retreat, everything will be easier to fight."
"Yes, I have the same idea. They say that if you have a good meal, you are not afraid of being late, but you can also score the time!" Ding Wei directly expressed his attitude: "This battle must be as fast as the wind and as powerful as lightning. Thirty-five people must be defeated in one fell swoop."
The division was annihilated by the Japanese and puppet troops.”
Ding Wei's central idea is actually very simple. While other brother units are fighting lively, the 15th Brigade is always watching from the side. It is hard to win a battle and not let the duck fly away.
"Give power to the 7th regiment. All commanders and soldiers must speed up the march. Don't worry about falling behind. The stragglers will gather on their own. There is only one goal and that is Lan Feng."
"At the same time, we called the Henan Military Division. Our department will not change the previous military deployment and ask them to cooperate directly."
Finally, of course Ding Wei would not forget to report to the headquarters.
At dawn, just when Taijiro Iida was hesitating whether to withdraw to Kaifeng, a large group of Eighth Route Army troops suddenly appeared around the Japanese and puppet army camp.
The divisional troops of the Northern Henan Army that had originally retreated turned back from the rear and appeared due east and due north of the Japanese and puppet troops of the 35th Division. The 7th Regiment of the 15th Brigade reached the area west of the enemy before dawn.
Ding Wei personally led the brigade headquarters and the 8th Regiment to the south of the enemy. After a brief rest, the troops on all sides communicated through walkie-talkies and all approached the Japanese and puppet camp of the 35th Division.
It is not appropriate to describe the state of the Japanese and puppet troops as frightened, but their fighting will is indeed low. The soldiers on guard at the periphery immediately withdrew to the camp after discovering the enemy's situation.
As soon as they entered the camp, the people above did not know the situation, but the officers and soldiers below knew that the Eighth Route Army was coming from all sides, and the panic quickly spread throughout the camp.
"The Eighth Route Army is coming, let's run!"
"Run? Where to run?"
"Anyway, there is a chance. It is better than staying and waiting to die."
The puppet soldiers who spoke were all veterans. Their many years of battlefield survival experience told them that the more crowded the place, the more dangerous it is, and they will often be hit hard.
Before the Eighth Route Army could get closer, the camp of the Japanese and puppet troops showed signs of instability. Some Japanese troops stationed in it tried to stop it, but it had no effect. Instead, they were trapped in it.
Ding Wei stood on a small high ground. Although what he could see through the telescope was not very clear, he could still observe the movements of the enemy camp opposite.
"Inform the artillery battalion. After the artillery is set up, first fire two rounds at the enemy. No matter how much damage is caused, the momentum must be sufficient."
Not long after, the mountain artillery battalion attached to the 15th Brigade aimed 18 artillery pieces at the enemy camp and fired two rounds of artillery shells. Although the observer reported that they missed the target, they successfully allowed the Japanese and puppet troops to blow up the camp.
No matter how hard the Japanese army suppressed them, a large number of puppet troops poured out of the camp like a tide. Taijiro Iida heard the noise outside and led a group of senior officials of the Imperial Army out of the tent.
The situation is over, this was Iida Taijiro's first thought, maybe he shouldn't leave Kaifeng City.
"The Imperial Japanese Army has reached this level. Is the situation really irreversible?" Taijiro Iida muttered to himself in frustration.
The senior officials of the Imperial Army had no intention of listening to the little Jaap's lamentations. They wanted to escape as soon as possible, but the division headquarters was surrounded by Japanese troops guarding them.
Although the entire camp was in a mess, the more than a thousand Japanese troops deployed around the 35th Division headquarters were not in disarray.
"Division Commander, the top priority is to evacuate as soon as possible, otherwise it will be too late."
"Yes, I can keep the green hills without worrying about having firewood, as long as..."
The high-ranking Lieutenant General of the Imperial Alliance Army who spoke was usually very majestic, but when Taijiro Iida looked at him with fierce eyes, he was so frightened that he could not even finish his words.
"You Chinese people have a way out, but I don't. As a soldier, it would be a shame if I couldn't die on the battlefield."
Taijiro Iida closed his eyes, thinking about his past, and suddenly remembered Harada Kumakichi, the previous commander of the 35th Division. According to the post-war investigation, Harada Kumakichi died of random gunfire.
Taijiro Iida opened his eyes, seemed to have made some determination, and said to the adjutant beside him: "Pull them out and shoot them all."
"Hi!" the adjutant responded, then waved his hand, and the surrounding Japanese troops immediately forcibly held down the senior officials of the Imperial Alliance Army.
"Taijun, you can't. Taijun, I am loyal to the imperial army and I will never have second thoughts."
"Taijun, please spare my life. I am willing to follow the imperial army and fight to the end."
Iida Taijiro took a deep look and said without any hesitation: "Execute immediately!"
More than a dozen Japanese soldiers pulled the bolts of their guns and put their muzzles at the backs of the heads of the senior officials of the Imperial Alliance Army. Then gunshots rang out one after another, and the begging for mercy stopped abruptly.
"Warriors of the Japanese Empire, I will end my life by committing suicide by caesarean section. Please show your final allegiance to His Majesty the Emperor and go fight against the Chinese."
Iida Taijiro was determined to die. Under his order, more than a thousand Japanese troops around the division headquarters launched a final charge towards the approaching Eighth Route Army.
However, these remaining Japanese troops did not play much role. The fighting or capturing prisoners lasted for more than three hours. Even though the Eighth Route Army adopted the tactics of encirclement on all sides, a few enemy troops still escaped from the encirclement.
After the war, Ding Wei and Wang Yigong rushed to the headquarters of the 35th Division. First, they saw the corpses of a group of senior officials of the Imperial Alliance Army lying outside the tent, and then inside the tent, Taijiro Iida fell neatly on a piece of white cloth, his face covered with tears.
He looked in pain. Most of the Japanese and puppet troops in other division headquarters also ended their lives by committing suicide.
"The little devil is very cruel!"
Wang Yigong shook his head, he could guess the situation at a glance.
"What a pity!" Ding Wei muttered, and then told the people around him: "The bodies will be buried nearby, and the prisoners will be gathered immediately."
