Sui Changqing was not very clear about the determination of the commander of the Sixth Column in Jinsui over there. For him, the Jinsui troops were not under his unified command. Sui Changqing was only responsible for commanding the Yingxian battlefield and the surrounding anti-alliance forces. As for the Jinsui troops, they were personally commanded by Commander Chen.
Although horizontal radio contact was established with the Sixth Column of Jinsui and a communications staff officer and a 50-watt radio station were stationed there, Sui Changqing only sent enemy situation reports to them on time and never asked for reinforcements. After all, although the two armies are on the same battlefield, they belong to different organizations.
His troops had just been transferred from the Northeast to the northern Shanxi battlefield. They were not familiar with the Shanxi-Sui troops and did not understand their combat style. In terms of seniority, he was a junior in front of the veteran commander, a brother army. Sui Changqing, who has a more delicate mind, doesn't want to dictate how to fight.
After arriving in Yingxian, Sui Changqing received the first telegram from Chen Hanzhang, telling him that as long as the Japanese army did not take the initiative to attack the northeast, the Jinsui Sixth Column must not be allowed to participate in the battle. If the Japanese army launched an attack in the northeast, the number of troops would not exceed one. The infantry brigade should not interfere with the battle in Shanxi-Suiyuan. Even if the Sixth Column of Shanxi-Suiyuan offered to participate in the battle, it should politely refuse.
The specific reason and true intention of Chen Hanzhang's actions were not stated clearly in the telegram, and Sui Changqing did not ask, but considering the current actual location of the Shanxi-Sui Sixth Column, it is at the junction of the northeastern Shanxi and Yingxian battlefields. , even without this order, Sui Changqing would not accept the request for reinforcements from this fraternal force closest to him.
The location they were in happened to be at the junction of the two battlefields. Behind them, the Anti-Alliance Division was engaged in a fierce battle with the Japanese army in Hunyuan. After all, the Japanese army in front of them had two field regiments, plus Search, engineering and baggage forces can be converted into combat troops at any time.
Unless you stop the training of the main force of the Tenth Division and mobilize all of them to participate in the war, even if you add the more than 5,000 troops of the Jinsui Sixth Column, there will still be a certain disparity in the number of troops, which will easily leave an opportunity for the Japanese army to take advantage of. Once the Thirty-Second Division is inserted behind the Hunyuan battlefield, the entire battlefield in Northeast Shanxi is likely to cause a certain amount of turmoil because of this miscellaneous fish.
Although as an old subordinate of Du Kaishan, Sui Changqing did not think that his old superior was not prepared at all for this very likely situation, but after all, everyone's military strength had been used to the extreme, so it was better to be relatively safe. Rather than causing the entire battle to become passive at that time, it would be better to place the Jinsui Sixth Column where it should be.
It is indeed somewhat embarrassing for this brotherly army to be placed in that position, but Sui Changqing is obviously unwilling to cause any turmoil in the entire battle due to his own plan. It is one thing to find an opportunity to be the mastermind. But Sui Changqing, who was born as chief of staff, obviously has a much more overall view.
As for the current Shanxi-Sui Sixth Column, which is gearing up to deal with the Japanese infantry brigade attacking northeastern Shanxi in one fell swoop, Sui Changqing is naturally optimistic about the success. After all, it has been hit right under the nose. Even if Commander Chen is here, he cannot stop it. Keep others from taking action.
In fact, Sui Changqing can understand the current thoughts of the two military and political officers of the Shanxi-Sui Sixth Column. The battle at Ruyuekou was not fought well. Although the blame cannot all fall on the Sixth Column, after all, they have a certain responsibility. The army has just completed its reorganization. Although there are two brigades, the total number of the army is only more than 5,000.
Even with the two battalions of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, the total strength was less than 7,000. Under the unfavorable terrain, the strength was insufficient, and most of the troops were upgraded by local armed forces before this battle. , coupled with the fact that it was a feint attack, the defeat in the first battle was somewhat excusable.
However, Sui Changqing also looked at their deployment and command at the time, and found that there were indeed many problems. The guard troops on the flanks were too small. The commanding heights had been occupied by the enemy first, and they did not conduct detailed reconnaissance of the terrain and enemy situation. Before the troops could concentrate, they rashly launched a counterattack.
Not only was the location chosen for the frontal attack too narrow, but the number of troops for the counterattack was also increased one after another. The entire counterattack became a refueling tactic. During the counterattack, only a hard attack from the front was focused on, and no attention was paid to detours on the flanks, let alone flanking. It can cut off the connection between Tiejia Ridge and Wudou Mountain, as well as with the Japanese army in depth.
After the counterattack failed, the troops advanced and retreated somewhat out of order. The Japanese army concentrated its main force and rushed forward. The formation of a brigade participating in the counterattack was immediately disrupted, and the troops were suppressed in the Ruyue ditch. If it were not for the two anti-alliance battalions that seized the Ruyue ditch first, Crossing the mountains on both sides of the mouth and forcibly covering the brigade, I'm afraid they will suffer a little loss by then.
Fortunately, the troops developed through long-term independent guerrilla operations have strong independent combat capabilities and strong adaptability to the battlefield. Although the Japanese army broke up the organization, most of the troops are organized into battalions and companies, and practice makes perfect. They are dispersed safely. After breaking out, not even much equipment was lost, only one heavy machine gun was lost.
After the breakout, the troops were regrouped very quickly. Although they suffered some losses overall, the amount of losses was still acceptable. Generally speaking, it was not too big. The wounded were basically brought out. Those who could be overwhelmed by the troops Under the circumstances, the troops not only did not disperse, but also brought out everything they could. Sui Changqing admired this very much. Even the old Anti-Japanese Federation who fought guerrillas in the past could not do this.
However, in Sui Changqing's view, there were many reasons for the defeat of the Ruyuekou battle, but the most important point was probably due to their military and political chief. He believed that no matter how many reasons there were for the failure of the Sixth Column in this battle, it was actually just one sentence, This battle was fought too hastily and I expressed myself too much.
The order given by Commander Chen Hanzhang to them was to fight continuously along the Ruyuekou line. However, the Shanxi-Sui Sixth Column was transferred from the south of Shuo County to the direction of Ruyuekou and found that Tiejia Mountain and Wudou Mountain had been seized by the Japanese army. Regardless of the fact that the troops have not yet been fully assembled, the two organized brigades only arrived at the 14th Brigade, plus a regiment from the Taiyue Military Region. They even launched a counterattack without even having a chance to check the terrain.
If this 14th brigade first relies on the old positions left by the Jinsui Army on the Ruyuekou line, on the one hand it will stick to the mountains on both sides of Ruyuekou until the follow-up troops arrive, and on the other hand it will conduct a careful reconnaissance of the terrain, although the commanding heights are controlled by the Japanese army. In hand, but the mountains on both sides of Ruyuekou are still in hand.
If they were calmer, even if they could not recapture Tiejia Mountain, they would not have allowed the Japanese army to advance to Yingxian County so quickly. They fought too hastily and suffered a big loss. The most important thing is that in Sui Changqing's view, Tiejia Mountain Although the mountain is the commanding height inside and outside Ruyuekou, the local mountains are undulating and there are quite a few blocking positions. There is no need to recapture this commanding height. If you stay calm, you should be able to gain three to five days.
Although a brigade of its follow-up troops also arrived in the shortest time, they only had time to cover the 14th Brigade. However, because the favorable terrain was captured by the Japanese army, there was no immediate position to set up. Unable to slow down the Japanese attack speed, when the 14th Brigade withdrew, the Japanese were almost chasing them all the way down.
The defeat of this battle made the commander and political commissar of the Jinsui Sixth Column, before they withdrew to the northeast for rest, expressed their dissatisfaction with this battle when they met with him. There was a sense of dissatisfaction with this battle. The expressions on their faces were also very ugly, as the expressions on the faces of the two brigade commanders who had been severely criticized were probably very ugly.
The most important thing is that I have been fighting hard here for many days, and I have declined many calls from there mainly asking for reinforcements. I am afraid that this six-column team has been holding back their energy for a long time, and may even think that they look down on them. At this time Ide Tetsuzo dispatched a large group of troops to attack northeast of Yingxian County. He took this opportunity to avenge his past humiliation and fight a good battle to show himself.
Whether the current thoughts of the Jinsui Sixth Column are the same as what he judged is not important to Sui Changqing. For him, after the infantry brigade was transferred to the northeast, it was the best time to counterattack across the board. Originally, he He was also worried that a stalemate would affect Commander Chen's deployment of the entire battle, so he was still slightly hesitant about the time to launch the attack.
But now that Lieutenant General Ide Tetsuzo is in front of him, since he has weakened the strength of his left wing, the remaining forces at the junction between the left wing of the Yingxian battlefield and its western front troops are no more than an infantry squadron plus an engineering squadron, plus light armored vehicles. A squadron.
Such a small force in such a large depth is so thin that it can almost be said that one's flanks have been completely exposed. If he is still sitting here and waiting, he will be a bit sorry for others' hard work. If the fighter planes are not arriving at this time, then When will the time come? Sui Changqing still remembers the principle of attacking first to gain advantage and attacking later to suffer disaster.
Since Ide Tetsuzo himself has exposed his flank, he will take advantage of your illness to kill you. I don’t ask for annihilation, but there is no problem in defeating you, so Sui Changqing’s first wave of counterattack fists are ready to hit you. The Japanese army separated the two frontal regiments of the Japanese army at the Longquan line at the junction of the two frontal regiments in Yingxian County, and then concentrated their forces to annihilate one of them first.
After the Japanese brigade attacking in the northeast fought with the Sixth Column of Jinsui at Shuigoumen and Heishitouyao, he immediately ordered the two regiments that had been waiting on the front line of Xuejiaying on the north bank of the Sangqian River to attack with five battalions. The troops immediately forcibly moved south, divided into two lines, along the Sujiafang, Qinzhuang, and Guandaopu lines, directly into the Lizhuang and Sanli Village lines, and directly into the left flank of the enemy in front of Yingxian County.
Originally responsible for the northwest defense of Yingxian County, but now under the command of the 10th Division, after it was withdrawn from Ruyuekou, it was transferred to the northwest by him on the second day of fighting in Yingxian County. Now he has organized the remaining troops into a reinforced company. Together with one battalion and two companies transferred from the 29th Regiment, they were combined into a two-battalion simplified regiment for northwest defense.
The second battalion of the 30th Regiment was fully organized and commanded by the regimental commander who was originally responsible for the operations of the unit. It immediately turned around and headed southwest, forcibly crossing Huanghualiang at the junction of Shanyin and Yingxian, where a fierce battle with Yi Liangpin was taking place. A section of the Japanese army launched an attack from behind.
Cooperating with Yi Liangpin, who was fighting against the Japanese army, he adopted a two-sided attack to completely defeat the Japanese army, and cut off the Japanese army's route to reinforce the battlefields around Yingxian County when necessary, ensuring the main battlefield of Yingxian County. security of the flanks.
Sui Changqing admired the ability of this regiment leader. Under such circumstances, he could cover the Jinsui troops and organize the troops along the way to disperse them as much as possible to slow down the Japanese attack speed. Although for some reasons, during the battle, The casualties among the troops were somewhat higher.
However, he was able to bring down the troops in such a critical situation, and no one of the blocking positions was overwhelmed by the Japanese army. This shows that he is very capable and will hand over the troops inserted into the front line of Huanghualiang to him. As the commander, Sui Changqing is quite relieved.