When the artillery attack began, Liu Zheliang and the others also began to retreat. From beginning to end, Liu Zheliang's troops faced the Yamada division that had lost all face in the Xiaogushan offensive and defense. Yamada Joji was eager to be the first to capture the cotton ships on the north bank. Island Fortress, so the 112th Division's offensives were stronger and stronger. Under such a strong Japanese attack, Liu Zheliang's department and the 304th Regiment led by Xu Feng suffered heavy losses. By the time they received He Zhengjiang's order, they began When they retreated, the two groups together only had about 250 people left.
The battle on Mianchuan Island has now entered the next stage. In the first stage, the defensive strength of the four regiments of the Xuebing Army was only about 700 survivors, less than one regiment.
The losses of the student army were not heavy. Artillery shells belonging to our own side rang out. Many students who realized that their battle was finally coming to an end lay on the ground, looking at the fire that had begun to burn. Not long ago, there was still the sound of gunfire. The land was filled with the sound of fighting, and tears immediately came to my eyes.
Too many comrades-in-arms fell there, their blood almost dyed the land red, and many of them were brothers with whom I could wear the same pants. How can this not make people sad?
"Bridge." A student climbed up to Liu Zheliang and handed over two crumpled cigarettes in his hand.
Since the war started, cigarettes have become the rarest item, even more rare than bullets. Liu Zheliang has been on the front line all the time leading the battle. On several occasions, he even took the risk of appearing in the most critical areas. , which naturally won the heartfelt support of his subordinates,
Liu Zheliang didn't know that these two cigarettes were specially left for him by a cadet he once rescued. The cadet finally went away, and the last bullet hit his heart, which made him suffer. The tormented and injured body could no longer hold on. Just before closing his eyes, he took out an almost flattened cigarette case from his close-fitting shirt pocket and handed it to a brother next to him, speaking in a weak and unclear voice. Said: "Here, give me a seat."
"It was left by Zhang Tianfeng." The student met Liu Zheliang's gaze and said with lowered eyelashes,
Liu Zheliang's outstretched hand trembled immediately: "Zhang Tianfeng, let's go."
"yes."
"Sorry, if he can hear it now, he will definitely smile with relief. Our efforts have not been in vain. Now, our cannons are roaring, and the little devil's destruction is not far away." Xu Feng on one side. As he said that, he patted Liu Zheliang's left shoulder hard,
The shells roared one after another, hitting the Japanese positions in the distance. Fireballs rose up one after another. At the top of some fireballs, one or two dancing khaki figures would appear. After two hours of arrogance, the Japanese army finally tried They had given the student army the same feeling before. Amidst the rumbling explosions, many Japanese soldiers clung to the ground. Their expressions suddenly became confused. Didn't the officer say that our troops were absolutely superior? The enemy's artillery had already Was it destroyed? Then, where did this rumbling sound of artillery come from? Could it be that the Chinese reinforcements came?
When the sound of shells breaking through the air began to tear at people's hearing, Okamura Neiji, who had just crossed the river, was pulled into a makeshift bunker by the two lieutenants around him.
Although the war on Cotton Boat Island was not yet clear, Okamura Neiji resolutely fulfilled his promise and set foot on Cotton Boat Island on time at five o'clock. The first thing that caught his eye was a group of heavy soldiers marching on a The corpses were burned in front of the big pit, and the strong smell of corpses reached his nose. His face changed several colors. Finally, he walked to the big pit, took off his military cap, bowed solemnly, and then saluted. Remember the military salute,
Later, accompanied by Yamamuro Munetake and others, he inspected the first defensive position of the cadet army closest to the landing position. On the position, there were not many Japanese corpses left, and cadets lying in various postures But it was all over the ground. I saw a student soldier biting half of his ear, his face covered with blood, and his abdominal cavity had been punctured, and his intestines were pink and blue, lying on the ground. His hands and wrists He had also been chopped off, and his left leg was bloody. He felt his eyelids pounding and his mouth dry. Gangcun had been on the battlefield, and as soon as he saw the posture of the student soldier clearly, this picture immediately appeared in his mind: a A figure in camouflage uniform suddenly jumped out from the ground, and then, an khaki figure was hugged by the waist. The camouflage figure suddenly opened its mouth. The next moment, the khaki figure let out a scream, and then he pulled out Bayonets, stabbing each other crazily...
This scene was so bloody that even the hard-hearted Gangcun couldn't help but be so frightened that his whole body trembled, his feet staggered, and he almost fell down.
"Your Excellency." Yamamuro quickly stepped forward to support him, "Are you okay? It's too hard."
Okamura Neiji pushed away his support, pointed with his right hand at the cadets lying on the ground, and asked in a harsh voice: "These are our enemies."
Yamamuro Zongwu didn't know what he wanted to express. He opened his mouth and couldn't say a word for a long time.
"If all China has this kind of warriors, we can't win this battle." Gangcun said with a bleak tone, completely different from when he was on the north bank. Suddenly, his tone became fierce again: "This is China." The best troops, which means that as long as they are defeated, from now on, China will no longer have troops that can withstand the iron heel of the imperial army, Yamamuro-kun."
"Your Mightiness."
"Are you confident that we can capture Mianchuan Island before 2 p.m.?"
"Hai."
Yamamuro's tone was obviously lacking in self-confidence, which made Gangcun very dissatisfied. He turned to look at him and said seriously: "Remember, the empire has the best army in the world. When the empire started to implement the active military system, the Chinese still delayed They wear long braids and fight with swords and guns, so we have no reason to lose to them, understand."
"Hai."
"Go and lead His Majesty the Emperor's warriors to create glory. We are facing the strongest troops in China. Defeat them and prove to those in the West that our Army of the Empire of Japan is the strongest in East Asia. of."
Yamamuro personally led the people up, but only ten minutes later, the artillery fire from the Xuebing Army came.
Nearly sixty artillery pieces fired a salvo, and the density of the artillery fire was only moderate. However, because the Japanese troops were gathering on the river beach one after another, this was not a heavy artillery fire, but it caused great damage.
Group after group of Japanese were blown away, and fireballs exploded, with flesh and blood flying everywhere. Okamura Neji stayed in a relatively safe bunker, watching the tragic scene where the artillery fire was flying, and the little ambition he had just established was once again affected. heavy blow,
"This battle, regardless of victory or defeat, will definitely go down in history." He suddenly had such an idea, and his mouth was full of bitterness.