At the forefront of the attack are 15 Lightning 3 medium tanks. Following behind are 58 Lightning 2 light tanks. Following the light tanks are armored personnel carriers, basically ensuring that each tank is followed by one.
.The last one was the motorized infantry on a truck.
The narrow strip selected as the ambush area is only 3 kilometers at its narrowest point. However, because the People's Guard tanks and armored vehicles combined only have more than 100 vehicles, the distance would be too large if they were completely stretched horizontally, and it would be difficult to support each other in the heavy fog.
Therefore, they formed a tight wedge-shaped formation, with only a dozen meters between each vehicle, just enough distance that they could see each other.
According to Rommel's positioning, the mechanized regiment was only used as a butter knife, cutting the Qing army into two pieces like butter, breaking them up, beating them until they lost their organization and their will to fight, and then followed up from behind.
The infantry will be destroyed.
The commander of each tank is required to stand out of the turret in order to have the greatest field of vision. These commanders wear headsets and lift up the turret hatch on their chests, just like a shield. Each of them has a handheld
They all have a submachine gun. When the enemy appears close and there is no time to retract the hatch cover, they will shoot with the submachine gun.
Tank battalion commander Shi Shengli was very proud. He pressed the submachine gun with one hand and grabbed the turret hatch with the other. His body bumped and swayed with the tank. Listening to the roar from the front, back and left, he felt that he had lived for more than thirty years and had never lived until today.
value.
He covered his headset and said loudly:
"I am the elephant, all units report the situation."
Soon, the voices of company commanders and platoon commanders sounded in the earphones:
"The lion calls to the elephant, no enemy is found."
"The badger dog calls the elephant, no enemy found."
"The monkey called the elephant, but no enemy was found. There were only enemy corpses, more than a dozen of them, all killed by the explosion."
"Kangaroo calls to elephant, no enemy found."
"The mountain dog called the elephant and found the army horse killed by the bomb."
"The tiger calls the elephant, the enemy is discovered, there is slight resistance, no support is needed yet!"
…
The leading tanks of a row of three companies were driving on a bushland. The terrain here was slightly undulating and there were sparse small trees growing there.
This Lightning 3 tank was crushing the bushes very hard, breaking a small tree from time to time. The bright lights shone in front of it. The heading machine gun on the front armor plate fired "click-click", and the tracer bullets marked the line of fire.
He flew towards the several Qing soldiers who were running in terror in front of him.
A Qing soldier stumbled while running, took out a grenade and threw it towards him. The tank commander shrank behind the hatch cover, and there was a loud bang. The tank passed through the smoke without slowing down, and the heading machine gun fired twice.
Kill that guy.
At this time, there was a flash of light next to a graveyard in front, followed by a sudden explosion of sparks from the front armor of the tank.
"Attention, attention," the commander picked up the submachine gun, shrank down a little, and quickly identified, "... anti-tank gun, one o'clock direction, 15 meters, eliminate!"
The turret "clicked" and turned a little to the right, and the synchronized machine gun fired at the approximate position. Then the 47mm gun barrel dropped a little. A roar came from the turret:
"High explosive bomb, over!!"
The commander hid behind the hatch cover and ordered:
"put!"
There was a loud bang, muzzle flashes flashed, half of the graveyard in front was lifted, and two Qing soldiers and an anti-tank gun were blown away. The commander excitedly hit the top of the turret twice,
shouted:
"Good shot, hit with one shot!...The tiger called the elephant, the tiger called the elephant, it was shot by the anti-tank gun, it was defeated by me, there was no damage, it's over."
…
In the next ten minutes, other companies and platoons also reported encountering Qing troops, but they were all small groups and had little will to resist. Most people just fled forward, and the few who tried to resist were wiped out.
However, more and more Qing soldiers were encountered. At first there were only a few scattered soldiers, but now it felt like they were everywhere in the thick fog. Various units also reported being shot by anti-tank guns.
Four of the Lightning 3 medium tanks rushing at the front were hit by anti-tank guns, but were not damaged. Its 40mm front armor was just enough to withstand the Qing army's 14.5mm armor-piercing projectiles. However, five Lightning 2 light tanks were hit by anti-tank guns.
Hit, two of them were penetrated. The front armor of these two unlucky tanks was only 30 mm thick. One machine gunner was killed, the other driver was killed, and the tanks broke down on the spot.
Shi Shengli listened to the report on the radio and ordered loudly:
"Keep going! Keep going! Keep up the speed! Don't fight!"
Dozens of tanks turned on their headlights, roared and charged forward, with machine guns constantly firing at the fleeing Qing soldiers. Occasionally, they were attacked by machine guns and grenades, but they did not stop. They only used their main guns and synchronizers as they advanced.
Machine guns were used to clear them. Those that could not be cleared for a while, the tanks drove straight over, leaving these small resistances to the infantry behind. Most of the Qing soldiers had lost their will after 15 minutes of intensive artillery fire, and they saw the overwhelming Ming army from a distance.
The car's headlights were turned on, and it rolled and crawled towards the north.
A few soldiers with good psychological quality would lie down when they saw the car lights approaching, using darkness and fog to hide themselves. They wanted to wait for the tank to drive past, then approach the tank from the rear and throw grenades. But they found that once they sneaked behind the tank,
, standing in a brighter beam of light, with an armored personnel carrier following less than ten meters behind, the machine gun in front spitting out tongues of flame...
Gao Dayi, the commander of the 1st Mechanized Regiment, stood in an armored vehicle, wearing a helmet and looking around through the armor plate. Ten meters in front of him was the butt of a tank, which was clearly illuminated by his own car lights. To the left and right
There is a pair of car lights about ten meters away, and the beams of light are bumpy and swaying. There is also an armored vehicle behind, and the two headlights are bright and dazzling, completely covering the back of my car in the light. Beyond that, there are trucks.
Between the trucks were infantrymen armed with submachine guns and following quickly.
These infantrymen are all soldiers of the motorized infantry regiment. Now, in order to cover the rear of the tanks and armored vehicles, they are required to get off the car and walk. Because it is dark and foggy, the entire armored group is not moving very fast, and the infantrymen can speed up to keep up.
.
The armored vehicle under Gao Dayi's seat was vibrating. Sometimes it climbed over the field ridges, sometimes climbed over the soil slope, and sometimes it pressed over a broken tree trunk. The soldiers inside were like sitting on a boat, clinging to the bulkhead, and their bodies were also moving for a while.
Leaning forward and leaning back for a while. Because it was open, the armored car was also enveloped in the roar of engines all around. The soldiers couldn't hear what they wanted to say, so they had to make gestures.
Amidst the roar of the engine, there were sounds of machine guns coming from far and near, and occasionally there was the sound of tanks firing. The regiment leader Gao Dayi held a submachine gun in his hand, observing the battle situation, and yelled into the headset:
"No... Let me say it again, all tank commanders are not allowed to get into the turret unless they are under attack! Otherwise you will not be able to see anything!... You are not allowed to turn off the lights... What? Turning on the lights is a target? I tell you
, turn off the lights and you are blind! All the anti-tank guns of the Qing army have been moved to the front. Now they only have anti-tank guns... and there are not many anti-tank guns... Then what is your armor for? Charge at full power and rush over.
!The vehicles behind will cover you..."
"boom!!!"
There was a loud noise, and a grenade exploded in front of the armored vehicle. All the soldiers in the vehicle crouched on the ground with their heads down. Gao Dayi was knocked to the ground by the air wave, and the soldiers quickly helped him up. Several soldiers stood
When I got up, I used the car lights behind me to see a figure running behind a bush with a gun in my hand. Just as they were about to shoot, the front machine gun of the armored vehicle behind them fired, and the soldier who threw the grenade was immediately shot and fell to the ground.
"Fucking x..."
Gao Dayi covered his ears and sat up, feeling quite shaken. He took off his helmet and saw a clear scratch on it. If it weren't for the helmet, his head would have been opened by shrapnel.
It’s not pleasant, it’s so unpleasant to fight in this heavy fog!
It can be said that the two major advantages of tanks: strong firepower and high mobility are not fully utilized in heavy fog. The effective range of the main guns of both tanks is several kilometers. On a clear day, the range is one or two kilometers away.
You can fire. Even in the hilly areas around Nanjing, you can fire within a few hundred meters. As for the machine gun, let alone. Fortunately, a heavy fog has reduced the attack distance of the tank to the same as that of a pistol.
Moreover, another major advantage of tanks: mobility has been basically lost due to low visibility. Now the infantry behind can keep up on foot without much effort. If this battle were to be fought on a sunny day, they would have to sit in a car no matter what.
Just go up.
The only thing that can be relied upon now is armor. Many company commanders previously suggested that the light tanks be placed in front to search, and that a smaller number of medium tanks follow behind and focus the attack. But Gao Dayi still insisted on using a small number of medium tanks to attack
The tank was placed at the front. Now it is proven how correct this decision was. The 40mm front armor of the Lightning 3 blocked the most attacks from the rear. Whether it was anti-tank guns or grenades, no Lightning 3 has yet been penetrated.
.
But even after losing their two major advantages, the soldiers in tanks and armored vehicles still clearly felt that they were stronger when they saw the soldiers running in terror in the lights ahead, trying to avoid bullets.
Although tanks are very disadvantageous, this is armor versus infantry after all. It is infantry who lacks anti-tank weapons.
…
A few kilometers away to the north, Hafon'a had just put up the division headquarters tent and was gathering the broken troops running from the south. He also heard the sound of artillery coming from the south, and could tell that it was some kind of small attack.
caliber anti-tank gun, and what’s even more frightening is that the sound of the gunfire is still advancing, getting closer and closer.
The staff officer next to him was interrogating several soldiers who were running so fast that they vomited blood:
"Tell me, how many are there? Did you see clearly? Is it a tank this time?"
A few soldiers drank water "Gurgling", their faces were covered with mud, they wiped a handful of them, and said with a trembling voice:
"Sir...Sir, it's a tank, it's a tank. You can see it clearly...I and I were lying behind the field. Opposite there were two boys who were so smart that they held anti-tank guns all at once. As a result, they
The tank was fine. It turned around and shot them all to death... We got up and ran away. The machine guns chased after us and killed several of them. We were the only ones who were more likely to die. We ran away.
came back……"
Halfon'a knocked on the table anxiously and asked himself:
"How many tanks did the Ming army have?"
"Too many, I've never seen so many tanks! It's full anyway, and all the tanks are shining brightly in the back! The sound is so loud that I can't even hear what I'm talking about! ... Master, hurry... run, we'll start as soon as we see it.
Come here, it’s too late if you don’t run away!”
Hafeng'a grabbed the soldier by the collar, gritted his teeth and said:
"Don't even think about running away. Stay with me and build a defense line! Build a defense line!"
He threw the soldier to the ground, pulled out his pistol and fired a shot into the air, shouting:
"Brothers, listen, don't run back. Anyone who runs again will be killed! Don't panic. The Ming army tanks are still some distance away from here. They can't drive fast in such a heavy fog. Set up a defense line now.
We dug anti-tank trenches and fired up all the anti-tank guns. Our anti-tank guns have all been moved to the north, and now I want to move them back!"
Hafuna sent out the gendarmerie of the division to gather together the scattered troops and selected an uphill area for them to quickly dig anti-tank trenches.
The phone line was cut by shelling, and he couldn't care so much anymore. Taking the risk of being intercepted by the Ming army, he used the radio to order the northern anti-tank battalion to move back immediately.
Fortunately, the shelling just now created a lot of craters. Although they are not deep enough for foxholes, they can be used.
Judging from the sound of gunfire, the Ming Army tanks were only three or four kilometers away from here. According to the description of the soldiers who escaped, the speed of the Ming Army tanks was not very fast. You could get rid of them by trotting. The speed at that time was about five or six kilometers.
It would take half an hour at the fastest to get here.
The defeated troops from the south continued to retreat here and were stopped, and the soldiers from the north were quickly mobilized. Soon, two to three thousand Qing soldiers gathered on this "defense line", and several simple trenches were dug. Anti-tank
There were more than fifty guns gathered, and the Qing soldiers squatted in the trenches, lying in the craters, aiming south with anti-tank guns.
Halfon'a held a pistol and patrolled behind the trench, while loudly lecturing:
"Brothers! Our Eight Banners Division is the most powerful unit in the Qing Dynasty, and our Eight Banners Sixth Division is the first unit to defeat Nanming's defense line! We completely annihilated Nanming's 87th Motorized Infantry Division last night! We are here now.
Those who attacked Nanjing were not allowed to fight! Has Nanming scared the courage of the brothers now with tanks? Let me tell you, tanks usually work well, but now with such a heavy fog, you can’t stand it! That thing
There is quite a lot of movement. When we come over later, don’t be afraid of anyone. Stay calm! Keep your guns steady and shoot towards the lighted place! Keep it close and hit. The closer you are, the easier it is to penetrate!
"Brothers, the Qinhuai River is behind us now, and there are mountains on both sides. If we don't win this battle, we will have no way to retreat! If they, the Han army, can just throw down their guns and surrender, but our Eight Banners Army can't! We are all
Bannermen, the Ming army always shoots them when they catch them! Our division now has nearly 10,000 people, and the main force is still there. Today, either we will kill them, or they will kill us! Brothers, give it all
I cheer up and fight hard!"
The Qing soldiers lying in the trenches and bomb craters listened to the division commander's instructions, especially the sentence "The Ming army captured all the bannermen and shot them", which really aroused the energy of a trapped beast in their whole body. Every one of them was sweating and grabbing grenades.
, holding the anti-tank gun tightly, pressing his face against the cold gun body, staring southward.
Halfon'a looked at his pocket watch and saw that it was already half past five. The sky was already getting dark.
The anti-tank battalion was still trying its best to move here, and most of the army horses were killed by the explosion. There was no way, people knew how to lie down during the bombardment, but the horses did not. The few horses that survived became frightened horses and went crazy.
Running around like that. Now those anti-tank guns are pushed here completely by manpower. What they can possibly count on are the more than thirty 37 mm small guns. The twenty 47 mm anti-tank guns can't be pushed here in an hour.
If you can't push it, you can't count on it.
Unfortunately, this kind of 37-gun can penetrate the front armor of Ming army medium-sized tanks. If it hits vertically, it can penetrate, but at a wider angle, it will easily ricochet. If the 4-7 gun can come up, it will definitely be one for each.
Suddenly there was a burst of cheers from behind, and Hafeng'a looked back and saw several artillerymen pushing a small cannon up in the thick fog.
Hafeng'a felt ecstatic and began to regain some confidence in winning this battle. Now that the first 37mm anti-tank gun has been mobilized, at least a few more can be mobilized before the Ming army tanks come over.
The People's Guard of the Ming Army only has 75 tanks in total, and now there are more than 50 anti-tank guns here alone. Coupled with a few anti-tank guns, it is not impossible to repel them!
"Division... division seat!" A soldier lying in the trench next to him said in a trembling voice with his ear to the ground, "Division seat, it seems that he is coming!"
Soon, the surrounding soldiers also felt it. They all put their ears to the ground and their faces slowly turned white.
"Don't panic!" Hafeng'a yelled, then he thought about it, and smiled calmly, "Don't panic, everyone, it doesn't matter, we must have seen them first. Get closer before attacking. The enemy only has fifty tanks.
And we have more than fifty anti-tank guns. As long as everyone hits one, the enemy will be eliminated and we will win! I declare that anyone who hits a Ming army tank today, regardless of officer or soldier, will have his military rank increased by two.
class!"
The military police crouched and trotted, passing on the commander's words. One man can eliminate the enemy with one shot, and the rank of the one hit will be raised by two levels. These two sentences are undoubtedly another stimulant, and the morale of the Qing army's defense line has improved.
Quite a few.
I didn't hear the sound of tank gunfire for a while, which meant that almost all the Qing troops from the south were running over. But I could clearly feel the tank group approaching.
The fine soil on the trench walls began to tremble and fall down. Now, without pressing the ears to the ground, the sound of tanks could be faintly heard in the air.
…
Shi Shengli looked at the gradually brightening sky, covered his headset and said:
"I am the elephant, all units report the situation."
…
"I am a monkey and I have found no enemies."
"I am a mountain dog and have found no enemies."
"I am a tiger and I have found no enemies."
…
Shi Shengli flicked his finger on the shaking turret roof, looking at the white surroundings, feeling a little uneasy.
It has been more than ten minutes, and there is no resistance on the entire front, not even the shadow of the Qing soldiers can be seen.
Where have they all gone? Are they still retreating to the north? Don't they know that the river in the north cannot be crossed?
"The lion calls to the elephant, the lion calls to the elephant."
A call came from the headset.
"Elephant received it, please speak."
"It's getting a little brighter now, can you turn off the car lights? Over."
Shi Shengli hesitated for a moment. Although it was "a little brighter" now, it was not morning yet and it was still relatively dark.
He looked at his watch and said:
"I am an elephant. Attention, everyone. It is five-fifty now. Turn off the lights on time at six o'clock. Over."
Just as he finished speaking, a row of fire flashed in front of him, and at the same time, the front armor plate of his tank was knocked hard.
There was an exclamation in the headset:
"Anti-tank gun!..."
Immediately afterwards, an explosion almost erupted in front of our eyes, and in the white fog on the opposite side, machine guns rang out "click-click-click".
Shi Shengli quickly retracted into the turret, closed the top cover, and shouted into the headset:
"Enemy defense line! Everyone enter the turret! Turn off the lights! Don't stop, charge quickly! ...Tanks, move forward!!!"