Episode 59 Outsmarting the Sixth Red Division (Part 1)
Episode 59: Outsmarting the Sixth Red Division (Part 1)
The Lan 1st Division stopped about 800 meters away from Xinmengzhuang. However, the four tanks and six armored vehicles of the vanguard were scattered on both sides of the road and drove forward. Slowly and carefully, they drove to a distance of 200 meters from Zhuangzi.
At the position of meters, stop.
The four tanks retreated to a low-lying area on the south side of the highway embankment. They took advantage of the half-meter-high embankment and the low-lying terrain to hide their bodies, leaving only the turret exposed. They lowered their muzzles and aimed at Zhuangzi on the other side of the highway.
The commander only showed one head and was observing carefully with a telescope.
The 60 armored vehicles were also parked scatteredly on the south side of the road. The 60 infantrymen on them came down, holding submachine guns and light machine guns, and squatted low on the road. They used the baggage and vehicles of the Red Sixth Division left on the road as cover to conduct a quick inspection.
Make sure there are no ambushes, booby traps, or bombs inside these carriages and cars.
The four fighter jets overhead kept circling and swooping, trying their best to observe the situation inside the village.
"There are people everywhere in the village," the pilot reported directly to the headquarters of the 1st Lan Division. "There are thousands of enemy soldiers exposed. They are digging on the roads and open spaces in the village. They may be digging trenches, or they may be digging trenches.
They are laying landmines, and they are still pulling telephone lines... Enemy troops and local residents are mixed together... The number of residents is estimated to be nearly a thousand..."
"Understood. How is Shouchi's firepower configuration?"
"There are more than a hundred artillery pieces in Zhuangzi, 70 to 80 of which are mortars... Most of them are now hidden in the building, there are a few heavy artillery pieces, and 20-30 mortar groups are exposed.
It's in the open air, but the enemy is also camouflaging, digging artillery pits, and building temporary bunkers... Now you can see 6 heavy howitzers, about 150 mm caliber. Three of them have been pushed to three intersections, and they are building the other three.
Push hard... there are about ten artillery pieces, ranging in caliber from 75 mm to 105 mm... ah, they opened fire! Mortars, take cover quickly -!!!"
There was a muffled sound in the village, "Boom, boom, boom..." and then the air was filled with sharp screams.
In the command car of the Lan 1st Division to the east, the division commander covered his headset and shouted on the radio:
"Mortars—all concealed—"
Without saying a word, the tank commanders scattered in the field immediately got into the turret and closed the top cover. After a few seconds, the air above them roared, and more than thirty light and heavy mortar shells rained down.
These mortar shells hit the fields hard, but did not explode, but sprayed thick smoke.
Some tank commanders reacted too slowly and failed to retract the turret in time. Several more tank shells happened to fall next to them, so those tank commanders were immediately judged dead.
Immediately afterwards, there was another roar in the air, and a second batch of dozens of mortar shells fell again. This time, all the commanders retracted into the turret and closed the top cover.
Soon, the mortar shells were no longer divided into batches, but were mixed together and whizzed down continuously.
"when!!!"
A 60mm mortar shell was hit on the roof of a tank. The shell bounced and rolled to the ground, spewing thick smoke.
There was no need for the exercise referee to say that there should be a crack in the tank's turret roof. An arm consciously stretched out and clipped a red ribbon to the top cover, indicating that the tank was destroyed.
Mortar shells fell like raindrops, and from time to time a tank or military vehicle was hit. The military vehicle that was hit just stopped there, and the soldiers on the vehicle were all considered dead. And the tanks and armored vehicles that were hit were
, then a maintenance tank from the repair company will immediately drive over and drag the "bombed" tank away. Because a 60mm mortar shell hitting a car can completely blow up the car, while hitting a tank can usually only
Even if a tank is damaged, it can still be repaired.
…
A few seconds later, Rommel's order was heard on the radios of all units on the ground and in the air:
1: All the light mortars of the third regiment immediately fired smoke bombs into the village to block the sight of the red artillery observers.
2: The plane swooped into the village and strafed the mortar group that suppressed the enemy.
3: Be prepared to attack.
With an order, the soldiers of the 3rd Regiment of the 1st Blue Division, also known as the 1st Motorized Rifle Regiment, jumped out of the military vehicle, moved down all the 60 mortars, and set up the gun mounts. The smoke bombs were also moved down and set aside.
This kind of smoke screen bomb is different from the "high-explosive bomb" used in exercises. Although it emits thick smoke after landing, it lasts for a short time and mainly serves to mark the bomb point. The one we are preparing to fire now is a real smoke screen bomb.
.
In the middle of the road, a sidecar motorcycle belonging to the Blue Army was speeding toward the entrance of the village. Mortar shells from the Red Army whizzed down nearby from time to time. The two people on the motorcycle lowered their heads, fearing that the top of their helmets would be hit.
Soon, no shells fell around. This was close to Zhuangzi, exceeding the minimum range of mortars. Across the road from the village entrance, several tanks and armored vehicles scouted by the Blue Army were trapped here, with dozens of people huddled behind.
The soldiers shouted at them:
"Danger - take cover quickly -"
The sidecar motorcycle came to a stop, and a soldier jumped out, quickly climbed onto the top of a tank, stood on it generously, took out two signal flags and waved them towards the village.
Only then did the dozens of Blue Army soldiers see clearly that he was wearing an armband and was a drill referee.
…
In a private house in the center of the village, Huang Shuliang set up the division headquarters here. At this time, several radio operators in the house were monitoring the radio communications of the Blue Army one thousand meters away. Huang Shuliang also listened. The order given by Rommel just now
, how much his subordinates knew, Huang Shuliang also knew how much.
"Inform all units to prepare," Huang Shuliang took off his earphones and ordered, "They are going to attack the village... They are really worried about the civilians and do not dare to bomb with heavy artillery and bombs. Very good, very good, this is what I want
In this case, relying on the excellent geographical conditions, we will have a very good exchange ratio. It is certain to severely damage the Lan 1st Division. If the enemy is determined, it is not impossible for everyone to die together... We can fight hard.
Since then, the Blue Army cannot afford to fight. Now it is four to two. After the Blue Division is defeated, it will be three to one. The Blue Army will only have one division left, and it is not an armored division. We will almost win this exercise.
."
At this time, a field phone that had just been connected in the room rang. Huang Shuliang grabbed the phone and heard the observer's voice:
"Reporting to the division's seat, from the reconnaissance unit of the Blue Army at the entrance of the village, a drill referee called us a flag, saying that they were about to use mortars to launch smoke bombs into the village, and gave us five minutes to let the civilians enter the house, saying
Don't hit civilians, don't let civilians get injured during the exercise."
Huang Shuliang put down the phone and ordered the messenger to do it with a smile.
There was a commotion outside, and in less than three minutes, all the people in Zhuangzi hid in the building.
A drill referee from the Sixth Red Division climbed to the top of the tallest three-story building and raised a flag outside the village, telling the Blue Army that all the villagers had withdrawn from their houses.
More than a thousand meters away to the east, more than twenty 60-meter mortars from a regiment of the Blue Army began to fire bombs non-stop. Dozens of smoke bombs pierced the air and screamed into the village.
Suddenly, smoke bombs were everywhere in Zhuangzi, spewing white smoke. Soon the entire several square kilometers of Zhuangzi was filled with smoke, almost reaching the point where "you can't even see your fingers".
There was no wind, and the smoke screen rose steadily. As more smoke bombs continued to fall, after a few minutes, even some high-altitude observation posts could no longer see anything.
However, the Blue Army aircraft hovering above could not see anything about the situation in the village.
…
In the thick smoke screen, Huang Shuliang passed on another order: the dozen or so heavy artillery pieces that had just been exposed under the eyes of the Blue Army aircraft were now immediately changed positions, quickly pretending to be in marching mode, and pushed to another designated position. The original empty gun position.
Continue to camouflage, use branches and firewood to reach a similar height, cover them with camouflage nets, and cover them with branches and straw. At the same time, a large number of soldiers are sent out to lay mines on all the peripheral roads.
There seemed to be more planes overhead. There used to be only four, but now there are at least twenty planes. Those planes are flying very low, and the sound in Zhuangzi is at least over 100 decibels, which is deafening and noisy.
My eardrums are almost bursting.
Huang Shuliang sat in the room, looking up at the ceiling, chewing a straw stick in his mouth, and murmured something.
The staff officer next to him immediately came to his ear and shouted with all his strength:
"Master——What did you say——???"
Huang Shuliang cursed and shouted into his ear:
"I said - they deliberately put so many planes overhead - so that we can't hear the sound of their tanks - so that we don't know where they are attacking from -"
The staff officer nodded vigorously and shouted:
"Teacher, thank you--"
Huang Shuliang shouted again:
"They used smoke bombs - to make us blind - and now they are using the sound of airplanes - to make us deaf -"
The staff officer nodded vigorously again and shouted into his ear:
"Then we will remain unchanged in the face of ever-changing circumstances——"
"What did you say--??"
"I say - we - remain unchanged - cope with all changes -"
Uncle Huang nodded and patted his shoulder with a smile.
…
Now if you can only take a few steps in the open air in the village, you will step on a broken smoke bomb. Several soldiers have been injured. In order to avoid more casualties during the exercise, Huang Shuliang ordered all the soldiers in the open air to go into the house first and wait for the smoke bomb to pass.
come out.
In order to make more noise, the planes overhead flew low and slow, very unscrupulously. In normal times, they would never dare to fly so low. Let alone anti-aircraft artillery, even machine guns could shoot them down. Anyway,
Now the entire Zhuangzi has been surrounded by a smoke screen. People below can't see more than three feet above their heads. No matter how low or slow they fly, it is still safe. As long as they don't hit those two-story buildings too low.
But Huang Shuliang raised his head, squinted his eyes, and seemed to feel something was wrong. In addition to fighter jets and dive bombers, it seemed that there were also large twin-engine and three-engine aircraft. The kind of deeper and louder roar.
He immediately remembered that among the large aircraft of the Blue Army, in addition to the twin-engine "Swan" bombers, there were also several three-engine Junkers 52s.
That thing is a great tool for airborne landings.
Huang Shuliang immediately jumped up and shouted. In the huge noise, none of the staff members heard what he shouted. He simply threw himself in front of the table, grabbed a pencil, and scrawled a line of big words on the paper:
——Immediately send an order to guard against enemy airborne troops.
…
Gunshots rang out. There were machine guns and submachine guns.
Huang Shuliang immediately received a report that the east, west and south sides of Zhuangzi were subject to tentative attacks by Blue Army infantry. The two sides engaged in sporadic exchanges of fire in a cloud of white mist. Several Blue Army infantry stepped on landmines, and now their
The engineers have already come up and are clearing mines. Due to the well-set machine gun fire points at various intersections, the blue army engineers are constantly being killed, and they are never able to clear mines smoothly.
The report also stated that although the Blue Army was unable to enter Zhuangzi, it also deployed a number of machine gun teams outside Zhuangzi, as if forming a blockade, and the scouts sent by the Red Army were shot dead one after another. The Blue Army's "woodpeckers" also
It is fast, poisonous, and light. After a few hits, it can be picked up and gone. It is as elusive as a light machine gun. And because Zhuangzi is also surrounded by white fog, it is difficult for the red side's artillery to see and clear these machine gun points.
"They are totally planning to turn us blind."
Huang Shuliang paced, touched his chin and muttered to himself.
The smoke bombs continued to fall, showing no signs of stopping. Huang Shuliang took out his pocket watch and stared at the dial.
It has been almost an hour since the blue army launched smoke bombs outside the village.
The fighting was very intensive at first, but then the fighting became less intense, and the smoke screen was not so thick, but Zhuangzi was still shrouded in white mist, and nothing could be seen outside.
“They have too many fucking smoke bombs, don’t they?… ‘Smoky Fox’ is really fucking addictive.”
Huang Shuliang cursed and walked angrily.
He knew that Rommel had specially arranged several Junkers 52 transport planes to airlift urgently needed supplies to the Blue Army, including smoke bombs.
Of course, it is not possible to air-drop smoke bombs from behind so soon, but Rommel owns the sky and can resupply special ammunition through air drops at any time, so now he can smash out all the smoke bombs brought by a division without any scruples.
.
Rommel knew that he was an attacking force, and smoke screen was the attacker's best ally. When his tank group rushed towards the opponent's artillery position, there were two ways to most effectively reduce losses. One was speed, and the other was
smokescreen.
…
For more than an hour, neither the Blue Army airborne troops nor the Blue Army's large-scale attack were found in Zhuangzi. At first, the Blue Army engineers came to clear mines, but now they don't even clear mines.
Huang Shuliang had a feeling: Rather than so much an "exploratory attack", the Blue Army had set up a blockade outside the village to prevent his scouts from going out and prevent him from knowing the situation outside the smoke screen area.
Overhead, the Blue Army planes alternated in turns. Planes kept flying away, and planes continued to fly in. There were always more than a dozen aircraft flying low. The huge noise produced in this way made it impossible to determine the movements of the Blue Army tanks outside the village.
.
The villagers couldn't stand it anymore. It was fresh at first, but now they are clamoring for them to get out. Half of the chickens in the entire village were frightened to death by the noise, and according to the villagers, the other half of the chickens will not lay eggs in the future.
Huang Shuliang irritably promised to pay double compensation for all losses. In addition to the government's share of compensation, he could also ask the military to foot the bill. This appeased some villagers.
He bit the straw stick, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
... How can this be like this? Thunder but no rain... The smoke screen is thick enough, which can completely minimize their attack losses. Besides, my time is limited, and there are not many mines laid on the village roads, and
Mainly anti-infantry mines, not many anti-tank mines.
Huang Shuliang thought that if he were Rommel, he would lose a few tanks, open two or three roads, and then use Junkers 52 to airdrop No. 100 men directly into the village. In that case, it would be difficult to distinguish between ourselves and the enemy in the smoke screen.
The village was in chaos, and at least half of its attention had to be withdrawn to deal with these hundred or ten paratroopers. At that time, the blue army infantry took advantage of the smoke screen to rush in, and the Red Army was in a very dangerous situation.
But now, the Blues have done nothing but waste time.
...it takes time, yes, that's what it feels like...Huang Shuliang suddenly woke up and realized:
The Blues are wasting time!!!
Rommel had no intention of attacking this village! He put up these smoke screens and used these tricks. His purpose was just to pass the road in front of the village without any damage under the gunfire of the Sixth Red Division and continue to advance westward!
When he first gave orders on the radio to prepare for an attack, he simply guessed that he would definitely eavesdrop, and he just told it to himself on purpose!
…
Huang Shuliang frantically walked around the room several times, then grabbed a pen and paper, and wrote an order amidst the deafening sound of the plane. Regardless of the stunned eyes of his staff, the order was immediately executed.
A whole company of Red Army soldiers held their guns and roared. After being attacked by infantry artillery and grenades, and suffering heavy casualties, they managed to kill several machine gun points of the Blue Army and rushed outside the smoke screen area.
The scene before them shocked them all.
Outside the village, there are no thousands of troops ready for a massive attack. Instead, it is completely empty. The entire division of the Blue Army has disappeared. On the road outside the village, only the last few armored vehicles, a few tanks, and other vehicles are left.
There were about twenty mortar groups, just firing smoke bombs into the village.
The remaining small group of blue troops saw the hundreds of red troops rushing out. Without saying a word, they immediately loaded the mortars onto the armored vehicles, headed west along the highway, and drove off in a hurry.
The one hundred or so Red Army soldiers who rushed out of the village had only light weapons, and their infantry artillery was lagging behind. Facing several tanks that were behind the enemy's formation, they could only lie down and hide in the crops, watching.
At some point, the plane above also flew away. The smoke screen gradually dissipated.
Now, everything is quiet.
Huang Shuliang stood blankly on the village road, looking to the west in the direction of the 1st Lan Division, chewing straw sticks numbly in his mouth.
His Red Sixth Division was spared the disaster and survived for the time being. But Huang Shuliang felt like he wanted to cry without tears.
...I was fooled, and not lightly. My plan to fight street battles in residential areas and use my own infantry division to consume an armored division of the Blue Army was completely ruined.
Now they are marching straight towards Nanjing at a lightning speed. Now, only the Red 1st Division is left to the west of the Blue 1st Division.
"Rommel, Rommel," Huang Shuliang murmured, "you old fox... you have teased me, Old Huang, so hard..."