The heavens start from Changjin Lake

Chapter 869 'Tough Turkish Army'

Jiariling is a natural barrier 20 kilometers west of Tokugawa.

The mountains here are densely forested and the terrain is dangerous, with an altitude of more than 700 meters.

The road from Kaesong to Deokchon winds up the mountain and is very steep, so it is called the "Eighteen Bends" by the Korean people.

The road twists and turns through the pass on the top of the mountain, which can be regarded as a dangerous pass that "one man can guard the pass, but ten thousand men cannot open it".

If the enemy occupied the pass, it would be equivalent to blocking the place where the main force of the 38th Army must pass.

Even though the 113th Division succeeded in making a roundabout route, they occupied three camps and successfully blocked the enemy. However, without the cooperation of the main force, not only will the expected victory not be achieved, but it will also become a dangerous game in which the enemy goes deep alone.

Therefore, occupying Jiariling is the first battle to ensure the victory of the entire army in the second stage of the campaign.

Comrade Han and Comrade Liang, as well as military cadres, took this into consideration in advance and therefore adopted combat deployments: from Tokugawa, they surrounded the U.S. troops assembled in the Bichuan area in three ways, and our 113th Division inserted into the Bichuan area from southwest Tokugawa. Sansuoli south of Sichuan.

The 112th Division took a country road along the north side of the road from Tokugawa to Bichuan and attacked Bichuan.

The 114th Division attacked and advanced along the road from Tokugawa to Kaichuan, and quickly occupied Jiariling.

Jiariling is only 18 kilometers away from Junyuli. If we cannot rely on conventional methods, we obviously cannot seize the pass of Jiariling.

For this reason, the leaders are very anxious and require the 27th Division's vanguard nd Regiment to take rapid and fierce action. In any case, they must occupy Jiari Ridge on the night of the th to ensure that the two assistant divisions of our army advance before and after tomorrow dawn. Go to the powerful area west of Jiagri Ridge.

When Comrade Han discussed the combat deployment with Comrade Liang and Comrade Liu face to face, he said: "The next task of the 38th Army is arduous. First, it must penetrate three li and block the enemy's retreat route. Second, it must occupy Jiari Ridge. , cover the main force of the two divisions advancing into Qichuan! But the key is to insert into the three positions behind the enemy!"

Comrade Han emphasized the words 'difficult' and 'critical' very seriously. It is obvious that these two steps will play a vital role in changing the entire battlefield situation.

If the 113th Division fails to advance into Sansuoli as planned, then the enemy in the pincer offensive will be able to retreat to the rear through Sansuoli.

Similarly, if the 342nd Regiment failed to capture Jiariling in advance, the main force of the 112th Division and the 114th Division would not be able to pass through Jiariling as scheduled.

In large-scale corps operations, every minute of delay will have a profound impact on the changes in the battle situation.

Especially the enemies surrounding Bichuan cannot even be delayed.

At this time, Comrade Chief of Staff reported to everyone the comparison between the enemy's strength and our army's strength expected in the Sansuoli area.

Under the heavy blow of the 50th Army, the 66th Army, the 39th Army, and the 40th Army in front of the 38th Army, it is estimated that the three US military divisions escaping here are the main force of the US military, including the cavalry. The 1st Division was Washington's 'Founding Fathers' Division' and still retains the title 'Cavalry'.

In fact, there is no longer a war horse, it has long been a mechanized division.

The U.S. Second Division was the main force fighting in Europe during World War II.

They are the two favorites of the US military ruling group that they are proud of.

After Comrade Chief of Staff finished introducing the situation, Comrade Han pointed to the three camps on the combat map and said: "The serious problem is that the three divisions of the US military have more than 300 tanks and more than 400 artillery pieces, while one of our divisions only has ten A few mortars, just some anti-tank grenades, you know?”

This is a gap in equipment.

Everyone knows this very well.

They all understand quite well.

The 113th Division went deep behind enemy lines alone. It was indeed a very arduous task to intercept the enemy. However, everyone believed that the 113th Division could complete the task.

This unit has a good foundation, strong combat effectiveness, skilled cadres and command, and a continuous offensive spirit.

The division's "Gang 8th Company", "Model Combat Company" and "Antonwei Company" are all Red Army companies. They participated in five counter-encirclement and suppression campaigns and the 25,000-mile Long March, as well as the Zhiluo Town Battle and the Pingxingguan Battle. This is a A unit that has achieved many combat exploits.

Everyone has unwavering hope for the 113th Division.

"We will definitely win the 'Eighteen Sets' tonight, please rest assured, comrade chief!" Comrade Liang said firmly: "I believe they will definitely win!"

The vanguard of the 342nd Regiment marched quickly and arrived at Jiagri Ridge in the middle of the night, only two kilometers away from the main peak.

At this time, the soldiers faintly heard the sound of motors. Everyone analyzed that the enemy might have occupied the pass one step ahead.

However, the leading soldiers soon brought important news. A reinforced company from the Turkish brigade arrived first. However, because their clothes were relatively thin, they could not withstand the cold wind on the main peak, and they were lighting a fire beside the pass road to keep warm.

Gaining time is crucial for the soldiers. The accompanying army staff, together with the commander of the 114th Division and the leaders of the vanguard regiment, studied how to successfully capture Jiari Ridge so that the main force could pass through in time.

Sun Hongdao, leader of the 342nd Regiment, and political commissar Wang Li suggested a sneak attack.

Wang Li said: "The enemy is lighting a fire to keep warm. This is a good opportunity. The enemy is in the light and we are in the dark. We can catch him off guard and try to capture Jiariling in one go!"

The military staff felt that what he said was very reasonable, and decided to use a sneak attack to capture Jiari Ridge before the enemy's main force arrived.

The plan was issued and combat deployment arrangements began immediately.

The regiment political commissar Wang Li led the 7th company to approach the enemy from the front, while the regiment leader Sun Hongdao led the 8th company to climb the cliff from the side and make a detour.

In this way, two sides attacked, and one group sat down and captured the pass.

Sun Hongdao, commander of the 342nd Regiment, and political commissar Wang Li had defended here during the first battle, so they were familiar with the terrain here.

Wang Li, the political commissar of the regiment, led the Seventh Company along both sides of the road. He was walking at the front of the team. When he heard a noise behind him, he ordered the soldiers to take off the things that made the noise and move forward lightly, carrying only their guns. and grenades.

In this way, there is no movement on the body, but the big-toed shoes will still make a crunching sound when stepping on the snow, especially when there are so many people. He was also worried that it would arouse the enemy's alertness and alarm them, so he took the lead in setting an example by taking off his shoes and stepping on the snow with his socks on. In this way, the sound of footsteps was much quieter.

Then all the soldiers in the company took off their shoes and quietly approached the enemy along both sides of the road.

The Eighth Company also equipped themselves lightly in order to climb the roadless hillside. The regiment leader Sun Hongdao was the third person walking in front of the whole company. They understood and dealt with the situation very promptly and decisively.

There was a raging fire burning on the mountain, the wood made a crackling sound, and there was a smell of gasoline floating in the air, which dissipated when the cold wind blew.

The burning flames were also swaying with the cold wind. The enemies were divided into several groups around the fire, warming their hands, smoking cigarettes, and placing cans on the fire, smoking.

Because they were far apart, they couldn't clearly see what was happening in the distance.

The Seventh Company climbed for a while and was still about 80 meters away from the enemy. The company commander was about to attack. Wang Li quickly stopped him from being too anxious.

Because they were hiding in the dark, the enemy in the distance did not notice them, and the enemy was exposed to the firelight. They could clearly see the shaking figure of the enemy. Fighting from a distance of 80 meters was still not safe, Wang Li Decided to lead the team forward.

Moreover, there were more than ten fires for the enemy to keep warm. While moving forward carefully, Wang Li divided the Seventh Company into several groups, and each group was assigned a target to attack.

The soldiers held the grenades tightly and held their breath as they approached. The crackling fire could be heard very clearly in the silent night.

There are also those words that are unclear and sound very awkward.

More than forty meters away from the enemy, the soldiers all lay down on the ground and moved forward cautiously in the snow. Their palms and feet were so cold that they lost all feeling. The soldiers closed their mouths tightly and said nothing. As the soldiers in front left behind Traces move forward.

After crawling to only 20 meters away from the enemy, Wang Li gave the order to attack. The soldiers stood up from the snow like ghosts.

First, throw a series of grenades over and explode in the enemy's fire. In an instant, the sparks are like blooming fireworks, blooming into extremely gorgeous flowers in the night sky.

As the smoke from the grenades drifted away, the soldiers carried the replaced American rifles and rushed up the pass with a roar of killing.

This Turkish machine gun company was caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the 7th company. They ran away as fast as they could, and even captured several prisoners.

It only took 20 minutes to resolve the battle and successfully capture the pass.

Sun Hongdao also rushed up with the Eighth Company. He saw the enemy escaping to the west in a car. The car was speeding down the mountain around Shibapan, and the car lights were circling in the dark night. Sun Hongdao was determined to eliminate this group of enemies and cleaned up the Seventh Company. On the battlefield, while digging bunkers and fortifications, he immediately ordered the Eighth Company to rush down the mountain and block the enemy.

The road was curved. In order to block the enemy's car, the soldiers completely ignored their personal safety and slid down the mountain from Shibapan, which was overgrown with weeds and lined with cliffs. Their clothes were torn, and their palms were scratched by sharp stones. Some soldiers even fell. hurt.

With this desperate energy, the soldiers crossed four or five roads in a row and blocked the enemy's trucks at the foot of the mountain. They rushed out of the road and threw grenades at the enemy's speeding trucks.

The roaring sound of explosions echoed in the dark night and in the mountains.

The first car missed, but the second car was hit. The car burst into smoke, ran off the road, and plunged into the dark wilderness. It rolled around and lay on its belly on the ground, being thrown. The dizzy Turkish soldiers got out of the car and rushed into the fields in panic.

There was something hanging behind the buttocks of these Turkish soldiers, and they made a clanging sound when they ran, which was clearer than the sound of gunshots.

Some soldiers seemed to be stunned, and actually rushed towards the volunteers. Two soldiers rushed over, threw the stunned enemy to the ground, and held them captive.

The third car was directly set on fire by the soldiers. It lay on the road and burned with raging flames, causing the truck behind it to be blocked. The fields on both sides were dark and connected. As you walked through the field, the truck would have to lie down. They didn't dare to leave the nest.

At the shouts of their commanders, the enemies jumped out of the cars, some ran towards the mountains, and others got under the cars to resist tenaciously, constantly firing cold shots at the soldiers.

Seeing that the enemy was completely defeated, they neither unified command nor occupied favorable terrain. They just lay on the ground or got under the car and resisted tenaciously against the soldiers of the Eighth Company. They would rather die than surrender. When the Eighth Company soldiers approached the car, they opened fire, injuring several soldiers.

There were many enemies lying down under the car, hiding alive and dead together, and it was impossible to tell them apart.

Sun Hongdao ordered the soldiers not to begrudge grenades and bullets. If they should be thrown away or beaten, if they don't want their lives, then send them back to their hometowns.

He specially formed a platoon, armed with grenades and rifles, and threw and hit each vehicle several times before finally clearing out the enemies under the vehicles.

The captured prisoners were in trouble again. These enemies didn't understand Korean or English, and they didn't know what they were talking about. If we couldn't get information about the enemy from their mouths, we could only send them to the division's command, etc. Find someone to interrogate who can understand them.

This was the first time for the soldiers to fight Turkey. They were a little surprised at the tenacity of the Turkish soldiers. In the past, when they fought against the American soldiers and the stick soldiers, according to this situation, they had already surrendered with their guns raised, but this group of enemies was stronger than them. Be much more tenacious and refuse to surrender until death.

It was only later through interrogation that I learned that the reason why this group of enemies was so tenacious was not due to their bravery.

It's because he doesn't understand the volunteers, and he is worried that if he is captured by the volunteers, he will be brutally killed. It is better to take a bullet and die cleanly.

Like the American soldiers, they came to North Korea to make war fortune. When they heard that MacArthur boasted about ending the Korean War, they also entered the village like the American soldiers and robbed the Korean people of their copper bowls and spoons.

The deepest impression they left on the soldiers was that these Turkish soldiers carried three or four large copper bowls on their backs, which jingled as they ran, like a string of bells hanging on them.

The copper bowl looks almost like gold that has been used for a long time. Even if you tell them that it is copper, they will not believe it. No one is willing to throw it away. Even if they are captured by the volunteers, they will not want guns or bullets. These bowls Can't bear to throw it away.

The US military's spoils of war will be transported back to the country through their powerful logistics.

But these Turkish soldiers, unable to enjoy the powerful logistics of the US military, can only hold on to their own trophies.

After taking the Jiariling Pass that night, the 112th Division on the left also successfully cleared the nails on the road and climbed over Yuefeng Mountain and Ximuling.

At dawn on the 28th, the th avant-garde regiment crossed into the area of ​​Yukou Station in the southwest of Jiariling, and the st avant-garde battalion met the Turkish brigade and the first unit of the US military.

Battalion Commander Cui Jishan immediately commanded the entire battalion to fight. During the encounter, he was unfortunately hit by an enemy machine gun stray bullet and died. The battalion command post was attacked from three sides. Instructor Dong Shutang took over the battalion commander's command and continued to direct the soldiers to fight the enemy.

The machine gun company used precise shooting techniques to hit the infantry behind the enemy tanks with several rounds, killing more than 20 enemies. The remaining enemies fled in panic, losing the cover of the infantry, and the enemy tanks did not dare to advance rashly.