People are shining their swords, secretly helping the Iron Triangle in Northwest Shanxi

Chapter 197

Chu Yunfei decided to adopt Chen Ziyun's combat proposal, and he would continue to fight here in Xin County.

The Independent 48th Brigade quickly finalized a detailed combat plan, and Chen Ziyun and other regiment leaders also began to return to the troops for deployment.

The 358st, [-]nd, and [-]rd Battalions of the [-]th Regiment, and the artillery company were responsible for the defense of the villages and towns, and their defensive troops were deployed to the south to connect with the [-]th Battalion of Hesuo Town.

The seventh battalion of the 11th regiment was prepared, the artillery battalion was stationed in Xinxian County for defense, the fifth battalion was attached to the cavalry company to advance to Xinkou Town for defense, and the sixth battalion was responsible for the defense outside the city.

The guard company and the field artillery company withdrew from Xinkou Town, and they advanced to the area east of Hesuo Town to assemble as the general reserve team of the whole brigade.

Zhang Fugui, who was transferred to the supplementary regiment as acting head, was accompanied by Chief of Staff Lin Zhiqiang, and quickly reconciled with the supplementary regiment.

After meeting with the supplementary regiment, they quickly commanded the supplementary regiment to advance to the battlefield and prepare for the battle.

Chen Ziyun and other officers quickly returned to the army and immediately made combat deployments.

After these troops completed their defensive deployment, the overall formation of the Independent 48th Brigade showed a U-shaped defensive state.

The [-]-strong remnant of the independent and mixed fourth brigade is still under attack.

Xinkou Town is located in the area north of Xinxian County. Once reinforcements from the Mongolian Army go south along the railway, Xinkou Town will bear the brunt.

As the head of the 11th Reserve Regiment, Chen Ziyun was duty-bound. He personally commanded the Fifth Battalion, and the cavalry company was fortified in Xinkou Town.

Other troops took the opportunity to strengthen their positions and prepare for tenacious defense.

Especially Liang Guoping's artillery battalion, they are the core of the defensive battle, and the artillery positions are constantly being reinforced.

The artillery also immediately dug semi-underground bunkers to prepare for defensive air strikes.

The independent 48th brigade is actively preparing for combat. Their morale is high at the moment, and they are willing to fight the little devil to the death.

For field troops, regular combat can improve their combat level and morale.

Especially in the case of successive victories, the troops will enter a peak state.

At this time, they will be able to demonstrate a super combat level, and the cooperation of their various arms will be perfect.

At eight o'clock in the morning on August 25, the reinforcement troops of the Mongolian Army stationed in Yuanpingcheng began to dispatch.

Thousands of troops, under the command of Major General Harada Kenzo, head of the 26th Division Infantry Regiment, advanced mightily.

But at this time, the advance speed of the Japanese and puppet troops has obviously slowed down, and they are very vigilant.

More than 600 cavalry troops showed different states. They were like a whirlwind, quickly dividing and advancing.

The First Cavalry Regiment under the Seventh Division of the Puppet Mongolian Army advanced directly southward along the Tongpu Railway; the Second Cavalry Regiment advanced towards Yanzhuang Town.

These two puppet Mongolian cavalry regiments advanced from the east and west sides of the hilly area respectively. They mainly served as the vanguard and conducted detailed investigations.

Kenzo Harada hadn't made a decision at this time. He didn't know the deployment of defenses in Xin County, so he didn't dare to decide the route of advance.

However, he has a large number of cavalry troops in his hands, and these puppet Mongolian cavalry troops played a role.

Two cavalry regiments were sent out first, and they would conduct a large-scale search and investigation to provide Harada Kenzo with detailed information.

Of course, Kenzo Harada had already got in touch with the Headquarters of the Fourth Independent Mixed Brigade, and he also knew something from Mitake Tsuda.

It's just that Mitake Tsuda retreated to the hilly area and switched to a defensive state with all his strength, so he didn't know much about the situation.

The speed of the reinforcements stationed in Mongolia slowed down, but they were not in a hurry to enter Xin County to fight.

After eight o'clock, the air force dispatched by the Japanese First Army also arrived here in Xin County.

Two reconnaissance planes checked the deployment of Xin County in detail, and they kept flying around to take pictures.

It was not until nine o'clock that the reconnaissance plane left Xin County.

It was at this time that more than 600 cavalry had already entered the range of Xin County.

The puppet Mongolian cavalry began to divide their troops. They searched every place closely, for fear that they would be ambushed by the 48th Independent Brigade.

Ten minutes later, the Puppet Mongolian Army Cavalry First Regiment and Cavalry Second Regiment were hit in Xinkou Town and Qicun Town successively.

After these cavalrymen were hit, they quickly withdrew without the slightest hesitation, and hurriedly reported to Harada Kenzo.

It wasn't until ten past ten that Harada Kenzo made a decision based on the aviation reconnaissance report and the cavalry search report delivered by the First Army Command.

The Japanese and puppet troops assembled quickly, and they began to march directly towards Yanzhuang Town aggressively.

Harada Kenzo is going to pass through Yanzhuang Town, quickly advance to the front line of Qicun Town and Hesuo Town, and directly attack the troops here.

In his view, as long as Qicun Town and Hesuo Town are captured, the road for the Independent 48th Brigade to retreat to the western highlands will be completely blocked.

At the same time, the remnant of the Fourth Brigade was independently mixed, and it can also effectively carry out cooperative operations in hilly areas.

"Quickly take down Qicun Town, Hesuo Town, and gradually move to Xinxian County and other areas to oppress the Jinsui Army troops."

"Strive to besiege them in the county area, and then we will join forces with the independent mixed fourth brigade to completely annihilate them in the county area."

"Immediately contact the head of the Tsuda Meiwu Brigade and ask them to hold on to the hilly area with all their strength, block the Jinsui Army troops in the east, and prevent them from rushing to help."

"The various ministries accelerated their advance to Yanzhuang Town, and quickly assembled in the area west and north of Qicun Town, waiting for follow-up combat orders."

Harada Kenzo directly issued combat orders to the officers of the Japanese and puppet army through the messenger.

The Japanese and puppet troops advanced mightily, and at this time they took a rapid march.

The horses of the cavalry are galloping, and all the infantry are running.

The trucks are towed artillery, carrying heavy weapons and following them.

Thousands of troops marched in columns, and from a distance, they looked like a long snake, advancing rapidly towards Yanzhuang Town.

The Japanese and puppet troops made a choice, and they wanted to take the lead in combating the 358 regiment.

At this time, the new regiment under the command of Li Yunlong had already arrived in the northeast of the county.

Three infantry battalions, directly under the cavalry company, artillery company and other units immediately prepared.

Two [-]-type mountain guns and three [-]-type infantry guns were erected at different positions.

Zhang Dabiao and other battalion commanders also received Li Yunlong's combat order and quickly moved towards the designated position.

At 10:30, under the command of Li Yunlong, the Xinyi Regiment began to attack Pingdingshan, Zhaizishan, Jiangjunshan and other highlands.

A unit of more than 400 Japanese troops stationed on these high grounds was attacked by 2000 troops.

The troops of the two sides fell into a fierce battle, the little devils' troops held on to the high ground, and the new regiment continued to launch a fierce attack.

Five artillery pieces provide support from time to time, and the sound of guns keeps ringing here, and the pungent gunpowder smoke is everywhere.

The combat power of the new regiment is not weak, and the weapons and equipment are also considered excellent.

However, the little devil's more than 400 troops relied on the high ground to fight tenaciously, and it was still difficult for the new regiment to win the battle quickly.

As for Chen Ziyun in Xinkou Town, he has already received a message from the brigade.

Chu Yunfei already knew that the reinforcement troops of the Mongolian Army were about to pass through Yanzhuang Town and directly attack the villages and towns.

Therefore, the brigade headquarters here specially sent a message, requesting that the 11th reserve regiment will gather the main force to the county town one after another.

In this way, if there is a critical situation on the front line of Qicun Town and Hesuo Town, Chen Ziyun can also dispatch troops to help in time.

After careful consideration, Chen Ziyun decided to abandon Xinkou Town and shrink the main force to the county seat.

The garrison in Mongolia dispatched thousands of troops, obviously not to ensure the safety of the remnants of the independent and mixed Fourth Brigade.

They definitely want to take down the county seat, so as to open up the connection between the north and the south of the Tongpu Railway.

Then even if the 11th regiment of the reserve group abandons Xinkou Town, the independent and mixed fourth brigade defending in the hilly area will not withdraw from the battlefield.

Even next, they may take the initiative to attack and cooperate with the troops stationed in Mongolia to recover the county.

Under such circumstances, it is obviously the best choice to prepare the 11th regiment to assemble troops for defense.

"Tuan Zuo, there is a fierce battle on the high ground northeast of Xinkou Town."

"According to our observation, this is the Eighth Route Army attacking the Japanese troops stationed in the highland area."

"This eight-way overall weaponry is well-equipped, with many artillery and heavy machine guns."

"And looking at their attire, it seems to be a new regiment that has fought with us several times in the Yangcun area!"

Chen Ziyun was about to issue an order to withdraw the troops to the county seat.

But Zhang Wu, the company commander of the cavalry company, quickly came to Chen Ziyun and reported immediately.

Chen Ziyun was a little surprised to hear that Li Yunlong's new regiment was also here in Xin County, and he hurriedly looked at the map.

The Xinyi Regiment was hidden in the mountains before, and the Independent 48th Brigade was fighting the little devils with all their strength, and did not notice them.

It wasn't until now that they began to attack high places such as Pingdingshan that the cavalry company reconnaissance troops discovered their existence.

The Xinyi Regiment has cooperated with the Independent 48th Brigade several times, so Zhang Wu is no stranger to them.

"There are more than 400 little devils stationed on Pingdingshan, and the overall strength is not weak."

"The new regiment is attacking here, I am afraid that the battle will not be resolved for a while."

"Maybe they won't be able to eat this raw rice, and they may even lose their teeth."

"Company Commander Zhang, you lead the cavalry company to advance northward for combat alert."

"It would be of great benefit to us if they took the Pingdingshan Highlands."

"If necessary, give them some fire support."

After Chen Ziyun hesitated for a moment, he directly issued a combat order and said.

At the same time, Chen Ziyun immediately transferred the cannon company of the fifth battalion to the cavalry company.

The Xinyi Regiment was fighting right under their noses, and Chen Ziyun definitely wanted to help.

Chen Ziyun knew about the situation on Pingdingshan for a long time. If the battle could be resolved easily, then Chen Ziyun would definitely push the troops here.

It was precisely in consideration of the Japanese army occupying the high ground that the battle could not be resolved in a short period of time, and the lack of troops of the 11th reserve regiment, Chen Ziyun gave up fighting here.

Of course, if you can win here, it will still be of great benefit to the follow-up operations.

Li Yunlong wanted to win here, and Chen Ziyun was very supportive.

Zhang Wu didn't have any hesitation about Chen Ziyun's combat order, and he immediately agreed.

Even though the cavalry company is now directly under the brigade headquarters, this troop was led by Chen Ziyun.

From company commander Zhang Wu to ordinary soldiers, they were able to obey any order of Chen Ziyun unconditionally.

After the cavalry company was reinforced by the machine gun company of the [-]th Battalion, they quickly set off towards the north.

The Fifth Battalion, under the command of Chen Ziyun and Wu Ziqiang, began to withdraw towards the county.

Wu Ziqiang didn't say much about Chen Ziyun ordering the cavalry company and the machine gun company to go north.

Obviously, Wu Ziqiang can now completely obey Chen Ziyun's command.

If it had been Zhang Fugui, he would have already stated that he would have to have a written order from the minister to cooperate with the Eight Route Army, and would have directly rejected Chen Ziyun's order.

Thinking of Zhang Fugui being directly kicked out of the 11th Preparatory Regiment, Chen Ziyun felt very happy.

After all, after he left, the entire 11th Preparatory Regiment was completely controlled by Chen Ziyun.

"Regimental seat, the brigade headquarter has sent a message, please return to the regiment headquarter quickly, the brigade seat will talk to you in person."

Chen Ziyun led the troops on the way to withdraw, and a signal soldier quickly came to him and reported.

After getting the report, Chen Ziyun didn't delay, he gave instructions directly, and quickly rode back to Xin County.

The regiment headquarters of the 11th Preparatory Regiment was established in the county seat, where there are radios and telephones to communicate with the brigade headquarters.

In order to prevent the radio from being deciphered, generally the less content the better, it is still very good to issue orders directly in this way.

But in order to communicate and discuss, many words cannot be clearly spoken on the radio, so it is better to communicate by telephone.

Chu Yunfei wanted to talk to Chen Ziyun in person, obviously there was something important to discuss.

As for what happened, Chen Ziyun could also guess.

After returning to the regiment headquarters in the county seat by horse, Chen Ziyun came directly to the phone.

The communications soldier immediately dialed the number of the brigade headquarters, and Chu Yunfei's voice was transmitted through the phone not long after.

"Ziyun, the latest news from the head office is that the Mongolian Army has dispatched more than 8000 troops to support it."

"At present, the Japanese and puppet troops have arrived in Yanzhuang Town, and they will soon come to Qicun Town."

"There are only more than 1000 troops in Qicun Town, and Qian Bojun is in command!"

"According to the situation we have, the overall strength of the Japanese and puppet troops is not weak, and they have strong combat capabilities."

"After discussing with the brigade headquarters, it has been decided to gather troops in Qicun Township one after another, to fight a decisive battle with them, and kill their prestige!"

After hearing Chu Yunfei's thoughts, Chen Ziyun showed a thoughtful expression on his face.

The garrison in Mongolia originally planned to deploy more than 6000 troops to help, but the commander of the army, Naozaburo Okabe, completely delegated power.

The chief of staff, Shinichi Tanaka, who held the command, issued an order to directly mobilize all the troops including the Seventh Division of the Puppet Mongolian Army to participate in the battle.

Therefore, the number of Japanese and puppet reinforcements instantly increased to more than 8000.

These more than 8000 troops have already advanced to Yanzhuang Town, and the reconnaissance troops of the Independent 48th Brigade were taken aback.

As the saying goes, if there are a hundred people, all shapes and sizes will sieve; if there are a thousand people, there will be no boundaries!

Thousands of cavalry troops of the puppet Mongolian army, together with horses and heavy weapons, are very powerful.

Chu Yunfei knew that the battle of Qicunzhen was very important.

As long as the Japanese and puppet troops win, their morale must be high.

And the morale accumulated by the Independent 48th Brigade will drop to the bottom in an instant.

In such an important battle, Chu Yunfei couldn't trust Qian Bojun, so he wanted to order Chen Ziyun himself.

(End of this chapter)