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

The Major Captain of the Fourth Battalion had an obvious intention to fight. He was prepared to wait until the new regiment approached, then concentrate the fire and start shooting.

Captain Major believed that his men's strong individual combat capabilities would definitely be able to deal a heavy blow to the new regiment.

After he gave the shooting order, the little devils were ready to take aim, lock the target and prepare to pull the trigger.

However, before they had time to launch a fire attack, Zhou Wenbo commanded the artillery unit to launch the artillery attack first.

Ten Soviet-style field guns and twenty-two Jin-style orogenic guns fired one after another, and a large number of shells were fired directly at the fourth brigade.

At the same time, two heavy weapons battalions and an artillery battalion launched artillery attacks at the same time.

Mortars, infantry guns, machine guns, anti-aircraft machine guns and other weapons continued to fire.

At the same time, the grenades equipped by each platoon, the 60MM mortars equipped by each company, the flat-firing cannons and heavy machine guns of each battalion's machine gun company fired one after another.

Countless bullets and artillery shells were fired towards the Fourth Brigade's position, and many little Japs were hit one after another before they had time to shoot.

The four infantry battalions of the New Regiment continued to attack, and the commanders of each battalion commanded the troops to accelerate towards the position.

The Fourth Battalion faced such firepower and suffered increasing casualties and losses.

Matsutaro Tanabe, captain of the 18th Regiment, gradually discovered the situation here in the Fourth Battalion and frowned tightly.

He wanted to deploy other troops to strengthen the defense of the Fourth Brigade, but the 358th Regiment and the 601st Regiment conducted diversionary attacks from other directions.

The 18th Regiment is short of troops and has no extra troops to mobilize.

What Matsutaro Tanabe could do was to mobilize mountain artillery and mortars to focus on suppressing the new regiment to support the defense of the fourth group.

However, as the fierce fighting continued, it became clear that the Japanese troops were unable to parry. The casualties of the Fourth Brigade were increasing, and the position was in danger.

When the Type 92 heavy machine guns in their machine gun squadron were destroyed one after another, and without the fire suppression of the heavy machine guns, the fourth group was very passive in combat.

"Your Excellency, Wing Commander, the enemy has assembled its absolute main force to attack our brigade's position with all its strength. We have already suffered about 500 casualties so far."

"Almost all the weapons of the artillery squadron and machine gun squadron were destroyed. We lost the cover of heavy weapons and were very passive in combat."

"Your Excellency, Wing Commander, can we... our Fourth Brigade give up our position and retreat temporarily."

At around eight o'clock in the morning, the Major Captain of the Fourth Battalion called the Wing Headquarters. He said solemnly.

After hearing the report, Matsutaro Tanabe couldn't help but take a breath of air.

He had no idea that his elite Fourth Brigade would suffer such heavy losses.

Of course, he also knew that the new regiment had been strengthened by a series of weapons, and they had absolute advantages in weapons and troops.

If the Fourth Battalion is not allowed to give up its position but continues to hold on, the Fourth Battalion may suffer a devastating blow.

Such a situation is not what Matsutaro Tanabe wants to see.

"You must continue to hold your position. If your position is breached, the consequences will be disastrous."

"All the heavy machine guns and mortars transferred from the North China Front Army Headquarters will rush over to strengthen your defensive firepower."

"Block the enemy troops' attack, and I will immediately contact the Makino City 110th Wing and the Northern Special Agent Wing."

"They will rush over quickly and cooperate with us to completely annihilate these enemy troops."

"Now the enemy has committed all its troops in the northern Henan region to fight here."

"Their intention is very clear, they want to completely annihilate our troops, but they are simply unable to do it."

"Our 18th Wing is not something they can handle. As long as we hold our position, we can completely annihilate them!"

Matsutaro Tanabe frowned, and after a long silence, he issued a combat order.

He transferred twelve 90MM mortars and twelve heavy machine guns to the Fourth Brigade to enhance its defensive capabilities.

And now that the battle has progressed, Matsutaro Tanabe can no longer hold on.

He knew very well that even if he wanted to withdraw to Yuanyang City now, it would not be an easy matter.

So he decided to hold on to his position with all his strength, contact the 110th Wing and the Special Agent Wing to quickly move closer here.

The 18th Regiment held its position with all its strength, and when reinforcements arrived, there was still no problem.

And as long as these two regiments deploy troops to rush over for reinforcements, they will definitely cause heavy casualties to the First Brigade and other troops.

The New Regiment and other troops continued their offensive operations, and they successively carried out combat attacks on the 18th Infantry Regiment.

Troops from both sides engaged in fierce and intense battles, with casualties and losses on both sides increasing continuously.

Here in Makino City, after the Captain of the 110th Regiment received the report, he personally made the deployment.

The howitzer brigade dispatched a squadron and assigned it to the infantry artillery squadron directly under the wing, and the two infantry squadrons were ready.

One infantry artillery squadron and two infantry squadrons were specially designed to protect the four howitzers.

In addition, the First Battalion of the 110th Regiment took these troops to attack to support the 18th Regiment in operations.

Although they don't have many troops, they have four 105MM howitzers to help them fight, and they can show their super combat capabilities.

As for the special agent unit, after experiencing previous combat strikes, the little Japanese troops suffered casualties.

Yamamoto Kazuki was very cautious at this time, for fear that his troops would be hit again.

After getting the message from Matsutaro Tanabe, Yamamoto Kazuki thought for a long time.

However, he did not launch combat operations immediately. Instead, he dispatched several teams to investigate the surrounding areas.

He wanted to make sure there were no threats around him before he mobilized his troops for action.

But Yamamoto Kazuki didn't know that Chen Ziyun still attached great importance to these little devils.

An artillery battalion of the Second Artillery Regiment, a machine gun battalion of the Guard Regiment, and a combat defense artillery battalion were deployed nearby.

These three battalions surrounded the special agent wing and prevented them from moving to other battlefields.

At this time, Chen Ziyun was still focusing on attacking the 18th Regiment. He asked Li Chongtao's st Brigade, Li Yunlong's New st Regiment and other troops to carry out full-scale encirclement and annihilation operations.

The Chu Yu Guard Regiment also mobilized troops to participate in the battle.

One of their guard battalions stayed in Shanyang City, and the other guard battalion quickly came to the battlefield to participate in the battle.

Of course, the entire guard battalion did not directly participate in the attack on the 18th Regiment. They wanted to intercept the reinforcements from Makino City.

By nine o'clock in the morning, Chen Ziyun issued a series of combat orders.

The 358th Regiment, the 601st Regiment of the First Brigade, the Second Artillery Regiment, and the new independent detachment troops all attacked the 18th Regiment.

These troops are under the unified command of Li Chongtao and Li Yunlong. Their main combat target is the 18th Regiment, and they will try to deal a heavy blow to the 18th Regiment.

As for the cavalry battalion of the new regiment, the fourth battalion of the 601st regiment, and the guard regiment guarding the first battalion.

These three battalions are responsible for blocking the Makino City Japs to prevent them from approaching the 18th Regiment and affecting the operations of the First Brigade and other units.

Chu Yu, the leader of the guard regiment, is responsible for unified command of the three battalions in combat.

Of course, Chen Ziyun here is personally commanding the machine gun battalion, artillery battalion, and combat defense artillery battalion to contain Yamamoto Kazuki's troops.

Relatively speaking, Chen Ziyun is still under great pressure here, although they have many heavy weapons.

But they don't have much infantry. With Yamamoto Kazuki's commanding ability, as long as he is aware of this, he will definitely be able to achieve victory.

At around nine o'clock, the fighting here in the 18th Wing was still going on. However, Matsutaro Tanabe decisively reduced the defense line, and three infantry brigades, an artillery brigade and other troops were fully engaged in defense.

Their firepower is more concentrated, and the little devils have become more cautious in combat.

After continuous artillery bombardment operations, artillery and other units effectively supported the infantry in combat, but their own ammunition consumption was staggering.

If the fight continues according to the current situation, their ammunition will be completely exhausted.

The 18th Wing has been hit to a certain extent, but its main combat force still exists.

They still have strong combat capabilities. Considering this, the artillery units can only carry out limited support operations.

This resulted in the various ministries' operations being unable to advance as quickly as before, and the little devil's advantage was once again brought into play.

The troops from both sides continued to fight, and the battle was completely evenly matched.

After all, the 18th Regiment of the Japanese Army is a veteran and elite regiment that has experienced many battles. They have a very tenacious will to fight.

At this time, their morale was not affected in any way, but was very high.

Some troops of the Little Devils even took the initiative to carry out counterattacks, causing certain casualties to various departments.

At around ten o'clock in the morning, Chu Yu began to command the troops to launch combat operations in the area south of Makino City.

The 601th Battalion of the 110st Regiment built a position on the spot and tried its best to block the th Regiment to prevent them from continuing to advance.

The cavalry battalion of the new regiment was hidden and did not carry out combat operations for the time being.

The First Battalion of the Guards was deployed on the flanks. They dispersed and could attack at any time.

"There must be no breakthrough here in the Fourth Battalion's position. The howitzer carried by the little devil has a range of tens of thousands of meters."

"As long as they advance here, they can remotely support the 18th Wing."

"Even if the little Japanese infantry is guarding here, their four howitzers alone can cause heavy losses to the First Brigade and other units."

"So the fourth battalion position is our bottom line. We must not let the little Japanese howitzers come here."

"The 110th Infantry Regiment is not weak either. We must be cautious and not be careless in the slightest."

"This battle is of great importance. If the position is lost, the consequences will be disastrous."

With a serious expression on Chu Yu's face, he spoke directly.

At this time, the Little Japanese troops had discovered the position of the Fourth Battalion, and the First Battalion of the 110th Wing also sent the Little Japanese troops to conduct a test attack.

The howitzer pulled by the truck stayed on the spot and waited, and the artillery officer carefully observed the surrounding situation through the artillery scope and other equipment.

Not long after, groups of Japanese artillerymen were dispatched. These were the Japanese artillery observers.

They will quickly set up artillery observation posts so that they can provide shooting elements for the artillery at any time.

At ten minutes past ten, the two howitzers began to be towed to the artillery position.

The muzzle of the black hole was pointed at the distance. An artillery captain picked up the microphone and kept in touch.

A group of shooting Zhu Yuan began to pass, and the two howitzers were adjusted.

Soon, two howitzers began a heavy shelling.

The grenades were fired directly towards the 4th Battalion's position, and with the sound of explosions, the ground seemed to shake.

Huge craters appeared one after another, and shrapnel quickly spread in all directions.

The shock wave brought up countless dust, and the scorching air waves instantly raised the surrounding temperature.

The temporary position constructed by the fourth battalion was directly destroyed, and the troops also suffered dozens of casualties.

The first brigade of the 110th Wing advanced slowly and gradually towards the position.

Two howitzers began an extended bombardment to suppress the firepower of the fourth battalion.

Chu Yu couldn't help but gasped when he saw this scene through the telescope.

He knew that the howitzers of the Little Devil were definitely not simple, but he did not expect that they would be so powerful.

Artillery is known as the god of war, and large-caliber howitzers play a very important role on the battlefield.

The northern Henan area is full of plains, and the power of two 105MM howitzers can be imagined.

The morale of the little Japs in the first brigade of the 110th Wing was high, and they began to accelerate towards the fourth battalion's position.

As for the two infantry squadrons and one infantry artillery squadron specifically responsible for the safety of howitzers, they have already set up warning positions.

At about 10:50, the First Battalion began to launch a full-scale fire attack on the Fourth Battalion.

The Fourth Battalion could initially rely on the machine gun battery to intercept fire, thereby suppressing the Japs' advance.

Two Type 65 infantry guns, two 37MM mountain guns, and two MM flat-firing guns.

There are also five heavy machine guns. These artillery and heavy machine guns launch fire and can effectively curb the advance of the first brigade.

However, as its firepower was exposed, the Japs' howitzers fired again.

After a round of shelling, several rounds of grenades were fired, and the 4th Battalion's machine gun company suffered heavy casualties.

Three heavy machine guns were destroyed on the spot, two flat-firing cannons were also damaged, and more than 30 people suffered casualties.

Two mountain guns and two infantry guns were transferred in time and were not hit, but some artillerymen were injured.

The first brigade took the opportunity to rush over quickly, and more than a thousand little devils completely took the initiative.

The Type 99 rifle and Type 99 light machine gun it was equipped with fired continuously.

Snipers fired accurately at different locations, firing bullets one after another.

In less than an hour, the Fourth Battalion's casualties were about to exceed 300.

The first battalion of the 110th Regiment launched an all-out attack, and two infantry guns of the artillery squadron fired shrapnel one after another.

The two Type 94 rapid-fire cannons continuously fired armor-piercing projectiles.

As long as the Fourth Battalion's firepower is exposed, armor-piercing shells will fire quickly.

"Captain Chu, our fourth battalion has suffered too many losses. Almost all of our heavy weapons have been knocked out."

"The Japanese howitzers completely destroyed our position, and the brothers were fighting with almost no bunkers."

"We...we may not be able to hold our position. Our camp is asking for instructions if we can temporarily evacuate the position."

On the flank of the position, the fourth battalion messenger hurriedly came to Chu Yu and quickly asked for instructions.

Chu Yu was naturally watching the battle all the time, and he knew the situation of the fourth battalion clearly.

The first brigade of the 110th Wing of the Little Devils is not weak in combat effectiveness. It is reinforced by two 105MM howitzers, which makes it even more destructive.

"No retreat, absolutely no retreat."

"If the position is breached and the Japanese howitzers advance here, the consequences will be disastrous."

Chu Yu had a serious expression on his face and said firmly. (End of chapter)