The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 130 Joint Attack of Infantry, Cavalry and Artillery

Outside Yongxing Village
There was a buzz of people. After an afternoon of marching and maneuvering, the troops reinforced by Seiichiro Shinohara for the No. 16 Infantry Regiment were in place one after another. For a while, the small Yongxing Village became lively again.

The village was crowded with officers and soldiers from various units of the Japanese army. After the arrival of these new reinforcements, the No. 16 Infantry Regiment immediately accepted and supplemented them and arranged campsites. Among the Japanese troops who came to support, the No. 16 Infantry Regiment was the most popular. Nothing was more welcome than the newly arrived batch of supplementary soldiers and supplementary officers. The first moment this batch of supplementary personnel arrived, they were divided between the First Battalion and the Second Battalion of the Infantry No. 16 Regiment.

Two infantry brigades were destroyed by landmines during the attack on Yanzhuang. Four infantry squadrons were wiped out in one fell swoop. Now that such a large number of new reinforcements have arrived, the eyes of the two captains are red, and they immediately snatched up these reinforcements. Once empty, four infantry squadrons were reorganized with these reinforcements and new officers.

As a result, the first and second battalions of the No. 16 Infantry Regiment once again restored their complete organization of three infantry squadrons each. Under the Japanese army's complete replenishment system, the combat effectiveness of the No. 16 Regiment increased within one day. full HP resurrection.

The remaining units are also speeding up their deployment in accordance with the instructions. The newly arrived siege heavy artillery squadron joins the original Japanese artillery outside Yongxing Village. Two 150mm siege heavy artillery are towed by a crawler-type heavy tractor. , quickly maneuvered to the predetermined area. Compared with the slow marching speed of the mule and horse artillery, the fully motorized siege heavy artillery moved much faster.

Yongxing Village is surrounded by plains, and crawler tractors and trucks are all unimpeded. When the temporary heavy artillery squadron directly under the Shinohara Corps was in place, the Japanese army in Yongxing Village instantly had military-level heavy combat artillery strike firepower. , even in the Songhu battlefield, which is well-equipped and gathered with elites, the Type 150 150mm heavy field cannon is only a direct artillery force at the army level. The Songhu Expedition Army is such a large-scale unit, and it is only equipped with sixteen guns and eight guns. Type [-] [-]mm heavy siege cannon.

The Infantry No. 16 Regiment is just an infantry regiment. From today on, it can command and mobilize this type of artillery at will. It includes four 75mm Type 150 mountain guns, four [-]mm Type [-] howitzers and two An artillery group consisting of [-]mm Type [-] heavy cannons with a fire network range from eight kilometers to [-] kilometers came into being.

The rest of the Engineer Regiment, Cavalry Regiment, Daquan Detachment and other units are also being intensively assembled and mobilized, and the general attack military meeting of the Infantry No. 16 Regiment is also going on at the same time. In the Infantry No. 16 Regiment, In the team's command post, Juro Goto sat in the chief position, with Lieutenant Colonel and Staff Officer Jiro Harada standing behind him. On both sides, officers above the major of the Infantry No. 16 Regiment, as well as the chief officers of each newly reinforced unit, were located on both sides. .

Goto Juro was the first to speak and said: "I am very grateful to all of you for coming from afar to cooperate with our unit in the battle. I am also deeply ashamed. Your Excellency, Commander of the Shinohara Brigade, placed high hopes on our regiment, but our regiment failed to capture it." At the Yanzhuang position, we are fortunate to have all of you here to assist us. I hope that all of you can work together to attack the enemy. Next, Lieutenant Colonel Harada will introduce the enemy's situation and combat plan to you."

Goto Juro waved to Harada Jiro, and then left the main seat. Immediately, the brain core of the Shinohara Corps came to the main seat, bowed and saluted the many officers below, and then said: "Everyone, Xinkou is attacking across the board. It has been nearly a week, and now the attack on all fronts has failed. It has to be said that the fighting will shown by the Chinese army in the Xinkou battle this time is still remarkable. According to the report of His Excellency Shinohara, however, the person responsible for attacking the center of Xinkou The Fifth Division of the main position finally made some progress in the past two days and captured several highlands in the center of Xinkou. According to reports from the intelligence department, in the counterattack against the Chinese army in recent days, the Fifth Division The regiment probably killed one lieutenant general and major general of the Chinese army, which is exciting news."

Although the death of two generals, Hao Mengling and Liu Jiaqi, happened today, Japan's intelligence and secret services agencies are so pervasive that the news of the two generals' heroic acts has not yet reached the rear, and the Japanese troops in front of the battle already knew it. After learning that the lieutenant general and major general of the Chinese army were killed in action, the Japanese officers in the conference room were rarely happy, and many even showed sadness and admiration on their faces. Regarding the death of a general in front of the battle, even though they were enemies, the Japanese army also Also very admirable.

"The Fifth Division has achieved considerable results. My corps, which is responsible for attacking the enemy's right-hand position, must not fall behind others. The purpose of transferring your troops this time is to concentrate the elite combat power of our corps. After completing the battle, I achieved a breakthrough in Yanzhuang. As for the enemy's position deployment and firepower formation, through last night's feint attack reconnaissance, I have figured out a certain situation, and have compiled it into charts and documents, which are now available to you. In front of you, below, I will announce tomorrow's offensive plan."

Harada Jiro pointed to the table. There were several charts in front of each participating officer. Above were the Chinese army position diagrams and minefield deployment diagrams that Harada Jiro and his staff had worked hard to draw. If He Wei was there, You will be surprised if you come here.

Because the configuration of the Sixth Company's bunker group and even the location of the Sixth Company's minefields in front of the position all stood out on these charts. Although Harada Jiro's feint attack was not smooth and was also set up by He Wei. , but Harada Jiro and his staff are not ordinary people. This feint attack still achieved considerable results. When retreating in the early morning, Harada Jiro first observed with a telescope and then quickly recorded the location of the sixth company bunker. , and then, based on the different colors of the soil on the ground, he estimated several places where mines might be placed. This time, He Wei indeed encountered an extremely difficult opponent.

"Everyone, first of all, I want to remind everyone that this enemy's combat effectiveness is very strong, and the enemy's commander is a difficult opponent to deal with. His command style is sophisticated. If my guess is correct, the enemy's position will be deployed from the bunker. The layout of minefields should all be made by this person. At least, from the outbreak of the war to now, I have never encountered such a Chinese army commander. Therefore, to deal with extraordinary people, extraordinary tactics should be used, Ito-kun , I plan to use your engineering unit to take the lead in this attack."

Harada Jiro looked at a lieutenant colonel officer, who was Captain Sei Ito of the Second Engineer Regiment.

"Ito-kun, may I ask if your regiment carries enough engineering equipment?" Harada Jiro said. "Although our wing currently only has one engineer squadron and one combat equipment team, the engineering equipment is carried in excess. In addition to explosives, blasting tubes and detonating equipment, it also carries simple mine clearing equipment and six Type [-] flamethrowers. device."

"Very good, then the task of taking the lead in the assault will be handed over to your engineers. According to the predetermined plan, we will first destroy the enemy's positions with artillery fire. However, the artillery's bombardment targets are not limited to the enemy's main positions, but also bombard the city walls of Yanzhuang. I dare It is concluded that there must be more Chinese army reserves in Yanzhuang. The Chinese army's habit is to huddle in key points in cities or villages and towns to defend. Once the city walls or tall peripheral defenses are breached, they will quickly collapse. Therefore, the artillery At the same time, we must pay attention to the bombardment of the enemy's main position and the Yanzhuang city wall, try to blow up the Yanzhuang city wall, and defeat their reserves first."

A hint of ferocity flashed in Harada Jiro's eyes, and he said in a cold tone. Indeed, there is a fully-organized infantry battalion in Yanzhuang. It's just that He Wei fought well in the front, so this battalion never showed up, but it was actually given to him by Harada Jiro based on his experience. He made a judgment, and the tactics he adopted were more vicious. He actually wanted to use artillery bombardment to defeat the reserve team in Zhuangzi.

In fact, what he said is not bad. Looking at the defensive operations of the National Army, whether it is a town or a big city, the National Army often turns into a chaotic rout once the walls of cities and villages are breached by the Japanese army. Taiyuan and Nanjing in history In fact, they were all lost like this. Obviously, Harada Jiro also wanted to do this, to defeat or force out the reserve team inside.

When the Chinese army is in a state of fortification based on solid fortifications, its combat effectiveness is at its strongest. Once it falls into a large-scale collapse or large-scale field maneuver, its combat effectiveness is at its most vulnerable. As long as one A surprise attack can completely defeat the Chinese army, and the battlefield situation will instantly transform into a tailwind battle to chase ducks.

"When the artillery bombarded with artillery fire, the engineering troops quickly moved forward to conduct demining operations on several areas suspected of being mined, and the flamethrowers equipped by the engineering troops were all reinforced for the infantry of the Infantry No. 16 Regiment. Once the engineering force completes the demining and blasting operations, the infantry force quickly begins to attack. At the same time, the second cavalry regiment must quickly flank the Chinese army's position. If the Chinese army's reserve team is forced out, then quickly attack and eliminate them. You can also try to attack the Chinese army on the main position, but don't force it. The enemy's firepower is very fierce, which cannot be dealt with by the cavalry. The various units of the Fourth Tank Brigade and the dike detachment serve as the general reserve team for this offensive operation. We are on standby for cover near Yongxing Village and are ready to go into battle at any time."

Harada Jiro looked at Colonel Honda Takeo, the captain of the [-]nd Cavalry Regiment. Honda Takeo immediately nodded in understanding, but a trace of regret flashed in his eyes. As an Army Cavalry Colonel, he extremely hoped that he could personally lead the regiment. The cavalry launched a devastating cavalry attack on the Chinese army. Unfortunately, due to the usual formation, he only had a complete cavalry squadron and cavalry machine gun squad, which could not maximize the combat power of a cavalry regiment. , for him, it is really a pity. .

Harada Jiro said again: "In order to complete the victory in one battle, in this attack, not only the infantry of the No. 16 Regiment will launch an assault, but all the Tsutsumi detachment will also be involved in the battle. In this attack, our army's tactical principle is to invest heavily in one fell swoop. Under the cover of fierce artillery fire, the engineers first carried out blasting operations, and then the infantry and cavalry launched attacks at the same time. The infantry attacked the front with heavy troops, while the cavalry quickly advanced, assaulted at high speed, outflanked, and annihilated the enemy's reserve team in the village. All units needed to attack bravely. Fight hard, strive to seize the enemy's position in one fell swoop, annihilate all the enemies in front of you, avenge the brave warriors of Jade Shatter, and serve His Majesty the Emperor with loyalty."

"Be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"

Just after Harada Jiro announced the combat order, Goto Juro suddenly raised his arms and shouted long live with red eyes. A crazy atmosphere immediately spread in the small conference room. Then, all the Japanese officers present at the meeting Raised his hands, raised his arms and shouted long live. ． ． ． ． ． ． ．
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Just as the Japanese army was mobilizing troops and preparing for tomorrow's attack, He Wei also made further adjustments to the Sixth Company. He summed up the experience of this annihilation operation. The reason why the casualties of the second and third platoons were so high was that So big, in the final analysis, it is because I have not received training in stabbing techniques.

Therefore, in order to improve the combat effectiveness of the other two platoons, He Wei immediately made adjustments to the second and third platoons. First, because Chen Zhen added another platoon to the sixth company, the sixth company is still After all the troops were loaded, the first thing He Wei did was to have the second and third rows wear the Japanese army's leather bullet box belts just like the first row.

According to He Wei's observation, in close-quarters combat, the canvas bullet belts equipped by the national army are too bulky and heavy, which greatly affects the soldiers' various thrusting movements during stabbing combat. The second row and third row Many brothers in the platoon suffered losses in the stabbing battle because of this. The fat and bloated bullet belt was wrapped around the waist and slung across the shoulders. Once there was any big movement, the bullet belt would shake with it, and sometimes Shedding will occur and the inconvenience is too much.

So He Wei immediately ordered a change of equipment. The Japanese army's cowhide belts and bullet boxes are now in no shortage. After several victorious battles, hundreds of sets of equipment stripped from the Japanese army were seized and piled in the hidden part of the position. Among them, not to mention changing the equipment of two platoons, it is enough to change the equipment of an infantry battalion.

After changing into combat equipment, corresponding changes were made to the tactical organization and stabbing tactics of the second and third platoons. Each squad of the two platoons also implemented the corps leader system according to the methods of the first platoon. Later, He Wei took a few veterans from the first row to the second and third rows to teach him the American stabbing technique that he had improvised. Although they also had two knives, they may not have mastered the American stabbing technique very well. It's fine, but there is no other way. Time is urgent, so I can only do it forcefully.

No matter how effective it was, even though it was just a quick attack, this time He Wei unified the organization and tactics of the entire company.

(End of this chapter)