The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 363 Cross the River!

He Wei acted decisively, ending the plan of Li Fangbin, commander of the 18th Division, to lie about military intelligence before it even began.

As Li Yannian personally led He Wei and the special forces company of the assault corps to the command post of the 18th Division, he brought this farce and comedy to an abrupt end with several severe punishment and dismissal orders and thundering measures.

Li Fangbin, the instigator, never expected that He Wei would report the matter directly to Li Yannian. Li Fangbin had always ignored Li Yannian before and did not listen to his commands at all, which had already offended Li Yannian. Now that Li Yannian had caught him, Li Fangbin was completely finished.

After the dismissal order was announced on the spot, Li Fangbin was taken to Tianjia Town on the opposite bank by Li Yannian and ordered to temporarily serve in the 11th Corps Headquarters as a lieutenant general senior advisor and assistant, completely losing his command over the 18th Division. Of course, the position of senior advisor, which was equivalent to nothing, saved some face for Li Fangbin, the former lieutenant general division commander.

Li Fangbin was still able to maintain some dignity, but the commander of the 54th Brigade and the two regiment commanders of the 54th Brigade under Li Fangbin were not as lucky as him.

These three men were the chief officers of the garrison troops on the west bank of the Fuchi River. They had an unshirkable responsibility for the loss of the west bank position. Later, they became accomplices of Li Fangbin's plan to lie about military intelligence. With all their crimes added together, the three were taken to the headquarters of the 11th Corps in Tianjia Town, where they were directly detained by people sent by Li Yannian, just like prisoners.

The actions of Li Fangbin and his three brigade and regiment commanders were also reported to the Military Commission by Li Yannian. Although it is unknown what kind of punishment the four will receive, they are doomed to suffer the consequences for lying about military intelligence at such a critical juncture.

After Li Fangbin and others were taken away by Li Yannian, Luo Guangwen, who was appointed as acting division commander, naturally became the actual commander of the 18th Division.

He Wei had a good impression of Luo Guangwen, the deputy division commander who was able to stick to principles at critical moments and refused to go along with Li Fangbin and others. Zhao Zhanhai, who was stationed in the 18th Division as a liaison officer, also praised Luo Guangwen, saying that although he was not a Whampoa student but a graduate of the Japanese Army Academy, his military command and organizational management abilities were both top-notch and he was a rare good cadre.

Li Yannian also treated him very well because of his adherence to principles. Therefore, after Li Fangbin resigned, He Wei became the acting division commander. He Wei was naturally happy to see such an excellent officer as Luo Guangwen serve as the acting division commander of the 18th Division. Only with such a friendly army commander around could He Wei sleep well at night.

After dealing with Li Fangbin, Li Yannian was naturally satisfied and encouraged He Wei a few words, asking He Wei to "keep up the good work and create more extraordinary achievements." He Wei was also specifically named by Li Yannian to stay in the 18th Division Command Post on the east bank of the Fuchi River. His intention was naturally to ask He Wei to assist the newly defeated 18th Division in combat, and to deal with the Japanese troops on the opposite bank if allowed!
This is also the reason why He Wei stayed.

"Hello, Deputy Commander Luo. I am Lieutenant Colonel He Wei, Commander of the Army Assault Corps. I am hereby ordered by Commander-in-Chief Li Yannian of the 11th Corps to cooperate with your 18th Division. I hope that our two divisions will cooperate with each other. Now that the Japanese army has captured the west bank of the Fuchi River, we must unite closely together."

In the command post of the 18th Division, He Wei saluted and said to Luo Guangwen, the former deputy commander of the 18th Division and now the acting commander of the 18th Division, who looked a little haggard.

Luo Guangwen forced a smile and said, "Captain He, there's no need to be so polite. Our divisions are friendly forces and we should help each other. For what happened before and what happened today, I want to apologize to Captain He on behalf of the 18th Division."

He Wei smiled and said, "Let's not talk about the past. Let's focus on the current operations. Commander Luo, we should also carefully analyze the battle situation on the Fuchikou front. Let's talk about Commander Luo's plan first."

Luo Guangwen nodded, took He Wei to the map table of the command post, and said: "Captain He, the current situation is that my division's positions on the west side of the Fuchi River have been completely lost, and the 54th Brigade has been completely defeated. According to my opinion, my unit must now consolidate the positions on the west side of the Fuchi River and make a defensive posture. At present, the 54th Brigade has basically been taken in. I want to reduce the 54th Brigade to a reinforced regiment, use the number of the original 54th Regiment of the 108th Brigade, and appoint a lieutenant colonel regimental commander to act as the commander and return to the direct command of the division. In this way, the organized combat force of my division on the east bank is the entire 52nd Brigade and the 108th Regiment. The organization of the troops is basically completed, and a certain foundation has been laid for the defense of the east bank."

Although Luo Guangwen was the acting commander of the 18th Division with the rank of Major General, his tone towards He Wei, a lieutenant colonel who was ten years younger than him, did not show the attitude of a superior towards a subordinate at all.

Although Li Yannian ordered He Wei to cooperate with the 18th Division in combat before leaving the 18th Division command post, as far as the current situation is concerned, the troops under He Wei's Banbishan Garrison Command are actually not on the same level as the 18th Division.

In the coordinated operations between the two sides, it is obvious that the Banbishan Garrison Command occupies a more powerful position.

Li Yannian, He Wei, and Luo Guangwen all knew this very well, but they just didn't say it out loud.

He Wei nodded and asked tentatively: "Commander Luo's deployment is very appropriate, but I wonder if Commander Luo knows about the situation of the enemy last night? We have to defend the position on the east bank of Fuchi River, so we should have a basic judgment on the enemy who attacked last night and the enemy situation."

Luo Guangwen smiled bitterly and said, "Captain He, in last night's battle, our troops suffered heavy losses and were routed miserably. There were also many new recruits. Most of the officers and soldiers who swam away from the west bank were only concerned with fleeing and knew almost nothing about the enemy. I have also asked the officers who withdrew, and all I know is that the enemy has a large number of artillery and tanks. As for the strength and deployment of the troops, I really don't know."

He Wei had only asked tentatively; he did not expect an army that was defeated and scattered overnight to provide any valuable military intelligence. Luo Guangwen's answer also confirmed He Wei's prediction.

He Wei did not dwell on this issue, and changed the subject, saying, "It seems that the combat effectiveness and firepower of the Japanese troops who suddenly attacked and occupied the west bank of Fuchi River cannot be underestimated. It seems difficult for your troops to defend the east bank of Fuchi River alone. Moreover, I also want to test the strength of this group of Japanese troops. I want to send a reinforcement force from my assault corps while your troops strengthen their defense on the east bank of Fuchi River. What do you think, Division Commander Luo?"

"That's great. Thank you, Captain He."

"Okay, then I will send troops here immediately. I will send the First Infantry Battalion of my Assault Corps to reinforce you. I will also dispatch a 75mm Mountain Artillery Company and a Tank Defense Artillery Platoon to cooperate with you. I will also send an engineering company. Together with the Special Agent Company directly under my Corps that just came with me, it will be a considerable reinforcement force. We will discuss the specifics of how to fight after my troops arrive."

After He Wei finished speaking, Luo Guangwen suddenly frowned and said in a rather doubtful tone: "One battalion? Captain He, your unit only sent one battalion of troops to reinforce my division. Isn't it a little insufficient?" Although Luo Guangwen did not say it directly, He Wei could hear the subtle dissatisfaction in his words.

Indeed, no matter what, the 18th Division is still an infantry division. Even after last night's defeat on the west bank of Fuchikou, it now has at least three regiments of troops. However, He Wei only sent out a battalion of reinforcements and a part of the artillery and engineering units.

Even if the special forces company of the assault corps that is now near the 18th Division command post is included, the strength of the infantry reinforcements sent by He Wei is only a battalion and a company. Compared with the strength and defense zone of the 18th Division, Luo Guangwen feels that this battalion of reinforcements is indeed a bit perfunctory and shabby, and he feels a little dissatisfied with He Wei.

In response, He Wei just smiled and said, "When this battalion arrives, I think Commander Luo will change his mind."

Luo Guangwen said with a gloomy face: "Well, then I will see how Captain He's battalion can reinforce the 18th Division in combat."

Amid Luo Guangwen's dissatisfaction and confusion, He Wei immediately issued a reinforcement order at the 18th Division's command post to Wang Yuanling, the chief of staff of the assault corps who was temporarily in charge of the Banbishan garrison headquarters.

Fu Chen's 18st Infantry Battalion of the Assault Corps, equipped with a -meter mountain artillery company and a tank defense artillery platoon of the Assault Corps' artillery battalion, and the Assault Corps' direct engineering company, quickly reinforced the th Division's position on the east bank of the Fuchi River.

The 18st Infantry Battalion of Fu Chen's Assault Corps was originally preparing to conduct combat reconnaissance and search in the direction of Fuchikou. They had already made combat preparations, so the troops moved out very quickly. After the st Mountain Artillery Company of the Artillery Battalion of the Assault Corps, the first row of the tank defense artillery company, and the engineering company directly under the Corps completed their marching preparations, the several troops immediately joined together and, under the command of the st Battalion Commander Fu Chen, quickly drove to the th Division's defensive position on the east bank of Fuchikou.

On the east bank of Fuchikou, behind the 18th Division's position, He Wei and the 18th Division's acting commander Luo Guangwen stood in a trench, watching the reinforcements of the Assault Corps that had arrived at the 18th Division's position.

He Wei looked indifferent, but Luo Guangwen was shocked, because the battalion-level reinforcements of the assault corps that he witnessed now had far exceeded his imagination of a battalion-level combat force.

The infantry battalion of the assault corps consists of three infantry companies, a mortar company, a heavy machine gun company and a battalion headquarters company, with a total strength of more than 1,300 people.

Therefore, what Luo Guangwen witnessed was a mighty marching column composed of more than a thousand well-equipped, fully armed, energetic officers and soldiers, who exuded a capable temperament and excellent training.

In the marching column of the First Battalion, two infantry companies were at the front. In the ranks of the infantry companies were a steady stream of Czech-made VZ24 rifles, submachine guns and Czech-style light machine guns, as well as machine guns that Luo Guangwen had never seen before (MG34 general-purpose machine guns of the general-purpose machine gun platoon of the infantry company) and small mortars (60 mortars of the mortar squad under the infantry platoon).

Behind the two infantry companies was a mixed marching column of heavy machine gun companies equipped with eight Czech-made ZB37 heavy machine guns. Following the heavy machine gun companies was the battalion mortar company equipped with four French-made Blonde mm mortars, and then the battalion headquarters company and another infantry company.

Behind the first battalion came the first company of the assault corps artillery battalion, equipped with six Japanese-made Type 75 45mm mountain guns, the first row of the tank defense gun company of the assault corps artillery battalion, equipped with two Russian-made mm tank defense guns, and the marching column of the engineering company directly under the assault corps.

If the attached artillery and engineering units were included, what Luo Guangwen saw was a huge marching column of more than two thousand people. Luo Guangwen also knew very well that a battalion-level unit with such a scale, such firepower, and such high-quality officers and soldiers had a combat effectiveness that even exceeded the regiment-level units of the general national army.

Luo Guangwen's slight dissatisfaction with He Wei just now disappeared into thin air with the vast, majestic and powerful marching column.

"Report to the commander-in-chief, the 1st Infantry Battalion of our assault corps, the engineering company directly under the corps, the 1st Mountain Artillery Company of the artillery battalion, and the first platoon of the tank defense artillery company have all been ordered to arrive!"

Major Fu Chen, commander of the first battalion of the assault corps, ran up to He Wei, saluted He Wei and Luo Guangwen, and then reported.

He Wei nodded to Fu Chen, his former company commander, and turned to Luo Guangwen and said, "Commander Luo, this is Major Fu Chen, the commander of the First Infantry Battalion of my Assault Corps. He graduated from the Eighth Class of the Whampoa Military Academy. Now all the reinforcements of my unit have arrived. I think we can discuss the specific combat plan."

At this time, Luo Guangwen was completely impressed by every aspect of the officers and soldiers under He Wei, from their equipment to their quality. Luo Guangwen could even be certain that, not counting the artillery and engineering reinforcements sent by He Wei, the combat effectiveness of the 18st Infantry Battalion led by Captain Fu Chen alone was probably greater than that of the entire th Division, which had been severely damaged.

Luo Guangwen is a good general. Compared with Li Fangbin and others, he has better military command ethics and overall view. Now seeing that the reinforcements sent by He Wei are so powerful, he also understands that the protagonist must be, and can only be, He Wei's troops.

So Luo Guangwen said straightforwardly: "Captain He, my division has just been defeated and most of the soldiers are new. Your reinforcements are stronger, so you will be the one to formulate the overall combat strategy."

He Wei was waiting for this sentence. In the past few moments, He Wei had already made a preliminary plan on how to deal with the Japanese troops on the west bank of the Fuchi River. Now, after hearing Luo Guangwen's words, He Wei was even more delighted.

"Okay! Since Commander Luo said so, I won't be polite. My tactics are very simple. Didn't the Japanese just capture the west bank? Then let's take it back and launch a river crossing attack!"

(End of this chapter)