The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 370: Beautiful Victory and Shocking Ammunition Consumption

On the east bank of the Fuchi River, the position of the first battalion of the assault corps.

The three infantry companies of the First Battalion launched a whirlwind counterattack against the remaining Japanese troops in front of the position. It took less than ten minutes from the beginning to the complete destruction of the Japanese troops.

The destruction of this remnant of the Japanese army also announced the complete annihilation of more than 600 elite Japanese Marines from three infantry squadrons and one heavy machine gun squadron of the 4th Special Marine Corps of the Japanese Navy's Wu Naval District who had successfully launched a landing operation on the east bank of the Fuchi River.

In front of the first battalion's position, the smoke had not yet dissipated, but the sound of gunfire had completely stopped.

After the First Battalion wiped out all the landing Japanese troops, the Japanese artillery on the opposite bank could no longer withstand the precise and continuous suppressing fire of the six Type 6 94mm mountain guns of the First Mountain Artillery Company of the Artillery Battalion of the Assault Corps. In addition, the Japanese landing infantry had been completely wiped out. The Japanese artillery on the opposite bank knew that it was meaningless to bombard the east bank of the Fuchi River, so they no longer bothered to engage in a boring exchange of fire with the artillery of the Assault Corps. After a few rounds of symbolic exchange of fire with the mountain artillery of the Assault Corps, they ceased fire and withdrew.

After the battle, there was a tragic scene in front of the First Battalion's position and on the river. The bodies of Japanese Marines in navy blue uniforms were piled up like a wall in front of the First Battalion's position, and the body parts and meat paste that were blown beyond recognition by mortar shells were scattered here and there.

There were also a large number of Japanese soldiers' corpses floating up and down in the Fuchi River. Some drifted slowly downstream along with the river flow, and others were washed up on the river beach. Their appearance was truly extremely tragic.

Fragments and wreckage of Japanese rubber boats and steel boats that were sunk or damaged by the river water during navigation could be seen everywhere in the river. Several damaged but unsunk steel boats were still spinning in the middle of the river with the gentle current, emitting bursts of thick black smoke.

Due to the high summer temperature and the scorching sun, a stench of corpses soon wafted in front of the first battalion's position. The stench of corpses mixed with the fishy smell of the river water created an even more disgusting smell.

The river beach in front of the position was covered with a mixture of blood, mud and river water. Although the scene could not be described as hell on earth, it was still very tragic.

It was indeed a gratifying thing to have just completely wiped out the landing Japanese troops, but cleaning the battlefield in such an environment was not an easy job. However, cleaning the battlefield was also a mission, and as long as it was a mission, it had to be carried out 100% without compromise. Therefore, the officers and soldiers of the First Battalion could only endure the stench, shuttle among the pile of corpses to count the results of the battle, and pick up the spoils.

"Your battalion fought well in this battle. Haha. Damn it. I originally wanted to take the initiative to cross the river and land to deal with the Japanese, but I didn't expect the Japanese to take action first. However, they ran into the iron plate of your battalion. I estimate that the Japanese troops killed by your battalion have the strength of more than half an infantry battalion."

In the open ground in front of the First Battalion's position, He Wei looked at the corpses of Japanese soldiers scattered all over the ground and said to Fu Chen with some excitement and relief.

He Wei originally wanted the First Battalion to conduct a river crossing and landing attack, and take the initiative to fight to the west bank of the Fuchi River, but he did not expect that the Japanese took the initiative and launched an attack before the First Battalion.

After learning that the Japanese army had launched a river-crossing landing attack on the First Battalion, He Wei, who was sitting in the 18th Division command post, hurriedly negotiated with the acting commander of the 18th Division, Luo Guangwen, to come up with an emergency plan for anti-landing operations in order to prevent the Japanese army from continuing to organize landings in other places on the east bank of the Fuchi River and launching a full-line landing attack.

After all these arrangements were completed, He Wei was afraid that the First Battalion could not hold on, so he immediately led the special forces company directly under the headquarters to rush to the First Battalion's position for support.

However, He Wei's worries were obviously unnecessary. By the time He Wei arrived at the first battalion's position, the battle was over.

He Wei was of course very excited and encouraged to see the brilliant results achieved by the First Battalion. After all, today's battle of the First Battalion was the first large-scale engagement between the main force of the Infantry Battalion of the Assault Corps and the Japanese army. As the founder of the Assault Corps, He Wei was of course very happy.

But after learning the entire detailed process of the battle from Fu Chen, He Wei couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat and felt extremely fortunate.

In this battle, the First Battalion did achieve very impressive results and completely annihilated the enemy that had landed, but the process before and after this battle was actually full of dangers.

Originally, Fu Chen's First Battalion was preparing to execute He Wei's order and launch a bridge-building and river-crossing landing operation on the west bank of the Fuchi River. Coincidentally, the Japanese army also chose the same area, and even the same time, and in turn prepared to open up a landing site in front of the position of the First Battalion of the Assault Corps on the east bank of the Fuchi River and organize a river-crossing landing operation.

Although both were carrying out landing operations, the Japanese army was actually better organized, prepared, and equipped than the First Battalion, especially in terms of technical equipment. The Japanese army had a full set of professional engineering river crossing equipment. It was precisely because of this advantage that the Japanese army was able to successfully launch a landing attack before the First Battalion of the Assault Corps when both sides chose the same time to carry out landing operations.

Due to the lack of professional engineering equipment for river crossing, the First Battalion of the Assault Corps had to use the most primitive method to let the Corps' engineering company collect iron and wood materials, build a pontoon bridge on the Fuchi River, and then organize the troops to cross the river along the pontoon bridge.

The Japanese army was different. They had a full set of river crossing equipment and did not need to build a pontoon bridge. They could easily cross the river by riding on self-powered rubber boats and steel boats.

Just like that, at the same location and at the same time, the First Battalion of the Assault Corps and the Japanese Army started the landing operation almost at the same time. However, the Japanese Army, relying on its equipment advantage, took the lead in the landing operation. Before the Assault Corps' pontoon bridge construction work began, they attacked with a large number of rubber boats and steel boats, and started the river crossing and landing operation with a great momentum.

It can be said that the Japanese army's excellent equipment gave them an advantage in the landing operations.

However, it was this advantage that ruined the landing Japanese troops. The "first move" brought by the landing Japanese troops' equipment advantage made their landing attempt exposed in advance to the First Battalion of the Assault Corps, which was also preparing for a landing operation.

Only then did Fu Chen, the commander of the first battalion of the assault corps, quickly terminate the river crossing plan and temporarily change the combat plan from crossing the river and landing to holding the attack, and finally completely wiped out the Japanese troops that came to cross the river to attack.

Just imagine, if the First Battalion of the Assault Corps had launched a landing before the Japanese army, built a pontoon bridge under the noses of the Japanese army, and organized troops to cross the river to attack, then the Japanese army that was also preparing to land would inevitably quickly stop the river crossing operation like the First Battalion of the Assault Corps just did, and launch an attack on the landing First Battalion of the Assault Corps with fierce firepower.

If that happens, I'm afraid the roles of both parties will have to be reversed.

He Wei's relief came from this, and this battle also taught He Wei a truth: fighting a war certainly depends on command and skills, but sometimes luck is also a factor that cannot be ignored.

Fortunately, in today's battle, the balance of luck finally tipped towards the assault corps. He Wei smiled and said, "Your battalion's battle was thrilling enough, but God still favored us, turning the Japanese's advantage of landing into a deadly one."

Hearing the hidden meaning in He Wei's words, Fu Chen said, "Yes, I was just about to organize the engineering company to start the bridge-building operation. As soon as I gave the order, the Japanese suddenly appeared. It was really lucky and thrilling."

Fu Chen's tone was the same as He Wei's. In addition to the excitement brought by the First Battalion's annihilation of the enemy, he was also relieved.

Fu Chen said to He Wei again: "Captain, this group of devils is really strange. They are all wearing navy blue uniforms and equipped with submachine guns. They are completely different from the enemies we have fought before. Their fighting spirit and will are also good. They suffered heavy casualties in the melee just now due to the fierce firepower of our battalion, but they still insisted on charging hard, and even organized submachine gunners to launch close combat fire attacks on our battalion's positions. They are really a very strange enemy."

"Oh, these devils are the Japanese Marines. The uniforms they wear are of course different from those of the Japanese Army. Their weapons are also better than those of the Japanese Army. They are equipped with many submachine guns. They are the land combat force affiliated with the Japanese Navy."

Fu Chen and the officers and soldiers of the First Battalion of the Assault Corps were very unfamiliar with the Japanese Marines whom they were fighting for the first time, but He Wei, the time traveler, was not like that at all.

When he arrived at the battlefield and saw the corpses of Japanese soldiers in navy blue uniforms and the submachine guns with bayonets left behind by the Japanese, he immediately determined that the troops attacking the First Battalion's position were Japanese Marines.

Fu Chen said puzzledly: "This Japanese is really strange. Why do they want to bring in the Marine Corps instead of using the Army?"

He Wei smiled and said, "It was the Japanese Navy that we beat up on the river a few days ago. The Japanese Navy has been attacking upstream, so it is common sense for them to bring their own Marines. And don't underestimate the Japanese Marines. Their weapons and equipment are better than those of the Japanese Army. The Japanese Army we fought didn't even have a submachine gun, but the Japanese Marines were willing to invest in submachine guns. You saw just now that many of the Japanese soldiers who attacked your First Battalion's position were carrying submachine guns."

"If I remember correctly, when the Battle of Songhu began, our 88th and 87th Divisions took the initiative to attack the Japanese army in the Songhu area, preparing to destroy the Japanese Navy's Third Fleet Headquarters in the Songhu area in one fell swoop. However, they were blocked by the Japanese Navy's Marine Corps and failed to take the city. They also suffered heavy casualties."

After listening to what He Wei said, Fu Chen nodded and said, "It seems that this enemy is also a tough one. According to what you said, if we use the Japanese Army we fought against as a reference, the Japanese Marine Corps should be equivalent to the Japanese Army with better equipment and more distinctive training."

"Almost. I guess they were responsible for the collapse of the 18th Brigade of the 54th Division yesterday. In short, they are an enemy that cannot be underestimated."

He Wei and Fu Chen were discussing the enemy situation, while the officers and soldiers of the First Battalion who were cleaning up the battlefield quickly made a preliminary statistical analysis of the results of the operation and reported it to He Wei.

The officers and soldiers of the First Battalion counted a total of 235 intact Japanese bodies on the battlefield, including a major and two captains. The weapons and equipment seized included 30 submachine guns, 220 Type 38 rifles, 9 Taisho 11-year-old Type 99 light machine guns, 17 Type 89 50mm grenade launchers, more than 190 steel helmets, and 27 various command knives.

In addition, a batch of ammunition and 24 rubber boats and steel boats used by the Japanese army to cross the river and land were seized.

Based on the inventory results reported by the officers and soldiers of the First Battalion, and based on the entire process and actual situation of the battle, He Wei further calculated the actual results of the battle. If the Japanese soldiers who were blown to pieces by the artillery fire of the First Battalion and those who were killed in the river while crossing the river were included, He Wei estimated that the number of Japanese soldiers killed by the First Battalion would not be less than 500.

If we combine the number of captured items with the calculation, He Wei estimated that the Japanese Marines that launched the river crossing attack on the First Battalion's position should be the main force of a battalion-level unit.

He Wei's inference was roughly correct, but his estimate of the results achieved by the First Battalion was still a bit conservative.

In fact, the Japanese troops annihilated by the First Battalion were three complete infantry squadrons and one heavy machine gun squadron of the 4th Special Marine Corps of the Japanese Navy's Wu Naval District, with a total strength of nearly 700 people!

Many of the Japanese soldiers killed by the First Battalion were killed in the process of crossing the river. They were sent into the river to feed the fish before they even reached the east bank of the Fuchi River. Therefore, many of the Japanese soldiers killed by the First Battalion were completely dead and could not be counted as results. He Wei did not witness the entire battle process, and He Wei himself was always conservative in his calculations of the results. Therefore, it was natural that the result of annihilating 500 enemies was a bit low.

After killing so many Japanese soldiers, the First Battalion naturally suffered certain casualties. According to statistics, the First Battalion of the Assault Corps that participated in the battle, the First Mountain Artillery Company of the Artillery Battalion of the Assault Corps assigned to the First Battalion, and the First Platoon of the Tank Defense Artillery Company of the Artillery Battalion of the Assault Corps suffered a total of 91 casualties, among which there were fewer deaths and more injuries.

Compared with the results achieved by the First Battalion, this number of casualties can be considered a minor loss.

Compared with the minor casualties, the ammunition lost by the First Battalion and its attached troops can be said to be enormous.

The First Battalion consumed a huge amount of 7.92mm heavy-pointed bullets, 7.63mm pistol bullets, 60mm mortar shells and 81mm mortar shells, especially 7.92mm heavy-pointed bullets and 60mm mortar shells.

The 34mm heavy pointed bullets equipped by the assault corps are specially used for light and heavy machine guns. The Czech light machine guns, MG37 general-purpose machine guns of the three infantry companies of the first battalion, and the ZB general-purpose machine guns of the heavy machine gun company are all equipped with this type of ammunition. In the battle, it was the main firepower output of the first battalion, inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese army, but the losses were also enormous. After the battle, the first battalion had less than rounds of mm heavy pointed bullets left, not enough for the first battalion's heavy machine gun company to fire for three minutes.

Of course, if the heavy pointed bullets are used up, the various machine guns of the First Battalion can also use the 7.92mm light pointed bullets used for rifles, but the shooting effect will be much worse.

The 60mm mortar is a powerful weapon in combat and consumes a lot of shells. Now, on average, each of the 18 60mm mortars in the three infantry companies of the First Battalion can only receive a pitiful 10 shells, which is only enough for one round of rapid fire.

As for the 81mm mortar shells, the 7.63mm pistol bullets used by the machine guns, and the 75mm mountain artillery shells of the First Mountain Artillery Company of the Artillery Battalion of the Assault Corps, they were not much stronger. They were all exhausted, and if they continued to fight, they would not be able to hold out for much longer.

After learning about such a huge loss of ammunition, He Wei couldn't help but sigh. The powerful organization and powerful firepower he had organized for the infantry battalion of the assault corps could be said to be one of the key factors in defeating the enemy in this battle, and the massive ammunition consumption was also very astonishing.

(End of this chapter)