The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 438: Remote Command and Counterattack

Below Hill 201, the attention of the officers and soldiers of the 13th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army was almost all drawn to the regiment's temporary command post which had been bombed to the bottom.

No one expected that a heavy grenade accidentally fired by the 150mm heavy artillery battalion on Banbi Mountain would hit the command center of the 13th Regiment exactly.

As the elite of the Japanese Kumamoto Division, the officers and soldiers of the 13th Infantry Regiment still maintained their due tactical qualities at this time. They were still in their respective concealed positions and fortifications, and there was no chaos.

The stray shells that exploded from time to time below the high ground and caused continuous casualties to the Japanese troops below the high ground did not shake the defense line of the 13th Infantry Regiment below the high ground.

However, after witnessing the entire attacking force being destroyed on the high ground by the Chinese army's artillery fire, the regiment's command center headquarters was destroyed by a single shot, and in an instant it was transformed from a covered command post into a bloody crater, and the regiment commander was blown into a bloody mess in full view of everyone. After a series of tragic defeats, the arrogance of the 13th Infantry Regiment that it had before the attack was completely gone.

Although the Japanese officers and soldiers of the 13th Infantry Regiment in the underground trenches were holding their weapons and firmly guarding their positions, there was a hint of hesitation in the eyes of many of them.

Whether it was the 13mm heavy grenade that had just destroyed the 150th Infantry Regiment's command post, or the other shells that hit the bottom of Hill 201, they were actually stray bullets that were fired by the half-mountain artillery group due to poor observation and aiming conditions.

But this was not the case for the Japanese troops of the 13th Infantry Regiment on standby below the hill. After witnessing that almost all of their own troops attacking Hill 201 were wiped out by the artillery fire from Banbi Mountain, they gained a new understanding of the fierce artillery firepower of the Chinese army.

As a result, the stray bullets that accidentally hit the area below Hill 201 by the Banbi Mountain artillery group were naturally regarded by the Japanese officers and soldiers of the 13th Infantry Regiment below the hill as the result of careful aiming by the Chinese artillery on Banbi Mountain.

This speculation also means that the position of the 201th Infantry Regiment below Hill 13 is also within the artillery fire coverage of the Chinese army on half of the mountain.

Therefore, even though the Japanese officers and soldiers of the 13th Infantry Regiment on standby below the high ground still maintained good combat discipline, being within the coverage of the Chinese army's artillery firepower inevitably caused a certain amount of panic among the Japanese troops in the position.

In particular, the power of the 150mm heavy artillery shell that hit the regiment headquarters and the bloody scene after the regiment headquarters was destroyed had a considerable impact on the Japanese officers and soldiers.

The 150mm caliber howitzer was only equipped by independent heavy artillery units in the Japanese army, and the artillery that Japanese infantry units such as the 13th Infantry Regiment had encountered were mostly 75mm caliber mountain and field artillery. They rarely received 150mm caliber heavy artillery reinforcements during combat, and ordinary Japanese soldiers had little knowledge of the destructive power and lethality of heavy artillery of this caliber.

Now, the 13mm grenade that hit the headquarters of the 150th Infantry Regiment taught a real lesson to the Japanese troops on standby under Hill 201. Even though the Japanese troops on standby in the trenches remained calm, many Japanese soldiers were frightened at the thought that their positions might be hit by such a powerful shell at any time and anywhere.

In short, the offensive will of the Japanese troops waiting in the trenches below Hill 201 and their heroic spirit of having captured Hill 201 were directly weakened by the "stray bullets" accidentally fired by half of the mountain artillery group.

The commander of the 11th Infantry Brigade, Katsuji Imamura, felt a chill on his back while feeling relieved. After he had completely calmed down, he realized what had happened.

Just now, he made the mistake that a commander should never make. He failed to control his emotions and in extreme rage left the forward command post where he was supposed to be and rushed towards the regimental artillery company of the 13th Infantry Regiment that was under fire. However, this extremely incompetent behavior inadvertently protected himself.

If he had not rushed out just now, but stayed in the command post with the commander of the 13th Infantry Regiment, Shoichi Yasuda, who had been blown into pieces, the consequences would be so unbearable that one would break out in a cold sweat just thinking about it!

Boom
Boom
It was not until several more rounds of shells fell and exploded, and screams broke out in a trench that was unfortunately hit by a 75mm mountain artillery "stray bullet", and a pile of broken limbs and flesh and blood were blown into the air, that Katsuji Imamura came out of his thoughts and regained the calmness of a qualified senior command officer. He began to take over command as the brigade commander, gathered the officers of the 13th Infantry Regiment, and set about re-establishing the command center of the 13th Infantry Regiment to stabilize the troops.

As for the combat mission of taking Hill 201, Katsuji Imamura had completely forgotten about it.

At this point, the 201th Infantry Regiment, which had just been so aggressive about taking Hill 6 and had taken on the task of experimenting and applying the 13th Division's new highland attack tactics, had seen its morale plummet from top to bottom and had lost its determination to continue the attack.

While Katsuji Imamura was busy reorganizing the command system of the 13th Infantry Regiment, his opponents were not idle either.

Zheng Zuomin, the commander of the 230th Division of the National Army, who was commanding on Hill 9, saw that the artillery firepower of the Banbi Mountain artillery group was so fierce, and believed that the time and conditions for the troops to counterattack Hill 201 were ripe. He waved his hand to his adjutant and said, "Tell the 51st Regiment to push forward and retake Hill 201!"

Half a minute later, as the combat order for the counterattack was conveyed, the counterattack troops deployed in advance by Zheng Zuomin and the most elite 230st Infantry Regiment of the 201th Division of the National Army, who were on standby on Hill 9 and several hills close to Hill 51, quickly took action.

On several high ground, loud charge bugles were blown. The attacking forces of the 2st Regiment, formerly the 51nd Teaching Regiment of the Whampoa Military Academy, led by several blue sky and white sun flags fluttering in the wind, rushed out from several high grounds at the same time as the mortar group on Hill 230 ceased fire, and attacked swiftly.

More than a thousand officers and soldiers of the 35st Regiment wearing M51 helmets and yellow uniforms, armed with Zhongzheng rifles with bayonets and carrying Czech light machine guns, rushed out of the starting position and deployed battle formations. They quickly merged and launched a counterattack on Hill 201.

The morale of the 51st Regiment's counterattack troops was extremely high, and their counterattack attack was very smooth. In less than five minutes, they rushed to Hill 201 and re-planted the general flag on the top of Hill 201.

However, the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment who reoccupied the high ground felt that they had no place to use their strength. In fact, during the whole process of counterattacking and retaking the high ground, the 51st Regiment did not suffer even a single casualty. This was because almost all the Japanese troops attacking the 201 high ground were destroyed by the artillery on the half mountain. The officers and soldiers of the 201st Regiment, who were originally prepared to fight to the death with the Japanese troops attacking the 51 high ground, easily regained control of the 201 high ground without firing a single shot or even using bayonets, and without engaging in any battle with the Japanese troops.

The officers and soldiers of the 201st Regiment, who were standing on the top of Hill 51, which was hot due to high-intensity artillery bombardment, were all staring in amazement at the scene below the hill after rushing up to the hill.

Above the halfway point of the main slope of Hill 201, there were bodies of dead Japanese soldiers and broken limbs everywhere, as well as densely packed craters filled with blood, flesh and weapon parts. Even the soil on the hill was dyed red. Rifles, heavy machine guns, mortars, grenade launchers and other weapons and equipment of the Japanese army were scattered on the hill, either intact or broken.

Looking down from the top of the hill, the densely packed, scattered Japanese corpses seemed to have no end. The heat waves generated by the intensive artillery explosions on the hill and the fireballs caused by the 82mm yellow phosphorus mortar shells burned the corpses and soil on the hill to produce bursts of hot mist. The air was filled with a disgusting burnt smell and corpse stench.

Not to mention the living Japanese soldiers, there wasn’t even a single wounded soldier groaning on the ground!
As for the situation below the halfway point of the mountain, the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment could not see it clearly at all, because the artillery group on the halfway point of the mountain was still shelling the area below the halfway point. All the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment could see were dense columns of smoke, rising dust, thick smoke and the shouts, screams and yells of the Japanese soldiers that appeared and disappeared in the sound of artillery explosions.

For the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment, such a scene was even more shocking, exciting and refreshing than the scene just now when half of the mountain artillery group concentrated fire on the Japanese troops attacking Hill 201. The officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment who rushed to the hill all cheered and shouted how happy they were when they looked at the scene below the hill.

These officers and soldiers, who had been bombed in previous battles, naturally felt very pleased to see the Japanese army being beaten into such a mess by their own artillery.

So, at the top of Hill 201, more than a thousand officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment who rushed to the hill looked at the scene below and cheered excitedly.

Meanwhile, the 13th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army, which was located below the high ground, was hastily rebuilding its command center in the chaos that had been destroyed by the firepower of half of the mountain artillery.

The dense artillery shells that hit the front of Hill 201 below the halfway point and the thick smoke and dust that were formed were like a barrier, blocking the sight of the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment and the 13th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army under the hill.

As for the 13th Regiment, which was busy rebuilding its command center while being hit by "stray bullets" from half of the mountain artillery group at the bottom of the hill, it did not even notice the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment who rushed up the hill.

At this time, the intensity of the bombardment of various artillery on the half-mountain artillery group had reached its peak. From 75mm mountain cannons to 150mm howitzers, they were all firing at the maximum rate of fire.

Therefore, the loud noise produced by the dense and continuous artillery shells hitting the ground and exploding, the harassment of artillery "stray bullets", and the thick smoke that covered the sky and the sun effectively concealed the noise made by the 51st Regiment in the counterattack and the figures of the 51st Regiment's officers and soldiers on the high ground.

The Banbi Mountain Artillery Group adopted the tactical principle of prioritizing the intensity of firepower projection and secondary focus on the shooting accuracy in the area below the halfway point of the main slope of Hill 201. After accidentally destroying the headquarters of the 13th Infantry Regiment, it unexpectedly provided concealment and deception for the 201st Regiment that counterattacked Hill 51.

It can be said that the 51st Infantry Regiment easily completed the task of counterattacking and retaking Hill 201, but then a new tactical problem was placed before the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment who rushed to the hill.

Although Hill 201 had been recaptured, there were still an unknown number of Japanese troops below the hill. So, now that the hill had been recaptured, should we continue to launch a counterattack against the Japanese troops below the hill? How should we launch a counterattack against the Japanese troops below the hill?
At present, one side is on the high ground, and the other side is below the high ground, separated by the dense falling firepower of half a wall of mountain artillery. Although the officers and soldiers of the 51st Regiment on the high ground are high-spirited, it is impossible for them to rush up directly from the high ground and immediately launch a counterattack against the Japanese troops below the high ground.

If they really do this, there is no need to wait for a counterattack. The dense artillery fire from half of the mountain artillery group on the area below the halfway point of Hill 201 will be enough to blow up the counterattack troops of the 51st Regiment. No one wants to be bombed by their own artillery!
Faced with this situation, the commander of the 51st Regiment, who personally led the counterattack, immediately ordered the troops on the high ground to rely on the remaining fortifications on the top of the high ground to stay on guard, and quickly wrote a short handwritten note to report the battle situation to the commander of the 9th Division, Zheng Zuomin.

"Report to the division commander, the 51st Regiment reports that there are no Japanese troops on the high ground. The main force of the Japanese troops attacking the high ground has been completely destroyed by our artillery fire. At present, our artillery is still carrying out fierce artillery bombardment on the halfway up the slope of Hill 201. There seem to be Japanese troops below the hill, but our artillery fire is too fierce and the smoke is too thick. We can't see the situation below at all. The counterattack force of the 51st Regiment is now on standby at the top of Hill 201, and our artillery firepower is concentrated below the halfway up the slope of Hill 201. It is the only way for the 51st Regiment to rush down the hill and counterattack. If the 51st Regiment continues to counterattack, our artillery must stop firing or extend its firepower. Please decide how to counterattack next!"

In the division command post on Hill 230, Zheng Zuomin's adjutant quickly reported to Zheng Zuomin the written order sent by the 51st Regiment. After learning the specific situation on Hill 201, Zheng Zuomin was overjoyed at first because all the Japanese troops attacking the hill were wiped out by the bombardment of half of the mountain artillery group.

Then, Zheng Zuomin began to make further assessment of the enemy situation. Now that the high ground had been recaptured, from a tactical point of view, after retaking Hill 201, in order to ensure the absolute safety of the hill, the Japanese troops below the hill must be eliminated as soon as possible. However, the Japanese army had dispatched at least one thousand troops to attack Hill 201 alone, so the number of Japanese troops below the hill would probably be more, not less.

The counterattack force of the 51st Regiment consists of only more than a thousand people, and is most likely insufficient in terms of manpower. If they rashly launch a counterattack, they might suffer a serious blow. Moreover, the artillery group on Banbi Mountain is still bombarding fiercely. If they continue to counterattack below the high ground, coordination with the friendly artillery group on Banbi Mountain will also be a problem.

Therefore, Zheng Zuomin was a little hesitant about whether to launch a counterattack against the Japanese troops in the high ground.

As Zheng Zuomin hesitated, the adjutant beside him seemed to see Zheng Zuomin's worry, and reminded him: "Commander, the friendly artillery group in Banbi Mountain is still bombarding Hill 201 head-on. All actions of our division must be coordinated with them. Why don't we contact Banbi Mountain?"

After being reminded by his adjutant, Zheng Zuomin no longer hesitated and immediately called He Wei. He had heard of He Wei a long time ago and he had made many military achievements. In the battle just now, he decisively ordered the artillery to open fire, thus avoiding the loss of the opportunity which was almost caused by Zheng Zuomin's eagerness to do better. His ability is beyond doubt.

Moreover, although He Wei was lower in age and rank than himself, he was also a junior at Whampoa Military Academy. Therefore, the battle situation was urgent and the opportunity could not be delayed. Therefore, Zheng Zuomin had no psychological burden at all to ask He Wei for help.

After understanding the specific situation, He Wei once again readily gave Zheng Zuomin a countermeasure, which was to ask Zheng Zuomin and He Wei to coordinate command, use all the mobile forces available to the 9th Division, and under the cover of half of the mountain artillery group, launch a full-scale counterattack against the Japanese troops under Hill 201, strive to wipe out all the Japanese troops under Hill 201 and fight a battle of annihilation!

(End of this chapter)