Zhu Tian: Beginning to Cross the Changjin Lake

Afterwards, Li Guotao and Yang Jihe led a battalion to the airport. Yang Jihe showed Commander Fang's order to the officers of the airport garrison, and things went relatively smoothly at the beginning.

Under Yang Jihe's order, all the airport garrison troops gathered in a small woods next to the airport.

Part of the airport garrison has already withdrawn, and now there are more than 150 people left, about the strength of a company.

With these 568 people, plus the remaining people from the nd and rd battalions, the total strength of the th Regiment can be restored to more than people. Although the number is not large, they are enough to fight.

What made Yang Jihe overjoyed was that the airport garrison was equipped entirely with American equipment.

Most of the infantry were equipped with American Springfield rifles, and there were also a small number of Garand rifles and carbines, but in relatively small numbers.

After the outbreak of the Pacific War, the US military began a large-scale expansion, with the number of troops increasing more than tenfold.

Due to insufficient production capacity of the Garand rifle, many American soldiers at the time were only equipped with Springfield rifles. It was not until the end of the war that the Springfield rifle was gradually phased out.

At that time, the weapons that the United States supported its allies were basically Springfield rifles.

Although the Americans are constantly increasing their support, most of these American weapons and equipment are given to the expeditionary force first, and other troops receive less.

Take the 10th Army as an example. Their artillery battalion was originally going to replace its equipment with American mountain cannons, but it was delayed for so long that they only managed to bring back six American mountain cannons. The infantry units also received relatively few American equipment.

The weapons currently equipped by the 10th Army are basically made in various countries. Some are domestically produced, some are supported by the British and American Allied Forces, and some are Japanese equipment captured from the Jap.

After all, not only ammunition is a consumable, but weapons are also consumables. After a war, a large number of weapons were destroyed. Under the circumstances at the time, they could not be replenished in time. Naturally, they had to use whatever they had. It was simply a pipe dream to want to unify standard equipment.

The reason why this airport garrison was able to obtain all American equipment was because they were originally affiliated with the Air Force, that is, the Flying Tigers, and naturally they could get priority in replenishing American equipment.

This airport garrison has always been responsible for airport garrison missions and has basically never participated in battles, so naturally they have complete weapons and sufficient ammunition.

In addition to rifles, there are also a number of Thompson submachine guns. Each squad is equipped with a Browning automatic rifle. Although it is called an automatic rifle, it is actually a squad light machine gun.

Not only that, there are also two M2 heavy machine guns, two bazookas, and six American 60 mortars.

When Yang Jihe saw these weapons and equipment, his eyes lit up with excitement.

Li Guotao also said softly: "I didn't expect to have such an unexpected gain. It turned out to be a company equipped with all American weapons."

Yang Jihe said excitedly: "This time we have found a treasure."

At this time, a captain officer walked over quickly, raised his hand to salute, and said loudly: "Report to the commander, the infantry squadron of the Hengyang Airport garrison has assembled, the squadron leader is Song Weiguo."

The airport garrison originally did not have this many people. Only a part of them withdrew, and an air defense squadron was transferred to other places. Now only this infantry squadron is left.

Afterwards, Yang Jihe read out Commander Fang's order and began to give a speech, which was simply to boost morale.

Li Guotao and Song Weiguo stood behind Yang Jihe. Li Guotao glanced at Song Weiguo next to him and said softly, "Captain Song, are you very dissatisfied?"

"I dare not! I am a soldier and I will obey the orders of my superiors."

Song Weiguo turned his head and glanced at Li Guotao. Although he said this, his eyes were full of disdain.

Li Guotao smiled and said, "Since you are soldiers, let's solve it in a military way. You can find a few helpers and we will have a competition. I promise to knock you all down within five minutes."

Song Weiguo looked at Li Guotao in front of him in surprise. This kid was too arrogant.

But since this guy dares to say such words, he must have some ability.

Song Weiguo hesitated for a moment and said, "If I hurt the commander, I can't bear the consequences."

Li Guotao thought about it and realized that using such a simple and crude method might be able to subdue them, but it might also backfire and cause jealousy.

Li Guotao nodded slightly and said, "That's right. The war is imminent and it's time to use more people. It would be bad if anyone was injured."

Song Weiguo said coldly: "You are the battalion commander, the commander. If you can only show off your bravery, you are not worthy of being the battalion commander."

Li Guotao nodded slightly and said, "That makes sense. In yesterday's battle, our First Battalion fought off three large-scale attacks by the Japanese in the Leishui defense line, killing 1,000 Japanese soldiers and suffering more than 30 casualties."

Song Weiguo's eyes widened in surprise, and then he said, "Humph, everyone can brag. Captain Li is not afraid of his tongue being blown away by the wind."

Li Guotao smiled and said, "Okay! Hearing is not as good as seeing."

"How about we make a bet?"

Song Weiguo asked curiously: "What do you want to bet on?"

Li Guotao said: "The Japanese are ready to attack Wumaguicao, and the airport must be their main target."

"The Japanese sent planes to bomb the city of Hengyang today, but they didn't bomb the airport. This shows that the Japanese already know that our planes have withdrawn and the airport is not a threat to them. They want to take over the airport completely and use it as their forward airport."

"So we have to blow up the airport as soon as possible, and the Japanese will definitely do their best to seize the airport."

"This battle must be fought. Retreating without a fight is not in line with my style."

"In this battle, I demand that you obey my command unconditionally. If we win this battle, you must obey me in the future and stop causing trouble for me."

"If you can't fight well, I'll let you be the battalion commander."

"what do you think?"

Song Weiguo looked at Li Guotao in front of him with confusion.

Li Guotao continued, "Don't worry, I will talk to the regiment commander. Even if the division commander or army commander asks, I will be there to support him. You don't need to worry."

"I will use practical actions to convince you."

Song Weiguo asked curiously, "Are you so confident?"

Li Guotao smiled and said: "Confidence is based on strength."

"Insanity!"

Song Weiguo curled his lips in disdain.

"Okay, let's do as you say. I want to see how capable you, Captain Li, are."

Now the strength of the first battalion has increased to more than 400 people, so Li Guotao began to reorganize the troops.

The troops of the original first, second and third battalions were reorganized into one company, with Chen Jianghe as the company commander.

Most of the airport garrison was reorganized into the 2nd Company, with Song Weiguo as the company commander.

The two mortars originally owned by the first battalion, the six 60 mortars of the airport garrison, and all the heavy machine guns were withdrawn to form a machine gun company, with Zheng Mingyuan as the company commander.

The four anti-tank guns that were originally temporarily assigned to the 10st Battalion by the army commander have been transferred away. After all, the entire th Army is short of guns, and each gun is a treasure.

Then Li Guotao began to command the troops to make arrangements. According to Li Guotao's plan, this time they had to blow up the airport and severely damage the Japanese who attacked the airport. The first battalion or the entire 568th Regiment only had more than people, so it was still difficult to complete this task.

……

At the same time, the Japanese army had already crossed the Leishui River.

Under the command of Shima Genkichi, the Japanese launched a fierce attack on Wumaguicao.

The 190th Regiment of the 570th Division of the defending army was the strongest regiment in the entire 190th Division. The troops were basically complete, and a complete defense system was established.

The Japanese launched two large-scale attacks, both of which were repelled by the stubborn resistance of the defenders.

Shima Genkichi was so angry that he yelled, "Bakayalu, these damn enemies are so stubborn."

A Japanese officer nearby said: "After all, the enemy's 10th Army is their elite force, and its combat effectiveness should not be underestimated."

"Besides, they occupy an advantageous terrain. It will be difficult to capture Wu Ma Gui Cao as soon as possible."

Shima Genkichi said angrily: "What elite? They are just a bunch of rabble in front of the Imperial Locust Army."

"Order the frontline troops to continue the attack, and all the artillery units in the back to the front line as soon as possible. I want to see how long they can hold out."

"Hai!"

Shima Genkichi thought for a moment, then said, "Call Mr. Songshan over immediately. I have an important mission for him."

"Hai!"

Not long after, Keisuke Matsuyama, the captain of the Matsuyama Battalion, hurried to the front command post.

"Your Excellency General!"

"Yoshi~!"

Shima Genkichi smiled and pulled Matsuyama Keisuke to the front of the map, pointed at the map and said: "Matsuyama-kun, I have an important task for you."

Matsuyama Keisuke said respectfully, "Please give your orders, General."

Shima Genkichi continued, "Hengyang Airport is not far from here, it's right here."

"The headquarters ordered us to occupy Hengyang Airport as soon as possible and prevent the enemy from destroying the airport. We need to take over the entire airport completely."

"This way, the Army Aviation aircraft can take off directly from here and bomb the enemy in Hengyang, which is crucial to the entire battle situation."

Matsuyama Keisuke said excitedly: "The general is going to let our Matsuyama Battalion attack Hengyang Airport."

Shima Genkichi smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, according to our reconnaissance, all the enemy planes in the airport have been evacuated, and their radar stations and important facilities have been dismantled and transported away."

"But right now they don't have too many defenders at the airport, and they haven't completely destroyed the airport yet, so you need to act as soon as possible, take the airport by surprise, and quickly capture it."

"You can go around here and head straight to Hengyang Airport."

"The main force will continue to attack Wumaguicao to tie down the enemy's main force, so that you can successfully capture the airport."

"Hai!"

Matsuyama Keisuke responded respectfully: "Please rest assured, General. Our Matsuyama Brigade will never let you down and will ensure that we can capture the Hengyang Airport."

"Yoshi~!"

Shima Genkichi smiled and nodded, saying, "You must know that our battles in the past two days have not been smooth, and our troops have suffered heavy losses. This is simply a shame."

"Now I place all my hopes on you. You must capture Hengyang Airport for me and avenge our 57th Brigade."

"please!"

Major Matsuyama Keisuke responded respectfully: "Yay!"

Looking at Keisuke Matsuyama's departing back, Shima Genkichi sighed slightly.

At this time, the Japanese 58th Brigade was also rushing towards Hengyang, and the main force of the 116th Division was also rapidly infiltrating to the south of Hengyang, crossing the Xiangjiang River from the south, and directly detouring to the south of Hengyang, cutting off the retreat route of the Hengyang defenders, and then encircling the entire Hengyang.

The Japanese troops were advancing with great momentum and their progress was quite smooth.

However, Shima Genkichi's troops, as the first Japanese troops to arrive near Hengyang, suffered repeated setbacks and heavy losses in the battles over the past two days. Shima Genkichi was naturally very angry and was trying his best to save the situation and win more victories. Otherwise, when the division commander arrived at the front line, he would not know how to explain and would inevitably be scolded again.

So now Shima Genkichi is also extremely anxious, hoping that the Songshan Battalion can successfully capture the airport, and then defeat the defenders who have returned to the trough, and save some face.

Keisuke Matsuyama was also fully aware of the importance of this mission. After returning, he did not dare to be negligent in the slightest. He immediately assembled his troops and prepared to bypass the Five Horses Returning Path and head straight for Hengyang Airport.

Shima Genkichi also sent out some scouts in advance to investigate the situation at the airport and assist the Songshan Battalion in capturing the Hengyang Airport.

After the Songshan Brigade assembled, it immediately headed straight for Hengyang Airport.

The actions of this group of Japanese soldiers were soon discovered by the defending scouts who had returned to Wumaguicao.

The scouts on the mountain discovered that this group of Japanese soldiers intended to bypass them and reported it directly to the division headquarters.

After receiving the report, Commander Rong pointed to the map and said, "This group of Japanese soldiers must be heading for Hengyang Airport."

"Haven't Yang Ji and his men already taken over the airport? Why haven't they blown it up yet?"

"Notify Yang Jihe immediately and tell him that a large group of Japanese soldiers are heading towards the airport. Tell them to blow up the airport as soon as possible."

"Yes!"

A staff officer nearby responded quickly and turned to convey the order.

Commander Rong asked, "Are there any more movements from the Japs on the other side?"

The chief of staff replied: "According to reports from the front lines, they are still preparing to launch a large-scale offensive."

Commander Rong said: "Order the garrison troops at each position to fight hard! Don't forget that we are the Taishan Army. We must be as steady as a mountain and firmly hold our positions."

"Yes!"

This Commander Rong is also of great background. He is a member of the first class of Whampoa Military Academy. Of course, he is one of the people who did not do well among the first class.

Even Commander Fang is his junior. Commander Fang is from the third term, but he is one year older than Commander Rong.

Seeing his classmates all being promoted step by step, even many of his juniors have surpassed him, Master Rong was holding his breath, and naturally would not miss any opportunity to show off. At the moment, defending Hengyang was a good opportunity to make merit and get promoted, so how could he miss it? (End of this chapter)