Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 325 Reinforcements arrive
"Brothers, the Japs only have these three axes, beat them to death!"

It is said that communication is basically based on shouting, and the same is true for raising morale. Facing wave after wave of attacks from the Japanese, Wu Qiujian could only keep cheering up the defenders;
In the end, all tactics are meaningless. It all depends on willpower. See who can persevere to the end.

The Japanese were also demoralized by the heavy casualties, they had never encountered such a stubborn and hardened force, their key equipment and training were not inferior to theirs;
Some Japanese soldiers had already started to retreat, but unfortunately they were driven back by Major Fukushima's supervision team. If the regiment commander can kill people, so can he!
Under the Japanese's supervision, no Japanese soldier dared to run away. They all rushed forward with their heads held high. They were either charging, preparing to charge, or falling on the way to charge - those who retreat will die!

"Warriors, there are only 500 men left in the guerrilla column at most. We must destroy them all even if it means sacrificing our lives.

The time has come to serve His Majesty the Emperor faithfully—Itazai!"

A squadron leader with a cramped brain could not bear the importance and led the charge. Other Japanese soldiers followed suit and swarmed towards the 1st Battalion's position.
The pressure of defense increased suddenly. The 1st Battalion had opened fire at full power, but it still couldn't stop the Japanese who were fighting for their lives. They were about to rush into the st Battalion's position when a loud military bugle call was faintly heard from the left wing!
Then came several mortar shells, instantly killing and wounding more than a dozen devils. Although the number was small, it boosted morale;
Battalion Commander Wu Qiujian was delighted and shouted excitedly:
"Brothers, the charge has sounded! Our reinforcements have arrived. Kill the devils!"

Old Wu really knows the military, and the words "reinforcements have arrived" are enough to boost the morale of the defenders;

Everyone is struggling to hold on, what could be more exciting than the arrival of reinforcements?

The entry point chosen by Hua Pinzhang was very tricky, which happened to be the rib of the Japanese attack formation, which is the most vulnerable part of a person;
Although there were only 300 people, the impact on the Japanese was considerable and directly led to their collapse.

Wu Qiujian, the commander of the battalion on the front line, saw that the Japanese troops' formation was loosened by the reinforcements and there were signs of defeat, so he immediately ordered the charge to be blown and they were ready to launch a counterattack.

When the charge was sounded, the Japanese had lost all their morale. Although their strength was twice that of the defenders, they had no fighting spirit at all:

No one knew how many reinforcements had arrived, they only knew that reinforcements for the defenders had arrived, and they were being attacked from both sides, so they lost!

Morale is a very illusive thing, invisible and intangible, but it is very important to an army. No army in the world can win a war when its morale is completely lost.

The Japs were like dominoes falling down, and no one could stop them.
Major Fukushima tried to use the supervision team and machine guns to forcibly stop the attack, but not only did he fail, he was also dispersed by the surging fleeing soldiers.

When the fleeing soldiers came over like a tide, the supervisors could not kill them all and simply joined in;

The fleeing soldiers grew bigger and bigger like a snowball, and under the pursuit of the defenders, they swept towards the supervision team of the Banxi Battalion. This was the last line of fire, with 4 Type 6 heavy machine guns and Type light machine guns, which was a fire blockade line that frightened the fleeing soldiers.

The old Japanese soldier Banxi had a gloomy face and immediately ordered to open fire, instantly mowing down a large number of them and completely enraging the fleeing soldiers.

They raised their guns and fired back. At this time, they would kill gods and Buddhas, as everyone's life was the same.

When the supervisors saw that they had stirred up a hornet's nest, they dropped their guns and made way. Although they killed many fleeing soldiers, they were also shot by the fleeing soldiers. The number of people on both sides was too different, and they would die if they continued to block the attack.

Only Colonel Itanishi was cursing:
"Damn it! The Imperial Army has lost all its face because of these cowards!" "Damn it! They dared to shoot at the military police. Do they still have military discipline in their eyes?"

"Baga, I'm going to send them to a military court..."

Kurokawa Yukihiro had no choice but to persuade him:

"Sir, the Chinese reinforcements have arrived. There are thousands of them - no, tens of thousands of them. It would be wise for the Imperial Army to withdraw!

We all know that Yue Qianli's troops have at least 2 men, and the 59th Regiment only has 2 men left. Even if we capture the outer positions of the defenders, it is impossible to defeat the 2-man guerrilla column with the remaining 2 men. It is time to make a suggestion to the division commander."

This time, Colonel Itanishi did not curse, but fell into a brief moment of deep thought. Although Major Kurokawa's words sounded unpleasant, he knew that they were honest advice;

They no longer had any chance of capturing the defenders' outer positions, let alone the heavily fortified Lanfeng City.

After a long while, he seemed to have aged a lot, his face was haggard, and even his back was no longer as straight as before. He let out a long sigh and said:
"Kurokawa-kun, go and organize the troops first. I will make a suggestion to the division commander and he will make the final decision."

Seeing that the regiment commander finally listened to his advice, Major Kurokawa's face brightened up. He bowed deeply to Colonel Itanishi, then turned and left.

At the main position of the 1st Battalion, Wu Qiujian gave his old brother a tight bear hug when he saw him. All his gratitude was contained in this hug. Instead, Hua Pinzhang said with great emotion:
"Old Wu, this time it was really difficult for you. You relied on only one battalion to hold off the attack of 5 Japanese soldiers. It was not easy!

The detachment commander did not allow the reserve troops to be mobilized, but he gave me all the personnel that the detachment could mobilize, so I had 300 reinforcements. "

Wu Qiujian nodded heavily and said:
"The old devil Doihara Kenji still has 20 to 30 thousand people under his control. There are many variables. Unless it is absolutely necessary, the reserve troops cannot be used.
We can still hold on, brothers, but we have suffered too many casualties. Many companies have been wiped out, and the two companies of the First Battalion have only seven wounded soldiers left."

Hua Pinzhang guessed that the first battalion had suffered a terrible defeat, but he did not expect it to be so tragic. Only about 600 people were left in the entire battalion, and the entire organization was gone.
This should be the blocking battle with the heaviest casualties since the guerrilla column was established. Hua Pinzhang didn't know how to comfort his old brother, and just patted him on the shoulder to show his comfort.

Faced with the huge casualties of the First Battalion, the two iron men fell silent. These were veterans pulled out from Jinling City, and some were old brothers from the 523rd Regiment. Losing % of their men in one battle would not be pleasant for anyone.

After a bloody battle, both sides were licking their wounds, but the real battle had just begun. The rest depended on how the commanders of both sides changed their formations.
If the Japs still want to fight, then fight!
At the guerrilla column headquarters, the battle report of the 1st Battalion of the st Detachment had been delivered to Yue Qianli. Facing the shocking casualties, Yue Qianli was also in great pain.
Killing 1 enemies and suffering casualties on one's own side was still acceptable, but the st Battalion had only people before the battle. This casualty rate was indeed too high. He even considered replacing them.

He held back when he thought of Kenji Doihara's cunning. Even though the main force of the 14th Division was tied up, he could break out at any time as long as the old devil wanted to.

None of Xue Boling's armies could withstand the fierce attack of the 14th Division, including the guerrilla column, so he had to keep enough reserves.

(End of this chapter)