Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 151: Flanking Attack and Central Breakthrough (6K)

Mazhuang is more than 200 meters away from the high ground, and they can form a support for each other.

In order to hold this commanding height, Brigade Chen not only sent the special service battalion and the guard company here, but also pulled the mountain artillery of the artillery battalion to the high ground.

"Comrades, everyone knows that the comrades from the brigade and the local areas are right behind us. I don't need to say much about the importance of Mazhuang and the high ground."

"Back then, our special forces battalion beat the Japanese to a pulp at Niangzi Pass. We must maintain this honor!"

"I only have one request, that the people remain in the position! Do you have the determination?" shouted the battalion commander of the 386th Brigade's Special Forces Battalion.

"Have!"

"have!".
"Very good! Everyone get ready for battle!"

The soldiers immediately dispersed into their positions and used the gaps before the Japanese attack to dig and strengthen their fortifications.

The guard company responsible for defending Mazhuang was also actively using houses to build fortifications.

However, everyone knew that Mazhuang was only a secondary target of the Japanese. As long as they could take the high ground, Mazhuang would fall without a fight.

The Eighth Route Army knew the importance of Mazhuang Heights, and the Japanese naturally knew it too.

In order to successfully capture Mazhuang Heights, the commander of the Japanese 32nd Regiment, Kato Yuhiro, personally went to the front line to command.

Although the Mazhuang Plateau is not very high, the slope is quite steep and there are many sections because the villagers are constantly taking soil.

Although these sections are only one or two meters high, they are an insurmountable chasm for the Japanese soldiers who are only one and a half meters tall.

According to the agreement among several Japanese regiment commanders, the 32nd Regiment would conduct the main attack in this encirclement, and if necessary, the 45th Regiment could draw troops to help.

Kato Yuhiro scoffed at the 45th Regiment's idea of dividing the credit.

The 32nd Regiment is the elite of the Locust Army. Wouldn't it be easy for them to capture a small Mazhuang Hill?
"Order the mountain artillery company to launch a fire attack on Mazhuang Heights. Order the infantry artillery and rapid-fire artillery to move forward and cooperate with the First Infantry Battalion to attack the heights. The Second Infantry Battalion will send two infantry companies to attack Mazhuang." Kato Yuhiro ordered.

Compared with the importance of the Highlands, the value of Mazhuang can be said to be insignificant.

However, the Eighth Route Army had troops left in Mazhuang, so the 32nd Regiment must also have troops to engage them, otherwise the enemy would definitely come out to harass the 32nd Regiment's attack.

A few minutes later, the mountain artillery squadron of the 32nd Regiment began to pour shells on the heights.

The special forces battalion was well prepared for the Japanese's combat tactics and only deployed a small number of troops on the front line, with most of the people hiding on the reverse slope to prevent artillery fire.

After firing dozens of shells, the Japanese mountain artillery gradually stopped, and at the same time the Japanese infantry began to move forward and deploy.

However, the Mazhuang Heights were very steep, which made it difficult for the Japanese to fully exploit their advantages.

Moreover, by the time the Japanese rushed to the high slope and began to attack from above, the soldiers of the special forces battalion had already returned to the front line.

Seeing the Japanese coming up, the soldiers directly used grenades to suppress them.

With the advantage of height, the grenade can be easily thrown near the Japanese.

When the Japanese finally rushed forward under the grenades and bullets, the soldiers of the special forces battalion directly counterattacked and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the Japanese.

Because of the terrain, the Japanese infantry could not engage the enemy at the same time. Often the Japanese in front were stabbed to death by several soldiers while the ones behind were still trying to climb up.

"Damn, this terrain is too disgusting! Let the infantry retreat and continue to bombard the Eighth Route Army positions!" Kato Yuhiro said with a grim expression.

Faced with such terrain, the only way to successfully capture it was to use artillery to destroy the Eighth Route Army's positions.

As the Japanese infantry retreated, the mountain artillery of the 32nd Regiment began to roar again.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
The soldiers of the special forces battalion who had already run to the reverse slope heard the enemy's artillery fire and laughed, "It's true that the reverse slope tactics developed by the New Second Regiment at Erlang Mountain are really effective. The enemy's artillery shells have basically no effect on them."

"We can't take it lightly. Any tactic is a double-edged sword, with advantages and disadvantages. Once the Japanese occupy the frontier, we will be in trouble." said the commander of the special forces battalion on the side.

There are no other hills behind Mazhuang Heights to rely on, which means they cannot make any mistakes, otherwise the situation will collapse immediately.

"Don't worry, Battalion Commander. We are in the position. The Japanese can only climb up the high ground by stepping on our dead bodies."

"That's right! Unless you step on our dead bodies."

The battle between the two sides around Mazhuang Heights was extremely fierce. The Japanese continued to bombard and then charge with infantry. If they failed, they would bombard again.

By 4 p.m., the number of people from the 32nd Regiment participating in the front-line battle had exceeded 2000, and almost all the main combat forces were involved.

In dangerous moments, there was even direct artillery battle between the two sides.

In order to strengthen the front line, Brigade Chen also ordered the brigade headquarters to command from the front.

In addition to climbing up the heights himself to command the troops personally, Chen Can went to the second battalion of the independent regiment, and the deputy director of the political department also went to the third battalion.

Except for the necessary personnel, all other people from the entire 386th Brigade went to the front line, including those cadres from the local government who had never fought in a war.

Those who don’t have weapons will go to the battlefield to find a way out. If they can pick up a gun, they will use it. If they don’t have a gun, they will hold a bench leg and wait for the charge to be blown.

Although many people were squatting in the trenches and trembling all over, no one took the initiative to withdraw from the battle.

The Japs fought very tenaciously. After being repelled once, they would quickly organize a second, third, and fourth attack.
If they fail to attack in this direction, they will immediately turn to another direction.

However, most of the soldiers in the special forces battalion are veterans, and they have long been familiar with the Japanese's rigid command and simple fighting style.

Therefore, after a fierce battle until 4 p.m., the Mazhuang Heights had repelled the Japanese's five attacks, not only preventing the Japanese from climbing the heights, but also causing considerable casualties to them.

Looking at the troops retreating again, Kato Yuhiro's face turned pale. A small high ground actually blocked the attack of the 32nd Regiment for several hours. This was simply a great shame!
"Bring the map!" ordered Kato Yuhiro.

The 32nd Regiment might not be able to break through the front line of Mazhuang Heights in a short period of time, so it could only use the Locust Army's ultimate move.

Kato Yuhiro decided to make a roundabout attack!
On the map, the Erxianqiao area is densely drawn, and it clearly marks how many people are defending each village and what kind of firepower the defenders have.

"Mr. Miyagi, you must immediately select the best troops from the entire regiment to form a reinforced team, and order them to break into the Eighth Route Army's defense line from the junction between Luo Village and Beihuang Village." Kato Yuhiro said to the Chief of Staff of the 32nd Regiment, Miyagi Koji.

Because the Eighth Route Army had occupied all the important nodes in advance, they could not pass through the open areas without any cover in broad daylight, otherwise they would become sitting ducks.

According to Kato Yuhiro's judgment, the two defenders of Luo Village and Beihuang Village should not be the same troops, as there is a big gap in their weapons.

This means that the other party is not that tacitly aligned. If they rely on phone calls or even messengers to communicate continuously, there will definitely be flaws at the junction.

"Haha!" Miyagi Koji immediately went to mobilize elite troops.

Half an hour later, the reinforced team, led by the captain of the Japanese 5th Squadron, Yufu Takagi, quietly set out in a roundabout way.

Kato Yuhiro's judgment was very accurate. Luo Village and Beihuang Village were defended by the armed forces of the Third Battalion of the New First Regiment and local troops respectively, and the two sides did not even have a phone call.

The Japanese assault team made smooth progress. After breaking through the junction, the Japanese advanced at an extremely fast speed to a place less than 386 meters away from the 800th Brigade headquarters.

Huang Qingfeng, director of the political department in charge of the remaining brigade, turned pale when he heard the news.

Now the 386th Brigade does not have any reserve troops.

"Everyone in the brigade! Anyone with a weapon, follow me!"

"The rest of you, burn the documents immediately! Move away as quickly as possible!" Huang Qingfeng ordered loudly.

After hearing Huang Qingfeng's order, the people in the brigade did not panic.

All the armed soldiers immediately stood up and left the brigade headquarters, preparing to seize the houses in Wanggezhuang, and then use the houses to block the enemy at every level and defend the brigade headquarters with their lives.

The rest of the people performed their duties quickly, some collected things, some burned documents.

When the situation was most urgent, Captain Chen, who learned that the brigade headquarters was threatened, gritted his teeth and transferred two platoons of troops from Mazhuang Heights to provide support.

Finally, before the Japanese entered Wanggezhuang, their attack was blocked.

Seeing that they could not break through the Eighth Route Army's defense line in a short period of time, and not knowing that the headquarters of the 386th Brigade was in Wanggezhuang, Takagi Yushi chose to retreat after weighing the pros and cons.

However, before everyone could breathe a sigh of relief, they learned that the Japanese 45th Regiment in the northeast had also sent a team, who waded in along the ditch.

However, the target of this team was not Wanggezhuang, but the eastern position of Erxianqiao which Li Yunlong was responsible for defending.

At this time, there was only one platoon of troops on the rear wing of the 1st Battalion of the New 1st Regiment.

At the critical moment, Zhang Dabiao led the assault platoon, each carrying 8 grenades, and launched a fierce charge on the Japanese squad and engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

Taking advantage of the short-term firepower advantage of grenades, the First Battalion was finally able to repel the Japanese and ease the crisis.

If the Japanese broke into the position, the opposing 403rd Regiment would certainly take the opportunity to launch a fierce attack. In that case, the First Battalion, whose situation was disrupted, would not be able to hold the Qiaodong position at all.

Once the Qiaodong position was lost, the 403rd Regiment would be able to move freely and completely encircle and annihilate the New 386st Regiment, the th Brigade Headquarters and the Ji Zhong local government.

Just when the 386th Brigade was engaged in a tough battle, Chen Chengxing had already led the New 2nd Regiment to Niujiazhuang, less than kilometers away from Erxianqiao.

In Niujiazhuang, Chen Chengxing convened an emergency meeting to arrange combat deployment.

"According to reconnaissance, the enemy has about 2 troops west of the bridge. In addition to some troops attacking Erxian Bridge, most of their troops are blocking the Baihe River."

"The most important thing for us now is to open a gap to support the brigade's breakout." Chen Chengxing said, pointing to the map.

"Captain, please give the order." Everyone said.

Everyone already knew what the mission of the new Second Regiment was and had already made preparations.

"Okay, I've decided to split your three battalions into three groups. Battalion One will be responsible for attacking Erxian Bridge, and Battalion Two and Battalion Four will be responsible for attacking the Japanese blockade along the north and south of the river to prevent the Japanese from supporting the positions west of the bridge."

"Concentrate all the mortars together and attack the enemy's Erxianqiao position. As long as we can cooperate with the New 1st Regiment to occupy Erxianqiao, the mission will be mostly accomplished." Chen Chengxing ordered.

"Captain, how are we going to communicate with the New 1st Regiment? We can't get through now." Xu Wu said. "Don't worry about it, the New 1st Regiment will cooperate fully." Chen Chengxing affirmed.

Chen Chengxing was sure that with Li Yunlong's character, he would definitely take the initiative to launch an offensive when he saw the Japanese being bombarded.

"Do you understand everything?" Chen Chengxing asked.

"understand!"

"Okay, let's get ready." Chen Chengxing ordered.

The Second and Fourth Battalions left Niujiazhuang immediately. It would take some time for them to reach the designated battlefield.

At this time, the 403rd Regiment, which was continuously attacking the Qiaodong position, also received news that the Eighth Route Army appeared behind them.

"Captain, according to intelligence, this group of Eighth Route Army soldiers is most likely the New Second Regiment of the 42th Brigade that previously confronted the 386nd Regiment in Anyang area," said Suzuki Shunji.

"Anyang? Anyang is hundreds of kilometers away from here. How could they suddenly appear in Erxianqiao?" Murakami Isamu asked in surprise.

Murakami Yong knew that the 42nd Regiment had withdrawn to Jiaoxian, but it was impossible that the 42nd Regiment would march here just after the 386nd Regiment withdrew, right? At that time, even the troops of the th Brigade had not yet moved here.

"That's unknown, but at the moment the only organized Eighth Route Army in this area is the New Second Regiment." Suzuki Shunji shook his head.

The fact that the New Second Regiment went north to pick up corpses was so unbelievable that it was beyond the imagination of any normal person.

"The combat effectiveness of this new Second Regiment is very strong. Judging from their movements, they should want to attack the upper, middle and lower positions of our unit at the same time." Suzuki Shunji said.

"You are simply overestimating your own capabilities. Even if a regiment is strong, what can it do? You dare to attack on all fronts? You are simply overestimating your own capabilities!"

"Order the north and south defense lines to shrink their forces, attack the left and right wings of the New Second Regiment, and move the artillery positions to open a gap for the Eighth Route Army to enter."

"Since the new second regiment dares to come, then don't leave!" Murakami Isamu sneered.

According to Murakami Isamu's idea, after defeating the left and right wing troops of the New Second Regiment, the 403rd Regiment would be able to complete the encirclement of the New Second Regiment.

As long as they can complete the encirclement, the Eighth Route Army's New Second Regiment can do whatever they want.

When Chen Chengxing led the first battalion and the temporary artillery battalion to advance head-on, he found that the Japanese could not help but block him, but it was just a matter of perfunctory response. If the Japanese had not had a clear plan for their advance and retreat, Chen Chengxing would have thought they had encountered puppet troops.

Chen Chengxing understood the devil's idea after just a brief thought.

"Haha. The Japanese devils have big ambitions. They want to eat up the New Second Regiment with half a regiment? Aren't they afraid of bursting their stomachs?" Chen Chengxing said with a smile.

The New Second Regiment was not like the Guo Army or the local army, which had only a few thousand men. The New Second Regiment not only had a large number of men, but also had a large number of mortars. Although they had few shells, they could still finish the battle.

"Captain, should we leave some troops to protect the rear wing?" Xu Wu suggested.

"No need." Chen Chengxing waved his hand: "With the strength of the Second and Fourth Battalions, even without the artillery company, it is enough to stop the attacks of the Japanese on both wings."

The 403rd Regiment only has about 2 people here. Excluding the baggage, communications, and artillery arms, there are only 1500 front-line infantry. Even if all of them participate in the battle on both wings, the nd and th Battalions can stop them.

"Xu Wu, you don't have to worry about the battles on the two wings. I have only one request, that you quickly occupy the Qiaoxi position and open up the retreat route for the 386th Brigade." Chen Chengxing said seriously.

"Don't worry, Commander. I will lead the assault team myself in a moment!" Xu Wu affirmed.

With Chen Chengxing in command, Xu Wu naturally no longer needed to coordinate management. His task was to lead the team in the assault on the front line.

"Okay, let's do it!" Chen Chengxing nodded.

"Yes!"

"First Company, Second Company, Third Company, follow me!"

Xu Wu led the first battalion forward and prepared to attack the enemy's position west of Qiao.

Murakami Isamu watched the Eighth Route Army advancing deeper and deeper from the flank, with a smug smile on his face.

The New Second Regiment wanted to support the Eighth Route Army's breakout, and the Qiaoxi position was their only choice.

Knowing this, they can set up traps specifically, and even if the Eighth Route Army discovers that it is a trap, they must step into it.

This is called an open conspiracy!
"Order the troops on both wings to intensify the offensive and complete the encirclement within an hour!" Murakami Isamu put down the telescope and ordered.

"Hai!"

The Japanese only deployed one infantry company and one machine gun squad at the Qiaoxi position. These troops had no problem blocking the attack of the New 1st Regiment using the Erxianqiao terrain, but they found it difficult to withstand Xu Wu's fierce attack.

The nine 9mm mortars of the three infantry companies made the Japanese on the position feel like a thorn in their throats.

The 60mm mortars of the first battalion were placed outside the range of the Japanese grenade launchers and there was cover in front of them. All the firepower on the Japanese positions could not affect the mortars' attack.

Moreover, not long after Xu Wu led his troops to launch the attack, the temporary artillery battalion led by Chen Chengxing had set up their artillery.

"Beat him hard!" Chen Chengxing ordered.

"put!"

"Boom~" "Boom~" "Boom~" "Boom~" "Boom~".
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
A large number of artillery shells fell on the Japanese Qiaoxi position, and the Japanese on the position were suppressed by the artillery fire and could not raise their heads.

Murakami Isamu was shocked when he saw this scene. Where did the Eighth Route Army get so many cannons?

This is stronger than the configuration of the German-equipped infantry regiment of the Guo army, and has more people.

"Order both wings to intensify the offensive and complete the encirclement as quickly as possible. The artillery squadron will immediately launch shelling to delay the Eighth Route Army's attack speed!" Murakami Isamu said anxiously.

Faced with such a strong firepower attack, a squadron of troops could not hold out for too long. The 403rd Regiment had to complete the encirclement before the Eighth Route Army in Qiaodong broke out.

In that way, even if the Qiaoxi position was lost, the 403rd Regiment would be able to trap the enemy, and then cooperate with the 32nd and 45th Regiments to encircle and annihilate this group of Eighth Route Army.

When Li Yunlong, who was on the position on the east side of the bridge, heard gunshots on the west side of the bridge, he immediately lay down on the position and carefully observed the situation on the opposite side through a telescope.

"Captain, has the new Second Regiment arrived?" Zhang Dabiao on the side asked excitedly.

The brigade commander had already informed all the troops about the contact with the New Second Regiment.

"It's possible, but we can't take it lightly. I heard the sounds of Japanese equipment on the other side, with only sporadic Czech-made gunshots. This doesn't seem right. The New Second Regiment should have quite a few Type 79 rifles." Li Yunlong said.

Only a limited number of people in the brigade headquarters knew that the New Second Regiment had picked up half of the regiment's equipment for free, so Li Yunlong was a little unsure of the situation.

"Let the First Battalion get ready. If it is really the New Second Regiment, we must also cooperate in the attack." Although Li Yunlong was not sure about the situation, he still decided to prepare for battle.

"Tell the infantry artillery squad to fire as hard as they can!" Li Yunlong ordered.

Anyway, these two infantry guns belong to the brigade commander, not the New 2st Regiment, so Li Yunlong didn't feel sorry for using them.

"Yes!"

Zhang Dabiao immediately arranged for someone to convey Li Yunlong's order.

A few minutes later, intensive artillery fire was heard from the position west of the bridge.

Li Yunlong suddenly became excited: "It's this guy Chen Chengxing! That's why the New Second Regiment has so many 82mm mortars!"

"Zhang Dabiao! Prepare to attack!" Li Yunlong shouted.

"Yes!"

"Everyone put on bayonets and prepare to attack!"

"Fire!" Li Yunlong ordered.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
The infantry artillery, which had been prepared long ago, immediately began firing at full speed.

"Comrades! Follow me!" Zhang Dabiao threw his hat and rushed out first with a big knife in hand.

"kill!".
The soldiers of the New 1st Regiment immediately followed and rushed to the opposite side along Erxian Bridge.

Although the Japanese still had a heavy machine gun facing the bridge to implement a blockade, facing the repeated attacks of two infantry guns, more than a dozen Japanese were unable to organize an effective defense.

The infantry artillery fired more shells than the Japanese on the opposite side.

The battalion led by Zhang Dabiao encountered only a slight obstruction, but soon rushed across the bridge, rushed into the Japanese position and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with them.

Seeing that the troops of the New 1st Regiment had entered the enemy's position, Chen Chengxing immediately ordered: "The artillery battalion stopped firing at the enemy's Qiaoxi position and instead supported the 2nd and 4th battalions on the left and right!"

The Japanese on the left and right wings launched a very fierce attack with the fire support of infantry guns and rapid-fire guns. Although the Second and Fourth Battalions blocked the encirclement and attack of the Japanese, they did have some difficulty in fighting.

However, after receiving fire support from mortars, the Second and Fourth Battalions quickly stabilized the situation and even pushed back a lot.

Seeing that the Eighth Route Army on the other side of the bridge had already attacked the position, Murakami Yong decisively chose to abandon the squadron on the position and gave the order: "Let the mountain artillery squadron stop shelling the Eighth Route Army in front and instead shell the left wing to support the First Battalion to quickly defeat the enemy!"

The main force of the 386th Brigade on the other side of the bridge was still fighting with the 32nd and 45th Regiments. It would take at least half an hour to an hour for them to withdraw from the battle and cross Erxian Bridge. This was the last chance for the 403rd Regiment.

If Erxian Bridge was not an extremely solid stone bridge, Murakami Isamu would have ordered the artillery squadron to bombard the bridge.

However, even though the artillery squadron participated in the attack on the Second Battalion, the Japanese offensive was still not going smoothly.

Although the homemade shells of the New Second Regiment were not as lethal as those of the Japanese, the Japanese infantry found it difficult to penetrate the Second Battalion's defense line head-on under the mortar fire because of their large number and high speed.

Although the Japanese were not afraid of death, Bushido could only brainwash them but not protect them from self-defense. Facing the flying shrapnel, no matter how loudly the Japanese shouted, it was of no avail.

The two sides fought fiercely on a piece of land less than 5 square kilometers west of Erxianqiao. Even though it was getting dark, the Japanese showed no signs of retreating.

(End of this chapter)