Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 308 Study?

After arriving at Dama Village with his troops, Pinglu Yongfu ordered the logistics department to set up a command post on the spot.

He himself continued forward, intending to visit the forward command post.

"Brigade Commander."

Upon seeing Hiratsu Yuu's arrival, the 22nd Regiment Commander Kasahara Koizumi and the 13th Regiment Commander Narasuke immediately stood at attention.

"Hmm, what's the situation with the Eighth Route Army on the other side?" Hiratsu Yufu asked.

"I have already sent out reconnaissance troops to conduct reconnaissance. The Eighth Route Army has established defensive positions on all the key mountain peaks and strategic locations."

"Judging from the number of people, the opposing force should be the main force of the New Second Brigade," Kasahara Koizumi reported.

"The new Second Brigade? Great, that's the ones we've been looking for!"

“This time, we’ll settle both old and new scores together,” said Hiratsu Yuufu.

"Kasahara-kun, Nara-kun, you two should have your subordinate mountain artillery company and mountain artillery battalion reunite, and put Mizutani-kun under unified command."

"Hai!"
Half an hour later, the Japanese artillery, having completed its preparations, began its artillery barrage.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
The minefield and barbed wire fences in front of the New 2nd Brigade's position were the first to be attacked.

"Retreat! Prepare for artillery fire!" Sun Xun ordered.

According to normal procedures, the Japanese artillery fire would soon extend further back.

Upon hearing Sun Xun's order, the soldiers began to quickly retreat to the reverse slope position.

The Japanese Type 94 mountain gun could also fire at a high angle at targets behind the mountain.

However, due to the distance, the Japanese artillery had blind spots.

Moreover, hitting a reverse slope position without a line of sight is not so easy.

After shelling the front line of the position for several minutes, the Japanese artillery fire began to extend backward.

The Japanese battalion commander at the front also drew his command sword.

"Tuoci, give it to us!" the Japanese battalion commander shouted.

"Machine gun crew! Hayaku! Hayaku!"

"Infantry cover! Spread out!"
More than 200 Japanese soldiers split into several groups and, under the cover of artillery fire, began to attack the Eighth Route Army's positions.

Pinglu Yongfu, standing behind, raised his binoculars and stared at the Eighth Route Army's position.

Although Kasahara Koizumi had already reported some of the situation before.

However, as the supreme commander on the battlefield, Hiratsu Yuu still needed to see it for himself.

The guard troops stationed on the 212th Regiment's position also noticed the Japanese movements.

"Hey~~~~"

The piercing sound of a military whistle rang out; it was the agreed-upon signal.

The soldiers hiding in the reverse slope positions could not see the movements of the Japanese soldiers; they could only rely on whistles for warning.

"The Japanese are coming up! Get to your positions quickly!"

"Ready to fight!"

There are numerous communication trenches between the hilltop position and the reverse slope position, allowing soldiers to quickly return to the main position via these trenches.

Meanwhile, the Japanese artillery fire had begun to gradually decrease.

This means that the Japanese infantry have entered the attack range.

"Quickly! Set up the heavy machine guns! Provide suppressive fire!"

"Mortise fire!" Sun Xun shouted as he watched the approaching Japanese troops.

When defending against artillery fire, heavy machine guns cannot be moved with the enemy; they must be placed inside the trenches.

So now the heavy machine gun squad has to do is to remount the guns.

However, the 60mm and 82mm mortars do not need to be re-erected, as their positions are already on the reverse slope.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
The Japanese troops were spread out, and without the suppression of heavy machine guns, the mortars were not particularly effective.

However, as the mortars began firing, the Japanese troops slowed down.

No one can advance quickly while enduring artillery fire.

Not long after, the heavy machine guns of the 212th Regiment also joined the attack.

Pinglu Yongfu, observing the First Infantry Battalion's stalled attack, gained a thorough understanding of the Eighth Route Army forces on the battlefield.

“The Eighth Route Army’s firepower is very strong; it is undoubtedly their main force,” said Pinglu Yongfu.

"Kasahara-kun, this is your battlefield, and you are in charge of the specific command."

This is not a plain, so it is impossible to deploy large troops here; only battalions can participate in the battle.

Alternatively, you can choose to split into several groups and attack from different locations.

However, if the attacks are split up, apart from the troops engaged in the main battle, it will be difficult for others to receive artillery support.

After receiving the definite order, Kasahara Koizumi immediately went to the telephone.

"Rapid-fire artillery company, advance together with infantry guns and strike the Eighth Route Army's firing positions!"

As an elite infantry brigade, the 22nd Regiment, in addition to having a mountain artillery company with four Type 41 mountain guns, also has other units.

There is also a rapid-fire gun squadron, which consists of four Type 4 37mm rapid-fire guns.

Although the 37mm gun is not very powerful, it has no problem hitting enemy strongpoints.

Moreover, due to its long barrel, the accuracy is very high.

With the introduction of rapid-fire artillery and infantry guns, the 212th Regiment's strongpoints were frequently attacked.

However, at this time, the mortars of the 212th Regiment were also constantly striking the Japanese strongpoints.

Therefore, within a short period of time, the two sides were actually exchanging rifle fire.

The Japanese infantry also began to take advantage of this lull in fire and quickly advance forward.

As the Japanese soldiers drew closer, Sun Xun grabbed the broadsword beside him.

"Grenade!" Sun Xun shouted.

A volley of grenades before the charge can buy time for the troops.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
The Japanese advance was thwarted once again, and they began to dodge the grenade attacks.

"Blow the charge!"

"Follow me and kill!" Sun Xun commanded, raising his broadsword.

"Beep beep beep beep"

"kill!".
The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 212th Regiment rushed out of their positions and charged towards the Japanese soldiers.

Upon seeing this, the Japanese soldiers immediately began to assemble, with ordinary infantry forming a formation centered around the Japanese standard-bearer.

"Onboard!"
The two sides engaged in fierce combat.

However, when facing the main force of the 212th Regiment, especially the First and Second Battalions, which are mostly composed of veterans.

The Japanese soldiers' prized close-quarters combat skills were completely ineffective, instead causing their casualties to increase dramatically. Not to mention, the Japanese were currently at a significant numerical disadvantage.

In less than five minutes, the Japanese soldiers couldn't hold out any longer and started to run away.

"Stop chasing! Grab your guns and retreat to your positions immediately!" Sun Xun shouted, wiping the blood from his face.

The retreat of the Japanese infantry meant that artillery shells were about to arrive.

Hiratsu Yuu looked at the retreating troops with a somewhat serious expression.

He did not expect to capture the Eighth Route Army's position in a single attack.

However, the fighting prowess displayed by the Eighth Route Army made him somewhat alarmed.

It can only be said that the Second Brigade, which has made a name for itself in northwestern Shanxi, truly deserves its reputation.

"Order the artillery positions to launch another barrage and extend the time to more than double."

Pinglu Yongfu had never seen a reverse slope position before, and all he could think of was to increase the artillery fire.

After all, the infantry manual says that if the enemy has high defense, then increase the intensity of the attack.

We are currently fighting in the mountains and cannot request the use of heavy artillery. The First Army also does not have bombers.

Therefore, the only solution now is to increase the density of mountain artillery fire.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
The positions on the western hilltop were once again covered by artillery fire.

On the second line of defense, Luo Ping looked at the first line of defense engulfed in flames and laughed:
"Do the Japanese have a lot of artillery shells? Why are they firing so recklessly?"

There are now fewer than 30 guards on the mountaintop, and they are all wearing helmets and hiding in the best-defended spot.

After those hundred or so shells were fired, the casualties among the guard troops would definitely not exceed five.

"The more firepower, the better," Chen Chengxing said.

"The more intense the Japanese firepower is now, the stronger their subsequent attacks will be, and then their flanking firepower will be able to unleash its power."

In addition to reducing casualties from fire strikes, reverse slope tactics can also reduce casualties.

We can also use flanking fire to attack the Japanese flanks.

The higher the density of the Japanese troops, the greater the damage from flanking fire.

When necessary, heavy mortar battalions can also participate in combat.

As for whether the Japanese would take the position if they increased their firepower, Chen Chengxing said there was absolutely no such possibility.

Even the Van Fleet ammunition couldn't handle the reverse slope positions, let alone the few small cannons the Japanese had.

If the Japanese were to send a dozen or so bombers, Chen Chengxing might be somewhat worried.

However, according to Chen Chengxing's deduction, the Japanese Fourth Brigade should not have received any support.

"By the way, did the special forces send a letter?" Chen Chengxing suddenly remembered.

After deciding to confront the Japanese in Xishan, Chen Chengxing ordered Zhou Weiguo to lead the special forces team.

Chen Chengxing wouldn't put his special forces on the battlefield like Yamamoto Ichiki did.

The special forces team's operation this time was simple: to locate the Japanese artillery positions.

Then guide the 105mm cannon for counter-battery operations.

As long as the Japanese artillery positions can be destroyed, the New Second Brigade will be able to rest easy this time.

“I haven’t received any messages.” Xu Wu shook his head.

To facilitate communication for the special operations team, Chen Chengxing specially gave them a portable radio.

If there is any intelligence, it can be reported via radio at any time.

"Keep the communications platoon's radios on and report any messages immediately," Chen Chengxing said.

"yes!".
The special forces team that Chen Chengxing mentioned was resting in a ravine.

Zhou Weiguo lay on the mountaintop, observing the movements of the Japanese soldiers through binoculars.

"Captain, why aren't we moving yet?" Wei Dayong asked from the side.

The special operations team is now led by Zhou Weiguo, who also serves as its instructor.

Wei Dayong served as the deputy captain, responsible for commanding the assault team.

"Special forces are like a sharp dagger. When do you think a dagger is most threatening?"

Zhou Weiguo did not answer directly, but instead asked a question in return.

"When is the threat greatest? When it's at your throat?" Wei Dayong didn't understand what Zhou Weiguo meant.

“No, it’s when we’re hiding.” Zhou Weiguo shook his head.

"When a knife is held to your neck, you will only think about how to fight back."

"But if you keep your dagger hidden, the enemy won't be on guard."

"Then, when you find an opening in the enemy's defenses, you can kill them with a single blow and then immediately flee far away."

Whenever Zhou Weiguo has the chance, he teaches Wei Dayong about special operations.

He understood perfectly why Chen Chengxing had sent Wei Dayong.

He was also very clear that if he wanted to develop within the Eighth Route Army, he couldn't be locked into the special forces.

Even if a special forces team is highly capable, its strength is at most a few dozen people.

After all, if there are too many people, it won't be a special forces team anymore.

"Oh," Wei Dayong nodded, indicating that he had remembered.

"Shall we just wait here now?" Wei Dayong asked.

"Wait, let's talk about it tonight," Zhou Weiguo said.

"By the way, how's your Japanese learning going?" Zhou Weiguo suddenly asked.

As a special operations team, operating behind enemy lines is commonplace, and being able to speak Japanese would make things much easier.

Upon hearing Zhou Weiguo's words, Wei Dayong froze.

As for whether Wei Dayong has learned Japanese or not, given how much time has passed, he definitely has.

But you should ask him what he can do.

Aside from his exceptionally authentic pronunciation of "Baka yarou," all he could say was "heh."

Zhou Weiguo was speechless as he looked at Wei Dayong, who seemed to have been paralyzed by acupuncture.

Every single one of these special forces soldiers, when trained, is incredibly dedicated and fearless.

But getting them to study is a real headache for them all.

"You'd better hurry up. The brigade commander asked me about the special forces team a while ago."

“I estimate that after a while, I might be transferred back to the General Staff Headquarters, and then you will be in charge,” Zhou Weiguo said.

Wei Dayong scratched his head and said helplessly, "I understand."

(End of this chapter)