Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 374 You think your side has the main force? My side is the main force!

The 1st and 2nd Regiments of the First Division of the Kuomintang army in Guanzili put up a very strong resistance.

Despite being surrounded by three brigades, the enemy refused to give an inch.

The various units made little progress throughout the night.

After daybreak, the artillery regiment pushed the mountain guns directly to a point one kilometer from the front line.

With the help of the mountain guns' close-range direct fire, the 204th Regiment successfully occupied several outer courtyards.

However, the overall situation at present is not yet one of annihilation, and the Guo army is still persisting.

Meanwhile, after daybreak, the 167th and 27th Divisions in Xiaoyi also discovered that the main force of the G Army outside had disappeared.

Following Hu Shoushan's orders, the two divisions set off from Xiaoyi, splitting into two routes, one on the left and one on the right, and advanced towards Guanzili side by side.

However, the two divisions encountered resistance in the Xihe area.

Li Yunlong, leading the 13th Brigade, firmly kept them out of the battlefield.

Compared to the First Division, the attack strength of these two divisions was significantly weaker.

On the western front, planes dispatched by Hu Shoushan arrived at the battlefield.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"
Upon arriving at the battlefield, the planes immediately began bombing.

While the planes were bombing and strafing, the artillery battalion of the 1st Division also began its attack.

Huang Zhencheng's orders were simple: the planes had to bomb as long as the artillery shells continued to fire.

The 21st detachment's position was completely covered by the explosion.

In the entire Wangzhuang village, not to mention houses, you can't find a single wall that's more than half a meter high.

Faced with the Kuomintang army's relentless bombardment, the soldiers of the 21st detachment could only rely on the anti-artillery bunkers they had dug in advance to withstand the bombardment.

However, while a gun shelter can withstand a 75mm shell, it cannot withstand a 50kg or even 100kg aerial bomb.

A single aerial bomb can create a crater that is even deeper than a gun emplacement.

Faced with repeated bombing and strafing attacks, the 201st Regiment suffered heavy casualties.

Zheng Hua could only order the 203rd Regiment to send companies to reinforce the front lines one by one.

The 201st Regiment alone could not withstand the continuous bombing by planes and artillery.

Not to mention that the KMT army did not only bomb, but also launched attacks during the lulls in the bombing.

The fierce fighting on the three battlefields—the western, central, and eastern fronts—lasted for twelve hours.

The 21st detachment and the 13th brigade did not lose an inch of territory.

Meanwhile, the Guo army inside the gates was divided up by three brigades commanded by Chen Chengxing, who used some sturdy courtyards as cover.

Upon learning that the 1st and 2nd Regiments in Guanzili were in imminent danger, Dong Shengjie, the commander of the Guo Army's Northern Advance, cursed Huang Zhencheng while making a phone call.

"Six hours last night, twelve hours today, a total of eighteen hours, and you haven't made a single step forward!"

You're a fucking piece of trash!

At this moment, Dong Shengjie arrived in Pingyang with two infantry divisions and ten M3A3 Stuart tanks.

He wanted to personally go to the front lines, lead the general command, and direct operations.

The mission to annihilate the main force of the G army must be accomplished.

However, they encountered the 15th Brigade just after leaving Pingyang.

Blocked by the 15th Brigade, Dong Shengjie's speed was not slow, but rather he was inching forward step by step.

After hanging up the phone, Huang Zhencheng's face darkened.

"Damn it! This is outrageous!" Huang Zhencheng slammed his fist on the table in anger.

When has he, a top student from the German Artillery Academy, ever suffered such injustice?

Commander Hu never scolded him.

After thinking for a moment, Huang Zhencheng gave the order:

"Someone! Pass on my order: the entire army retreats to Liangzhuang!"

It's getting dark, and the plane can no longer participate in the battle. He can no longer make a breakthrough on his own.

Moreover, there are G Army activities to the east of Pingyang. Although the number of troops is unknown, Huang Zhencheng felt something was amiss.

If they stay here any longer, and if the enemy abandons their harassment of Dong Shengjie's reinforcements and chooses to turn their guns around, they may be surrounded.

Let's not risk losing the resources of the First Division if we can't save the First and Second Regiments.

Huang Zhencheng's orders were relayed through walkie-talkies.

Inside the D column command post, Chen Sijin was also listening to Huang Zhencheng's orders.

After putting down his headphones, Chen Sijin made a direct call to the western front.

"Hello? This is Zheng Hua."

"Zheng Hua, this is Chen*. How are things going?"

"Chen Sijin, the enemy's offensive is very fierce. We have already repelled more than twenty enemy charges!"

"What about the casualties?" Chen Sijin asked.

"The casualties are heavy, but don't worry, we can hold on! I still have reserves!"

The soil on the ceiling of the 21st detachment's forward command post was falling wildly due to the impact of artillery shells.

Zheng Hua was squatting next to the table making a phone call.

After confirming that the 21st detachment could be deployed, Chen Sijin continued:

"Good! Latest intelligence: Huang Zhencheng is leading his team to retreat to Liangzhuang."

"Gather a whole regiment and go stab him in the ass!"

"yes!".
After hanging up the phone, Chen Sijin gave an order to the telegraph operator standing beside him:

"Send a telegram to the 15th Brigade, instructing the 315th Regiment to attack Liangzhuang from south to north and the 316th Regiment from west to east!"

"yes!".
On the Wangzhuang position, after hanging up the phone, Zheng Hua thought for a moment and then called the 201st Regiment's position.

"Li Chishui, how many people are left in your regiment?" Zheng Hua asked.

"There are still about 1,800 people in the entire regiment," Li Chishui said.

In this defensive battle, the 201st Regiment was at the forefront, and therefore suffered the heaviest casualties.

"The commander ordered that the Guo army retreat to Liangzhuang to spend the night."

“You assemble the troops that can still launch a raid, and I will allocate the 3rd Battalion of the 203rd Regiment to you.”

"You will lead the team to follow them and coordinate with the 15th Brigade to attack the First Division from both sides," Zheng Hua ordered.

"yes!".
Half an hour later, when Huang Zhencheng led the remnants of the First Division to retreat from the battlefield under cover of night, Li Chishui, who was prepared, followed them using the sorghum stalks as cover.

"Everyone, stay hidden! Speed ​​up!" Li Chishui urged repeatedly.

He had already started thinking about it when he learned that Guo Jun was going to retreat to Liangzhuang.

According to his observation, the First Division should now have only more than 4,000 men, and a large number of them are logistics soldiers.

If we can use a move that hits the center of the field, the Guo army will surely suffer a crushing defeat.

All of these plans require one prerequisite: speed.

To ensure the troops' marching speed, Li Chishui did not bring any wounded soldiers who might cause problems.

Therefore, when the First Division of the Guo Army arrived at Liangzhuang in a panic, the 201st Regiment followed closely behind them and sneaked in from the east.

Now Liangzhuang is pitch black, and you can't tell who's who from a distance of ten meters or so.

Guo Jun never expected that there would be a G army in Liangzhuang.

Seeing that they had taken advantage of the chaos to enter Liang Village, Li Chishui was overjoyed.

"Proceed according to plan!"

The 201st Regiment launched an attack from all sides of Liangzhuang, dividing into companies and platoons, and countless other groups.

Liangzhuang immediately erupted in chaos.

Hearing the commotion in Liangzhuang, the 315th and 316th Regiments, which were not far away, rushed towards Liangzhuang without thinking twice.

Regardless of the reason, chaos was inevitable for the Guo army.

If you slow down at this point, you're saying goodbye to your medals.

"Surrender and you will not be killed! Surrender and you will not be killed!"

After rushing into Liangzhuang, none of the troops saw anyone; the shouts had already begun.

After capturing dozens of prisoners, the battalion commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 315th Regiment, with sharp eyes, picked out a cook from among the prisoners.

"Do you want to die or live?"

"I want to live! I want to live!" the cook pleaded repeatedly.

Who would want to die if they could live?

"Are you cooking for the regimental headquarters or the division headquarters?"

In the Guo army, officers of regimental commander rank and above would, if they had the means, hire several cooks.

Since they're all being paid by the military, why not?

"I cook for the commander of the 3rd Regiment," the cook said.

"Take me to the regimental headquarters, and I guarantee you won't be a prisoner of war after the battle."

The cook surely knows best where the enemy commander is.

"No problem, no problem."

He's just a cook, so don't talk about loyalty or disloyalty.

Led by the cook, the Second Battalion arrived at a large embankment in just a few minutes.

"Da da da".
The moment the two sides met, they drew their guns and fired without saying a word.

At the same time, Li Chishui led his men to the newly settled headquarters of the First Division.

The soldiers immediately pinned down Dai Tao, the deputy division commander and chief of staff.

Walkie-talkies, codebooks, and a series of other confidential documents were also seized.

However, the battle at Liangzhuang was not over.

Huang Zhencheng had studied at Whampoa Military Academy and in Germany, and was also a victorious general in the Kuomintang army.

Even though the battle situation was very unfavorable, he did his best to gather the remnants of the First Division and the Third Regiment.

They then began to use the sturdy houses of Liangzhuang to fight street battles.

Huang Zhencheng prepared to wait and hold out until reinforcements arrived.

However, the 201st Regiment was very skilled in urban warfare.

Using the explosives seized from Liangzhuang, the soldiers began to blast through walls and clear out houses one by one.

Just when Huang Zhencheng was at his wit's end, Wang Yawen called again.

"Commander! Commander!"

"The main force of the G army has broken into the pass!"

"The 1st and 2nd Regiments have suffered heavy casualties! Requesting immediate reinforcements!"

Upon hearing the plea for help, Huang Zhencheng nearly died of anger.

"Wang Yawen! You lied about military intelligence!"

"Which country's Chen* did you run into? I ran into Chen*'s main force!"

At this point, Wang Yawen no longer cared where the main force was; he kept calling for reinforcements.

"Commander! The G Army's offensive is fierce!"

"The general offensive may have begun! If reinforcements aren't sent soon, the 1st and 2nd Regiments may be completely wiped out!"

Inside the D Column headquarters, Chen Sijin chuckled as he listened to the conversation between Huang Zhencheng and Wang Yawen.

Just then, the radio operator next to him handed him another earpiece, which was the radio used to monitor Hu Shoushan.

"Vibration range! Vibration range!"

"What's wrong with you? Why aren't you saying anything!"

When Huang Zhencheng heard Hu Shoushan calling him, he quickly threw Wang Yawen aside.

"Commander Hu, my troops have retreated to Liangzhuang."

"However, according to reconnaissance, the G army in the east has no reserves."

"I will personally oversee the battle and organize another charge. Once we break through the G army's lines, we can not only relieve the siege of Guanzili, but also form a counter-encirclement of the G army's main force!"

Despite Huang Zhencheng's current predicament, the First Division still holds a certain advantage in his report.

"Good! Very good! I have decided to commend your department!" Hu Shoushan said.

"If we can capture Chen* alive in this battle, I will report this to the Chairman and give you a promotion!"

Chen Sijin, who was listening in, almost burst out laughing.

However, before he could even enjoy his moment for a few seconds, Hu Shoushan's next words took him by surprise.

(End of this chapter)