Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 437 I'll Slaughter Him Without Leaving a Single Armor
Although they were suddenly caught in a pincer movement, Sun Qingfeng, the commander of the 173rd Regiment, did not panic.

Sun Qingfeng set his artillery target on the 206th Regiment that was closing in from the north.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
Under the guidance of the 173rd Regiment, dozens of artillery pieces from the entire 74th Division bombarded the 206th Regiment's positions.

The 206th Regiment, having suffered heavy losses, was forced to halt its offensive.

Looking at the G Army's positions covered by artillery fire, Sun Qingfeng turned his head and gave the order:

"Chief of staff, have the 1st Battalion get ready. Once the shelling is over, they'll push forward!"

"You think you can wipe out my 171st Regiment with just two regiments? That's wishful thinking!"

The reason why the 58th Brigade was severely damaged was because it was attacked from both sides by tens of thousands of G troops.

Now that you, Chen Chengxing, dare to deploy only two regiments, I'll show you what a deep strike is!

Sun Qingfeng's plan was to break through the G Army's lines in the north.

Then they marched to the walls of Andong and accomplished Zhang Zhonglin's previous goal.

However, Sun Qingfeng did not realize that half of his troops were newly recruited soldiers.

Although these soldiers were among the best of the new recruits in the KMT army, a new recruit is still a new recruit.

Chen Chengxing understood Sun Qingfeng's plan the moment the 74th Division's shells landed.

"The 74th Division is really bold!"

"Are they mistaking the Second Branch for those ragtag Nationalist troops?"

"Xu Wu, give the order to the artillery regiment to bombard the Kuomintang troops in the encirclement."

"After the artillery bombardment ends, the 203rd Regiment will concentrate its attack on one point and cut the enemy in two!"

In this era, counter-battery operations were extremely difficult, especially for the G Army, which lacked aircraft.

The two forces, if they want to counter artillery fire, can only rely on acoustic positioning and optical observation.

Optical observation is relatively simple and direct, but it cannot be used at night.

Acoustic positioning is not affected by light, but the mathematical calculations involved are too complex for the two artillery regiments to handle at present.

Chen Chengxing estimated that even the elite artillery of the Kuomintang army would have little chance of conducting acoustic positioning.

Moreover, Andong is a plain, so the Guo army can set up artillery positions anywhere.

Even if the reconnaissance company were to go undercover, it would still be very difficult to find the target.

Unable to conduct counter-battery operations, the second artillery regiment could only fire shells at the enemy's 173rd Regiment.

As long as the 173rd Regiment can be severely damaged, no matter how strong the firepower of the entire 74th Division is, it will not be able to take the 206th Regiment's position.

After all, cannons cannot be used for charging; to take control of a position, infantry attacks are necessary.

On the other side, the 1st Battalion of the 173rd Regiment saw that the intensity of the artillery bombardment was beginning to decrease and immediately began preparations.

However, before they could act, two shells fell.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
The Guo army, which had just begun to prepare for action, was immediately driven back.

Looking at the flames that kept exploding on the battlefield, Sun Qingfeng had a bad feeling.

However, before Sun Qingfeng could come up with a countermeasure, he suddenly heard the bugle call of the G Army all around him.

"Beep beep beep beep."

"The G army has launched a general offensive! Tell the brothers to hold on!" Sun Qingfeng said urgently.

As long as this wave of attacks by the G army is repelled, the artillery can provide support again.

Because of the previous retreat, Zheng Hua's temporary command post was not placed underground, but was temporarily used in a small village.

On the rooftop, Zheng Hua held up binoculars to carefully observe the situation at the front.

"The enemy has committed most of its troops to the northern and southern fronts."

After putting down his binoculars, Zheng Hua jumped off the roof and entered the command post.

"Pass on my order: have the 1st Battalion of the 203rd Regiment launch a strong attack from the west and cut off the enemy's north-south communication!"

"Yes, sir!" The staff officer next to him immediately picked up the phone.
Upon receiving the order, the 1st Battalion of the 203rd Regiment, which was already prepared, immediately dispatched its spearhead company to launch a strong attack on the enemy's western flank positions.

With intense fire support, the elite detachment stormed the first line of defense of the Kuomintang army in less than fifteen minutes.

"Immediately organize a suicide squad! Go and engage the G army in hand-to-hand combat! We must defeat them!" Sun Qingfeng urged.

The number of G troops advancing is not large yet. As long as we can suppress the enemy, we can hold our position.

"I'll go myself!" the chief of staff shouted from the side.

Every second is crucial for the 173rd Regiment now; if the G army's follow-up troops catch up, things will be in trouble.

"Brothers! Follow me and kill them!"

The 173rd Regiment's suicide squad quickly rushed to the front line and participated in hand-to-hand combat.

Once they joined, they immediately understood why the G army had been able to storm the position so easily.

The opponent's fighting power is astonishingly strong.

The 173rd Regiment, consisting mainly of veteran soldiers, was able to put up a fight against the G Army.

As for the newly recruited soldiers, the G army's bayonets would pierce their bodies the moment they waved.

Facing such a G army, it often takes three to five new recruits to fight against it, but that is all it can do.

If you're not careful, someone will be stabbed to the ground immediately.

Faced with the attack of the elite platoon, even with the addition of the suicide squad, the 173rd Regiment could only hold its line.

However, once two more companies joined the battle, the KMT troops on the position completely lost their ability to retaliate.

After capturing the position, the 1st Battalion of the 203rd Regiment continued its fierce attack. The 173rd Regiment, which was unable to transfer troops from the front line, was quickly cut in two.

The 173rd Regiment, now divided, was simply unable to withstand the onslaught of two separate regiments.

By daybreak, the 173rd Regiment had been completely wiped out.

"Damn it! Keep the attack going! I want revenge for the 173rd Regiment!"

Zhang Zhonglin slammed his fist on the table and roared in anger.

His breakthrough in the center was exploited by the G army, which made him lose face.

Having witnessed the cunning of the G army, Zhang Zhonglin decided against further scheming and instead chose to confront them head-on.

He wanted to use his firepower advantage to completely crush Chen Chengxing.

As Zhang Zhonglin changed his strategy, the entire Andong battlefield began to see fighting day and night.

The fierce fighting between the two sides lasted for a full week, with the charges and counter-charges constantly alternating.
Inside the Antong command post, Xu Wu approached Chen Chengxing with the latest battle report.

"Report: Team 1 has retreated to Daguan, and Team 3 has also retreated to the south bank of the abandoned Yellow River!"

"I understand." Chen Chengxing looked up. "What did the field headquarters say? When will the reinforcements arrive?"

According to Chen Chengxing's estimate, as long as two or three divisions could come, he would be able to take down the 74th and 171st Divisions.

"We just received a telegram from the field headquarters. The situation has changed. The commander has ordered us to temporarily avoid direct confrontation and retreat north after the friendly forces to the south have withdrawn."

"What's going on? Didn't we say yesterday that we would join forces to wipe out the 74th Reorganized Division?" Chen Chengxing frowned immediately.

The feud between the East China Field Army and the 74th Reorganized Division was not something that had just started, so the two leaders of the Field Army Headquarters had decided to take down the 74th Division. How did things change overnight?
"The corps composed of the 56th and 77th Divisions of the Guo Army and the First Rapid Column is advancing towards Langya."

The 28th Reorganized Division and four reorganized divisions of the Southern Front of the Guo Army also began to advance northward from Yancheng.

Therefore, the central government's intention was to withdraw the main force to the north of the Longhai Railway and first attack the enemy in southern Shandong. "Xu Wu immediately reported.

“Lunan? I understand.” Chen Chengxing nodded.

"Avoid his sharp edge for now? Hmph! I'll get my revenge sooner or later!"

"Monk!"

"To!"

"Take your reconnaissance company and sneak out of the city to find out the movements of the 74th Reorganized Division."

"Yes!"

"The rest of you, prepare to evacuate!"

"Yes!"

Just as Chen Chengxing was ordering his troops to prepare for a breakout, Zhang Zhonglin also received a call from Pengcheng.

Chang Ruiyuan arrived in Pengcheng and wanted to see Zhang Zhonglin.

"Commander Xue, the battle in Andong has reached its most critical moment. Please forgive me for not being able to return to Pengcheng to meet with the Chairman!"

Zhang Zhonglin rejected Xue Xiaosong without even thinking.

He knew very well that even if the Chairman really wanted to see him, he wouldn't have Xue Xiaosong relay the message; at most, the Chairman would just mention the 74th Division.

"Zhong Lin, the Chairman brought you the Blue Sky with a White Sun emblem!"

"Then please keep it safe for me, Chairman. I can be awarded the medal after I take over Andong."

"Wait until you take over Andong?" Xue Xiaosong was taken aback.

He had been paying close attention to the battle situation in Andong. Although the 74th Division held the advantage and had advanced to the city walls.

However, given the current situation, it will be difficult to eliminate the G army defending Andong in less than ten days to half a month.

"The Chairman came to Pengcheng only to oversee the joint attack on Langya. He will return to Jinling soon and cannot wait for you for too long."

"Twenty-four hours! Commander Xue, please convey to the Chairman that the 74th Division will take Andong within twenty-four hours!"

"If I can't take Andong, I'm willing to offer my head!" Zhang Zhonglin declared, issuing a military pledge.

“Alright! I will convey your determination to the Chairman!” Xue Xiaosong immediately agreed.

If the 74th Division can indeed capture Andong within 24 hours, Chiang Kai-shek will surely be overjoyed.

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Zhonglin turned his head and saw that many officers in the division headquarters had different expressions.

"Commander, this battle is extremely fierce, and the G army is not giving an inch. If we want to take Andong within 24 hours..." Wei Zhenwen stopped halfway through his sentence.

Wei Zhenwen knew very well that even if the 74th Reorganized Division had planes, artillery, and tanks, it was a pipe dream to take Andong within 24 hours.

Upon hearing Wei Zhenwen's words, Zhang Zhonglin hadn't said anything yet, but Li Yunliang immediately flattered him.

"Chief of Staff, I think the division commander must have a plan, otherwise he wouldn't have made a pledge to the Chairman."

"Hehe... Yunliang understands me best." Zhang Zhonglin chuckled, then pulled a telegram from the table.

"This is the report from the Fuhai Corps on the southern front that Yunliang just gave me. What can you glean from it?"

Wei Zhenwen glanced at the telegram and found it was just a telegram announcing good news, nothing else.

Wei Zhenwen didn't know what Zhang Zhonglin meant by "this".

Seeing that Wei Zhenwen hadn't figured it out, Zhang Zhonglin didn't keep him in suspense and said directly:

"A few days ago, the reports from the Southern Front Corps were all about how strong the resistance they encountered and how many G troops were killed."

"But today, the troops suddenly made good progress and even advanced more than ten kilometers at once."

"What does this mean? The southern corps didn't encounter much resistance at all!"

"I judge that the G Army on the southern front must have already retreated across the board!" Zhang Zhonglin affirmed.

"I understand, Commander, you mean the G Army in Andong will also withdraw!" Li Yunliang's eyes lit up.

“That’s right! The G army on the southern front has withdrawn, there’s no reason for the G army in Andong to stay.” Zhang Zhonglin nodded.

"The reason they haven't left yet is definitely because they are waiting for the G army on the southern front to safely move north."

"Chen Chengxing's troops are a tough nut to crack. If they're determined to fight us in street battles, I really can't say the battle will be over in 24 hours."

Although this was only the second time Zhang Zhonglin and Chen Chengxing had faced off, Zhang Zhonglin expressed his approval of the two teams.

"However, as long as the G army leaves Andong, I am confident that I can wipe them out completely!"

In the first sortie of the armored battalion, three tanks were destroyed.

But that was because the tanks had poor visibility at night and couldn't pick up speed, plus they were tricked by the G army.

Once it's daytime, the tanks can reach speeds of tens of kilometers per hour.

No matter how much Chen Chengxing cranked the anti-tank gun's handwheel, sparks flew, he couldn't keep up with the tank's speed.

"Pass on my order: the entire 58th Brigade and one regiment of the 51st Brigade shall be transferred from the North Gate to the East Gate to join the 57th Brigade here."

And mobilize all artillery and tanks to launch a full-scale attack on the east gate!

Upon hearing Zhang Zhonglin's order, everyone was completely bewildered.

Didn't we just say that the G army was going to break out? What's going on here?
"Commander, the East Gate is a key defensive target for the G Army. A direct assault would result in heavy casualties."

"Moreover, if we mobilize a large number of troops during the day and the G army discovers our attack intentions, we may lose two things at once."

"Now that we've confirmed that the G army will break out, I think we should have the 171st Division cooperate with us to set up an ambush, and then annihilate them after they leave the city."

Upon hearing Wei Zhenwen's words, everyone nodded in agreement.

Even Li Yunliang, who usually disagrees with Wei Zhenwen, agreed with Wei Zhenwen's statement this time.

"I have my own plans. Go and give the order!"

Seeing that no one understood his strategic intentions, Zhang Zhonglin did not explain further.

They'll understand once they make their next move.

"yes!".
Seeing that Zhang Zhonglin was unwilling to explain to them, everyone had no choice but to obey orders.

(End of this chapter)