Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Please see Chapter 568

"Commander-in-Chief, Political Commissar, the Volunteer Army Headquarters' battle plan has been finalized." Xu Wu handed a telegram to Chen Chengxing.

"Defend Tuancheng and Dahushan to the death, open the pocket, and lure the enemy in deep."

"This plan is good, but it won't be easy to execute." Luo Ping felt the pressure.

The current situation on the western front has shifted to the Second General Headquarters, or rather, to a specific detachment under the Second General Headquarters.

If the next step is executed well, it's called luring the enemy deep into our territory; but if it's executed poorly, the entire plan will fall through.

After reading the telegram, Chen Chengxing casually handed it to Luo Ping: "If this blocking battle were so easy, the headquarters wouldn't have entrusted the task to us."

Luring the enemy deep into our territory—this first step is the most difficult.

The US military is definitely not coming with just one or two regiments this time, but with a large force.

To withstand the main force of the US military's offensive, we must deploy our most capable troops.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Chengxing said, "Let's leave this battle to the 21st Detachment. We'll also give them the remaining two infantry companies from the armored battalion."

At most, two regiments could be deployed along the Tuancheng and Dahushan line, so Chen Chengxing could only place one detachment there.

The main force of the Second General Corps remained in the rear in case of unforeseen circumstances.

The two corps and six armies are now deployed in a triangular formation, waiting for the US forces to enter the trap before both sides tighten the trap together.

Upon receiving the order, Li Chishui immediately disassembled the heavy mortars and deployed them to the Tuancheng and Dahushan positions without hesitation.

The 211th Regiment, which was originally hidden on the outskirts of the Tuancheng mountain area, also immediately entered Tuancheng to begin emergency repairs.

The U.S. military did not give the 21st Division much time.

After reconnaissance planes discovered troops in the vicinity of Tuancheng, MacArthur immediately gave Walker the order to advance.

MacArthur demanded that all efforts be made to annihilate the central army.

Walker had no choice but to obey orders.

However, he did not choose to send all his troops forward. Instead, he only ordered the US 24th Division, the South Korean 1st Division, and the British 27th Brigade at the forefront to cross the Chongchon River again and advance towards Tuan Fortress.

Just to be on the safe side, Walker originally wanted the 1st Cavalry Division to lead the team, but Guy refused to take the command no matter what.

Walker had no choice but to bring in the US 24th Division, which had already been reinforced with two regiments.

As for the remaining main force, it was placed on the south bank of the Cheongchon River to provide cover on the right flank.

Upon learning that Walker was being cautious, MacArthur merely pursed his lips and said nothing more.

According to air force reconnaissance, there are currently only about 10,000 enemy troops in the Tuancheng area. The US 24th Division, the South 1st Division, and the British 27th Brigade together number nearly 30,000, which would be easy to eliminate.

Soon, the allied forces that had arrived in the Tuancheng area launched an attack.

The 1st Division of the South was the main force, with the 21st Regiment of the 24th Division of the United States as the auxiliary force, responsible for attacking Tuancheng.

The British 27th Brigade and the 34th Regiment of the US 24th Division were responsible for attacking Dahushan and covering the flanks of the main force.

As the only main battlefield on the western front, the US military was able to deploy a large number of aircraft and artillery to the Tuancheng battlefront.

Tuancheng, the main target of the attack, was subjected to carpet bombing by American aircraft from the very beginning of the battle.

Various types of aerial bombs and incendiary bombs, large and small, rained down on Tuancheng like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

The well-funded U.S. military didn't even distinguish between primary and secondary positions; it achieved full coverage.

After the planes dropped a bomb and went back to resupply, the American artillery took over and continued bombing.

For this offensive, General George, commander of the U.S. 24th Division, deployed more than seventy heavy artillery pieces.

The overwhelming barrage of shells plowed every inch of Tuancheng's land again and again.

Inside the tunnel, Ren Wuliu felt the entire Tuancheng trembling.

"Damn it, I always heard the commander say that the American devils are rich and powerful, now I've seen it for myself." Listening to the deafening noise outside, Ren Wuliu couldn't help but feel envious.

He could judge the intensity of the firepower outside just by listening to the noise.

With that level of firepower, Tuancheng would probably be completely wiped out.

Political Commissar Liang Ran remarked with some emotion, "Fortunately, we listened to the commander-in-chief, dug deeper tunnels, and reinforced them; otherwise, the casualties this time would have been much greater."

Ren Wuliu laughed as he listened to the sound of artillery fire outside: "Hehe. Now that we're hiding underground, the American devils' shells can't penetrate the ground, so let them bomb us."

"We'll go out when the bombing is over."

The first wave of intense firepower from the U.S. military lasted for a full three hours.

The planes and cannons rotated back and forth in the middle.

The sound of cannon fire gradually stopped around 1 p.m.

Immediately afterwards, Ren Wuliu heard the clanging of a gong.

"The American troops are coming up!"

Upon hearing the gong, the squads and platoons that had been hiding in the tunnels to protect themselves from artillery fire quickly emerged and returned to their positions.

However, the battlefield had changed drastically by then.

The trenches, which were nearly two meters deep before the battle, have been reduced to less than one meter by the bombs. Many of the concealed firing positions have also been destroyed.

The soldiers had no choice but to either crouch or lie prone to fight back.

"Attack! Attack!"

As the smoke from the battle gradually dissipated, the 11th Regiment of the 1st Division of the Southern Army charged toward the Tuancheng position.

Although the U.S. military did not deploy infantry, it did deploy tanks for cover.

For the U.S. military, the lives of Confederate soldiers may not be worth much, but they are still quite important and cannot be wasted.

Ren Wuliu did not order the heavy mortars to fire at the attacking Southern army.

The soldiers on the front lines used only 60mm and 82mm mortars, along with heavy machine guns, to exert a great suppressive effect on the enemy.

Although the 1st Division of the South was the absolute elite of the South Army, it was still no match for the 21st Detachment.

Inside the Allied command post, Holmes, Chief of Staff of the U.S. 24th Division, reported: "Sir, the Confederate 11th Regiment has retreated."

George was not surprised by the Confederate army's defeat.

Although his command post was far from the front line, he could still see the general situation there using a high-powered telescope.

“The opposing central army is not simple.” George put down his binoculars and returned to his table to continue looking at his map.

"Sir, Bai Shangye reports that the enemy's firepower is very strong. Judging from their numbers, they are very likely equipped with a large number of semi-automatic rifles."

"You mean the Soviet army?" George's expression changed slightly.

To his knowledge, only the US and Soviet armies are currently equipped with semi-automatic rifles in large quantities.

"No, no, no." Holmes shook his head.

The Soviet army's tactics were completely different from those of the Tuancheng troops. If it were the Soviet army, they would definitely have deployed an overwhelming force of steel.

"What I mean is that the Soviet Union likely provided China with a large amount of supplies."

"This includes semi-automatic rifles."

“That is certainly something to be aware of,” George nodded. “But that’s a matter for the Washington gentlemen.”

"What we need to do now is to annihilate the enemy."

"Artillery continue firing, call for air support!"

"Yes, sir!"

The U.S. military has resumed its bombing campaign.

Besides Tuancheng, Dahushan also became a key target.

When bombers and attack aircraft bombed Tuancheng, the US artillery would point their guns at Dahushan.

The trees on the entire Tiger Mountain were blasted down to burning stumps, and even the slightly larger rocks were pulverized.

However, when the 1st Division of the South charged towards Tuancheng again, it was quickly driven back.

On the other side, at Dahushan, both the American and British troops showed even less of an offensive drive than the Confederate army.

They bombarded the position with artillery and machine guns, and the infantry never came within two hundred meters of it.

"Fuck! How did the central army survive such intense firepower?"

George couldn't understand why the central army's position remained so secure.

Today, we dropped more bombs and fired more shells than the enemy, but it seems to have had little effect.

Holmes didn't know how to answer George's question either.

No one can understand why the Central Army can still maintain its strong combat effectiveness in the face of such powerful firepower.

After thinking for a long time and still not understanding, George decided to increase his bet again.

"Send a telegram to General Walker requesting backup!"

Since the artillery of the 24th Division and the 1st Division of the South couldn't defeat the enemy forces in Tuancheng, let's add more!

Upon receiving George's telegram requesting assistance, Walker dispatched three heavy artillery battalions overnight.

其中2个155毫米榴弹炮营，1个203毫米榴弹炮营，总计48门重炮。

After daybreak, more than a hundred heavy artillery pieces began to bombard Tuancheng continuously, and planes also dropped incendiary bombs from the sky.

The entire position of the 211th Regiment was engulfed in flames.

Looking at the battlefield engulfed in flames, Bai Shangye nodded confidently.

"With such intense firepower, even steel would melt. I don't believe anyone could survive."

"Order the 11th Regiment to prepare; this time, we must seize the enemy's position first!"

Bai Shangye was confident in his troops. Although their combat effectiveness was not as good as that of the US military, their ability to seize credit was far superior.

Soon, after the planes had dropped all their bombs and circled around to straf the enemy a few more times, the Confederate army once again charged to the front of the position. Seeing that there were no enemy troops within a hundred meters, the Confederate soldiers were overjoyed.

"Come on!"

"Come on!"

The Southern army displayed extremely high morale, with everyone wanting to be the first to stand on the front lines.

However, when they rushed to within fifty meters of the position, they suddenly heard a bugle call.

"Beep beep beep beep."

"kill!"

"Kill!"
The Southern Army stared wide-eyed at the Central Army that suddenly emerged from the sea of ​​fire.

"A ghost!"
Seeing someone charging towards them amidst the flames, even in broad daylight, the Southern army was terrified and fled in panic.

The Southern troops at the front had no intention of charging forward; instead, they turned around and charged backward without regard for anything else.

Some people fell because they were in such a hurry that they didn't even have time to get up. They landed on all fours and scrambled down the slope.

In the ensuing three days of fierce fighting, the Allied forces made no progress, suffering over two thousand casualties among the Southern troops.

However, by this time, the 211th Regiment's supplies were almost exhausted.

The compressed rations that we had been reluctant to eat before the war were completely consumed.

After once again driving back the allied forces through close combat, the soldiers quickly cleaned up the battlefield and retreated back to their positions.

Based on experience, the US military is about to fire artillery.

Soon, the 211th Regiment's position was once again engulfed in explosions.

"That's all the American devils are capable of."

The soldiers of the 211th Regiment were already used to the American artillery fire.

The tunnels were deepened and reinforced multiple times, so even the most intense artillery bombardment could not harm them.

"Old Wu, the shelling can't do anything to us, but now resupply is a big problem."

Due to the intense shelling, the 211th Regiment could only secretly raise antennas at night to make contact with the rear.

"We can only try to overcome this," Ren Wuliu said helplessly.

The logistics department could only deliver a limited amount of supplies each night, mainly ammunition; food had to be delivered later.

"By the way, what's the date today?" Ren Wuliu suddenly remembered.

Without hesitation, Liang Ran answered, "Number 8."

"The 8th." Ren Wuliu calculated: "It's been 5 days, I estimate it should be about time."

"If nothing unexpected happens, the trap formation should be set up in the next couple of days."

As they were talking, the chief of staff brought over a telegram.

"Commander, Political Commissar, orders from higher command: the mission to lure and ambush the enemy has been completed. The 211th and 212th Regiments will withdraw tonight, and the 213th Regiment will be responsible for covering them."

At this point, the pocket formation had been set up, and Shiji was very satisfied with the performance of the 21st Division.

With fewer than 500 casualties, the 211th Regiment, despite being subjected to overwhelming bombardment, achieved a victory by annihilating more than 2,000 enemy soldiers.

Zhi Si never expected the battle to turn out this way; he had originally prepared to wipe out an entire division.

At this point, the commander had already decided to promote the study of this method throughout the entire army.

Faced with the firepower superiority of the US military, this battle of the 21st Detachment was very typical.

That evening, the 211th and 212th Regiments, having received orders, withdrew from the battle.

Quite coincidentally, on the same day, MacArthur's battle plan also officially began.

In just one day, the coalition forces launched more than a thousand sorties.

All bridges, transportation routes, military facilities, factories, cities, and villages along the Sino-North Korean border were bombed in an all-round manner.

Moreover, the bombing lasted for several days, until all targets were reduced to ruins.

However, the bombing has only been temporarily suspended, and a large number of reconnaissance planes are still conducting reconnaissance along the border every day.

The bombing will begin immediately if any abnormality or signs of repair are detected.

Although MacArthur verbally stated that he would only bomb North Korea, in practice, this was simply impossible.

U.S. military aircraft frequently violate Chinese airspace.

At the same time, the Eighth Army Group also began a slow advance towards the northern part of the Chongchon River.

The following morning, after the US artillery fired another round of cover fire as usual, the South 1st Division launched another attack.

This time, the Southern Army occupied Tuancheng and Dahushan positions without any hindrance.

Upon learning that they had captured the position, Bai Shangye was overjoyed.

"Great!"

"This must be because the Chinese army suffered heavy casualties and had no choice but to retreat!"

Upon hearing Bai Shangye's words, the headquarters of the 1st Division of the South was filled with laughter and cheers.

After several days of fighting, the South 1st Division has suffered more than 2,000 casualties, and the US 24th Division has also suffered 200 to 300 casualties.

Everyone was worried, but unexpectedly, the central army retreated on its own.

Bai Shangye waved his hand and said, "Quickly, report this immediately: Our army has achieved a great victory at Tuancheng!"

Regardless of how many casualties the 1st Division of the South inflicted on the Chinese army, and regardless of whether any Chinese corpses were found on the front lines, the battle lines do not lie!

Tell me, have you taken Tuancheng yet?
The chief of staff of the 1st Division of the South immediately drafted a telegram to report the victory.

"The 1st Division of the South, at the cost of over 2,000 casualties, successfully killed or wounded over 5,000 Chinese troops and is currently pursuing the fleeing enemy across the entire front."

The reports of victory were relayed up the chain of command and soon reached Washington.

"Gentlemen! At the Tuancheng front, the central army has suffered heavy casualties at the hands of our allied forces, with confirmed losses reaching over 25,000 men so far!"

"The central army that entered the Northern Dynasty has been almost completely wiped out!"

"This is a resounding victory! A resounding victory!"

Inside the meeting room, thunderous applause erupted instantly.

They had been worried that the entry of the Chinese army into Korea would have a negative impact on the coalition's operations.

Unexpectedly, MacArthur's battle plan annihilated the 30,000 Chinese troops that had entered Korea as soon as it began.

Now, the troops could advance to the Yalu River without any hindrance.

By this time, MacArthur had already come to believe the telegram that he had 'beautified'.

He then ordered the 8th Army Group and the 10th Army to advance rapidly from the left and right flanks.

After the 21st Detachment withdrew from Tuancheng, Chen Chengxing did not completely open up the road.

As required by the headquarters, the 22nd and 24th detachments continued to carry out the mission of blocking and luring the enemy in the Bagongshan area.

However, by this time all the armies had arrived, and the 22nd and 24th detachments no longer needed to hold their ground; the troops switched to mobile defense.

For the Second General, mobile defense is his old specialty.

Throughout the Bagongshan area, the positions that the Allied forces had painstakingly captured during the day after suffering heavy casualties would be retaken at night.

The two sides fought back and forth at Bagong Mountain for three or four days.

Apart from digging in the field for a while each afternoon, the regiment was in the hands of the Second Commander.

George was somewhat angry about this, but he also felt it was somewhat normal.

After all, the battle of Tuancheng a few days ago was still fresh in everyone's minds.

However, at this moment, Shiji felt depressed.

If this drags on, when will the coalition fall into their trap?
Impatient, the commander-in-chief directly ordered Chen Chengxing to have the Second Commander clear a passage for the Allied Forces and invite them in.

"I was originally planning to play around with the Americans a bit more, but since the headquarters has given the order, let's retreat."

"Tell your comrades that when you retreat, just throw away those damaged guns and tattered clothes. Don't keep them as treasures and be reluctant to part with them."

Upon hearing that they were going to be thrown away, Xu Wu said with a regretful expression, "Captain, we've come from a tough past, after all. Those things might still be useful. It's a shame to throw them away."

"What time is it now? We don't need to act like we did back in Shanxi."

Now that the whole country has been liberated, if you're still wearing tattered clothes, people will laugh at you.

"By the way, don't throw them all at once when you're throwing them away; throw them away as you go."

"Yes!" Xu Wu nodded helplessly.

George was very satisfied with the wreckage on the ground.

"The performance of the Central Army this time was even worse than that of the Tuancheng Army. They couldn't even hold their ground for long, and now they have been defeated again."

"The allied forces are on the verge of total victory!"

"Chief of Staff, send a telegram to the Siling Department."

"The enemy's weaponry is extremely inferior, and they have already retreated in fear. Our army is pursuing them with all its might!"

"Yes, sir!"

Two consecutive resounding victories successfully lowered Walker's guard.

Although he didn't deceive himself like MacArthur, according to frontline reports, the combined casualties of the Chinese army in these two battles exceeded 10,000.

A loss of one-third or even one-half of the troops' personnel would mean that any army has lost its combat capability.

The 8th Army, having lowered its guard, did not make rapid progress, but it did begin to cross the Chongchon River and head north.

(End of this chapter)