Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 590 Unexpected
With the support of 18 rocket launchers, the 4th Division of Army B successfully captured Hill 335 and began to encircle the main position of Nan'an Mountain.

This made Connolly increasingly believe that the Chinese People's Volunteer Army was trying to cut off his connection with the rest of the troops and then devour him.

While the US 5th Regiment was intently watching Army B, a unit was silently moving through the foot of Hill 335.

In order to arrive at Shangshuili on time, the 23rd Detachment did not bring any artillery, not even infantry guns, let alone artillery regiments.

Everyone was lightly equipped, carrying only the necessary weapons and a small amount of dry rations.

After quietly slipping out of Nan'an Mountain, the 23rd Detachment began to accelerate.

However, the 232nd Regiment, which was leading the way, encountered trouble not far from where they had gone.

To speed up the march, the 23rd Detachment chose an almost straight route.

When you encounter a mountain, climb it; when you encounter a river, wade through it.

But this presents a problem, because the previous cold wave had left very thick snow on the mountains.

Soldiers could easily slip and fall, which greatly affected the marching speed of the troops.

After climbing out of the snow pit, Tian Cheng, the commander of the 232nd Regiment, looked at the endless white snow-capped mountains and felt a headache coming on.

"No, we can't go this way."

“If this continues, we will never be able to reach Sheung Shui on time.”

Standing still, Tian Cheng carefully observed the soldiers passing by.

A moment later, Tian Cheng clapped his hands and exclaimed excitedly, "I've got it!"

"Tell everyone to tie themselves together with the soldiers next to them using the spare leg wraps."

"This way, if one person slips, the other can pull them up and provide the necessary support."

The soldiers didn't know if Tian Cheng's method would work.

But they had no other choice but to give it a try.

To everyone's surprise, this simple method worked remarkably well.

Soon, all 23 teams adopted this method, and their speed improved significantly.

While the 23rd Detachment was busy making its way, the various units of the 4th Army Corps had already launched their operations as planned.

With the support of the 21st Detachment and the artillery detachment, Army B launched a full-scale offensive against Nan'an Mountain.

Army A and Army C respectively launched infiltration and division operations against Pingshali and Tongyuanli.

Due to the distance, the US troops in Pingshali were the first to be attacked.

According to Ridgway's plan, the UN forces would not only tighten their defenses at night, but also set up a large number of sentries and various defensive fortifications to prevent a surprise attack.

The vanguard of the 3rd Division of Army A had only approached within 150 meters of the US forward positions when they heard a loud "bang".

Someone stepped on a landmine.

However, this mine is not a common anti-personnel mine, but an illumination mine.

As the flare instantly ascended into the air, the large force, which had been operating covertly, was immediately exposed.

"Enemy attack!"

Alarms sounded at the US military position.

Immediately afterwards, a barrage of artillery shells came from the distant high ground.

Even if the three soldiers who stepped on the landmines immediately went down, more than half of them were still killed or wounded when the flares went out.

"Damn it! Those American devils were prepared!" Ding Wei gritted his teeth.

The troops have been exposed, and they can no longer charge directly after getting within 30 to 50 meters as they did before.

"Since a sneak attack is impossible, let's launch a full-scale assault! Immediately begin probing with firepower!"

Before the general offensive, it is necessary to eliminate as many of the US forward firing positions as possible.

Otherwise, given the overwhelming firepower of the US military, the troops' offensive would be completely suppressed.

By this time, the American soldiers had reacted and rushed into their designated positions.

Faced with the large-scale attack by Army A, the US military was somewhat flustered, but there were no signs of the direct collapse that had occurred before.

On the contrary, under constant orders from officers at all levels, the U.S. military began a rapid counterattack.

Having regained their composure, the US military did not panic and launch a fire suppression attack in the face of small-scale reconnaissance.

Instead, they very cunningly retaliated using only grenades and rifles.

The concealed machine gun positions were never exposed.

It wasn't until the 3rd Division of Army A launched a large-scale offensive that the US military unleashed powerful suppressive firepower.

The combat effectiveness displayed by the U.S. military, which had regained its composure, was vastly different from that of the previous three campaigns.

The U.S. military not only fought to the last man in many positions, but also increased the intensity of its firepower over time.

Army A's casualties are also increasing rapidly.

Ding Wei, who was personally commanding the battle, noticed something was wrong.

"Damn it, the intelligence is wrong, it seems like the other side isn't a single regiment!"

"Judging from the noise, this must be a force of at least tens of thousands!"

The 3rd Division demonstrated formidable combat power this time.

Despite the intense firepower, they managed to capture several important high grounds, but the further they went, the less they could push forward.

After thinking for a moment, Ding Wei called out, "Chief of Staff!"

"To!"

"Tell the 3rd Division not to rush, to conduct thorough reconnaissance, and to find out the situation first!"

If there are indeed two main regiments here, then the plan will have to change.

As the offensive slowed and the tactics changed, Army A quickly captured prisoners and figured out the specific situation.

Looking at the report, Ding Wei cursed, "Damn it, I really hit the jackpot!"

The US troops in Pingshali were not a single regiment, but rather the main force of the US 7th Division.

If the Southern troops who did odd jobs are included, the total strength exceeds 10,000.

In addition to two infantry regiments, there were also divisional headquarters troops and two artillery battalions, as well as anti-aircraft and tank units.

After the three units were exposed, they were suppressed and unable to move by the powerful firepower of the M19 twin 40mm self-propelled anti-aircraft guns.

This gave the US military time to react.

The chief of staff standing nearby asked anxiously, "Then what should we do now?"

"With our troops alone, even if we break our teeth, we still can't take Pingshali."

With a troop ratio of less than three to one, Army A would find it difficult to defeat tens of thousands of American troops in a short period of time.

"We can't fight head-on," Ding Wei stated firmly.

“Since the main force of the US military appeared in Pingshali, Tongyuanli or Shangshuili must be different from the reconnaissance area.”

"Send a telegram to the Second Commander explaining the situation; we're about to begin the encirclement."

The battlefield situation is interconnected, and Ding Wei immediately realized that the battle plan had to be changed.

The original plan to capture Pingshali and completely encircle the US 7th Division is no longer feasible.

We must now focus our main efforts elsewhere.

Inside the Second Headquarters, the radio kept beeping.

"Army A and Army B have launched a general offensive against Pingshali and Tongyuanli."

"The US 5th Regiment is retreating southwards, and Army B has already occupied the main position at Nan'an Mountain."

"The 22nd and 24th detachments are proceeding according to plan."
All sorts of information are constantly converging here.

Just when Chen Chengxing thought everything was going according to plan, Ding Wei's telegram arrived.

"The main force of the US 7th Division has appeared in Pingshali?"

Holding the telegram, Chen Chengxing immediately looked at the map.

"How is that possible?" Chen Chengxing was somewhat incredulous.

"In the first two battles, the US military was utterly defeated because of its recklessness. Do they still dare to advance rashly now?"

"You don't want it in the water anymore?"

According to Li Yunlong's previous telegram, they encountered the 31st Regiment of the US 7th Division at Tongyuanli. If this is the case, the entire US 7th Division would be deployed along the front line, leaving the rear extremely vulnerable.

However, Chen Chengxing immediately dismissed his own conjecture, refusing to believe that Ridgway would do something so foolish.

Chen Chengxing immediately realized that some unknown changes had occurred in the water.

However, he is currently too far away to intervene, and even if he knows there is a problem in the water, he cannot make timely adjustments.

We can only find out what happened after the 23rd team arrives at dawn.

However, the situation has changed, so we must take action.

"Xu Wu, send a telegram back to Ding Wei. Use the key high ground that we have already seized to encircle the US 7th Division and prevent them from reinforcing Tongyuanli."

"Have the 21st Detachment speed up, first cooperate with Li Yunlong to wipe out the enemy, and then intercept the main force of the US 7th Division!"

The goal of wiping out the US 7th Division in one fell swoop was clearly no longer achievable, so Chen Chengxing decisively revised the objective.

That is to concentrate superior forces and eliminate the besieged enemies one by one.

Unlike the stalemate at Pyeongsa-ri, the US forces at Tongyuan-ri experienced a repeat of the nightmares of previous battles.

That night, as soon as the general offensive began, one of Li Yunlong's divisions completely tore apart the forward defensive positions in Tongyuanli.

The army made a full advance into the American defensive positions.

At that time, the highest-ranking U.S. military commander in Tongyuanli was Brigadier General Hood, deputy commander of the U.S. 7th Division.

After Ridgway took office, he changed the commander of the 7th Infantry Division, but the deputy commander and chief of staff were not replaced.

At this moment, when Hu De saw the Chinese People's Volunteer Army sweeping into the position with unstoppable momentum, the fear that had been hidden in his heart resurfaced.

Just as Hood was somewhat dazed by the intense gunfire, the commander of the 31st Regiment, McLean, ran over.

"Sir, according to reports from various units, the enemy has more than 20,000 men, which is several times our number."

"What should we do now?"

Hu De came to the 31st Regiment to coordinate the distribution of supplies.

However, at this time, he held the highest military rank, so theoretically, he was the highest commander in Tongyuan at this moment.

Hood, who had been lost in thought, was jolted awake by McLean's words.

He cannot stay here any longer!

"Colonel McKellen, you are the commander of the 31st Regiment, and you know the 31st Regiment best."

"You will lead the counterattack from now on. I'll go find reinforcements!"

As he spoke, Hu De quickly ran outside.

He planned to return to Shangshuili, where the 7th Division's supply corps was located and the 1st Marine Regiment was stationed.

McLean was stunned as he watched Hood jump onto the tank and speed away into the water.

Has the US military reverted to the Civil War era? Do they still have to rely on human messengers to relay messages?
And even if it needs to be relayed by someone, you, as the deputy division commander, don't need to go in person, right?
The chief of staff standing to the side curled his lip and said, "Sir, it seems that our General Hu De is not going to return."

"What do we do now?"

"Sigh," McLean shook his head helplessly, "Although I knew I probably couldn't count on it, well..."

"Forget it, let's ignore him." McLean waved his hand.

"Tell all units to proceed with the defense according to the established plan."

"Yes, sir!"
Even before setting up camp, McClain had already devised a detailed defensive plan.

The reason he came to ask Hud was simply to find out if there were any other instructions.

Since Hood has run away, we can proceed with the plan as scheduled.

Influenced by Li Yunlong, the entire C Army was also extremely fierce.

As long as the bugle sounds the charge, they dare to charge and fight even the strongest enemy.

Faced with the fierce attack of Army C, the units of the US 31st Regiment suffered repeated defeats.

Although the US 31st Regiment also chose to lay its anti-aircraft guns flat, it did not stop the fierce attack of the Chinese army.

By the middle of the night, even Hill 418, where the forward command post of the 31st Regiment was located, had been breached by the C Army.

McClain could only retreat with his remaining troops back to the main position.

During the journey, someone suddenly reported: "Sir, a large number of troops are marching on the other side of the river!"

“Where?” McLean immediately turned his head to look.

There were indeed many figures moving in the distance, but it was too dark to see the specifics.

McLean exclaimed excitedly, "It must be the 2nd Battalion coming to our aid!"

"Don't fire, I'll go check the other side."

"Huh?" The chief of staff looked anxious.

"Sir, the situation is unclear. Should we send a reconnaissance unit to investigate?"

McLean said with certainty, "There's no mistake, it's definitely the 2nd Battalion!"

Perhaps stunned by the attack, McClain insisted that his troops were the only shadowy figures he saw.

"Time is of the essence now. If we wait until the reconnaissance team returns before giving the order, we will be wasting precious time."

With that, McLean stepped onto the frozen river and ran somewhat unsteadily toward the other side.

Behind McLean, everyone stared in shock at his retreating figure.

On the other side of the river, the soldiers of the 21st Detachment were also bewildered as they watched someone waving their hands and shouting as they ran towards them.

"what's the situation?"

"Is this an American soldier? Is he going to take on our entire squad by himself?"

"who cares."

"Now that we've been exposed, there's no need to hide anymore."

Li Chishui ordered, "Kill him! All units, immediately proceed with the encirclement plan!"

"Bang!" "Bang!"
With several gunshots, McLean collapsed onto the ice, his body sliding forward two meters.

Upon hearing the gunshots, the American soldiers, who had been staring blankly at McLean, scattered like startled ducks.

Team 21 ignored them and instead launched their own attacks according to their objectives.

By daybreak, the 21st Detachment had already penetrated the US 7th Division's defensive line.

All the surviving troops of the U.S. 31st Regiment were compressed into a narrow area of ​​less than two square kilometers.

On the other side, after a night of running, Team 23 successfully reached the vicinity of Shangshuili.

At this time, many soldiers of the 23rd Detachment were pale, some were even out of breath, and quite a few had vomited blood.

However, after crossing the last mountain, Shangshuili finally appeared in front of Team 23.

However, the moment Sun Xun saw the water, he realized something was wrong.

According to intelligence, there should only be one battalion of American troops here.

But now, he can tell that there are definitely more than a thousand people on the other side just by looking at them.

"Order the 232nd Regiment to launch an attack immediately."

Sun Xun knew that the 23rd team was exhausted, but no matter what the situation was in the water, he had to find out the truth.

Only in this way can adjustments be made according to the actual situation.

However, the 232nd Regiment only launched a probing attack.

Upon witnessing the intensity of the US military's counterattack, Sun Xun immediately called a halt to the offensive.

"Cease the attack! Seize advantageous terrain, and the entire army shall immediately switch to defense!"

"Send a telegram to headquarters: A large number of enemy troops have appeared in the upper reaches of the river!"

The situation was worse than Sun Xun had imagined.

A typical independent combat reinforcement regiment of the U.S. Army has a strength of about 4,000 men, and even with the addition of Confederate troops who do miscellaneous tasks, it has a maximum of about 5,000 men.

But now the enemy in the water definitely exceeds six thousand.

The 23rd detachment only had seven or eight thousand troops that had infiltrated, and they were all armed with light weapons.

During the day, there's no point in fighting this battle.

(End of this chapter)