Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 615 The Second Boss at Full Power

In the following days, the U.S. military fired more than 4 shells at Hill 965 every day.

Even though Hill 965 was destroyed by 963, the 211th Regiment did not suffer many casualties.

Without the assistance of artillery, whether or not the position could be captured depended entirely on the battle between the infantry of both sides.

Over the course of a full week, the 36th Regiment of the South launched more than ten assaults.

But they got nothing but a pile of corpses.

The 36th Regiment of the South also knew that it shouldered the mission of winning glory for the South Army.

Later on, the Southern Army soldiers attacked with their lives on the line, and the 36th Regiment of the Southern Army, with bloodshot eyes, displayed a ferocity rarely seen in the Southern Army.

But if you can't beat them, you can't beat them.

The Chinese People's Volunteer Army was already several levels stronger than the South Korean army, and the Second General Staff Headquarters was the Volunteer Army's elite force, so the South Korean army had no chance against them.

In the end, the 36th Regiment of the South suffered losses of more than a thousand people.

The frontline troops suffered heavy casualties, and the remaining soldiers, looking at the blood-stained hillside, completely lost their courage.

The supervisory team executed several people, but it was to no avail.

The soldiers of the 36th Regiment in the south preferred to be executed on the spot by the supervising team, but had no courage to attack.

When the execution team was firing the fifth person in line, the executioner's hand began to tremble, and he could no longer pull the trigger.

Seeing that the 36th Regiment of the South had not launched another attack, Florson knew that his plan to boost the morale of the Confederate army had completely failed.

Frustrated, Frosin had no choice but to issue a new order: "The 9th Regiment shall immediately advance to assist the 36th Regiment of the South in its attack!"

"It seems that the Confederate army is indeed of little use. If we want to win, we still need American soldiers."

Flossen still looked confident.

Then came another six days of fierce fighting, with hundreds of thousands of shells raining down on this small hill less than 4 kilometers long.

But at this moment, Flossen's face had lost all confidence; it had turned pale.

The pincer attack by the 9th Regiment and the 36th Regiment from the left and right failed to shake Hill 965 in the slightest.

Just as Flossen was racking his brains for a plan, Drummond rushed over.

"Sir, something terrible has happened! The 36th Regiment of the South has collapsed!"

"Collapse?! Didn't they already collapse? They're all a bunch of useless trash!"

"It's different!" Drummond exclaimed urgently, "After the 36th Regiment of the South withdrew from the attack, a mutiny broke out!"

"The 36th Regiment of the South has completely disintegrated. Many companies have fled, and only the people at the regimental headquarters are still here!"

"What did you say?!" Flossen's face changed drastically. At this moment, he desperately hoped that Drummond was lying to him.

The 36th Regiment of the South mutinied and collapsed. Regardless of what became of these South Army soldiers, he certainly did not have a good end.

"Tell the 7th Division of the South to immediately send someone to deal with the 36th Regiment's situation!"

"The 9th Infantry Regiment will continue its assault and must capture Hill 965 at all costs!"

Flossen was like a drowning man grasping at a straw.

In order to keep their positions, Flossen gave the 9th Regiment a death order.

If he can capture Hill 965, he might even be able to redeem himself through meritorious service.

Under Frossen’s personal supervision, the 9th Regiment suffered hundreds of casualties in just one morning, and the 1st Company of the 1st Battalion was reduced to only 20 men.

Just when the 9th Regiment was on the verge of collapse, the order to transfer Flossen arrived.

"Effective immediately, Flossen is relieved of his command of the 2nd Infantry Division. Brigadier General Drummond, the former Chief of Staff, will temporarily assume command of the division!"

Looking at Drummond reading the order, Flossen sneered, "Congratulations, acting master."

Flossen didn't even need to think; it was definitely Drummond who reported it to the higher-ups.

Otherwise, the order would never have come so quickly.

Drummond put away the transfer order and smiled, "Sir, I'm doing this for the sake of the 2nd Infantry Division. We can't afford such a huge loss."

"Don't call me sir, you're the sir now!" Florson turned and left the command post.

Watching Flossen's retreating figure, De La Drummond shook his head dismissively.

According to De La Drummond's idea, he should have taken over when Kaiser was dismissed, but Ridgway parachuted in Flossen instead.

After that, Dragmon had been looking for an opportunity, and now that he had this chance, he naturally wouldn't miss it.

"I'm just taking back what's rightfully mine," De La Drummond said in a low voice.

Straightening his clothes, Deradmon turned and ordered, "Notify all officers that a war council will be held in half an hour."

During the war council, Dragmon pointed to the sand table and said, "Look here."

"The Chinese People's Volunteer Army could effectively isolate themselves from our artillery fire by using the reverse slope of the hillside."

"Therefore, a simple frontal attack is absolutely not advisable. If we launch a strong attack, we will gain nothing but casualties."

"My idea is to concentrate the entire division's forces for an offensive!"

"The 9th Regiment continued its frontal attack, while the 23rd and 38th Regiments made flanking maneuvers to the rear of Hill 965."

"The reason why reverse slope positions are difficult to attack is that they can block direct artillery fire."

"If we break through the enemy's left and right flanks, we can attack from three sides."

"When this high ground has no reverse side, how can the central army execute its reverse slope tactics?"

Hearing Dragmon's analysis, everyone's faces lit up with joy.

After failing to capture even a small hill for more than ten days, the US military commanders at all levels were also very frustrated.

Now that there is hope of victory, they are truly relieved.

After readjusting the operational plan, the U.S. 2nd Division launched its operation.

Ren Wuliu did not deploy too many troops on the left and right flanks of Hill 965, after all, the 211th Regiment only had that many men.

The 211th Regiment had also been under considerable pressure during the previous ten days of fighting.

Utilizing their overwhelming numerical superiority, the US 23rd and 38th Regiments successfully captured the positions on the east and west sides of Hill 965 three days later.

Seeing that the reverse slope position was about to be exposed to the US military, Li Chiguo decisively ordered the 211th Regiment to retreat across the board.

The US 9th Regiment wanted to pursue, but remembering the terrible defeat they had suffered before, the US soldiers nominally pursued but in reality watched the 211th Regiment leave.

Inside the Eighth Army headquarters, Van Fleet stared in disbelief at the US 2nd Infantry Division's battle report on Hill 965.

Although De La Drummond had previously reported the devastation on the front lines, VanVleet hadn't anticipated it to be this severe.

For a small hill only 4 kilometers long, the UN forces suffered more than 3,000 casualties, including more than 1,200 American soldiers.

"We can't keep playing like this," VanVleet muttered.

Van Fleet didn't even dare to think about what would happen next after such heavy casualties for an insignificant hill.

After a moment's thought, Van Fleet said to Dane, "Chief of Staff, send a telegram to the Tokyo headquarters."

"Request that offensives be launched on both the eastern and western fronts. If the operation goes smoothly, a landing operation will be carried out near Tongchuan."

Ridgway was taken aback when he received Van Fleet's telegram.

Just last week, he rejected Van Fleet's Yuanchuan landing plan. And now, less than a week later, another Tongchuan landing plan has emerged.

"A full-scale offensive must not be launched, and a landing operation is even more impossible!"

Ridgway certainly didn't want the battle to end, but he wouldn't risk his future.

North Korea's military strength is already stretched thin, and it simply cannot spare any troops for a landing.

If a landing operation were to be carried out, it could only be carried out by the 16th Army stationed in Japan.

The problem is that if Japan does that, it will have no troops left.

What would the Soviet Union think if Japan left its defenses undefended?
If the Soviet Union were to conquer Japan, the entire Asia would be doomed, and none of the American troops in Korea would be able to escape.

Ridgway simply could not accept taking a gamble that would result in total defeat.

"Send a telegram to Van Fleet, rejecting the landing plan and allowing him only a small-scale land offensive, with no more than a corps!"

Looking at Ridgway's order, Van Fleet shook his head helplessly: "No sense of adventure at all."

His forte is flanking and encirclement tactics, but now he is forced to push forward head-on, which is like fighting with his hands and feet tied.

Dane, seemingly oblivious to Van Fleet's complaints, asked, "Sir, should we continue the attack?"

Van Fleet asserted, "The 9th Corps will continue its northward advance!"

"The Air Force has observed that the Chinese troops that withdrew from Hill 965 have moved north into Hill 913."

“I’m certain that the enemy must have suffered heavy losses on Hill 965, which is why they fled in panic to Hill 913.”

"The enemy retreated in haste, without having time to build a defensive position. This is the best time to pursue them!"

Van Fleet firmly believed that if the UN forces had suffered such heavy casualties, the Chinese forces must have suffered just as many.

"Pass on my orders! The Southern Army will be responsible for flank cover, while the 2nd Infantry Division will be in charge of the central offensive."

Van Fleet had completely lost faith in the Confederate army, and even though the Chinese People's Volunteer Army had little ability to resist, he no longer intended to let the Confederate army take on the main tasks.

If the South Korean army continues to drag its feet, wouldn't that give the Chinese People's Volunteer Army more time to prepare?

Upon reaching the vicinity of Hill 913, De La Drummond stood atop a hill, observing the situation on Hill 913 through binoculars.

“Look over there.” Dragmon pointed to the east and west sides of Hill 913, where Hill 815 and Hill 894 were located respectively.

"According to aerial reconnaissance, the main force of the Chinese army is dispersed on these three hills."

“This place is different from the previous Hill 965. The terrain of these three hills is relatively steep, which is not conducive to the attack of large troops.”

"Our best option is to attack the saddle area between Hill 913 and Hill 815."

"Once we take the saddle area, it will be easier to go either left or right."

Dragmon is very confident in his offensive plan.

The terrain of the saddle area they designated was relatively flat, which was conducive to the deployment of the attacking troops.

Using the saddle area as a springboard, the US military could easily capture Hill 913 and then outflank the left and right positions.

Even if we can't take Hill 913, we can attack Hill 815 on the flank and then cut off Hill 913's supply route.

Although this wouldn't allow for the complete annihilation of the central army, De La Paz said he could accept it.

Under the command of De La Paimont, the 23rd Regiment and the reinforced French battalion moved forward to prepare for an offensive.

Subsequently, the artillery units of the U.S. 2nd Division provided fire coverage to the saddle area.

Half an hour later, the US troops adjusted the direction of their guns, preparing to suppress Hill 913 and Hill 815 with firepower to provide cover for the 23rd Regiment's attack.

Seeing that the artillery preparations were complete, General Powers, commander of the U.S. 23rd Regiment, gave the order to attack.

"Commander, the 22nd Detachment called. Just as we predicted, the enemy launched an attack on the saddle point!"

Looking at the map, Chen Chengxing laughed and said, "I knew it, the US military would never use a piecemeal tactic."

"Tell Zheng Hua to give him a good beating, so that the American colonel will remember this lesson!"

"Tell Wang Chengzhu to prepare the artillery positions. Once the American troops are forced to Hill 894, they should be subjected to fire support!"

"New guy, we have to give it a try!"

At this time, the US military did not know that the defenders of Hill 913 were not the 211th Regiment, but the complete 22nd Detachment.

这是一个完成了火炮更换，拥有12门120毫米重迫击炮、12门76.2毫米加农炮、12门122毫米榴弹炮的重装部队。

Moreover, as a new weapons testing unit, the Second General Corps' individual weapons were completely replaced with domestically produced semi-automatic and automatic rifles, and various machine guns were also re-equipped according to the organizational structure.

Of course, the arsenal cannot produce artillery yet, so the artillery used is still Soviet-made.

Wang Chengzhu's artillery detachment has also been expanded to three regiments.

One 3-battalion 122mm howitzer regiment, one 2-battalion 152mm howitzer regiment, and one 3-battalion rocket artillery regiment.

The firepower of the Second Division can be said to be at its maximum.

Most importantly, at this time, the Second General Headquarters was actually not far behind Hill 913.

In other words, the 22nd team can receive Chen Chengxing's full support at any time.

If it weren't for the repeated orders from the headquarters, Chen Chengxing would have rushed out and fought the US 9th Army long ago.

The 2nd Battalion of the 23rd Regiment, responsible for attacking the saddle, made a very successful attack.

They arrived at the saddle area without any obstacles.

Looking at the easily captured position, the US battalion commander laughed and said, "Heh. It seems that the Chinese army has really suffered heavy losses. Such an important position was not defended at all."

"Sir, what's our next step? Should we establish a position on the spot, or launch an attack immediately?"

"A defensive position? Captain, do you think there's still a need to build one?"

"Attack Hill 913 directly! We can take advantage of the enemy's positions to rest."

"Pass on my order! The entire army!"

Before the American battalion commander could finish speaking, shells rained down like meteors, and a fierce barrage completely covered the saddle area.

The 22nd Artillery Regiment and its mortars, which had already been positioned, opened fire, and a barrage of shells flew toward the American troops.

"We've been ambushed!" the American battalion commander shouted desperately into the walkie-talkie, "Retreat! Retreat!"

The US military was also willing to retaliate, but they couldn't even see a trace of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army.

Unable to find an opponent and with shells constantly raining down from the sky, the US military had no choice but to retreat.

Seeing the condition of the saddle, Dragmon's face turned ashen: "Fuck! How could this happen?!"

"Sir, I'm afraid the central army was prepared. The 23rd Regiment reports that the 2nd Battalion has suffered more than 300 casualties."

More than a third of the casualties, in the context of the U.S. military, constitute a loss of combat capability.

According to regulations, they are now entitled to surrender to the enemy.

"The central army is indeed treacherous!" Deradmon gritted his teeth and said, "The saddle point is a trap deliberately set by the enemy!"

More than 300 people were injured in just a few minutes, which made Deradmon's heart bleed.

"Cease attack! Immediately conduct reconnaissance on the three high grounds!"

"Yes, sir!"
(End of this chapter)