Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 633 Adjusting Strategy
According to the pre-arranged plan, the 1st and 7th companies, which were originally defending Hill 597 and Hill 537, have completed their missions and need to withdraw to the rear for rest and reorganization.

However, Wang Er was furious when he heard the staff officer order him to withdraw for reorganization and replenishment.

Speaking into the phone, Wang Er angrily said, "We've been fighting since the 14th, and more than two hundred of my soldiers, two political instructors, and more than a dozen platoon leaders have all sacrificed their lives on this mountain."

"The battle isn't even over yet, and you're telling me to retreat? How the hell am I supposed to face the comrades who sacrificed their lives?!"

The staff officer pleaded, "This is the regimental commander's order! Company Commander Wang, I hope you will obey the order!"

"Even if it's the commander's order, I'm not retreating!" Wang Er shouted into the phone. "I'll either win and retreat, or I'll be carried off!"

The staff officer was somewhat helpless in the face of Wang Er's stubbornness.

Just as the staff officer was about to say a few more words of advice, Luo Cheng took the phone from the side: "Wang Er! Whose father are you? Huh?!"

Despite Wang Er's tough talk earlier, he immediately became honest when he ran into Luo Cheng: "Commander, that's not what I meant."

"Tell me, I'm not injured, why should I retreat?"

"Being on the front lines, I can not only avenge my fallen comrades, but also help out other units, right?"

"Stop talking nonsense! This is an order, execute it!" After saying that, Luo Cheng hung up the phone.

Wang Er stared blankly at the phone in his hand, but he could only follow orders.

As Wang Er looked at the few remaining soldiers of the 1st Company on his way down the mountain, he couldn't help but recall how the 1st Company had been a formidable force just a week earlier.

On the way, Wang Er walked and cried.
Following orders, the 1st Company retreated to Deshan County, located in the northwest valley of Shengwu Mountain.

There is a newly built military post here, where more than two thousand new recruits transferred by Chen Chengxing are training.

After completing replenishment and retraining here, the 1st Company may return to the front line at any time.

Standing on the 740-meter-high ground of Shengwu Mountain, Wang Er could clearly see Wufang Ridge.

Even from dozens of kilometers away, Wang Er could still see the flashes of light constantly emanating from the position.

The US artillery bombardment has resumed.

Starting at 4 a.m., the U.S. military redeployed 324 artillery pieces.

This hilltop, which had already been bombarded for a week, was once again subjected to unlimited firepower.

After a week of fierce fighting, the hilltop of Wufangling has shrunk by one meter.

The surface of the hilltop is covered with two meters of loose soil, but the land beneath it is compacted like stone.

Originally, each mountain ridge was trapezoidal, but it was blown into a triangle by American artillery shells.

The mountain path, which used to be wide enough for five people to run side by side, is now so narrow that even one person would slip and fall.

The soldiers who had taken over the defense duties from the 1st and 9th companies were repeatedly reminded during the handover that they should not lean against the wall or lie on the ground during artillery fire.

Even when soldiers are talking face-to-face in the tunnels, they have to use sign language.

While the US military was preparing its artillery fire, the 17th and 31st Regiments were also taking over.

The 17th Regiment, which had just suffered a major blow, was transferred to the rear by Marquez to rest and recuperate, while the 31st Regiment, which had been replenished, returned to the battlefield.

Although the U.S. military did not have as many American soldiers to replenish its ranks, it had a steady stream of South Korean officers.

South Korean soldiers who had just left the military training base on Jeju Island and the Busan Military Academy were brought to Wufangling in batches, becoming a continuous source of reinforcements for the US military.

Having taken over the battlefield again, Beckett had fully learned from his past mistakes and made ample preparations in his initial formation.

Putting down his binoculars, Beckett asked, "What time is it now? How much longer will the artillery preparations last?"

The chief of staff glanced at his watch and reported, "It'll be 5:30 in eight minutes."

Beckett nodded: "It'll be our turn after the shelling ends."

"Are all battalions in position? Are the troops left behind by the 17th Regiment in position?"

The chief of staff immediately reported: "The three infantry battalions have been deployed to the east, west and south sides of Hill 597. The three battalions left behind by the 17th Regiment have also been split into three companies and reinforced on these three sides."

"I have already given the orders. The first wave of the assault will be carried out by these three companies, and our troops will follow behind."

“Hmm.” Beckett nodded: “Let them open their eyes wide. If anyone’s going to die, let the 17th Regiment die, but the credit should go to our 31st Regiment.”

"Don't worry, sir! I've already explained everything clearly."

Baker nodded without saying anything more, and then raised the binoculars again.

A few minutes later, as the shelling gradually extended backward, three companies of the 17th Regiment launched the first assault on Hill 597.

Meanwhile, the soldiers of the US 31st Regiment also began to cooperate with the operation, but anyone who knew their stuff could see through their plan at a glance.

Inside the tunnel, upon hearing the American artillery fire begin to weaken and move backward, the soldiers immediately sprang into action.

They needed to get into the trenches before the American infantry arrived.

However, entering the trenches does not mean there are still trenches, and a decrease in artillery fire does not mean there is no artillery fire.

In fact, the artillery battle between the two sides continued to be fierce and earth-shaking, and there was no sign of it stopping.

The smoke and dust kicked up by the explosion completely obscured the sky, rendering even the signal guns ineffective.

Even from a distance of 100 meters, the soldiers could not see the light of the signal flare.

This forced both sides to use mortars to fire illumination flares even in broad daylight, using the illumination flares as signal flares.

Upon entering the position, the soldiers immediately felt immense pressure.

The intensity of this battle far exceeded that of the previous few days.

The US military fights with reckless abandon; no matter how heavy the casualties, the troops at the forefront show no intention of retreating.

Relying on heavy casualties, the UN forces recaptured the surface positions of Wufangling in just one morning, and the Chinese People's Volunteer Army retreated into the tunnels once again.

When Márquez received the battle report, he was overjoyed, but when he turned to the second page, his expression immediately changed.

"How could the 3rd Battalion of the 17th Regiment suffer such heavy casualties?!"

The battle report stated that the 32nd Regiment suffered more than 300 casualties, but the 3rd Battalion of the 17th Regiment suffered nearly 700 casualties.

A full-strength U.S. Army battalion has only about 900 men. With 700 casualties, it can be said that apart from the battalion headquarters, the infantry company and the heavy weapons company have been wiped out.

The report also truthfully stated the situation: the 7th Company only had one second lieutenant platoon leader left, and the other two companies only had one person left.

Marquez had barely finished speaking when he immediately realized what was going on: "Fuck! What is Beckett doing?!"

At this point, Márquez had no more interest in looking at the casualties of the Confederate army, and he slammed the battle report on the table.

"Order the remaining troops of the 17th Regiment to immediately withdraw from the battle and rendezvous with the regimental headquarters at Fuzhili," Marquez ordered.

"Tell Beckett to immediately speed up the construction of fortifications. We have paid such a heavy price; we absolutely cannot afford to lose this position so easily!"

Beckett didn't take the reprimanding order from Márquez too seriously.

Seeing Beckett's nonchalant attitude, the chief of staff said, "Sir, it seems the division commander is a bit angry. What should we do now?"

"What's there to be afraid of?" Beckett said casually, "The division commander is just putting on a show for the 17th Regiment."

"You should know that although the 17th Regiment suffered heavy casualties, this was the first time that the UN forces captured Wufangling in just half a day."

Turning back, Beckett asked, "Do you know what this means?"

"What?" The chief of staff looked surprised.

Beckett asserted, "The central army is already somewhat depleted!"

"According to the reconnaissance aircraft report, there is no sign of large-scale troop movements by the Chinese army. In other words, the Chinese army on the other side only has one division, and there has been no large-scale reinforcement."

"But what about us? We not only have two divisions, but we also have an absolute firepower advantage."

"If we can achieve victory so quickly this time, it will only be faster in the future." "Right now, all we need to do is clear the enemy out of the tunnels, then we can bombard Shengwu Mountain, or even advance into the Pingkang Plain!"

"Given such a favorable situation, a mere battalion is utterly insignificant."

The US military suffered tens of thousands of casualties at Wufangling before, so they don't need to worry about losing just one battalion.

The chief of staff pondered for a moment: "So, shall we set our next objective as clearing out the enemy's tunnels?"

“That’s right.” Beckett nodded. “But I need to remind all units not to blindly risk a strong attack. Their main focus should be on searching for and destroying the tunnel entrances.”

Despite Beckett's disrespectful treatment of the 17th Regiment's soldiers, he wouldn't dare take such risks with the 31st Regiment.

Although the rear supply depots could replenish troops at any time, the combat effectiveness of the Confederate army was no match for that of the American army.

If the consumption is too high, the combat effectiveness of the 32nd Regiment will decline sharply, which will directly affect Beckett's future.

While the US military ceased its attack and began searching the tunnels, Qin Sheng was already organizing his troops to prepare for a desperate battle.

In order to retake Wufangling, a large number of officers and support staff from the 24th Detachment were incorporated into the reserve team, preparing to storm Wufangling at night.

At this critical moment, Chen Chengxing arrived at Shengwu Mountain.

Upon seeing Chen Chengxing, Qin Sheng jogged over: "Commander! I've already assembled the troops and am preparing to retake the position."

"No rush." ​​Chen Chengxing waved his hand. "Pass the word down and convene an emergency military meeting!"

A few minutes later, the tunnel conference room was full of people.

At the beginning of the meeting, Chen Chengxing did not directly state his attitude, but instead gestured to Qin Sheng and said, "Let's talk about the current casualty situation of the 24th Detachment first."

The head of the operations section sitting next to Qin Sheng stood up.

"Commander, in the past week, almost all three infantry regiments of the 24th Detachment have been deployed to the battlefield."

"As of now, the 24th Detachment still has two battalions and two companies of troops."

"Among them, the 2nd Battalion of the 241st Regiment was defending Pike Peak, which was not the main direction of the US attack, so the casualties were relatively small; the 1st Battalion had more than 70 men left, and 75 men were re-added; the 3rd Battalion fought until the 20th, the 7th Company had 18 men left, the 9th Company had 23 men left, and the 7th and 9th Companies had each been re-added with 110 men; the 8th Company is now located on Hill 597, and the strength of its troops is currently unknown."

“242团1一营负责防守桑德山，南军虽有异动，但是一直没有进攻；4连还剩不到30人；5连刚刚任命了连长和指导员，无兵；6连位于537高地，暂时不详；7连无兵；8连11人，已补至145人；9连无兵。”

“243团现已退出战场，1连8人，2连25人，3连16人，4连10人，5连20人，7连110人，8连20人，9连11人。除7连补充满185人外，其余未补充。”

"Apart from the 243rd Regiment, the other two artillery battalions suffered few casualties and still have a certain combat capability."

As the operations section chief finished reading the casualty report with a sob in his voice, everyone who had come with Chen Chengxing showed a look of shock.

Such casualties cannot be described as merely crippling; if the fighting continues, we might lose our staff altogether.

Even though Chen Chengxing had already made up his mind to fight the US military to the end at Wufangling, the casualties were still unbearable for him.

Since its establishment, the Second General Hospital has never suffered such heavy casualties.

Chen Chengxing immediately asked, "How are the wounded?"

Qin Sheng reported: "The wounded who were rescued from the battlefield have received first aid. The seriously wounded are being transferred to hospitals in the rear. However, due to limited transport capacity, we can only transport the critically wounded at the moment."

“This won’t do,” Chen Chengxing said. “If we delay, what was originally a non-fatal injury may become fatal.”

After thinking for a moment, Chen Chengxing said, "Here's what I'll do. I'll allocate 50 trucks and 100 horse-drawn carriages from the logistics regiment to you. Within two days, you need to transfer all the seriously wounded to the rear."

After finishing discussing the 24th Detachment, Chen Chengxing looked at everyone and said, "Given the madness and recklessness of the US military, this battle will be an exceptionally protracted war of attrition. We cannot rush things; we must plan for the long term."

"The first priority in a war of attrition is to ensure sufficient troop strength."

"Old Luo, you should transfer 1,000 men from the headquarters and directly subordinate units, and transfer some new recruits from the supply depots to supplement the 24th Detachment with at least 15 companies to ensure the 24th Detachment's continuous combat capability."

"Okay." Luo Ping nodded.

"However, my suggestion is to supplement the company to 18, and new recruits can be obtained from the Volunteer Army Headquarters."

After a brief consideration, Chen Chengxing agreed with Luo Ping's idea: "Okay, let's go with 18 companies."

"The 23rd Detachment is currently moving towards Yanshan at the fastest speed and will be able to come to support Wufangling soon."

“我会从23支队中抽调6个步兵营直接参与五方岭战斗，23支队其余兵力负责接手24支队除五方岭以外的其他所有防御阵地，24支队全体投入五方岭的两高地争夺战。”

After discussing troop strength, Chen Chengxing added, "Now there is something even more important, and that is the battle strategy."

"The unprecedentedly concentrated assault by the US military is a great opportunity for us to annihilate the enemy, but the concentrated assault is accompanied by unprecedented artillery firepower from the US military."

"The U.S. military is firing tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of shells at us every day, so this war of attrition absolutely cannot be fought head-on."

"I have decided to immediately halt the large-scale counterattack and temporarily switch the troops on the front lines to tunnel warfare."

"During the day, we would hold our ground in tunnels, and at night we would launch small-scale attacks to keep the enemy tied down on the position while we waited for reinforcements to arrive before launching a large-scale counter-offensive."

Qin Sheng said with some difficulty, "Commander-in-Chief, judging from the current situation, the troops on the position can only delay for a few days at most."

"Relying solely on the forces of the 24th and 23rd detachments is not enough to sustain this for long. Should we transfer some elite troops from Xiyueling or Ximashan?"

According to the intelligence that has been gathered, the U.S. military has deployed four divisions along the Wufangling line, along with more than 4 heavy artillery pieces, aircraft, and tanks, which is an extremely terrifying pressure.

"The forces of the 21st and 22nd detachments must not be redeployed," Chen Chengxing said solemnly.

Regardless of the intentions expressed by the US military, Chen Chengxing has never let his guard down.

Chen Chengxing didn't think the US military would only focus on one position.

Although Wufangling had become the absolute focus at this time, it was only a short-term result of the game between the two sides on the entire front.

Along this nearly 200-kilometer-long front, any movement at any point could trigger enormous changes.

The U.S. military is a mechanized force; it can withdraw from combat quickly and rejoin it just as quickly.

If the troops at Ximashan and Xiyueling are redeployed, the US military may launch a counterattack, which would put the Chinese People's Volunteer Army in a very passive position.

In any case, the Pingkang Plain is the most important part of the defense; otherwise, the Volunteer Army would not have placed the Second Division here.

Looking at the serious expressions of the crowd, Chen Chengxing said, "Although the 21st and 22nd detachments cannot provide support, they will attack the enemy in front."

"As long as we can contain the US 3rd Division, the pressure on Wufangling will be reduced by half."

According to Chen Chengxing's estimate, if it were only the US 7th Division, the 24th Detachment plus the 6 battalions of the 23rd Detachment would definitely be able to hold them off.

Whether the Southern Army consists of one or two divisions will not have a significant impact.

"In addition, I have transferred two divisions from Army C to provide support. One division will go to Shengwu Mountain to participate in the battle, and the other division will be stationed in Pingkang as the general reserve."

"Until all reinforcements arrive, the next phase of the operation will mainly consist of tunnel warfare."

"The US military can fight however they want; all we need to do is protect the tunnels."

"Of course, if the opportunity arises, we'll go out and launch a surprise attack on them."

Looking at Xu Wu beside him, Chen Chengxing said, "Xu Wu, you will be in charge of the tunnel warfare."

Next, multiple detachments will gather in the Wufangling area. Qin Sheng alone will not be able to coordinate them. In order for the battle to advance smoothly, someone must take the lead.

"Xu Wu, besides tunnel warfare, there is one more thing to do."

"The journey from the supply station to Wufangling, which is more than ten kilometers long, requires the addition of foxholes, bomb shelters, and troop shelters."

"It is essential to ensure that support and supplies can enter the tunnels without hindrance."

"And it has to be fast. Whoever can dig a big cat ear hole in a day, I'll give him a second-class merit!"

"yes!".
After the meeting, the 24th Detachment Command Headquarters began to advance towards Wufangling.

The heavy mortar battalion and cannon battalion of the 24th Artillery Regiment also adjusted their gun positions.

Their mission was adjusted to cover the entrances to the battlefield tunnels, and to cooperate with the Chinese People's Volunteer Army on the front lines to launch a counterattack while blocking enemy counterattacks.

(End of this chapter)