Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 99 Night Attack
"That's great, Lao Chen, the brigade commander agreed to our plan." Luo Ping walked into the regiment headquarters excitedly.

"Okay! Then let's set off tonight!" Chen Chengxing stood up and said excitedly.

The New Second Regiment's opportunity to make a fortune has come. Now all the Japanese's attention is on the Lijiachuan area, and there are not many troops in the rear.

Isn't this just allowing Monkey King to cause havoc in Heaven?
After nightfall, Chen Chengxing led the main force of the New Second Regiment and four guerrillas active in the southwest of Dayun Mountain through Laolong Mountain, bypassed the Japanese stronghold of Xizhuang, and disappeared into the night.

The distance from Hongniwan to the Xiji stronghold was over a hundred miles. Even if the New Second Regiment could reach the Xiji stronghold by a quick march, they would not be able to launch an offensive at night. Therefore, at three or four o'clock in the morning, Chen Chengxing and his troops stopped at Shuibo Village.

"Lao Luo, you take the regiment headquarters and the guerrillas to control Shuibo Village. No one is allowed to enter but not leave to prevent our whereabouts from being disclosed." Chen Chengxing whispered outside the village.

Shuibo Village is a guerrilla zone with all kinds of people in it. If the blockade cannot be completed, it will probably not be long before someone will go to the nearby Japanese artillery tower to inform on the situation.

"Okay, leave this matter to me." Luo Ping nodded.

Political cadres are better at communicating with ordinary people, while guerrillas are better at communicating because their clothes are the same as those of ordinary people, so standing guard outside will not cause unnecessary trouble.

There is a war going on at Lijiachuan Ferry now, and planes pass by this area from time to time.

If a large number of main forces of the New 2nd Regiment were on guard outside, and if a Japanese pilot looked down, they would be exposed.

After the New Second Regiment blocked Shuibo Village, the village fell into chaos.

The whole village was suddenly surrounded by troops in the middle of the night, and everyone was scared.

"Fellow villagers! Fellow villagers! Don't be afraid! We are the Eighth Route Army! We will not harm you!"

Luo Ping led the people from the Political Department to make announcements everywhere in the village.

After hearing that it was the Eighth Route Army, the people of Shuibo Village relaxed a little.

Since the Eighth Route Army entered Shanxi, its reputation has basically become known to everyone.

After calming down the villagers, Chen Chengxing negotiated with Luo Ping and the villagers of Shuibo Village.

Let the soldiers go to different households to rest. After all, it is impossible for them to rush through the mountains all night, hold out for another day and then launch a night attack. Doing so will greatly reduce their combat effectiveness.

Of course, Chen Chengxing couldn't let the New Second Regiment stay there for free, so he would definitely have to leave something behind when he left.

It was because Shuibo Village was big, and some soldiers slept on the floor, otherwise it might not have been able to accommodate so many people led by Chen Chengxing.

After the guerrillas completely blocked Shuibo Village, the plans of the traitors who wanted to inform on the village were completely thwarted.

No matter what the reason is, people in Shuibo Village cannot leave.

If you want to buy something, the guerrillas will help you buy it; if you want to herd sheep, the guerrillas will help you herd sheep; even the work of farming is done by the guerrillas.

In the temporary regiment headquarters, Chen Chengxing pointed to the map and said: "Shuibo Village is 25 miles away from Xiji Stronghold and 18 miles away from Laoyagou."

"Our battle plan this time is very simple, which is to surround the point and attack the reinforcements.

Tonight, the 2nd Battalion will launch a night attack on the Xiji stronghold, while other troops of the New nd Regiment will ambush in Laoyagou.

After the Second Battalion takes over the Xiji stronghold, the Japanese in the nearest Anqiu City will certainly be anxious, and they will definitely send troops to retake the Xiji stronghold tomorrow. Laoyagou is a place that the Japanese must pass through, so we will ambush them here.

As long as we can kill this group of devils in Anqiu City, it will be difficult for other troops around to threaten us."

When fighting a war, the simpler the plan, the less likely it is to go wrong.

There are two county towns around the Xiji stronghold, one is Anqiu, about 2 kilometers away, and the other is Ping'an County, about 30 kilometers away.

According to intelligence, most of Ping'an County's troops have been transferred to the front line. Now there is only one squadron of military police in the city, and they will definitely not come to support Xiji.

Therefore, as long as the Japanese in Anqiu City are defeated, there will be no troops in this area that can threaten the New Second Regiment.

Even in Luyang, which was the nearest city, it would take 5-7 days for the Japanese reinforcements to arrive due to the harassment of the guerrillas.

According to Chen Chengxing's calculations, the Japanese would run out of food in three or four days, and by then they would have no choice but to retreat.

"The plan is simple, but whether it can be implemented depends on you," said Chen Chengxing.

"Captain, just give the order."

"Yes, give the order."

Many people volunteered.

“Okay, Zheng Hua, I will transfer an infantry gun to you, and the night attack on the Xiji stronghold will be handed over to your Second Battalion.

According to intelligence, the Xiji stronghold now only has one Japanese infantry squadron and one machine gun squad, with a total strength of more than 2 people. With the strength of the Second Battalion, plus the close-range fire suppression of infantry artillery, it will not be a problem to capture the Xiji stronghold. "Chen Chengxing said.

"Yes! Don't worry, Captain!" Zheng Hua assured.

If we can't take down the Xiji stronghold even with infantry artillery, what's the point of the Second Battalion fighting? We might as well plant sweet potatoes.

"The rest of the troops, follow me to Lao Ya Gully to ambush."

"After we leave, the Fourth Guerrilla Squadron needs to continue to blockade Shuibo Village to prevent the Japanese in Anqiu from getting the news," said Chen Chengxing.

According to Chen Chengxing's estimation, it was unlikely that the Japanese in Anqiu would set out at night, and they would most likely wait until daybreak.

If the New Second Regiment got the news before the Japanese set out, it would be difficult for them to ambush them.

Of course, the New Second Regiment can now fight a positional battle, but the casualties will be heavy, which goes against Chen Chengxing's original intention.

Chen Chengxing wanted to develop and strengthen the New Second Regiment instead of confronting the Japanese head-on.

"Yes!"

After nightfall, Zheng Hua led the Second Battalion straight to the Xiji stronghold, and Chen Chengxing also led the rest of the troops to Laoyagou. Only the Fourth Guerrilla Squadron remained in Shuibo Village.

In the middle of the night, the Second Battalion quietly arrived at the outskirts of the Xiji stronghold and divided into four parts, surrounding the Xiji stronghold.

Outside the east gate, the 5th Company commander Zhao Feng whispered, "Battalion Commander, do you want to send someone to cut the telephone line?"

"Why cut it? We have to let the Japanese report the news. If the news is blocked, how can we lure the Japanese out of Anqiu City?" Zheng Hua said casually.

This time they attacked the Xiji stronghold in order to lure the Japanese out of their hole. If the telephone lines were cut, the Japanese in Anqiu City would not be able to know in time.

"Oh" Zhao Feng scratched his head.

He is used to guerrilla warfare and always wants to come and go without a trace.

A few minutes later, Zheng Hua looked at his watch and said, "It's time. Turn off the searchlight and prepare for a strong attack!"

"Yes!"

Zhao Feng turned his head and waved his hand, and the two sharpshooters who were ready immediately pulled the trigger.

"Crack!" "Crack!"

With two gunshots, the searchlight on the east gate of the Xiji stronghold went out, and then gunshots were heard from the other three sides.

At the same time, the alarm sounded in the Xiji stronghold.

“Woo!~~~”

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

"Go up to the city wall, go up to the city wall!"

"Hayaku! Hayaku!"

The Japanese squadron leader in charge of defending the Xiji stronghold ran outside without even putting on his clothes and shouted orders for the operation.

After the searchlight was extinguished, Zhao Feng immediately shouted, "Demolition team! Go!"

If you want to attack the Xiji stronghold, you must first blast the outermost barbed wire and wooden fence, and then cross the moat. Although the northwest is short of water and there is no water in the moat outside the stronghold, the moat is 5 meters wide and 4 meters deep, so it is not so easy to cross.

Only after overcoming these obstacles can the real siege begin.

"Thump, thump, thump." "Thump, thump, thump."
"Snap!" "Snap!" "Snap!".
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
The Japanese soldiers in the Xiji stronghold would keep firing as long as they heard any sound, even though they couldn't see the enemy now because it was dark.

Especially the few places where the Eighth Route Army had just blasted the barbed wire were the Japanese's main targets of attack, and there were guns pointing at them at any time.

However, the soldiers were well prepared for this, and blasting was only the obvious means.

In the dark, they also used pliers to cut several notches at appropriate locations.

When the Japanese set their sights on the blasting point, most of the soldiers had already quietly crossed the barbed wire and arrived in front of the moat.

"Quick! Grenade! Throw the grenade!" Zhao Feng ordered while lying in front of the moat.

Zheng Hua had already instructed before the attack that they should use grenades to clear a path before jumping into the moat.

After all, the Japanese are not stupid. They will also bury mines and dig traps in the moat. When time is tight, using grenades to test the situation first is a good choice.

In other words, the New Second Regiment can now produce its own grenades, otherwise, it will have no choice but to use people to step on mines.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!".
"boom!!!"

Amid the sound of grenade explosions, an exceptionally large explosion created a ball of fire.

"TND, the Japanese really laid mines!" Zhao Feng shook his head and said with a little fear after waiting for the mud to fall down.

The Japanese mines were not those produced by the New Second Regiment. They were all filled with high-explosive TNT.

These mines have a great killing effect. One mine can kill all the soldiers in the moat.

After all, the moat is only 5 meters wide.

After the soldiers used grenades to blast several safe passages in the moat, they jumped down one after another, and then climbed up using the wooden ladders prepared in advance.

It was not until this time that the real offensive and defensive battle began.

"kill!"

"Kill!"

After crossing the moat, the distance between the two sides was closer, enough that they could vaguely see each other's figures with the help of the hazy moonlight.

Now that the obstacle has been crossed and the attack is about to be launched, there is no need to hide.

"Kill the chicken and give it to me!"

When the Japanese squad leader defending the east gate saw the Eighth Route Army approaching, he immediately ordered the heavy machine guns nearby to open fire.

"Da da da", "Da da da", "Da da da".
As the heavy machine guns and light machine guns opened fire together, the offensive of the 5th Company was immediately suppressed.

"Hmph! It's you I've been waiting for!" Zheng Hua sneered as he watched the heavy machine gun finally start firing.

"Quick! Fire!" Zheng Hua ordered.

At this time, the infantry artillery was less than 500 meters away from the Xiji stronghold. The gunner did not need any anchors and could aim directly through the gun barrel.

"boom!"

With a loud bang, the Japanese heavy machine gun was lifted directly under the wall.

"Baga!" The Japanese squad leader's eyes almost popped out when he saw this scene.

He could never have imagined that the Eighth Route Army outside actually had cannons!
Before the Japanese squad leader could come up with a countermeasure, the two heavy machine guns placed by Zheng Hua at the east gate also opened fire.

"Da da da", "Da da da", "Da da da", "Da da da".
"Grenade launcher! Quick! Strike with the grenade launcher!" the Japanese squad leader shouted.

If we allow the opponent's heavy machine gun to attack, we will have no chance of winning, after all, light machine guns have no power to resist heavy machine guns.

"Boom~" "Boom~" "Boom~"

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"

The Japanese veterans were indeed very accurate in shooting with grenade launchers, but at night they had no way of accurately estimating the distance.

Moreover, the heavy machine gun was more than 400 meters away from the stronghold, which was almost reaching the maximum effective range of the grenade launcher. At such a long distance, even the veteran Japanese soldiers could not hit the target with every shot.

In less than 2 minutes, the demolition team of the 5th Company had arrived at the city gate carrying explosive packs.

"boom!!"

With a huge explosion, the city gate of the stronghold was instantly blown to pieces.

"Comrades! Follow me!" Zhao Feng took off the big knife from his back, and rushed towards the city gate with the big knife in one hand and the revolver in the other.

"Captain! The East Gate was breached by the Eighth Route Army!" A signalman came running over to report.

"Damn it! How long has it been? How did they break through?" The Japanese squadron leader couldn't believe his ears.

It’s not like the Eighth Route Army had attacked artillery towers before, but it had never been so fast.

"Captain, the Eighth Route Army has infantry artillery and several heavy machine guns. Our machine gun firepower points are simply unable to exert their power."

"I understand. Tell Captain Qianye that he must stop the attack of the Eighth Route Army for me!"

"Hai!"

After the signalman left, the Japanese squadron leader picked up the phone on the table and made a call.

"Moshi Moshi, I'm at the Xiji stronghold! We are under siege by the Eighth Route Army, and now the city gate has been breached. The situation is extremely urgent. Request for reinforcements! Request for reinforcements!"

"Moshi Moshi, this is the Xiji stronghold!"

The Japanese squadron leader called all the surrounding counties, towns, and strongholds one after another, asking for support.

Now he had no idea how many Eighth Route Army troops were outside, but since they had breached the east gate in such a short time, their combat effectiveness must be extremely strong. This was not an enemy that his own squadron could fight against. If no support arrived in a short time, it would be difficult to capture the western stronghold.

But the Japanese squadron leader was obviously thinking too much. It was now night, and all the Japanese in Shanxi knew that the Eighth Route Army liked to go out at night.

Wouldn't it be courting death to go and support the Xiji stronghold at this time?

Although the Japanese have been brainwashed, they are not fools. They will definitely be willing to live if they can.

In the end, the Xiji stronghold did not receive any reinforcements, and the Second Battalion captured the stronghold without much effort.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Zheng Hua left the 8th Company to defend the Xiji stronghold, and he led the rest of the troops to Laoyagou.

Inside Anqiu City, the Japanese city defense headquarters.

"Report to the captain, the Xiji stronghold has lost contact." The communicator reported.

"I understand." The Japanese captain Kiyoshi Yamaguchi waved his hand, then looked at everyone in the conference room.

"Gentlemen, the Xiji stronghold is crucial to the success of the locust army's crossing of the river. We must not lose it!"

"I decided to gather troops immediately for rescue."

"Mr. Fukuhara, you will lead the 3rd Squadron and the Military Police to stay in Anqiu. I will lead the rest of the troops and the Anqiu Guard Battalion to provide support early tomorrow morning." Yamaguchi Kiyoshi said to the deputy battalion commander Kai Fukuhara standing beside him.

"Hai!"

　It was too difficult. I wrote and deleted, deleted and wrote again. I wrote this chapter three times.

　　In the end, it can only be like this,
　　
　
(End of this chapter)