Anti-Japanese War: I have unlimited assistance

Chapter 308: Picking up a tank in the ravine?
"Baga, Yalu!"

Seeing the neatly arranged troops with cannons and gun barrels pointed at them, Major General Naozo Naozo spoke in anger, his eyes spitting fire.

Takeo Eguchi and several staff officers beside him were also stunned, and could hardly believe their eyes.

The Eighth Route Army was actually equipped with tanks?
These guys from the mountains are actually equipped with tanks?

This is bad!
Although the 25th Infantry Brigade was equipped with anti-tank guns and 37mm anti-tank guns.

But the quantity is small.

At this distance, it was obviously too late to set up anti-tank guns and anti-tank cannons.

idiot!

The Eighth Route Army had heavy mortars and tanks. Where did they come from?
Could it be picked up from the ravine?

"attack!"

But now Naozo Naoto had no time to think about it. He had already seen fireworks bursting from the muzzle of the Eighth Route Army tank.

The two sides were only a few hundred meters apart, and the moment fireworks burst from the muzzles, the shells arrived almost simultaneously.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

One after another, 75mm high-explosive grenades fell into the Japanese formation.

One by one, the Japanese soldiers were blown into the air, and when they landed on the ground, their limbs were broken and their bodies were shattered.

"Da da da……"

The M2 heavy machine gun on the tank opened fire.

The bullet belts lashed towards the charging Japanese soldiers like the whip of the god of death.

The devils fell like mowed grass.

The soldiers of the first and second battalions of the new first regiment followed the tanks and opened fire.

"Da da da…"

In just over ten minutes, nearly 2000 Japanese soldiers were almost wiped out.

A small number of Japanese soldiers escaped from the left and right wings, but Sun Desheng had already led the cavalry battalion to chase them.

Just now, when the tank battalion and the infantry battalion used tanks and infantry to cooperate to eliminate the Japanese, Sun Desheng was deeply shocked.

He suddenly felt that the military horse under his crotch was no longer attractive.

In such a short period of time, nearly two thousand Japanese infantrymen were eliminated.

If it were cavalry, at least a cavalry division would be needed to have a chance.

but.

One tank battalion plus three infantry battalions did it.

"kill!"

Sun Desheng caught up with a Japanese infantryman with a knife. The Japanese infantryman was ready to attack him by surprise and stabbed Sun Desheng off his horse with a bayonet.

But Sun Desheng dodged the Japanese's counterattack by turning sideways, and at the same time, the cavalry knife in his hand flashed, and the Japanese's head flew out simultaneously, and a stream of blood spurted out.

"The efficiency of the cavalry in killing the Japanese is still too low..." Sun Desheng whispered and made a decision in his heart.

……

"Commander, the Japanese have been completely annihilated by the tank battalion and the main battalions."

The operations staff reported to Li Yunlong.

Li Yunlong's mouth corners suddenly curled up slightly.

Li Yunlong looked at his watch and said, "Not bad, it's fifteen minutes faster than I expected."

Li Yunlong's battle plan was to eliminate this enemy force within half an hour.

But he didn't expect that the Japanese sent an infantry battalion to reinforce the north side of the battlefield.

This resulted in a shortage of Japanese troops in the south of the battlefield.

In this battle, Li Yunlong admitted that there was an element of gambling on his part, but he gambled right.

"Report to the leader."

The communications officer answered the radio call and quickly came over to report:

"The Japanese infantry battalion that made a detour has returned along the same route. They are about two kilometers away from where we eliminated the Japanese."

"The devils are approaching at high speed!"

Li Yunlong quickly looked at the map, and the curve of his mouth became even higher.

"It's better to come early than to come late."

"Order the tank battalion and the first, second, and third infantry battalions to attack this group of devils from the front."

"Cavalry Battalion, cut off the enemy's retreat. Let us take down this devil's infantry battalion!"

"Yes!"

The communications officer turned around and quickly conveyed the order.

……

Major Motoo Takeuchi, commander of the 117nd Battalion of the 2th Infantry Regiment, led nearly a thousand Japanese soldiers under his command back with an anxious look on his face.

The Japanese soldiers in the 2nd Infantry Battalion were exhausted today.

First, they ran 30 kilometers to reinforce the 117th Regiment Headquarters.

He was then sent by Naozo Nakano to reinforce the northern part of the battlefield.

It has not yet reached the designated location to rendezvous with the 132nd Infantry Regiment.

He received another order from Naozo Nakano to return and reunite with the brigade headquarters.

Motoo Takeuchi just felt like he was being fooled like a monkey today.

No matter how dissatisfied you are, orders still have to be carried out.

He had just received another order from the brigade headquarters, saying that the brigade headquarters was under attack and ordered the 2nd Infantry Battalion to reinforce the brigade headquarters as quickly as possible.

Motoo Takeuchi and several squadron leaders and staff officers were equipped with Japanese military horses and had enough physical strength to keep up.

But the soldiers behind them were in a miserable state.

Some soldiers were so tired that they vomited blood, and some even died of exhaustion.

The Japanese soldiers were in good physical condition and most of them made it through.

Motoo Takeuchi lamented that after this battle, the 2nd Infantry Battalion would not be able to recover without a month's rest.

But the prerequisite is that after this battle, the Japanese soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Battalion can still be alive.

"Captain, we have lost contact with the brigade headquarters."

The signalman ran quickly to Takeuchi Motoo with a radio on his back to report.

"Nani?"

Takeuchi Motoo's expression changed, his right hand clenched into a fist, and he shouted loudly: "Stop moving forward!"

The Japanese soldiers were so tired that they were out of breath, their uniforms were soaked with sweat, and some of them just sat down on the ground.

The squadron leaders and team leaders immediately drew their command swords and ordered that no one was allowed to sit down.

If you sit down at this time, you will most likely fall behind and won't be able to get up.

Motoo Takeuchi raised his telescope and saw a cloud of smoke about two kilometers away.

Amidst the smoke, a large number of Eighth Route Army troops and tanks suddenly appeared!

Motoo Takeuchi thought he was seeing things, but when he looked again, he saw that it was indeed the tanks and the main force of the Eighth Route Army!

"Baga, retreat!"

Motoo Takeuchi's face changed drastically. He instantly lost the courage to resist and chose to run away immediately.

He was very confident that even the 2nd Infantry Battalion in its heyday could not be a match for the main force of the Eighth Route Army and the tank forces in Jinzhong.

What's more, the 2nd Infantry Battalion is in a very bad condition now!
However, the 108th Division was not a mechanized unit, and it was not possible for all troops to have Dodin trucks when marching.

There was no more gunfire coming from that side, and the brigade headquarters had probably been wiped out.

Thinking of this, Takeuchi Motoo's heart suddenly sank to the bottom.

The Japs turned around and ran at full speed.

However, the tanks of the new regiment quickly caught up, firing as they pursued.

but.

Under the leadership of Sun Desheng, the cavalry battalion quickly went around behind the Japanese and blocked their retreat.

In the past, if he saw a cavalry battalion of the Eighth Route Army blocking the way, Takeuchi Motoo would directly order his troops to destroy the enemy.

But today, seeing this, Takeuchi Motoo did not dare to fight at all, and immediately ordered the troops to break out in squadrons.

This is the Xinzhou Basin. The Eighth Route Army is encircling from the front and back, but the left and right wings have not yet formed an encirclement.

The four squadrons of the Japanese quickly split into four groups and fled.

Under the pursuit of the cavalry battalion and the tank battalion, three of the Japanese squadrons were wiped out, leaving only one Japanese squadron to escape into the mountains.

Seeing the Japanese entering the mountains, the cavalry battalion and the tank battalion stopped pursuing them.

Li Yunlong quickly ordered the tank battalion to take cover.

Although the First Army's Taiyuan Airport was bombed, the North China Front Army still had a lot of planes.

When planes fight tanks, it's like an adult fighting a child; they have the advantage.

Li Yunlong didn't want the tank battalion, which had just been formed, to be destroyed by Japanese planes.

……

"Captain."

At the front-line headquarters, combat staff officer Yang Ziyun reported to Li Yunlong:
"The returning Japanese infantry battalion was severely damaged. Only a small number of Japanese escaped into the mountains in the west, and most of the remaining Japanese were eliminated." Li Yunlong nodded with satisfaction.

Then he asked, "How is the situation of the 132nd Infantry Regiment of the Japanese in the north of the battlefield?"

Yang Ziyun reported: "Just now, the Independent Regiment sent a message that the Japanese 132nd Infantry Regiment has escaped."

Li Yunlong cursed: "The 132nd Regiment also has an infantry battalion inside our encirclement! Just ran away like that?"

He also planned to order the cavalry and infantry units to outflank the 132nd Infantry Regiment.

If the 132nd Infantry Regiment is also destroyed.

In this battle, the entire 25th Infantry Brigade of the Japanese Army was wiped out.

Boss Lin once said that if you destroy an entire infantry brigade of the Japanese, you will be rewarded with a medium tank!

However, with the current strength of the Eighth Route Army in Jinzhong, it is still very difficult to destroy a Japanese infantry brigade. It requires various favorable factors such as time, place, and people.

But the Japanese are not fools. Destroying a regiment would already alert the enemy.

"That's right," Yang Ziyun said. "The 132nd Regiment is pretty fast! Commander, should we continue chasing them?"

"Chasing for nothing!" Li Yunlong said, "The Japanese 104th Brigade in the north has already been dispatched, and the Kuroshima Cavalry Regiment and the Yoshino Regiment in Taiyuan have also been dispatched. They are heading towards us."

As soon as the Japanese took action, Li Yunlong received the news and exchanged the amount of Japanese killed with Boss Lin.

Yang Ziyun nodded and said, "Then we must retreat quickly!"

Suddenly, Li Yunlong's expression changed. He stared at the map and muttered to himself, "The Japanese in Taiyuan have dispatched an infantry regiment and a cavalry regiment, leaving only the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade. We killed about a thousand people from this 4th Brigade on the Zhengtai Road. It's not fully staffed. If the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army launches an attack on Taiyuan at this time, there is a chance to recapture Taiyuan."

The Shanxi-Suiyuan Army currently has tens of thousands of troops, while the Japanese have only 5,000 troops in Taiyuan, plus one or two puppet army divisions, totaling about 10,000 troops.

Yang Ziyun said: "The question is, does Yan Laoxi dare to do it?"

"It's hard to say," Li Yunlong said, "but we have to give it a try. If we can recapture Taiyuan, we'll make a fortune."

"Old Li."

At this moment, Kong Jie hurried in:
"We've completely wiped out the 117th Regiment and driven the 132nd Regiment away. And yet you haven't issued orders to eliminate the enemies in the encirclement yet? What are you waiting for?"

Kong Jie was so excited about this battle that even the Japanese in Taiyuan came out to reinforce.

"Don't worry..."

Immediately, Li Yunlong told Kong Jie about his plan.

Kong Jie's eyes lit up:
"The main force of our Jinzhong Military Region is here to hold back the Japanese 108th Division, the Yoshino Regiment, and the Kuroshima Cavalry Regiment."

"The main force of the 129th Division is holding back the Japanese 20th Division on the Zhengtai Road."

"General Wei Lihuang led the First War Zone to hold back the Japanese 14th Division and other main forces in southern Shanxi."

"And our Eighth Route Army's various military regions are destroying the Japs' roads and railways."

"If the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army attacks Taiyuan at this time, the Japanese and puppet troops in Taiyuan will be isolated and helpless!"

"The devils in the encirclement are already fat meat on our lips. We can eat them whenever we want."

"That's right!" Li Yunlong nodded, his eyes flashing like lightning. "If I had enough troops, I would have wanted to attack Taiyuan. That's a big piece of fat meat!"

Because Li Yunlong often robbed, the Japanese only took away a small portion of the equipment and raw materials from the Taiyuan Arsenal.

Most of the military equipment and raw materials are still in Taiyuan, and Li Yunlong is very tempted.

In addition, the First Army’s arsenal and the arsenal left behind by Yan Laoxi when he escaped can equip at least 30,000 to 50,000 main force troops!

Who wouldn’t be envious of so many weapons, ammunition and arsenals?
Ding Wei also called from the front-line command center to ask why the order for an attack was not given.

Finish the game early and go back to rest early.

After Li Yunlong finished his plan, Ding Wei also agreed to give Yan Laoxi a chance.

then.

Li Yunlong quickly drafted a telegram, signed his name, and asked Xiao Zhang to send it to the headquarters.

……

After reading Li Yunlong's telegram.

The heads of headquarters were greatly surprised.

Their strategic vision is so brilliant.

A telegram was immediately sent to Yan Laoxi.

It shows that the time has come to recapture Taiyuan.

He also said that the Eighth Route Army would fully cooperate.

The general said with great enthusiasm: "We, the Eighth Route Army, have already set the stage. Now it depends on whether Yan Xishan, the commander of the Second War Zone, has the courage to put on a good show."

……

Taiyuan.

First Army Headquarters.

Yoshio Shinozuka, Ren'ya Mutaguchi, Ikki Yamamoto and others are waiting for news from the Shinshu battlefield.

At this moment, the communications staff hurried in and reported, "Your Excellency, the 25th Brigade Headquarters has been surrounded by the Eighth Route Army. The 25th Brigade has been severely damaged, and more than 3000 locust soldiers, including Major General Naozo Naozo, have been completely destroyed!"

"Nani?"

Yoshio Shinozuka suddenly turned his head and his expression changed drastically.

After a pause, Shinozuka Yoshio asked again for confirmation: "What did you say? The 25th Brigade was severely damaged? Major General Nakano died in battle!?"

Mutaguchi Ren'ya, Yamamoto Ikki and their Japanese staff officers on the side all looked at him in disbelief.

The 25th Brigade suffered heavy losses?

It's only been a few hours and an elite brigade has suffered heavy losses?

This is simply unimaginable.

Is the Eighth Route Army’s combat effectiveness so strong?

"Hey!" the communications officer replied in a firm tone, "The 25th Brigade has suffered heavy losses, and Major General Nakano has died!"

Shinozuka Yoshio's face was gloomy, and he asked in a deep voice: "What on earth is going on?"

The communications officer said, "According to a report from Major Takeuchi, commander of the 117nd Infantry Battalion of the 2th Infantry Regiment, the Eighth Route Army deployed a large number of tanks to encircle and annihilate the 25th Brigade Headquarters. By the time the 2nd Infantry Battalion arrived, the 25th Brigade Headquarters had already been severely damaged. Major General Nakano was killed!"

The communications team of the 25th Brigade Headquarters was hit by a 75mm high-explosive grenade from a tank, and the entire communications team was wiped out. They were unable to even send a telegram requesting tactical guidance.

While escaping, Takeuchi Motoo ordered the signalman to report the incident to the division headquarters by radio.

But after reporting the incident, Major Motoo Takeuchi hurriedly prepared to escape, but was knocked off his horse by the Eighth Route Army cavalry who caught up with him.

"idiot!"

Yoshio Shinozuka's face turned dark and he almost fainted.

"Tanks?" Mutaguchi Renya noticed the blind spot and asked in shock, "Where did the Eighth Route Army get the tanks and tank soldiers?"

Everyone turned their attention to Yamamoto Ikki and Mizuno Kiyoshi, who were in charge of intelligence.

Mizuno Qing shook his head, his tone bitter: "I don't know, maybe he picked it up from the ravine..."

During these months, the Japanese army's blockade of the Eighth Route Army and the people in Jinzhong was extremely strict.

It was originally thought that the Eighth Route Army and the common people in Jinzhong would starve to death or be trapped to death.

but!

The Eighth Route Army soldiers and the common people in Jinzhong did not starve to death or die of confinement.

Instead, their faces are shiny and greasy, with a well-nourished glow.

Not only that, the equipment in the hands of the Eighth Route Army has become better than that of the Japanese army, including mountain artillery, heavy mortars, long-range howitzers... and now tanks have appeared.

This made Mizuno Kiyoshi wonder, could it be that the Eighth Route Army's weapons and equipment were all picked up from the mountains?
Even Yamamoto Ikki's expression was uncertain at this moment, and he seemed to be doubting his life.

Taking a deep breath, Shinozuka Yoshio asked in a deep voice, "What's the situation with the surrounded 108st and 1th Infantry Battalions of the 5th Division?"

The communications officer immediately replied, "The Cavalry Battalion, the 1st Infantry Battalion, and the 5th Infantry Battalion are still calling for help. Colonel Takagi, commander of the 117th Infantry Regiment, is still alive!"

"idiot!"

Yoshio Shinozuka's mentality suddenly exploded, and his right hand even grasped the hilt of the lieutenant general's sword.

The Eighth Route Army is fully capable of annihilating the 1st Infantry Battalion and the 5th Infantry Battalion.

The Eighth Route Army will not be eaten up, and will just wait for you, Yoshio Shinozuka, to continue sending troops to rescue, and then the reinforcements will fall into Li Yunlong's encirclement and be eaten up.

but!

There are thousands of locust soldiers and a locust colonel in the encirclement.

Knowing that this was a trap set by Li Yunlong, Yoshio Shinozuka had to continue sending troops to rescue.

This is called an open conspiracy!
Taking a deep breath, Shinozuka Yoshio gave the order in a cold tone, his eyes filled with murderous intent:

"Order the 108th Division's Quartermaster Regiment, Engineer Regiment, 108th Brigade, 132nd Infantry Regiment, Yoshino Regiment, and Kuroshima Cavalry Regiment to encircle and destroy the main force of the Eighth Route Army in Jinzhong!"

"Hey!" The communications staff officer suddenly lowered his head.

Watching the communications officer leave.

Yoshio Shinozuka loosened his grip on the knife handle with his right hand and swore that one day he would personally chop off Li Yunlong's head, make it into a specimen and place it on the table.

Shinozuka Yoshio looked at Mutaguchi Ren'ya and said, "Mutaguchi-kun, report to the North China Front Army Headquarters that the 25th Brigade has been severely damaged and that the Taiyuan Airport has been bombarded. Request air support from the North China Front Army Headquarters and dispatch aviation units to destroy the Eighth Route Army tanks!"

Yoshio Shinozuka thought that the truth would come out sooner or later, and with the intelligence capabilities of the North China Front Army, they would soon know about these two defeats.

If you report it proactively, you may get a lighter punishment.

Mutaguchi Ren'ya hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head and said, "Hi."

Not long after, Terauchi Hisaichi and Yamashita Tomoyuki in Peiping received a telegram saying that the First Army Headquarters had been defeated.

The two old Japanese soldiers suddenly became furious.

(End of this chapter)