Anti-Japanese War: I have unlimited assistance

Chapter 327 Heavy losses!

"Old Ding, how's the situation over there?"

Front Command.

Li Yunlong put the receiver to his ear and asked Ding Wei.

This battle is called closing the door to beat the dogs, but there are too many dogs and some of them have not entered the door.

The main task of the New Third Regiment led by Ding Wei was to block the enemy outside the gate.

In this battle, Ding Wei's troops will face an infantry regiment and an engineering regiment head-on.

Li Yunlong was afraid that Ding Wei could not hold on, so he asked about the situation. In addition to the reserves of two newly formed brigades, he also had three infantry battalions of the new regiment.

"The Japs' attack is fierce!"

Ding Wei's firm voice came from the microphone, mixed with dense gunfire and explosions, indicating that the battle over there was very fierce.

Li Yunlong asked, "Can we hold on? Do we need reinforcements?"

Ding Wei did not refuse: "Give me two battalions and an artillery battalion. The Japanese are like crazy and are attacking our regiment's position regardless of their lives. I suspect that the Japanese division headquarters and observation group are in the ambush circle."

"Okay!" Li Yunlong said, "I'll transfer two infantry battalions and 12 heavy mortars to you."

The New Third Regiment has more than 4000 people this time, and they are well-equipped. It is naturally not a big problem for them to confront a Japanese infantry regiment head-on.

But with the addition of an engineering regiment, the New Third Regiment was a little overwhelmed.

After all, this was not an ambush, but a head-on confrontation. Although the Japanese engineering regiment had few troops, it was equipped with heavy weapons such as light and heavy machine guns, infantry guns and mortars.

After hanging up the phone, Li Yunlong immediately said, "Pass my order, the 5th and 6th Battalions of the New 1st Regiment, and the 3rd Heavy Mortar Company will immediately reinforce the New 3rd Regiment!"

"Yes!"

Yang Ziyun quickly went to convey the order.

The Deputy Chief of General Staff immediately asked, "How's the situation with the New Third Regiment?"

Li Yunlong said, "The battle over there with the New Third Regiment is very fierce. The Japanese are fighting with a completely desperate attitude. Ding Wei suspects that the Japanese division headquarters and observation group are in the encirclement."

"Probably!"

The Deputy Chief of General Staff's eyes lit up and he nodded.

Li Yunlong glanced at the map, then looked up and said to the communications staff:

"Immediately order each regiment to report the battle situation of each battalion's ambush troops. Wherever the Japanese in the encirclement attack, the Japanese division headquarters observation group will be there."

"Yes!" The communications staff immediately picked up the phone and asked each regiment about the situation.

The Deputy Chief of General Staff nodded slightly. Li Yunlong was a very quick-witted guy.

The ambush area is over 15 kilometers long and there is fighting everywhere. It is not easy to find the location of the Japanese division headquarters and the observation group.

Li Yunlong's method allowed him to quickly find the location of the Japanese division headquarters and observation group.

……

"The shell landed 120 meters to the left of Fenshuiling Village."

At the headquarters of the Second Battalion of the Independent Regiment, Shen Quan spoke loudly while holding a telescope, and the telegraph soldier immediately informed the heavy mortar battalion position of the situation by telephone.

Explosions continued to occur near the watershed village, but the explosion of the 120mm artillery shell stood out from the crowd and was very eye-catching among the many explosions.

Although the heavy mortar battalion of the independent regiment calculated the shooting parameters in advance.

However, the accuracy of mortars is relatively low, and the mortar positions cannot see the target.

So there is a deviation in the impact point.

After adjusting the shooting parameters, the second test shell quickly fell and landed in the village.

With a loud bang, a mud house collapsed instantly, and a room full of wounded Japanese soldiers turned into meat paste in an instant.

“Hit the target!”

The telegraph operator immediately notified the heavy mortar battalion's position.

Then, the heavy mortar battalion launched rapid fire at the watershed village, which was an artillery coverage.

Boom boom boom...

The explosion, fireballs and smoke quickly enveloped the entire Watershed Village.

"Why is the enemy's artillery firepower so strong?"

Taniguchi Motojiro was in a very miserable state. There were hideous wounds on his face caused by shrapnel, and blood was gushing out.

Since being promoted to lieutenant general, Taniguchi Motojiro no longer has to go to the battlefield in person, and he has not been injured for many years.

"This is a heavy mortar, we need to get out of here!"

Isogai Rensuke was not in much better condition. His usual calmness was no longer on his face, and there was panic in his eyes. He was afraid that he would die here today.

He was extremely regretful at this time. As the chief of staff of the Kwantung Army, he should have been planning and winning battles thousands of miles away without having to go to the battlefield in person.

But out of momentary curiosity, he followed the 108th Division to southeastern Shanxi, but unexpectedly was ambushed.

If you don't seek death, you won't die.

"Leave the village!" Taniguchi Motojiro shouted.

Led by the Japanese guards, a group of Japanese generals and lieutenants rushed out of the ancestral hall and fled out of the village in a panic.

In a few minutes at most, this small village would be completely razed to the ground, and even the rats and snakes would be killed.

But the Japanese still underestimated the firepower of a heavy mortar battalion.

Twelve 12mm heavy mortars can fire at full speed at a rate of up to 120 rounds per minute.

Less than a minute after they walked out of the ancestral hall, the division headquarters and the observation group's formation were hit by two 120mm artillery shells.

A number of Japanese generals, lieutenants and guards suffered heavy casualties.

……

"The report is coming from the head of the group."

"According to the analysis of the reports from each regiment, the Japanese in the encirclement are desperately trying to reinforce Watershed Village."

"Currently, the heavy mortar battalion of the independent regiment is providing artillery coverage to the watershed village."

At the front-line headquarters, the communications staff summarized the reports from each regiment and reported to Li Yunlong and the deputy chief of general staff.

"Watershed Village?"

"it's here."

"The place where we met two days ago."

The Deputy Chief of General Staff immediately found the location of Fenshuiling Village on the map and pointed it out to Li Yunlong.

"Haha, God help me too!"

Li Yunlong immediately looked at the watershed village on the map:

"Taniguchi Motojiro and Isogai Rensuke can't escape!"

The entire Watershed Village is surrounded by mountains on all sides. The location of Watershed Village is a small basin the size of a finger on the map, and the highway passes by the left side of the village.

Two days ago, Li Yunlong and the Deputy Chief of General Staff successfully met in Fenshuiling Village and were familiar with the terrain of Fenshuiling Village.

Because this place is in a guerrilla zone, the Japanese attach great importance to the Baijin Highway and often transport combat supplies on it.

The passing Japanese often broke into the village to rob and kill people, so the villagers had long moved to higher and deeper mountains.

Unexpectedly, these two old Japanese soldiers were surrounded in this small village.

"Give me the order!"

“The independent regiment immediately surrounded the watershed village, and not even a mosquito could fly out!”

"The New Fourth Brigade and the Third Battalion of the New First Regiment, rush to Fenshuiling Village immediately to reinforce the Independent Regiment and eliminate the enemy in Fenshuiling as quickly as possible!"

Li Yunlong gave orders loudly, his tone full of solemnity.

The 108th Division had a total of seven regiments, five of which were in the encirclement. Li Yunlong guessed that the Japanese division headquarters and regiment headquarters were most likely in the encirclement, but when this news was confirmed, Li Yunlong still couldn't help but be ecstatic.

God wants me to get rich.

"Yes!"

The communications staff immediately went to convey the order.

……

Taiyuan.

inner city.

First Army Headquarters.

Yoshio Shinozuka and Ren'ya Mutaguchi were anxiously waiting for news.

The two old devils were not optimistic about the situation of the 108th Division.

The Eighth Route Army obviously knew the First Army's battle plan and set up an ambush on the Baijin Highway in advance.

虽然筱冢义男已命令第21师团、第20师团和第109师团全力往白晋公路赶，但最近的第21师团距离第108师团也足有60公里，远水解不了近渴。

The 108th Division was in great danger in this battle.

But what frightened the two old devils even more was that the 108th Division and the Kwantung Army Observation Group were also in the encirclement.

Now we can only hope that the Japanese troops near Fenshuiling Village can quickly move closer to the division headquarters and cover the division headquarters and the observation group to break out into the mountains.

As long as the division headquarters and the observation group break out into the mountains, it will be difficult for the Eighth Route Army to chase them.

"General."

Chief of Staff Kasai Toshimatsu hurried in, bowed his head with a grim expression and reported:
"The 108th Division Headquarters and the observation group are located in Fenshuiling Village, which is under attack from the Eighth Route Army's heavy mortars. Lieutenant General Isotani is seriously injured. Lieutenant General Taniguchi requests aviation support to destroy the Eighth Route Army's heavy mortar positions!"

"What!" Yoshio Shinozuka and Mutaguchi Ren'ya's expressions changed at the same time.

I'm really afraid of what's coming!
Taking a deep breath, Shinozuka Yoshio no longer cared about anything else and said, "Mutaguchi-kun, immediately report the situation of the 108th Division to the North China Front Command and request the dispatch of aviation units to reinforce the 108th Division Headquarters!"

Yoshio Shinozuka didn't want to report to the North China Front Army Headquarters so early, otherwise he would be scolded by Hisaichi Terauchi again.

"Hi!"

Mutaguchi Ren'ya lowered his head and walked quickly towards the phone.

As expected, after Mutaguchi Ren'ya answered the phone call from the North China Front Command and reported the situation, he was scolded by Terauchi Hisaichi on the spot.

However, Terauchi Hisaichi still sent air force reinforcements.

Although Rensuke Isogai wrote a disclaimer, if the observation group was really killed in Shanxi, he, Terauchi Hisaichi, would still be to blame.

After hanging up the phone, Mutaguchi Renya immediately reported to Shinozuka Yoshio: "Commander-in-Chief, General Terauchi will dispatch the 3rd Air Squadron to support the 108th Division."

The battle plan was made by Yamamoto Ikki and approved by Shinozuka Yoshio personally, but he was the one who was scolded, which made Mutaguchi Ren'ya very unhappy.

Yoshio Shinozuka nodded, his expression still very solemn.

The 3rd Flight Squadron is stationed at Shimen City Airport, and it takes half an hour to prepare from receiving the mission to taking off.

It takes about half an hour to fly from takeoff to southeastern Shanxi.

In other words, it would take the 3rd Flying Squadron more than an hour to reach the Baijin Highway for reinforcement.

It remains to be seen whether the 108th Division Headquarters and the observation group can withstand the reinforcement of the aviation force.

'What went wrong?'

"Why did the Eighth Route Army set up an ambush on the Baijin Highway in advance?"

"The battle plan must have been leaked."

'Who leaked the battle plan?'

"idiot."

Yoshio Shinozuka's brows were almost wrinkled into a "川" shape, but he still couldn't figure out which link went wrong.

Suddenly, he remembered the slight curl of Mutaguchi Ren'ya's mouth when he heard that the 108th Division was ambushed.

Yoshio Shinozuka narrowed his eyes and stared at Mutaguchi Renya with a suspicious look.

……

The ambush on the Baijin Highway went more smoothly than expected.

The Eighth Route Army had the advantage of terrain and firepower, and the ambush was sudden. They concentrated their firepower in the first minute to inflict heavy damage on the Japanese. Dense bullets, grenades and artillery shells rained down on the ground. The Japanese on the Baijin Highway could not organize any decent resistance. In addition, all retreat routes were blocked, so the Japanese could not escape even if they wanted to.

After the first minute of fire coverage, the soldiers began precise shooting. Although the troops are now well-off, the fine tradition of saving ammunition cannot be lost.

Compared to rushing down for hand-to-hand combat after firing three shots, accurate shooting from a high vantage point can better improve the soldiers' combat effectiveness. Not only can they occupy a favorable position to shoot the Japanese, but they can also quickly improve their marksmanship, killing two birds with one stone.

Although the Japanese soldiers were indeed strong in terms of quality and had superb marksmanship, with every bullet hitting the target within 200 meters, their marksmanship could not be fully utilized.

Moreover, the 108th Division Headquarters kept urging the various regiments and infantry battalions on the radio channel to go to the Watershed Village for reinforcement.

Some Japanese soldiers had just escaped from this ambush area at the cost of heavy casualties, but soon they ran into another ambush area of ​​the Eighth Route Army.

Soon, the main forces of the New 6th Brigade and the rd Battalion of the New st Regiment arranged by Li Yunlong arrived at Fenshuiling Village.

Li Yunlong also personally went to the headquarters of the Second Battalion of the Independent Regiment to take command.

"Commander-in-chief of the front line, why are you here in person?"

Shen Quan was suddenly startled when he saw Li Yunlong walk into the command center.

"Chenquan!"

Li Yunlong nodded at him and asked:

"How's the situation?"

"Reporting to the commander-in-chief of the front line!" Shen Quan's expression became serious and he replied, "Fenshuiling Village has been razed to the ground by the heavy mortar battalion. There are still many Japanese soldiers resisting below, and more are heading here. The first and third battalions are currently blocking the stubborn enemy!"

Li Yunlong looked at his watch with a stern expression: "Let's get rid of the devils as soon as possible, so as to avoid more trouble at night!"

"Pass my order, blow the charge!"

"All troops, rush forward to harvest the corn!"

"Yes!"

"Dududu-"

The exciting and rapid charge sounded, and Shen Quan rushed forward with a PPSh rifle and the soldiers of the third battalion.

The soldiers of the 15th Regiment of the New Sixth Brigade and the Third Battalion of the New First Regiment also rushed forward following the soldiers of the Third Battalion of the Independent Regiment.

More than 3,000 soldiers rushed down the mountain like tigers, killing the Japanese troops around Fenshuiling Village all over the mountains.

Li Yunlong lay in a hidden position and secretly observed the battlefield situation with a telescope.

Da da da……

The few remaining light and heavy machine guns of the Japanese army started firing, and rows of Eighth Route Army soldiers fell, followed by the soldiers behind them.

"Artillery fire cover!"

Li Yunlong gave orders loudly.

tom tom tom...

The 60mm mortar and 82mm mortar units brought by Li Yunlong opened fire, and dense artillery shells hit the Japanese firepower points.

Under the cover of artillery fire, the soldiers quickly rushed to the front of the Japanese. The front-line soldiers all fired PPSh submachine guns, leaving the remaining Japanese helpless.

At this time, dense explosions and gunshots were heard in the distance. The Japanese soldiers in the encirclement were attacking this side frantically, but were blocked. For a while, the Japanese soldiers suffered heavy casualties.

Soon, there were only a few dozen Japanese soldiers left in Fenshuiling Village. The remaining Japanese soldiers stood back to back in a circle, protecting several generals and lieutenants in the middle at the risk of their lives.

Soon, a Japanese lieutenant colonel stood up and spoke, denouncing the Eighth Route Army for ambush and lacking martial ethics, and wanted a one-on-one duel.

The third battalion commander Zuo Ye immediately asked Li Yunlong for instructions via radio. Li Yunlong was itching to do something, but he still held back.

He ordered Zuo Ye to shout to the Japanese that if they did not surrender, they would all be shot.

The result, of course, was that not a single Japanese soldier surrendered. At the command of Zuo Ye and Shen Quan, more than a dozen submachine guns and more than a dozen light machine guns suddenly opened fire.

Da da da……

The crisp and continuous sounds of submachine guns and light machine guns rang out, accompanied by the sound of bullets hitting flesh, and the Japanese fell down unwillingly one by one.

When the gunfire stopped, the soldiers rushed forward quickly and fired another shot at the Japanese corpse regardless of whether it was dead or alive.

Then quickly clean up the battlefield.

"Battalion Commander, a lieutenant general has been spotted."

A company commander of the New 1st Regiment first fired again, then turned over the body of a Japanese officer, took the command knife in his hand, and shouted loudly.

The soldiers quickly gathered around them. An interpreter from the enemy work department pulled out a certificate from the Japanese officer's clothes and opened it. He then said in a surprised tone: "Lieutenant General Taniguchi Motojiro, commander of the 108th Division."

"We killed a lieutenant general!"

When the news spread, the soldiers' morale was greatly boosted.

Zuo Ye quickly ran over and took the command knife in his hand: "Look again, there is another Japanese lieutenant general!"

Soon the soldiers found Isotani's body again. This old Japanese guy was so unlucky.

He was first seriously injured by a heavy mortar, and then was hit by an 82mm shell while receiving treatment, which broke both his legs.

soon.

When Li Yunlong heard the news, he immediately smiled.

Then, Li Yunlong quickly returned to the front headquarters and informed the Deputy Chief of General Staff of the situation.

After hearing this, the Deputy Chief of General Staff couldn't help but smile: "In one battle, we killed two lieutenant generals and an entire Japanese division headquarters. Since the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, there has never been such a battle in China."

"Hehe." Li Yunlong chuckled, "We also need to add the special division that dealt a heavy blow to the Japs."

Then Li Yunlong shouted, "Pass on my order. All units will launch a general attack. Quickly eliminate the remaining enemies and don't let a single Japanese soldier escape!"

"Yes!"

The operations staff quickly went to convey the order.

……

"idiot!"

At the Taiyuan First Army Headquarters, Yoshio Shinozuka soon received the news that the 108th Division Headquarters and the Kwantung Army Observation Group had been completely wiped out. He was so shocked that he was speechless at first, then he angrily threw the documents away, pulled out his command knife and chopped the table into pieces.

Spicy, everything spicy!

In order to ensure the smooth implementation of this operational plan, he not only endorsed Yamamoto Ikki, but also signed a military petition in front of Terauchi Hisaichi and Yamashita Tomoyuki.

As expected, the main responsibility for the failure of this battle must be borne by Yoshio Shinozuka.

Dismissal is a light punishment...

What was even more difficult for him to accept was the death of two lieutenant generals, three major generals and nearly 20,000 locust army soldiers.

Thinking of this, Yoshio Shinozuka's eyes turned black and he fell straight down.

"Commander..."

I heard the exclamations of Mutaguchi Ren'ya and several staff officers.

Soon, Mutaguchi Ren'ya reported the situation to the North China Front Army Headquarters. Terauchi Hisaichi was furious and drew out his general's sword angrily to practice his swordsmanship.

In this battle, the Japanese First Army suffered heavy losses.

(End of this chapter)