Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 510 Ambush at Dagangding on the Western Route, Reconnaissance of the Pantang Area
August 1th at 1 am.

The troops along the Beijiang River began to move.

The 62nd Army's 152nd Division had 8500 men, the 3rd Company of the 3rd Battalion of the Taishan Independent Regiment, and 1800 men from various anti-Japanese allied forces.

A total of 10,000 troops.

Such a large force is moving northwest along the Beijiang River.

In addition, three warships on the Beijiang River are also sailing upstream.

The troops marched five kilometers and arrived at the Dagangding area.

Dagangding is a small hill on the banks of the Beijiang River, next to a small village.

The mountain was originally garrisoned by the Nationalist Army, and air-raid shelters were also built on the mountain.

However, as the Nationalist army retreated, this place was abandoned.

However, because it was not part of the Japanese army's deployment, only ten Japanese soldiers guarded the place.

After the advance team arrived, they immediately sent people into the small village at the foot of the mountain to find out the situation.

The soldiers quietly entered the village and, by the faint morning light, discovered an old man squatting under the old locust tree at the village entrance, smoking a pipe. The old man was startled when he saw the soldiers in uniform, and after recognizing the uniform, he almost dropped his pipe.

"You've finally arrived!" The old man pointed to the foot of the mountain to the north. "Those Japanese bastards have taken over the air-raid shelter. They make the villagers bring them food during the day, and they even try to seduce women. We're just about to fight them to the death!"

The platoon leaders of the 3rd Company of the Independent Regiment calmed the agitated villagers, whispering instructions: "Second Platoon, circle around the back mountain to cut off their retreat; First Platoon, follow me and approach from the front. Remember, leave no survivors; take them down as quickly as possible."

Halfway up the mountain, a Japanese sentry was dozing off, leaning against his rifle, when suddenly a cold bayonet pierced his neck.

Subsequently, a group of soldiers from the Independent Regiment rushed up the mountain along the mountain path, and the sounds of submachine guns and grenades exploding rang out.

Before the smoke had cleared, the platoon leader emerged, a blood-stained dagger in hand. He briefly reported into the walkie-talkie, "The high ground has been taken."

When the news reached the troops, William immediately ordered 10 military vehicles to carry the Independent Regiment troops, towing 20mm anti-aircraft guns up the mountain. From this high vantage point, the anti-aircraft guns were positioned at a downward firing angle and aimed at the road below.

At 5:00 AM, the main force of the Allied forces occupied the high ground at Dagangding.

The 20mm anti-aircraft gun muzzle was aimed at the dirt road to the northwest; soldiers of the 62nd Army set up Czech-made light machine guns in the bushes.

On the river, the 120mm main guns of the "Jianru" ship quietly adjusted their firing arc, and the gunners prepared.

At 5:40 a.m., the Japanese western encirclement force appeared.

As the lead Type 97 tank rolled over the dirt road, a 20mm armor-piercing round fired from the top of the hill hit its tracks.

The tank with broken tracks couldn't move and blocked the way for the tanks behind it, which frightened the Japanese infantrymen who quickly took cover behind the tanks to check the situation.

"Open fire!" William's roar echoed across the battlefield via walkie-talkie.

The top of the hill instantly spewed out a crossfire, with machine gun and rifle bullets pouring out.

Three warships on the river fired simultaneously, and the shells flew over the mountainside of Dagangding and landed on the Japanese troops 1300 meters away.

This completely stunned the Japanese troops.

They braved the gunfire and attempted to fight back.

The remaining Type 97 tanks acted as human shields, clearing the way ahead.

The 20mm autocannon's armor-piercing projectiles, when fired at the thickest part of the tank's frontal armor, failed to penetrate, and some were even deflected by the slope of the armor.

But this did not give the Japanese army an opportunity.

The 20mm anti-aircraft gun was used to fight tanks, but it was only a temporary measure. The Independent Regiment had other means of dealing with tanks.

Moreover, it is currently the only man-portable anti-tank weapon in the world's militaries.

Four brave individual rocket launchers, under the cover of fire, stood up from the bushes 150 meters away from the roadside, shouldered their rockets, and fired them at the side of the Type 4 tank.

Immediately, Japanese tanks were hit one after another. As rockets penetrated the side armor, metal jets raged inside the tanks, and all the Japanese tanks were rendered useless.

This was a major blow to the Japanese army.

Throughout history, the Japanese army has relied on its superior equipment to fight, which is why it was able to drive the Nationalist army into repeated defeats.

But now, because the Taishan Independent Regiment's advanced weapons destroyed the Japanese tanks in the first instance, the Japanese troops on this route were at a loss as to how to fight.

Seeing his men so cowardly and hesitant to advance, the Japanese regimental commander drew his sword and ordered his officers to supervise the battle.

Under the officers' threats, the Japanese launched an attack.

They were completely unaware that the enemy they were facing had almost three times their strength.

And so, 1000 Japanese soldiers charged toward the ambush position on Dagangding.

William picked up the walkie-talkie and called out to his units: "Let's charge too!"

Immediately, a chorus of bugle calls rang out, including those from the 152nd Division, as well as war drums and horns. Although the calls were varied, the morale was high.

The soldiers launched an attack simultaneously from the top of the hill, as well as from two other directions.

Those 1000 Japanese soldiers were instantly surrounded and annihilated.

Faced with this situation, the Japanese regimental commander hurriedly reported the situation via radio while ordering his troops to huddle together and try to hold out until reinforcements arrived.

They retreated to a position out of reach of warships and anti-aircraft guns, and took out all their machine guns to form a fire defense line.

Faced with the Japanese army's frenzied machine gun fire, the troops, which had been riding high, immediately came to a halt.

Such a promising situation has been stalled, which is truly worrying.

Looking down at the situation, William picked up the walkie-talkie and called the 152nd Division.

"Commander Chen, what's going on with you?"

"The Japanese firepower is too strong; we can't break through."

The 152nd Division, with over 8000 men, fought against the remaining 2000-plus Japanese regiment, but was unable to sustain the attack.

William did not argue with the 152nd Division, but instead reported the situation to Fang Wen.

In the sky, Fang Wen remained in a high-altitude circling state.

To save fuel, he reduced engine power and fine-tuned the wing angle to continue flying in a semi-gliding state.

This is his special skill; no one else can do it.

He had a clear view of the battle below.

Fang Wen hadn't expected that such a well-executed ambush would fail to achieve its full potential.

From this, he gained an understanding of the strength of the following unit.

They're both from Guangdong, but they're nowhere near as good as the 19th Route Army. If they can perform like this when things are going well, they'll probably run away faster than anyone else when things go wrong.

He thought to himself that even the best tactical command requires qualified soldiers to execute it.

Thus, he realized that this river-crossing operation was coming to an end, and it couldn't be ruined at the last moment, destroying the hard-won good situation.

So what should we do next?

First of all, this Japanese regiment below is definitely going to be taken down; we can't let go of meat that's already in our mouths.

After annihilating the Japanese regiment, the 152nd Division was ordered to head north back to Datang to rejoin the main force.

Other anti-Japanese allied forces crossed the river by warship to reach the defense zone of the Tax Police Corps.

Meanwhile, the soldiers of the 3rd Company, 3rd Battalion of the Independent Regiment had other plans. They intended to lead their troops to sneak into the western suburbs of Guangzhou that night and retrieve the gold hidden there.

After making this decision, he communicated with Commander Huang of the River Defense Fleet, William, and the commander of the 152nd Division.

All parties agreed with Fang Wen's plan, after all, the operation across the river had already achieved a very good result.

5:20.

Gunboat squadrons arrived and subjected the Japanese regiments below to intense firepower suppression.

The sustained circling fire from the gunboats, far more intense than the strafing attacks of fighter planes, inflicted heavy losses on the Japanese regiments. The machine gun positions, in particular, were targeted by the aircraft's machine guns and cannons.

Under the suppression of aerial fire, the Japanese machine gun positions fell silent one by one.

Allied forces immediately launched a new offensive.

They stormed into the Japanese positions and engaged in a fierce battle with the Japanese in a narrow area, outnumbered three to one.

Ultimately, the entire Japanese regiment was wiped out.

Nearly 2000 men were killed, 800 were captured, and the rest went missing.

Next came the distribution of prisoners of war.

The capture of over 800 prisoners of war was a tremendous achievement. The 152nd Division took 300 of them, and the remaining prisoners were escorted onto warships and crossed the river with the Anti-Japanese Allied Army.

As for the 200 men of the 3rd Company, 3rd Battalion of the Independent Regiment, they remained in Jiangbei.

The warship is about to leave the shore.

The Gaoyao County Textile Security Team has not yet boarded the ship.

This is a unit led by the underground Communist Party, and the unit leader is having his final conversation with William.

"It was a pleasure to fight alongside the Taishan Independent Regiment. Your combat methods were truly eye-opening. I hope we can continue to cooperate in the future."

“Our commander has done a lot of work in the north, as you should know, so cooperation is a certainty.”

"Take care, and be careful."

"Okay, the same goes for you."

William shook hands with them to say goodbye and watched them board the ship.

As the last group of people boarded the ship, the warship sailed towards the other side of the river.

In the entire Sanjiang region, only the Independent Regiment of 200 men remained.

William turned and got into the vehicle. Ten military vehicles, fully loaded with soldiers, set off. As for the anti-aircraft guns that were towed, they were transported to the other side of the river by the warship.

Where is the lightly equipped convoy headed?
Naturally, they obeyed Fang Wen's orders.

In the sky, Fang Wen used mechanical sensing eagle eyes and radar target acquisition devices to conduct all-round reconnaissance.

The Japanese troops that were flanking the riverbank positions have arrived from the north and east.

At the same time, a flight path appeared on the sea surface, heading straight for Sixianjiao.

The two forces found nothing at the Jiang'an position, and the Japanese naval air force that arrived later also returned empty-handed.

These two units must have known that the western route regiment had been ambushed, so they joined forces and headed northwest.

In that case, William and his group can't go back.

Fang Wen looked in another direction.

Across the river from Mafang Village, where the Tax Police Corps' defense line is located, there is a Japanese army of 2000 stationed in Hancun. It was an important stronghold for the Japanese army. Originally, the plan was to join forces with the 62nd Army to encircle and annihilate it from the north and south. Now that the 62nd Army has retreated to Datang, it is no longer possible to realize this plan.

Therefore, that place is off-limits.

It would be possible to take the route taken by the 152nd Division during their retreat.

There were no signs of Japanese troops there, and there was a good spot along the way that could be used as a temporary hiding place.
Fang Wen then used a radio device to direct William's actions.

Major General Sato, the new commander of the Japanese army, stood in front of the sand table at the temporary command post in Guangzhou, his face grim.

He had just received a telegram from the troops sent to launch a pincer attack—the Allied positions on the banks of the Beijiang River were deserted.

The western route troops had previously sent a telegram saying that their troops had been ambushed.

This information allowed him to guess what might happen.

The enemy commander had anticipated his plan and ordered his troops to advance westward, thus annihilating the western forces that he had arranged to attack from both sides.

Sato was furious at encountering such a setback so soon after taking office.

"Baka!" Sato slammed his fist on the edge of the sand table. "Immediately contact all garrisons in Sanshui, Shishan, Lubao, and other places. I need to know the whereabouts of that army!"

The adjutant frantically dialed the field telephone, but after inquiring at several outposts, the reply was always the same: "No trace of enemy troops found."

Did a force of 1 men just vanish without a trace?

It is absolutely impossible.

Sato stared at the location of the large hilltop on the sand table, then suddenly grabbed a red pencil and drew a circle on it: "Here! They must have headed north to join up with the troops in Datang."

In response, he ordered his troops to pursue them.

However, because the 152nd Division marched very fast, they failed to catch up and allowed it to reach Datang.

The 62nd Army is now intact over there, and the Japanese forces nearby don't really have the strength to take it down.

Thus, Sato's command was a failure.

He was lost in thought.

Why did the other party suddenly end their operation? If not, he would still have a chance.

But once the other side ended its operation, he had no way to devise a countermeasure to fight them.

In this way, the enemy wiped out one of our regiments and captured many places, yet we were able to return unscathed, which is already a victory.

He looked up at the sky and murmured, "Who is this person?"

The adjutant beside him reminded him, "Could it be Fang Wen from the Taishan Independent Regiment? Since he could command the attack on our Southeast Command, he should be able to command this battle too."

Sato nodded: "Immediately organize a team to collect information on him. Also, notify the Special Higher Police. I want to meet with the new head of the Southeast Special Higher Police. I heard they have been trying to assassinate Fang Wen. I want to know why they haven't succeeded yet."

High altitudes over the Sanjiang area.

After Fang Wengang led William's convoy into an area untouched by the Japanese army, a low-lying mountainous region, the dense forest provided excellent concealment for William and his men.

At this point, all departments involved in the entire operation have been properly arranged.

But he still did not return.

Because there's another operation tonight.

The Japanese army probably never imagined that a force would enter the western suburbs of Guangzhou tonight to carry out its mission.

For this operation, he specifically flew his plane to the west of Guangzhou to conduct reconnaissance.

Tonight we will be heading to the Pantang area, which is located in the western Lizhiwan area of ​​Guangzhou.

It was a low-lying area, mostly ponds and depressions, covering an area of ​​about twenty square kilometers.

The terrain there is very complex, and the gold is hidden beneath one of the ponds. It's impossible to dig it out without knowing its exact location.

To reach the Bantang area, one needs to cross the Pearl River.

The only bridge across the river was heavily guarded by the Japanese army, making crossing the river the only option.

However, patrol boats were seen traveling back and forth on the river.

"We need to think of a way to distract them." Fang Wengang gripped the control lever tightly, his eyes scanning the fluctuating fuel level on the dashboard.

Just then, several bursts of light suddenly erupted on the surface of the Pearl River below, followed by a muffled explosion.

His pupils suddenly contracted—what was going on?
Could it be anti-Japanese elements attacking the Japanese army?
Through his mechanically-sensing eagle eye, he saw a Japanese patrol boat burning, while a fishing boat was fleeing on the river.

The fishing boat was probably doomed, and another Japanese patrol boat was on its way. Fang Wen decided to help them out.

Immediately afterwards, he piloted the Qinyuan and swooped down from the sky.

(End of this chapter)