Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Changjin Lake, a Hundred Battles, a Hundred Victories

Chapter 292 Chu Yunfei: Have I become a unit of measurement?
At daybreak, the commander of the Japanese 14th Division stood triumphantly on the main peak of Mount Amitabha.

Only when he actually stood on this position did he realize how difficult it was to hold it.

The main peak of Mount Amitabha is only 141 meters above sea level, with an average slope of less than 10°.

Because the slope was too low, even the defending troops couldn't use the reverse slope to avoid artillery fire.

They could only stay on the front lines and passively endure the bombing.

At the same time, the mountain is composed of sandstone and conglomerate layers, and trenches will collapse if the excavation depth exceeds 1.5 meters, making it impossible to construct tunnels.

However, the Eighth Route Army, with only a few hundred soldiers, held them off for more than four days in this not-so-dangerous position!

If their roles were reversed, even the commander of the Japanese 14th Division wouldn't be able to guarantee he could hold the line under the same conditions.

"These Eighth Route Army guerrillas are a formidable opponent!"

The Japanese division commander sighed.

This is not an endorsement of military strength, but rather an endorsement of the enemy's spirit.

Mount Amitabha is indeed a very difficult place to defend.

In 1946, Zhang Yicheng's 3rd Regiment of the Provisional 38th Division, with about 800 men, was stationed at Mount Mituo, but was wiped out in just two hours by Fu's offensive.

Ding Wei's troops, however, managed to hold off the attacks of two Japanese divisions by rotating two battalions.

If the flank of Amitabha Mountain hadn't been captured, this position might have held out for much longer.

"Reorganize our forces, continue the offensive, and take Jining within five days!"

The commander of the Japanese 14th Division put aside his emotions and issued the order.

After yesterday's battle, he no longer had much confidence in quickly capturing Fengzhen and Jining.

His current goal has changed from taking one day to reach Jining to five days.

When the Japanese troops set off again, Ding Wei's troops were already in full battle array in Fengzhen, waiting for the Japanese to arrive.

"Sigh, Fengzhen, which we worked so hard to build up, will probably be destroyed after this battle."

"Commissar Ding Wei sighed."

Since Fengzhen was captured, Chen Ming has been developing the area.

Because Datong was still in the hands of the Japanese, Fengzhen became an important transit point for transporting supplies from Huai'ren to Jining, Guihua and other places.

"If it's damaged, it's damaged. We can rebuild it. As long as we eliminate the Japanese devils and drive them out of our country, no one will be able to destroy the fruits of our labor when we rebuild."

“If we don’t drive out the invaders, no matter how well we build, we will be destroyed by the enemy.”

"Therefore, the destruction we face now is for the sake of better construction in the future."

Ding Wei said calmly.

Fengzhen was within the base area of ​​Dingwei Second District, and great efforts and emotional investment were made in the construction of Fengzhen.

In other words, Fengzhen is Ding Wei's life's work.

But now that Fengzhen is about to be engulfed in the smoke of war and destroyed, how could he not feel heartbroken?

However, he still resolutely established the core of the Fengzhen defense line here.

He understood that by setting up the defense line here, he could rely on the hard work put into its construction to reduce troop casualties and better accomplish the mission.

"Report, reconnaissance unit reports: the Japanese have appeared eight kilometers outside Fengzhen."

At that moment, the communications soldier returned and reported.

"Ah."

Ding Wei nodded calmly.

Two hours later.

A burst of intense artillery fire rose over the Fengzhen position, followed by the whistling sound of shells piercing the air.

The battle officially begins.

The Japanese continued to use artillery fire to pave the way, taking the initiative to strike the defending troops.

The shells kicked up large amounts of mud and bricks in the field.

However, the strength of the Fengzhen defense line was far superior to that of the sandstone and conglomerate layers of Mount Mituo.

The position was fortified with numerous anti-artillery works, sufficient to withstand the bombardment of Japanese 105mm howitzers.

The 75mm field gun alone could not pose much of a threat to the soldiers on the field.

However, the houses in Fengzhen City were not spared and were bombed into ruins.

Rebuilding will require a great deal of effort.

After the shelling ended, the Japanese infantry began their attack.

Faced with the numerous machine gun bunkers built in Fengzhen, the Japanese infantry's offensive this time was far less effective than when they attacked Mituo Mountain.

Under the crossfire of machine gun bunkers and the multiple layers of fire from mortars and grenade launchers.

A Japanese infantry company, which was leading the attack, fell like wheat being harvested.

After one charge, they were crippled and had no choice but to retreat.

Upon seeing this scene, the commander of the Japanese 14th Division frowned.

"Kunmu-kun, you lead your troops to outflank the enemy at Huangtugou and cut off the retreat of the Fengzhen garrison. With our two forces attacking from both sides, we will surely be able to take Fengzhen."

The commander of the 14th Division of the Japanese army said to the commander of the 57th Division.

"Do not worry."

The commander of the Japanese 57th Division spoke up, obeying the other side's command.

Logically speaking, both of them were division commanders, and both were Japanese lieutenant generals.

Both sides are at the same level, and there is no situation where one commands the other.

However, as the commander of a Class A division, he had more seniority and a higher status.

Both men were lieutenant generals in the army, but the position of commander of the 14th Division was much more prestigious than that of the commander of the 57th Division, a Class C division.

In addition, the 57th Division fought so poorly in this operation that they would have become a laughing stock if the 14th Division hadn't arrived in time.

Therefore, Kusunoki had no choice but to obey Noda's seemingly consultative order, which was given by the commander of the 14th Division.

He led his 57th Division to begin executing a flanking maneuver.

As mentioned earlier, this was the Japanese army's favorite tactic, and it remained popular for a long time.

The Japanese troops' tactic of outflanking Baimaogou last night and then encircling Mituoshan from the rear was also successful.

As the saying goes, "one trick is all you need," and the commander of the Japanese 14th Division had no intention of changing tactics.

Even if it's a completely open attack, I'm going to outflank you from a distance. If you don't want to be outflanked, you can only keep retreating.

Ding Wei was not surprised that the Japanese continued to use the same tactics.

"Tell Huangtugou that the troops in Shouyang Village are fighting and retreating at the same time, creating the illusion of insufficient troops by blocking them at each level."

"Only when the Japanese devils believe that they took Fengzhen because of their strength will they be less vigilant."

Ding Wei calmly issued the orders.

"Yes."

The war engulfed the entire area surrounding Fengzhen.

Although the Japanese 57th Division had suffered significant losses, it still had a large number of fresh troops.

At the same time, this time they were motivated by shame and tried to wash away their humiliation on the battlefield of Amitabha Mountain through this battle.

Therefore, the attack in the Huangtugou direction was exceptionally fierce.

They even displayed an aura approaching that of an elite Class B division, despite being only a Class C division.

However, under Ding Wei's orders, the troops in Huangtugou and Shouyang Village on the right flank of Fengzhen.

Faced with the fierce attack of the Japanese invaders, they carried out the task of blocking the enemy in an orderly manner.

Holding off a weakened Class C division for a day is not too difficult.

Moreover, the terrain of Huangtugou and Shouyang Village is much better than that of the Mituoshan defense line. With ample resources, defensive warfare is definitely one of Ding Wei's troops' strengths.

Thus, although the Japanese 57th Division's offensive continued to advance the front line, it did not achieve a decisive victory.

They felt that the troops they were facing were like a magnet that would flip on its own.

When they get close to their opponent, the opponent will retreat, using repulsive force to hinder their rapid advance.

But if you pause to prepare for an attack, the opponent will flip back and use the suction to stick to you.

This made the Japanese soldier extremely uncomfortable; he charged up a punch, but missed.

When they pull back their fists, their opponents quickly close in, forcing them to keep throwing punches.

But how much power can a hasty punch have?

The Japanese soldiers and officers on the front lines were exhausted by this fighting style, and their original morale was gradually eroded.

However, the commander of the Japanese 57th Division was not affected; on the contrary, he was very happy.

"The Eighth Route Army changed its tactics, which seemed flexible, but in reality it was to cover up the weakness of insufficient troops."

"As long as we persist in our offensive and successfully outflank Fengzhen from the rear, Fengzhen will surely fall to us!"

"The commander of the Japanese 57th Division said confidently."

He was deeply impressed by the Eighth Route Army's resolute and head-on fighting style in the previous Battle of Amitabha Mountain.

However, after last night's surprise attack, the Eighth Route Army's "resilience" was gone.

In his view, this was because the Eighth Route Army suffered heavy losses in the surprise attack last night, and the hasty retreat would take a long time to restore its organization.

When the message reached the headquarters of the Japanese 14th Division, the commander of the 14th Division also agreed with the conclusion of the commander of the Japanese 57th Division.

News came back from Gangcun about the troop strength in Fengzhen, Jining, and Guihua areas.

At most, there were only three of Chu Yunfei's troops.

With this limited troop strength, it is extremely scarce to deploy troops to defend the three lines of Guihua, Jining, and Fengzhen.

They didn't know the exact number of Eighth Route Army casualties from the previous days of fighting, but it wouldn't be less than three thousand.

During last night's raid, the Japanese also failed to find the bodies of Eighth Route Army soldiers on the position. They could only estimate the number of casualties based on the ammunition, military caps, and other supplies left behind.

Based on these supplies and the large-scale retreat of the Eighth Route Army last night, the commander of the Japanese 14th Division speculated.

Since the start of the battle, the Eighth Route Army has lost at least one and a half of Chu Yunfei's troops.

This means that the number of Eighth Route Army troops in Fengzhen, Jining, and even Guihua is already small.

The battle situation of the 57th Division on the flank is the best proof.

Thinking of this, the commander of the Japanese 14th Division felt even more confident.

"Order the 20th Field Artillery Regiment to turn its guns around and support the 57th Division's attack. It is imperative that they successfully outflank the Eighth Route Army garrison at Yuxian Gully before nightfall today."

The commander of the Japanese 14th Division gave the order.

"Hi Yi!"

With the addition of the Japanese 20th Field Artillery Regiment, the 57th Division's advance on the flank accelerated.

However, at Yuxian Gully, they encountered fierce resistance from Ding Weibu and were unable to advance.

The Japanese were not surprised by this.

If Yuxian Gou is also captured, then the Eighth Route Army in Fengzhen will be completely surrounded.

It's perfectly normal for the Eighth Route Army to put up some strong resistance.

What if the Japanese hadn't found it unusual that there was no fierce resistance from the Eighth Route Army in Yuxian Gou?

The fierce resistance in Yuxian Gou had no impact on the commander of the Japanese 14th Division.

In his mind, Fengzhen would be completely surrounded by tomorrow at the latest.

At that time, the thousands of Eighth Route Army soldiers in Fengzhen would be completely doomed.

Having dealt with the Eighth Route Army in Fengzhen, with their strength, they will have no obstacles on their way to Jining and even Guihua.

"Order the troops to speed up their advance and annihilate the main force of the Eighth Route Army in the Chahar region in one fell swoop!"

The Japanese division commander issued the order.

However, the Eighth Route Army troops in Yuxian Gully resisted fiercely, and their firepower increased significantly.

The 57th Division, which was in charge of the attack, was a Class C division, and most of its soldiers were retired soldiers who had worked their way up in society and then re-enlisted.

Prioritizing combat resilience and organization, the offensive slowed down after heavy casualties.

The commander of the Japanese 14th Division was very helpless and could only send two battalions to the 57th Division.

The plan was to use these two divisions as spearheads, along with the 57th Division, to break through the Eighth Route Army's Yuxian Gou position.

However, mobilizing troops takes time, and it is impossible to capture the Yuxian Gou position before dark today.

As for night battles?

The commander of the Japanese 14th Division considered it, but it was quickly rejected.

The Eighth Route Army was attacked last night, so they must have taken ample precautions.

Night battles might not only fail to yield many results, but could also lead to falling into a trap set by the Eighth Route Army.

After all, this was territory that the Eighth Route Army had been operating in for a long time, and they were extremely familiar with the terrain.

If the Eighth Route Army were to take advantage of the darkness to counter-encircle and concentrate its forces, it could use its superior strength to encircle and annihilate the night raiding force.

It is extremely dangerous.

Having fought all night and all day today, the soldiers were already exhausted.

Continuing night battles would make it difficult to maintain combat effectiveness.

Therefore, the commander of the Japanese 14th Division had no choice but to suppress his desire to fight at night.

Taking Fengzhen is only a matter of time; there's no need to add uncertainty and give the Eighth Route Army an opportunity.

Therefore, under the orders of the Japanese 14th Division, the Japanese stopped their attack and at the same time guarded against the Eighth Route Army's escape from Fengzhen throughout the night.

After nightfall, the exhausted Japanese soldiers went straight to sleep in their barracks.

One-third of the troops were left to rotate and guard.

Meanwhile, Ding Wei's unit...

"The Japanese have taken precautions against us. If we withdraw directly, they will definitely come after us."

"Without defensive fortifications, we'll be in big trouble if the Japanese get hold of us."

"We need to give the Japanese a big shock, throw them into chaos, so we can retreat."

Ding Wei looked at the intelligence gathered from various units and spoke.

He now only has Chu Yunfei's troops left (not counting the wounded).

Although the Japanese suffered heavy losses, they still had two divisions and more than 20,000 troops.

With a troop strength of four to one, if we retreat directly and get caught by the Japanese, the casualties will definitely be significant.

The journey from Fengzhen to Jining was smooth and arduous, with no particularly dangerous sections.

Therefore, we must first throw the Japanese into chaos before we can retreat in peace.

"Since the Japanese are launching a night attack on us, we can't fall behind."

"When it comes to night raids, we're his ancestors!"

"Pass on my order: concentrate all artillery with a range of more than five kilometers and secretly circle around to Sanyingzi to bombard Gaojiayao."

"At the same time, the front-line positions should prepare for a counter-offensive!"

Ding Wei gave the order, pointing to the location of Gaojiayao on the map.

These are the coordinates provided by the Shuoxian Command, which indicate the location of the headquarters of the Japanese 14th Division!

P.S.: Chu Yunfei = 5000
(End of this chapter)