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

Chapter 48 Fierce Battle

On the main battlefield of Cangyunling, Li Yunlong, the commander of the New First Regiment, who had received orders, did not disobey them this time.

"Damn it, after being so frustrated for so long, I can finally fight with all my might. If I don't beat the Japanese devils until they cry for their fathers and mothers, I'm not Li Yunlong."

Li Yunlong pulled out the mirror box and began issuing orders.

"The whole regiment, assemble! Charge straight for the heart of the Sakata Regiment and beat those sons of bitches of Japanese devils to a pulp!"

"Commander, the headquarters' order is for us to charge together with the 772nd Regiment. The comrades from the 772nd Regiment haven't arrived yet. Now our regiment only has a few hundred men left. The pressure is immense. If we don't achieve our combat objectives, the headquarters will be furious and execute you."

Zhang Dabiao spoke up again to offer advice.

Li Yunlong has already disobeyed orders once on the battlefield. If he disobeys orders again, even if he wins the battle, the punishment will probably not be light.

"Let me wait for Blind Cheng. When he enlisted, I was the one who taught him how to fire a gun. Now the Japanese devils are like grasshoppers in autumn. Instead of rushing up and eating the meat, we're going to wait for Blind Cheng to come and share it?"

Li Yunlong shouted, cursing.

"The whole regiment, charge with me and kill these sons of bitches of Japanese devils!"

Li Yunlong roared and was about to lead his troops to charge forward.

Just then, the messenger suddenly arrived again.

"Reporting to the regimental commander, headquarters has issued a strict order, instructing the New First Regiment to wait for the 772nd Regiment to arrive before launching an attack, and strictly prohibiting any unauthorized attacks. The commander said that if that idiot Li Yunlong disobeys orders again this time, no matter how great his achievements are, even if he has offended the Japanese, I will still have him shot."

"The brigade commander also said that Li Yunlong must wait for the 772nd Regiment to arrive before attacking. This time, we are surrounding a regiment of Japanese soldiers. If anything goes wrong, he will hold you responsible."

After the messenger read out the orders from headquarters and brigade, Li Yunlong, who had been so proud and arrogant just moments before, suddenly deflated.

It seems that the commander-in-chief and the brigade commander knew his plans and came to put a tight rein on him.

Having cooled down, Li Yunlong no longer had any intention of continuing the charge.

Headquarters and the brigade commander had given a death order: if he disobeyed again, no matter how much the brigade commander protected him, or how much the division commander and general liked him, he would still be executed with tears in his eyes.

Otherwise, if others follow suit, things will get chaotic.

"Damn it, I can't even eat the fat meat that's already in my mouth, it's so infuriating!" Li Yunlong said helplessly, cursing to vent his anger.

The reason for this order was that after the commander-in-chief issued the combat order, he felt uneasy. After carefully reviewing the order, he realized that the problem might be with Li Yunlong's New First Regiment.

Li Yunlong's disobedience on the battlefield is still fresh in our minds, so it wouldn't be surprising if he disobeyed orders again.

Just to be on the safe side, the commander sent another telegram to the Second Independent Regiment, instructing them to convey the tight rein he had placed on Li Yunlong.

The brigade commander also knew that this operation was extraordinary, and he sent a telegram urging Li Yunlong to carry out the operation according to the battle plan.

After the New First Regiment had been entangled with the scattered Japanese soldiers for more than 20 minutes, Cheng the Blind from the 772nd Regiment finally arrived with his troops.

Upon receiving orders from headquarters and learning that they were about to enjoy a big feast, all the soldiers of the 772nd Regiment were extremely excited and rushed over at almost the fastest speed.

After the 772nd Regiment arrived, Li Yunlong finally couldn't hold back any longer. After a brief conversation with Cheng Xiazi, he immediately took the lead and set up a commando team with the soldiers of the new 1st Regiment.

The 1st Regiment took the lead in breaking through the Japanese defenses, while the 772nd Regiment cooperated to solidify the breached lines, thus achieving the breakthrough, division, and encirclement of the Japanese.

Seeing Li Yunlong, a regimental commander, being relegated to the role of assault team leader, Blind Cheng felt helpless. He could only order his troops to closely follow the advancing New 1st Regiment, stabilize the defensive line, and divide the Japanese into several small units. "That's exhilarating! That's exhilarating!"

Li Yunlong led the soldiers of the New First Regiment forward, and the Sakata Regiment, having lost its command system, could only fight independently and could not organize an effective resistance.

Meanwhile, the morale of our Eighth Route Army soldiers was high, especially Li Yunlong's New First Regiment. Under Li Yunlong's leadership, the enemy could not stop their attack at all.

They charged left and right through the Japanese positions, breaking the large Japanese force into smaller units.

In these fragmented battlefields, our army has formed local areas with absolute troop superiority.

The Japanese soldiers often had to rely on a small squad or a company to face an encirclement and attack by a regiment.

Without their artillery, the Japanese soldiers were completely unable to resist and were wiped out one by one by the 16th Regiment, the 771st Regiment, and the Headquarters Special Service Regiment that arrived at the scene.

The entire Cangyun Ridge was like a giant cauldron, filled with Japanese soldiers wrapped up like dumplings, waiting to be eaten.

Compared to the unstoppable advance on the Cangyunling position, the defensive battle at Yaikou fought by the 2nd Independent Regiment was extremely difficult for the 385th Brigade and the Independent Regiment.

After realizing that the situation had spiraled out of control, the temporary commander of the Sakata Regiment, the battalion commander, repeatedly sent urgent telegrams to the 36th Division in the rear, informing them of the battlefield situation.

They claimed that if reinforcements didn't arrive soon, the Sakata Regiment would be completely wiped out.

Realizing the critical situation of the Sakata Regiment, the 36th Division in the rear immediately went all out to support the Sakata Regiment.

The division's 24 Type 41 mountain guns and 12 Type 92 infantry guns rained down on the blocking positions as if they were free.

The barrage of artillery fire made life unbearable for the soldiers on the front lines, who could only rely on their indomitable will to hold off the enemy's attacks.

In addition, the Japanese also temporarily dispatched aircraft to bomb the battlefield, with bombers roaring and dropping countless aerial bombs.

"Commander, the Japanese artillery fire is too intense, and our soldiers are suffering heavy casualties!"

"We must hold on, even if we can't hold them off. Even if all our troops are wiped out, we absolutely cannot let the Japanese break through our lines. Right now, the main force in the rear is encircling and annihilating the Japanese Sakata Regiment. We must buy time for the main force."

The regimental commander of the 385th Brigade roared.

The Japanese artillery fire was so intense that many soldiers were rendered unable to hear properly, and they could only communicate by shouting.

"Yes."

The Independent Regiment was also in a bad situation. In the previous battle with the Sakata Brigade, the Independent Regiment had already suffered heavy losses, leaving only more than 700 soldiers.

Now, facing an attack from a Japanese regiment plus divisional artillery, the troops had barely held out for an hour before only a little over three hundred men remained.

Many companies and platoons were wiped out. The Third Battalion, which suffered the heaviest casualties, had only seventeen soldiers left, and the highest-ranking officer was reduced to just a platoon leader.

The rest of the company commander, battalion commander, and political instructor all perished in the battle.

"Damn it, the Japanese are really desperate this time. They've been bombarding us with artillery for so long and they still haven't stopped," Kong Jie cursed.

"That's right, I absolutely cannot let the Japanese devils get through the position."

As he spoke, Kong Jie, a regimental commander, personally carried his gun and walked to the front line of the defensive position.

The Eighth Route Army has never been afraid of sacrifice; there are no cowards among the soldiers of the Independent Regiment!
Even if Kong Jie dies, he will die on the battlefield. The Japanese will have to step over his corpse to break through the position!
(End of this chapter)