Blood-Red Front

The sound of artillery fire gradually subsided as dawn broke, and the chief of staff reported the casualty statistics of each unit to Okazaki.

Looking at the casualty report in his hand, Okazaki's hands trembled uncontrollably.

That night, the 14th Brigade suffered considerable casualties, but the loss of heavy firepower was even greater.

重炮联队的24门96式150毫米榴弹炮，和独立山炮联队的36门94式75毫米山炮，在被炮击过后又遭到了夏军的重炮的反覆轰炸。

The artillery pieces were either buried in the rubble or blown to pieces, and the soldiers of the two artillery regiments were also killed or wounded more than half of their men.

The 14th Brigade's main firepower was withdrawn from the battle before it even began.

The artillery of the 11th Regiment also failed to escape; even the infantry guns hidden in sturdy buildings were picked off one by one by the Xia army's heavy artillery.

The Xia army's artillery of different calibers could even coordinate their operations; where 75mm shells couldn't break through, 150mm heavy artillery would bombard them in the blink of an eye.

Judging from the battle reports, it looked as if Xia Jun's artillery observation posts were right in the face of the 14th Brigade.

Currently, the largest caliber grenade launcher in the entire city of Moling is a 50mm grenade launcher! Who can believe that?!

Setting down the casualty report, Okazaki's voice was a little hoarse. "What's the situation with the 41st Regiment?"

Okazaki now deeply regretted his decision to divide his troops and station them in different locations.

When firepower is sufficient, splitting up forces can achieve mutual support and coordinated attacks, but once the artillery is destroyed, splitting up forces becomes a suicide mission in the blink of an eye.

The chief of staff immediately reported: "The 41st Regiment has been under attack since last night, but they have managed to hold out."

Hearing that the 41st Regiment was alright, Okazaki's hope was rekindled. "Is it possible to send troops to support Moling?"

"I'm afraid that's unlikely." The chief of staff shook his head helplessly.

"Xia Jun is attacking Jingshan from both sides. The 41st Regiment has no choice but to hold its ground or retreat to the west."

"Baka... What on earth is going on?" Okazaki slammed his fist on the table, making a loud bang. "I've been in the military for decades, and I've never encountered anything like this before!"

Gang Qi considered himself well-informed, having experienced Lujia Town and Niutou Mountain to some extent, but he never imagined that the Xia army could even counter mountain guns and heavy artillery.

Looking at Okazaki, whose rage was tinged with fear, the chief of staff asked, "Brigade Commander, the enemy has deployed from the east, west, and north. We have no artillery and are probably no match for them. Should we retreat?"

Without artillery, the 14th Brigade would definitely suffer heavy losses in a real battle. Temporarily retreating to preserve its strength is a wise choice.

However, Okazaki immediately rejected the chief of staff's proposal.

"If we retreat now, the battle plan formulated by the General Headquarters will be completely destroyed. The only thing we can do is to hold Moling and hope that the 9th and 18th Divisions can support us as soon as possible."

"Send a message to headquarters requesting tactical guidance," Okazaki said. "Also, prepare the troops for urban warfare. The 14th Brigade must hold Moling Pass at all costs!"

"Hi!"

……

Upon arriving at the headquarters of the newly promoted 10th Army, Yanagawa received a telegram from Okazaki requesting assistance, and fell silent for a moment.

"Are you sure the telegram is correct?" Chief of Staff Tanabe Mori confirmed.

"It was checked three times by different staff officers," Tanabe Mori said.

When he first received the telegram, Moriyuu Tanabe couldn't believe it; he even thought he was dreaming.

But he could never have imagined these details on the telegram.

"How is this possible? How did the Xia army achieve a pre-battle counterattack? Does this mean our artillery will be unable to fight in the future?" Liu Chuan muttered.

Last night, the 9th Division reported that the artillery of the 7th Regiment was inexplicably destroyed, leading to the annihilation of the entire army. Liu Chuan thought it was an accident, but now it seems that the Xia army may have acquired some unknown means.

This was the worst possible news for a newly promoted soldier.

After all, compared with the Xia army, the main advantages of the Chusheng army, besides the individual quality of its soldiers, lie in its artillery, aircraft, and tanks.

If artillery is destroyed immediately in future wars, then the war will be impossible to fight.

Tanabe Mori then took out a small stack of documents. "Commander, I have reviewed the battle reports on the destruction of all the artillery of the 10th Army. I found that, apart from the 7th Regiment, the rest were mainly from the 14th Brigade."

"The enemy of the 14th Brigade has always been the 404th Detachment. Even when the 7th Regiment was completely annihilated, the 404th Detachment was involved in the battle."

"You mean the problem lies with Squad 404?" Liu Chuan reached out and took the battle report to read it.

"Very likely," Tanabe Mori said.

"Furthermore, I also discovered that when the 14th Brigade and the 404th Detachment were fighting at Niutou Mountain, although there were records of our artillery being destroyed, the records were all of the firepower from the infantry machine guns on the front line. The mountain guns and heavy artillery were not hit."

"What's your judgment?" Liu Chuan asked.

"It's most likely the distance," Tanabe Mori said, pointing to the map on the table.

"During the Battle of Niutou Mountain, the mountain artillery regiment and the heavy artillery regiment were all 5-6 kilometers away from the enemy's positions."

"After retreating to Moling, the enemy's front line was less than 3 kilometers away from the farthest point in the entire city of Moling."

Looking at the lines Tanabe Mori drew on the map, Yanagawa nodded and said, "It seems we have to take down this 404th Detachment. If the Xia Army's reconnaissance capabilities can be widely adopted, it could very well change the way we fight wars!"

Warfare is all about information asymmetry. If I know your firepower configuration, I can take action in advance to eliminate the threat.

"Where is the 18th Division?" Liu Chuan asked.

"We have arrived in Dangtu."

"Why is it so slow?"

"They encountered a guerrilla attack, and all the bridges were blown up. The 18th Division had to build pontoon bridges along the way."

"Baka..." Yanagawa was speechless.

The Xia Kingdom is truly vast, with all sorts of terrain. Although the 18th Division was a camel and horse division, it still couldn't pick up speed when faced with the complex terrain in southern Xia Kingdom.

"Order the 18th Division to speed up the process as much as possible, and have the 9th and 18th Cavalry Regiments make a detour to Hengxi area to set up defenses."

"Commander," Tanabe Mori reminded him as soon as Yanagawa finished speaking.

"If the 14th Brigade can't stop the Xia army from breaking out, the 9th Cavalry Regiment and the 18th Cavalry Regiment probably won't be able to either."

The infantry regiment of the newly promoted army had a full strength of 3800 men, while the 14th Brigade had as many as 10,000 men. In contrast, the cavalry regiment had a full strength of only 1400 men and was equipped only with light and heavy machine guns and grenade launchers.

Even if the two cavalry regiments used their speed to establish positions first, they would still be forcibly breached.

"Baka!" Liu Chuan cursed.

Xia Jun's offensive prowess made it difficult for Liu Chuan to find a way to attack him for a while.

"Order the 18th Division to advance towards Kyoto at top speed! The 9th Division must find a way to break through the Qinhuai River to relieve the pressure on the 14th Brigade."

"Hi!"

……