Chapter 172 Changes in Zhang Fuyan’s 7th Battalion
Major General Chu Yunfei, commander of the 48th Independent Brigade, and Fang Ligong, chief of staff of the school, successively issued combat orders.
The officers began to return to their respective stations and make preparations immediately.
It didn't take long for each department to take action and advance rapidly towards the designated areas.
The 11th regiment was prepared to assemble towards the front line of Zhuangmo Town, Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain.
Chen Ziyun took the lead in dispatching Monk Wei's reconnaissance platoon and launched an investigation directly there.
Wu Ziqiang's 5th Battalion and Zhang Fuli's 7th Battalion took the lead; Shi Yuji's 6th Battalion and Liang Guoping Artillery Battalion followed behind.
By three o'clock in the morning, the position of the 48th Independent Brigade was completely empty, with no personnel left.
All the Eastern Ministries were advancing towards the Xinxian area, and they asked the Yue Army to form an independent fourth brigade to start combat operations.
At the Yangcun position, Kong Jie, the leader of the independent regiment, hurried over after receiving the report.
Kong Jie raised his telescope and looked at the station of the 48th Independent Brigade. Looking at the empty position, he showed a surprised expression.
"Captain, don't look. There's not a single soul over there. Thousands of their troops have all been dispatched."
"Did they advance towards Xin County? I don't know what they did in the past. Could it be that they also asked the wrong kid to help?"
"That shouldn't be the case. In that large-scale raid, if our Eighth Route Army had acted alone, nearby friendly forces would not have known about it at all."
"What's more, the Jinsui Army troops have always been in conflict with them. Even if they knew about it, they would not cooperate with them in fighting."
The company commander who was commanding the troops to defend in Yangcun looked at Ding Wei with confusion on his face and said.
By now the Eighth Route Army units have launched large-scale operations, not to mention Shanxi Province, otherwise North China would be in chaos.
The Independent Group has now also received relevant news, and Ding Wei, an honest man from Bu Nao, did not complain at all about the arrangements made by his superiors.
They calmly stayed in the Yangcun area to carry out defensive deployment, and directly assumed the defense tasks of the previous three regiments.
As the 48th Independent Brigade gathered troops and quickly advanced towards the Xinxian area, Ding Wei paid great attention to that matter.
He came over personally to understand the situation and was confused by the actions of Chu Yunfei's troops.
"What I said is correct. If the 48th Independent Brigade is an army unit of the Sui Army, can they take the initiative to cooperate with us in the battle?"
"If this situation really makes him unable to figure out what Chu Yun asked Nie Qiu to do, then we can report it immediately."
"In addition, as soon as their troops leave, if there are any huge defensive holes there, send troops to move forward and build warning positions."
"Although the Japs are now facing an attack from their troops, no one can say whether they will send troops over for a sneak attack."
After Ding Wei pondered for a moment, he immediately ordered Dongda.
The independent regiment strengthened its defense and alert, and at the same time quickly contacted the brigade headquarters to report the situation there.
As for the headquarters of the Seventh Army of the Shanxi-Sui Army, Zhao Yinfu was furious at the moment.
When he learned that the 48th Independent Brigade was advancing eastward with all its troops and directly launching combat operations, he stared with anger on his face.
"What do Chu Yunfei, Fang Ligong, Chen Ziyun and the others want to do? Is this the time for them to show off as heroes?"
"The Eighth Route Army launched a full-scale combat operation, and various units of the Moon Army were hit. The independent mixed fourth brigade was the only mobile force controlled by the Moon Army."
"They launched an attack against that unit. It was like pulling teeth out of a tiger's mouth. Do they really want to use up all the assets of the 48th Independent Brigade?"
"What's more, if we take the initiative now, won't we be cooperating with the Eighth Route Army invisibly?"
"They are very brainless and do things without thinking at all!"
Zhao Yinfu was furious, and he was very dissatisfied that the 48th Independent Brigade had mistakenly advanced directly towards Xinxian County.
Of course, the most important thing is to prevent Chu Yunfei's troops from leaving their base, and the 71st Division of the 33rd Army will bear the brunt.
At that time, if any Japanese troops come over, the 71st Division will directly face the attack of the Moon Army.
The Seventh Group Army has two armies in the east, directly under one brigade, with the strength of six divisions and one brigade.
But among those troops, the most attackable is naturally Chu Yunfei's 48th Independent Brigade.
Secondly, there was the 71st Division. Originally, according to Zhao Yinfu's intention, Chu Yunfei's troops were placed at the front, with the 71st Division behind to cooperate.
That way, even if they are attacked by the Moon Army, with those two troops, they can at least ensure an invincible position.
However, now that the 48th Independent Brigade is advancing directly eastward, can the 71st Division be at the forefront?
If the Japs come over, we will defeat the 71st Division, leaving five temporary divisions, not to mention a good leg.
Those five temporary divisions are all units that have just been expanded from brigades. It will take a certain amount of time for them to gather combat effectiveness.
Therefore, at this time, Zhao Yinfu was even more worried that his troops would be attacked and suffer heavy casualties.
"Have they applied for the Burnt Seat before? It was also approved by the Chief's Department."
"Based on the current situation, now is indeed the best time for them to attack."
"Of course, troops are unpredictable, and water is unpredictable. No one can tell what the little devils will do now. They should also strengthen their defenses."
"As for whether to send the 48th Independent Brigade back, we need to be cautious about that matter."
At that time, the chief of staff of the group army came to Zhao Yinfu and analyzed directly.
"It's a trap, then it's their trap, they..."
"Forget it, contact the 33rd Army and the 34th Army and ask them to strengthen their vigilance to prevent a surprise attack by the Moon Army."
"At the same time, we maintain contact with the 48th Independent Brigade so that we can keep track of their situation at any time."
"In addition, contact the commander-in-chief immediately to report the situation of the 48th Independent Brigade and ask the commander-in-chief to make a decision."
Zhao Yinfu walked helplessly on the chair and said feebly.
Can Zhao Yinfu intercept the 48th Independent Brigade and force them to withdraw?
But he didn't know that once he did that thing, he would definitely be criticized.
After all, Chu Yunfei commanded the troops to fight the Japanese, and he did not hesitate to attack the independent mixed fourth brigade that massacred the people of Jin Province.
If Zhao Yinfu fails to stop it, he will probably be labeled a traitor.
He didn't want to take responsibility, so he did the old trick and left the problem to the chief executive to decide.
While Zhao Yinfu was contacting various ministries one after another, Zhuang Mozhen was there.
Zhuangmo Town is a small town in Xin County, surrounded by mountains.
Because there is Tongpu Railway nearby, the location is very important.
The Yue puppet army built more than a dozen bunker groups outside the town, and there were two gun towers in the area east of Zhuangmo Town.
There is also a defensive position built by the puppet army outside the town, which is a carefully built stronghold by the puppet army.
In order to ensure the absolute safety of Zhuangmo Town, about two hundred puppet troops have been stationed there for a long time.
Of course, the strength of the Moon Army is currently seriously insufficient, so the configuration of most of those strongholds is that there are few Moon troops and many puppet troops.
Among the two hundred defense troops, there were more than 140 puppet troops and a small group of Yue soldiers of more than 50 people.
In terms of weapon configuration, they mainly use two 60MM mortars and four Jin-made heavy machine guns, as well as light machine guns, grenade launchers, rifles and other weapons.
The Moon troops were equipped with light machine guns and grenades, as opposed to heavy weapons, and they were closely guarded.
"Regiment seat, based on their repeated reconnaissance and combined with the previous report from the cavalry company."
"There are 200 puppet troops in Panmo Town. I would like to be equipped with light and heavy machine guns and grenade mortars."
"The fortifications there are very tight. There are bunker groups on the west, south and north sides, and there are two gun towers on the east side."
"There are also complete fortifications outside the town, and barbed wire fences have even been deployed to block the main streets."
"At present, their weapons configuration is unknown, but they are asking whether their troops should be concentrated in the outer bunkers and gun tower areas."
At around three o'clock, as Chen Ziyun commanded the troops to arrive at Zhuangmo Town, the platoon leader Wei Monk of the reconnaissance platoon quickly reported.
Chen Ziyun raised his telescope and looked towards Zhuang Mo Town, and soon he looked towards Baizi Mountain and Crouching Tiger Mountain to the east.
Zhuangmo Town echoes those highlands. If you want to build Zhuangmo Town, you must pay attention to the highlands to the east.
Otherwise, the troops will focus on attacking Zhuangmo Town and launch firepower on the eastern highlands. Will the attack on the attacking troops be fatal?
"Battle Commander Liang, Li Yang, Sun Xiong, let's talk about where the artillery position is more suitable."
After some observation, Chen Ziyun looked at the officers of the artillery battalion and asked directly.
"Guan Zu, since they want to attack Zhuangmo Town, they have to guard against the high ground in the east."
"Otherwise, the puppet troops will deploy a few artillery pieces on the high ground and carry out artillery bombardment from a high position in the east, which will definitely inflict heavy losses on them."
"So their artillery can not only hit Zhuangmo Town, but also attack the high ground on the east side to suppress it."
"On the march, he carefully observed the map and found out whether Taohuashan was the best choice for artillery positions."
Liang Guoping, commander of the artillery battalion, looked at Chen Ziyun and spoke first.
Chen Ziyun glanced at the map, then raised his telescope and looked at the location of Peach Blossom Mountain.
Taohuashan is indeed a good place. The artillery is set up there and can effectively carry out combat strikes at Zhuangmo Town, Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain.
It turns out that Liang Guoping's artillery philosophy was indeed lagging behind.
Deploying artillery on high ground for direct bombardment is an old-fashioned tactic.
Whenever the Yue puppet army launches a counterattack with artillery, the artillery battalion will definitely suffer casualties.
I want to know whether Chen Ziyun accumulated the 48th Independent Brigade Artillery Unit bit by bit.
For him, artillery is a treasure, and artillery is a treasure, and there cannot be any loss.
The artillery force has developed to this point. Can Chen Ziyun avoid casualties and losses of artillery and artillery as much as possible?
Please follow Liang Guoping's suggestions and make arrangements. It is estimated that Chen Ziyun's little fortune can be wiped out in two or three battles.
"It is not a good choice to set up an anti-slope artillery position in Taohuashan."
"Li Yang, Sun Xiong, what do we mean?"
Chen Ziyun nodded. He did not expose Liang Guoping's true thoughts.
After all, Liang Guoping was also a lieutenant colonel and commander of the artillery battalion, and now he had taken the initiative to reconcile with him. Chen Ziyun had no need to embarrass him.
The so-called rivers and lakes are not just about fighting and killing, but also about the worldliness of people in all aspects.
Otherwise, in the Shanxi-Sui Army and other units, it is not enough to just have the capability.
"Regiment seat, the puppet army's artillery in Zhuangmo Town is not large, and it is not worthy for them to use all the troops of the artillery battalion."
"The First Mountain Artillery Company and the Second Mountain Artillery Company can set up shelter positions in Liangou Village and Fenghuanggou area respectively, and carry out shelling in Zhuangmo Town and the east highland respectively."
"The distance between the two areas is not very far. At critical times, the artillery can quickly join forces and concentrate fire to carry out artillery bombardment."
Li Yang, deputy commander of the artillery battalion and commander of the first mountain artillery company, responded immediately.
Then Sun Xiong also put forward his own suggestions, and his ideas were probably the same as Li Yang's.
Chen Ziyun nodded and directly arranged for Liang Guoping to deploy.
The first mountain artillery company is deployed in Liangou Village; the second mountain artillery company is deployed in Fenghuanggou.
In addition, after much hesitation, Chen Ziyun dispatched Zhang Fuyin's 7th Battalion to undertake the attack on Cuozhuang Mo Town.
The regiment is directly under the reconnaissance platoon, otherwise it will be assigned to Wu Ziqiang's fifth battalion to attack highlands such as Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain.
Regardless of the fact that the 11th Reserve Regiment currently has three infantry battalions and one artillery battalion, the overall strength looks very strong.
However, the overall combat effectiveness of those three infantry battalions is far inferior to that of the four infantry battalions of the 358th Regiment.
In particular, the Seventh Battalion has Zhang Fuyan, and whether Zhang Fuyan and Chen Ziyun can be at odds with each other, there is a big conflict.
Therefore, when Chen Ziyun commanded the battle, he could not do it well.
If he had a choice, he would rather have the cavalry company and the guard company come over.
The combat effectiveness of those two companies is not weaker than those of the infantry battalions.
At four o'clock in the morning, all ministries launched combat operations.
Zhang Fujun commanded the First Division of the 7th Battalion and took the lead in launching a probing attack at Zhuangmo Town.
At the same time, Wu Ziqiang's fifth battalion also began to disperse and attack high ground such as Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain.
Not long after, fierce gunfire sounded.
There are 200 months of puppet troops in Zhuangmo Town, and there are more than 300 months of puppet troops in Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain.
The more than 500 months of puppet troops were as strong as an infantry squadron of the Little Japanese Army and an infantry battalion of the Imperial Army.
There are more than 100 Japanese soldiers and 200 puppet troops in the east highland, and their weapons and equipment are not weak.
The puppet troops here have two 82MM mortars, and the other weapons are light machine guns and grenade launchers.
They stick to the high ground and have strong firepower.
After the 11th Preparatory Regiment launched the attack, the Yue puppet army immediately launched a fire attack.
In Zhuangmo Town, the puppet troops deployed light machine guns in the bunkers and rifles in the trenches fired fiercely one after another.
The Yue puppet troops at Baizi Mountain and Wohu Mountain were otherwise positioned high in the east, concentrating light machine gun fire.
Especially on the high ground, the puppet troops instantly gathered more than a dozen crooks and Czech-style light machine guns launched a fire attack.
The dense bullets created a fire net with no blind spots, and a large number of bullets came down like raindrops in a heavy rain.
Wu Ziqiang's 5th Battalion in the 11th Reserve Regiment was regarded as the main battalion, but faced with such firepower, their attacking troops were beaten in a very embarrassed manner.
As for Zhang Fuli's 7th Battalion, there was no situation where the troops retreated quickly and directly evacuated the battlefield when they were hit by fire.
After seeing that scene, Chen Ziyun took the Sixth Battalion's machine gun company directly to Zhuangmo Town.
"Battle Commander Zhang, pick up Donglai and command him to launch an attack at the same time."
"The machine gun company of the 6th Battalion serves as the supervising team. If anyone retreats without authorization, they will be shot on the spot!"
"His regiment commander asked for permission to retreat, but he was still shot. My battalion commander retreated, and he was shot to death in the same way."
"If it's four-twenty now, if Dongzhuang Mo Town can't be taken before six o'clock, the officers of the seventh battalion platoon will be dismissed. He and Battalion Commander Zhang will bear all the responsibilities."
When Chen Ziyun came to the seventh camp, his face was gloomy and he said angrily.
Considering the morale of the 7th Battalion, Chen Ziyun would definitely beat Zhang Fuyu violently.
He knew without thinking that if the force retreated when encountering fire interception, it would definitely deny Zhang Fuli's arrangement.
Of course, that is not true, Chen Ziyun is now the leader.
Please tell me if I can attack Zhang Fuyin directly, it might cause the 7th Battalion to mutiny.
Therefore, he chose to command the troops at the same time as Zhang Fujun. Whoever retreated without permission would be killed.
In that case, all the officers and soldiers of the 7th Battalion were not allowed to say anything. After all, the commander of the regiment, Chen Ziyun, personally directed the charge.
"The regiment leader... is not like this. He will urge the 7th Battalion to fight bravely and strive to capture Dongzhuang Mo Town before six o'clock."
"Are you the commander of the regiment? He takes such a risk and personally leads the troops to attack. If something goes wrong, he cannot bear the responsibility."
"What's more, as the commander of the regiment, commanding the 7th Battalion to charge will inevitably bring psychological pressure to the officers and soldiers."
Zhang Fuyun was startled, and he hurriedly spoke.
Perhaps a few years ago, Zhang Furun had the courage to command his troops to fight.
If he didn't have that ability, Chu Yunfei wouldn't let him serve as the deputy battalion commander of a 2,000-man army.
If he has been serving as the deputy battalion commander for too long, Zhang Fuli will inevitably have other ideas in his mind.
Now let him continue to lead the troops to attack the Lunar Army positions. Will he not have the courage?
"During the Battle of Xinkou, both Commander Hao of the Ninth Army and Commander Liu of the 54th Division personally led their troops to counterattack and were killed by machine gun bullets from the Moon Army."
"Lieutenant generals, major generals and division commanders can command troops to counterattack. In my opinion, battalion commander Zhang, on the contrary, the regimental commander at the school cannot personally lead the charge?"
"The leader of his regiment dares not to charge. Any one of us can kill him at any time!"
"For the same reason, battalion commander Zhang Fujun, if you don't dare to charge, we can kill him at any time."
"As an officer, Qi can die on the way to charge and counterattack, but is killed by the bullets of the Moon Army. How glorious would that be?"
Chen Ziyun had a serious expression on his face and said firmly.
The officers and soldiers of the Seventh Battalion gathered nearby. After hearing those words, they couldn't help but look at Chen Ziyun, and they were greatly touched in their hearts.
"Master, with your words, even if our brothers die there, they won't have any regrets."
"You don't need to personally command, they promise to take Dongzhuang Mo Town before six o'clock!"
"Please don't take Dongzhuang Mozhen. You don't need to hold him responsible, because he should have been killed by then."
A platoon leader was very excited. He looked at Chen Ziyun and said.
"That's wrong, regimental leader. They know that the brothers who died at your feet will receive an extra pension."
"Would you personally lead the team in battle after battle? Your words are enough."
"They promise to capture Dongzhuang Mo Town before six o'clock. You can watch them attack from there."
"If anyone in the 7th Battalion retreats without authorization, the machine gun company of the 6th Battalion will be used without them. Let them keep their bullets to fight the Japanese."
"They promised that as long as there are those who evacuate without permission, they can clean up those scum themselves."
The soldiers all said that their morale had become high because of Chen Ziyun's words.
Zhang Fu was stunned for a moment, he did not expect that Chen Ziyun would have such a great influence.
Vaguely, Zhang Fujun could feel that the seventh battalion seemed to be less and less under his control.
(End of chapter)
This chapter has been completed!