Japanese artillery position.

The Japanese artillerymen had already dismantled the Type 92 infantry gun on the gun emplacement under the artillery fire of the independent battalion and installed it on mules and horses.

As for other mortars, since they are not heavy, they are transported in one piece.

At this time, the artillery battalion, led by commander Kasahara Koizumi, together with the guard squadron and the engineering squadron, retreated to the mountain col to the north.

Not far after they ran out, several grenades suddenly fell from the sky and exploded among the crowd.

"Boom!"

"Boom, boom!"

In the explosion and fire, dozens of little Japs were blown away, including their weapons.

Several mules and horses were also injured and frightened. After neighing a few times, they became furious and fled in all directions.

He knocked down many Japanese soldiers, and the parts of the Type 92 infantry gun he was carrying also fell down.

Immediately afterwards, another dense rain of bullets poured over.

The little devils who were caught off guard suddenly fell like grass and fell in large pieces.

"Don't panic, this is just a small force from China's Tuba Road!"

"Guard squadron, covering fire!"

After the initial panic, Kasahara Koizumi immediately ordered the Japanese soldiers of the guard squadron to provide fire cover.

He and Chief of Staff Shimono Jun, under the cover of the engineering squadron, led the artillery brigade to continue to break out.

…

at the same time.

The Japanese 2nd Battalion and 3rd Battalion on the main battlefield also received a retreat order from commander Kasahara Koizumi.

Originally, seeing that the Independent Battalion's position was about to be breached, they were unwilling to retreat at this time.

But there was no way, the captains all ran away.

The 1st Battalion was crippled again, and it would be impossible to withstand the attack of the main force of the independent battalion. Once the 1st Battalion's blocking line was torn open, they would be in the awkward position of being attacked from both sides.

Therefore, the captains of the 2nd Brigade and the 3rd Brigade only hesitated for a moment, then took turns covering each other and retreated towards the rear.

"Brothers, the battalion commander and the others are back, don't let these little devils escape!"

Seeing so many soldiers dying in front of him, Xu Hailang would naturally not let these culprits leave easily.

Upon receiving the order, several buglers immediately took out their bugles, jumped out of the bunker, puffed up their cheeks and started blowing.

"Didi-dah-dip-dip-dip-dip-did-did-did-did-did! -"

"Charge and kill!"

Amidst the loud charge horns, thousands of independent battalion soldiers and militiamen roared and chased the Japanese in the direction of retreat.

They would shoot when they were far away, and they would stab some wounded Japanese soldiers who had been abandoned by their comrades without mercy.

The Independence Camp does not need prisoners!

No, these Japs are not prisoners, they are war criminals!

…

On the other side, with the death of Jiro Tanabe, other lower-level commanders were killed by Wang Chengzhu and three other Langya snipers.

The 1st Battalion lost its unified and effective command, and its combat effectiveness was greatly reduced. The main force of the independent battalion soon broke through the defense line from the front, and then followed it and ran towards the mountain col to the north.

Soon, Xu Hailang found Wang Chengzhu and reported with regret: "Batalion Commander, I'm sorry, I failed to defend the base and let you down."

Wang Chengzhu's face darkened and he said: "I basically know the situation. The little devil has invested too many troops. It's not your fault."

"Okay, let's eliminate this devil first!"

Immediately, Wang Chengzhu led the independent battalion and continued to pursue forward.

In this way, the enemy retreated and we pursued, and the pursuit continued for 20 kilometers.

Although Kasahara Koizumi wanted to find a dangerous position to defend, waiting for reinforcements from brigade leader Nishiyama Masao.

However, he was not familiar with the nearby terrain, and the independent battalion behind him had been chasing and fighting, giving him no chance at all.

So we could only retreat all the way towards Wanjia Town.

During this period, although the Japanese counterattack caused some casualties to the Independent Battalion, their casualties as the one being beaten were more than twice as large as those of the Independent Battalion. The road was full of corpses of little Japanese who fled and were unable to restrain themselves in time.

At this moment, reconnaissance company commander Wang Shugen suddenly found Wang Chengzhu and reported to him: "Battalion Commander, a large number of Japanese soldiers have been spotted in the direction of Wanjia Town, and they are marching towards us."

Hearing this, Wang Chengzhu's face suddenly sank and he asked: "How many people are here, little devil?"

Wang Shugen: "There is at least one regiment. The specific number is not yet clear. They also dispatched several tanks this time."

Wang Chengzhu: "Nishiyama Masao really spent a lot of money. In order to deal with my independent battalion this time, he actually dispatched their armored vehicle squadron!"

Wang Chengzhu has specially investigated the firepower configuration of the Japanese 4th Brigade.

At present, in addition to two infantry regiments, the 4th Brigade also has an artillery brigade and an armored vehicle squadron, with a total of 12 Type 95 light tanks.

This tank has a 37mm-caliber main gun and two 7.7mm-caliber heavy machine guns, and its firepower is very powerful.

Its armor thickness is 6-12mm, which is enough to withstand direct fire from heavy machine guns.

Strictly speaking, the armor thickness of about 10mm of the Japanese tank is actually a thin-skinned can, which can be penetrated by Maxim's steel core bullet.

However, the equipment of the Eighth Route Army at that time was too poor. Not to mention steel-core bullets, even pointed bullets were very few.

Due to the lack of heavy anti-tank weapons, the Eighth Route Army usually had to use cluster grenades or explosive packets to explode, but the effect of this was very unsatisfactory.

Many times, the demolitions were sacrificed, but the Japs tanks were still there.

If Eighth Route Army soldiers were asked to choose the weapon they hate most, tanks would definitely rank before artillery.

Even if the Molotov cocktail can restrain the tank very well, the bombardier must be able to get close to the tank, otherwise it will be useless.

Moreover, the Eighth Route Army at that time did not know that Molotov cocktails could deal with Japanese tanks.

Wang Shugen: "Batalion Commander, what should we do now?"

Wang Chengzhu: "Stop the pursuit and retreat! In addition, your reconnaissance company will stay behind to strictly monitor every move of this Japanese army. If there is anything unusual, report it to me immediately!"

At present, the casualties of each company of the independent battalion are very heavy, the number of troops has been reduced by more than half, and the number of troops that can be put into battle is less than 1,500.

Although there are still many militiamen, the total strength exceeds 3,000.

However, not only are the militiamen poorly equipped, but their combat effectiveness is also much worse than that of the independent battalion soldiers.

Although the Japanese 22nd Regiment suffered a lot of casualties, it still had at least 2,000 people. With another regiment, the Japanese army would have more than 5,000 troops, and there was also an armored vehicle squadron.

Faced with such a Japanese army, not to mention the severely reduced independent battalion, Wang Chengzhu was not sure of defeating it even when it was at full strength.

Especially in head-on encounters.

Once the two sides collide, the independent camp will definitely lose.
Chapter completed!