The captain of the Japanese baggage regiment had a good idea and his response was very fast, but he still far underestimated the strength of the Eighth Route Army besieging the dock.
I feel that no matter how strong they are, they can't get much stronger, and they won't have too many troops.
After all, he had never heard of the activities of the organized Eighth Route Army in the Pingjin area.
Little did they know that there were more than 2,000 Eighth Route Army troops attacking the dock, all of them veterans.
Not only does it have more troops than the baggage regiment, but its light weapons and equipment are also more sophisticated than the baggage regiment.
If it weren't for the fact that the march was too far and Deputy Chief of Staff Huang couldn't help everyone carry heavy weapons in order to prevent the team from being too bloated and exposing their targets, the two thousand-man army would have been equipped with dozens of field cannons.
…………
"Boom boom boom..."
The sound of dense mortar shell explosions soon sounded along the defense lines around the dock.
The commander immediately climbed to the roof of the headquarters building, raised his telescope and looked in the direction of the explosion.
On the battlefield more than a thousand meters away, groups of fireballs rose into the sky like fireworks, and the dark battlefield was brightly illuminated by these fireballs.
The commander of the regiment could clearly see his soldiers being blown away by artillery fire.
Also blown away were sandbags used to build bunkers...
"Tick-tick...tick-tock..."
The loud sound of the charge bugle, along with the sounds of firefights on the battlefield, reached the commander's ears, and he raised his binoculars again.
Hundreds of Eighth Route Army soldiers suddenly appeared in the night. They were like wolves and tigers, carrying various weapons, roaring and charging forward.
The combat effectiveness of the baggage troops was originally very poor. After a round of artillery fire, the remaining combat effectiveness was almost negligible.
Hundreds of Eighth Route Army troops successfully captured the first line of defense of the wharf defended by the baggage train company in just one assault.
The attacking troops did not stop, but formed a combat formation and continued to attack forward.
In less than five minutes, they broke through the two defense lines on the periphery of the pier and headed straight for the naval station.
There are not many naval forces stationed at the Tianjin Pier. There are more than 300 people in total. They only have twice as many gunboats for offshore patrols, and their land combat capabilities are almost zero.
If they were allowed to fight to the naval base, but the naval officers and soldiers there did not board the ship, facing hundreds of elite Eighth Route Army troops who were eyeing them eagerly, the result waiting for them would be the complete destruction of the entire army.
The commander quickly put down his telescope, turned to his subordinates and ordered: "Immediately contact the captain of the offshore gunboat unit of the Navy. The Eighth Route Army is attacking them. Ask them to board the ship immediately and use the guns on the gunboat to provide artillery support to the baggage wing and eliminate them."
Attack our Eighth Route Army."
"Call now, hurry up..."
Before the subordinates could move, they saw an officer rushing up from the stairs. When he saw the captain, he was like seeing a savior. He reported anxiously: "Your Excellency, captain..."
"Something happened..."
"Something big happened..."
"All telephone lines connecting the headquarters to the outside have been cut off. They must have been cut off by the Eighth Route Army attacking us from outside."
"All the troops stationed at various defense lines at the dock were attacked, and the two baggage trains remaining at the station were also attacked. We were unable to support the headquarters. We could only rely on our own strength to defend the headquarters."
"Wait until they defeat the other attacking units of the Eighth Route Army before coming to support us."
"Nani..."
The captain was shocked by the news.
Raise the telescope again and look around.
Faced with this sudden accident, he suddenly realized that he had underestimated the strength of his opponent and the devastating blow that this raid might bring to the dock.
This time he watched very carefully, watching all the battles taking place on every defensive line around the dock.
The more he looked at it, the deeper his frown deepened. He put down his telescope and hurried to the headquarters. As soon as he entered the door, he began to issue orders: "Send a telegram to the front army headquarters immediately."
"Tianjin Pier was attacked by unknown Eighth Route Army."
"The opponent has at least two thousand people, well-equipped, and very powerful in combat. Please support..."
"Send another telegram to the naval gunboat detachment and ask naval officers and soldiers to board the ship immediately, activate all gunboats, and provide artillery support to the baggage regiment from the sea."
"The Eighth Route Army has too many troops and a fierce offensive. This is our only chance to repel their attack and hold the dock."
"Boom boom boom..."
As soon as the captain finished speaking, a series of violent explosions sounded above his head.
I was so frightened that I broke out in cold sweat.
Fortunately, I just realized the danger and immediately climbed to the roof and returned to the war room. Otherwise, the few mortar shells that just hit the roof would definitely take my life.
"Sir, the Eighth Route Army attacking the headquarters is equipped with mortars... and is attacking us with mortars..." The messenger rushed into the war room with a panic-stricken look on his face and reported.
"It's okay..." Although the captain felt guilty, he still pretended to be calm and replied.
"The building where the headquarters is located is a concrete structure, and ordinary mortar shells cannot do anything to us."
"All the security forces retreated to the headquarters, relying on the building where the headquarters is located to wait for reinforcements, and block the Eighth Route Army's attack at all costs."
…………
When the Japanese captain was trapped in the building where the headquarters was located and fought against the Eighth Route Army to the end.
At the same time, a main company that entered the dock happened to enter the warehouse.
The baggage regiment has a limited force. After deducting the peripheral security troops and the garrisons on each defense line, and deducting two squadrons of mobile troops, only a small patrol force is arranged here.
Facing the sudden appearance of the Eighth Route Army in front of them, they were not only surprised, they were also caught off guard and had no power to parry.
A patrolman from the baggage team was killed without even holding on for five minutes.
"Battal Commander... This warehouse is full of weapons, as well as a lot of artillery and armored fighting vehicles..." A squad leader hurried over to report holding a newly captured light machine gun.
"Haha... now we have weapons and ammunition to fight the Japanese."
"The deputy chief of staff is absolutely right. Tianjin Pier is a fucking huge arsenal."
"Send a signal to the leader immediately and ask him to bring people over quickly."
"The first two platoons went to the warehouse to bring out some more heavy machine guns and some ammunition, and immediately established a defense line around the warehouse."
"Except for our own people, no one can live near the warehouse."
Ten minutes later, the regiment leader came to the warehouse with a team of troops. When he saw his subordinates, he asked anxiously: "Old Zhang... are there any mountain guns in the warehouse..."
"Yes... they are all brand new..." Battalion Commander Zhang, who took down the warehouse area with his own hands, answered confidently.
"In addition to mountain artillery, there are also many large-caliber heavy artillery and tanks..."
The regiment leader laughed after hearing this, looked at Battalion Commander Zhang and praised him: "You have made a great contribution, boy."
After saying that, he ordered to his subordinates behind him: "Artillerymen, follow me to push the cannon, bring more shells, and knock down the enemy's headquarters as soon as possible."
"The armored troops immediately took over the armored fighting vehicles, replenished ammunition and fuel, and cooperated with the infantry to seize the entire dock."
