Chapter 664: Are we still going to launch a general attack?
"Boom...boom..."
Although the bombing had ended several minutes ago, bombs still exploded on the ground from time to time.
The Liantai militia used German-made SD-2 series cluster bombs, which are considered the earliest cluster bombs in the world.
The most vicious thing about these bombs is that their fuze settings are randomly set at the factory. Some will explode in the air and some will explode a few seconds or minutes after landing. Therefore, even the manufacturer does not know what is in a cluster bomb.
Hundreds of small bombs, when will they explode?
The explosions that sounded from time to time were like hammers hitting the nearly collapsed Japanese soldiers. Even those Japanese officers who were usually aloof were mostly lying in the mud at this time, unwilling to get up and command the troops.
For them, every time a small bomb explodes, it always takes someone's life.
The plane had already left, and the road was in a mess, filled with the wails and groans of wounded soldiers.
Occasionally, some brave health soldiers would rush out of their bunkers onto the highway to rescue the wounded, regardless of the risk of bombs in the mud exploding again, and drag them into the roadside or into the rainforest, but these were only a minority after all.
More soldiers just lay there in fear, letting the wounded soldiers struggle in the mud until they died.
After more than twenty minutes, there was finally no sound of the small bombs exploding, and the Japanese officers lying in the mud regained some courage, slowly walked out of the jungle on the roadside, and ordered the soldiers to treat the wounded.
, regroup in order to continue heading south.
…………
"Your Excellency General, I have recently received intelligence. The Ueda detachment that just landed on the island three days ago was attacked by Chinese aircraft during the march. The Ueda detachment suffered heavy losses. Colonel Ueda Kazuyuki asked us to send troops to rescue them." A staff officer.
The telegram was handed over to the supreme commander of Guadalcanal, Hyakutake Haruyoshi.
After receiving the telegram, Hyakutake Harukichi did not read it, but closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if suppressing his anger. After a while, he asked: "What are the specific casualties of the Ueda detachment?"
"Colonel Ueda said... According to a rough estimate, the number of casualties in their detachment is around 1,800, and they only have about 2,000 people who can still move."
"In other words, the number of casualties in the Ueda detachment has been nearly half?"
"Yes, Your Excellency!"
The staff officer didn't know how to comfort his superior. The Ueda detachment was a unit transferred from the standing field division on the Huaxia Pass battlefield.
The original intention of the base camp was to deploy this elite force to Guadalcanal to enhance the combat effectiveness of the Guadalcanal army. However, no one expected that after traveling thousands of miles, the troops would be blown up by the opponent's aircraft before they could reach their destination and enter the battle.
.
Now, Hyakutake Haruyoshi's heart can be described as full of mixed emotions.
For a unit like the Ueda detachment, let them continue to reinforce Turululu Leshan. How much combat effectiveness can such a bombed-out unit be able to exert? The most terrible thing is that no one can guarantee that it will still be there during the next journey.
We will not continue to be bombed by planes.
But it's unrealistic for them to go back home. The warship that sent them here has already returned, so there's no way they can even think about going home.
Perhaps aware of his commander's predicament, the staff officer made a suggestion, "Your Majesty General, how about we send a report to the Ueda detachment and let them garrison on the spot. It won't be too late to come back and meet with us after a period of rest."
"The Ueda detachment has run out of food, and this bombing by the Chinese shows that their position has been exposed. If they are allowed to garrison on the spot, it will only be a dead end.
Let's do this, you immediately send them a report, let them rest during the day, march at night, and reach Tuluru Mountain at the speed of a forced march."
"Your Excellency, General..." the staff officer's voice became a little trembling. This decision of Momotake Haruyoshi was tantamount to pushing the Ueda detachment into the abyss.
The Ueda detachment is still one day away from Turululu Mountain, and there are still a large number of wounded among them. Once the forced march is carried out, most of the wounded will inevitably be abandoned. In such a dangerous rain forest, you can imagine the fate of the wounded who have lost the protection of their comrades.
And know.
Hyakutake Harukichi naturally noticed the inner fluctuations of the staff, but he still said expressionlessly: "If we do this, at least one-third of the people can reach Tuluru Mountain. If we delay it any longer, we will wait until the Chinese people
If the plane comes again, the Ueda detachment will really be finished! Do you understand?"
"Hi, got it!"
…………
At 17:00 on October 28, the defenders on the east side of Tuluru Mountain took advantage of the rare sunny day and worked hard to strengthen their fortifications under the scorching sun that set in the west.
Just today, the Ueda detachment finally arrived at Tuluru Mountain. However, unlike the expected rest and meal upon arrival at the destination, the Ueda detachment was thrown here to repair fortifications as soon as they arrived.
Continuous heavy rains in the tropical rainforest turned the construction of fortifications into disasters and the trenches turned into mud ditches.
In addition, the soil on Guadalcanal is very alkaline, and hundreds of people suffer from trench foot after being soaked in muddy water every day. In mild cases, the skin peels and bleeds, and in severe cases, the toenails fall off and the stubble is exposed. In short, this place is hell.
But the fortifications still need to be repaired. After all, this is a life-saving thing.
Suddenly, a whooshing sound was heard in the air, followed by a deafening explosion.
Yoshino Ozawa, who was struggling to dig soil, quickly rolled into a trench with a foot of water. After the explosion shock wave passed, Ozawa saw half of a comrade's body not far away blown up into the sky.
When the bombardment stopped, Yoshino Ozawa, who barely stood up from the muddy water, had a splitting headache. He felt that the earth was pitch black and the surroundings were dead. He gritted his teeth and wanted to move forward. Suddenly, his vision turned black and he lost consciousness.
On the afternoon of October 28, Gao Hongming assembled two artillery battalions with more than 70 artillery pieces to launch a fierce bombardment on the east side of Tuluru Mountain. The flash of exploding rows of shells turned the sky orange-red.
After a few rounds of shelling, the trenches that the Japanese army had finally dug were reduced to rubble and mud.
Originally, Gao Hongming planned to bombard for at least an hour, and he had prepared enough bombs for this purpose. However, just over ten minutes into the bombardment, a strong wind suddenly blew, the sky suddenly became dark, and raindrops began to fall from the sky.
Heavy rain poured down, the wind howled, and the surrounding area was in chaos and mist. All sounds were covered up by the violent wind and rain. When lightning tore through the darkness, thunder suddenly sounded.
"Damn it, this damn weather!"
Gao Hongming cursed bitterly.
He was also puzzled. He had never experienced good weather since he came to Guadalcanal. Now that it was good, lightning started to thunder on the day of the general attack.
"Sir, do we still need to launch a general offensive in this weather?" Chi Yaohui walked up to him and asked softly.