Chapter 42 Flat-firing artillery to deal with machine gun fire
Xia Yuan looked at the crowd and shook his head.
"If you don't use a good gun, it will rust sooner or later. If you don't use it, no matter how good the troops are, they will not be able to show their strength if they are so well equipped."
Commander Qiu looked at the soldiers in the guard platoon and said: "A good knife needs to be sharpened frequently. I make the decision on this matter. Lao Qiu, you lead the guard platoon and follow him. His orders are equivalent to my orders."
Seeing this, Qiu Zhengfu did not refuse: "Yes!"
In this way, Xia Yuan left the temporary headquarters of the 401st Regiment with an "alternative bet" agreement with Commander Qiu and a guard platoon with luxurious weapons and equipment.
Platoon Leader Zhao and others were waiting outside, sitting on a broken gun head.
"We've been in here for so long, and there were gunshots just now, so there shouldn't be any problems." The scholar paced back and forth with some worry, and saw that the three of them were indifferent, "Platoon leader, go and say something, or else
Let’s go in and take a look.”
"Look, don't worry, nothing will happen." Platoon leader Zhao looked very relaxed. He was full of confidence in Xia Yuan. After all, that night, Xia Yuan acted alone against the Japanese detachment. Both he and Zheng Dayong
See it in your eyes.
Xia Yuan's combat prowess was the first time in his several years in the army that he had seen such a powerful individual combatant.
Not to mention him, even Captain Du, or even the new battalion commander, may not have even half of Xia Yuan's abilities.
Platoon leader Zhao trusts Xia Yuan and believes in Xia Yuan. Only he can lead him to win the battle.
The scholar's worries were in vain. Xia Yuan came out along the deep alley. When the scholar saw it, he immediately clapped his hands happily: "It's out, it's out, and there is a group of soldiers behind it."
The three of them couldn't sit still anymore. They stood up one by one and looked into the deep alley. Xia Yuan walked out, followed by a group of soldiers with luxurious weapons and equipment. The submachine guns exuding a bright color were a bit dazzling. Several people looked at Xia Yuan in stunned silence.
The regular army behind them, whether it is their military uniforms or the weapons and equipment they carry, are far more luxurious than the new barracks.
Platoon leader Zhao walked up to Xia Yuan and asked, "What is going on? They are..."
Xia Yuan said calmly: "We have received a combat mission. The Japanese army has stationed a small team of troops in Qiaojiazhai. Our mission is to capture Qiaojiazhai. These are the support given to us by the regiment commander."
"What? Did I hear you correctly? We are going on a mission?"
The scholar was a little confused. What was the situation? How could they go in? They were about to go to the front line to perform tasks. The situation changed too quickly.
No one knew what happened, so Xia Yuan told the story.
Platoon leader Zhao asked: "Why don't you refuse?"
Xia Yuan shook his head: "We have already entered someone else's regiment headquarters. Can refusing solve the problem? Maybe if one side refuses, the other side will arrest us and say we are deserters. Even if we have a hundred mouths, we can't explain clearly.
"
After thinking about it carefully, what Xia Yuan said makes sense.
"I just escaped from death, and now I have to go back." Platoon Leader Zhao looked a little depressed. He was not afraid of death, but he didn't want to die in a daze. His narrow escape gave him a feeling of surviving a disaster. Now he turned around and went back.
Naturally, I felt a little unhappy.
"I have applied with Commander Qiu. You can choose to stay. I can go by myself." Xia Yuan glanced at a few people and said, "Captain Qiu said that he will take good care of you. Follow Commander Qiu, you
They should retreat to the Jiading area to rest and recuperate."
"What about you?" the scholar asked.
"I still want to stay. The war is not over yet, and there is no point in going back." Xia Yuan said solemnly: "The battlefield is my destination."
The four of them were somewhat silent and looked at each other.
Platoon leader Zhao said: "You're a fool to stay here. Without you, would we be able to come back alive? Zheng Dayong, if Xia Yuan hadn't wiped out Little Japan last night, would you still be alive to see me? Are you here now?"
Where are they? There are also scholars and Niu Hai. Without Xia Yuan, it’s just you two who can survive on the battlefield?"
Everyone thought for a while and shook their heads.
The scholar gritted his teeth: "We can't survive. The Japanese have blocked us in the house. If it weren't for Brother Xia Yuan and the squad leader, we would have died by now. This life was given by Brother Xia Yuan. I'm going!"
"I'll go too!"
Dozens of people in the guard platoon looked at them with admiration in their hearts. From the conversations of these people, it could be seen that Xia Yuan saved these people alone. If it weren't for Xia Yuan, they would all have died on the battlefield.
"Then let's go, I will bring you back alive."
There was nothing to say, and Xia Yuan didn't talk so much nonsense. He walked up to Li Wan who was squatting in the corner and asked, "What are your plans? Are you going to follow us, or stay here and wait for your company commander."
Li Wan thought for a moment, glanced at the well-equipped guard platoon, and heard Xia Yuan continue: "We are going to perform a mission."
"I'll stay here."
After saying that, Li Wan fell silent.
Xia Yuan did not force the other party. Being able to go to the battlefield proved the other party's courage. He turned to Qiu Zhengfu and said, "Let's go."
Getting on the road again, they headed in the direction of Luodian. It was basically a large plain with no mountains. The ground undulations were also very gentle. The woods took root in the plains one by one. The air was filled with the smell of gunpowder smoke. There was no sun in the sky.
Dark clouds were shrouded, and as far as the eye could see, the muddy road was winding and winding. Soldiers of the National Army were collecting the bodies of dead soldiers on the road. Along the way, the number of retreating National Army soldiers was very large, scattered, defeated, and dejected.
Luodian was occupied by the Japanese army for a period of time. They launched several attacks on the Japanese army in Luodian, but all ended in failure. Many people were killed and injured. The continuous defeats affected many people's emotions. They were disappointed and defeated in the army.
The spread of the epidemic, coupled with the officers' scolding of the national soldiers, caused the national army, which was already weak in combat effectiveness, to almost lose its combat effectiveness.
This is common in any army.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! The guard platoon was well-equipped and attracted many defeated skirmishers. They looked at the troops running against them and stared at them for a long time before letting go.
Come down.
"These are soldiers of the 401st Regiment. Last night's attack did not make effective progress. The troops suffered too many casualties, so they had no choice but to withdraw from the battle." Qiu Zhengfu's voice was a little deep, "It's not their fault. The Japanese army's firepower
The equipment was too fierce. A Japanese team holding the position was equipped with two heavy machine guns and several light machine guns, and its firepower completely crushed us."
The Japanese army is equipped with a 37mm anti-tank gun, also called a 37mm flat-firing cannon. Even at night, as long as the machine gun on the Chinese army fires and the flames flicker at the muzzle, the flat-firing cannon will fire a shell.
Knock out the machine gun firepower of the National Army. Each company of the Central Army of the National Army only has a few Czech guns. After a battle, there are not many machine guns left.
Xia Yuan glanced at Qiu Zhengfu and felt somewhat surprised.
However, Qiu Zhengfu didn't know enough about the battlefield situation and the Japanese devils. He didn't have much firepower to crush them. The Chinese army was also equipped with a lot of Czech equipment, and the number of the Chinese army also occupied an overwhelming advantage. The Japanese army had
Artillery and air force, as well as the means to deal with the firepower points of the Chinese army, but the Chinese army did not have the means to deal with the Japanese army's firepower points.
The most critical point is that the wrong decisions and wrong combat plans by the top leaders were the reasons for the ultimate failure of this battle.
He did not deny the bravery of the Gui army, but without strong firepower, it was obviously wrong to adopt a central breakthrough method, especially when fighting on such plains and with few bunkers, launching a deadly attack on the Japanese positions.
The charge is a very stupid behavior.
Of course, he is evaluating the present from the perspective of the future. Looking at the future, this is indeed the case.
Wrong combat plans, wrong decisions, coupled with various subtle problems such as supplies and troop replenishment, the battle is doomed to fail.
After walking for about ten minutes, a group of wounded soldiers came towards them. Platoon Leader Zhao's voice interrupted Xia Yuan's thoughts.
"Company Commander Xu!"
"Why are you here?"
Xia Yuan took a look and saw that it was Captain Xu and his Eighth Company. The thirty or so people were not moving very fast and they had to stop and go to get here.
Company Commander Xu looked at the group of them, and his eyes fell on the guard platoon behind Xia Yuan. Each man had a submachine gun. They were obviously not ordinary troops. He suddenly remembered the guard platoon next to the regimental leader, and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.
"We are on a mission." Xia Yuan stepped forward and spoke to Captain Xu, "Captain Xu, if you walk along this road for another half an hour, you will see a village, where the 401st Regiment is resting.
"
"Okay." Company Commander Xu heard that the other party was on a mission and agreed without asking any more questions.
"Company Commander Xu, do you know this place called Qiaojiazhai?" Xia Yuan suddenly asked.
"Qiaojiazhai! Are you going to Qiaojiazhai to perform a mission?" Captain Xu was startled and immediately thought of something: "I am talking too much."
Xia Yuan's heart moved: "Captain Xu, this mission is not confidential. The mission we received is to attack the Japanese army at Qiao's residence."
Company Commander Xu said: "The situation in Qiao's house is very complicated."
After hearing this, Qiu Zhengfu asked: "Company Commander Xu knows the situation of Qiao's house very well?"
Company Commander Xu glanced at Qiu Zhengfu, and when he saw the other person's clothes, he knew he was extraordinary, so he asked: "This is..."
Xia Yuandao: "His surname is Qiu, and he is the platoon leader of Commander Qiu's personal guard platoon."
Company Commander Xu's eyes narrowed slightly and he spoke truthfully: "Chief Qiu, to tell you the truth, our company was one of the troops that attacked Qiao's residence. The Japanese army built very tight fortifications in Qiao's residence. Without heavy weapons, you guys can't get in."
"
"Captain Xu, you are very familiar with the situation over there. Why don't you take us there." Xia Yuan remembered that Captain Xu once said that when he had the opportunity, he would return to the battlefield to fight the Japanese devils and die.
Brothers take revenge.
And right now, this is the opportunity.
Company Commander Xu thought for a while and nodded: "Okay, I'll explain it to them."
After a while, Captain Xu came back with a few uninjured soldiers, "Li Wan is still in the village. I asked the wounded to go first to find Li Wan. These are all uninjured. There are more people and more strength."
"
There were several gray-faced soldiers, carrying several broken guns on their backs. They had very few bullets left on their bodies, and the grenades on their waists were exhausted. He took off the grenades on his body and gave them to the opponent.
"Do you know how to use the hand grenade of the little Japanese devil?"
"It works." A soldier smiled.
Xia Yuan nodded and said to Company Commander Xu: "Aren't you afraid that I will kill your soldiers?"
"I'm afraid. If I were really afraid, I wouldn't take them with me."
Company Commander Xu smiled and said nothing more. Commander Qiu handed over the personal guard platoon to the other party's command. This shows how much Commander Qiu trusts Xia Yuan and how little he matters.
"Qiaojiazhai is a deep compound. There are many houses around it, which have been transformed into military fortresses by the Japanese army. Machine guns are placed in these houses, which can form cross fire and control the three streets attacking Qiaojiazhai. It is easy to defend.
A difficult place to attack."
"The Qiao family's house has two floors and is taller than the surrounding houses. The Japanese's firepower was able to shoot down from above. We fought for two hours in a row and suffered heavy casualties. Only about thirty people died."
On the way, Captain Xu briefly told Xia Yuan and Qiu Zhengfu about the situation in Qiaojiazhai: "When our company went to fight, two companies had already come down. They all failed and suffered heavy casualties. Even the street where the Japanese army was at the forefront was destroyed.
Didn’t touch it.”
With crossfire and condescending position, only three streets could launch an attack on Qiao's residence. In the absence of effective firepower, the Japanese troops held this place, which was really easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Only after conducting an on-site survey of the battlefield can the next attack plan be determined.
Xia Yuandao: "Let's go over and take a look before making a decision."
Qiu Zhengfu asked: "You don't have a general action plan yet?"
"To be honest, we don't have a complete attack plan yet." Xia Yuan shook his head.
Qiu Zhengfu and Captain Xu were at a loss for words. They didn't even have an attack plan, so they rushed over hastily. This was too hasty.
"The situation on the battlefield is changing every moment. No matter how well-prepared you are, you cannot cope with sudden situations and remain unchanged in response to all changes."
Qiu Zhengfu and Company Commander Xu felt that what Xia Yuan said made sense, but they still felt strange.
The sky was gray, and roars could be heard from far away. The Japanese planes launched a fierce bombardment on the national troops holding the defense line. There were roars everywhere, houses were blown down, and the already broken ruins were in ruins.
It was almost crushed into powder under the artillery fire, and the attacking national troops suffered huge casualties.
The situation is getting worse for the national soldiers of the 18th Brigade of the 6th Division.
Direction to Qiaojiazhai.
The Chinese army launched several attacks against the Japanese troops stationed here, but all ended in failure. The Japanese army relied on the indestructible fortifications and used light and heavy firepower to blockade the three streets of the attack. It was not easy to get through the enemy's fire blockade.
An easy thing.
The one attacking Qiaojiazhai was the reinforced company of the 18th Brigade, with more than 200 men and nine Czech light machine guns. Qiaojiazhai was a tough nut to crack, and the reinforced company had to be dispatched.