By seven o'clock in the evening, almost all the battalions and companies that had been dispersed had returned to their formation. Only a few small units that had been chased far away had not yet been able to come back. A rough estimate of the results of the battle showed that more than 2,000 Japanese soldiers were killed in this battle.
They captured and beheaded more than 500 people alive. The two infantry regiments of Chongteng detachment plus the mountain artillery regiment were basically wiped out.
Regiment deputy Liu Yi and several battalion commanders and battalion deputy are all back. They are all tired as dogs, but also excited to death. This is the army. If it keeps losing battles, it will be weak even if it is done with a woman.
Yes, but if they always win the battle, hey, if you let them run cross-country with heavy loads, it will be like an outing.
Yue Weihan ignored the group of braggadocios, but looked at the map in front of him and pondered.
Since the Baoshan Regiment rested in Shanguan Town from the evening of December 13th to the morning of the 14th, it has been almost continuously marching for nearly 60 hours. It only rested for half a day in Taipingzhuang yesterday. The officers and soldiers were both mentally and physically.
I have reached my limit, so I should take a good rest in Liuhe County.
However, the situation is so pressing that the Baoshan regiment has no time to rest and recuperate!
Because the 700,000 refugees in Nanjing are waiting to cross the river, they have no time!
Yue Weihan knows how dangerous the current situation in Nanjing is. Yue Weihan knows better than anyone else. To describe it as dangerous is to say that it is not an exaggeration. The Baoshan Regiment's brief rest in Liuhe County can indeed allow the officers and soldiers to regain their physical strength and refresh themselves. But this may not be it.
The delay of more than ten hours gave the Japanese troops on the West Route the opportunity to seize Pukou.
Yue Weihan knew better than anyone else that there were more than one route for the Japanese troops to detour around Pukou. In addition to the north route composed of the Shigeto detachment and the Tashiro unit, there was also the west route composed of the Kunisaki detachment. In terms of time, the Kunisaki detachment on the west route had at least already fought.
When we arrived in He County, it was still more than a hundred miles away from Pukou.
Thinking of this Guoqi detachment, Yue Weihan's mood suddenly became extremely solemn.
Because this Kunisaki detachment is mainly composed of the 9th Brigade of the 5th Division plus an independent mountain artillery regiment!
The 5th Division is the famous Sakagaki Division. Seishiro Sakagaki, an old devil, only used half a division to defeat the Central Army in the North China battlefield. The Shanxi-Sui Army has more than 30 elite divisions. This shows that the 5th Division
The fierce power and strong combat effectiveness! The Kunisaki Detachment is composed of the other half of the Sakagaki Division plus the independent 3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment. Although there is no old devil like Sakagaki personally taking command, the combat effectiveness can't be any worse.
go?
There is no doubt that this Kunozaki detachment is much stronger than any opponent the Baoshan regiment has faced before!
Whether it is the 36th Regiment in the Battle of Jingjiang, the 104th Regiment in the Battle of Yangzhou, or the Chongteng Detachment in the Battle of Yizheng, they cannot be compared with the Kunozaki Detachment.
What's more, the Baoshan Regiment was able to wipe out the two infantry brigades of the 36th Regiment in Jingjiang entirely because Colonel Nakagawa was eager for success and hurriedly crossed the river to launch an attack without artillery units participating in the battle. As a result, the Baoshan Regiment forced him to attack.
On the river beach, although the Baoshan regiment was lucky enough to win, they also suffered heavy casualties.
As for the Tashiro United Team and the Shigeto Detachment, it’s an injustice to say that they were defeated!
If the Baoshan Regiment hadn't luckily robbed the ammunition supplies of the Tashiro Regiment and Shigeto Detachment, causing the Japanese army to be in a dilemma of running out of ammunition and food, the Baoshan Regiment might not have been able to win even if its troops were five times stronger. Of course, Yue Weihan's extraordinary tactics
The ability to command and make decisions on the fly also played an immeasurable role.
But now, the Kunisaki Detachment that the Baoshan Regiment will face is better equipped than the 36th Regiment, more well-trained than the Tashiro Regiment, and more powerful than the Shigeto Detachment. The Shigeto Detachment's mountain artillery regiment is equipped with 75
Mountain artillery, but the 3rd Independent Mountain Artillery Regiment of Kunizaki Detachment is equipped with 105 mountain artillery!
Don't underestimate the 30mm caliber difference. The 105 mountain gun is much more lethal than the 75 mountain gun.
If Niu Dagen's artillery battalion dares to engage in an artillery battle with the mountain artillery regiment of the Guoqi detachment, it will definitely be bombarded to a pulp.
To sum up, the Japanese Kunisaki Detachment not only has an absolutely superior force, but also has an absolutely superior artillery, and the logistics supply line is unobstructed, and there is no need to worry about a lack of ammunition. No matter how high Yue Weihan's tactical command ability is, no matter how excellent his ability to make decisions on the spot, this
I'm afraid it will be difficult to make up for the huge gap in strength between the two sides.
However, no matter how great the difficulties are, this battle must still be fought!
Even though we know that there will be death and no life here, we must guard Pukou!
Yue Weihan's consciousness may not be very high, but as a man, he will never sit back and watch the old, young, women and children being slaughtered by the Japanese invaders. As a soldier, he will not abandon innocent civilians in fire and water. Again, for the sake of the 700,000 refugees in Nanjing.
, why would he, Yue Weihan, regret to die? Why would all the officers and soldiers of the Baoshan Regiment regret to die?
Having made a decision in his heart, Yue Weihan immediately turned around and shouted: "Deputy Liu Tuan."
Liu Yi, who was blowing nonsense next to him, quickly ran forward, stood up straight and said, "Yes!"
Yue Weihan said: "Immediately prepare a detailed telegram on the battle of Yangzhou and the battle of Yizheng fought by our regiment in the past two days and report the victory to the theater headquarters."
"The rice has been made a long time ago. It's all white rice and dry rice." Tang Dashan immediately replied, "Now the security team is busy stewing meat. The squire representative from Liuhe County sent six big fat pigs. Hehe, we just have to wait for everyone to prepare the meat."
Once all the brothers are here, dinner can be served."
"No more waiting." Yue Weihan waved his hand and said, "Those who arrive first eat first, and leave immediately after eating!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the battalion commander and battalion lieutenants present all turned their heads with astonishment on their faces.
Chi Chengfeng murmured even more dissatisfied: "Grandma, this time our Baoshan regiment won several great battles in succession, and the squires from Liuhe County brought us all the wine and meat. Shouldn't we have a celebratory drink? Besides,
Brothers, we haven’t had a sound sleep for three days and two nights. It’s time to take a hot bath and have a good night’s sleep tonight, right?”
Cao Xinglong also advised in a solemn tone: "Team members, brothers are indeed very tired. Do you think..."
"No way." Yue Weihan sighed, beckoned several battalion commanders and deputy battalion officers to come to the map, and then said in an extremely solemn tone, "Look, this is Pukou, and He County is only a hundred miles to the west.
The theater headquarters just received a call that the Japanese army’s Kunisaki detachment has arrived in Hexian County!”
Of course Yue Weihan was talking nonsense. He had not received the telegram from the theater headquarters at all.
However, Yue Weihan is not completely lying. Once Yanagawa Heisuke's Tenth Army captures Wuhu, there is no doubt that it will divide its troops and cross the Yangtze River to flank Pukou. Moreover, most of this army will still be the Kunisaki detachment. As for whether it has already reached He County, it is
It is difficult to judge, after all, the process of the Nanjing Defense War has deviated greatly from history.
The battalion commanders and deputy battalion commanders immediately fell silent. They were all veterans of the battlefield. Naturally, they knew that once Hexian fell, Pukou's flanks would be completely exposed, and once Pukou fell, the hundreds of thousands of people trapped in Nanjing would be trapped.
The military and hundreds of thousands of refugees who have not had time to evacuate will immediately become turtles in the urn.
In this way, the Baoshan Regiment's great victories in Yangzhou and Yizheng would be meaningless.
After all, the Baoshan regiment is the most miserable, and they don't even have time to take a breath.
Thinking of this, several battalion commanders and deputy battalion commanders felt resentful, thinking that it would be fun to fight with the regiment, but it was also really hard. When would such hard days end?
Yue Weihan naturally knew what his subordinates were thinking, but he could only grit his teeth and harden his heart!
He, Yue Weihan, has no retreat, the Baoshan regiment has no retreat, the hundreds of thousands of national troops and 700,000 refugees in Nanjing have no retreat, and the entire Chinese nation has no retreat!
…
Nanjing, garrison theater headquarters.
General Tang was staring at the simulated sand table in front of him with blood-red eyes. On the sand table, the small blue flag representing the Japanese army had been planted on the Purple Mountain, while the small red flag representing the national army was covered with a sad expression.
The staff pulled it out, which meant that the Purple Mountain position had been lost, and so had the former Prime Minister's mausoleum.
Lieutenant General Gui Yongqing and his teaching team have tried their best. The two teaching groups deployed on the Zijin Mountain position of more than 5,000 people have been reduced to less than 500 people. If it were not for the disobedience of the guards, Lieutenant General Gui
I am afraid that it has been shattered with the position. Thinking of this, General Tang couldn't help but sigh. The officers and soldiers of the training corps are all good.
When General Tang was sighing, the adjutant walked in with a solemn expression: "Commander, He County has been lost!"
"What did you say? Hexian was lost?" General Tang's expression suddenly changed. When he looked down anxiously, he saw that a staff officer had already found the location of Hexian on the sand table, and pulled down the little red flag that was stuck on it.
Replaced with a small blue flag.
General Tang's face had turned a little gray and he said: "Which Japanese army captured He County?"
"Kunizaki Detachment!" the adjutant said solemnly, "It is composed of the 9th Brigade of the 5th Division and the 3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment."
"The 5th Division?" General Tang's face became increasingly pale, "North China Front Army Seishiro Sakagaki's troops?"
"Yes." The adjutant nodded solemnly. The ferocious power of the 5th Division was no longer a secret in the national army camp. As the chief and deputy commander-in-chief of the second theater, Yan Xishan and Wei Lihuang certainly had good reputations.
Although they were sweeping the floor, Sakagaki, an old Japanese soldier, and his 5th Division earned enough face for the Japanese army.
The staff officers nearby also began to discuss.
"Once He County is lost, the west side of Pukou will be completely exposed."
"With just one security team, there is no way we can guard Pukou."
"Yes, even if the Baoshan regiment can defend Yangzhou now, it is meaningless."
"The situation is already very critical. I think we must immediately deploy elite troops to defend Pukou."
"Deploying elite troops? From where? There are still two Sichuan regiments, but can they stop the Kunisaki detachment?"
"Yes, the 5th Division is a first-class division in the order of battle of the Japanese army. It is one of the seven old divisions established during the Meiji Restoration. It is not only well-equipped, but also well-trained and has extremely strong combat effectiveness. Otherwise, Ban
It’s impossible for an old Japanese like Yuan to defeat Yan Laoxi and Wei Lihuang’s thirty-some divisions with just half a division!”
General Tang's eyes were also darkening. For this battle, the troops in the Nanjing Garrison Theater had already been used to their limit. Every position was struggling to support them. Where could they mobilize more troops? As for the two troops that had been withdrawn from Guangde.
The Sichuan Army has a thousand men, but only a hundred or so guns made in Hanyang, so they are useless?
Unless one or two divisions are mobilized, there is no way to block the Kunisaki detachment!
"Commander, good news! Great victory in Yangzhou!" At this moment, the chief of staff rushed in with excitement.
"Great victory? Yangzhou?" Tang General Rumeng Fangxing said, "Has the Baoshan Regiment repelled the attack of the Chongteng Detachment?"
"It's more than just a retreat!" Chief of Staff Shi Po said in shock, "From yesterday morning to late this night, the Baoshan Regiment had four battles and four victories in Jiangbei. It not only annihilated the Japanese 104th Regiment, but also took advantage of the victory to defeat the Chongteng Detachment. Now Bei
The Japanese troops on the road have been wiped out, and the Baoshan Regiment is marching westward with all its strength to help Pukou!"