Yoshikawa Saki even sent the anti-tank cannon of the 39th Division... He originally thought that the Eighth Route Army would attack the cavalry troops from the flanks, and then the long-range anti-tank cannon of the 30th Division would be able to be dispatched.
It comes in handy.
However, the Eighth Route Army began to "disintegrate" before it even hit the flanks, which left the anti-tank artillery useless.
Now, since the defeat of the Eighth Route Army has been determined, Kaoru Iwata cannot take away all the functions. Somehow, some must be left for the 39th Division... So the Japanese carried the counterattack in pairs under the cover of several groups of infantry.
The tanks took their positions in front of the guns and planned to "snipe" the Eighth Route Army's half-track vehicles.
However, at this moment the situation on the battlefield changed:
As time went by, the cavalry became slower and slower and could no longer keep up with the Japanese tanks and armored vehicles. After all, war horses were war horses and their physical strength had certain limits.
What's more, this period was just after the famine year and the Japanese were short of food. Every one of the war horses was fed half-starved and half-full... They were quite lucky to be half-starved and half-full instead of being killed for food. Many of them were
Some of the war horses also had to be used as the troops' transportation capacity for "self-reliance".
Therefore, after running wildly for a while, they were out of breath and unable to follow up. After a while, the cavalry fell far behind the armored troops.
On the other hand, because the Japanese armored forces were not large in number: 9 tanks and 10 armored vehicles, there were only 19 vehicles in total. At this time, 3 more vehicles were blown up during the battle, leaving only 16 vehicles.
If these armored vehicles and tanks are lined up tens of meters apart in front of the defense line, they can still use their armor and firepower to provide cover for the cavalry. However, if the cavalry and armored vehicles chase the Eighth Route Army's half-track vehicles everywhere and disrupt their formation, they can provide cover for the cavalry.
The cover provided was extremely limited, not to mention that the cavalry was still lagging behind at this time.
As soon as Zhang Dabiao saw this situation, he knew that his opportunity had come. He shouted: "Everyone is here, pick up the Japanese cavalry and fight them. Be careful to keep a distance from the enemy!"
"yes!"
Following the orders given by the company commanders, the half-track vehicles turned around and turned back in groups to charge toward the enemy cavalry.
The puppet cavalry would have never thought that the Eighth Route Army could counterattack at this moment. In panic, they immediately reined in their horses and organized a defense.
However, the cavalry, which was out of touch with the armored vehicles and lost cover, could not defend itself against the firepower of the Eighth Route Army's half-track vehicles...
The Eighth Route Army had suffered enough from these cavalry before. Now when they started fighting, whether it was vehicle-mounted machine guns or repeating rifles, they all fired crazily at the cavalry. The dense bullets rained down on the puppet cavalry like raindrops. From time to time, there were several
Mortar shells exploded among the cavalry.
The cavalry were nothing but flesh and blood. How could they withstand such a bombing? They were beaten on the spot until they were neighing and there was blood everywhere. The horses were stirred by the sound of the cannon and ran around, and for a moment the fake cavalry was thrown to death.
How many have been trampled to death?
The leader of the pseudo-cavalry regiment was named Guo Wenyong. He loudly ordered his men to stabilize their formation and organize a charge.
This Guo Wenyong still has some skills. He knows that defense is useless at this time, and the cavalry has no capital to defend at all... A tall and powerful person will be an excellent target for the enemy no matter where he stands.
Therefore, the cavalry has only two ways out:
One is to catch up with one's own armored vehicles and seek cover as before.
But this is obviously unrealistic. Not to mention that the horses have lost their strength and cannot reach such a fast speed. The armored vehicles have also been scattered in pursuit of the Eighth Route Army half-track vehicles, leaving no time to take care of the cavalry.
Then there is only one way left: launch a counterattack against the Eighth Route Army by throwing explosive blocks as before. If the half-track car can be suppressed, the iron-blooded troops will win in the end.
Therefore, Guo Wenyong immediately pulled up an offensive force from the rebel army. They controlled the horses and rushed towards the Eighth Route Army convoy while shouting loudly. While shouting, they prepared the explosives in their hands.
Guo Wenyong even calculated that if the two armies move towards each other, it will only take two minutes to encounter the enemy. Therefore, as long as they survive these two minutes and break through the dense barrage in front of them, the iron-blooded troops will usher in the dawn of victory.
.
However, as soon as Guo Wenyong came up with this idea, he realized that he was wrong.
Because the half-track car turned at a large angle again and changed its direction of travel.
To be precise, it was not a change of direction but a circle in front of the cavalry, but this circle always kept a distance from the cavalry... The Eighth Route Army used the mobility and speed of half-track vehicles to achieve this.
Guo Wenyong was anxious and resentful when he saw this situation. This was a common tactic used by cavalry to deal with infantry. Unexpectedly, the Eighth Route Army was now using it to deal with cavalry!
This tactic has actually been around for a long time.
In ancient times, the archers of the Mongolian cavalry used this method to deal with infantry.
The infantry set up a formation, and the archers would not forcefully rush in if they did not have the ability to break the formation. Their method was to use the mobility and speed of the cavalry to circle around the infantry, and while spinning, shoot bows and arrows into the infantry formation to consume the enemy's strength.
In modern times, the iron-blooded troops often use this tactic to fight against the resistance forces. The cavalry forms a circle in front of the resistance forces. While turning in the circle, they continuously shoot with carbine or throw grenades. They then reload when they turn to the rear and then turn back again.
shooting.
As the saying goes, things turn around, but I didn't expect that Guo Wenyong would learn this tactic today.
But there is nothing surprising about this. Whichever side is faster can use this tactic to keep distance from the enemy.
At this time, the half-track car has a speed advantage, so of course this tactic can be used.
However, the puppet cavalry was powerless even if it charged because the horses had exhausted its strength. Coupled with the powerful firepower of the Eighth Route Army, the puppet cavalry was knocked down when they rushed forward, and they were never able to get close.
In particular, those horses that have been knocked down will further become an obstacle to the cavalry's attack... If the horses are knocked down, they will not die for a while. They will still struggle on the ground and even half-get up to try to stand up again. This will further increase the speed of the cavalry, which is not fast enough.
Restricted.
Kaoru Iwata, who was watching the battle from behind, also discovered the problem at this time. He quickly ordered: "Order the 'Iron Tiger Troops' to cover the cavalry and reorganize the defense line, immediately!"
Kaoru Iwata's tactics may be correct. Chariots and cavalry are indeed remarkable. It combines the firepower and defense of armored forces with the flexibility of cavalry. It once caused the Eighth Route Army's half-track vehicle unit to suffer heavy losses.
However, the problem with this tactic is that it requires close coordination and cooperation between the armored forces and the cavalry, that is, the armored forces must always become the cavalry's shield.
However, because war horses cannot maintain high speed for a long time like armored troops, this is difficult to achieve in actual combat.
Zhang Dabiao seized on this flaw to launch a targeted counterattack, and immediately reversed the situation and regained the initiative!