The casualties on the battlefield cannot be accurately counted, because many Japanese soldiers are only injured but not killed... The poison gas bomb depends on the dose of exposure. If the dose is not large, it will only cause injury, and it may be delayed for several days.
Therefore, there were only more than a thousand Japanese corpses left on the battlefield.
The number of injured was estimated to be between five and six thousand, because the entire Japanese division was destroyed by this attack and retreated hastily... The Eighth Route Army did not dare to pursue it, because they were not sure which areas of the smoke from the shells exploding in front were poisonous, so they rashly pursued them.
It would be useless if the enemy fell into the poisonous gas without being beaten.
But poison gas injuries are different from battle injuries.
Many battle injuries can be recovered by being nursed back to the rear. A considerable number of those injured by poison gas are injured in the respiratory system. Even if they survive, they will be out of breath after running a few steps back. Some are injured in the eyes.
Insomnia caused by poisonous gas.
No matter what kind of injury it is, these wounded soldiers have basically lost their combat effectiveness and it is permanent.
In other words, not only will they not be helpful to the Kwantung Army, but they will also become a heavy burden for the Kwantung Army... Even if the Japanese do not waste medicine on them, food will always be consumed, right? We can't let these wounded soldiers starve to death like that, right?
This is not to say that the Japs cannot do such a thing, but that doing so will chill other Japs and affect the morale and combat effectiveness of the troops, so these wounded soldiers are hanging there half-dead!
It's a bit like a landmine.
Landmines that damage targets cause the greatest damage and trouble to the enemy.
The same is true for the damage caused by the poisonous gas bombs of the Japanese.
After learning about our army's victory, everyone in the Taiyuan headquarters breathed a sigh of relief: This was the biggest threat to the Eighth Route Army's defense line.
If the battle just now failed, the Eighth Route Army might be divided into several parts:
A part of the defense line east of Fengtian. This part was surrounded by the Fengtian garrison fighting out of the city and Japanese reinforcements.
A part of the defense line west of Fengtian, which is divided by Fengtian City.
Dalian is another part. It will be penetrated by the Japanese troops to Yingkou and cut off from the main force.
Among them, Dalian does not have any problems for the time being, because it has the supplies at the port and the Jinzhou Defense Line, as well as tens of thousands of new soldiers organized by Dalian.
The most dangerous thing will be the 100,000 main force east of Fengtian... Most of these 100,000 main force are the Eighth Route Army coming from Chifeng. There are only 20,000 to 30,000 new recruits. They will be surrounded by the Japanese on all sides and be continuously hit by the Japanese gas bombs.
Fortunately this didn't happen.
However, while everyone was rejoicing at Donggang's victory, Wang Xuexin frowned and looked at the map with a cautious face.
"Captain!" Chen Songyong asked doubtfully, "Are you dissatisfied with the result of this battle?"
Wang Xuexin shook his head slightly. This battle has produced the best result. The Long March Group also showed their courage. Wang Xuexin is still dissatisfied.
Wang Xuexin sighed and said: "The problem of Donggang has been solved, but what if the Japanese attack from another position?"
Chen Songyong understood as soon as he heard this.
It can be said that the Eighth Route Army was lucky in the battle at Donggang. The Japanese chose to break through along the coastline, which gave the Eighth Route Army warships a chance to perform.
In fact, this cannot be said to be "luck." The Japanese did this because they wanted to maximize the combat effectiveness of the poison gas bombs by attacking from both sea and land. Unexpectedly, they were beaten by the Eighth Route Army warships and suffered heavy casualties.
You can use warships to block the coastline, but what if the Japanese use poison gas bombs far away from the coastline?
Will warships still be useful then?
Therefore, although the battle of Donggang was won, the crisis for the main force of the Eighth Route Army east of Fengtian has not been resolved.
After thinking about it, Chen Songyong said: "Captain, the Long March Regiment has learned some experience while fighting the Japanese. How about... sharing their experience with other troops?"
Wang Xuexin said "hmm" in agreement.
This is what should be done. In fact, Chen Songyong does not need to say that the main force of the Eighth Route Army has already done this.
Part of the reason why the Eighth Route Army has grown to this point is that the Eighth Route Army has been summarizing its experience after the war:
If you don't play well, what's wrong with it?
How can we prevent it from serving as a warning to other troops next time?
Well played, what's so good about it?
Is it a coincidence or a tactical victory? Can it be learned and shared with other troops?
This has become a habit.
This gas bomb operation against the Japanese is no exception. Of course, the Long March Regiment will share their experience with other troops.
However, Wang Xuexin believes that this is not enough!
"Although the commander of the Long March regiment has good combat experience, he cannot avoid casualties!" Wang Xuexin said: "Especially if the Japanese are prepared for this tactic in the future, then they will deploy poison gas bombs in advance on their own defense lines.
Good firepower is waiting for our attack, and it is even possible to fire a few poison gas bombs on our offensive route, which may cause a large number of casualties to our army!"
Chen Songyong couldn't help but look horrified when he heard this.
What Wang Xuexin said is correct. If the Japanese were prepared and knew that the Eighth Route Army would "replace defense with attack," then why couldn't they use gas bombs in front of the position to provide cover for themselves?
By then the Eighth Route Army would be surrounded by poisonous gas, and their charge would be hit by Japanese firepower, so the casualties would be incalculable.
The reason why the Long March Regiment was successful was because the Japanese did not expect that the Eighth Route Army would do this and were caught off guard. If other troops did this, it would probably be another story!
Thinking about this, Chen Songyong immediately took out the small notebook he carried with him and wrote down this key point... This is a big deal. He will send it to each army later to remind them, otherwise they may have to eat a lot after the war starts.
deficit!
But as he wrote, Chen Songyong felt something was wrong again.
"Captain!" Chen Songyong said: "Then if we can't defend or attack, what should we do? Can we just retreat?"
Chen Songyong's idea was that if he could only retreat, it would be better to attack and fight the enemy desperately... It would take a certain amount of time for the poison gas to occur. The Eighth Route Army's charge could at least kill some of the Japanese and hold the line of defense to ensure the safety of the friendly flanks.
Once it retreats, it will be a fatal blow to the main force of the Eighth Route Army.
Wang Xuexin also fell silent.
There is actually no good way to deal with poison gas bombs. If there were, poison gas bombs would not have been invented and used on the battlefield.
However, if it cannot be dealt with tactically, is there any way to deal with it strategically?
Wang Xuexin searched for a while on the map, then pointed to a location and said: "So, we should not blindly adopt defense and always think about encircling Fengtian with trench warfare. We should take the initiative to attack and disrupt the enemy's rhythm!"
Chen Songyong looked at the position pointed by Wang Xuexin, and then raised his head unexpectedly: "Siping?"