A Japanese anti-tank gun squadron was annihilated by the tank company in eight minutes. The final battle ended with several Japanese soldiers escaping on their shoulder bags but being shot dead from behind by the soldiers.
It's a good thing that the Japanese couldn't escape. From this corner back there was a straight street several hundred meters long. The Japanese escaped for a while but were still within the range of the soldiers' rifles.
"Go forward at full speed!" Wang Xuexin ordered.
With this victory, he gained some confidence in his command.
Then, under Wang Xuexin's order, an incendiary bomb was fired in front to illuminate the way forward for the tank, and then the tank led the soldiers straight to the center of the city as fast as possible.
Although there are risks in advancing at such a fast speed, such as running into an ambush set by the Japanese, or whether there are anti-tank mines ahead.
But Wang Xuexin knew that this was the time to penetrate the enemy headquarters as quickly as possible...
Decisions made on the battlefield sometimes cannot be explained clearly using theory.
For example, at this time, if you move forward slowly, it can be said to be steady and steady, and if you move forward quickly, you can say it is greedy and rash progress.
On the other hand, moving forward slowly can be said to be a missed opportunity, while moving forward quickly can be said to be a clean and direct attack on Huanglong.
Therefore, command decisions actually rely on feelings. No one can be sure whether the decision at that time is right or wrong. It is often 30% decision-making and 70% luck.
But this time, Wang Xuexin made the right bet again.
Because, if even the Japanese anti-tank gun squadron was not prepared and faced the tank company immediately, it means that the Japanese command headquarters did not expect that the Eighth Route Army tanks would penetrate so fast.
In this case, the Japanese certainly had no time to set up an ambush and almost no time to lay anti-tank mines.
If the tank company advances slowly, it may give the Japanese time to prepare.
At this time, the Japanese headquarters, Anda 23, already felt that something serious was going on.
Although Anda 23 did not receive a report from the anti-tank company, as a veteran, he knew that the enemy was not far away as soon as he heard the sound of gunfire and artillery.
Then he checked the map and direction again, and cursed: "These bastards actually went straight to our army headquarters!"
Then Anda Twenty-Three did not hesitate and asked the staff officer: "Where is our tank?"
The staff officer replied: "Your Excellency Lieutenant General, the tanks are preparing for battle on East Street!"
"Transfer to the protection headquarters immediately!"
"yes!"
Anda 23 tried to set up a line of defense against the Eighth Route Army in Yuncheng.
At this time, he already knew that the Eighth Route Army's tank troops were divided into three directions to attack... The Japanese who were attacked reported to the headquarters by phone and radio, and the staff marked the enemy's position on the map in a timely manner.
Since he could not block the enemy at the city gate, Anda 23 hoped to attack inside the city. His defense plan was to separate the three anti-tank cannons at the east and west gates to guard three north-south streets.
Each street has its own gate and is always ready to reinforce each other, supplemented by infantry and artillery coordination.
In this way, the two wings can block the attack of enemy tanks.
In the central part, tank troops were transferred to fight the enemy. In addition, three anti-tank cannons from the north gate were also urgently transferred to the central part. As long as Lao Bei Street in the central part was defended, the three units of the Eighth Route Army would actually be able to attack the enemy.
They will be in a state of being divided and fighting on their own... Lao Bei Street in the central part is the transportation center. If Lao Bei Street cannot be captured, mutual reinforcements must take a detour.
As long as we can hold on for ten or twenty minutes and wait for the troops outside the city to return for reinforcements, it will be time for the Eighth Route Army's chariot units to be wiped out.
It should be said that Anda Twenty-Three's plan is very reasonable.
After all, the tank force stationed in Yuncheng has two medium tank squadrons with a total of more than 20 tanks, most of which are 97 medium tank tanks.
To be precise, these chariot units were not "stationed" in Yuncheng, but broke down or needed maintenance during the attack on Yuncheng and fought against the Shanxi-Sui Army, so they were placed at East Street for rest.
Strictly speaking, they are not under the command of Anda 23, but the current situation is urgent, and it is natural to coordinate the defense of Yuncheng.
Anda Twenty-Three feels that this battle is at least 80% certain.
Because there are more than twenty tanks in the two tank squadrons, leaving aside the Type 95 which lacks combat effectiveness, more than a dozen of them are Type 97.
The 97 Zhongzhan is a tank specially developed for the T26. They may not be able to deal with the T34, but they can deal with the T26.
Therefore, Anda 23 did not think that it was necessary to move the headquarters, even if the enemy tanks were approaching step by step.
The Japanese chariot was commanded by Colonel Tomoe Haraguchi. He was awakened by the sound of gunfire when the battle started, but no one got up.
They are different from infantry, who grab their guns as soon as they hear the sound of gunfire and prepare for battle.
However, chariot soldiers, especially those stationed in safe areas in the city to rest, basically do not need to worry about safety issues.
Tomoe Haraguchi lit cigarettes with the adjutant.
The adjutant complained: "It's really annoying. It should be the Eighth Route Army attacking, right? Do they think they can capture Yuncheng? Incredible!"
"Who knows?" Haraguchi Chie said: "The current Eighth Route Army is always unexpected. Have you heard about the 25th Tank Regiment being wiped out?"
The adjutant nodded and replied in a low voice: "I heard that the Eighth Route Army used T34 to do it!"
In fact, the Japanese troops also have a tradition of reporting good news but not bad news, because they believe that losing a battle will affect their morale, so they do everything possible to block internal information.
This habit is even more excessive in China. Until the battle of Yingjiang arrives at their doorstep, the people in the country think that the imperial army is in sight of victory outside. Many people even think that Yingjiang is about to surrender.
However, such information is certainly not a secret to the soldiers of the tank unit.
Tomoe Haraguchi nodded, sighed, and said: "I heard that even Hans can't defeat a tank like the T34. If we face it one day, we must be careful!"
"Yes!" the adjutant replied.
This is actually a casual response, because this thing cannot be said to be "careful". The equipment is at a disadvantage, and I don't know what the opponent's weaknesses are... In fact, it's not just that I don't know the weaknesses. At this time, the basic data of the Japanese company T34
If you don’t even know, how can you be “cautious”?
Just when Chie Haraguchi and the adjutant were chatting without a word, suddenly the communications troops came and reported: "Your Majesty Colonel, I heard that the tanks of the Eighth Route Army have entered the city gate!"
Haraguchi Chie was so shocked that he dropped the cigarette in his hand to the ground.
Then, his first reaction was that the signal soldiers believed the rumors... Many imperial soldiers were very afraid of T34 and had psychological shadows, so they spread rumors as soon as the war started.
He was about to scold the communications soldier, but the explosion coming from the south gate stunned him.
That sound was very familiar to him. It was the T26 tank gun.