The battle in the direction of Yuncheng is different.
The Japanese invested a full division of troops on the Yuncheng defense line, and also invested two heavy artillery regiments and three artillery regiments. They also prepared two air defense regiments... These two air defense regiments are used to prepare for the response.
The Eighth Route Army Air Force and the "high fire" that may strike deep into it.
In addition, coupled with the infantry artillery, mortars and other light and heavy artillery carried by the Japanese infantry, the whistling sound of artillery shells was everywhere over the Yuncheng defense line as soon as it opened. The artillery shells exploded near the Eighth Route Army trenches in sheets, completely destroying the defense line.
Barbed wire, sandbags, and homemade mines were lifted into the air.
Then, under the cover of artillery fire, the Japanese launched a charge.
The focus of the Japs' charge was on the defense line stationed by the Hundred Battle Regiment. Regiment leader Li Changfu and his men were suppressed by artillery fire and were unable to lift their heads.
This is because the Japanese artillery fire almost never stopped...
In previous battles, no matter how fierce or dense the artillery fire was, there would always be a window of time during which the Japanese would launch a charge, and the defending Eighth Route Army soldiers would emerge from the trenches during this window of time to organize defenses.
But this time, the Japanese artillery fire was still "bang" overhead, but the Japanese had already rushed up, and there was no window of time at all.
Li Changfu cursed: "Damn it, the little devil is planning to fight us tooth and nail!"
Li Changfu scolded him like this because he thought the Japanese were charging without stopping the artillery cover.
This style of fighting is not uncommon on the battlefield, but it is not commonly used by Japanese soldiers.
The reason is that if the enemy's artillery fire cover does not stop and the enemy rushes up, it means that the enemy's artillery fire will inevitably accidentally injure one's own people.
The Japanese believed that this strategy was not cost-effective, because they were exchanging elite imperial soldiers for the Eighth Route Army, which was much inferior in equipment and quality. It would be better to rush forward and fight the Eighth Route Army in a serious manner under fire.
But this time it was Li Changfu who made a mistake.
The Japanese did not use this method of attack this time, but the artillery bombardment of the Japanese infantry was too closely connected... As soon as the artillery fire stopped, the infantry's infantry artillery bombardment continued, and as soon as the infantry artillery stopped, the mortars continued.
After the mortars stopped, the Japanese had already rushed to a distance of about 200 meters from the defense line, so the grenades continued to explode, and finally the grenades were thrown forward.
Because the various artillery arms of the Japanese troops cooperated very closely, Li Changfu did not feel the pause in the process, making him mistakenly believe that the Japanese artillery preparations had not stopped yet.
When Li Changfu realized this, he felt a thump in his heart: The enemy in front of him is not simple. The cooperation between infantry and artillery can be achieved like this. This is by no means trained on the training ground, but on the battlefield.
I typed it out again and again.
Li Changfu guessed correctly, it was the Japanese 21st Division that attacked his defense line.
This division was the first B division formed in Japan in 1938... Although it is a B division, its combat effectiveness is not much different from that of the Japanese A division, and is even better.
.
The reason is that the Japanese A-type divisions have suffered serious battle losses after years of fighting on the battlefield, and a considerable part of the new recruits to be replaced are recruits who have never fought in a war. This makes many A-type divisions in name only.
On the contrary, the Type B division was able to maintain its own organization and its combat effectiveness became stronger and stronger as it fought. Therefore, due to the ebb and flow of the situation, the combat effectiveness of the Type B division actually surpassed that of the Type A division.
For example, the Japanese's 21st Division consisted of one-quarter of its soldiers who were veterans recruited in 1935 (7-year soldiers), one-quarter of whom were drafted in 1938 (4-year soldiers), and about two-quarters.
One is the supplementary troops recruited after 1938 and the supplementary troops recruited temporarily.
(Note: Although the 21st Division was established in 1938, it does not mean that all the soldiers were recruits in 1938)
In other words, more than half of the soldiers of the 21st Division are veterans with rich combat experience, so they can provide a comprehensive artillery cover on the battlefield.
The advantage of this kind of artillery cover is that before the Eighth Route Army could react, that is, before it had time to organize a fire defense, the Japanese had already rushed up close and started firing grenades.
After a row of grenades exploded, the Japanese roared and charged towards the Eighth Route Army's position with bayonets drawn.
Li Changfu is not a good man or woman, the Japanese are veterans of tough battles, and his Hundred Battle Group is also an elite of hundreds of battles.
In front of the Japanese who rushed up like a tide, Li Changfu did not hesitate at all. He knocked out the two Japanese who rushed forward with two clicks of the box cannon in his hand, and shouted: "Comrades, charge!"
The soldiers shouted: "Kill! Charge!"
He held up his sword and launched a countercharge against the Japanese.
Li Changfu's choice was quite correct.
Because when the enemy has rushed to a close range of tens of meters, the trenches will sometimes not only fail to provide you with cover, but will also become a burden for you.
The two most intuitive points:
Is it easier for Japanese grenades to be thrown into trenches and explode in semi-enclosed trenches, causing greater damage?
When the Japanese rushed to the front of the trench, with their bayonets pointed out, were they in a commanding position, with the space open and easy for them to use?
On the contrary, the Eighth Route Army soldiers in the trenches, holding a long spear, were unable to stab the enemy because they were blocked by the trenches.
Launching a countercharge can avoid these shortcomings, and you can instantly fight with the enemy.
More importantly, when the Eighth Route Army soldiers launched a counterattack to block the enemy's impact wave, the Eighth Route Army's machine gunners did not need to follow. They could safely aim at the enemy in the trench and shoot at the enemy's dense areas.
In addition, the 50 small artillery also played a role in time, hitting the enemy's rear with shells one after another, suppressing the enemy's grenade shooters.
The most powerful one is the anti-infantry rocket launcher.
At this time, the bazooka shooters no longer need to consider accuracy. They only need to raise the bazooka slightly...the higher the rocket launcher is, the farther they can hit. If they hit closer, they worry about accidentally injuring their own people.
Then the trigger was pulled, and with a "chirp" sound, the rocket shot towards the enemy with an irregular trail. Then with a crisp explosion, the rocket exploded in mid-air, containing hundreds of steel balls.
Shooting in all directions, the enemy was knocked down on the spot.
As a result, there was no need to think too much. Since the Japanese troops could not effectively reinforce the troops, the melee combat with the Eighth Route Army in the front became weaker and weaker. After killing and wounding more than 300 people, the Japanese had no choice but to retreat.
This situation was beyond Kono Shinta's expectation.
Kono Shinta has experienced many wars in Hans's army, and has even seen the Mao Xiong attack, but he has never seen the Eighth Route Army's defensive tactics that combine hand-to-hand combat with rocket launchers.
"I underestimated the Eighth Route Army!" Shinta Kono sighed: "I always thought that their military strength was far inferior to the stubborn army, but now it seems... that is not the case!"