On the smoke-filled battlefield, there were shouts of death and explosions. On the three-kilometer-wide defense line, officers and soldiers from both sides strangled each other.
The officers and soldiers of the guerrilla corps were like springs. They were constantly being pressed and beaten by the Japanese, and were pressed back for several miles by the Japanese. However, they always advanced and retreated in an orderly manner, consuming the physical strength and ammunition of the Japanese soldiers through layer upon layer of blocking.
Now the spring began to rebound. The exhausted Japanese were first beaten back and forth, and now they fought to the death and counterattacked amidst the roars of their squadron leaders, squad leaders and other officers at all levels.
The guerrilla officers and soldiers who were defending their homeland rushed forward one after another, and the Japanese who were unwilling to fail also fought back one after another. The two sides fought in darkness.
"What, the first and third battalions are fighting with the Japanese?!"
When the news that the frontline Japs and two guerrilla battalions were engaging in large-scale hand-to-hand combat reached Yang Ling's ears, he was on his way to the front line and was too shocked to speak.
Yang Ling sent a blacksmith to lead a battalion to replace Shen Biao and others who had been fighting hard for more than ten hours, with the purpose of taking turns to go up and consume the Japanese.
Now this area has been transformed by them into a preset battlefield, with various traps, minefields, and field fortifications supporting each other. It is impossible for the Japanese to attack the frontier, and they will only pay heavy casualties.
Yang Ling just hoped to send various troops to take turns to train and wear down the Japanese, and then concentrate his forces to encircle and annihilate them when the Japanese were weak and weak.
But what Yang Ling didn't expect was that after only one day of fighting, there would be a large-scale hand-to-hand combat with the Japanese.
In fact, engaging in hand-to-hand combat with the Japanese was not the original intention of Blacksmith and Shen Biao. They only wanted to fight back against the Japanese.
Who would have thought that the Japanese captain, Hirayama Kei, was so desperate that he actually rushed forward with his saber in hand. Shen Biao and the others who had already charged forward were unable to retreat at this juncture.
Because on the battlefield, the fighting was full of momentum. Now all the troops are defensive and counterattacking, and they are entangled with the Japanese. If we retreat now, we may not be able to hold back under the chaotic situation, leading to a rout.
Therefore, we know that it is not wise to fight the Japanese with bayonets at this time, but Shen Biao and the others can only bite the bullet. Now it depends on whose bayonet is stronger than the other.
Of course, Shen Biao and Blacksmith also knew that the frontline troops were now fighting with the Japanese. Once they collapsed, the entire position would be lost.
Therefore, when fighting the Japanese with bayonets, they also hurriedly reported the situation at the front to Yang Ling, requested emergency reinforcements from the troops behind, and rearranged the defense line.
And now they are strangled with the Japanese counterattack in order to withstand the Japanese counterattack and buy time for rearrangement of the defense line.
"It's just nonsense!"
Yang Ling was also very angry about the situation on the front line. This was simply taking the lives of his brothers lightly.
Although judging from the fighting situation on the battlefield, the Japanese group fighting them was only a third-rate Japanese army, but it was still more than a thousand Japanese soldiers armed to the teeth, not more than a thousand pigs.
After fighting hand-to-hand with so many Japs along the entire defense line, even if they were victorious, the guerrillas would have suffered heavy losses and could only be considered a disastrous victory.
"Sir, if we do this now, should we ask Battalion Commander Shen and others to withdraw immediately?"
When a staff officer heard that there was a melee with the Japanese in front, he became a little panicked, thinking that it was important to preserve his strength.
After all, the little Japanese's stabbing skills are well known to everyone. Although the guerrillas have won many battles and fought with the Japanese with bayonets, it is not like fighting with eggs and stones.
"If they could withdraw, Shen Biao and the others would have withdrawn long ago. How could they fight to the death with the Japanese?" Yang Ling also said angrily.
Although he was angry, Yang Ling also knew that the battlefield situation was changing rapidly, and sometimes the plan could not keep up with the changes. If the Japanese really insisted on counterattacking and ordered a retreat, it would not only affect morale, but also lead to an uncontrollable defeat.
When we meet on a narrow road, the brave will win. At this juncture, not only can we not retreat, we must also attack. Since we have already fought, we must defeat the Japanese completely, otherwise the battle will be lost.
"Order! The guard company runs forward and joins the battlefield for reinforcements!" Yang Ling ignored the looks of the surrounding staff officers and turned to the guard company commander Hu Zi.
"yes!"
The guard company commander Huzi also knew that the military situation was urgent, and without any hesitation, he pulled out the shell gun in the holster on his waist and raised it backwards.
"Leave the security officer in one row, and the rest of the brothers, follow me!"
The guard company commander Hu Zi roared and led the brothers in charge of the guard company towards the smoke-shrouded battlefield.
"Everyone go up for reinforcements, leave me alone!" Yang Ling asked everyone to go up.
"Sir, this..."
The remaining platoon leader actually wanted to go up and fight the Japanese, but after all, he still had the task of protecting Yang Ling and the others, so he looked embarrassed.
"If the Japs aren't suppressed from the front, it's useless for you to stay here. Go ahead and kill the Japs! I don't need anyone to protect me!"
"yes!"
Finally, the platoon leader gritted his teeth, waved his hand, and led the remaining platoon towards the battlefield, following closely behind the brothers in front.
"Sir, it's too dangerous here. Let's go back first. There are Battalion Commander Shen and others in front of us. They should be able to stop the Japanese."
When intelligence staff officer Liu Sheng saw all the guards going up, he was worried about Yang Ling's safety and persuaded Yang Ling to return to Jieshou first.
Yang Ling shook his head. He was injured due to the traitor's sneak attack and could not participate in the battle, but now that he had come here, he could not retreat.
"It's safe here for the time being, and you don't have to worry. Now you go and pass on my orders, and ask the first reserve battalion, the second battalion and the patriotic battalion behind to come up with reinforcements. Since the Japanese are going to fight, let's not hide. Once you've got it, get ready and have a big fight with the Japanese!"
Yang Ling's original intention was to waste the Japs for a week, and wait until they were tired and their ammunition was almost used up before attacking. But now that the entire front has been launched, he can only go all-in and launch a general attack in advance.
Yang Ling and his troops are deployed on the ground for defense within a radius of dozens of kilometers. Apart from the two main guerrilla battalions in front of the front leading to Gaoyou, there are only two reserve battalions and the patriotic battalion from Huaiyin nearby.
They exist as a reserve force. Not only do they lack guns and ammunition, but their combat effectiveness is also slightly insufficient, but they cannot be mobilized now.
"The first reserve battalion will directly attack the battlefield later. The second reserve battalion will cross behind the Japanese from the left and cut off the Japanese's retreat. The patriotic battalion will attack from the right flank. I will wipe out all the Japanese today!" Yang Ling directly took over the command of the battlefield.
The messengers and communications soldiers who came over all followed the guards and killed them. The staff officers who had followed Yang Ling to the front to inspect the positions had to temporarily play the role of messengers. They turned around one after another and headed towards the reserve camp and the Patriotic Army.
He rushed to the battalion assembly area to deliver the order.
Yang Ling's arm was still bandaged and hung around his neck. When everything was arranged, the only person left beside him was combat staff officer Lei Xiong.
"Come on, let's go up too." Yang Ling said and started walking towards the battlefield.
"Sir, it's dangerous ahead. Let's stay here. Reinforcements will be coming soon. It's useless for the two of us to go there." Operations Staff Officer Lei Xiong hurriedly stepped in front of Yang Ling.
"What? Afraid of death?" Yang Ling stared at Lei Xiong with stern eyes and asked.
"Sir, if I were afraid of death, I would not join the army! But you are the backbone of our Northern Jiangsu Corps, so you can't make any mistakes..."
"If you're not afraid of death, get out of the way and come with me to kill the Japanese!" Yang Ling hung one arm around his neck and held a pistol in the other, insisting on going to the battlefield, leaving Lei Xiong in a dilemma.
"Just go! I'm still afraid of the little devil!" In the end, Lei Xiong had to pull out his gun, followed Yang Ling's footsteps, and strode towards the battlefield.