Yang Ling led the Lieyan Special Forces Brigade and the more than 200 soldiers assigned to him along the way. Since they had no air superiority, the sky was controlled by Japanese aircraft.
Facing the Japanese planes that sometimes roared and circled, they had to spread out and take cover, and their stop-and-go speed couldn't help but slow down.
Yang Ling and the others walked for more than an hour and met a battlefield security squad from Luo Guoliang's regiment at a fork in the road.
From this battlefield security squad, we learned that the Japs have now captured the Jingzhenshan position, and their regiment leader Luo Guoliang is directing the troops to counterattack.
Because Jingzhen Mountain is a supporting point on the periphery of Yichang, once it is captured by the Japanese, there will be a gap in the defense line on the periphery of Yichang, which will trigger a chain reaction.
Therefore, the 18th Army attached great importance to the Jingzhen Mountain position. The 199th Division heard that the position here was lost, so they sent a special regiment over to try to recapture Jingzhen Mountain.
However, the Japs who captured Jingzhen Mountain had strong firepower, and there were Japs bombing and strafing aircraft in the sky. Several attacks organized by the regiment leader Luo Guoliang were repelled, causing them heavy losses.
When Yang Ling and his men arrived at the foothills of Jingzhen Mountain, they happened to encounter Chinese officers and soldiers who had retreated again.
Seeing the bloody wounded being carried down, the officers and soldiers who followed Yang Ling had bitter expressions on their faces, knowing that a fierce battle was inevitable.
Yang Ling asked Grizzly Xiong to lead his men to hide under the field base beside the road, and then led several officers and soldiers of the Flame Special Warfare Brigade to follow directly to Luo Guoliang's regiment headquarters.
Luo Guoliang's regiment headquarters was located in a hidden position a few hundred meters behind the firing line. Artillery shells fell from time to time. Seeing the troops retreat again, the regiment commander Luo Guoliang was furious.
"Hu Qiang, what do you do for a living? You can't get this Jingzhen Mountain after charging several times. Believe it or not, I've dismissed you from your post!"
The livid-faced regiment leader Luo Guoliang was yelling at the bloodstained battalion commander Hu Qiang. Continuous defeats and huge casualties had made him lose control of his emotions.
Battalion Commander Hu Qiang was full of grievances: "Team, it's not that our brothers are not fighting hard, it's that the enemy's firepower is too strong. Many people will die if they rush forward. If we continue like this, our battalion will be wiped out...
..."
"You fight all, I'll go! Even if you have to gnaw down Jingzhen Mountain, you have to gnaw it down!" Luo Guoliang, the leader of the regiment, roared loudly.
"Report, regiment leader, our reinforcements have arrived." Just as regiment leader Luo Guoliang was furious, a guard got into the hiding place and made a report.
"Go gather your men and prepare to attack again!" Luo Guoliang glared at the battalion commander Hu Qiang, and then ordered the guard: "Who is leading the team?"
"It's Commander Yang of the Lieyan Special Operations Brigade."
"Please come quickly." Hearing that it was Yang Ling from the Lieyan Special Warfare Brigade, leader Luo Guoqiang immediately beamed.
Although Yang Ling's Fiery Special Forces Brigade has a small number of people, they have played the role of firefighters in these days' battles and have achieved good results. All regiments have heard about such elite troops.
Yang Ling and the regiment leader Luo Guoliang met in the simple regiment headquarters. Although the two were not familiar with each other, they were now Chinese soldiers fighting side by side in the trenches, and they didn't have much courtesy.
"Captain Luo, could you please tell me what the current situation is?"
After a few simple greetings, Yang Ling got to the point directly.
After hearing Yang Ling's question, the regiment leader Luo Guoliang let out a long sigh: "I'm not satisfied with Brother Yang. The Japs' firepower is too strong. Several of our attacks have been repelled. I'm worried now. Come here now."
It’ll be fine.”
"I have ordered the troops to prepare for another attack. Brother Yang, what do you think we should do next?" Regiment leader Luo Guoliang asked Yang Ling for his opinion.
Although Yang Ling currently has a small number of troops under his command, he is still a member of the regular army and has rich combat experience. Luo Guoliang does not dare to neglect him.
"Now we are attacking Jingzhenshan during the day. Facing the Japanese with superior firepower, our casualties will not be small. What I mean is that we will withdraw the troops to eat and drink enough to refresh ourselves, and then fight again at night."
"But it's hard to explain to the division headquarters?" Luo Guoliang's face was full of doubts.
"It will be dark soon. Call the division headquarters and explain. I think they will understand us."
Now the Japanese are attacking Yichang's defenders from different directions. The two sides are fighting over each other repeatedly in several places. Yang Ling believes that as long as they can recapture Jingzhen Mountain, the superiors will not blame them.
The regiment leader Luo Guoliang also knew that the losses during the daytime attack would be too great, so he finally agreed to Yang Ling's suggestion: "Okay, I'll go explain to the division headquarters. Brother Yang, take a rest first, and then we'll discuss how to fight the battle at night."
."
The regiment leader Luo Guoliang quickly called the division headquarters. After some explanations, the division headquarters finally reluctantly agreed to postpone their attack until the evening.
Now the fronts of both sides are intertwined. In many places, the Japs are attacking, and in other places, the Chinese Army is counterattacking. The entire battlefield outside Yichang is in chaos.
But fortunately, the Chinese troops have stabilized their positions, and the Japanese counterattack is not going very smoothly. They still have to worry about the attacks of other Chinese troops on the flanks.
A few days ago, when the Japanese attacked Yichang, they had three main divisions, so they naturally occupied Yichang easily.
But this time there was a big difference. The Japanese troops had been ordered to retreat, and the other two divisions had even withdrawn to Dangyang.
Now the first one to turn back and attack Yichang is just Tanaka Shizuichi's 13th Division. In addition to the 18th Army in front of the Chinese Army, other returning troops have arrived in Yichang from the Han River one after another.
Therefore, when the Japanese 13th Division sent some troops to attack Yichang, some troops exchanged fire with the surrounding Chinese troops, which also affected their attack.
The one who captured Jingzhen Mountain was a strengthened squadron under the command of Colonel Kitagawa Shengsan of the Japanese 58th Regiment. They seized several hills of Jingzhen Mountain and occupied this important fulcrum position on the outskirts of Yichang.
Several villages on the east side of Jingzhen Mountain were occupied by the troops directly under the Japanese 103rd Regiment, which were responsible for covering the rear of the Jingzhen Mountain troops to ensure normal ammunition transportation in Jingzhen Mountain.
After Yang Ling and others carefully analyzed the Japs' troop allocation, they decided to first send troops to clear out the Japs in several villages to the east of Jingzhen Mountain, cutting off the Japs' retreat and supplies, and leaving them alone.
At the same time, a brave and brave team was selected to sneak onto Jingzhen Mountain after dark, launch a surprise attack on the Japanese defenders, and then regain control of Jingzhen Mountain in one fell swoop.
After determining the battle plan, Yang Ling took the initiative to take on the task of clearing out the enemies in several villages east of Jing Town and cutting off the Japanese's retreat.
Luo Guoliang's troops took the opportunity to launch another attack on Jingzhen Mountain, eliminate the Japs in Jingzhen Mountain, and regain control of this crucial area.
Because he was worried that Yang Ling and the others would not have enough troops, Luo Guoliang specifically asked the battalion commander Hu Qiang to take his remaining half of the battalion to assist Yang Ling.
Since then, the number of soldiers Yang Ling can command has reached more than 500. In addition to having less ammunition, his combat effectiveness has been greatly enhanced, which undoubtedly makes him more confident.
After dinner, Yang Ling left the position with more than 500 officers and soldiers and headed straight to the east of Jingzhen Mountain, preparing to cut off the Japanese's retreat.