The battlefield has turned into a scorched earth, with whizzing bullets flying everywhere and causing pillars of mud to rise to the sky.
Yang Ling and several brothers braved their waists and quickly rushed across the gentle slope that was shattered by the explosion, and rolled and jumped into a newly constructed trench.
"Boom!"
A 70mm high-explosive bomb landed on the edge of the trench and exploded suddenly. Gravel and soil mixed with explosive fragments flew everywhere, and a gap was opened in the simple trench.
Yang Ling judged that this was an extended bombardment from the Japanese 92-type infantry artillery. He dusted off the mud covering his body, looked back and saw that his brothers were all fine, and then continued to move forward along the trench.
The Type 92 infantry gun is not only capable of direct fire, but also of deflected fire. It is suitable for use in complex terrain and is an important support firepower for the Japanese infantry.
Most of the time, only troops of the size of the Japanese brigade were equipped with Type 92 infantry artillery. Listening to the high-explosive bombs that kept exploding all around, Yang Ling's expression became more solemn. The Japanese troops were very strong.
Yang Ling and the others walked along the trench for about a hundred meters. The Japanese bombardments continued. Broken bodies could be seen everywhere, and the soil was dyed blood red.
The trenches were filled with a strong smell of gunpowder smoke and blood, which made people cough and sneeze.
Yang Ling met Lin Xiufeng, the commander of the 302nd Regiment in a temporary hiding place near the hill. This usually meticulous commander was covered in brown mud cannon fodder, so Yang Ling almost didn't recognize him.
"Leader Lin...Leader Lin!"
Amidst the rumbling cannons, Yang Ling shouted loudly several times, and then Lin Xiufeng turned around and noticed Yang Ling's arrival.
Lin Xiufeng was obviously very happy when he saw Yang Ling's arrival. He hurriedly came over and took Yang Ling's hand and said, "Deputy Commander Yang, you finally came up. If you don't come, brother, I won't be able to stand it anymore!"
The blast of air swept a large amount of sand and smoke into the trenches, forcing Yang Ling and the others to squat down and talk.
Yang Ling asked loudly: "What's going on now?"
"Damn it, the Japs have taken the lead in Minshan. The leading battalion was ambushed by the Japs and was completely wiped out. The battalion commander Hu Liqun was also killed. If you hadn't sent someone to remind us, our regiment would have been completely wiped out——
"
After Yang Ling heard Lin Xiufeng's words, he realized the seriousness of the problem.
"Do you know how many soldiers the Japs have?"
"At least there is one brigade with strong firepower!"
"Deputy Commander Yang, the Japs are attacking too fiercely. My brothers have suffered heavy casualties and can no longer withstand it. Please send your men up quickly."
Lin Xiufeng also became anxious and begged Yang Ling for reinforcements as soon as possible.
Yang Ling withdrew his gaze from the smoke-shrouded hills ahead and said, "Captain Lin, I only brought one battalion. Reinforcements will not help. We have to change our approach!"
The Japanese troops had at least one brigade, and they also had Type 92 infantry artillery fire to support them. Yang Ling knew very well that even if their three battalions replenished their positions and held on to this wave, it would not last long.
When Commander Lin Xiufeng heard that Yang Ling had only brought one battalion, he was as deflated as a ball, and his renewed hope was suddenly dashed.
But something is better than nothing. Now that his brothers are bleeding and dying in the front, he has no time to waste: "Deputy Commander Yang, please stop showing off. How do you want to fight?"
"Captain Lin, we can't fight against the Japs. You ask your brothers to retreat first. I will lead my men to ambush behind, try to eliminate a wave of Japs, and then consolidate our position!"
Lin Xiufeng looked at the trembling position under Japanese artillery fire, gritted his teeth and said, "Okay! I'll listen to you!"
"Ten minutes more!" After Yang Ling finished speaking, he led several brothers out of the trench, ducked back to the hiding place of the third battalion.
The Japanese artillery fire was fierce, and Yang Ling didn't want his brothers to rush forward and serve as cannon fodder, so he prepared to lure the enemy deeper and catch the pursuing Japanese soldiers by surprise.
Now the Japanese don't know that one of their reinforced battalions has arrived on the battlefield, so an ambush can achieve an unexpected effect.
After Yang Ling returned to the third battalion, he quickly summoned several main company commanders to his side and assigned combat tasks.
"The 302nd Regiment will be withdrawing later. Our mission is to ambush in the jungle on both sides, try to eat the chasing Japanese soldiers in one bite, and then take the opportunity to counterattack!"
Yang Ling scratched the ground with a branch and said: "Blacksmith, your Honor Company is hiding in the woods on the left side of the road. The machine gun platoon must suppress the Japanese!"
"Shunzi, hide on the hill on the right side of me and occupy this commanding height!"
"Huzi, your third company will be the reserve team. After defeating the Japanese pursuers, you will be responsible for the counterattack!"
Although the artillery fire ahead was fierce, Yang Ling still remained calm in the face of danger, which calmed down the panic of several company commanders.
"Sir Yang, what about us?" Seeing that Yang Ling did not assign tasks to himself and others, the Sichuan Army Major asked.
"You guys will serve as a reserve team with the Third Company, and we will fight back when the time comes. What do you think?"
The major stood up and saluted: "I promise not to let the little devil escape!"
Yang Ling has allocated several boxes of grenades and more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition to these Sichuan Army brothers, and they have regained their combat effectiveness.
"Are your respective tasks clear?!" Yang Ling glanced at Wang Huzi's faces and asked loudly.
"clear!"
"Okay, let's take action!" Yang Ling showed no hesitation.
Captain Blacksmith, the company commander, strode back to his company and shouted an order to his brothers who were lying on the roadside hiding: "Attention, whole company! Go to the woods over there to ambush!"
The execution of orders and prohibitions is the guarantee that an army can win a war, and Yang Ling and the others, as members of the Central Army, usually emphasize discipline.
After receiving the order, the brothers of the Third Battalion and the Third Company quickly moved towards the woods on the left side of the road without any hesitation.
The jungle is only a short distance of more than a hundred meters from the road. The brothers are all veterans and well-trained. They can quickly hide by relying on trees and grass.
Because Yang Ling and the others were traveling lightly, they abandoned all the heavy machine guns in the battalion to the troops behind them, and only carried Czech light machine guns.
In addition to a heavy machine gun platoon, Blacksmith's third company also has five Czech light machine guns. At this moment, he has arranged all of them behind rocks with good shooting range, allowing them to block the road from a high position.
Blacksmith and his third company are all veterans who have returned from injury. They belong to an honorary company. They are holding back their energy and want to fight a good fight this time.
They lurk quietly behind trees and grass, and their camouflage makes them almost blend in with their surroundings.
Yang Ling and others were just getting ready. In less than ten minutes, the 302nd Regiment could not withstand the Japanese onslaught and had already stepped down.
The 302nd Regiment did not expect that the Japanese captured Minshan first, and the first battalion that served as the vanguard was completely wiped out.
Captain Lin Xiufeng led the other two battalions into the battle hastily. They suffered heavy losses in the bloody battle for a day, and now they were at the end of their battle.
The seventy-millimeter high-explosive bomb landed on the hillside with a clang. On the dirt road, the ground shook violently, and a mushroom cloud rose into the sky from the explosion.
Those brothers who ran back were thrown into the sky by the explosion of falling shells from time to time, and some were thrown to the ground by the impact.
The Japanese artillery fire pounded the retreating 302nd Regiment, with bloody corpses and flaming red explosive steel flying everywhere.
A high-explosive bomb landed in the woods on the side of the road, and the two brothers lying behind an old tree were instantly blown away.
Broken pieces of cloth and pieces of meat fell on the brothers' bodies, and their necks were dripping with blood.
The surrounding brothers were also affected. Countless broken branches mixed with the powerful shock wave of the explosion flew and embedded themselves in the body of one brother.
The brother suddenly became like a hedgehog, grinning in pain and his face was distorted.
The brothers of the retreating 302nd Regiment, who were in charge of covering, kept turning back to shoot, but the Japanese's marksmanship was more accurate, and they fell down one by one like wooden stakes.
Yang Ling hid behind a moss-covered stone, with the safety of the rifle in his hand turned on. Looking at the brothers who were blown away by shells or bitten by bullets, anger burned in his chest.
The Japanese soldiers who captured the hill position launched a fierce pursuit against the retreating 302nd Regiment with their 38 rifles with bayonets in their hands, as if they would not give up until they were all killed.
The marksmanship of these pursuing Japanese soldiers was equally astonishing. Every time they lifted up and fired, a running Chinese soldier always fell down.
Looking at the Japanese soldiers who rushed towards them with murderous intent, Yang Ling had to admit that there was a toughness and wildness in their bones, which was also what the Chinese army lacked.