While Yang Ling and Lin Xiufeng were exchanging opinions on building fortifications, an officer with a face scorched from smoke came over and reported the casualties to Lin Xiufeng in a low voice.
"How many casualties are there?" Lin Xiufeng, leader of the 302nd Regiment, took a deep breath and asked.
"Except for the fifteen stragglers of the first battalion who were alive, all the men from Battalion Commander Hu on down were killed, the second battalion suffered 240 casualties, the third battalion suffered 310 casualties..."
Although Yang Ling knew that Lin Xiufeng's 302nd Regiment had suffered heavy losses, he was still shocked when he heard the specific number of casualties.
You must know that the combat effectiveness of the 302nd Regiment is not weak, most of them are veterans who have fought in the Battle of Lanfeng.
But less than twenty-four hours had passed, and a main force group actually fought so fiercely, which made Yang Ling feel frightened and put away his contempt for the enemy on the other side.
After the regiment leader Lin Xiufeng heard such huge casualties, he was stunned for a long time and said nothing.
These brothers were all loyal to each other day and night, and they had sacrificed so much in this battle. Lin Xiufeng looked sad.
But he also came from a battlefield where bullets were raining and narrowly escaped death. Naturally, he knew the cruelty of war and knew that people would die in war.
"Find a good piece of land and bury the fallen brothers."
Lin Xiufeng quickly recovered from his sadness, sighed, and gave some feeble instructions to the officer.
"Yes..." The officer's face was also full of sorrow, and he turned and left.
Looking at Lin Xiufeng standing there with wet eyes, Yang Ling sighed,
Yang Ling consoled him: "Captain Lin, our brothers died fighting the Japanese. Their sacrifice is glorious. Don't be too sad. Even though our brothers have sacrificed their lives, we must continue to fight this war."
"Yes, we will continue to fight until the little devils are driven out of China!"
Lin Xiufeng cheered up again, his eyes full of murderous intent.
Having said that, if you want to drive the Japs out of China, you don't know how many Chinese soldiers will have to be sacrificed. Thinking of this, Yang Ling hated the Japs who started the war.
If the little devils had not launched a war of aggression, this land would not have turned into scorched earth, and those simple brothers might have been stable farmers for the rest of their lives instead of fighting for their lives on this precarious battlefield.
But the arrival of the little devil changed everything. It changed not only the fate of these brothers, but also the fate of thousands of families.
Nearly a thousand brothers were killed in the battle here, and their family lost the backbone of their family. The remaining elderly parents, long-awaited wives, and children waiting for food will no longer have a stable life in the future.
The brothers died for their country, but the families behind them will have to suffer in the next ten or decades. This is also the suffering that the Chinese nation has endured.
"Captain Lin, your regiment has been fighting for almost a day. Let us leave the rest of the battle to our third battalion."
Seeing the heavy casualties of the 302nd Regiment, Yang Ling really couldn't bear the thought of these brothers continuing to fight despite their exhaustion.
Lin Xiufeng said with some excitement: "Deputy Commander Yang, although my brothers suffered heavy casualties, we can still fight! Even if there is only one person left, the Japanese will never take a step toward De'an!"
Yang Ling saw Lin Xiufeng's excited look and knew that he had misunderstood her.
He hurriedly explained: "Captain Lin, you misunderstood me."
"We don't know when our reinforcements will arrive, and before the reinforcements arrive, we must stick here like nails to prevent the Japanese from advancing towards De'an. Otherwise, our Ninth Group Army on the Nanxun Line will fall into a heavy siege by the Japanese.
"
"The Japs were counterattacked by us just now. They will definitely launch a crazy attack next. Our battalion does not carry heavy weapons. The only one we can count on is your regiment..."
Lin Xiufeng heard Yang Ling's explanation and immediately understood Yang Ling's good intentions. Yang Ling did not dislike them, but hoped that they would go down to rest and maintain their strength so that they could fight at the critical moment.
Lin Xiufeng also knew that the brothers in his regiment were in urgent need of rest, and was grateful for Yang Ling's kindness.
But he immediately asked worriedly: "Deputy Commander Yang, if we withdraw and rest, but your battalion does not carry heavy weapons, will it be able to withstand the Japanese counterattack?"
"Commander Lin, are you looking down on our third battalion?"
"No, I definitely didn't mean that." Lin Xiufeng hurriedly waved his hand to deny it.
Lin Xiufeng looked at Yang Ling's confident look, and then thought that the fighting ability of the brothers in the third battalion was no worse than theirs, so he felt a little at ease.
"Then Vice Commander Yang, I will take the brothers to retreat to the woods behind to rest. If the Japanese attack fiercely, just say hello and we will reinforce them immediately."
Lin Xiufeng quickly withdrew the 302nd Regiment, which suffered heavy casualties, and hid behind to rest. Yang Ling's Third Battalion took over the position.
Although the Third Battalion marched all the way and fought a battle with the Japanese, the brothers were still in high spirits inspired by the victory.
Yang Ling's group's default defensive position was on a mountain ridge one mile away from the Guizi Minshan position.
The altitude of the mountain is not high, and it is covered with rocks and sparse vegetation. The mountain is so high that it can block the road leading to De'an County.
If the Japanese want to attack De'an, then Yang Ling's position will be an obstacle that the Japanese cannot get around.
Although the Third Battalion had lost more than 100 men and more than 20 people were seriously injured in the counterattack just now, its overall combat effectiveness was still strong.
Under Yang Ling's order, each company of the third battalion was intensively building fortifications on the mountain ridge. Shovels were waved, soil was flying, and trenches were gradually taking shape.
Yang Ling held up his telescope and observed that there was no movement from the Japs in the direction of Minshan. After leaving an observation post, he began to inspect the positions constructed by each company along the mountains.
After all, the solidity of the trenches on the position was related to whether they could hold on to it, so he didn't dare to be careless.
On the right side of the mountain is Shunzi's company. When they saw Yang Ling coming, they stopped and stood up to salute.
Although Yang Ling is the deputy commander, he usually gets along well with his brothers and often takes the lead on the battlefield, so he has always had prestige in the team.
"The brothers built the trenches well!" Yang Ling looked at the fortifications built by the brothers and nodded with satisfaction.
Yang Ling was quite satisfied with the position constructed by the first company. The individual bunkers, communication trenches and criss-crossing fire support points all met his requirements.
When the brothers heard Yang Ling's praise, they felt happy. For soldiers, receiving praise from their superiors is an honor.
However, Yang Ling also saw some shortcomings. He called the first company commander Shunzi over and said: "Let the brothers dig the anti-artillery bunker deeper to avoid damage and unnecessary casualties."
"We can lay some mines in front of the position, but we need to mark them well so that they don't blow up our own people."
"Yes! I will tell people to do it immediately!" Shunzi is also a resolute person, so he turned around and took people to do it.
Yang Ling wandered around to Wang Huzi's company's position again, and their positions were also well-organized.
Yang Ling asked them to send a squad of brothers to establish a firepower point on a hill fifty meters away from the left front of the position to support the defense of the main position.
The 1st and 2nd companies of the 3rd Battalion built anti-slope positions on the mountain ridge, while the Blacksmith's Honor Company served as a reserve team, staying in the ravine behind to take care of the wounded, make fires to cook, and prepare food for the brothers.