The face of Chief of Staff Colonel Yoshitaka Akiyama has never been more serious, and he is no longer as relaxed as before.
Division commander Matsuura Junrokuro looked at the uncharacteristically uncharacteristic chief of staff and said, "Although the 74th China Army has arrived nearby, it may not be able to stop the attack of our troops."
Chief of Staff Colonel Yoshitaka Akiyama shook his head and said: "General, in addition to the appearance of the 74th Army on the Zhanggu Mountain and Changling lines, our reconnaissance aircraft also discovered a large number of Chinese troops gathering near us."
Matsuura Junrokuro was also shocked. If the current 4th Army were to add a 74th Army, their 106th Division would not look down upon it, but if more squadrons participated in the war, they might have difficulty coping.
Although they were an integrated field division, after all, they went deep alone, and in order to intersperse operations, the field artillery units stayed in the Mahuiling area. Their firepower was greatly weakened and their strength was greatly reduced.
"How many troops are there?" Junrokuro Matsuura stopped his smile and raised his head and asked.
"At least ten divisions, or more." Chief of Staff Yoshitaka Akiyama replied.
Hearing that the Chinese ** team had mobilized at least ten divisions of troops, Matsuura Junrokuro was also stunned, and immediately let out a cold snort.
"The Chinese people have such a big appetite that they want to eat us in one bite."
Chief of Staff Yoshitaka Akiyama frowned and suggested: "General, I'm afraid we have to change our battle plan for attacking De'an."
Matsuura Junrokuro was also frowning. Their original mission was to attack De'an and cut off the retreat of the Chinese Army. Who would have thought that they would get into the encirclement of the Chinese Army, which made him very unwilling.
"Has Mr. Aoki tore through the defense line of the Chinese army in front of you?"
Chief of Staff Akiyama Yoshitaka shook his head: "The Chinese army resisted very tenaciously and attacked for a day, but it was still difficult to advance."
Matsuura Junrokuro originally hoped that the 136th Brigade could open a path forward and that they could attack De'an directly.
Since the road to De'an is blocked and faced with the encirclement of more than ten divisions of Chinese ** troops, it is only right to leave as soon as possible.
Matsuura Junrokuro was able to serve as the division commander and he was also a decisive person. Seeing that the attack plan could no longer be completed, he decisively gave up and left here first.
The reason why he was so decisive was also related to the fact that they went into battle lightly. They did not carry much ammunition and dry food, so they could not get entangled with the squadron. Once entangled, they would be killed by the force.
Matsuura Junrokuro put his hands on the table and looked down at the map. Now that the front is impassable, it is unrealistic to retreat along the original road. There is no food or drink in the mountainous area. I am afraid that they will collapse without the need for a squadron to attack.
Soon he set his sights in the direction of Zhang Gushan, where he found the 58th Division. It was easy for them to break through from there as a division.
"Order all regiments to shrink their defenses, and the 113th Regiment attack the front lines of Changling and Zhanggushan to clear the way for the division's main force to break out."
"Telegram to your Excellency, Commander, that in view of the battlefield situation, our department has changed its attack plan and is now going all out to break out."
"Hey!" Chief of Staff Akiyama Yoshitaka agreed, but his heart was extremely bitter.
Originally, they thought that this time the 106th Division would attack De'an and cut off the retreat of more than 20 divisions of Chinese troops, and then they would be able to wipe out their previous humiliation.
But who knew that this time they stole the chicken but lost the rice. Now faced with the surrounding squadron, they had to adjust their deployment and changed their attack plan to a breakout plan.
The commander of the 11th Army, Okamura Neiji, was originally in a good mood, but when Matsuura Junrokuro's telegram was sent back, his face suddenly darkened.
Adou was really helpless. Instead of completing the attack plan, the 106th Division was in danger of being surrounded. His mood suddenly became worse.
However, faced with the encirclement of more than ten Chinese divisions, it seemed that he had no choice but to break out. He could only hold his nose and admit it. Who asked him to send such a useless division?
"Order the 27th Division to advance eastward quickly to meet the breakout 106th Division."
The situation on the battlefield was changing rapidly. In the morning, he was sure of victory, but in the afternoon, he was about to break through. Fortunately, Okamura Neji had experienced many storms and waves, and he was calm and collected.
But what Neji Okamura didn't know was that in order to destroy the advancing Japanese 106th Division, General Xue Yue not only deployed a large number of siege troops, but also a lot of peripheral blocking troops.
The 27th Division was ordered to rush for reinforcements to meet the 106th Division's safe breakout, but they encountered an unprecedented blockage at Qilin Peak.
The entire war south of the Yangtze River suddenly became tense. The Japanese troops on the periphery desperately tried to move closer to the 106th Division, but were blocked.
The 106th Division, which was trapped in a radius of more than ten kilometers in Wanjialing, also fell into an unprecedented predicament.
In addition to maintaining their offensive posture on the Zhanggu Mountain and Changling lines, they have begun to shrink their defense in other directions.
As long as Zhanggushan and Changling line of breakthrough points are opened, the entire division will quickly break through.
The Japanese chose Zhanggushan and the Changling line to break out, but the 58th Division of the 74th Army was defending here. Division Commander Feng Shengfa was suddenly pushed to the forefront, and the pressure on his shoulders suddenly increased.
"Fight! We have to fight hard!"
When he learned that the Japanese were attacking here, Feng Shengfa, the commander of the 58th Division who had just arrived at Zhanggu Mountain, gritted his teeth and said.
Although the 113th Japanese Regiment was only a regiment, its strength was comparable to that of the 58th Division. Facing the Japanese troops charging at them with great momentum, the brothers who had just arrived on the battlefield and had not yet taken a breath had to quickly jump into battle.
"Bang! Bang!"
Although the Japanese field artillery remained in the Mahuiling area, the mountain artillery and infantry artillery were brought up by mules and horses. They came up with three axes and bombarded the 58th Division's position.
As soon as the 58th Division arrived at the battlefield, they didn't even have time to build fortifications and trenches. The Japanese pounced on them, and they had to hide in ravines and mountain depressions.
Artillery shells continued to fall near them, blasting steaming craters on the ground. Earth and gravel exploded all over the sky, falling into their collars.
The Japanese infantry took advantage of the shelling and rushed forward quickly with bayonets drawn. As soon as the shelling ended, they were already in front of them.
However, the 58th Division is also considered the main division under the 74th Army. Compared with the 51st Division, which is known for its offensive power, they have stronger combat capabilities and are good at attacking and defending. This is why they were transferred up in the first place.
Seeing the Japs rushing towards them with bayonets in hand, the officers and soldiers of the 58th Division were not frightened at all. They fought bloody battles with the Japs and fought many tough battles.
"Brothers! Kill the Japanese!"
The battalion commander at the head raised his arms and shouted, and took the lead to greet them.
Seeing the officers taking the lead, the ordinary brothers were also emboldened and pounced on them with murderous intent.
For a while, the sound of bayonets penetrating into flesh continued to sound, grenades exploded, machine gunfire rang out, and the two sides strangled each other.
The brothers in front were strangled and fighting with the Japanese, while the brothers coming up from behind quickly dug trenches with their shovels bare-chested, creating a spectacle on the battlefield.
The two sides fought fiercely until dark, and the Japanese were repulsed. The 58th Division finally gained a firm foothold on the Zhanggu Mountain and Changling lines.