The 106th Division commanded by Matsuura Junrokuro was surrounded like an iron barrel by more than 100,000 Chinese officers and soldiers in the Wanjialing Mountains.
At first, division commander Matsuura Junrokuro was calm, but when the troops rushed left and right and could not break the encirclement, as time went by, he began to panic.
General Wu Qiwei, the former enemy commander of the Chinese ** Corps, learned through probing attacks that the Matsuura Division was not as weak as the intelligence said, and that its combat effectiveness was still strong. In order to prevent them from taking advantage of the chaos to break out, he issued an order for all armies to fight steadily and advance steadily.
Yang Ling and his troops regained the front line of Changling through a night of fighting and then suspended the attack.
A night of fighting left the brothers exhausted and in need of rest. At the same time, ammunition was consumed a lot and they were in urgent need of replenishment.
This time, in order to encircle and annihilate the Matsuura Division, the Ninth Theater mobilized a large amount of ammunition. Although the ammunition was sufficient, the equipment in the hands of the brothers was still very poor, and they could not form an advantage in fighting the Japanese.
The attacking troops from all walks of life are taking the time to rest, actively replenishing ammunition, and preparing for the next attack.
Although the Matsuura Division, which was trapped in the encirclement, was extremely exhausted, it had to actively prepare for a counterattack.
"We don't have much ammunition anymore, and we have run out of food..."
The captain of the Japanese baggage force reported bad news to Matsuura Junrokuro.
In order to achieve the effect of a surprise attack when the Matsuura Division rushed into the Wanjialing area, everyone went into battle lightly and only carried six days of dry food.
Now they are surrounded by the Chinese *** team and can't break out like an iron barrel. Compared with the large number of Chinese *** teams, their own crisis has also erupted.
Matsuura Junrokuro was already depressed because of the crisis. When he heard that the food and ammunition were running out, he looked even more tired. He was stunned for a long time without saying anything.
"General, general..." The baggage regiment saw Matsuura Junrokuro stunned and called him several times in a low voice.
Matsuura Junrokuro came back to his senses, looked at the serious-looking captain of the baggage regiment standing in front of him, waved his hand and said: "As for the problem of running out of ammunition and food, I will solve it soon. You can go back first."
The captain of the baggage regiment looked at Matsuura Junrokuro, whose eyes were bloodshot, and his lips trembled as he wanted to say something, but in the end he did not say anything. He saluted and turned around and left the division headquarters.
The troops are hungry and cannot fight without ammunition. I am afraid that they themselves will fall first before the Chinese ** team can attack.
Matsuura Junrokuro stabilized his mind and decided to solve this imminent problem first.
"Sakurai-san, come here." Junrokuro Matsuura called to the staff officer.
A lean staff officer quickly walked up to Matsuura Junrokuro, stood in front of him, and saluted: "General, what are your orders?"
"Please send a report to the commander quickly and request airdrop of foster care and ammunition, otherwise our division will not be able to persist until the breakout..."
Seeing Matsuura Junrokuro's solemn expression, staff officer Sakurai realized the seriousness of the problem and strode towards the radio station's room without any hesitation.
As soon as Staff Officer Sakurai turned around to leave, Chief of Staff Colonel Yoshitaka Akiyama came over with a message.
"General, all the regiments reported that the Chinese troops attacking them have stopped attacking." Colonel Akiyama Yoshitaka reported.
Obviously Junroku Matsuura had expected this and was too surprised. After all, the Chinese army had been attacking all night. Even an iron man couldn't hold on. It would be strange if he didn't stop the attack.
Matsuura Junrokuro asked: "How is the situation at the position?"
"The situation is not optimistic. Most of the outer outposts have been lost, especially along the Changling line. The 51st Division of the 74th China Army has arrived on the battlefield, and our unit's breakout path has been blocked again."
Chief of Staff Colonel Yoshitaka Akiyama's voice was very low. After all, it was not good news.
After hearing the report, Matsuura Junrokuro's face was gloomy. If they wanted to join the 27th Division who came to respond, they must open up the front line of Changling.
Previously, he sent the powerful 113th Regiment to attack the front line of Changling, and crippled the blocking 58th Division. When he was about to tear open the gap, he did not expect that another 51st Division would come.
A fierce light flashed in Matsuura Junrokuro's eyes, and he ordered: "Send a report to the commander of the Aoki Brigade, asking him to attack the Changling line at all costs, and a breakout channel must be opened."
"Hey!" Colonel Yoshitaka Akiyama, the chief of staff, also knew the importance of the Changling front line, and was about to pass on the order, but was stopped by Junroku Matsuura.
"etc."
"What other orders does the general have?"
Matsuura Junrokuro pointed at the map and said: "Tell the commander of the Aoki Brigade that Zhanggu Mountain at the northern end of Changling is the commanding heights. We must send strong troops there."
Chief of Staff Yoshitaka Akiyama nodded: "I will remind the commander of the Aoki Brigade."
At ten o'clock in the morning, the Japanese counterattack troops arrived as promised. Standing on the exposed and blackened Changling position, you could clearly see the Japanese soldiers all over the mountains and plains charging towards them ferociously.
"The Japanese are coming! Each company enters the position!"
Seeing the Japanese soldiers pouring out of the weedy jungle, battalion commander Liu Yidao took a deep breath, and even his voice changed.
The Japanese were surging like a tidal wave. In order to tear apart the front line of Changling, the 136th Brigade commanded by Major General Kei Aoki pressed forward.
In addition to deploying a reorganized regiment in front of Yangling's Changling position, heavy troops were deployed at Zhanggu Mountain, the commanding heights at the northern end of Changling.
"Quickly report to the commander, the Japanese are about to attack!"
The 305th and 306th regiments of the 51st Division were stationed at Zhanggu Mountain at the northern end of Changling. They also discovered the Japanese approaching at the same time.
"Ding ding ding..." the urgent ringing of the phone rang at the division headquarters one kilometer behind Changling.
"Master! The Japanese have counterattacked! There are at least several thousand troops!"
"Master, I found Japanese troops head on, at least two brigades!"
…
Commanders at various positions hurriedly called the division commander Wang Yaowu to report the situation.
Division Commander Wang Yaowu was also shocked when he heard the reports from various places. He thought he had beaten the Japanese to the ground last night, but he did not expect that they would counterattack again so quickly.
"We must defend our position! We cannot retreat even a step!" Division Commander Wang Yaowu issued a death order to each regiment.
Until he hung up the phone, division commander Wang Yaowu had not recovered from the shock.
"Master, I'm afraid the enemy's attacking force may not be smaller than a brigade." Zhou Zhidao, deputy commander of the 51st Division and commander of the 151st Brigade, said with a solemn expression.
Division Commander Wang Yaowu came back from the shock and said: "The Japanese have reached the end of their battle, this is just their last ditch effort, but we still can't be careless. If they break through from the direction of our 51st Division, I'm afraid you and I can't afford this."
Responsibility."
Zhou Zhidao nodded and said: "Then I will go back to Changling now to take command personally. We must not be the sinners who let the Japanese go."
Wang Yaowu thought for a few seconds and raised his head and said: "Okay, you can take charge of the south side of Changling. I will personally supervise the battle at Zhanggu Mountain in the northern section. If this battle fails, I will be benevolent. The Japanese must be blocked back at all costs!"
"Yes! At any cost!" Zhou Zhidao gritted his teeth, already prepared to pay huge casualties.
This was not only a battle to encircle and annihilate the Matsuura Division, defend Wuhan, and inspire the morale of the army and the people, but also a battle for the Central Army to show its strength. You can imagine the pressure on the shoulders of division commander Wang Yaowu.