Thick, cleansing gunpowder smoke flowed low in the night, and the black smoke from burning houses moved east and west with the biting lee wind, covering the entire sky, revealing a pitch black that could not be dispersed like ink.
"The battalion commander ordered us to come up and replace you. Your second company will retreat to the warehouse behind to rest."
The third company commander of the first battalion led more than 160 officers and soldiers to the fighting line in the city close to the ruins and walls. The third company commander found the second company commander with blood oozing from his arm behind a broken wall.
The second company commander is a middle-aged man who looks frail, but he is actually a veteran who has fought countless battles for the rest of his life. The pitted scratches and calloused hands are the best evidence of this.
Now every grassroots company commander of the First Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Corps in Northern Jiangsu under Yang Ling is promoted by veterans. They are all people who have fought bloody battles with the Japs for the rest of their lives.
As the saying goes, there is a den of generals and a raging army. Yang Ling hopes that this group of backbone grassroots officers who dare to fight bloody battles with the Japanese can support the army and instill their bloody and powerful style into their subordinates.
Yang Ling now has two main guerrilla battalions, eight infantry companies, two battalions of machine gun companies, ten veteran company commanders and a group of veteran squad platoon leaders, which are the backbone of their troops.
In Yang Ling's army, if you want to be promoted, you can't rely on flattery. You must have real military exploits and be able to kill the Japanese!
It is precisely because of the existence of such a group of grassroots officers with a strong style that Yang Ling's guerrilla army was able to form combat effectiveness in a short period of time, and it was able to scream and scream in the face of the Japanese without any fear.
If it were placed in other troops, without several months of recruit training and a few brutal battles, the combat effectiveness would never be improved.
But Yang Ling and the others are now trapped behind enemy lines and have no choice. Behind enemy lines there are many dangers, including not only the Japanese and puppet troops, but also spies, traitors, and gang forces.
Every force can easily kill Yang Ling and others. The only way to survive behind the cruel enemy lines is to become stronger.
Just like everyone, only when you are strong can you be truly strong, and you will remain calm in the face of various dangers. This is your confidence, and the brothers under Yang Ling's command now are his confidence.
"You go back and tell the battalion commander that I can still fight and our Second Company is not dead yet. As long as there is one person and a gun left in our Second Company, we will fight to the death with the Japs!"
When the second company commander heard that the battalion asked the third company to defend them, he mistakenly thought that the battalion commander thought they were not playing well, and immediately stared with red eyes and roared.
Their second company has been at the forefront since they entered the city, beating off the Japanese who tried to block them. Now, in cooperation with the other two companies, they have occupied the north of the city.
At this time, the battalion commander wanted to withdraw them. So many of the brothers under the second company commander were killed in the battle, and they were eager to seek revenge on the Japanese, so they were unwilling to go down.
"I asked you why you don't know what is good and what is evil. It is good for you to let you go down to rest. It will replenish your strength so that you can fight the Japanese better. Take the people down quickly."
Seeing his old brother losing his temper, the third company commander got angry and gave him a roll of his eyes, urging him on.
The second company commander silently picked up the gun beside him, stood up from behind the broken wall with red eyes, and kicked the communications soldier beside him: "Tell the brothers, prepare to fight! Take this
Go down to the house in front and avenge Cheng Ren’s brothers!"
The third company commander grabbed the second company commander who was about to attack again, and cursed angrily: "It was Commander Yang who personally ordered you to go down. Don't be stupid, carry out the order and take the brothers down."
When the Second Company Commander heard that it was actually Yang Ling, the commander-in-chief, who personally ordered them to withdraw from the line of fire to rest, he stopped for a moment, raised his head and said, "Commander Yang's order?"
"Can I still lie to you?"
Suspicion flashed across the face of the second company commander. If the battalion commander asked them to withdraw, he was probably worried that they were not strong enough and a stronger company would come up to fight. Naturally, he was unwilling to lead his brothers down in such a dejected manner.
If you want to withdraw, you must withdraw with honor.
But if Yang Ling personally issued the order, the nature would be different. It must always refer to some other combat arrangement. After all, it always refers to planning the overall situation.
"Hey, I'll withdraw then. You have to be careful. There are a lot of Japanese snipers on the other side. Don't get targeted." The second company commander figured this out and patted the third company commander on the shoulder.
Hand over.
The concept of snipers came from the mouth of Captain Yang Ling. Previously, the brothers were called sharpshooters and special marksmen, but now they are also called smooth-talking and cannot change.
"Okay, I understand." The third company commander who came to change defense nodded, indicating that he understood.
"Company commander, brothers are ready! Give the order to attack!" A brother hurriedly ran over and said to the second company commander.
"Let the brothers hand over the various positions to the brothers of the third company, and we will withdraw and rest." The commander of the second company patted the dust on his body and said.
"Ah? We won't attack anymore?" The visitor opened his mouth in surprise.
The second company commander grinned and said: "The commander-in-chief has given us a more important combat mission. Go ahead and ask the brothers to withdraw! Take the bodies of the fallen brothers with you as well."
The brother was stunned for a moment, then nodded and quickly disappeared into the darkness.
Two infantry companies, the Third Company and the Fourth Company of the First Battalion, replaced the First Company and the Second Company, which had been fighting continuously for two hours. The firing positions in all areas were quietly changing defenses.
However, there was no one in the machine gun company of the 1st Battalion who could replace them. Fortunately, they did not come into direct contact with the Japanese, and had been hiding behind to provide fire support, so the losses were not huge.
The reason why Yang Ling withdrew these fighting companies and replaced them with new fresh troops was not arbitrary.
It's because the next battle in the city will turn into a see-saw street fight. The new company must last for two days before it can get reinforcements. It is obviously unrealistic for the tired troops who have fought with the Japanese for so long to last for two days, so it is necessary to replace them.
Strengthen the army.
The companies that were withdrawn would not return to street fighting after resting, but would leave Gaoyou City to fight the Japanese and puppet troops on the periphery and eliminate the Japanese and puppet reinforcements.
The fresh troops who had been reinforced near the fighting line did not immediately launch a new round of attack on the Japanese. Instead, they evacuated the people on the spot and repaired the fortifications. They were ready to fight the Japanese in the city.
The fighting in the middle of the night allowed Yang Ling and his guerrilla army to control most of the neighborhoods in the north of the city, including Shuangmiao, Guandi Temple and the Flour Mill area.
The current situation in the city is that the Japs and Yang Ling each occupy half, but with the changes in the situation and the new battle plans of the commanders of both sides.
The two sides almost unanimously stopped launching large-scale attacks on each other, and instead turned to strengthening fortifications and preparing for long-term operations.
People in Pipa Street and other neighborhoods located along the line of fire between the two sides evacuated quickly under the cover of the troops.
What can be expected is that in the next period of time, this city that is stuck at the gateway to the Huaihe River will turn into a meat grinder, and the guerrilla army will mince the reinforced Japanese and puppet troops one by one.