A mere twelve howitzers that can blow up several kilometers of China's defense line into a sea of flames is certainly not a simple thing.
The so-called Type 91 105 howitzer is just a name given by the Japanese army. In fact, this product is completely a copycat version. Its original name should be called the Schneider 105 howitzer. To put it bluntly, this type of artillery was produced and sold to them by the French Imperial Company. They
It's just a complete copy of the prototype.
Although it is a copycat howitzer without any of the Japanese's own technical features, and is not very suitable for the Japanese's small body, it weighs 16 kilograms, has a 2.52 kilogram charge, and travels thousands of meters in the air at a muzzle velocity of 454 meters.
The lethality on the ground is as high as 32 meters.
The power is not small at all.
If you do a simple calculation and calculate the area of a circle, you can know that the killing area of the artillery shell is as high as more than 3,200 square meters. How big is a basketball court? It is 28 meters long, 15 meters wide, and 420 meters in area.
An area close to 8 basketball courts.
A 105-caliber artillery shell fell, and a sea of fire spread across an area of 3,200 square meters. What would it look like if the twelve cannons fired at the same time?
With nearly ten minutes of firepower assault, each howitzer fired at least twenty shells. On the main position of Niangziguan, which was ravaged by more than 200 shells, almost no protrusions could be seen.
The once majestic ancient city wall has long been blown into rubble, and the heavy machine gun fortifications built with three or four layers of sacks that can resist grenade attacks have long been blown into a piece of white ground. Both people and machine guns have been reduced to a pile of parts.
Although it was already dawn, the sky was still a little dark, but after the raging artillery fire, the firelight of the burning trees and fortification horns illuminated the entire position clearly and variablely.
Miraculously, there were not many cries and howls on the battlefield.
Because there were not many people alive in the more than two thousand meters long trench. Even if they were still alive, they were stunned for a long time. The sudden and violent artillery fire knocked them all unconscious.
.
The trenches in front of Niangzi Pass were already deep enough. The defenders who had been preparing here for more than 20 days worked hard to build the trenches and even dug anti-gun holes. However, facing the terrifying 105-caliber howitzers, the trenches finally
Still too shallow.
Because the soil is too hard, there is a serious shortage of bomb-proof caves, and not everyone has the opportunity to hide in the bomb-proof caves.
Even if you hide in a shell-proof cave, you will not be able to sit back and relax in a shell-proof cave that can only withstand the power of 75-caliber mountain artillery and field artillery shells.
"Save people! Save people! My brother is still inside. Come and help me dig people out!" A soldier with a dark face, wearing a second lieutenant's collar and only one arm covered in blood cried and staggered along.
The trenches, which had collapsed in several places, were running and shouting.
Until he met a soldier who was fully clothed and sitting in the trench with his legs straight out. He stumbled hard on the outstretched leg. Regardless of the blood flowing from his head, the second lieutenant grabbed the soldier who had tripped him.
The soldiers who arrived roared angrily: "You idiot, what are you doing sitting here? Come with me to save people!"
However, the soldier ignored him and just stared at the second lieutenant with a strange expression on his face without saying a word.
Then, as the second lieutenant shook wildly, a mouthful of black blood with a few fragments spewed out from his mouth, his head dropped, and he died. His internal organs had already been shattered by the terrible shock wave caused by the shell explosion.
, the last trace of life was cut off.
The bodies of soldiers who died quietly can be seen everywhere in the trenches. That's because the terrifying power of the 105 howitzer explosion doesn't even kill people with splashing shrapnel and shock waves.
, just the violent shaking of the ground is enough to kill someone.
During an artillery attack, lying flat on the ground is also the wrong way to avoid death.
"Dead, dead again." As the soldier's head drooped, the second lieutenant's hand stiffened suddenly and he muttered to himself.
Wiping away the tears rolling down his eyes with the back of his dirty hands, the second lieutenant seemed to be cheering himself up: "I don't believe that we can't find anyone alive in this entire company."
However, as he raised his head, wherever he looked, there were either soldiers lying prone or lying in extremely weird postures in the trenches. Without even checking, the second lieutenant knew that they were already dead.
As for the outside of the trenches, there was no need to look. Even if there were any, they would have been blown away. No one could survive in the face of the air waves that could destroy the ancient city walls.
The second lieutenant's eyes had just wiped away the tears that he had suppressed, and finally fell hard again. He really couldn't find anyone alive. A whole infantry company! On this 800-meter-long position, there was one
A full infantry company of more than 140 people.
What is despair? Despair that goes deep into the bone marrow.
This is.
When you need a comrade but find yourself alone.
"Ah~~~" Like a lone wolf, the second lieutenant with a broken arm suddenly fell to his knees, beat the ground hard, and let out a heart-rending howl.
The dawn sky, which was reddened by the firelight and now revealed a touch of white, and the "cracking" wood burning silently, made the lonely and desperate figure of the second lieutenant extremely tragic.
When an infantry company from the 21st Brigade of the 12th Division of the Third Army arrived from the second line of defense position 800 meters away after the Japanese army stopped shelling for reinforcements, what they saw on the most prominent position of the entire defense line was that an
The second lieutenant infantry platoon leader, who had only one arm left, was digging desperately in a piece of rubble with his only remaining arm.
Half of his body was soaked in blood, and his intact right hand was also dripping with blood.
The place he dug was the largest artillery-proof hole in his infantry platoon. It was enough for two infantry squads to hide in. However, during this crazy Japanese bombardment, a shell exploded fifteen meters away.
How deep the shell crater can hold two Eight Immortals Tables proves the power of the shells. At such a close range, although the shell hole was not blown up, it was collapsed.
The two infantry squads who hid inside were all buried inside.
The infantry reinforcements pulled away the already crazy ensign and dug desperately, but it was too late. The sand and gravel above the collapsed cave filled all the gaps. No one could survive the more than ten minutes of digging.
Hypoxia.
As the gray bodies were carried out one after another, the soldiers who stretched out their hands to test their breath and listen carefully to their heartbeats kept shaking their heads. The second lieutenant's face became more and more gray, so gray that even the most stone-hearted people could not bear to look back.
look.
We are all soldiers, and everyone knows how it feels to lose a comrade who has been with you day and night. Especially when this infantry company only survived this horrific bombardment.
"Take him down for treatment and tell the division's military doctor that I must save him." A major battalion commander who rushed here twitched the muscles on his face several times. The shell-proof hole had not been completely cleaned, and there were
Before several bodies were carried out, he gave the order firmly.
"No, no one can touch me. These are my brothers. I want to watch them come out." The second lieutenant suddenly yelled crazily, twisting his body desperately as several soldiers were about to force him away. He had just been forcibly roughed up.
The bandaged severed arm wound was bleeding again, and the severe pain made his dark face become horribly distorted.
There was a hint of tears in the eyes of the major battalion commander, and he waved his hand, "Forget it, let him wait first!"
Even if he is used to seeing life and death, to have his main infantry company wiped out with just one artillery strike is a big blow to this battle-hardened major and battalion commander. The pain in his heart is probably no greater than that of
The crazy-looking second lieutenant platoon leader in front of me is half a minute younger.
Finally, the last soldier inside was dug out. His face was very pale, but his face was surprisingly clean. He was also a very young soldier. Looking at his face, he could not be more than seventeen years old.
He was firmly protected by at least five soldiers, unlike other soldiers who had gravel in their mouths and noses.
The hopeful medical soldier wearing a red cross put his hand under his nose. Unable to feel the warm breath he was expecting, he tore open his uniform and put his ear on his thin chest.
After a while, under everyone's expectant eyes, he shook his head silently.
"I don't believe it. If I don't believe it, no one will survive." The second lieutenant broke away from the two soldiers holding him and rushed forward crazily.
"You bitch, you damn bitch, come back to life for me. If you don't live, I will be the only one in the whole platoon and company. Come and live for me!" The second lieutenant frantically held up the sheet that was dripping with blood after being cut by sand and gravel.
With his hands, he beat the young soldier's thin chest with all his strength.
Looking at the soldiers around them, they all lowered their heads and shed tears.
Yes! He is the only one left in the entire company.
If it were me, I might have gone crazy!
As the second lieutenant beat the soldier's chest crazily, a miracle happened. The young soldier suddenly coughed violently.
"Gou Shengzi, what the hell are you doing? Just smile and let me see." The second lieutenant was obviously stunned by the huge surprise in the surprised eyes of the soldiers around him, so he asked in disbelief.
"Ahem, platoon leader, if you hit me again, I might really be beaten to death." The young soldier smiled weakly at his platoon leader.
"Haha, I knew I wouldn't be the only one left, haha!" the second lieutenant laughed crazily.
The soldiers also cheered, but while laughing, many of them cried.
Just now, it was the commander who was holding his soldiers and crying. Now, it was his soldiers who were holding him and crying.
The second lieutenant platoon leader, whose left arm was blown off and had lost an unknown amount of blood, had already run out of energy. He had been waiting in high spirits for his soldiers to be rescued. It was purely a hope that supported him.
After seeing that one of his infantry platoons or infantry companies had finally survived a soldier, his spirits relaxed, and his body, which was already exhausted, could no longer hold on.
"Gou Shengzi, as long as you are still alive, our 2nd company will not be dead. After this battle, burn a piece of paper for the brothers, and you can go home! The regiment will agree." The second lieutenant said with a dirty face.
He was as pale as paper for a moment, and he moved his lips and said weakly to the young soldier who turned over and hugged him.
Then, amid the wailing of the young soldier, the second lieutenant's head drooped little by little, and there was no more sound.
...........
PS: I admit that when I wrote it, I cried. Although I knew that it was just a virtual character in my writing. But I still cried. I don’t know why. Perhaps, his back touched the softest part of my heart.