In the early days of the war, the Japanese invasion force was basically composed of veterans. Even new recruits had to go through at least ten months of rigorous recruit training and join the army for more than a year.
The Japanese army's advocating precise strikes and eliminating waste is clearly reflected in its army. They abandoned the more powerful submachine guns and chose the most accurate Type 38 rifles during World War II, coupled with the marksmanship trained in their rigorous training.
When it comes to long-range shooting accuracy alone, the overall level of the Japanese Army is definitely one of the best in the world.
On the other hand, the Chinese army has a low level of training and a lack of training materials. Even the German armorer soldiers who were personally compiled and adapted by the advisers of the Third Reich can only fire fifty rounds of live ammunition per year, let alone soldiers from other factions.
In the early days of the war, why the frontal battlefields were defeated again and again may be due to a variety of complex reasons. For example, the heavy firepower of the Japanese army far exceeded that of the Chinese army, or the Chinese elites were exhausted in the battle of Songhu, and the air force was almost exhausted.
The sky was dominated by Japanese aircraft, or there may have been mistakes in strategic command at the highest level, etc. However, the individual Japanese soldiers had extremely strong military literacy, whether their shooting or stabbing skills were far superior to that of most Chinese soldiers, which was one of the important factors.
On the battlefield on both wings, the precision shooting characteristics of the Japanese army were also vividly demonstrated. As long as they did not hide themselves tightly and exposed their heads or body parts, extremely accurate bullets would fly from nowhere and hit the soldiers of the 772nd Regiment.
In just ten minutes, nearly 300 officers and soldiers from two companies on the left flank, commanded by the future "Mad Lieutenant General" as the front-line commander, and more than 200 Japanese troops 350 meters away, fired at each other. The result was more than 20 casualties, including 9 who died on the spot.
There are so many people.
This is the result of the frontline officers and soldiers wearing steel helmets supported by Liu Tuanzuo. The red troops have always been accustomed to wearing coarse cloth military caps, and they are not used to wearing bulky steel helmets. However, as the commander-in-chief of the Jiuguan front line, Liu
The regimental commander issued a strict order before the battle began. Anyone who entered the front line without wearing a helmet would be treated as a violation of battlefield discipline.
In fact, the steel helmet cannot effectively withstand the huge kinetic energy of the bullet. If it is hit head-on, the bullet will penetrate the helmet through the huge kinetic energy formed by the initial velocity of 800 meters, and then the deformed warhead will penetrate the hard frontal bone of the person and mash the brain into a ball.
paste.
However, the steel helmet can effectively withstand shrapnel. If other parts of the human body are torn apart by shrapnel, there is still a chance to stop the bleeding and suture the patient, but if his head is torn open by shrapnel, there is no way for him to survive even if the gods come.
In this situation where the main firepower of both sides is suppressed, and the rifles of both sides are firing red-eyed rifles, the role of the helmet is not small. As long as it is not hit from the front, the rounded angle of the helmet still has a chance to deflect bullets.
.
Stroking a deep bullet mark on his helmet, Deputy Commander Wang, who would be known as the mad warrior general in the future, was also sucking in the cold air. If the helmet hadn't deflected a bullet fired by a Japanese soldier, he would have suffered heavy casualties.
Deputy Commander Wang, who was red-eyed and personally carried a Japanese-style 38-gun to cover the front trenches, almost became the highest-ranking officer killed in the entire Niangziguan front line.
The most tragic moment of the 17th Division has yet to come. Colonel Zhang Shijun, who died for his country, is still anxiously holding a telescope and staring at the most elite infantry company under his command being consumed little by little, and his heart is pierced.
If he were still wearing an ordinary gray cloth military cap, this future lieutenant general of the Republic would definitely be heroic at this moment.
However, this did not deter the future general of the Republic.
"You damn little devil, your gun is so accurate." The future lunatic general only expressed his surprise briefly, and then shouted loudly: "Order all officers and soldiers, this is the second battle between our 386th Brigade and the little devil.
, we can’t let the brothers of the Independent Regiment see our jokes, let alone the Chinese people see the jokes of our 18th Army. If you are afraid of death, don’t be a soldier. Damn it, I will fight with them at all costs. The little devil’s marksmanship is accurate.
I'm not bad either."
If you are not afraid of sacrifice when your orders are over, I am afraid that there is no more outstanding army in the world than the Red Army. Even the Independent Regiment, which Liu Lang has promoted patriotism and nationalism for five years, will not be better than them in this regard.
Better.
The belief that the Independent Regiment gradually established among the officers and soldiers is that only by protecting the country can you protect your family and protect your parents, wives and children. Although it is simple but easy to understand, and supplemented by high welfare benefits, the officers and soldiers are encouraged to fight the enemy bravely without fear of sacrifice.
The Japanese army was completely brainwashed by the fanatical Nazis. They even believed that returning to the arms of Amaterasu after dying in battle was an honor, so their performance on the battlefield was stubborn and almost terrifying.
The Red Army also has its own beliefs. It is their belief to overthrow all the old forces and allow the poor who live without a piece of tiles to become masters and give their descendants a better new life. In order to realize their ideals, they must first drive away those who are preparing to subjugate China.
The most basic thing is to exterminate the Japanese devils. The Red Party is undoubtedly extremely successful in shaping beliefs.
For anyone who has a belief that he is willing to sacrifice his life for, his precious life is not that important compared to it.
"Life is precious, but love is more valuable. If it's for the sake of freedom, both can be thrown away!" Such a romantic and heroic poem may not represent all Red Party members, but it is definitely representative of most of the Red Party members of that era who had firm beliefs.
Portrait.
As for other Chinese troops, they are a little worse. It depends on the commander. If the commander is determined to kill himself and become a benevolent person, his subordinates will also be determined to make sacrifices. This is a very typical example of "the generals are all in a den, and the generals are the heroes."
"All men are heroes" phenomenon. Therefore, there are heroic situations where army commanders, division commanders, brigade commanders, and regimental commanders lead their troops to die with the enemy, and there are also sad situations where army commanders, division commanders and other senior officers take the lead in running away and are defeated like mountains.
Not only do the Red Army lack the courage to sacrifice, this army is built with the backbone of Red elites who have experienced thousands of miles of strategic shifts and hundreds of battles. Their military quality will definitely not be bad. Hundreds of thousands of Red troops
In the end, there were only about 10,000 people left in the army. Those who survived were definitely the best among the elite, even if it was just luck.
It is almost similar to the Japanese army. The officers and soldiers of the red army who are short of ammunition and never dare to waste it will never shoot easily when they are not absolutely sure. Once they shoot, they will scare you into sweating even if they don't hit. In terms of marksmanship alone
, the marksmanship of those veterans will never be weaker than that of the Japanese army.
That is to say, the Hanyang-made guns in their hands are worse than those of the 38-year-old Gai. Its effective range is only 300 to 350 meters. However, with the advantages of being high up and having trenches, their shooting is still better than hiding in the rocks and hay below the position.
It was much more convenient for the Japanese army.
After hearing the order from Deputy Commander Wang, the officers and soldiers of the two companies of the 2nd Battalion of the 772nd Regiment, regardless of their own safety, stretched out their heads and aimed at the Japanese soldiers at the foot of the mountain, even if their comrades fell silently or were killed.
Even though they were rolling in the trenches in pain after being hit by bullets, they could not stop their determination to shoot their hateful bullets at the Japanese invaders.
This time, the Japanese army's losses immediately increased.
"Bang bang bang" amidst the constant gunfire in Hanyang, a Japanese squadron in charge of the attack of more than 200 people fell down at least more than 20, although no less than 10 soldiers of the 772nd Regiment also fell on the position.
At this time, it is no longer important whether it is the 57MM shells of the tank gun that are still exploding or the grenades desperately launched by the Japanese grenadier soldiers. What is important is to kill the opponent and kill the enemy.
The red-eyed officers and soldiers of the 772nd Regiment seemed to have returned to the battle with the White Army a few years ago. They did not hesitate to take any casualties, just to defeat the opponent and fight a bloody path for the whole army. That was no longer a matter of accurate or inaccurate shooting, but
courage.
The courage to face death.
Because no one can predict whether he will be killed by a bullet after killing a Japanese soldier. Even if he knows that he is being targeted by several rifles at the same time, he still fires firmly at the target he has already aimed at.
.
The Japanese army also did not lack the courage to face death. Before the commander gave the order to retreat, they would fight to the death. The **** that supported them in not fearing death was also terrifying.
Two armies with different beliefs but the same fear of death launched an extremely cruel infantry shootout on this battlefield where both sides' heavy firearms were restrained from each other.
People kept falling, but there were still people who showed up despite the hail of bullets, aimed and shot, and then fell again.
This is true for both sides.
For more than 20 minutes, the casualties suffered by both sides were so heavy that they even exceeded the main battlefield of Jiuguan where the artillery fire was heavy. It was a stage where the heavy weapons of both sides bombarded each other, and the infantry of both sides had not yet taken the stage as the protagonists.
However, as the great man said: it is always people, not weapons, that determine the victory of a war.
After more than 20 minutes of brutal fighting, the red-eyed officers and soldiers of the 2nd Battalion of the 772nd Regiment completely forgot how many casualties they had suffered, and they just fired the bullets in their guns at the Japanese army crazily.
The Japanese commanders on the front line finally couldn't stand this cruel battle. Shouldn't the Imperial Japanese Army have flattened the Chinese positions under the cover of their own superior firepower? Instead of dying in vain at such a distance.
There are still more than 300 meters away in the wilderness.
What the hell are the artillery and tank crews doing? Are they eating Japanese rice in the back?
Following the Japanese commander's order, the Japanese army finally took the initiative to stop this cruel shooting duel, slowly retreated alternately, and took the initiative to stay away from the battlefield.
As for the main battlefield in the center of Jiuguan, it was now time to decide the outcome.