Second Lieutenant Matsuda once again escaped back to the main formation, taking with him 28 people, including him and Ikehaashi's 42-person desperate team. He left 12 Japanese soldiers in front of the independent regiment's position, 4 of whom were accidentally injured by our own artillery fire, and 12 people were killed by the Chinese.
8 people were killed.
To be honest, if the three soldiers had not been exhausted physically and mentally under the artillery fire, and were relieved to see them flee crazily and lay down to recover their strength, perhaps they would have suffered more losses.
Lieutenant Colonel Hatori had already returned to his headquarters, and he didn't even bother to look at these "Imperial Warriors" who were running fast again.
With confidence, Lieutenant Matsuda finally had the opportunity to enjoy the tenderness of the female nurse and re-bandage his wounds. This time, he only retreated with the permission of his superior officer.
As night fell, Lieutenant Colonel Hatori received a report of the afternoon's battle damage.
Although it had been expected, the infantry squadron lost 305 people and wounded 107; the heavy machine gun squadron lost 26 people and wounded 16; the brigade's main position lost 13 people and wounded 26 due to sudden enemy shelling; the artillery directly under the wing
The squadron suffered 32 casualties and 19 wounded; the 1st Squadron of the Tank Battalion, directly under the division, reported huge casualties of 17 killed, which still made veins pop out of his head.
Due to the strengthening of the artillery squad, his 1st Infantry Brigade was full of 1,180 people, 80 more than the ordinary infantry brigade. However, in the first battle of Jiuguan, only two of his four infantry squadrons were destroyed, including the heavy machine gun squadron.
The shooters also suffered almost all casualties, accounting for almost more than half of the combat troops. The casualty rate was as high as 55%.
This is probably the highest casualty rate at the brigade level of the entire North China Expeditionary Army since entering China in July!
However, it is not a good thing to be the top one. Thinking about the instructions given by the division commander to summon all major officers and above before leaving, the face of the veteran lieutenant colonel became gloomy. I am afraid that the brigade commander may not be able to save him this time.
The heavy casualties can be said to be the result of the heroic and unrelenting fight of the Imperial warriors. But what made Hatori Lieutenant-General even more worried was that the equipment losses were even worse.
The infantry brigade left more than 200 soldiers at the front without even retrieving their bodies, but it lost even more guns. The entire brigade only had more than 680 rifles, and this time it lost 232; the light machine guns on the battlefield were 12
We lost 5 guns and 8 heavy machine guns, 2 of which were blown to pieces in the fierce Chinese mortar bombings; 6 infantry guns of the artillery squadron directly under the wing were destroyed, and one of them was killed by a shell.
Not to mention the cannon body, even the solid barrel was twisted into a twist. A mountain cannon fell into a ravine because the packhorse was frightened. Looking at the crooked appearance of the fall, it probably can only be recycled as scrap metal; Chariot Squadron 3
One Type 94 tank was completely destroyed, and two of the five Type 89 medium tanks were also destroyed by Chinese machine guns. Smoke was still rising from the position.
Lieutenant Colonel Hatori was in a daze while looking at the battle damage report, desperately thinking about how to report to the commander of the regiment, Captain Kitoyuki, who was waiting for him to report the battle situation.
In the tunnel headquarters on the Jiuguan front line, Liu Lang also looked at the battle damage report of the 1st Battalion and his face turned black.
The 1st Battalion of the Independent Regiment, under the attack of Lieutenant Colonel Hatori and the Japanese 1st Infantry Battalion at all costs, suffered considerable losses.
The first company on the battlefield killed 35 people on the spot, and injured 47 people, including 18 people seriously injured. During the rescue process, another 7 people were sacrificed. The shell shock wave damaged the internal organs, let alone the current medical technology.
, even in the future, doctors will be helpless.
The second platoon of the company with the heaviest casualties, two main infantry squads, one infantry squad with only 3 people left, and one infantry squad with 8 members reduced to 6 after the last Japanese shelling, plus the wounded they were rescuing from the rear, the total
Even if we get up, we can't even put together an infantry squad.
So when Cen Changqing cried and asked to go to the field hospital to guard his soldiers for surgery, Liu Lang agreed without saying a word.
Liu Lang didn't care about the loss of equipment, but every time he lost a soldier, although there was no expression on Liu Lang's face, only those who knew him well knew how sad he would feel.
Every soldier here, at least, has stayed at the independent regiment base for three years. Some have even followed him since 1932, and it has been five years now. In more than a thousand days, they have become strangers.
People become brothers. Everyone here is his compatriot and brother.
He has spent five years desperately making money, arming his troops to the maximum extent possible under permitted conditions, turning them from farmers into well-trained iron-blooded warriors.
Their will is tenacious enough to face the enemy's artillery fire without flinching; their execution is also extremely firm, even in the face of the terrifying 105 howitzer, they will not hesitate to enter the position; they are the most powerful people of this era.
Elite soldiers.
However, the more this happens, the more sad Liu Lang becomes, who has integrated himself more and more into this era.
They all faced death and welcomed death under his command.
On the battlefield, he might be a cold-blooded colonel who regarded the casualties of soldiers as cold numbers, but at the end of the battle, he was just a 26-year-old young man. Facing the departure of his brothers one after another, he was heartbroken.
Open your heart.
Because, he could have adopted better tactics and used the existing mobility of the independent regiment and the large number of mortars and special forces to conduct mobile harassment operations against the Japanese invaders in front of him. While killing a large number of enemies, he could also reduce his own
casualties.
Just like in the future war in Syria, the rebels drove pickup trucks and were equipped with mortars, recoilless rifles or rocket launchers to bombard the government army camps thousands of meters away, and then fled. Once the government troops
In pursuit, the greatest possibility is not to pursue and annihilate the enemy, but to be blown up by bombs buried on the roadside. Without a large number of air force escorts, any army facing this situation can only knock out its teeth and go to the belly.
swallow.
Moreover, Liu Lang could also learn from Algeria's experience in dealing with fighting ethnic groups in the 1980s, and evacuate all officers and soldiers in platoon units to the mountainous areas to fight guerrilla warfare with the Japs. Liu Lang has every reason to believe that he has the advantage of geography and mortars.
The independent regiment can reduce the 39th Brigade in front of them to ashes, and their personal casualties will be minimized.
Liu Lang could even reveal the Independence Regiment's biggest trump card right now, quietly transporting six twelve-barreled Storm rocket launchers to the Jiuguan front line, and launch a thorough artillery fire coverage against the Japanese invaders' 105 howitzer group. A salvo.
The Storm Rocket Launcher, which can fire 72 rockets, is fully capable of completely wiping out the entire howitzer group within five minutes.
After eliminating this terrible howitzer brigade, the Japanese invaders of the 39th Brigade will lose their most powerful weapon and the greatest threat to the Chinese army. Niangzi Pass is not only impregnable, but may even launch a massive counterattack. The Chinese troops stationed on the front line of Niangzi Pass can
There were more than 30,000 people, and more than 7,000 little Japanese who lost their artillery were drowned with just a spit of saliva.
But Liu Lang is destined not to do this now. First of all, fighting guerrilla warfare is destined to be his wishful thinking. The theater headquarters has issued a death order and must stick to it. No matter what the reason, those who retreat will be killed without mercy; secondly, Liu Lang, a young man
The regiment commander may be able to persuade the future general's 386th Brigade and Commander Zhao's 17th Division, but he is determined not to persuade the Central Army's Third Army and 26th Route Army. They do not have the tacit red gene of the two.
.
Liu Lang's mobile operations are likely to be regarded as an escape by them, and the mutual distrust between the national army generals is the most terrifying. Liu Lang is afraid that his action will cause the hearts of the entire defense line to fluctuate, and as long as he retreats,
That was a rout of thousands of miles. At that time, it was not a question of beheading, nor whether Liu Lang's regiment in mobile combat could stop it, but the fall of Niangzi Pass and the influx of Japanese troops from two brigades.
The problem is approaching a major strategic failure in Taiyuan.
If the independent regiment's biggest trump card is used, the 39th Brigade may no longer be a concern, but the Japanese army still has the 40th Brigade, or the 108th and 109th Divisions that are pursuing southward are still threatening Jindong. Liu Lang did
With so many subordinates, the target is the entire 20th Division, not just the 3,800 men of the 77th Regiment in front of them.
The Independent Regiment and the 772nd Regiment must hang on to this enemy, so that they are still the same as before in time and space. They think that the war at hand is stalemate and must capture Fulule Ridge, and make a roundabout way to Chaiyu Town to outflank Niangziguan. And in Qigen Village
, the main force of the three battalions of the Independent Regiment and the main force of the 771st Regiment of the 386th Brigade have carefully constructed an ambush circle and are waiting for them to take the bait.
Only then will the 3,000 elite troops in the Jiuguan area launch a counterattack and completely eat up this Japanese army.
At this time, the 1st Battalion of the Independent Regiment, which had only exerted 70% of its combat power, could only defend the old pass and fight against the Japanese army. Sacrifice was inevitable.
"You haven't eaten much all day, let's eat something first!" Liu Xueyuan walked into the headquarters carrying a bowl of noodle soup and a piece of flatbread. He saw Liu Lang sitting there in a daze while looking at the casualty report, with a look on his face.
There was a scene of tragedy, and he comforted softly. "The heroic fighting deeds of the officers and soldiers of the Independence Regiment will definitely not be buried. Xueyuan will use pen to let the people across the country know their sacrifice, and their names will be remembered by China for generations."
"No, Xueyuan, this battle is different from the Battle of the Great Wall. It was a battle to defend the territory, but this battle is a national war. You have personally experienced the brutality of the southeastern battlefield. It is the most important economic and political center of China.
In the center, the government has invested hundreds of thousands of troops and cannot afford to lose. However, this is one of the most mineral-rich areas in China. If Shanxi loses, the endless supply of coal and steel will become an accomplice of the Japanese invaders, and there is no room for failure.
Facing such a national war, all our troops on the front line should fight bravely, no matter how hard they die.
Although our independent regiment suffered dozens of casualties in this battle, my heart is very sad, but the casualties under Commander Zeng in the main battle area of Niangziguan were also heavy, and the casualties under Commander Zhao of the 17th Snowflake Mountain Division were even heavier. I have received his telegram in the afternoon.
, in the No. 1 position on the main peak of Snowflake Mountain, an infantry company is standing alone. He has ordered them to fight to the death and hold their position until tomorrow. There are 160 people in the company! The whole army is in Mo. They need you to use your weapons even more.
Let me tell the people of China that the 100,000 troops on the front line of Niangziguan, regardless of the Central Army, the 18th Group Army, the Sichuan Army, the Northwest Army, and the Shanxi-Sui Army, are all heroes." Liu Lang looked away from the battle report,
He shook his head and said slowly.
There was sadness and pride in his eyes.
Liu Lang was sad because the Chinese soldiers suffered heavy casualties that day. Throughout the day, along the 20-kilometer-long defense line from Snowflake Mountain to Jiuguan, tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers suffered casualties of more than 3,000, several times more than the Japanese invaders.
Liu Lang was equally proud. What he was proud of was that he personally participated in the Battle of Niangziguan, which was not described in the history of the war. He was proud to see that all the Chinese troops fought in bloody battles without anyone retreating.
Even though many of them did not even see the faces of the Japanese invaders, they were blown to pieces along with the rocks by huge cannons.
They, like the future Army of the Republic, are the backbone of the Chinese nation and will not bend.