After staying up for nearly an hour, the Japanese and puppet troops finally left the village and walked toward the First Company like they were showing off their power.
"God is wise. The Japanese didn't arrest anyone. We won't have so many worries when we fight later!" Li Yunshan, the company commander, said very thankfully.
"The stupid little devils have finally come out! Company commander, are you going to follow the old rules and kill them?" a platoon leader asked with eyes shining.
Li Yunshan affirmed: "The old rule is to beat the Japanese and puppet army officers first, and then force the remaining Imperial Army to surrender!"
"Bah, bang, bang..." Li Yunshan raised his pistol and fired the first shot of the entire ambush battle. Immediately afterwards, gunshots like exploding beans rang out on the battlefield.
Under the blows of four crooked guns and more than a hundred rifles, more than twenty people wearing Japanese military uniforms fell to the road and died on the spot.
After a round of firing, the company with sufficient ammunition immediately started firing freely, focusing on the Japanese on the road.
But Li Yunshan soon discovered something was wrong: "No, there is something wrong with the puppet troops on the road!"
"It is impossible for the puppet army to react so quickly. They must be disguised as little devils. Comrades, no matter whether the enemy is a puppet army or a little devil, kill them all!"
"Bah bang bang!" As he spoke, more than a hundred Japanese and puppet troops had begun to fight back.
The real puppet troops were slightly better. Although they fought back desperately, the flying bullets were difficult to hit the target.
But the Japs hiding in the middle of the team were different. Their precise marksmanship allowed them to hit an Eighth Route Army soldier with every bullet they fired.
People around Li Yunshan were constantly being shot in the head by Japanese soldiers, and then fell to the mountain ridge screaming.
"Don't be afraid, fire with all your strength. Machine gunners, suppress the machine guns of the Japanese and puppet troops. The small artillery squad will fire immediately. Whether it is puppet troops or Japanese soldiers, bomb them in crowded places to disrupt them. Fire quickly!"
Fortunately, one thing about the mixed Japanese and puppet troops has not changed. No matter what military uniforms they wear, machine gunners carrying machine guns and grenade launchers carrying grenade launchers are the key attack targets of independent regiments on the battlefield at all times.
Therefore, even though many people wore the uniforms of the Imperial Association Army, they were still killed immediately.
Then during the battle, any Japanese and puppet soldiers who wanted to get close to these heavy weapons were shot to death regardless of their identity.
Without crooked weapons and grenade launchers to participate in the battle, the pressure on the first company was much less, but under the counterattack of Japanese riflemen, casualties continued to increase.
The troops, who were full of confidence just now, began to panic due to the increasing number of casualties.
Fortunately, the grenade fired at this time.
"Boom, boom, boom..." Three explosions rang out on the highway, killing eight or nine Japanese and puppet troops on the spot.
"Good job, keep firing, and bomb where there are many people!" Company Commander Li Yunshan ordered loudly with red eyes.
After five consecutive rounds of fifteen grenades, the battlefield situation began to develop in a direction favorable to the First Company at noon.
The company, which lost nearly a platoon, completely surrounded the remaining Japanese and puppet troops.
Of course, the remaining 60 or so Japanese and puppet troops did not have no room to fight back. They were all scattered and hidden in every corner of the encirclement, firing a bullet from time to time to prevent Yilian from launching an attack and getting closer to them.
As a result, the enemy and we actually began to confront each other, and through exchanges of fire, we gained a little bit of the opponent's strength in the trenches.
Although the First Company had a great advantage in the exchange of fire due to its powerful firepower, because the Japanese and puppet troops were too hidden and scattered, it was impossible for Li Yunshan to eat them all in less than five or six minutes or even seven or eight minutes.
However, Li Yunshan was unwilling to end the battle and withdraw from the battlefield, leaving the remaining Japanese and puppet troops on the road alone.
"Machine gunners, continue to suppress the enemy, and the riflemen fire freely! One platoon carries grenades and presses forward, find a way to get close to the enemy, and greet them with grenades! Cover with grenades, and blow up wherever there are enemies. Don't hack me to save ammunition!"
Li Yunshan ordered with red eyes.
At this time, in the county town a few miles away, two squadrons of Japanese troops and two battalions of the Imperial Alliance Army had already rushed out of the city gate, and then rushed towards the battlefield one after the other.
Although they were known by the main force of the First Battalion of the Independent Regiment lurking outside as soon as they left the city, every move of the remaining two companies of the First Battalion was also under the surveillance of the Japanese and puppet troops.
The battle in the First Company was at a stalemate. Regardless of whether the First Company could end the battle on time, the Japanese reinforcements leaving the city would have to block it.
Zhang Qing immediately pulled his troops to a ridge suitable for blocking the attack, and stood ready for Japanese reinforcements.
The battle started quickly. The mixed Japanese and puppet troops showed very strong combat effectiveness on the battlefield. In addition, they were strengthened with many heavy machine guns and mortars before leaving the city.
Although the 1st Battalion occupied a favorable defensive terrain, it was still suppressed and beaten by the Japanese.
You must know that this is only half of the troops of the Japanese and puppet troops leaving the city. If the other half of the troops come up, one battalion will definitely not be able to stop the Japanese and puppet troops' attack regardless of consumption.
"Battal Commander, the follow-up troops of the Japanese and puppet troops are coming up, but they did not launch a direct attack. Instead, they divided into two and surrounded us on both wings. The enemy must want to annihilate us here!" said the squad leader of the 1st Battalion Reconnaissance Squadron.
He hurried over and reported.
"There is something wrong with this battle. It is not developing in the direction we planned. The enemy is also wrong. When did the Imperial Alliance Army have such a strong combat effectiveness? And their firepower intensity is not possessed by an infantry squadron at all. We must be
They were plotted by the Japanese!" Zhang Qing said with a stern face.
Then a look of realization appeared on his face, and he continued to shout: "No, we have been fooled. The Japanese not only want to use us to train troops, but also want to fight a war of attrition with us. Their equipment is good, and their ammunition is sufficient.
With strong combat effectiveness, we are definitely no match for them in a war of attrition. They want to annihilate us all here, so this must be the case!"
Although the Independent Regiment defeated the Japanese again and again, no one from top to bottom of the Independent Regiment dared to despise the strong combat effectiveness and sophisticated equipment of the Japanese army.
As the leader of the regiment, Wang Ping also constantly emphasized to everyone that the current combat method of the independent regiment is best to focus on small-scale annihilation battles and ambush battles. While training, it can also replenish some equipment and ammunition to increase its own strength. It is not a last resort.
, you must not engage in a war of attrition with the enemy, as that will not be worth the gain for the independent regiment!
Therefore, as soon as Zhang Qing finished speaking, the expressions of the surrounding subordinates also became heavy.
Instructor Zhao Wenhua is a veteran of the Red Army. He has experienced many big battles and bloody battles. He can judge the bad situation the first battalion is facing now at a glance. Then he directly suggested to Zhang Qing: "Batalion Commander, this battle cannot be fought anymore. Let's do it."
If not, our first battalion will have to deal with this!"
Retreating as soon as the battle begins will have a great impact on both military morale and morale.
Zhang Qing knew this truth very well, but compared with the entire army being destroyed here, retreating is definitely the best choice.
He frowned and immediately ordered: "Communications squad, contact Li Yunshan immediately. No matter whether the battle can be ended quickly or not, we will retreat after receiving the order!"
"We will retreat after holding on for another five minutes. Old Zhao, you have to inform the instructors of each company and do a good job in the ideological work of the soldiers. If we retreat like this, the soldiers' thoughts will fluctuate greatly. You must ensure the stability of the first battalion!"