At six o'clock in the morning, the explosions that had been ringing all night finally stopped.
Looking at the strongholds full of craters around him, the commander felt like crying.
The most eye-catching thing here is the artillery position. More than a dozen corpses fell to the ground in various postures, their blood had dried up, and they were motionless.
"Sir, the losses of the strongholds have been calculated."
"Last night the Eighth Route Army brought in a total of 45 explosive packets. Judging from the size of the crater: there were ordinary explosive packets containing twenty kilograms of explosives, as well as large explosive packets containing forty kilograms of explosives."
"Because it is filled with black powder, ordinary explosives have limited power and are difficult to cause damage to the bunker."
"But a 40-pound explosive bag is very powerful, especially when it explodes next to a bunker."
"There was a bunker that was completely destroyed by two consecutive enlarged explosive charges that exploded at close range. The Imperial Army and the Imperial Alliance Army stationed inside were all killed. The other bunkers remained intact."
"However, 19 people were killed by the shock wave, and 12 others suffered internal injuries and temporarily lost their combat effectiveness."
"In addition, the artillery team lost 15 people, including three seriously wounded. In addition to the losses in the destroyed bunker, we had a total of 45 people killed last night, and 14 people were seriously injured and lost their combat effectiveness."
"There are 21 Imperial Army troops and 38 Imperial Alliance troops inside."
The commander clenched his fists, his veins were exposed, his face was full of anger, and his eyes became red.
This loss was too great, equivalent to killing more than 10% of the troops stationed at the stronghold in one night.
If the Eighth Route Army continues to attack the stronghold with thunder cannons tonight, the garrison will definitely suffer casualties, and they will not be much smaller.
If this continues, without the Imperial Army having to break out of the stronghold, the Eighth Route Army can inflict heavy casualties on the troops stationed in the stronghold simply by bombing it with thunder cannons.
The commander did not dare to think any further and shouted through gritted teeth.
"We must find a way to kill the flying thunder cannons equipped by the Eighth Route Army!"
The subordinate replied: "Sir, judging from the results of last night's battle, artillery counterattack seems to be of no use."
"Not only did it fail to destroy the thunder cannon, but it also attracted retaliatory strikes from the Eighth Route Army artillery."
"The Eighth Route Army must have moved the thunder cannon before our shelling."
The commander had a sullen expression and said nothing.
Although I don’t want to admit it, it is indeed the case.
After thinking for a long time, he said: "If the artillery counterattack is useless, we will have to fight out. If we can destroy the thunder cannons, we will destroy them. If not, we will destroy the blockade ditch built by the Eighth Route Army under our noses."
The subordinate reminded: "Wouldn't this give the Eighth Route Army an opportunity to use guerrilla warfare to consume us?"
The commander asked angrily: "Then can you think of other ways to destroy the flying thunder cannon?"
Seeing his subordinates shaking their heads, the commander continued.
"If we let the thunder cannons continue to explode, as long as they have enough black powder, dozens of us will die every night. The remaining men in the garrison will not be able to last even half a month."
"Although people will die when they break out of the stronghold, as long as they are fast enough and destroy those flying thunder cannons in one action, it will be done once and for all. No one will die from flying thunder cannons in the stronghold in a short period of time."
"Compared to being bombed every night, the casualties of the troops will definitely be much smaller."
"Taking a step back, even if we fail to destroy those thunder cannons and only blow up the blockade ditch, we can last longer than being bombed every day."
"It will take time for the Eighth Route Army to dig new blockade trenches. When the trenches are dug, their torpedoes and cannons will not threaten us."
At eight o'clock in the evening, the thunder cannon sounded outside the stronghold on time.
The company commander, who had slept all night, was in high spirits, holding his binoculars and staring at the stronghold motionless.
"Instructor, order the troops to get ready for battle. I have a feeling: the Japanese army cannot keep the flying thunder cannons from blowing up. The artillery counterattack last night did not work. They are likely to come out tonight and destroy our flying thunder cannons."
"Inform the artillery platoon to aim at the gate of the stronghold. If Japanese and puppet troops rush out, each gun will fire five rounds rapidly. After the firing, move away. Don't be targeted by the artillery in the stronghold. We only have this little wealth.
Can’t afford the loss.”
"The thunder cannons are ready to retreat."
"If the Japanese and puppet troops come out, they will definitely be targeted."
"When you see the Japanese charging out, retreat along the communication ditch. The infantry will cover you and take the opportunity to kill a few more enemies."
At ten o'clock in the evening, when the company commander was wondering whether he had made a mistake in judgment, the stronghold finally responded.
In less than a minute, ten rounds of artillery shells were fired at the main entrance of the stronghold.
Several soldiers were killed and a large gap was opened in the trench.
"Company commander, the gate of the stronghold has opened, and the Japanese and puppet troops have come out!" the instructor reminded standing nearby.
"Infantry cover, thunder cannons retreat immediately!" the company commander ordered, staring closely at the gate of the stronghold.
Seeing more and more Japanese and puppet troops rushing out, he continued to order: "The artillery fires. This is an excellent opportunity to kill a large number of Japanese and puppet troops."
Four artillery shells hit the entrance of the stronghold one after another. The moment the fire splashed, the Japanese and puppet troops nearby were blown away together or knocked to the ground.
Every time a shell hits, all the Japanese and puppet troops within five meters of the impact point will be wiped out.
After the shelling ended, corpses and wounded lay on the ground at the entrance to the stronghold.
The commander stood on the top of the gun tower, clenching his fists and looking heartbroken.
But he had no choice.
If you cannot break out of the stronghold and destroy the torpedo cannons and blockade ditches, the casualties of the troops stationed in the stronghold will be even greater.
More than two hours later, the sound of gunfire began to weaken, and the attacking troops gradually returned to their strongholds.
Looking at the bodies left outside, the commander was sure: today's casualties were greater than before.
"Sir, the losses have been calculated!" The subordinate climbed up to the gun tower and reported with his head lowered.
"The attack just now resulted in a total loss of 53 people, 42 of whom were killed in battle, and all the bodies were left outside the stronghold. Eleven serious injuries were saved, almost all of which were caused by shelling at the entrance of the stronghold."
The anger that the commander had suppressed in his heart bubbled out, and he wanted to curse.
But he couldn't curse when he said it. The attack order was given by himself, and he had no choice. It had nothing to do with his subordinates, and he couldn't find a target to vent his anger.
Finally, he sighed and ordered: "Order the troops to have a good rest. The stronghold will definitely not be attacked again in the next two days."
"In addition, the stronghold will have extra meals tomorrow night. Both the Imperial Army and the Imperial Alliance Army will have meat to eat."
"The morale of the troops is too low. We must find a way to lift it up, otherwise the stronghold cannot continue to be defended."
Outside the stronghold, the company commander, with a smile on his face, was arranging his troops to count the corpses left outside by the Japanese one by one, and to tally the troops' losses in the battle just now.
At this moment, he was confident and confident in blocking the stronghold and finally taking it.
