The battle situation was worse than Lieutenant Colonel Furuta expected.
Originally we could arrive at the battlefield at one o'clock in the morning, but the troops fought intermittently, and sometimes even stopped to repair roads. By one o'clock in the morning, they had only gone halfway.
More importantly, there were nearly two hundred more corpses and wounded in the army.
Lieutenant Colonel Furuta did not compile statistics on who they were, otherwise he would definitely be alert.
Because at least half of these people are from the heavy machine gun squadron and mortar squadron under his command.
"Da da da……"
Gunshots rang out at the front of the team again. This time Lieutenant Colonel Furuta frowned visibly, and then subconsciously shouted.
"Something's wrong. This is no ordinary sneak attack. In addition to light machine guns, there are also heavy machine guns shooting together."
"Da da da... boom boom boom..."
The increasingly dense gunfire and several sudden explosions directly proved Lieutenant Colonel Furuta's judgment.
In the previous sneak attacks, the Eighth Route Army had hit and run, and the gunshots were very brief.
The gunfire had been going on for half a minute now. Not only did it not stop, but it intensified.
"Sir, there are Eighth Route Army blocking troops in the village ahead!" the signal trooper galloped over on horseback to report.
"The road passes through the middle of the village. If the troops want to continue advancing, they can only capture the village."
"The opponent's firepower was very fierce, and they were also equipped with heavy machine guns and mortars. The forward troops were caught off guard and attacked. They suffered heavy losses and have already retreated."
Lieutenant Colonel Furuta snorted and replied: "Our opponent is anxious!"
"Normal sneak attacks cannot threaten us, and there is no way to really stop us. We can only stand up and fight us head on, blocking us head on."
"We have already wasted a lot of time. We can no longer delay here. We order the third and fourth squadrons to launch a joint attack and capture them in one battle."
"The heavy machine gun squadron and the mortar squadron provide covering fire."
"Tell the two squadron leaders that we have been chased and beaten by these Eighth Route Army troops along the way. Now the opportunity for revenge has come. I ask them to completely wipe out these Eighth Route Army troops, avenge the fallen warriors, quickly open a breakthrough, and continue to move forward."
"As long as we kill them, the next forced march will definitely go much smoother."
"Hi!"
The adjutant replied with gleaming eyes.
After serving as a guard for the Heavy Artillery Brigade for so long, he was also very eager to go to the battlefield.
It’s not easy to come across such an opportunity to try your skills, and I won’t let it go.
Immediately after, he added: "I will personally command this attack in my humble position. I will definitely kill all the Eighth Route Army blocking us in front."
After saying that, the adjutant rushed towards the battlefield with excitement on his face.
On a raised hill one kilometer away, Xiao Yuan was lying on the ground, holding a telescope, motionless.
It wasn't until the Japanese began to mobilize their troops that there was any movement, and they shouted excitedly.
"The Japanese were fooled. The remaining two squadrons of the infantry brigade, the mortar squadron and the heavy machine gun squadron, all went to deal with the reconnaissance company."
"Order the cavalry battalion to prepare for an assault."
"There are only a few supplementary troops left around the heavy artillery brigade. Although their combat effectiveness is very strong, they have never been on the battlefield and are not equipped with heavy weapons."
"When we are suddenly attacked, we will definitely not be able to build a defense line to stop us in a hurry. We will only fight on our own!"
"On the field battlefield, without the support of heavy weapons and solid defense lines, ordinary infantry, no matter how strong their combat effectiveness is, cannot withstand a cavalry assault."
At this point, Xiao Yuan seemed to have seen the scene of the Japanese being massacred by the cavalry battalion, and his face became more and more excited.
After taking a deep breath and forcing himself to calm down, he turned to the deputy captain of the commando next to him and asked.
"Are our snipers, firepower, and assaulters in place?"
"They escort the cavalry battalion. With their presence, the cavalry can rush onto the road and kill the Japanese at the minimum cost."
"Especially the assaulters, in addition to supporting the reconnaissance company and reducing the combat pressure of the reconnaissance company, they also need to prevent the Japanese artillery squadron and heavy machine gun squadron from returning to support."
The deputy captain quickly replied: "We were in place before the Japanese came."
"They are all lurking in individual bunkers less than a hundred meters away from the road. The surrounding terrain is complex and there are bushes covering them. The Japanese scouts can't even find them when they get close!"
"Boom boom boom..."
A violent explosion soon sounded in the village, interrupting the deputy captain's words.
"The Japanese have begun to attack!" Xiao Yuan raised his binoculars again and looked at the village.
Eight fireballs mixed with thick black smoke had already risen in the village and were lined up along the entrance of the village.
"Da da da……"
Immediately afterwards, heavy machine guns also joined the battle.
Eight heavy machine guns were lined up outside the village, firing towards the entrance of the village. Bullets were flying toward the village like meteors.
More than two hundred Japanese soldiers lined up in a skirmish line, and under the cover of heavy machine guns and mortars, they pressed towards the village in a mighty manner.
"The Japs want to attack our reconnaissance company and open up a breakthrough." Xiao Yuan judged.
As the commander-in-chief of the battle, I must be worried about the survival of the reconnaissance company at this time.
But Xiao Yuan didn't. Not only was he not nervous, but he was getting more and more excited.
The deputy captain on the side couldn't help it anymore and quickly reminded: "Captain, I suggest that the cavalry battalion launch an attack immediately to reduce the combat pressure of the reconnaissance company."
"The Japanese's offensive artillery fire was too fierce, and more than 200 elites attacked together. The strength of the reconnaissance company was less than half of them. If they really collided head-on, the reconnaissance company would definitely not be their opponent."
Xiao Yuan shook his head and refused: "No rush!"
"The two armies have just started fighting. If the cavalry battalion takes action now, the Japanese offensive troops will definitely withdraw from the battle immediately, and then return with artillery and heavy machine gun troops to support the heavy artillery brigade."
"Our commando force is limited, and we can only stop the artillery and heavy machine gun troops with all our efforts. If these two hundred or so little devils also participate in the battle, even if the entire commando force is destroyed, it will not stop them from attacking with all their strength. In the end, we will not be able to stop them.
.”
"In order for the cavalry battalion to successfully attack and ensure that they will win with one strike, the more than 200 elite Japanese soldiers on the battlefield must not return for reinforcements."
"Only when the reconnaissance company fights with them can they be held back and unable to withdraw from the battle."
"As for the safety of the reconnaissance company, you can rest assured."
"The reconnaissance company is the most powerful unit in our garrison besides the commando team. Every soldier in it can be called an elite."
"If you can't even survive the fire coverage of eight mortars, then the word "elite" will be in vain."
"The two hundred or so Japs are nothing to worry about: their combat effectiveness is very strong, even higher than that of the reconnaissance company."
"But don't forget, although the reconnaissance company is going head-to-head with them, it is not a positional battle, but a street battle that we often train. Even the terrain advantage is on our side!"
"I believe that the reconnaissance company can not only drag more than 200 elite Japanese soldiers into the village through street fighting, but also consume them all bit by bit, defeat the many with less, and eat them."
Xiao Yuan's judgment was absolutely correct.
From the beginning, Chen Wei had no intention of fighting a positional battle with the Japanese army.
The Japanese want artillery and artillery, and they want heavy machine guns and heavy machine guns. If you fight them in positional warfare, you will die.
The reason why such strong firepower was deployed at the entrance of the village in the first place had two purposes.
One is that the Japanese forward troops were too arrogant and implemented Lieutenant Colonel Furuta's orders too thoroughly. They did not pay attention to the sporadic sneak attacks of the reconnaissance company and just marched forward in a hurry.
This allowed Chen Wei to see a good opportunity to hit them hard.
Concentrate your firepower, bring the forward troops closer and fire, catching them by surprise.
The second reason was to confuse the Japanese troops and make them mistakenly believe that they were concentrating their forces to defend the village entrance and block them head-on.
In this way, the enemy's offensive artillery fire will be concentrated at the entrance of the village.
Don't look at the fact that the little devils are fighting fiercely now. The shells are coming down one after another as if they are free of charge, but the actual effect is very poor and the result is almost zero.
Because when the Japanese forward troops retreated, the troops of the reconnaissance company concentrated at the entrance of the village also withdrew and were scattered in every corner of the village, preparing for street fighting.
More than two hundred Japanese soldiers rushed towards the village with murderous intent.
I originally thought there would be a fight waiting for me, but I was disappointed.
A punch thrown out with force is like hitting cotton, weak and weak.
"Da da da……"
The sound of heavy machine gun fire suddenly sounded at the end of the road that ran through the entire village.
Under the cover of night, the deputy captain of the Japanese team could not see clearly. But the flames from the muzzle were particularly dazzling, and he could see clearly.
"Sir, the Eighth Route Army is hiding in the village. Do you want to kill them?"
"Our mission is to capture the village and open a breakthrough for reinforcements on the battlefield. Of course we must continue the attack." The vice-captain became excited again as if he had been beaten to death.
An infantry squadron leader hesitated and reminded: "Should we contact the artillery and heavy machine gun squadrons behind us and let them cover the village with artillery fire before attacking?"
In normal times, this method is definitely the safest, and it is also in line with the Japanese army's long-standing combat style.
But today was so special that the vice-captain refused without hesitation: "No need."
"Time is the first thing we have to consider now. The village is so big. I calculate it based on the minimum standard. It will definitely take half an hour for the artillery to move their positions and cover the village with artillery fire. And after the artillery bombardment, we still have to attack. All the time adds up to one
It may not last more than an hour.
"If we attack directly, we can save half an hour of artillery preparation."
"However, in order to prevent accidents, artillery still has to participate in the battle."
"The troops attacked directly and divided their forces into squads to eliminate the Eighth Route Army in the village."
"Heavy machine guns and mortars will come over immediately, divide the troops to reinforce each squad, and directly reinforce the infantry operations."
The sound of the exchange of fire soon sounded in the village, and then reached Xiao Yuan's ears.
Especially after seeing the Japanese artillery squadron and heavy machine gun squadron also entering the village, Xiao Yuan completely relaxed.
The vice-captain couldn't bear it anymore and immediately reminded: "Captain, it's almost time. The Japanese have entered the village."
"Success or failure depends on this one move!" Xiao Yuan's face immediately became serious.