Chapter 1463: Dont move in the east, move in the west (Part 2)
Even the former 683rd Brigade has grown into the number one brigade of the 80th Army during this period, with enough strength to compete with a Japanese infantry brigade, let alone this time and space.
After the Taihang Arsenal left the Fourth Army Regiment, it went to full throttle to manufacture various types of ammunition. Only bullets of various calibers were produced. 6 million rounds were produced in this year, and various caliber artillery shells needed by the Garrison Brigade and the Eightyth Group Army
, more than 100,000 pieces were produced.
It can be said that the real strength possessed by the Eightyth Army at this time was enough to fight a head-on battle with the entire North China Front Army.
Facing such a powerful enemy, the Japanese relied on a thousand-man infantry brigade and relied on the city wall to hold on until reinforcements arrived. That was simply a fantasy.
Due to insufficient strength, the Japanese army took the initiative to abandon their positions and fortifications outside the city when they discovered that a large number of Chinese troops were moving towards Linfen City, and all retreated inside the city walls.
Wang Xiaoqiang was not polite, and immediately used his precious artillery battalion and the heavy force company supported by the brigade. More than 26 artillery pieces blasted at the city wall, blasting nearly 500 rounds of artillery shells, and the wall was nearly 3 meters thick.
The city wall was blasted with a gap of more than 20 meters.
The Japanese troops defending the city were desperate at that moment!
However, Wang Xiaoqiang did not immediately order his troops to rush into the gap in the city wall despite the hail of Japanese bullets. Instead, he used a group of small-caliber mortars to cover the rear and left and right sides of the gap with artillery fire.
Yes, the squad-level support firepower of the 60-force mortar has been greatly welcomed by various departments of the Eighty Group Army after battlefield practice. The Taihang Arsenal specially arranged a workshop to produce this small-caliber mortar. The 683 brigade was the first to equip the 60-force mortar half a year ago.
There are a total of 460 small guns of this kind.
Wang Xiaoqiang, the commander of the 772nd Regiment, once had a sudden idea and gathered 46 60-guns equipped by an infantry battalion to fire a small artillery fire at the Japanese position in the distance.
As a result, the effect was very ideal.
As the saying goes: Too many ants kill an elephant! Although the damage of this small shell weighing only one or two kilograms is limited in a single shot, more than 40 rounds can be thrown in one wave, and more than 600 rounds can be thrown to the target area in one minute of rapid fire.
The bombing effect was also extremely amazing.
I have never done this before. That was because the cannonballs were limited and I could only use good steel on the blade. Now that we have this condition, we can naturally do this, right?
Without the protection of trenches and fortresses with a depth of more than 1.5 meters, it is impossible for any human body exposed on the battlefield to escape this continuous artillery fire.
In order to prevent the Japanese army from redeploying temporary positions on both sides and front of the gap to cause a large number of casualties to the charging officers and soldiers, the 80 60-gun guns that had been prepared long ago completed an unprecedented concentrated fire of small artillery on the anti-Japanese battlefield.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The explosion of a single 60-mm mortar shell is commonplace for veterans.
But what does it feel like when these small cannonballs that can blow away several people with one shot explode like firecrackers?
Perhaps only the Japanese troops deep in the center of the artillery fire area can realize this!
But no one can explain this feeling!
Because no one can survive after being bombarded by gunfire for more than 2 minutes.
Wang Xiaoqiang's prediction came true. The then supreme commander of Linfen City, Colonel Tosei Shiro, was keenly aware that the Chinese would use that as the main breakthrough point after the Chinese began to use various artillery fire to bombard the city wall there.
Colonel Asahi Shiro quickly mobilized 6 heavy machine guns and 3 infantry squads to establish three temporary positions around the city wall. The front had 4 heavy machine guns and 1 infantry squad with 3 light machine guns and 3 grenades.
, the two flanking positions each have a heavy machine gun and an infantry squad, forming three lines of crossfire on the left, center and right.
If any soldiers rashly broke in through the gap in the city wall, under such crossfire, hundreds of people in a battalion, let alone a company, would be shot to death.
However, there was not much time left for the Japanese troops. The Japanese troops who arrived in a hurry had no time to dig trenches and could only use houses and piled sandbags as temporary fortifications on the spot.
These fortifications have no problem blocking bullets, but if they want to block the air waves of artillery shells, it would be a bit too strong-armed.
As a result, the waiting Japanese did not wait for the Chinese charge, but instead waited for the small artillery shells that were as dense as raindrops.
The more than 200 Japanese troops deployed by Shiro Asahi were like an unexperienced little girl meeting a group of strong men who had just been released from prison. They had no time to resist and fell flat.
However, their death was not in vain. More than 200 lives were lost in exchange for more than 2,000 Chinese artillery shells. The battle loss ratio of nearly 1:10 is enough to be proud of.
But the problem is, the 772nd Regiment has entered the city.
At that time, only 30 minutes had passed since the telegram was sent by Asahi Shiro.
The two Japanese infantry brigades that were still participating in the attack did not have time to report to the multi-talented major general, so they took the initiative to withdraw from their positions, sent a communications corps to report to the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade on the current battle situation in Linfen City, and then hurriedly returned to the troops.
Linfen.
After all, they have their infantry regiment commander and regiment headquarters there. It is true that I am a major general with many talents, but I can't control them if I form an independent 2nd brigade.
Until now, the Japanese army had not overestimated China's combat effectiveness and believed that the more than a thousand Imperial colleagues in the city could use the buildings in the city to withstand them for at least one day, at least until their arrival.
"Extremely stupid!" I scolded with a livid face.
He had already made a mistake in estimating the opponent's strength, so the most important thing to do now was to annihilate the Chinese group in front of him with all his strength, and then join forces to return to Linfen.
But like these two infantry brigades, they immediately abandoned the battlefield and ran back after receiving the telegram asking for help. That was adding mistake to mistake, just like being led by the nose like a dog.
The final result can only be that neither side of the battlefield can benefit from it.
If the Chinese come to lay siege to the city for reinforcements, one mistake could result in the total annihilation of the entire army.
The talented major general finally showed that he had the extraordinary mind to become a general. However, he lacked the authority to command the friendly forces, so he could only curse and watch the two infantry brigades go away, getting further and further away from the battlefield.
Then, the talented major general’s ‘crow brain’ came to light.
The 772nd Regiment is here. As the other main force of the 683rd Brigade, how could the 771st Regiment not come?
The 771st Regiment led by Brigadier Chen, who had been promoted to Commander of the Taiyue Military Region, actually entered the battlefield earlier than the 772nd Regiment lurking in the Taiyue Mountains.
As early as when Lei Xiong led the garrison brigade from southern Hebei into Taihang and headed for Wangwu Mountain, the 771st regiment was broken into pieces, abandoned all large equipment, and set out from the Taiyue Military Region with all light equipment and sneaked into the mountains and forests only 40 miles away from Linfen to stand by.
For this day, they had been eating cold buns and drinking cold water in the mountains and forests for seven days.
Finally, they waited for two Japanese infantry brigades that were rushing back for reinforcements.
It was a mental calculation but not a careless one, and the main force of the 771st Regiment was 4,500 people. In terms of firepower, although it did not carry any heavy artillery, mountain artillery or infantry artillery, it did carry the 20kg 60-pound artillery.
In terms of heavy machine guns, the Maxim or Min-24 were all abandoned and replaced by the heavy machine gun MG42. The 771st Regiment also had an overall advantage in both light and heavy firepower and troop strength.
After receiving the news that the ambush from the brigade commander had officially begun, Wang Xiaoqiang officially issued the military order to fully recover Linfen.
The 772 regiment that entered the city actually did not use its full strength. The purpose was to let the Japanese troops trapped in the city ask for help and completely eat up the maneuverable Japanese troops around Linfen. At least for two days, the only Japanese troops around Linfen would be the independent 2nd mixed brigade.
There are thousands of people.
Although street fighting is very difficult, for the 772th Regiment with infantry artillery, these flimsy residential buildings in Linfen City do not pose much difficulty at all. There are Japanese troops hiding in them, and those that can be solved with grenades and explosive packs can be used
Solve it. If it can't be solved, use Japanese 70mm infantry artillery. If one can't kill it, then use two or three cannons.
It took 4 hours to clear out all the Japanese troops in the city.
The supplies and equipment in the city that the Japanese troops had no time to burn were either distributed to the people or blown up. The 772nd Regiment, which had no nostalgia for the city, set out for the garrison brigade battlefield at night.
At that time, the 771st Regiment had already eliminated all the enemies in front of them and arrived at the battlefield at 11 o'clock at night.
If this talented major general could have received the news that friendly forces were ambushed, he would probably have had his feet wet, and there would have been more entanglements with the security brigade.
But the terrible thing is that as soon as the battle started, the Chinese launched an artillery bombardment on the middle section of the marching Japanese army through observation. Several artillery shells landed in the queue of the Japanese communication troops with great accuracy, directly destroying all two radios owned by the Japanese army.
It was blown up.
This also led to the complete loss of contact between the Japanese army and the outside world.
If the weather is fine, Japanese reconnaissance planes will fly over this sky, at least they can see this battlefield that is already in full swing.
Unfortunately, it happened to be drizzling that afternoon, and the Japanese reconnaissance plane in Yuncheng failed to take off in time.
Excellent tactics and good luck also allowed the 683rd Brigade and the Garrison Brigade to fight an extremely stunning battle when the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain was already in danger.
The key to this battle does not lie in Linfen, nor does it lie in the independent mixed 2nd brigade that has been attacked from both inside and outside.
For a large-scale battle-level battlefield like this, the casualties of 10,000 soldiers, although it will make the commander heartbroken, will not break his muscles and bones.
Even Okamura Koji, who was far away in Pingbeicheng, had already prepared for the casualties of 30,000 imperial officers and soldiers when formulating the tactical plan for the Battle of Nakatiao Mountain.
Compared with the huge casualties, the obstruction of the Japanese North China Front Army by Zhongtiao Mountain, a mountain range lying north of the Yellow River, was a thorn in the side of the Japanese North China Front Army. Unless it was removed, the Japanese North China Front Army could not even think about marching into Shaanxi Province, and it would be even worse.
Forget about the strategy of attacking northern Sichuan from the west and forcing the mountain city government to surrender.
The two Chinese armies that suddenly appeared under Linfen City and successfully defeated Linfen were the biggest threat to the Japanese troops on the front line. Yuncheng.
Yuncheng is only 150 kilometers away from Linfen. If an army can march quickly, it only takes one day and night to reach it.
In normal times, Anda 23, who was the frontline commander of the Japanese army at the time, would have had enough troops to return to Yuncheng, which was only 60 kilometers away from the frontline.
However, the destruction of Linfen city and the siege of the independent mixed 2nd brigade happened almost overnight, leaving only one night for Lieutenant General Anda 23, and the Chinese army, which was about to collapse its defense line, seemed to have also known the news and was working on it.
The two retreating armies began to hold on to the spot, and the divided and surrounded 4th and 5th armies also began to use infantry divisions as units to attack the newly established Japanese defense line at all costs.
In particular, the 17th Division of the 38th Army even launched a counterattack at the regimental level in a 12-kilometer mountainous area, at the expense of nearly 3,000 people, and broke through two lines of defense hastily built by the Japanese army.
Although such an attack caused a surge in casualties among the Chinese troops on the front line, it forced Anda 23 to send two divisions in reserve in advance, leaving them with no extra troops to return to Yuncheng in a short period of time.
It took a week and nearly 10,000 casualties to achieve the strategic goal. No one would give up easily, not even 23rd Lieutenant General Adachi, not even Okamura Koji who was far away in Pingbeicheng.
The two Japanese army generals knew very well that the empire's strategic focus had shifted to Southeast Asia. The North China Front Army had received orders to deploy two elite divisions to the Southeast Asian battlefield in September. This might be an opportunity to break through the Nakatiao Mountain defense line.
If this rare opportunity is missed, the Japanese North China Front may stay north of the Yellow River forever.
Therefore, the two Japanese generals who stayed awake all night staring at the map of southeastern Shanxi placed their hopes on the independent mixed 2nd brigade.
It is an infantry brigade with independent combat capabilities. In addition to two fully equipped infantry regiments of 7,000 people, the rest of the cavalry, artillery, workers, and supplies are in full supply. It may not be able to defeat the more than 10,000 Chinese troops that have appeared.
The mountain defense battle drags on for two days. When the Chinese army that is furiously counterattacking suffers too many casualties, and the frontline army slows down and then sends troops back to support, it is enough to ensure that the previous results are not lost, and there is still an 80% chance.
Break through the Zhongtiao Mountain defense line.
Perhaps, the only thing that was abandoned in the entire tactical design was the independent mixed 2nd brigade.
But without sacrifice, how can there be victory?
Okamura Koji was also a very decisive general. When faced with the life-or-death choice between breaking through the Nakajo Mountain defense line and forming an independent mixed brigade, he chose the former without hesitation.
The designation of the 2nd independent mixed brigade has been crossed out in Okamura Koji's heart.
He knew very well that the speed at which the opponent captured Linfen City meant that it was the main force of the Eighty Group Army, most likely the 921st Division that became famous in the Battle of Zishan.
The 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade will most likely suffer heavy losses in the face of their attack.
But that's not important, they only need to exchange their lives for 2 days and nights.
As the commander-in-chief of the front army, the divisions are just chess pieces on the chessboard, let alone a small mixed brigade? As long as the chess piece can play its due role when used, its final fate is not important.
This kind of tactical deployment is actually no problem. According to statistics after the war, in order to hold back the main force of the Japanese army that night, the Chinese suffered more than 14,000 casualties, which was even close to the total losses in the three days before the entire battle of Zhongtiao Mountain.
The 17th Division even suffered a 30% battle loss rate as a result!
This was also hailed as the most outstanding night of the Chinese ministries, which had a mediocre performance in the Second Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain.
Without this extremely bloody night, Anda 23 would most likely have dispatched a reserve division to return to Yuncheng to deploy defenses. Regardless of past suspicions, the main force and the guard brigade of the 80th Group Army would have achieved at most the victory over Linfen City and the annihilation of an independent mixed brigade.
.
Although that was a good result, compared to the loss of the Zhongtiao Mountain defense line, the result of annihilating 10,000 enemies would be meaningless.
The Tenth Theater in Shaanxi Province will lose the most important line of defense along the Yellow River, and the Japanese North China Front will be able to march eastward at any time.
As for the national strategy, the Chinese Ministry of Military Affairs had to mobilize the elite infantry troops in central and southern China to march westward to Shaanxi Province to prevent the Yellow River defense line from being lost.
Originally, in the south, China could only block the Japanese offensive. If it were to mobilize its troops again, it would undoubtedly be more difficult.
The Japanese North China Front lost the bet.
The talented major general who received the military order did not evacuate in time and could only set up defenses on the spot. It was not until the early morning of the next day when artillery fire filled the sky that he knew what kind of Chinese troops he had encountered.
They can be said to be China's two most elite infantry brigades in North China. They were able to defeat the Japanese army in every aspect, whether in terms of the quality of their soldiers, their equipment or their strength.
The number of infantry available for attack is not important. There are 70 infantry companies. What is important is that there are as many as 300 artillery pieces of various types participating in the artillery bombardment of the Japanese positions that day, including 36 mountain guns, 24 150-meter heavy guns, 22 70mm infantry guns, and 82-caliber guns.
42 artillery pieces and 200 60mm mortars.
Forget it, both mountain artillery and mortars are mainly designed to kill infantry, and have little destructive effect on solid bunkers.
The Japanese army's civil engineering work was not completed. They dug 12,000 meters of trenches and more than 400 bombproof holes of various types overnight. No matter how fierce the Chinese artillery fire was, they could not rely on artillery fire alone to form an independent 2nd brigade.
If it is destroyed, the infantry will eventually have to charge.
As a result, while the Japanese troops were hiding in the trenches and covering their heads to avoid the rain of artillery shells, the Chinese engineers came as close as 200 meters away from the front line, dug out temporary individual bunkers and temporary trenches, and deployed a kind of soil that could no longer be used.
Earthly "thick-tube artillery"!
In the early morning light, as the small red flag was waved again and again, the kind of cannon with a gasoline barrel as a barrel dropped explosive packets as big as a bamboo hat onto the Japanese positions.
That was the ultimate disaster for the Japanese troops on the battlefield.
Five-kilogram explosive packs used terrifying shock waves to kill countless Japanese soldiers in trenches and shell-proof holes. Many Japanese soldiers appeared to have no injuries on the surface, but a large amount of blood spurted out from their mouths and noses, which was full of internal organs.
Was shattered.
The defense line carefully constructed overnight was blown open by the Chinese with crazy artillery shells and explosives in less than an hour.
When the Japanese bombers taking off from Yuncheng flew over the battlefield at 8 o'clock, they were fully loaded with bombs and could not drop a single bomb. The Chinese and the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade were completely strangled together. On the battlefield, there is me among you, and you among me.
If you drop a bomb at random, it may blow up both the Chinese and the Japanese into ashes.
After circling for several times, the Japanese fleet had no choice but to return.
The independent 2nd mixed brigade, which was surrounded by divisions and divisions by the Chinese, did not hold out for long at all. The fierce fighting continued until the afternoon, and there were only sporadic gunshots on the battlefield.
After the victory, the two elite Chinese infantry brigades did not clean the battlefield at all, but immediately divided their troops into four groups and marched towards Yuncheng.
And at noon on the second day, the divine soldiers descended from the sky on the outskirts of Yuncheng across an entire hundred kilometers!
An infantry battalion of the Jinan Guard Brigade, with the help of 20 jeeps equipped with heavy machine guns, raided the most important military airport in Yuncheng.
Caught off guard, the outer defense line was breached, and the 40 fighter planes parked on the tarmac had no time to take off before being blown up by the Chinese with mortars and grenades.
Air support was completely cut off, and the logistics base that provided supplies for hundreds of thousands of troops was besieged.
Lieutenant General Anda 23, who was still commanding the battle on the front line, was so dizzy that he almost fell to the ground!
This is such a rhythm that the group battle in the front has not yet decided the winner, and all the crystals in the highland tower behind are about to be stolen.
Ps: The chapter updated yesterday listed the security brigade as a security regiment. It has been changed in the past two days.
