Rise From Eight Hundred

Less than 800 meters away from Sizhou Mountain, in an area covered by a camouflage net, several Japanese officers wearing helmets looked solemnly into the distance with binoculars.

None of the officers wore military ranks, but whether they were wearing dark yellow woolen coats, high leather boots, or beautifully patterned command knives hanging around their waists, they all showed their extraordinary status.

Perhaps only insiders of the Japanese army know that among the five people standing in this small forward command post, there is actually a Japanese army major general, three colonels and a lieutenant colonel.

The major general was Yamada Seiichi who was then the 21st reserve brigade of the 105th Division. The three colonels were the captains of the three infantry regiments, and the lieutenant colonel was the chief of staff of the reserve brigade.

It can be said that the five people standing here are the top five commanders of the Japanese army in front of the Sizhou Mountain defense line. If an artillery bombardment hits this place, the Japanese army, which has reached 40,000 troops, will instantly be leaderless.

"Gentlemen, the Chinese on the opposite side really amaze us! Although their equipment is simple and their soldiers' quality is average, their will to fight is tenacious! Do you think we should still attack them by force?" He is short but very strong. , the Japanese Army Major General with a thick civilized beard said.

None of the three colonels dared to easily answer the Army Major General's seemingly random question.

Although the Army Major General in front of him holds the position of Major General Brigade Commander of the Reserve Brigade, the three Army Colonels present here all know that this preparation is not the other.

The Fifth Division is considered a special existence among the divisions of the Japanese army. Many permanent divisions of the Japanese Army have their own reserve divisions. If personnel are lost in combat, they can be replenished at any time from their own reserve divisions.

The reserve divisions are not all new recruits. Many of them are veterans who have been recruited again after retiring. Although their combat effectiveness is not as good as that of the permanent divisions to which they belong, it is definitely not worse.

For example, the reserve division of the First Division is the 101st Division, and the reserve division of the Sixth Division is the 106th Division that was almost wiped out in the Battle of Wanjialing. After Japan launched an all-out attack on China, in order to ensure More troops entered China, and most of the reserve divisions had their own independent designations and formed independent armies.

But only the 105th Division, because of the Battle of Xinkou, was not completely separated from the 5th Division. Instead, it has been fighting with the 5th Division. Therefore, the 5th Division's establishment list has a strength of 80,000. But there is actually a reserve division with more than 50,000 troops.

The 105th Division has also been fighting in North China for a long time. After more than a year, many of the new recruits originally equipped have now become veterans. Their combat effectiveness is not weaker than that of the newly established Class A divisions such as the 18th Division.

And because the 105th Division has never formed an independent division to build and fight, the division commander has always been served by Itagaki Shiro himself. I heard that once the 105th Division becomes an independent army, Major General Yamada Seiichi will be the default division commander.

The three Japanese colonels knew the officialdom very well. Yamada Seiichi was not only strong in personal ability, but also had a strong background. Otherwise, in the past time and space, he would have become the last commander of the Fifth Division, also in the Fifth Division. The division commander committed suicide before the regiment surrendered.

Perhaps for Shiro Itagaki, the commander of the Third Army at this time, among the four major generals under his command, Masao Nakamura was too upright, Sei Kunizaki was a little headstrong, and the other one was not agile enough. Only Yamada Seiichi was the most... Demeanor, brave and resolute and not lacking in brains.

Just like now, the Japanese Army Major General took the risk and took three infantry commanders to an area only 800 meters away from the forward firing line to observe the battlefield. In fact, it was just sending an extremely strong signal.

He has made up his mind about this battle. Anyone who dares to raise objections may become part of the artillery fire.

The three Japanese army colonels were all over forty years old. Even the colonel captain who was drawn from the 3rd Division clearly felt the murderous intention hidden in this plain tone.

"Your Excellency, Brigade Commander, Your Excellency Nakamura sent an order to us early this morning. As soon as the defense line on the opposite side is broken, our theater can break into the entire battle area, and the entire Zhongtiao Mountain Theater can also achieve a complete victory. Your Excellency, Commander of the Brigade, and Your Excellency, Commander Shan Shanyuan But they all looked at my performance." The Army Lieutenant Colonel saw that the three colonels were silent and could only answer the question.

"Oh? What do you mean, Kawabe-kun, that our department should still attack the Chinese defense line with this intensity?" Yamada Seiichi glanced at the Army Colonel standing on the far right of him with a silent expression.

"Mizutani-kun, tell me your opinion!"

For Yamada Seiichi, what he wants to beat is not his two commanders. He knows those two people very well. Even if his subordinates suffer heavy casualties, as long as he gives the military order, they can only carry out the order.

However, the colonel of the Third Division who was personally ordered by Itagaki Shiro to cooperate with his brigade in combat operations would definitely not be as obedient as his two colonels. He must obtain the colonel's absolute obedience before fighting with all his strength.

"Your Excellency Yamada, I have been ordered to cooperate with the 105th Division in combat, so I take the military orders of Your Excellency Yamada as the most important thing. My personal opinion does not matter!" This Japanese colonel was also a loach, and his words were watertight.

But at this time, it was obviously not the time to avoid the important and take the easy. What Yamada Seiichi wanted was a clear statement, and his eyes suddenly became sharp: "Since Mr. Kawabe said so, then I will order the 7th Infantry Regiment to take charge of the entire frontal battlefield of the enemy's defense line. I am preparing the 21st Brigade to attack the two wings, what do you think by the riverside?"

The Japanese army colonel's face changed drastically. If he hadn't lowered his eyelids in time, the fierce light flashing in his eyes would have been revealed to everyone.

The front battlefield is the area where they are staying! The remains of the imperial officers and soldiers who were not transported back in time on the hillside all show the tragic situation of the battle. Letting an infantry regiment responsible for assisting and coordinating take the lead in the attack is to pit his 7th Infantry Regiment to death!

But the army colonel also knew that if Yamada Seiichi really ordered this, he would have no choice but to act according to the military order.

Today, Itagaki Shiro is the commander of the 3rd Army, and he is also the immediate superior of his 3rd Division. If he disobeys the order, there will be too many ways to punish him, a small army colonel.

"Everything is subject to the military order of Lord Yamada, and no one dares to disobey." The Japanese army colonel lowered his head, and his tone became more humble and respectful.

Seeing that his intimidation had worked, Yamada Seiichi stopped being aggressive and smiled faintly:

"Of course, since the 7th Infantry Regiment has just arrived at the battlefield and is not very familiar with the battlefield, Kawabe-kun should lead his troops to take charge of the right wing battlefield."

"Hi!" The Japanese Army Colonel bowed his head as if he had been pardoned.

"But, Kawabe-kun just heard what Mizutani-kun said, that Lord Itagaki and Commander Sugimoto are waiting for the good news of my victory. I am determined to continue the attack, and the front battlefield, the left and right wings, and the three armies must not slack off. If any attack fails to achieve the expected effect, I will punish them severely! I want to see the imperial flag planted on the enemy's defense line before dark." Yamada Seiichi's smile gradually faded as he spoke, and his face was cold.

"Hi!" The four Japanese Army Colonels no longer hesitated this time and bowed their heads to listen to the order.

Even though their hearts were already cold at this time, knowing that the major general commander had decided not to care about the casualties of the soldiers, there would be a lot of grief after the war.

But, this is the battlefield, no matter how cruel the military order is, you have to accept it.

The only hope is that the Chinese on the other side are already exhausted and can't hold on before dark.

But obviously, it is the most unreliable to build the hope of victory on the weakness of the opponent.

Under the command of the highest-level commander organization, the Japanese army began to launch a more crazy attack.

Tang Dao did not make specific statistics, but the battle report on the Japanese side was detailed enough. On the day of January 12 alone, three infantry regiments launched a total of 37 waves of large and small attacks on the high ground of Sizhou Mountain. The maximum number of troops deployed at one time on the opponent's defense line that was no more than 10 miles wide was as high as 4 infantry battalions.

What does that mean? It means that on average, there are hundreds of Japanese infantry participating in the attack on each high ground.

At this time, the Tang Dao army had less than 3,000 infantrymen who could still fight. If we use a 150-man infantry company, there are only 20 at most.

Tang Dao made a decision at noon when the Japanese army paused its attack to reorganize all the disabled infantry companies, with officers from the baggage company and veteran company commanders who performed outstandingly in the recruit company and recruits who performed outstandingly in the battle as the core, serving as company, platoon and squad leaders of each reorganized infantry company.

And they carried out rotation operations, with each infantry company staying on the battlefield for two hours, and then temporarily withdrawing to rest after two hours, and the new infantry company went to the battlefield.

In order to ensure that the infantry company understood the battle situation, a second lieutenant platoon leader from the previous infantry company was left as the deputy company commander of the next infantry company.

It was this decision that made the Sizhoushan defense line miraculously hold out for another day under such a crazy attack by the Japanese army.

The veterans of the baggage company and the veterans and recruits who performed outstandingly in the battle had a strong enough will. It was under their leadership that the recruits with low morale burst out with brilliance that they could hardly imagine in order to survive.

For example, there was a high ground on the right wing battlefield. Under the command of its colonel, the 7th Infantry Regiment played a classic move of "taking grain from the fire".

The Japanese army mobilized 5 mountain guns and 8 infantry guns, but they did not bombard the high ground, but bombarded the left and right ridges, completely cutting off the connection between the high ground and the two high grounds on the left and right.

This resulted in the main high ground defended by the infantry company not only being unable to send reinforcements to the small high ground, but even the thick smoke made it difficult to see the situation on the high ground.

The Japanese army not only threw shrapnel and incendiary bombs, but also poison gas bombs. Fortunately, Zhuang Shisan has always maintained sufficient vigilance. No matter where he goes, gas masks are a must. All infantry company officers and soldiers who have reached the high ground basically have gas masks. Otherwise, this round of poison gas attack can reduce the number of soldiers on the high ground by one-third.

However, the artillery blockade tactic played by the Japanese army was very successful. The small high ground cut off by artillery fire was completely disconnected.

More than 500 Japanese infantrymen from three infantry squadrons surrounded and attacked this isolated highland.

There was only one second lieutenant platoon leader with two incomplete infantry squads on the highland, and there were only 25 people including the second lieutenant platoon leader himself.

With 25 to 500 and without the cover of heavy machine gun fire, any normal person would know what the final outcome would be.

The veteran who was the commander of the infantry company 300 meters away from the highland was already desperate. He did not send reinforcements to support the highland through the Japanese artillery blockade in vain, but instead drew out precious troops to re-deploy the defense line on a hill behind the highland.

The veteran who had participated in the Guangde Defense War and had a broken arm was not wrong in his judgment based on his combat experience and the current situation. Even if he found Tang Dao after the war to accept the punishment, Tang Dao did not blame him.

In that situation, anyone would do the same. The life and death of more than 20 people is really nothing to the safety of the entire defense line.

But a miracle happened.

Until night fell, the rest of the battlefield gradually returned to calm, and the battlefield that had been occupied by the Japanese army one by one was still heard with constant gunfire and explosions.

Upon hearing this, Tang Dao immediately sent Mingxin to lead an infantry squad to advance to the area that was basically occupied by the Japanese army, and ordered them to find a way to figure out the situation.

Unfortunately, the Japanese army used a large number of bonfires and searchlights to build dense light sources on various important roads in the mountains, making it impossible for a great master like Mingxin to move forward. According to preliminary estimates, there were at least thousands of Japanese soldiers on the position captured by the Japanese army.

That was the result that the 7th Infantry Regiment had achieved at the cost of 400 lives. The colonel commander of the 7th Infantry Regiment, who was in distress, had not smiled at all throughout the afternoon.

400 lives were exchanged for the most insignificant area on the Chinese right wing. It seemed that the defense line had been broken, but in fact there was still a high ground that firmly blocked the 7th Infantry Regiment's attempt to move forward.

To put it bluntly, it seemed that there was something gained, but in fact it only hurt the opponent's skin, and it was far from breaking through the opponent's defense line.

But just like that, his infantry battalion had been crippled.

What's more infuriating is that even this piece of "skin" that already belongs to them, the Chinese are still not quiet, and there are still people resisting.

Who would be in a good mood if they were in this situation?

But what the Japanese army colonel who was in a bad mood never expected was that he thought this was the worst, but it became worse at night.

The Chinese on the small high ground that was surrounded and would sooner or later be a dish in his mouth actually gave him wave after wave of counterattacks.

Yes, you heard it right, it was a counterattack, and it was three companies in one night!

In the counterattack that was completely illogical to the Chinese that night, the 7th Infantry Regiment suffered more than 40 casualties, and 26 people died in battle alone.

What Tang Dao didn't know at this time was that by dusk, the number of people on this nameless hill had dropped sharply from 25 to 14. The second lieutenant platoon leader who led the team died in battle at 5 pm, and the squad leaders of the two squads had been seriously injured earlier.

In this battlefield where there was a lack of treatment, serious injuries meant death. The six seriously injured soldiers who remained on the position and did not withdraw were listening to the gunfire and swallowed their last breath in despair.

According to normal logic, a small unit with only 14 infantry squads, which lost its commander with rich battlefield experience and was surrounded by the Japanese army, had insufficient ammunition. It would be awesome if it didn't collapse and surrender immediately.

But at that time, a new recruit named Dong Laowu stood up and took the initiative to become the squad leader. The new recruits who were already at a loss instantly found their backbone.

This young man whose father worked at the Tangjia Winery was one of the 1,500 recruits that Tang Jili prepared for Tang Dao.

Although half a year of training was not enough to make him an elite soldier, this smart and studious man trained hard. On weekdays, he was very close to the instructors because of Tang Jili's relationship. The instructors hired by Tang Jili at a high salary were also happy to teach him various life-saving skills on the battlefield and told him many stories on the battlefield.

After being trained by the veterans for half a year, the first tactic Dong Laowu learned was to keep a low profile and save his life first, so the recruits who did not show their talents did not perform well in the battles during this period, and were not promoted when the infantry company was reorganized.

But now, if they keep a low profile, everyone will die, and Dong Laowu, who was forced to do something stupid, had to stand up.

It didn't matter if he stood up. 14 infantrymen actually fought a god-level defensive battle on the battlefield of Sizhou Mountain, which was considered to be a hell-level difficulty.

Thanks to Tang Dao's thorough preparation before the Battle of Tongguan, there was absolutely no shortage of ammunition, and there were special anti-gun holes on each high ground to store ammunition. Unless they were hit head-on by 105 grenades or heavy bombs, these machine rifle bullets and grenades would not be destroyed.

At that time, the 14 infantrymen had a total of 4 submachine guns, 2 Mauser pistols, 2 light machine guns, 18 rifles, more than 200 grenades, and nearly 5,000 rounds of various bullets.

Because the Japanese infantry were scattered around the high ground, the Japanese large-caliber artillery had long stopped bombarding, and at most only 92 infantry guns and grenade launchers would pose a heavy firepower threat to this position.

These are also the two main reasons why hundreds of Japanese soldiers spent an afternoon but failed to capture the high ground.

In the logic of ordinary people, after finally guarding until dark, did everyone take advantage of the dark to run away and find the main force?

But Dong Laowu refused to do that. He actually took 13 people and stayed on the position. After 11 o'clock in the evening, he actually took everyone down the high ground to attack a Japanese camp more than 300 meters away.

A burst of submachine gun and machine gun fire, grenades were thrown, and they fought for five or six minutes in a row. After the Japanese came to their senses, they returned to the high ground.

The Japanese hated it! But launching an attack at night was tantamount to seeking death. After an hour or two, seeing that there was no movement, they went to sleep again.

After all, who wouldn't be tired after fighting for a day?

Then, the magical Dong Laowu came again with 13 soldiers and fired again.

From 11 o'clock in the evening to 5 o'clock in the morning of the next day, a total of three waves of attacks were launched.

Not only did the Japanese army not sleep well that night, but they also suffered more than 40 casualties.

The next day, Colonel Hebian Kusaya, who received the news, was almost mad and slapped his infantry captain five or six times in one breath.

The Third Division had fought many humiliating battles, such as the Battle of Tongguan, which was constantly attacked by a small group of Chinese troops. The Third Division was defeated. The two consecutive battles of crossing the Yellow River directly threw the reputation that the Third Division had spent decades to accumulate.

But even so, there has never been such a humiliating battle!

It's like a fat sheep in the tiger's mouth suddenly jumped up and kicked the tiger in the face who was about to enjoy the food, breaking its big teeth.

However, it didn't matter. Colonel Hebian Kusaya hadn't vented his anger yet, and the Chinese hit him again.

At dawn, before six o'clock, the Chinese side suddenly used heavy firepower consisting of 6 150 heavy mortars, 12 mountain cannons, and more than 20 82 mortars to cover the area that the 7th Infantry Regiment had finally occupied, turning it into a sea of ​​fire.

There were no Chinese soldiers there, so the Chinese artillery had no burden when bombing. Wave after wave of firepower coverage made the Japanese infantry cry for their parents.

Then, five infantry companies launched a counterattack against the Japanese army, conquering two high grounds in one breath, and almost drove the unprepared Japanese army out of the position again. When the Japanese army recovered and called for artillery bombardment and continued to invest in support, the Chinese quickly retreated again.

It turned out that this was a large-scale counterattack by the Tang Dao Division, not to counterattack back to the outer position, but to support their own soldiers trapped in it.

The gunshots and explosions that continued to ring through the winter night last night have already proved that there are still their own people trapped in the position. Through analysis, there are only those two infantry squads.

Dong Laowu used the trick of attacking the Japanese army at night, which not only hit the Japanese army, but also sent a signal to the main force: I am still alive, I am still fighting!

This fellow of Tang Dao believed that the colonel who stood on the stage and told the Sichuan people that he would fight for China was a real soldier!

Sure enough, Tang Dao did not live up to the trust of the new recruit squad leader. He used the artillery and manpower he could mobilize to kill into the enemy camp and snatch his own soldiers.

This magical infantry squad eventually had 10 people intact, 4 people seriously injured, and all 11 remains on the position were taken back to the main position.

After the war, all members of the infantry squad, except Dong Laowu, were awarded second-class war merit!

The new army corporal who created the miracle stood side by side with the equally magical Lieutenant Long on the stage, and Tang Dao personally wore the special war merit medal for him!