Rise From Eight Hundred

The eight returning Wildcat fighters received a report from the ground that the fleet had been attacked by Japanese planes before they even saw the airport.

It would take at least an hour and a half to return to the ground to refuel and fly to the previous fleet position.

For the air force pilots, it was basically a mentality of doing their best and leaving the rest to fate. No one would think that a fleet carrying the army could survive the attack of fighter planes at a speed of 400 kilometers per hour until they arrived.

The Air Force Command had even prepared a report in advance that the fleet suffered heavy losses in the attack of Japanese planes but the escort group did not participate in the battle, and they also realized that there must be something fishy inside, otherwise how could the Japanese planes capture the gap when the escort group returned so accurately?

Minister He, who received the news, also sat in his office with a gloomy face. He was confident in the land combat level of the Tang Dao and the Four Lines Group, but this was on the water after all. No matter how powerful the army was, it would be at a loss if it could not use even one tenth of its strength.

Almost all Chinese soldiers who received the news that Japanese planes appeared over the transport fleet were ready for an elite infantry regiment to disappear from the organization.

However, when the eight fighter planes roared over the fleet still sailing on the Yangtze River, they were surprised to find that the entire fleet was sailing normally on the river as if nothing had happened, and in this hour and a half, they advanced at least 20 kilometers downstream.

This was not different from the tragic scene imagined, but very different. The Chinese pilots were completely confused and circled over the fleet at least three times to confirm.

"Captain, I counted, a total of 43 ships, not one less!" An Air Force lieutenant reported to his flight squadron leader after confirming at least twice.

"Could it be that the Japanese reconnaissance planes came, but the number was slightly larger?" The Chinese Air Force captain with rich combat experience could only give such a reason.

But obviously, he himself did not believe this reason.

Even if it was a Japanese reconnaissance plane, seeing such a large fleet without any air defense, it would not hesitate to descend in altitude and strafe with its onboard machine guns. This has been the norm since the Japanese occupied Jiangxia.

So what exactly caused the Japanese planes to give up attacking this fleet? The eight escorting wildcat fighters circled and searched the area around the fleet for nearly an hour, and returned only after they determined that the Japanese planes would not come again.

It was not until they returned to the airport that they received news that petrified them on the spot.

The four invading Japanese Zero fighters were all shot down by the anti-aircraft machine guns deployed by the fleet.

The Japanese must be fools!

How could a fighter plane advancing at high speed be shot down by anti-aircraft machine guns from the water? If this information had not been conveyed by their major captain, I am afraid that the Chinese pilots would tell him that this cold joke was well told and he should not tell it next time.

This incredible news was soon confirmed. In the surrounding mountainous areas where the fleet was sailing, civilians had seen the wreckage of the burning aircraft in the valley. In the absence of war reports on the loss of Chinese fighter planes, it could only be Japanese planes.

What kind of unit was that? New questions quickly replaced the pilots' previous doubts about why the Japanese planes did not attack.

It was not until after the Battle of Shipai that the number of the four-line regiment participating in this battle was made public, which answered the doubts of the Chinese Air Force pilots.

It turned out to be the world-famous Four-Line Regiment, which was normal.

As for the Japanese Navy, they waited and waited but their four fighters did not return. When they realized that the four fighters that attacked the fleet had an accident, it was already noon.

Damn the Chinese Air Force! Damn the Americans! The angry Japanese Navy Air Wing Commander in Jiangxia could not find anyone else except the Chinese Air Force to shoot down the Eagle of the Imperial Navy.

The Chinese Air Force can do all this naturally because of the latest fighters sold to them by the Americans.

The Japanese Navy Air Wing Colonel, who was about to send 12 fighters to compete with the Chinese Air Force again, canceled the military order just before the fighters were fully fueled and drove onto the runway.

The reason is simple. The number of transport trucks stationed at the three Chinese military airports in Sichuan Province has increased suddenly, which often indicates that the Chinese Air Force has a big move.

The Chinese Air Force is weak, but as weak as a bee, it also has a stinger that stings people to death!

In the past two years, the Japanese navy and army have been bombing the Chinese army's positions and several important cities. Although the Chinese Air Force is mainly used for defense, they also have long-range bombings of Japanese-occupied airports.

Especially after the great bombing in August 1940, when the Chinese successfully used the new fighter planes sold by the Americans to ambush the bomber group and escort group of the Japanese Navy, the Chinese Air Force has frequently attacked. If you bomb me, I will return a few bombs to you anyway, which will bring mutual harm to the extreme.

The bombing of Jiangxia Airport in early December is an indelible shadow of the Japanese Navy Air Force. Using the cover of foggy weather, six wildcat fighters carrying 500-pound bombs rushed to the sky above Jiangxia Airport and dropped at least 2 heavy bombs and 5 incendiary bombs near the pilot rest area.

When the bodies of a lieutenant colonel, three majors and 14 lieutenant pilots were dug out from the ruins, they all smelled!

The smell of barbecue!

Thirteen fighter planes parked on the runway were also destroyed and damaged!

What the Chinese once failed to accomplish with hundreds of fighter jets, they can now accomplish with just a few bombs.

The Japanese military strengthened its intelligence infiltration near the Chinese airport. With this omen, the furious Japanese Navy Colonel could only put revenge aside and focus on his own air defense.

Perhaps this was the closest time for the Japanese to severely damage the Four-Line Regiment, and the cost was not too high, but because of an excellent feint by the Chinese, the Japanese lost this opportunity.

That night, the fleet finally arrived at the Shipai Fortress Port. According to the previously formulated plan, the personnel and horses landed on the river bank first, followed by the anti-aircraft battalion, and finally various equipment and supplies.

Before arriving, the Four-Line Regiment Headquarters contacted the 18th Army Headquarters, which also responded with a telegram to welcome the Four-Line Regiment and notified that all defenses would be commanded by the 11th Division Headquarters after the Four-Line Regiment arrived at Shipai.

The 11th Division of the 18th Army stationed at Shipai Fortress sent a major general brigadier to contact after the fleet docked, and sent an infantry battalion to assist the Four-Line Regiment in landing and temporarily entering the valley to station.

This was also to prepare for the air defense during the day the next day. It was such a pity that the personnel and supplies were crowded on the narrow river bank and bombed by Japanese planes.

The division commander surnamed Hu obviously attached great importance to the arrival of the Four-Line Regiment. He sent a major general of the main brigade to welcome the colonel Tang Dao, which was obviously a high standard.

However, perhaps it was already 11 o'clock in the evening, and the major general had fallen asleep, or the mountain was high and the road was dangerous, and it took time to arrive here. After the fleet docked, there was no one except a company commander of the 11th Division on the scene.

Tang Dao simply stopped waiting and started to unload supplies.

Originally, the major general brigade commander had some complaints about himself, a major general, coming to welcome an army colonel of a lower rank, but not long after arriving at the scene, the eyes of the army major general were no longer dissatisfied except for awe.

He knew the organization of the Four-Line Regiment Special Forces Regiment, with a force of 5,000 people, almost the same as his main brigade.

But as a top student from Huangpu Military Academy and the commander of one of the most elite infantry brigades in the war zone, he knew that victory or failure was not determined by the number of people.

If we talk about the number of people, in the Battle of Shanghai, the Battle of Xuzhou, and the Battle of Jiangxia, the Chinese side used twice the advantage to fight the enemy, but didn't they all lose in the end?

Whether an army is combat-ready or not depends on its military discipline.

Thousands of people and thousands of pack horses disembarked, and the sound of people shouting and horses neighing could be heard from a few miles away?

But when the major general of the army walked along, the noise he heard was minimal, and when he was still two miles away from the dock, he was even checked by the sentry.

If it was from the 11th Division, it would be fine, because it showed that his 11th Division had strict military discipline, but what shocked the major general of the army was that the checkpoint with visible and hidden sentries was actually from the Four-Line Regiment.

After listening to his guards' self-identification and checking of his documents, he was politely let go.

As for the 11th Division’s checkpoint, he had to walk another two or three hundred meters before he encountered it. When he saw him, he immediately saluted respectfully and removed the roadblock without even checking his ID.

Under normal circumstances, this would not be a big deal. After all, he was wearing a major general’s uniform and had a guard. Almost no one had ever stopped him in the 11th Division’s defense zone, and he had long been accustomed to it.

But now, after such a comparison, the difference is obvious. The 4th Regiment doesn’t care what uniform you wear. Everything is done according to the rules.

Although there was a guard platoon with submachine guns beside the Army Major General, the Army Major General clearly felt that there were more than five or six soldiers with live ammunition at the temporary checkpoint. There were at least ten people hiding on the hillside in the dark.

Whenever they were attacked, the muzzles of the guns hidden in the dark would not hesitate to spit out deadly flames.

Don’t ask the Army Major General how he knew it. That was the intuition of a veteran who had been in the army for more than 15 years.

After graduating from the Whampoa Military Academy, this major general started as a platoon leader, and worked his way up to company commander, battalion commander, regiment chief of staff, deputy regiment commander, and regiment commander. He was promoted to major general brigadier general in the second year after the war began because of his outstanding military exploits.

Although he is now a prominent general, if he really had to pick up a gun and fight the Japanese, he would not be inferior to those elite soldiers.

The judgment of this old soldier was really correct. The mountain infantry company that landed first sent 6 infantry squads to the periphery of the landing site, and extended 300 meters in front of the original checkpoint of the 11th Division to guard the entire regiment.

The reason why it was not further away was that it had not yet completed the contact with the 11th Division, and it did not do so to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. Otherwise, the mountain infantry company would extend at least 5 miles outward to avoid mortar bombardment in the area where supplies were being unloaded.

In an infantry squad, except for the five soldiers led by the squad leader who were exposed, the remaining 10 people, including precision shooters, machine gunners, and mortar gunners, were all hidden in temporary fortifications 50 meters away from the checkpoint.

If attacked, the 10 soldiers occupying the commanding heights are fully confident that they can stop and repel an infantry platoon-level enemy.

This army major general is quite disciplined. After checking the credentials that the squad leader of the mountain infantry company took the initiative to hand over, he also reported his military rank and showed his credentials. Otherwise, let alone a major general, even if Master Hu himself came, they would not be able to force their way through this checkpoint.

"You go and pick up the Tang Dao, and by the way, see if the Four-Line Regiment is as strong as the legend says. If the reputation is greater than the strength, you can be responsible for receiving it. As for the allocation of defense zones, let them be responsible for the periphery, just in time to replace the main force of my division." The major general brigade commander remembered the instructions given to him by the proud division commander before leaving, and his heart began to beat.

As the ancients said: knowing the details reveals the big picture! Just a small checkpoint of the Four-Line Regiment has already demonstrated such strict military discipline. You can imagine what kind of army their entire regiment is.

After passing through two more checkpoints, the Major General Brigadier General finally arrived at the dock.

At this time, the Major General Brigadier General took a breath of cold air.

The dock was already brightly lit. The Major General Brigadier General, who came from the mountain path, could see the small dock that could only accommodate more than a thousand people and dozens of tons of supplies at a glance.

Just thinking about the situation where thousands of people and more than a thousand pack horses were crowded here, you can imagine how chaotic it would be.

But he was wrong. There were quite a few people on the dock, but they were all arranged neatly, forming several queues like long dragons. After unloading the supplies from the ship, they were constantly passed and put in the open space.

Just like ants moving, several piles of supplies were piled up like small mountains.

After a ship was unloaded, accompanied by the flags constantly waved by the people on the shore and on the ship, the next ship approached the dock, and everything was in order.

There were the neighing of pack horses, but there was almost no noise from the people.

"Huh? Didn't they say that the Four-Line Regiment had 5,000 people? Why are there only so few?" The Major General Brigadier General looked at the dock carefully, and his eyes were filled with doubt again.

The number of soldiers helping to carry supplies on the dock would never exceed 1,500.

"Brigade Commander, look over there." The lieutenant platoon leader standing beside the Major General Brigadier General and constantly observing the surroundings looked at the hillside more than 200 meters away in surprise.

It was originally pitch black there, but because of the lights on the dock and the flames of a large number of torches, there was also a certain line of sight there.

In the dim light, rows of black shadows were like spears inserted into the hillside.

"Telescope!" The Major General Brigadier General growled.

The personal orderly quickly took out the telescope from his bag and handed it to his superior.

The Major General Brigadier General was stunned as he looked at the dark hillside 200 meters away with the telescope.

Those were not javelins, but rows of soldiers standing neatly on the hillside with backpacks and guns on their backs.

The mountains in Xiling Gorge are originally very steep. The reason why this place is used as a dock is that it is the flattest area in this generation, but the slope of the hillside can still reach 40 degrees.

For the sake of combat, the trees and shrubs on the hillside that can block the view have been cleared long ago, which undoubtedly increases the difficulty of standing on it.

Especially now that it has entered the middle of winter, the cold wind blowing from the river surface blows on the face like a knife. Even if he wears a woolen coat with a thick collar to block most of his face, the major general brigadier still feels unbearable. This is one of the reasons why he left the brigade headquarters for nearly an hour.

But those soldiers standing neatly, not afraid of the difficult terrain or the biting cold wind, just stand quietly in the mountains.

Why are they doing this?

After the major general brigadier's face was moved, he also fell into thinking. He couldn't find a reason to convince himself.

This is also the first question he asked after meeting Tang Dao and exchanging a few words.

"I've been stuck in the narrow hold for several days, and I can't even fart or poop on my back. If I don't take advantage of this period to stand at attention and let the mountain breeze blow away the foul air on my body, I'm waiting for the Japanese to use artillery fire to drive it away!" Tang Dao smiled and made up an excuse.

He couldn't just tell the elite brigadier general of the Central Army that our Four-Line Regiment is here to fight, and we must maintain a fighting posture at all times. Standing at attention is just a kind of daily training that can make the infantry tense, especially when they first come to this unfamiliar environment.

Keeping enough vigilance against the unknown is the key factor to survive on the battlefield. This is written into the tactics of the Four-Line Regiment Infantry.

That is commonplace for the officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment, but if he said so at this time, he might think that he was showing off his military power. Tang Dao didn't want to cause this trouble.

Glancing at the smiling Tang Dao, the Major General Brigadier knew that this man was mostly a bluff, but he solemnly asked: "Captain Tang, please move to the division headquarters. Our division commander has long admired the great name of Captain Tang and hopes to discuss defense with you!"

There is no false reputation under a great name. Just from the initial impression, the Major General Brigadier has already determined that the Four-Line Regiment is at least as elite as his 11th Division, and is qualified to meet with his proud division commander.

After the Battle of Shipai, the Major General Brigadier will be very grateful for his judgment, recognizing that the role played by the Four-Line Regiment in the Battle of Shipai is no less than the decision he made when he personally led the guards to fight the Japanese invaders in hand-to-hand combat on the Gaojialing battlefield.