Rise From Eight Hundred

Finally, after the battlefield of Niuchangpo had been charred by Japanese aircraft and artillery, and the Nogou Detachment had suffered thousands of casualties, the 231st Infantry Regiment finally launched the first wave of assault.

On that day, under the command of Masayoshi Yamada, the Japanese army used 36 mountain guns, 6 infantry guns, and 6 mortars, a total of 48 artillery pieces, to bombard Zhujiaping No. 3, 8, 11, and 13.

At the same time, more than 36 Japanese planes arrived over Zhujiaping one hour after the bombardment began, and carpet-bombed the mountains and forests around Zhujiaping with incendiary bombs and poison gas bombs.

The Japanese aircraft fleet was so large that even the commander surnamed Hu in the 11th Division headquarters 18 kilometers away could see it.

Although the 11th Division was under tremendous pressure, 9,000 Japanese troops had already broken through the first line of defense of the Shipai Fortress, directly threatening the second line of defense. If they broke through again, they would reach the final central defense zone. However, the division commander Hu, who had been paying attention to the battlefield situation on the left and right wings, still sent a telegram to Tang Dao, asking whether the Sihang Regiment needed air support.

If Tang Dao said yes, then the division commander Hu would rather give up the support of the Chinese Air Force for the Shipai Central Defense Zone promised to him by Commander Chen, and instead let the Air Force fighters go to the Sihang Regiment defense zone to drive away the Japanese bomber group.

That was because the division commander Hu knew very well that the central defense zone was very important. If his 11th Division could not withstand the central breakthrough of the Japanese army, the entire Shipai Fortress would fall. However, the Japanese army's tactical intentions had long been clear. The central breakthrough depended on the situation of the battle. If it could be done, it would be done. If it could not be done, the most elite main force division currently deployed by China on the battlefield would be firmly contained and a large number of effective casualties would be carried out. The battlefields on the two wings and the rear wing were the real breakthrough direction of the Japanese army.

Once a battlefield is breached by the Japanese army, the flanks of the 11th Division's defense zone will be in jeopardy, and the months of fortifications on the Yangtze River side will become useless, which will be the end of the 11th Division.

As a friendly army, the 18th Division, which is of the same blood, can naturally fight to the death to protect the right wing of the 11th Division, but the Four-line Regiment or other factions of the army are not necessarily the same.

Based on the understanding of these friendly forces by the commander surnamed Hu, they may be able to fulfill their duties and fight hard because of the strict military orders, but if they are asked to fight to the last man for a friendly army with whom they are not closely related, the commander surnamed Hu will not believe it.

The Four-line Regiment will not be out of this category, so when the commander surnamed Hu saw that the Japanese army actually used such a large-scale bombing of the Four-line Regiment's defense zone, he would even sacrifice his own air support on the front battlefield to support the Four-line Regiment, which was also for the safety of his central defense zone.

It's not because he values ​​the Tang Dao and the Four-line Regiment so much.

"We have strong fortifications to resist the Japanese artillery fire. Please put the limited forces into the battlefields that need it more." Tang Dao actually refused.

"This young man Tang Dao is really crazy! I want to see how long his soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment can hold out under such fierce bombing by the devils. If the left wing battlefield is broken by the devils, we must report to the war zone to punish him." The major general chief of staff of the 11th Division saw his division commander frowning and hanging up the phone, and he was very dissatisfied.

This is a typical case of taking good intentions for granted. Anyone would be unhappy.

"Don't say such things. Since Tang Dao dares not to ask for air support, he naturally has his confidence and reason." The division commander surnamed Hu glanced at his chief of staff with an extremely sharp look.

As a middle-aged man in his early 30s, the commander surnamed Hu actually still has some youthful enthusiasm. Although he is in a faction, he actually dislikes this so-called faction in his heart. If there were not so many factional disputes that caused the millions of troops to be divided, this Patriotic War might still be defeated by the Japanese army in the early stage, but the situation would never be so bad that even the three richest regions of North China, Southeast China and Central China would be lost.

And these officers over 40 years old have already ingrained the differences between factions into their bones. Even at this moment of life and death, they still think about how to punish others, and don’t think about why others refuse.

Based on his understanding of Tang Dao, this man who ascended to the throne of regiment commander at the age of 22, the greatest characteristic on the battlefield is not the superficial bravery, but the extreme cunning.

Otherwise, the nickname given to him by the Japanese North China Front Army would not be "Devil" but "Tiger".

Division Commander Hu wanted to know what kind of surprise the Four-Line Regiment would bring him after the Japanese unleashed such fierce firepower.

The soldiers of the 3rd Battalion hid in the air-raid shelter on the reverse slope behind the high ground, allowing the Japanese army to vent fierce artillery fire on the high ground.

Because this scene was very familiar to the officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment who had been on the battlefield in North China for a long time.

Let alone the 75mm mountain artillery bombardment, they were in Niangziguan, Jindong, and Zishan, Ji'nan, and the Japanese used 105 howitzers and 155 heavy artillery.

As soon as they arrived at the defense zone, the officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment first started digging trenches, and then they worked day and night to build tunnels that could reach more than ten meters deep in the mountain.

Everyone knew that when artillery shells and aerial bombs came, only these tunnels could save lives.

After long-term civil engineering work in mountain tunnels, the engineering battalion led by Bai Sheng had become very familiar with the process. Not only could they cooperate with ordinary infantrymen to dig tunnels that could accommodate more than a thousand people in just a week, they had also developed many advanced tunnel designs, such as chain bunkers and hidden communication trenches that could enter high ground without going through the surface.

There are many designs that even Tang Dao didn't think of, but the engineers of the Four-Line Regiment developed them one by one on the battlefield that lasted for several years.

This may be one of the underlying logics of "practice is the only criterion for testing truth"!

"Only by trying hard to survive on the battlefield can we kill more devils!" is also one of Tang Tuanzuo's classic quotes.

The soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment implemented Tang Tuanzuo's spirit of "trying hard to survive" very thoroughly.

As for the incendiary bombs and poison gas bombs dropped by Japanese naval fighters, they were actually just for fun. Although the incendiary bombs set the trees and shrubs on fire, and the thick smoke billowed into the sky, it seemed very serious, but in fact, fire trenches were built in places where there were fortifications, and those fires could not burn to the edge of the fortifications at all. The fire kept the Chinese officers and soldiers in the fortifications more than ten meters away warm, so they were not afraid of the fierce cold wind.

And poison gas bombs are unsolvable for other Chinese troops. The best way to protect them is to cover their mouths and noses with wet towels for relief, but the officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment have long had a set of gas masks in their hands.

Moreover, the wind was strong in the mountains. Once the wind blew, the yellow-green poison gas of the gas bombs dispersed in a few minutes. For the officers and soldiers of the Four-line Regiment who were well protected, the damage was minimal.

Since the Japanese army spent so much effort, it was just this, and the Tang Dao certainly did not need air support.

Moreover, the more miserable the surface of each high ground looked, the more troops the Japanese colonel who played psychological tactics would put into the attack, right?

Li Jiujin and the 3rd Battalion had been holding back their anger for two or three days, so they had to vent it out?

Without investing a half infantry battalion at a time, Tang Tuanzuo, who was at the front line of the 3rd Battalion, looked down on the smart army colonel opposite.

"Tuanzuo, I know you want to kill this group of devils, but this is the territory of my 3rd Battalion. Even if you are the head of the regiment, you have to listen to my command here. You must not go to the front line again. You stay here. Li Jiujin promises to let you see how the devils die." Li Jiujin's mouth was very hard, but his tone was very weak.

There was no way. As soon as Commander Tang said he was going to Zhujiaping, Director Ye, who was in charge of the regiment headquarters, called him. If Commander Tang went to the front line in Zhujiaping, regardless of whether he was injured or not, Director Zhuang had long since stopped wanting to serve as the commander of the baggage battalion. That position required a capable and experienced battalion commander.

Director Ye was now the second-in-command of the regiment, and he also controlled the personnel power. If he really wanted Comrade Lao Li to be the commander of the baggage battalion, this matter was basically a done deal.

But Li Jiujin knew Commander Tang's temper, so he could only weakly demonstrate his sovereignty in the 3rd Battalion.

"Oh! You, Commander Li, dare to give me orders." Tang Dao glanced at the old soldier and grinned. "Okay, since you said so, this is your 3rd Battalion's territory, even the gods have to listen to you. I'll give face to my old comrade. I won't go to the front line, I'll sit in your battalion headquarters and see how you fight this battle."

"You have to be generous, sir!" Li Jiujin and several officers around him collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as the commander of the regiment doesn't carry a rifle to the front line, the responsibility on their shoulders will be much smaller.

Although Director Ye Chenghuan's threat has a certain effect, in fact, they all know that swords and guns have no eyes. Anyone in the Four Lines Regiment can die in battle, except Tang Dao. Tang Dao is not only the backbone, but also the spiritual pillar of all officers and soldiers of the Four Lines Regiment. Once he gets into trouble, the combat effectiveness of the Four Lines Regiment will drop by at least 20 percentage points.

Seeing his subordinates relieved, Tang Dao was actually helpless in his heart.

He spent a lot of effort to build this unit, and saw that the combat effectiveness and mental will were almost as good as the Chinese army on the ice field in the future. However, the consequence was that he, a super sniper, could not go to the front line. The whole regiment protected him like a porcelain doll. Is this another way of tying himself up in knots?

"But you, Old Li, have to say that the first wave of the Japanese attack will definitely involve a large number of troops. If your 3rd Battalion doesn't knock them out with one blow, I can't sit here." Tang Dao picked up the telescope. "You know, the blood of my elder brother and countless Chinese people is still on the bayonets of the Japanese here. I can't sleep if I don't kill them."

"I promise to the regiment commander with the honor of a Chinese soldier that this wave of Japanese must die, and die ugly." Li Jiujin replied solemnly and confidently.

Tang Dao stopped talking and cast his eyes through the carefully camouflaged lookout to several lower highlands 600 meters away.

Li Jiujin's battalion headquarters was not located behind the safer front-line positions, but on the highest main peak of the Zhujiaping position, named No. 1, where an infantry platoon and a guard platoon belonging to the battalion headquarters were stationed.

On this hilltop with an altitude of 718 meters, Li Jiujin, the highest commander of the 3rd Battalion, can directly observe the actual battle situation in most of the more than a dozen highlands in the entire battalion, and can make adjustments and supplements at any time.

Although the degree of danger is a bit higher, for a mid-level commander who commands nearly a thousand infantrymen as well as artillery, air defense troops, engineers, and logistics troops, this kind of real-time observation of the battle situation can make various reactions much faster than staying in the rear and just listening to telephone reports.

Li Jiujin did not become different from when he was a company commander and was always on the front line just because he became a battalion commander. This is also the most satisfactory thing for Tang Dao to this old subordinate. Otherwise, if someone said "This is my territory, you have to listen to me" today, Tang Dao would make him stand at attention and think about his own weight.

Don't tell me, Tang Danzao really took advantage of Colonel Yamada Masakichi's little thought.

The entire bombing lasted for a full 2 ​​hours, which should be the limit of the 231st Infantry Regiment's consumption of one wave of artillery shells this time.

After firing nearly a thousand rounds of various artillery shells, the Japanese army deployed a total of 7 infantry squadrons to attack 4 highlands.

There were nearly 1,500 people. From Tang Dao's perspective, the mountains and plains were filled with 'shit yellow', which was astonishingly powerful.

According to the troop deployment of the 3rd Battalion, the largest number of troops on these four highlands are five infantry squads. For example, on Highland No. 13, which has an altitude of only 384 meters, there are only two infantry squads led by Boss Cao, the deputy platoon leader.

Of course, because the 4th squad to which Boss Cao belongs is considered a reinforced infantry squad, with a total number of 22 people, plus another ordinary infantry squad, the 3rd Battalion on Highland 13 has a strength of 37, but that is still less than the Japanese army. A full infantry squad would have nearly 20 fewer people.

The Japanese troops attacking Highland 13 had at least three infantry squads in strength based on visual inspection. If you include the heavy machine guns and infantry artillery in the rear, the number of Japanese troops threatening Highland 13 was at least two to three hundred.

"Class 4 is the fist force of your 3rd Battalion. Why did you put them on the tip of the knife again this time? You, Lao Li, don't worry about killing them all in one battle. When Tu Yunsheng comes to you for help, What do you say?" Tang Dao never lowered his telescope, and no one could see his eyes.

"Good steel should be placed on the blade. Lao Cao used these words to snatch the task of garrisoning Highland 13 from the other two companies." Li Jijin replied. "Besides, don't worry, regiment, there are 37 infantrymen, but if the Japanese think that we can bully Highland 13 with the few infantrymen we have released, then they are totally wrong."

"Oh? It seems that your 3rd Battalion has a trump card!" Tang Dao grinned slightly.

Li Jijin also looked mysterious and did not explain much.

In fact, this veteran of more than ten years was also beating the drum in his heart. After all, this type of fighting was his first time in so many years in the army. He didn't know what the effect would be.

. . . . . . . .

"The longest trench dug by the Chinese on this high ground does not exceed 300 meters. From this, we can judge that their strength will never be more than two infantry platoons, only 100 people. Maybe nearly half of them were killed in the shelling and bombing. This time, our unit will surely win victory with a bang!" Major Yoshizo Sano, then captain of the 11th Infantry Battalion of the 231st Infantry Regiment, looked at the smoke-filled Hill 13 with his binoculars. On the top of the mountain, excitement flashed in his eyes.

As the supreme commander of the main infantry brigade that launched the infantry attack this time, Sano Yoshizo did not invest in two infantry squadrons, two heavy machine gun squads and an infantry artillery squad as the main attack direction of No. 8 Highland, but came to On the surface, only 150 troops were invested in Highland 13. They were obviously determined to win this highland.

Based on the observation over the past two days and the photos taken by the reconnaissance aircraft that passed several times in the sky, this person judged that there were not many Chinese troops stationed on this small highland with an area of ​​only 3,000 square meters on the top of the mountain.

The No. 13 height that protrudes from the entire defense line does not seem to be critical. Even if it is lost, it will not collapse the entire Chinese defense line. However, through the photos taken by the reconnaissance plane, Sano Yoshizo has a keen sense of smell. Fighter, there is a path from the bottom of the ridge behind this highland, which is completely passable by individual soldiers.

If this high ground is captured, an infantry squadron can be dispatched from here to use the cover of night to penetrate to the rear of the Chinese defense line. There may be Chinese field hospitals and logistics supply bases there. An elite infantry squadron can be almost invincible against these. It is self-evident what kind of damage the fortified troops will cause.

Perhaps that did not harm the strength of the troops on the defense line, but when they knew that the hospitals and baggage logistics were slaughtered, the morale of the soldiers on the front line must have plummeted.

Therefore, Sano Yoshizo actually had high hopes for the attack on this hilltop with an altitude of only more than 300 meters.

Of course, as a front-line commander, it is one thing to want to go to the front line in person to boost morale. The most important thing is of course to invest more troops.

In the dense forest less than 500 meters away from the high ground, there is still an infantry squadron and an infantry squad of more than 240 people hidden. Half of the 12 heavy machine guns owned by the entire infantry brigade are here, including two infantry cannons and two 90 mortars even arrived at the pre-selected gun position under continuous shelling.

In other words, for Highland 13, Sano Yoshizo actually invested nearly 400 infantrymen and 80% of the heavy firepower of his infantry brigade.

Six heavy machine guns and 12 light machine guns were distributed on both wings. After the artillery fire gradually became sparse, half of the machine guns began firing on orders to cover the infantry that had begun to advance up from the bottom of the mountain.

Even though it was only half of the trench, it was like a rain of bullets for the trenches on Highland 13, which were only 300 meters long.

After the war, Tang Tuanzuo, who arrived at the high ground, grabbed a handful of soil from above the trench and found two deformed warheads. It can be imagined that the Japanese army used crazy fire cover at that time.

If it were any other ordinary Chinese army, let alone shelling, the Japanese army would be able to swamp this small highland with a stream of metal bullets just using these nearly 20 light and heavy machine guns.

Even if it was the Four-Line Regiment, based on the light and heavy machine guns and artillery currently displayed by both sides, Hill 13 was far inferior to the concentrated Japanese forces.

At the first encounter, the Japanese army gave the 3rd Battalion a heart-wrenching punch!