Chapter 72: Fighting
The earth was shaking violently, and after every loud noise, there was a rustling sound, which was the sound of soil falling.
At this moment, Liu Anliang, who was crouching in the anti-artillery cave with his hands on his head in a standard posture, had a blank mind. He was just silently suffering, waiting for the artillery fire that seemed to never stop to stop. Although the Fifth Flying Group failed to provide effective ground support, the Japanese army still used its heavy artillery units to launch a fierce attack on certain sections of the Zhengxian outpost.
Therefore, the Chinese soldiers guarding these areas faced inhuman training like hell. Many of them were wiped out by the Japanese artillery fire without even firing a single shot.
The independent artillery units used by the Japanese army in the Zhengxian Battle included 36 150mm field howitzers of the 6th Field Heavy Artillery Regiment of the 15th Army, 24 150mm field cannons and 12 150mm heavy cannons of the 8th Independent Field Heavy Artillery Regiment, and 3 270mm heavy mortars and 6 150mm medium mortars of the 5th Independent Mortar Battalion.
In addition, there were 12 150mm heavy cannons from the 1st Battalion of the 5th Regiment of Field Heavy Artillery, 24 105mm mountain guns and 12 150mm short mortars from the 1st Regiment of Independent Mountain Artillery, which were specially transferred from the 1st Army of Shanxi. In addition, there were 2 240mm train cannons from the 11th Armored Train Team directly under the North China.
Because the Zhengxian transportation hub was still in the hands of the Chinese side, these heavy artillery units of the Japanese army could not be transferred to the direction of the Pinghan Road. Therefore, they were basically concentrated in the section west of Zhongmu on the Longhai Road.
It is basic military knowledge that the more concentrated the firepower, the greater the threat. Therefore, the officers and soldiers of the 229th Division stationed here suffered serious blood loss as soon as the battle started.
Perhaps because of concerns about the Chinese Air Force's attack on the artillery units, or because Japan's national strength was unable to replicate the intensity of the artillery bombardment on the European battlefield, or because the Japanese thought they had completely destroyed the opponent's defense and fighting will, so after a full half hour of shelling, the Japanese heavy artillery finally stopped.
However, although the four 150mm field cannons of the 1st Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 8th Independent Field Heavy Artillery Regiment stopped firing, the six 70mm Type 92 infantry guns of the artillery company of the 139th Infantry Regiment assigned to the attack by the Fujimoto Detachment were still firing.
Although the 70mm infantry gun could not break through the 50mm thick cement layer of the Chinese core fortress, it still broke the outer trenches and communication trenches into pieces and pits. When the relatively cheap 70mm infantry gun stopped firing, two companies of the Imperial Army quickly rushed towards the defenders' positions under the supervision of a squadron of Japanese troops.
200m, 150m, 100m, getting closer and closer, but there was no movement on the opposite position, and all signs of life seemed to have disappeared in the previous artillery attack.
Seeing that the defenders' firepower showed no signs of recovery, these traitors who had sold out their country and personal dignity only to end up as cannon fodder couldn't help but let out a suppressed cheer, and their backs, which had been crouching all the way, straightened slightly.
In a flash, just when the Imperial Army relaxed their hearts a little, a string of bullets shot out from the trenches and hit the two traitors who were standing with their chests puffed out. It was obvious that they were not going to survive.
The Imperial Army was thrown into chaos by the sudden attack. They didn't even dare to move forward. They lay on the muddy ground and fired aimlessly in the direction of the trench.
It has been almost four years since the war broke out, but Japan's domestic military production has not yet reached full capacity. Therefore, it is enough to cope with the war consumption of the Japanese army, but it is impossible to fully replace the equipment of the puppet army. In addition, the Japanese army discriminates against traitors and puppet soldiers, so a considerable number of puppet army troops are equipped with firearms from various sources such as Hanyang, Northwest, and International brands.
Although the Japanese adjusted the equipment of the puppet army , thus alleviating the logistical pressure to a certain extent, since the Japanese army did not produce Type 79 bullets specifically for the puppet army, the puppet army's ammunition replenishment mainly relied on captured ammunition.
However, apart from the early great gains in the Peiping-Tianjin Campaign, the North China Front Army spent more than it gained most of the time. As a result, the puppet troops in North China were very careful with their shooting and did not conduct much shooting training, so the shooting effect during the war can be imagined.
The bullets flew to unknown places and did not cause any losses to the defenders, but the Japanese troops following behind the Imperial Army took the opportunity to launch several anti-personnel grenades with grenade launchers at a relatively close distance.
The grenades created balls of fire in the trenches, and the Imperial Army, which was very close, could even clearly hear the screams of the defenders.
"dash forward!"
The Japanese sergeant was yelling in the rear, and the puppet soldiers were forced to stand up and stumble straight into the trenches.
The Imperial Army had better luck this time. No more bullets were fired from the trenches, allowing them to successfully occupy the position.
However, the Imperial Army who rushed into the trenches were surprised to find that there were only less than 20 Northwest Army soldiers in the 2km circular battle line. Could it be that the opponent who stopped them for 4 hours was just these few sacrifices? Could it be that the last blockade was completed independently by only one or two of them?
"Assholes, what are you doing?"
The Japanese second lieutenant who led his troops into the position right after the Imperial Army slapped the company commander of the Imperial Army who was leading the way.
"Why are you still standing there? Hurry up and help the Imperial Army control the trenches."
However, the puppet soldiers stood there woodenly. Feeling something was wrong, the Japanese second lieutenant glanced around and suddenly his eyes fell on the body of a fallen soldier.
Looking at his opponent who had his eyes wide open until his death, the second lieutenant, who had been promoted from an ordinary soldier to a non-commissioned officer and finally a sixth-rank commissioned officer, was also moved. So he took off his military cap, bowed to the corpse, and then spoke to the puppet army company commander.
"Dousan, these are the warriors who fought to the end. Although they have different beliefs from yours, they are worthy opponents. Please bury them properly!"
The Northwest Army's positions outside Zheng County were all built on the basis of old villages and towns.
Therefore, capturing the outer ring defense line did not mean the change of key points. In order to completely occupy this area, the entire village must be destroyed. So, in addition to hastily burying the Chinese and Imperial Army casualties, the Japanese army soon launched the next stage of the mission in the center of the village.
In fact, the situation of the Northwest Army was already very difficult. The permanent fortifications at the entrance of the village, which were expected to play a decisive role, had been destroyed by heavy artillery of the Japanese army. The defenders, who could only rely on the ruins and bomb craters, were forced to persist in the cold wind. Failure was already inevitable, but they persisted to the end only out of some kind of belief.
"Platoon leader, don't worry. I won't report to the King of Hell until I kill these three devils."
The platoon sergeant's voice was still echoing in Liu Anliang's mind, but the tall and thin platoon sergeant had already fallen in a pool of blood in front of Liu Anliang. Not only the platoon sergeant, but 77 of the 140 officers and soldiers of the 1st Platoon, 2nd Platoon, 3rd Company, 2nd Battalion, 2293rd Regiment guarding Kanglou Village and the 2nd Platoon of the Anti-aircraft Defense of the Battalion Fire Company had died one after another. Among the remaining officers and soldiers, there were 12 seriously injured, and the rest were also injured. As for the officers, only the second lieutenant platoon leader Liu Anliang was still intact.
"Sir, look, those traitors are coming up again."
The sound of the sentry post woke up Liu Anliang, who was half asleep. He raised his head slightly and looked outside the village. He saw dozens of sneaky puppet soldiers slowly moving towards the village entrance.
Liu Anliang thought for a moment and said, "We don't have many people left. We can't fight recklessly. Let them in and we'll close the door and beat the dog!"
At this point, Liu Anliang continued to order: "Wang Deqing, quickly inform squad leader Li at the back of the village and ask him to lure the enemy in as well. Also, Chen Ying, you take three people to guard the ancestral hall. Remember to carry two boxes of grenades. Once the Japanese break in, we must not let our seriously injured brothers fall into their hands."
Before Liu Anliang could finish his words, several Imperial Army soldiers had already sneaked in. However, based on Liu Anliang's orders, the remaining defenders did not open fire, so those who had managed to escape were able to rush into the village in fear.
"Could it be that the Chinese troops were all wiped out on the periphery?"
The Japanese squadron leader who saw this scene was thinking in confusion.
"This must be a trick of the Chinese army. Come on, order the Imperial Army to send another squad in."
Before the Japanese squadron leader's voice fell, gunshots and grenade sounds were suddenly heard in the village.
“It is true.”
The Japanese squadron leader looked as if it was a matter of course.
"Come here, cancel the previous order, and ask Captain Fujimoto for close support from the regiment's artillery."
Two 70mm Type 92 infantry guns fired more than a dozen shells. After ravaging the already destroyed village again, the two Imperial Army companies divided into two groups and rushed towards the front and rear village entrances. At the same time, two squads of Japanese troops followed closely behind, using machine guns and grenade launchers to provide cover for these traitors.
The Imperial Army once again rushed into the village, but was soon hit by bullets from all directions, and had to hide behind the ruins and put up a stubborn resistance.
At this time, a Japanese squad also rushed into the village.
Before the Japanese grenade launchers could unleash their power again, a string of 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun bullets wiped out the entire area.
According to the Northwest Army's 1940 organizational plan, the battalion's firepower company's air defense platoon was composed of two air defense squads equipped with one 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun.
Therefore, the two 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine guns should have been originally assigned to the 1st and 2nd platoons of the 3rd Company, 2nd Battalion, 2293rd Regiment .
However, up to now, one of them has been reduced to pieces along with the core fortress in the Japanese artillery attack.
Therefore, this only anti-aircraft machine gun can be regarded as the strongest firepower support in Liu Anliang's hands.
The sandbags and walls that could block ordinary Type 79 machine gun bullets were simply unable to stop the penetration of 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun bullets. The Northwest Army deliberately aimed its fire at the Japanese army.
As a result, the Japanese army was caught off guard and suffered heavy casualties. The master was beaten and screamed. The Imperial Army also lost its fighting spirit and immediately fled the village with the defeated Japanese soldiers. "Amazingly powerful machine gun?"
The Japanese squadron leader used a telescope to look at the back entrance of the village where fierce fighting was still going on, and his face turned cold.
"Request artillery coverage from the battalion commander."
