Volume 1 Deserter's Bloodbath Chapter 22 The value of veterans!
The Death Battalion was resting at Tanjiazhai, but the 11th Division and the Songhu battlefield did not stop. The 33rd Brigade recaptured Luodian, and the 31st Brigade recaptured Zhang Huabin Railway Station on the afternoon of the 23rd. The Japanese troops who had just landed paid the price for their arrogance and were pushed back to the beachhead.
On the evening of the 23rd, the Japs launched a new counterattack and attacked Luodian fiercely. More than 1,500 Japanese troops, led by armored vehicles, divided into three teams and marched towards Luodian from the west, north and east without any reconnaissance.
Hu Lian had been waiting for them in Luodian for four hours. Relatively complete fortifications had been built around Luodian. The first to engage in fire was the 8th Company of the 66th Regiment stationed at Changqiao on the highway in the northwest suburbs of Luodian. The battle lasted until dark. The regiment commander Hu Lian ordered the company commander Captain Guo Xiaowei to block the Japanese army in sections along the highway. Then the Japanese army launched a large-scale attack on Xiaoshiqiao at Luodian Station, which was both the headquarters of the 66th Regiment and the headquarters of the 33rd Brigade.
Brigade Commander Ye Peigao, Regiment Commander Hu Lian and other officers at all levels participated in the battle. The Japanese tanks rushed all the way to the 33rd Brigade Headquarters, but were ambushed by the 66th Regiment's special forces platoon, which blew up three of the Japanese tanks. During the battle, Platoon Leader Zhou Dapeng was hit by several bullets and died on the battlefield. The Japanese army then continued to attack fiercely, but was stubbornly sniped by the 66th Regiment.
At the same time, Colonel Zhu Dingqing, the head of the 65th Regiment, received an order from the brigade commander: the main force was to attack the Japanese army from the side of Panzhai, Shilichang Street, and Lujia Village from Tanshiqiao and Wudoujing; a part of the army was to attack the Japanese army from behind Xiaoshiqiao and Luodian Station from Jiaozhai, and it was necessary to closely coordinate with the 66th Regiment stationed in Luodian Town to attack the Japanese army from the front and back and deal a devastating blow. After receiving the order, Colonel Zhu immediately ordered each battalion to leave one company to defend the current position, and the deputy head of the regiment, Colonel Cao Jinlun, led the main forces of the 1st and 2nd battalions to attack the enemy in Panzhai and Shilichang Street. Colonel Zhu Dingqing personally led the 3rd Battalion to rush to Xiaoshiqiao to rescue the brigade. Major Wang Zhongbin, the battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 66th Regiment stationed at the west end of Luodian, also led his troops to attack Lujiaqiao. After more than two hours of fierce fighting, the Japanese army's frontal attack was blocked, and the flanks and back were attacked by the national army, resulting in heavy casualties. In less than a few minutes, the entire line was defeated, so the artillery bombarded the infantry and retreated, abandoning the offensive on Luodian.
In the early morning of August 24, 1937, the sound of artillery fire in the Songhu area was still continuing. The commander of the 18th Army, Luo Zhuoying, had already set up a command post in Jiading, while the headquarters of the 11th Division was waiting for the 31st Brigade at Tanjiazhai.
"Report, military order!" The staff officer on duty knocked on the door of the division headquarters with a telegram.
"Come in!" Peng Shan's voice rang out. The battle was not going well. Mei Chunhua and Peng Shan were still discussing the battle situation in Luodian.
"I hereby order your troops to depart from Luodian and launch an attack on the enemy to the left of the Xinzhen-Yuepu-Shizilin line, and annihilate the Japanese troops that have landed in the Chuansha area. The 14th, 56th, 67th, 98th Divisions, and the 16th Artillery Regiment will launch an attack together..."
The command in the telegram was very simple, and there was no long description of the importance of the battle. In fact, all the participating troops in the Songhu area knew the importance of the battle.
"Division Commander, the 33rd Brigade must hold Luodian, and the 31st Brigade is on the way. Should we report the situation to the military?" Chief of Staff Mei Chunhua asked.
Now the 11th Division no longer has any extra troops to launch an attack. Everything has to wait for the 31st Brigade to return or the 33rd Brigade to withdraw from Luodian. Luodian is too important and must be defended. They dare not withdraw their troops no matter what.
"Report the actual situation to Commander Luo and Commander Chen, and request the next combat instructions!" Peng Shan had no choice, as a skilled cook cannot cook without rice!
Now only the direct subordinates of the 11th Division exist in the headquarters, and one mountain artillery battalion has been assigned to the 33rd Brigade. The rest are the engineering battalion, the transport battalion, the special service platoon, the communications company, the guard battalion, the cooking squad, the medical team and the field hospital. There are quite a few people, but except battalion and the special service platoon, the others are auxiliary arms. Unless the whole division is destroyed, these people will not go to the battlefield. The guard battalion is also responsible for the safety of the field hospital, and the manpower that Peng Shan can mobilize is stretched to the limit.
Fortunately, Luo Zhuoying and Chen Cheng also knew Peng Shan’s difficulties and ordered the 67th Division to take over Luodian. However, it would take at least evening for the 67th Division to arrive in Luodian!
Amid the rumbling of artillery fire, the day finally dawned. After a night's rest, the remaining soldiers of the Death Battalion finally regained some vitality, and the brothers began to curse as they received their breakfast. This was wartime, and if possible, the logistics staff would still ensure that they had three meals a day.
“Beep…”
"The Death Squadron assembles!"
The multi-grain pancake I had eaten in the morning had just entered my stomach when a whistle sounded in the camp. Peng Shan’s guard battalion commander was shouting at the top of his voice!
“Bang, bang…”
Now the camp was bustling with activity. The lazy suicide squad brothers began to get busy and put on their military uniforms in a hurry. They hurriedly hung their bullet belts, grenade bags, rifles, helmets, etc. on their bodies...
"stand at attention!"
A few minutes later, the remaining 151 members of the Death Squad were divided into four teams and stood in the open space of the military camp. In front of them was the commander of the guard battalion who had been blowing the whistle.
"Everyone stand still, Captain of the Fourth Company, organize the troops, count the number of people and equipment. Those who are not fully equipped, go to the logistics department immediately to get them. In half an hour, the division commander will give you a lecture. Look at what you are like now, you are no different from a bunch of defeated soldiers. Go and get ready !"
The guard battalion commander looked at the untidy and lifeless death battalion. He didn't understand why the division commander wanted to transfer officers from the guard battalion to rectify this remnant. According to his idea, wouldn't it be enough to just break up these people and add them to the two brigades? Was he afraid that these people would run away?
In fact, the guard battalion commander didn't pay any attention to Peng Shan's real thoughts. Veterans are the foundation of an army. With enough veterans, no matter how badly the army is hit, it will recover quickly, because the veterans will tell the new recruits how to grow, and will lead the new recruits who know nothing to adapt to the battlefield quickly. Moreover, many tasks can only be performed by veterans. This is why an army must maintain an elite force composed entirely of veterans.
The Death Battalion was brought to Peng Shan by the old commander. The Battle of Luodian thoroughly demonstrated the value of this Death Battalion composed purely of veterans. Peng Shan had thought about splitting these people up, but he didn't dare to do it when he remembered their other identity. These veterans who were charged with crimes had nothing to inspire their fighting spirit except to stay alive. Splitting them into the infantry company would only play a limited role. They would not invigorate the new recruits like normal veterans could, and they might even bring their negative emotions to those passionate soldiers. This situation was what Peng Shan was most worried about.
"The commander is here!"
Half an hour later, the remaining brothers of the Death Battalion were finally dressed neatly and stood in neat rows. The guard battalion commander nodded. His advance preparations were effective. Although these soldiers still looked listless, at least they looked much more energetic in their clothes!
