ebookland Chapter 1255: Fighting a Bloody Path
Chapter 1255: Fighting a Bloody Path
The original plan was to send several regiments. However, the Japanese forces along the route increased, and we had to cross nearly 200 kilometers of Japanese-occupied territory. Sending only a few regiments might pose a significant danger to our troops. Therefore, after discussing with the commander of the 2nd Division, Ma Leizi increased the number of troops to an infantry division.
"Reporting to the commander, most of the Second Division's troops have already set off. The advance 371st Regiment has entered Dongchang Prefecture and is currently engaged in combat with the Japanese 27th Division."
Hearing how quickly the Second Division was moving, Ma Leizi also located their position on the map. They were just one step away from entering Henan Province, and these guys, hearing there was a battle to be fought, really didn't want to stay by my side for even a minute longer.
Henan-Shandong border
"Commander, let the brothers rest for a bit. It's been a full seven hours since last night. Even if we don't rest, the tanks and armored vehicles need a break, right? These Japanese devils along the way keep launching suicide attacks. The brothers are practically crying with envy."
Wang Zhanfa, the battalion commander of the 371st Regiment, was the ace of the regiment. Throughout this operation, they were always at the forefront. Just before setting off, they armed this infantry battalion as an armored battalion.
"Stop talking nonsense. We're still surrounded by the enemy. We absolutely cannot stop. If we stop for even a minute, the enemy can amass more troops. As the vanguard of the entire division, we must fight our way through. If we stop, all 2 brothers behind us will have to stop. If something goes wrong, can you bear the responsibility? Tell all the brothers that we're carrying the weight of the entire division's 2-plus brothers on our shoulders. If anyone falters at this moment, don't blame me for not showing brotherhood."
Lu Peng was a true northerner. After coming south from the Northeast, he served in the Northwest Army and the 29th Army. Later, he transferred to the 72nd Army and had made a name for himself. He rose from a common soldier to a regimental commander, and he commanded a reinforced regiment—a reinforced regiment with an armored battalion, one of the few in the entire army.
Seeing that the regimental commander had gone this far, Wang Zhanfa could only swallow the rest of his words. Last night, during the charge, the brothers were indeed exhausted; some of them were even able to fall asleep standing up this morning.
But the regimental commander wasn't wrong. Our Second Division was going to fight in Henan Province, and we had to break through this 200-kilometer blockade line. Although the Japanese didn't expect us to do this, after we started our operation, they mobilized two divisions to try to stop us, and two more divisions were gathering. At this point, it was all about speed.
Second Division Commander Li Hu has already issued orders for his men to break through the blockade within 30 hours. They only have a few hours left to go, and if they stop to rest now, too many things could change.
Lu Peng knew his men were exhausted, but no matter how tired they were, they had to grit their teeth and keep going. They had over 3000 vehicles of various types in their rear, and they couldn't afford to stop. They were currently maintaining a speed of 40 kilometers per hour; if they all stopped, it would take two hours to get them all moving again. So, as long as there was a road ahead, they had to keep advancing and force their way through with the armored battalion's iron fist.
The Japanese lacked experience in dealing with armored forces, so they dug infantry trenches instead. But these were useless against armored forces; the trenches were too narrow, and we also had an engineering battalion. If we found any tank trenches, we could immediately reinforce them with steel plates and we could cross them.
For the Japanese, they never dreamed that the 72nd Army Group, stationed in the Jiaodong region, would suddenly appear before them. They had been fighting in China for a long time and knew that Li Shaoyi's army was no joke; it could take their lives at any moment. The problem was, however, that they were too far from their positions.
There shouldn't be any chance for either of them to fight to the death. But suddenly it's right in front of you, and no matter what your current situation is, you have to keep pulling the team forward. If you don't keep pushing forward, you might lose your life to the military police.
The Japanese North China Area Army Command also issued an order to stop the infantry division at all costs and surround it at the border of Henan and Shandong provinces, so that they would be isolated and have a chance to annihilate the entire infantry division.
However, judging from the current situation, three of the four lines of defense that were previously arranged have been breached. The remaining line of defense was only temporarily set up, so it is not easy to stop them. Moreover, these people almost wiped out an entire infantry brigade during their advance.
The Japanese defenses were practically paper-thin in front of the 2nd Division of the 4th Army, offering little resistance. All our men needed to do was floor the accelerator, and the crew would unleash a barrage of shells and bullets. We were inside those metal structures, so we didn't care what kind of defenses the Japanese had.
In response, the Japanese mobilized over 100 aircraft in an attempt to block the entire 2nd Infantry Division. However, the 2nd Infantry Division had brought two anti-aircraft companies with them when they set out. Their armored vehicles were equipped with a large number of quadruple anti-aircraft guns. If these were assembled, they could clear the entire sky in an instant. We wouldn't be afraid of even a hundred or so aircraft, let alone another batch, especially since they also had escort fighters.
The Japanese high command had long realized that we were simply not on the same level as the 72nd Army's division-level units. They had tanks and armored vehicles all the time, while we had very few artillery pieces capable of dealing with tanks and armored vehicles.
Of course, this can't be blamed on the Japanese. During their long reconnaissance mission, China simply didn't have these things, so they had to concentrate their resources on manufacturing other weapons. A few of these anti-tank guns were enough for the troops; they didn't need many. Who would have thought they'd become so sought-after on the battlefield?