Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 163: All-out Counterattack
It was no wonder that Yue Qianli was still in shock. This battle was so tragic that only 500 of the 77 soldiers on the first floor were left, including the wounded.
There were still more than 600 main forces of the artillery battalion on the second floor, and most of them were sacrificed. This is called sacrifice, not casualties, because almost everyone was injured, and minor injuries were not counted.

The reconnaissance company and the regiment headquarters also lost hundreds of people, especially the reconnaissance company, which was a quasi-special operations force trained by Yue Qianli;
They also stepped up at the critical moment and suppressed the Japanese sharpshooters and heavy firepower on the third floor, resulting in more than 70 casualties, including 52 deaths and the rest seriously injured.

"Old Duan, how many people are left in your replenishment battalion?"

“Less than 3!”

Yue Qianli said unhappily:
"Don't play word games. Tell me the exact number. I can handle it!"

"2187, almost everyone is injured."

Although Yue Qianli was mentally prepared, he couldn't help but shake after hearing this number. He stared at Duan Yulin again, and saw sadness in his eyes.

In just one major counterattack, only 4 people were left out of 2 men. The casualties were indeed quite high.

He knew that Duan Yulin was anxious to save the regiment and rushed in without caring about casualties. Although he did not agree with this, he still patted his brother's shoulder comfortingly and said:

"With these 2 veterans here, it won't be long before the replacement battalion is back in shape. The brothers died for a good cause. Look at the piles of Japanese corpses in front of the building. All the sacrifices are worth it.
To be honest, Lao Duan, I am ready to die in battle. Now is not the time to be sad. Bring the brothers from the supplementary battalion and go with me to settle accounts with Ji Jialiangfu!"

When Duan Yulin heard that they were going to settle accounts with the Japanese, he immediately became excited, because he did have a lot of accounts to settle with Ji Jialiang.

Yue Qianli left behind the regiment headquarters and the artillery battalion, and took only the reconnaissance company, mortar company, a communications squad (with a radio) and more than 1 people from the replenishment battalion, and chased in the direction of the 1th Division headquarters;

The mortar company only had 5 mortars and more than 30 shells left, but the replenishment battalion seized 8 90mm mortars, which were all handed over to the mortar company, thus restoring the company's organization.

The rocket launcher company had 17 shells left, so they did not take them out. The captured mountain artillery was too heavy and remained in the building. Mortars were still more effective in fighting in the city.

Now the main battlefield is in the direction of the enemy divisional headquarters. The three main battalions are fiercely attacking the enemy's positions. The supplementary battalion still has 2 people, so naturally they have to go to help.

With the addition of the reinforcement battalion to the battle, the situation of the 9th Division became even worse. Before, they were only attacked from the east and south, but now a reinforcement battalion appeared in the west. They were besieged on three sides. Their only retreat was to the north. It was a standard situation of being surrounded on three sides and leaving one side open.

After the supplementary battalion arrived at the main battlefield, Yue Qianli took over the command of the battlefield. He first sent instructions to each battalion through the radio, and then set up mortars to bombard the position of the 9th Division Headquarters, creating enough pressure on Yoshika Ryosuke.

Whether it is the domestically produced Type 20 mortar or the captured 90mm "small steel cannon", their range exceeds 2 kilometers and their power is huge;

The salvo of 18 mortars (plus 5 from the replacement battalion) put great pressure on the th Division headquarters.

Yue Qianli did not intend to annihilate the 9th Division. They were not that ambitious. He just wanted to force Yoshika Ryosuke to make a wrong judgment by encircling him on three sides, and then retreat northward across Yunzaobang.

As long as the 527th Division is driven north of Yunzaobang, the th Regiment will have room to move, and it is not impossible to persist in long-term combat. "Old Yue, now the main force of the Japanese army has withdrawn from Shanghai, and they are pursuing the main force with all their strength. Their minds are all on Nanjing City;

As long as we drive the 9th Division to Yunzaobang, we can persist in the long-term war of resistance in the vast area south of Yunzaobang and north of Suzhou River."

Duan Yulin rubbed his hands excitedly when he thought of this bright prospect. As for supplies, he was not worried at all. They were backed by the Suzhou River and across from the International Settlement. What couldn't they buy as long as they had money?
He was even less worried about the money, because as a family man, he knew that Lao Yue was now a wealthy man, and "brother-in-law's" money was his!
"Old Duan, what are you thinking about?
The vacuum zone of Zhabei can be held in the short term, but in the long run, the Japanese will not allow the 527th Regiment to stay in Shanghai;

They sent out an army of 30, and the 10 casualties were not meant to help us.

The Japanese have a powerful navy, and it would only take them ten days or half a month to transport one or two divisions from the country.

As for the concessions, they just need to exert a little pressure, and those foreigners will not dare to challenge the bottom line of the devils.

So we don't have much time. We must drive the 9th Division past Yunzaobang as soon as possible, then get enough supplies from the concession, and then find a way to rescue Deputy Commander Xie and his men. That's when we leave Shanghai.
Go south of Suzhou River. It is now a vacuum zone with defeated soldiers everywhere. You know what will happen next! "

Duan Yulin's eyes sparkled. He was "technically savvy" and he knew very well how fragrant the defeated soldiers were, otherwise he would still be just a company commander.

"Old Yue, what's wrong with your brain? I never noticed you were so thoughtful in school before!

What are you still standing there for? Hurry and drive the Japanese to the north of Yunzaobang. I can't wait to gather the defeated soldiers!
In addition, you can't disband the Supplementary Battalion. It's not that I want to be the battalion commander, but the brothers have already developed feelings for the Supplementary Battalion. It doesn't matter if there is military pay or not, as long as we have food to eat."

Yue Qianli understood Duan Yulin's meaning. The supplementary battalion now had centripetal force. After two more battles, it would surely become a main force battalion. He was reluctant to withdraw.
Without a staffing system, there would be no military pay. He could only figure out what to do on his own. He also couldn't let his brothers suffer too much, so he said to Duan Yulin:
"Don't worry, there will be many places to fight in the future. The supplementary battalion will always be retained. I will figure out the military pay. It won't be comparable to the main battalion, but I will give it some, and the equipment and other things will be the same."

With Yue Qianli's words, Duan Yulin felt relieved, and it was worth it for the brothers in the supplementary battalion to risk their lives to save the regiment headquarters;
Yue Qianli is now the backbone of the entire regiment. With him around, there will be no difficulties that the 527th Regiment cannot overcome.

At the 9th Division Headquarters, Yoshika Ryosuke was beaten to the point where he almost doubted his life. When had the Wu Division been so embarrassed before?

"Your Excellency, the 36th Regiment called and said they can no longer hold on. Even the wounded have less than a thousand men. The Chinese offensive is very fierce, with at least 5 men!"

Nakagawa Hiroshi's words made him furious, and he roared:

"Bakayaloo, where did these 5 people come from? There are at most 2 people. The 1 imperial troops were beaten back by 2 Chinese. Do they still have any shame? Do they still want the honor of a soldier?"

Nakagawa Hiro also looked depressed. He just passed on a message and said with a stiff upper lip:
"Your Excellency, the 36th Regiment has less than 2 soldiers deployed. They have always been the main attack direction of the Chinese. If there is not 5, there must be 3. They are all fighting for their lives. If we don't reinforce the 36th Regiment, I'm worried--"

"Nakagawa-kun, tell them to hold on, there is no reinforcement!
The time has come to serve the Emperor faithfully. I have decided to turn north and retreat to Yunzaobang. They will cover the evacuation of the division headquarters, and then we will take turns to cover the retreat."

(End of this chapter)