Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 207: Ushijima Man leaves the game early

At the Sixth Division Headquarters, Lieutenant General Tani Hisao still had no idea what was happening, he only knew that dense gunfire broke out in the block that had been penetrated from the center;

The flanking troops on both wings had not arrived yet, and the 36th Brigade in the middle seemed to have encountered big trouble. It was like a hornet's nest had been disturbed, with the sound of gunfire and artillery incessant in his ears, which cast an indelible shadow on his heart.

Colonel Shimotsu rushed in in a panic, without even bothering to maintain his appearance. Tani Hisao frowned and shouted coldly:
"How can you be so flustered? Is this still a high-ranking officer of the empire?"

After being scolded, Xiaye Yihuo no longer cared about the formalities and reported loudly:

“Your Excellency, Division Commander, Brigade Commander Ushijima sent an urgent message that they were besieged by tens of thousands of elite Chinese troops in Xicheng District and suffered heavy losses;

At present, each unit has been dispersed and is trapped in the dilemma of fighting on its own. There are only a few hundred warriors left with his brigade, and the connection with the two regiments has been cut off. Please provide tactical guidance. "

When Tani Hisao heard that he was besieged by tens of thousands of Chinese people, his head exploded. Then he thought it was impossible and cursed:
"That bastard Ushijima Mitsuru is just making excuses for his own incompetence. Xicheng District is such a small place, where did tens of thousands of ambushes come from?

Intelligence shows that the Chinese have been defeated across the board, and there are no more than 10,000 people left to resist!
The 36th Brigade has nearly warriors. Even if they are ambushed, they have the strength to fight back. How dare this loser ask for tactical guidance? "

It's no wonder that Tani Hisao was angry. A main brigade was defeated by a group of defeated soldiers and asked for tactical guidance, but he didn't know how to greet their parents. It was so lacking in honor.

Colonel Shimotsu quickly explained:
"Your Excellency, Division Commander, Ushijima has always valued his personal honor. He will not ask the division headquarters for tactical guidance unless it is absolutely necessary. Don't forget that the opponent they are chasing is Yue Qianli. We have to be on guard."

Tani Hisao was furious and said:
“The division headquarters doesn’t have much manpower to support them, so they can only rely on themselves now;

As long as the flanking troops on both wings are in place, they can launch a pincer attack and reverse the passive situation with the help of internal and external forces. "

Colonel Shimotsuke thought about it and agreed. Although there were still several thousand people around the division headquarters, they were all technical arms. Artillery, engineers, cavalry, etc. were not suitable for urban street fighting, and they would not be able to play a big role if they were put into it. Besides, the division headquarters also needed protection.

Now that both sides have played their cards, it depends on whether the pincer attack from both wings will be more effective or whether the Chinese can successfully pull out the teeth from the tiger's mouth. Thinking of this, Colonel Shimotsu said to himself:

“The Ushijima Brigade has two infantry regiments. Even if they are ambushed, they can hold out for more than half a day. Now it’s a race against time.
The Chinese want to annihilate the two main armies of the empire, but they don’t have such a big appetite.”

Gu Shoufu nodded and said:
"Send a telegram to Ushijima-kun and tell them to hold on. Now it depends on who can hold on until the last moment. The honor of the Kumamoto Division depends on them."

Colonel Shimono turned and left with a shout, and Tani Hisao's expression became extremely serious. Although he said it lightly, he actually had no confidence at all;
Based on his understanding of Yue Qianli, this man never fights a battle without preparation, and this time the Ushijima Brigade is definitely in big trouble.

A good cook cannot cook without rice, he can only place his hopes on the two wings and pray that Ushijima Mitsuru can create a miracle!
At the Ushijima Brigade Headquarters, Ushijima Mitsuru received the reply from the Division Headquarters and cursed angrily:

"Bakayar! The division headquarters still has thousands of people, so why aren't they coming to support us?

How can I last half a day? "

Lieutenant Colonel Ryuji Oguchi, the brigade chief of staff, said anxiously:
"General, the Chinese are only a hundred meters away from the brigade headquarters. The warriors are still fighting desperately, but they have suffered heavy casualties.
The two regiments still can't be contacted, they must have been besieged, and the brigade headquarters only has more than 300 guards left, and they can't hold out for long."

Ushijima frowned and said:

"Mr. Koguchi, have you figured out who our opponent is?" It is said that knowing yourself and the enemy will ensure victory in every battle. After being beaten for so long, it is understandable that he does not even know who his opponent is. Lieutenant Colonel Koguchi could only bite the bullet and say:
"General, judging from the intelligence from the warriors who have fought back, they seem to be the 88th Regiment of the 262nd Brigade of the 524th Division, which has not appeared before."

"Nani, 262th Regiment of the 524nd Brigade? This is one of the four earliest main regiments of the 88th Division. It has very strong combat effectiveness. Now I understand!
Sun Yuanliang led the division's guerrilla column to Yuhuatai, and at the same time ambushed the 262nd and 264th Brigades in Xicheng in advance;

The defeat of the guerrilla column was fake. Their purpose was to lure the Imperial Army into the encirclement set up in advance by the 262nd and 264th Brigades. We were fooled!"

Ushijima Mitsuru is indeed worthy of being promoted to general in the future. His keen ability to read the battlefield is indeed superior to others.
The more Lieutenant Colonel Xiaokou listened, the more it made sense to him. However, understanding Yue Qianli's tactical intentions was one thing, but cracking them was another.

"General, there are only about 300 people left at the brigade headquarters. The Chinese encirclement is shrinking. We must find a way to contact the 23rd Regiment."

Xiaokou's suggestion almost made Ushijima Mitsuru burst into swearing. Is it necessary to worry so much about getting in touch?
"Bakayaro, hurry up and call for help! Send out all the idle personnel in the brigade. We must hold on. It will take at most an hour - half an hour!
When the reinforcements arrive, the Ushijima Brigade will launch an all-out attack, destroying the Chinese in one fell swoop."

Ushijima Mitsuru himself would not believe this, and the head of the 524th Regiment, Han Xianyuan, shouted excitedly:

"Brothers, we should catch a big fish this time, and go with me to the pond to catch fish and eat them;

Kill! If you run too slowly, you will miss out! "

Colonel Han Xianyuan ignored the brigade commander's words and led the charge, scaring the guards so much that they quickly accelerated to overtake him and then used their bodies to block him.

The 524th Regiment launched a general attack on the Ushijima Brigade Headquarters within the encirclement, and they were also racing against time with the Japanese.

The Japanese machine guns fired frantically, trying to stop the soldiers of the 524th Regiment, but they were in the city streets and their firing range was not wide;
The brigade headquarters was located in a three-story brick and stone civilian house. When the Japanese machine guns were firing crazily, the 524th Regiment's 20mm rapid-fire guns were also pushed out and fired several shots at the Japanese machine gun positions.

The enemy's machine guns were silenced instantly, and almost all the machine gunners were killed or wounded, and the firepower also dropped;

The infantry group took the opportunity to launch an attack and rushed into the building under the hail of bullets from the Japanese. The two sides engaged in a desperate fight in the building, and the end of the 36th Brigade was approaching.

"Okuchi-kun, please!"

Ushijima Mitsuru bowed deeply to Lieutenant Colonel Oguchi, raised the dagger with both hands and stabbed it into his lower abdomen, causing his facial flesh to twitch in pain.

Lieutenant Colonel Oguchi swung his saber high up, and most of Ushijima Mitsuru's neck was cut off. He controlled the force very well;

It not only ended the suffering of the executioner Mitsuru Ushijima, but also did not cut off his head, which did not affect his entry into the Yasukuni Shrine.

"Good knife!"

The moment Ushijima Mitsuru breathed his last, he couldn't help but praise him.

(End of this chapter)