Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 236 Ogisu Ritsu is driven into a corner

As the guerrilla column continued to tighten the encirclement, the 13th Cavalry Regiment on guard at the periphery finally discovered something was wrong, and a fight broke out between the two sides, with casualties on both sides.

When the cavalry regiment commander discovered that everyone around him was Chinese, he was so scared that cold sweat broke out on his back. He immediately reported it to the division commander Ogisu Rippei. Now it was the turn of the old Japanese and Chief of Staff Ishikawa Takuma to be dumbfounded.

As a staff officer, Ishikawa quickly reacted and said tremblingly:
"It seems we have been fooled by Yue Qianli!"

The furious Ogisu Rippei yelled:
"Bakayalu, you are just talking after the fact. Why didn't you find out earlier?
Bakayalu, what's the use of you trash!"

Furious, Ogisu Ritsuhei began looking for someone to vent his anger on, but it was pointless.
Ishikawa Takuma gritted his teeth and reminded him:
"Your Excellency, the division commander, we have discovered a large number of Chinese troops in the left, center, and rear directions. They are closing in on the division headquarters.

The closest to us now is the 116th League—"

Ogisu Rippei yelled as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw:

"Then why are you still standing there! Send a telegram to the 116th Regiment immediately and tell them to give up rescuing the 65th Regiment and come back immediately - quickly!"

Ogisu Rikuhei was really panicking. Although he killed Chinese people without blinking an eye, he got angry when he thought about the danger.
At his level, loyalty to the emperor is just a formality. The spirit of Bushido means nothing to them. Those are just used to fool cannon fodder. He is a senior military officer!
His life was more important than anything else. He couldn't bear to die even if he was loyal to the emperor. Moreover, they had looted countless wealth in Nanjing City. If they could find a chance to transport it back to the country, they would not be able to spend it all in several lifetimes. How could he bear to die?
Ishikawa Takuma was better. At least he still maintained the courage of a young officer. Although he was also afraid of death, he was not as afraid as Ogisu Tachibe. So he looked at Ogisu Tachibe with contempt and turned away.

No division commander has been captured since the war began. The empire cannot withstand such a blow. He has been keeping an eye on it. If there is a possibility that Ogisu Rippei will be captured, he will first be sent to the Yasukuni Ghost Toilet to report. This is also the last mission of the Chief of Staff.

Ogisu Ritsuhei was completely unaware of the murderous intent hidden in Ishikawa Takuma's eyes. He was now completely confused, mainly due to Yue Qianli's resounding reputation;

He was known as a harvester of generals and colonels. As far as he knew, the number of colonel-level officers who died at the hands of "Yue Ren Tu" was so great that he could not be counted on both hands. Lieutenant General Mitsuru had two. He did not want to play Landlord with Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko and Yanagawa Heisuke.

It was not safe to rely on the several thousand men of the 116th Regiment alone. Yue Qianli was very cruel, so Ogisu Rikiei asked the communications staff to send a telegram to the two regiments on the left and right wings, asking them to reinforce the division headquarters at all costs.

"Send a telegram to the Commander, requesting that you send air warriors to provide tactical guidance - and then send a telegram to the 18th Division..."

Ogisu Ritsu sent telegrams to all the places where he could ask for help, and when he was done he slumped down in a chair made of ammunition boxes;
Since he discovered that the division headquarters was surrounded by the Chinese, he ordered the troops to stop, seize a nearby small hill, and go on the defensive on the spot, holding their ground and waiting for reinforcements.

However, the division headquarters only had one cavalry regiment and a guard battalion, less than 2 people, and they couldn't hold out for long. Dense gunfire and artillery sounds could be heard all around, like a death knell!

On the left wing, the 3rd Battalion of the nd Battalion of the Supplementary Detachment was tightening the encirclement and entered an open area. A group of cavalry appeared on the opposite side;
Captain Guo Baisheng immediately ordered the troops to go on the defensive. Encountering a cavalry group in an open area was no joke. Fortunately, the 3rd Battalion also had enough firepower to deal with the cavalry's counterattack.

Two kilometers away, more and more cavalry were gathering and had formed a cavalry formation. The cavalry regiment commander, Colonel Yuji Fujita, was observing the 3rd Battalion with a telescope; this was the place he carefully selected for counterattack. Their space for maneuvering was repeatedly compressed. If they did not fight back, they would have to fight a decisive battle with the Chinese as infantry, which was something Colonel Fujita could not accept.

Cavalry has always been a noble branch of the Japanese army. They look down on infantry, so they want to use cavalry to defeat the Chinese on the opposite side. When Colonel Fujita saw that the cavalry formation had been formed, he drew out his ancestral saber and said in a low voice:
"Gentlemen, the noble cavalry has always been the master of the battlefield, and the lowly Chinese infantry are trembling in fear. Charge forward and kill them all!
Cavalry Regiment——Itazai!"

The devils followed suit and shouted, their horses were already stirring, eager to kill the Chinese;
When Colonel Fujita drew his saber, they also put away their lances and drew their sabers. They still liked to chop off the heads of the Chinese with sabers during a high-speed sprint.

Colonel Fujita saw that everyone had drawn their sabers, and his morale was boosted. He then fiercely swung his saber down at a 45-degree angle and shouted:
"Cavalry Regiment—attack!"

Colonel Fujita's horse rushed out first, and the other Japanese soldiers followed closely behind. Soon they sped up. The scene of thousands of horses charging was indeed shocking.

Facing the mass charge of the Japanese cavalry, Guo Baisheng looked grim. They had only more than 600 people, but fortunately they were equipped with 6 Type 2 heavy machine guns, and each squad also had a Taisho 90-year light machine gun, 2 6mm mortars, infantry guns, and flying thunder guns.

The range of the flying thunder cannon means that they only have time to launch one explosive pack, but the mortar can fire more than 10 rounds.

The 90mm mortar has a rate of fire of up to 10 rounds per minute, as does the infantry gun, and has a range of over a kilometer, but there are too few of them;
When the cavalry launched the attack, Captain Guo gave the order to fire. Two mortars and two infantry guns also fired at the Japanese at the highest rate of fire, blowing the Japanese to pieces.

"Cavalry Regiment—kill the chicken!"

The continuous falling of their companions not only did not scare Colonel Fujita, but instead stimulated their blood to boil. Like wolves smelling blood, they rushed towards the 3rd Battalion, roaring.

The damage caused by a few artillery pieces was limited. When the Japanese cavalry rushed to a distance of several hundred meters, the machine gun array of the 3rd Battalion opened fire.

6 Type 27 heavy machine guns and Type light machine guns opened fire at full power. The dense bullets formed a barrage that blocked all the Japanese cavalry outside the barrage. The cavalry fell to the ground like dumplings...

Colonel Fujita had never seen such fierce firepower. It was like the scythe of the god of death, efficiently reaping their lives. Especially the six Type 7.7 heavy machine guns. A mm bullet could cut them in half, and a single bullet would kill their horses.

Facing the piles of fallen corpses, Colonel Fujita's heart was bleeding. The cost of maintaining a cavalryman was at least equivalent to that of 5 cheap infantrymen, not to mention the training.
Now they became sitting ducks, and in just a few hundred meters, nearly half of his cavalry regiment suffered casualties.

There are only a few hundred meters left. For a sprinting warhorse, this distance is just a matter of a few breaths. The Chinese people don't have much time left!

Fujita raised his saber high and gave the order for a desperate charge;
Cavalry charge—advance without retreat!

(End of this chapter)