Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 253 Mountain Tunnel Warfare (2)

In the south city, at the detachment headquarters, Zhu Chi and deputy detachment leader Hua Pinzhang were leading a group of staff members to conduct a war game simulation. Hua Pinzhang said:
"Senior, judging from the results of the war game, the Second Battalion should have no problem holding Tuofeng Ridge for a week, so why only three days?"

Zhu Chi waved his hand to signal others to step aside before saying:
“This is what the regimental commander meant. The threat from the three divisions on the southern front is too great, especially the 3rd Division;

If they are blocked from entering Bengbu City, they may change the direction of attack, which will be detrimental to the overall situation;
It would be better to let them in and use the street fighting in Bengbu City and the Huaihe River defense line to hold back the Third Division, so that they won’t run around everywhere.”

Some things cannot be said too clearly, but Hua Pinzhang understood that the regiment commander was worried that other troops would not be able to stop the Third Division and the situation would be difficult to control.

In the entire national army, only Lao Yue dared to do this. Other troops would hide if they could, and only fight to the death when they couldn't hide. Thinking of this, Hua Pinzhang took over the conversation and said:
"I guess the commander wants to use street fighting to consume the Third Division. This is beneficial to the overall situation, but the guerrilla column will suffer much greater losses. There are more than 3 elite devils!"

Zhu Chi said nonchalantly:
"The Japanese heavy artillery brigade, cavalry brigade and other technical arms are not very useful in street fighting. The real combat troops are the four infantry regiments, and even with the reinforcements, there are only 4 people;

If we use street fighting to consume tens of thousands of their soldiers, the Third Division will be crippled and the situation on the southern front will be completely stabilized.

The commander has big plans, so we just need to follow his orders. Tell Han Mengzi not to fight too hard, just hold out for three days!

After that, we will retreat into the city. Our team will accompany them to have some fun in the city. This Third Division escaped the street fighting in Nanjing, and Bengbu City is their graveyard."

After Zhu Chi finished speaking, he punched the map with a domineering fist. After a series of fierce battles, his morale was also up;

My junior brother Wang Jianfei was able to cripple the 13th Division in Wuhu, and he also wants to have a good meeting with the rd Division in Nancheng.

Hua Pinzhang also wanted to meet the powerful Third Division, so he excitedly took the order and left.

At Tuofeng Ridge, just as Zhu Chi and others had predicted in their war game, after the Sixth Regiment had used its "three axes", its offensive weakened.

No matter what tactics they used, the defenders were able to hold out like a small boat sailing in the sea.
No matter how strong the wind blows and the waves are, the boat still cuts through the waves and moves forward.

In the next two days, the Yoneyama Battalion and the Hirose Battalion took turns launching wave after wave of attacks on the defenders' positions, but were eventually repelled by the 2nd Battalion.
The battlefield was covered with the corpses of the Japanese soldiers. Before they knew it, the Sixth Regiment had suffered more than 1500 casualties and still failed to break through Hill No. 1.

The Sixth Regiment was unable to fight, so they had no choice but to ask Fujita Susumu for tactical guidance, which inevitably led to another scolding;

Of course, the scolding was not in vain. Fujita Susumu had lost his patience and drew 2 people from the supplementary wing to them, and promised to send planes to assist on the third day.

Huang Qi had received an order from the battalion headquarters to defend the position. He called a meeting with the battalion artillery battalion commander and several company commanders overnight and agreed to abandon the position the next day.

The Second Company suffered the most casualties, so the Second Company Commander was somewhat confused about the retreat. He thought that they could hold out for a few more days relying on the tunnel fortifications. Huang Qi could only shout coldly:
"This is a military order. You must execute it whether you want to or not. There is no room for negotiation." The second company commander had no choice but to shut his mouth. He could have opinions, but he had to keep them in mind in the face of military orders and execute them unconditionally.

After confirming the relevant matters of the retreat, Huang Qi ended the meeting and all personnel went back to prepare for the relevant work of the retreat;
Even when retreating, we must not let the Japanese take advantage. Sometimes the losses in retreating are greater than those in attacking, so we must learn from this.

The next morning, more than a dozen planes came in with great momentum. They bombarded the defenders' positions fiercely, dropping a large number of explosive bombs and incendiary bombs. The entire position was burning.

As soon as the aircraft group left, heavy artillery shells came down again. Although the defenders were hiding in the tunnels, they were not feeling well either, and their heads were buzzing from the shock.

Those who were unlucky were hit directly in the tunnel, and some were directly blown down. Many soldiers were killed because their internal organs were ruptured. There is no absolutely safe tunnel, but it can reduce most casualties.

When the artillery fire extended and the defenders began to "collapse", Colonel Kawanami was delighted and said excitedly:

"Yoshi, the Chinese can no longer hold on. Order the entire regiment to press forward and take down Camel Ridge in one fell swoop and completely wipe them out."

Without even waiting for his order, Major Yoneyama had already led the Japanese in pursuit. He had already been very angry over the past two days, so he would naturally not miss this opportunity.

Major Yoneyama was still rushing to the front with a sanitary napkin tied to his neck, looking very brave and eager to let everyone see;
Colonel Kawanami gave him a few likes, and when he was in a better mood, he looked at everyone with favor.

When Mishan's battalion reached the top, the defenders had already retreated several hundred meters away. He sent a squadron to continue the pursuit, while he himself stayed on the top of the mountain waiting for the arrival of the regiment commander.
For him, occupying the "Sad Hill" position was far more important than hunting down the remaining enemies. Besides, he was also worried about being counterattacked by the defenders.

As an old Japanese soldier with rich practical experience, he could naturally see that the defenders might voluntarily abandon their positions, so there was no need for him to take risks;
Sure enough, not long after, intensive gunfire was heard in the front, most of which were from German weapons. It should be that the pursuing squadron was blocked by the Chinese. He immediately led people to support them, and finally brought back half of the squadron, with the loss of dozens of people.

He could now explain to the commander of the brigade that it was not that he was unwilling to pursue, but that the Chinese had ambushed troops, and the attack on Bengbu City had to wait until the main force arrived before making a long-term plan;
He has already gained enough military merit, so there is no need to take risks.

After learning about the situation, Colonel Kawanami did not blame Major Yoneyama, but instead praised him for his wit and for escaping a conspiracy by the Chinese.
Colonel Kawanami's main goal was also to capture Tuofeng Ridge. Now that he could report to the division commander, there was no need for him to create unnecessary trouble.

After learning that the infantry regiment had captured Tuofeng Ridge, the division commander Fujita Susumu was very satisfied. He ordered the 6th Regiment to send a part of the regiment to guard in the direction of Bengbu, while the main force controlled Tuofeng Ridge and welcomed the main force of the division to cross Tuofeng Ridge.

Since Tuofengling is the commanding height of the surrounding area and is less than ten kilometers away from the urban area of ​​Bengbu, Fujita Susumu set up the division headquarters south of Tuofengling;
As long as the Japanese controlled Tuofeng Ridge, the division headquarters would be very safe, with the cavalry brigade guarding both wings.

The heavy artillery brigade was also deployed in the open area near Tuofeng Ridge, ready to bombard Bengbu City at any time;
Fujita Susumu's deployment of troops was standard. The division headquarters and the direct troops were deployed along the railway, the cavalry brigade guarded the two wings, and the alert was set ten kilometers away, making it difficult to launch a surprise attack on them.

After completing the deployment of troops, Fujita Susumu ordered the 68th Regiment to continue advancing towards Bengbu City, with the 34th and 18th Regiments following closely behind, and the th Regiment acting as a reserve force with the division headquarters.

(End of this chapter)