Songhu: Never Give Up

When Commander Li's message reached the 77th Army, the front had already collapsed, and the true colors of the performance;
The main force of the 13th Division pursued the victory, and the 104th Regiment took the lead in chasing the 77th Army.

This is the only regiment of the 13th Division that has never been annihilated. It is very fierce and one regiment dares to chase and attack an entire army.

Since the landing, three regiments of the 13th Division have been annihilated by the guerrilla army. The old devils have been replaced, and only the 3th Regiment has suffered little loss and is still in place.
The devil's perfect reserve system allowed them to replenish their forces quickly and regain their vitality.

On the other hand, the veterans of the 51st Army of the Northeastern Army and the 77th Army of the Northwestern Army suffered heavy losses in previous wars and could not be replenished, so their troops became weaker and weaker.

The 51st Army in the Lu'an direction could not withstand the attack of 3 Japanese troops and lost the city of Lu'an in just one day and one night. The 77th Army's Huoshan was also defeated by the Japanese troops.

Since leaving the guerrilla column, the 13th Division has fought with great success. Tanaka Shizuka has finally found his feeling and achieved the results that a top-class division should have.
He did not stop the 104th Regiment from pursuing the defeated soldiers of the 77th Army. Most of the troops in the Fifth War Zone were miscellaneous, and one regiment could move at will.

Horseshoe Valley, the ambush position of the guerrilla column. More than 1 soldiers from the 2st and nd detachments set up a huge pocket in the gullies on both sides of the Horseshoe Valley, running east-west and stretching for more than ten kilometers.

When the 77th Army's fleeing soldiers entered the valley several hundred meters wide, they had no idea that there were tens of thousands of friendly troops in the mountains on both sides, otherwise they would not have fled;

The division commander wanted to stay and ambush the Japanese, but unfortunately his army was defeated so badly that he could not gather the defeated soldiers and had to run away with the crowd.

They had to run, as the Japanese vanguard was chasing them very closely. The sound of gunfire was right behind them, like frying beans. They had no idea how many Japanese were there, and they were in a panic, seeing enemies everywhere.

Senior Staff Officer Hanada Seito reminded the regiment commander Yamamura Osamu:
"Sir, the Horseshoe Valley is just ahead. There are gullies and ravines in the mountains on both sides. Be careful of ambushes."

Colonel Yamamura Osamu was eager to make a contribution, and he didn't take the 77th Army seriously at all. He waved his hand and said:

"Hanada-kun, you worry too much. With a weak army like the 77th Army, we can't be afraid of them even if they have ambushes. We can just take them out together."

Lieutenant Colonel Hanada thought about it and realized that most of these miscellaneous troops were new recruits and had few artillery pieces. The Horseshoe Valley was several hundred meters wide and they would be able to react if ambushed. So he said nothing more and quickly entered the valley with the main force of the regiment.

They wanted to follow the valley road all the way to the mall, which was also part of the attack plan.

On the mountain to the right of the Horseshoe Valley, Yue Qianli watched the Japanese army enter before putting down his telescope and said to Chen Zhongyuan:
"Send a signal to Lao Gao and the others, it's time to close the net."

Chen Zhongyuan had been waiting for Yue Qianli's order, and then excitedly took out a signal gun from his body and fired three shots into the sky;

The three shots were a signal, and the ambushers came out, which frightened the arrogant Yamamura Osamu, who asked in a trembling voice:

"What kind of work? Where is the shooting?"

Major Hanada reacted quickly. What he had been worried about had happened, and he blurted out anxiously:
"There's an ambush. We're done for!"

Yamamura Jixiong slapped him casually and then cursed:

"Bakayaluo, a few ambushes are nothing..."

"Boom boom boom..."

"Boom, boom, boom..." Rows of artillery shells whizzed in from the mountains on both sides and slammed into the group of Japanese soldiers, forcing them to flee in a panic and suffering heavy casualties.

The two artillery battalions of the first and second detachments took the lead in launching the attack, and dozens of large and small artillery pieces blew the Japanese troops into pieces.

Yamamura Jixiong quickly launched the guerrilla column's artillery position, which was also a nearby commanding height, and immediately ordered his troops to seize the commanding height, so as to turn defeat into victory;

The old Japanese soldiers who had recovered from their shock were not afraid. Instead, they prepared to break out with force. Unfortunately, this time they encountered a guerrilla column with powerful firepower, and artillery fire was just an appetizer.

Before the Japanese rushed to the foot of the mountain, hundreds of light and heavy machine guns spurted long flames at the long formation of Japanese soldiers, and rained down bullets that mowed down the Japanese soldiers in groups. Yamamura Zhixiong was terrified.

He had a bad feeling in his heart that if they didn't break out, they would follow the same fate as the other squadrons.

Compared with ambushes in plains, ambushes in mountains are more concealed. There is no need to deliberately dig fortifications. One only needs to drill into the ditches on both sides. No matter how many search teams the Japanese have, they will be useless.

Major Higashino Yokokyu led the hundreds of Japanese soldiers who had gathered together to charge towards the top of Taibai Mountain, which was the commanding height of many mountains on the right wing. As long as they captured it, they could turn the passive situation into the active one.

Taibai Ridge was the location of the First Detachment Headquarters, and a battalion of the 2nd Battalion was deployed there to protect them. Battalion Commander Han Xianyuan was worried about losing the position, so he suggested to Detachment Commander Zhu Chi:
"Captain, the Japanese are coming in full force. Just to be on the safe side, you should lead the detachment to retreat first, so that I can command the brothers to let go and deal with the Japanese."

Seeing that Han Xianyuan was trying to drive him away, Zhu Chi said unhappily:

"The Japanese have only a few hundred men, and you have nearly 600 men each. If you can't stop the Japanese, tell me as soon as possible, and I will lead the detachment.

We also have several hundred people, so we will have no problem holding them off."

Han Xianyuan's face instantly turned the color of liver, and he yelled:
"Captain, please don't belittle us. The 1st Battalion of the nd Battalion has never been afraid of the Japanese with the same strength. With us here, it won't be the turn of the detachment to take action!"

Han Xianyuan left with murderous intent after saying some harsh words. Since he couldn't persuade the detachment leader who was one level higher in rank to leave, he could only push the damn Japs back.

The enemy's attacks came one after another, and the 2st Battalion of the nd Battalion used their advantages to fight calmly, killing many enemy soldiers and leaving corpses all over the ground.
When Han Xianyuan arrived at the command post of the First Battalion, the battalion commander, Major Yuan Guangyi, protested:
"Captain, why are you running here? The enemy's attack is very fierce. We are trying our best to break through. They are throwing shells like crazy. It's not safe here!"

Han Xianyuan said nonchalantly:
"Bullshit! There is no absolutely safe place on the battlefield. If you can stay, I can stay too.

How about it, can you hold it? The captain is on the top of the mountain."

Yuan Guangyi said confidently:

"Don't worry, there are only a few hundred devils, it's easy to deal with them, just look at the corpses all over the hillside;
They want to seize the position from the First Battalion, no way, they really think we are mud!"

Han Xianyuan picked up the telescope and scanned around, and he felt relieved. Although the Japanese attack was fierce, their progress was limited.

The Japanese seemed to have been driven into a corner, and driven by officers at all levels, they fearlessly charged and attacked the defenders' positions;
One group fell and another group came up. The Japanese regiment artillery continued to bombard the defenders' positions. The casualties of the defenders were also rising. Now it was a test of the willpower of both sides.

(End of this chapter)