Songhu: Never Give Up

Wu Qiujian was the unified commander of the two battalions. He and Han Xianyuan were old brothers and spoke very casually. He smiled and said:
"Old Han, don't just enjoy yourself. We still have to keep an eye on the Japanese. They have several battalions advancing at the same time and we can't do anything to them. If anyone shows up, we'll knock his head off!"

Han Xianyuan said carelessly:

"The Japanese lost half a battalion this time, so they will probably learn their lesson. But the Japanese are used to being arrogant. As long as we tease them more, there will always be a chance."

Han Xianyuan also liked this dog-walking style of fighting. It resulted in much fewer casualties than simple positional warfare. There was no need to fight against the enemy's planes and artillery. The tactics were flexible and changeable. He could strike back when he had the chance, and continue "walking the dog" when there was no chance.

"Old Han, are there heavy casualties in the army?"

Wu Qiujian asked with concern. Han Xianyuan was in charge of statistics on the battle results, and this was what he was most concerned about now.

Han Xianyuan put away his smile and said:
"Not much. More than 30 brothers were killed, and more than 60 were injured. More than 400 Japanese were killed. Two infantry guns, two mortars, more than 2 long and short guns, and a lot of ammunition and supplies were seized."

Wu Qiujian also said solemnly:
"For the brothers who died, we must find them a piece of Feng Shui good land, erect a monument, and let their descendants have a place to burn incense after we drive away the Japanese invaders;
The wounded were sent to Lihuang, where the medical facilities were good, and no brother’s injury could be allowed to worsen.

As for the devils, just dig a hole and deal with them, it's fertile land!"

Han Xianyuan nodded in approval, saying that the most suitable destination for the devils was to serve as fertilizer for China.

Then the two of them discussed the subsequent combat adjustments together. If the Japanese continued to advance at the same pace, they would have to stop them.

If there is no opportunity, create it!
At the Seya Brigade Headquarters, Seya Kei's face was not very good. The war was not going as smoothly as they had thought. He called a meeting of the two brigade commanders again to discuss countermeasures. Seya Kei first said:
“Gentlemen, judging from the latest battle situation reported by the headquarters, the battle in the northern foothills of Dabie Mountain is not going smoothly;

The 71st Army defending Fujin Mountain was very difficult to deal with. Both the 13th Division attacking from the front and the 16th Division attacking from the north were making slow progress.

The 36th and 88th Divisions, two elite German-equipped divisions, were as powerful as the Imperial Army's second-class divisions;

The guerrilla column on the southern front was of top-notch elite. Yue Qianli was cunning and crafty, and was especially good at mountain warfare. The Ohno Battalion of the 63rd Regiment was eager for quick success and was ambushed by the Chinese, suffering heavy casualties.

We have to change our style of play, what suggestions do you have?"

Colonel Fukueihei, the commander of the 63rd Regiment, stepped forward and said:
"General, I am responsible for what happened to the Ono Battalion. I failed to discipline Mr. Ono, causing him to underestimate me and act rashly. Please punish me."

Fukueihei's attitude was very good, and Seya Kei's face also looked much better. Now was not the time to pursue responsibility, so he could only say:
"Mr. Fu Rong, you must be very careful and cautious when fighting against the guerrilla column. You must move forward in unison and not leave any chances for the Chinese."

Fukueihei and Akashiba Yaezo stepped forward to express their opinions and cooperated with Seya Kei's performance. Then the three old Japanese discussed specific combat adjustments. After encountering setbacks continuously, they became pragmatic.

After the meeting, the two regiments moved forward in unison towards Lihuang County;

The Japs' strategy was very clear, which was to advance westwards in a group. At the same time, the 8th Brigade also launched an attack on the left wing of the 33rd Brigade, and the peak of the attack was also directed towards Lihu County.

In order to stop the Japanese attack, the guerrilla column sent out the first and second detachments to block the enemy at various levels. Various blocking methods emerged one after another, which made several regiment commanders very annoyed.

The biggest fear in large-scale military operations is lax discipline. They say they are advancing in unison, but after a while someone can’t help but break out, always hoping for the best.

The Japanese were arrogant by nature. Even if the top leaders were cautious, it was difficult for the regiment commanders and battalion commanders below to control their legs, and before they knew it, the 10th Infantry Regiment broke out on its own.

Senior staff officer Major Shimazu persuaded him:

"Sir, our unit has advanced several kilometers. The 63rd Regiment and the 8th Brigade on both wings have not caught up. We should be more cautious."

Akashiba Yaezang said nonchalantly:
“Shimazu-kun, you are too cautious!

The guerrilla column does not have such a big appetite to swallow a regiment. As long as the 10th regiment is united, Yue Qianli will not be able to swallow it.
We should not be too dogmatic about advancing in unison. As long as the space between the two wings is not widened by a day, the guerrilla column will have no way to attack. "

Major Shimazu thought about it and realized that it was the limit for a guerrilla column to ambush a battalion, and it was almost impossible for a regiment.

Yaezō Akashiba has always been very ambitious, and the 10th Regiment is the top-notch regiment of the 10th Division, yet they still did not take the guerrilla column too seriously.

Their idea was right. It was difficult for the guerrilla column to annihilate a main brigade of the Japanese, especially since they had not yet truly witnessed the strength of the guerrilla column. The guerrilla column's killer artillery battalion had not yet been used. They had already stored a large number of rockets and were waiting for an opportunity...

At the guerrilla column headquarters, the enemy situation on the front line was reported one after another. Chief of Staff Chen Zhongyuan frowned and said:

"Old Yue, the Japanese have learned their lesson this time. Several regiments have formed a group. It is difficult to attack a part of them. The fighter planes have not appeared.
It looks like we’ll have to fight another positional battle in Lihuang County!”

Yue Qianli had been staring at the map. After listening to Chen Zhongyuan's words, he said:
“The fighter planes are all shot out!
Judging from the map, only the 10th Regiment has stuck out so far, but not much, so we have to find a way to make them stick out more;
Send a telegram to Lao Gao, Lao Zhu and others, asking them to attack the enemies on both wings of the 10th Regiment with all their strength and widen the distance between the 10th Regiment and other Japanese invaders.

Order Lao Duan to lead the Third Detachment, the Artillery Battalion, and the Training Battalion to set up an ambush at Longhu Mountain Ridge west of Lihuang City. This time the Artillery Battalion will play the leading role, and one battle will determine the southern line."

Chen Zhongyuan, Tian Yuanxi and others were very excited when they heard about it. They were full of expectations for the artillery camp.

Commander Yue Qianli was only responsible for proposing general combat ideas, while the specific combat plans had to be handed over to the staff team led by Chen Zhongyuan;

Who will block the attack, who will attack the reinforcements, who will be responsible for encircling and annihilating the 10th Division, and who will lure the Japanese into the preset battlefield, all these need to be planned well. This is a big project and it is not an easy task.

Yue Qianli has been training his staff team. Since the Battle of Shanghai, after dozens of actual combat experiences, large and small, the guerrilla column has trained an efficient staff team, all of whom are elites trained by the Whampoa Military Academy.

Now this staff team has served in grassroots battalion and company-level chief positions, and then received training in the teaching team staff class, so they are highly professional.

Under the leadership of Chen Zhongyuan, they took only half a day to come up with a highly feasible battle plan. Yue Qianli was very satisfied after reading it and finalized it after only making slight modifications.

Yue Qianli's idea was simple, which was to use mountain warfare to continuously consume the enemy's manpower and weapons. Such an opportunity was very rare.
With a God's perspective, he knew that Wuhan would be the best opportunity to consume the main division of the Japanese devils, and it would be difficult to encounter the Japanese first-class divisions in the future.

Regardless of whether the battle was fought on the southern or northern front, the Japanese had to launch an attack from east to west. Geographically, they were attacking from above, as both sides of the Yangtze River were mountainous, and the Japanese mechanized troops and heavy equipment were restricted.

As the guerrilla column headquarters issued orders one after another, the battle from Heishifuda to Lihuang became more and more intense;
The attacks on both wings of the 10th Regiment were completely contained. Only the 10th Regiment was advancing rapidly. Before they knew it, they had opened up a distance of more than ten kilometers from the two wings, and their front line had reached several kilometers west of Lihuang City.

At Longhu Mountain Ridge, the 10th Regiment's Vanguard Battalion finally encountered a strong resistance. Senior Staff Officer Major Shimazu reported to Yaezaki Akashiba:
"Your Excellency, the Second Battalion encountered a strong resistance at Longhu Mountain. There are at least 3 defenders. Should we stop and wait for the main force to arrive?"

Akashiba Yaezang said very dissatisfiedly:

"Bakayalu, since when did 3 Chinese people scare an entire corps of the Empire?

Is this still the invincible empire? If everyone is so timid, the grand blueprint of conquering China will soon become a bubble. "

After hearing this, Major Shimazu blushed. This was indeed not the spirit of an imperial soldier. He immediately bowed to Akashiba Yaezō in shame and said:
"What the commander of the regiment taught me is that wherever the imperial army goes, there is no position that cannot be conquered. A mere 3,000 men cannot stop the attack of a regiment of the imperial army.

Longhu Mountain is the western gate of Lihuang City, and the headquarters of the guerrilla column is located in Lihuang, so a tough battle is inevitable."

Seeing that Major Shimazu finally mustered the courage to fight, Akashiba Yaezo nodded with satisfaction and said:
“The area west of the Longhu Mountain Range is open, and the Chinese cannot set up an ambush. They can only fight a positional battle with the Imperial Army, which they are not good at.
As long as we can break through Longhu Mountain in one go, Lihuang City will be within our grasp. Order the Second Battalion to launch an attack immediately, and the First and Third Battalions to follow up, and enter Lihuang City before dark to celebrate. "

Seeing that the regiment commander had made up his mind, Major Shimazu did not say anything more. Being too cautious would make people look down upon him.

At Longhu Mountain, as the Japanese troops from the 10th Regiment arrived one after another, the sound of gunfire began to resound through the sky.

The Japs' offensive was extremely fierce, and the defenders' defenses were shaky, which gave the Japs unlimited confidence.

The Longhu Mountain Range is located on both wings of the main road. It is composed of two large and small mountain ranges, which block the entrance to the city in a domineering manner.

This is very common in the Dabie Mountains. Lihuang County was previously called Jinzhai County. Places that can hide from the Red Army naturally have their own dangerous places, and Longhu Mountain Ridge is the first to bear the brunt;

The Japs didn't take it seriously either. If they attacked China, they would have to face the test of all the dangerous mountains and rivers.

"Boom boom boom..."

Rows of artillery shells hit the defenders' positions, including poison gas bombs. Smoke filled the area in front of the defenders' positions, and the Lihuang Battle officially began. (End of this chapter)