Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 123: The th Division is Destroyed

Once the transfer order was given, the entire division command post immediately became busy.

The ordinary soldiers didn't understand what was going on, but when they saw the chief of staff hurriedly packing up his things himself, they followed suit.

The subordinate units were completely defeated, the regiment and battalion were destroyed, and the squadron was beaten to pieces.

The infantry fled in panic, and the signalmen followed suit.

Some Japanese soldiers still carried radios, but more of them thought it was a burden and simply threw it away while fleeing.

Besides, who would pay attention to incoming telegrams while running for their lives?

As a result, it was extremely difficult to communicate solely by sending telegrams.

No matter how the division's signalmen called, they could only get sporadic responses.

Sadao Ushijima walked out of the command post and looked up at the sky. Although the sun had not yet risen, it was already dawn.

There were so many unexpected events tonight that the more he thought about it, the more confused he became.

Unable to contact the troops and unable to make combat deployments, Ushijima Sadao gave up the burden of command, gave up everything, and became completely obsessed.

Even if we can turn the tide, what can we do to save the remaining troops?

After suffering such a huge loss, he was dismissed from the military and sent back to his homeland, and he would definitely be court-martial.

What awaits him is only a seemingly endless prison sentence.

Even if you die, you must understand clearly!
Why is it?
Why did the war situation develop to this point within four or five hours?

Why.
It is obvious that the Chinese army's long-range artillery bombardment was not carpet bombing, but a precision strike with specific coordinates.

And who can know the specific information of all subordinate command posts?
Who is it
In order to know such comprehensive information, this traitor or spy must be in the division command post.

There is no doubt about this.

And he must be in a high position. After thinking about it, the only possibility is the General Staff.

Staff Department.
Thinking of this, Ushijima Sadao looked at Iwata Takahiko who was busy in the distance.

Suddenly, suspicions arose in my mind.

Iwata Takahiko turned his head and found that the division commander was looking at him. Thinking that he was receiving some orders, he immediately put down what he was holding and trotted over.

next second.

A huge explosion sounded, the ground shook violently, and a strong shock wave hit the face.

Sadao Ushijima watched helplessly as the chief of staff who was running towards him was engulfed by the smoke raised by the explosion.

Then more explosions were heard, and Ushijima Sadao lost consciousness completely before he could react.

Time moves forward.

When the news came that Zhao Fangyuan had successfully intercepted the Japanese field artillery regiment, another major worry was resolved, and Wang Feng was overjoyed.

All the heavy artillery was seized, and the rest of the things were easy to handle.

There was only one tank regiment left.

What we were worried about before was the merger of tanks and infantry.

The use of dozens of tanks in clusters, combined with infantry, is enough to influence the current battle situation.

But now, the Japanese infantry was firmly pinned to the river bank and could not provide any support.

No matter how many tanks there are, they are just a group of metal lumps that can run.

Although it is somewhat difficult to handle, it will not have any impact on the overall battle situation.

Moreover, at the current speed, by the time the Japanese tank regiment arrives to support, the troops under his command will be able to strangle the Japanese infantry.

After the mission is accomplished, the worst that can happen is that we retreat to the north bank of the Xie River.

With a river between them, what could the Japanese tank regiment do?
Could they be lined up along the river bank as fixed turrets?

Then they would just be bombed. The Japanese's tiny tanks would have a hard time resisting heavy machine gun fire, not to mention the 105mm howitzers.

Or try another approach.

The tank regiment was completely destroyed.

That’s right, it’s exhaustion.

The Japanese supply lines had been cut off, and according to scouts, the tank regiment did not have much fuel left.

Most of them were in the 18th Division Headquarters and the Field Artillery Regiment, used by transport trucks.

Now the entire division's logistics supply station has been destroyed, and a large amount of fuel has fallen into their hands.

The theoretical range of the Type 94 tank is 200 kilometers.

However, considering complex factors such as muddy roads, the actual range is much lower.

What's more, no fool would fill up the tank's fuel tank before it is deployed.

It is of no use at all, and it will increase the weight and slow down the movement speed.

If the range is increased to 50 kilometers, it will be enough for a large-scale battle.

What threat can a small tank pose without fuel?
The more sophisticated the weapons, the higher the requirements for logistical supplies. Without supplies, they are sometimes no better than light infantry.

After the next phase of combat missions was deployed, Wang Feng switched his perspective to a bird's-eye view and searched for the 18th Division Command Post bit by bit.

"Hey, I found you!"

After some searching, Wang Feng found the target hidden in a corner.

After calculating the distance, it is just within the strike range of heavy artillery.

In this case, there is no time to lose.

Today, we will send the entire division to meet Amaterasu!
"Zheng Zhenzhong!"

"To!"

Wang Feng picked up a pen from the table at random and wrote a series of coordinates on it.

"Fire a volley at this place!"

"Execute immediately!"

Zheng Zhenzhong took the straw paper, glanced up and down, and said without hesitation: "Yes!"

It's not just Zhao Fangyuan. After experiencing so many battles, Wang Feng and his subordinate generals have developed a perfect understanding.

The seemingly irrelevant commands actually have deep-seated principles and considerations behind them.

It's just that we are still far from that state and cannot comprehend it thoroughly.

When following your superiors to fight, just ask less and do more!

If the commander points east, brothers, we must not go west!
Zheng Zhenzhong walked out of the command post silently, gave the troops the order to fire, then took out the map he had brought with him from the jeep and spread it on a random table.

Study it carefully.

It really gave him some clues.

Zheng Zhenzhong muttered to himself: "I remember the commander once said that when marching and fighting, the most taboo is to follow the theoretical textbooks and follow the rules. To truly know yourself and the enemy, you must not only know the enemy's troop deployment, but also understand the inner thoughts of the enemy commander."

"This place looks ordinary, with no hills, just a flat land, but it is the intersection of the Japanese fronts. Although it can better boost morale, it is close to the front line, which is very dangerous and easy to be exposed."

"The commander seemed to have said that the Japanese like to gamble. As long as they are 50% sure of something, they will bet everything. Deploying the command post here also proves that the Japanese army wants to win quickly and pursue a quick breakthrough."

"The commander also said that we should be careful in our speculation and bold in our attempts when commanding. Even if there is no command post at such an important location, there must be important units deployed there!"

Zheng Zhenzhong slapped his head suddenly and suddenly realized.

That's it!

Only a superior can understand people's hearts so delicately.

The more Zheng Zhenzhong studied it, the more he felt that the battles he had fought before were like children playing house.

I heard that a military academy is being set up in the rear. Would you like to sign up and give it a try?
The 18th Division was doomed to defeat. All the commanders of the regiment and above were killed. Only a bunch of bottom-level scum were left, unable to make any waves.

After quickly dealing with the remaining infantry, Wang Feng transferred a brigade of the 59th Army to the north bank of the Xie River.

To deal with the tank regiment that might appear next, the rest of the troops rushed to Beifei River to assist the 31st Army and the First Reserve Corps to annihilate the last two regiments of the th Division.

Zhao Fangyuan sat in the co-pilot seat of the speeding jeep: "Sir, we are completely rich this time!"

"When we arrived, the Japanese field artillery regiment was resting on the spot. The Japanese soldiers were exhausted and out of breath, and the garrison was not large. The formation was loose, and the battle was resolved in less than an hour!"

"16 Type howitzers, hundreds of shells alone were seized!"

Wang Feng smiled and nodded, feeling very satisfied.

It is indeed developed.

The Japanese in the early days of the War of Resistance Against Japan were really fucking rich!

Including the four Type 4 howitzers previously equipped, the entire battle group was equipped with 20 105mm caliber howitzers.

Look at the entire country.

Not to mention compared with the army of the same level, even compared with the entire war zone, no one can compare with us in heavy artillery firepower.

Wang Feng: "Have all the heavy artillery been deployed?"

The quagmire does not recognize anyone. If it can trap the Japanese army, it can naturally trap us as well.

It is obviously impossible to have such a large-scale heavy artillery unit advance at high speed with the army.

It seems that after this battle, we need to upgrade the truck technology as soon as possible.

Otherwise, relying solely on mules and horses for traction would not be able to adapt to the rhythm of war.

Zhao Fangyuan nodded: "Don't worry, sir, everything has been arranged!"

Wang Feng: "Have you handed over the captured Japanese radio station and code book to the communications unit?"

Zhao Fangyuan responded: "It has been sent over."

Wang Feng nodded: "Okay! Send an order immediately, and have the communications unit send a distress message to the Central China Expeditionary Force in the tone of the 18th Division!"

"Just say we've been surrounded, suffered heavy losses, and are asking for support!"

Day is about to dawn, and we have to lure the 13th Division in as soon as possible.

The 18th Division Command Post was bombarded suddenly, with no signs of it happening before.

Presumably, the Japanese commander did not have time to report the battle situation to the Central China Expeditionary Army Headquarters. Now those old Japanese soldiers in the Nanjing Command are still thinking that nothing happened.

It's a good opportunity to take advantage of this time difference to do more articles.

If they waited until daybreak and discovered something was wrong, aerial reconnaissance planes would be dispatched and find that the 18th Division had been completely destroyed.

He might order the 13th Division to retreat in an attempt to reduce losses.

Wang Feng was unwilling to let the enemy run away like this.

Zhao Fangyuan nodded and immediately shouted out the window.

"Signal Corps!"

Taking advantage of this break, Wang Feng closed his eyes and rested for a while.

Thinking about the next step in my mind.

A dead skinny camel is bigger than a horse.

The remnants of the 13th Division, together with the remnants of the 18th Division, still had more than 10,000 soldiers.

It will be dawn soon, and the Japanese air force will definitely try their best. It is not far from here to Nanjing, and it will not be difficult to temporarily transfer a group of bomber squadrons.

Although the Japanese army was trapped, they could not escape from the clutches of the enemy.

But the good times cannot last all day. If the losses are too great, it will affect the subsequent battles on the northern front.

dawn.

The original plan worked as expected. After receiving the telegram for help, the Central China Expeditionary Army immediately ordered the 13th Division to speed up and move north to rescue the "besieged" 18th Division.

Although Ogisu Rippei was very reluctant, he had to follow orders under pressure from the Nanjing Command.

The 31st Army received the news in advance and cooperated very well. After pretending to withdraw, they immediately withdrew from their positions and allowed the th Division to cross the Wo River.

After all the 13th Division had crossed the river, they immediately detoured to the south bank of Wohe River from the flank.

It was equivalent to exchanging positions with the 13th Division.

The remnants of the 18th Division also took the bait and quickly crossed the Beifei River to the south.

After a few battles, the two Japanese troops joined together and were trapped between the Wohe River and the Beifei River.

At the same time rear.

The tank regiment overcame all difficulties and finally arrived at the south bank of the Xihe River.

However, what awaited them was not the expected friendly forces, but debris and scorched earth everywhere.

The needed supplies were nowhere to be found.

Not only that, the tank regiment is a unit directly under the division.

Now the 18th Division's command post was completely destroyed by a round of heavy artillery fire, and all the senior officers were killed at the same time, without even leaving a suicide note.

This has resulted in the tank regiment being like a headless fly, not knowing where to go.
I want to pursue the enemy, but I don’t know their exact location.

There is not much fuel left, and if we take a wrong step, we risk breaking down.

The commander of the corps had no choice but to try to contact the Central China Expeditionary Force across levels.

Hope to get clear combat orders.

Towards Beifei River.

Wang Feng used the same old trick again and continued to carry out the precise decapitation plan.

With the help of three-dimensional combat maps, the artillery unit is as easy to use as his own arms.

Faced with air threats, large-caliber heavy artillery cannot be pulled out directly.

But in a night battle, more than 75 mm field guns were seized.

Small and medium caliber artillery are light in weight, move quickly, and have a detection range of thirty kilometers in radius.

Basically, all the artillery can be transferred away before the air bombing arrives.

Inside the command post.

Wang Feng kept writing down the coordinates on a piece of scrap paper, and then stuffed them all into Zheng Zhenzhong's hand.

"Here, here, and here, bombard them all!"

Zheng Zhenzhong hurriedly arranged the scraps of paper, fearing that he would miss the next one.

"Understood! I'll give the order right away!"

These are the coordinates of the enemy's logistics strongholds. If you want to quickly defeat an army, the most effective way is to destroy its will to resist.

If these more than 10,000 Japanese soldiers were to fight to the death, it would be quite troublesome to deal with them.

At the very least, the combat time must be delayed by about a week and a half.

And want to destroy an army's will to resist.

The most effective means is to destroy their logistics.

Just imagine, you can’t even eat, you’re so hungry that you feel listless, you can’t even pull the bolt of your gun, and you stagger when you walk.

No matter how tenacious the Japanese were, they could not withstand such a fierce attack.

Fuck the samurai spirit, having enough food is the most important thing!

Under such circumstances, within three days, big problems will arise internally without even an active attack.

If we were a little more anxious, we wouldn't have to wait for three days. We could launch the general offensive the day after we ran out of ammunition and food.

In an instant the defense will collapse.

(End of this chapter)