Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 180: The Fifth War Zone: We Can Still Fight!
Zhao Fangyuan walked in hurriedly: "Sir!"

"The Japanese have launched an attack. Should we move back immediately or order our brothers to fight back?"

Wang Feng came back to his senses and gritted his teeth: "Hit!"

"The Japs only have one regiment of troops. Fight back directly!"

"Have you contacted Yi Zong?"

Zhao Fangyuan nodded: "As soon as the telephone line was cut, the engineers went over to repair it. It will take at least fifteen minutes!"

Wang Feng frowned: "Fifteen minutes?"

"too slow!"

"Where's the telegram?"

Zhao Fangyuan: "I'm afraid it's not going to work. The 1st Column's command post was bombed and the signalmen may have already evacuated."

Wang Feng frowned even more tightly: "Send a messenger!"

"Run to the First Column Command Post!"

"Remember this, order the First Column to immediately extend its left and right wings, lengthen the width of the battlefield, and encircle the Japanese regiment!"

The knowledge of battlefield width is profound.

No matter how you adjust, there are always pros and cons.

With the same number of troops, an excessively large battlefield width will make the troops like a huge pocket, surrounding the enemy.

The disadvantages are also obvious, which will lead to a thin front line that will break with a single poke.

If it is narrow, the troops’ depth is indeed wide, but the width is insufficient and they can be easily surrounded.

As the commander-in-chief of the entire army, the primary task is to make the most appropriate judgment based on different battlefield conditions.

But Wang Feng can't care about so much now.

The Japanese army launched the attack with the help of air cover. If they retreated and voluntarily gave up the advantageous terrain, it would be difficult for them to take it back later.

They could only stretch the left and right wings and disperse the soldiers in the positions.

This is currently the best way to reduce bombing losses.

As for burning the haystack
Maybe this would have been a good approach in the past.

But not right now.

The Japanese have already attacked, so why would the defenders take the initiative to block the smoke?
"Yes!" Zhao Fangyuan saluted and quickly repeated, "Extend the battle line and encircle the Japanese army!"

------

When the order reached the front line.

Wearing a steel helmet, E Yi moved through the trenches filled with artillery fire.

"Sir! What orders do you have from your superiors?" A major staggered over and shouted loudly.

E Yi: "Captain of the Third Battalion! Take your soldiers and move two kilometers east to take over the Fourth Battalion's position!"

The major was stunned: "Sir, the Japanese have already rushed over. It would be wrong to move our position at this critical moment."

E Yi raised his head and glanced: "Stop talking nonsense!"

"I've brought the guards here, so move as soon as possible!"

When the major heard this, he quickly asked, "Guard Company?"

"Yes!"

With the guard company as a backup, it would be much easier to move the position.

If you ask which unit in the 1st Column is the most elite, outsiders may think it is the 1st Battalion, or the 4th Battalion.

But only the soldiers of the First Column knew that the most elite force must be the officer's guard company.

Although it is called "Company".

But the actual organization is equivalent to two-thirds of a battalion.

In order to protect the column headquarters, they also had to take into account the defense tasks of field hospitals, logistics and other troops when necessary.

Therefore, the entire company was armed to the extreme.

Each squad has two light machine guns, both of which are domestically produced Changzhi 1938 models.

E Yi glanced at the battlefield ahead and saw that the Japanese were about to attack him, so he hurriedly urged: "Retreat quickly!"

"I'll take over command!"

"Da da da--!"

As soon as the Third Battalion withdrew, the Guard Company rushed up, quickly set up light and heavy machine guns, and pulled the trigger.

"charge!"

"Kill him!"

The Japanese soldiers had already equipped their bayonets and were crouching as they rushed forward in a great force.

The Japanese soldiers in the front were knocked down by the sudden firepower, but it did not stop their charge.

"Grenade!"

The officer commanding the rear immediately realized that something was wrong, and waved his command knife and urged loudly.

E Yi lay in the third trench, thinking to himself that something was not good.

We have fought the Japanese for so long, and have experienced both street fighting and field fighting. At some moments, I can tell the combat effectiveness of the Japanese with just one glance.

"Is the telephone line connected?"

He turned his head and yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Got it! I'm here, sir!" The signalman was holding a telephone box in his arms and carrying a roller on his back.

As you run forward, the rollers turn, placing the telephone wire on the ground.

E Yi picked up the microphone and said, "Give me the artillery position!"

After a busy tone.

A voice came from the phone.

"Hey!"

Hearing this voice, E Yi frowned and asked, "Sir?"

"Hello! I'm Zhang Hu!"

Now E Yi confirmed it and patted the phone box.

Is the line connected wrong?

In the ruins, Zhang Hu was covered in dirt and had one hand on his waist. He asked, "Are you going to call the artillery position?"

E Yi hurriedly said: "Yes!"

Zhang Hu: "The damn Japanese planes bombed both of my artillery battalions, and I lost several field guns. Now I order you to hold on for at least 24 hours without any fire support!"

"Yes!" In the trench, E Yi clenched the microphone tightly, "Don't even mention 24 hours, sir, even if you ask me to hold on for 48 hours, I will never hesitate!"

The location where the guard company is stationed is critical.

Two kilometers further back is the column command post.

Once the position under their feet was lost, the Japanese army could easily attack Huanglong.

After hanging up the phone, E Yi looked straight ahead.

The Japanese soldiers had already jumped into the first trench, and both sides were fighting with bayonets.

"Fourth, five, six rows!"

"Everyone, put on your bayonets and support me!"

The guard company is seriously overstaffed. These three platoons are reinforced platoons with more than 200 people.

"Go on the bayonet!"

After receiving the order, several platoon leaders immediately commanded the soldiers around them.

As soon as the words came out, they were covered by heavy artillery fire.

You can't hear it clearly from a distance.

"Brothers of the fourth platoon, put on your bayonets!"

"Damn it, cheer up! We're going to fight the devils hand-to-hand!"

The soldiers' spontaneous roars, one after another, like a beacon tower, quickly conveyed the message.

For a moment, the entire battlefield was filled with the sound of metal colliding.

"rush!"

"Kill the devils! Avenge our fallen brothers!"

------

into the night.

Wang Feng focused on the bird's-eye view, observing the battlefield situation at all times.

After a whole day of fighting, the situation has now stabilized.

After a brief high-intensity bombing, the 1st Column regained the upper hand and pushed the front line forward 500 meters in just two hours.

The fighting continued at night.

Zhao Fangyuan pushed aside the curtain and strode in: "Sir, something terrible has happened!" Wang Feng turned his head: "What?"

Zhao Fangyuan handed over a stack of photos: "These are photos taken by the Fifth War Zone Air Force. A large number of Japanese troops are moving westward, and the front troops are only ten kilometers away from Dangshan!"

Wang Feng was a little surprised: "So fast?"

Zhao Fangyuan nodded: "The Sixth Column also sent a message. The Japanese army accelerated its march in the afternoon. The mobile troops opened the way ahead and advanced at least 25 kilometers in ten hours!"

Wang Feng paced in the command post.

"How is the training of the Fourth and Sixth Corps going?"

Zhao Fangyuan looked troubled: "The situation is not very good. Weapons and ammunition have been supplied, but the establishment has not been filled."

Wang Feng sighed.

The most undesirable thing still happened.

Although the garrison had more than 100,000 people, the battle line was too long, the forces were extremely dispersed, and after fighting for more than a month, they inevitably fell into the quagmire of a war of attrition.

"How is the battle in Yongcheng?"

Zhao Fangyuan: "After the arrival of the reinforcements from the Fifth War Zone, the Seventh and Eighth Corps have gradually withdrawn from the battlefield and moved to the second line for rest and recuperation."

Wang Feng: "How many troops are left?"

Zhao Fangyuan: "We have suffered a great loss of life and death and are no longer able to participate in the subsequent battles."

Wang Feng clenched his fists.

In the Battle of Yongcheng, the 7th and 8th columns faced nearly two Type A divisions and held their ground for months, preventing the Japanese troops on the southern front from taking even a single step beyond the line.

With such achievements, the losses suffered were not small.
The troops were completely destroyed and it would take at least half a year to fully recover.

Wang Feng: "Order the 4th and 6th columns to speed up the construction of fortifications to stop the enemy outside Dangshan!"

Under no circumstances could the Japanese troops in Xuzhou be allowed to cross Dangshan.

It would be fine if it was in its heyday, but at this critical juncture, once the two armies join forces, they can attack Zhengzhou with the strength of four or five divisions.

Even if he and Xue Yue joined forces, it would be of no avail.

In the end, I'm afraid we'll have to dig through the natural barrier of the Yellow River.
"Where is Duke De now?" Wang Feng pondered, "Send a telegram to the Fifth War Zone to see if we can borrow some troops!"

Zhao Fangyuan nodded: "Yes!"

"I'm going right now!"

------

Inside the Zhengzhou military camp.

Li Zongren sat behind the table, with a bright lamp hanging on the wall.

Bai Chongxi gently pushed the door open.

Li Zongren looked up, saw who was coming, and immediately stood up: "Jiansheng, why are you here in the middle of the night?"

Bai Chongxi: "Duke De, what are you doing?"

Li Zongren turned his head and glanced at the table: "The chairman held a meeting this morning and invited me and Cheng Qian to discuss the defense of Wuhan."

"The chairman ordered us to draw up a plan immediately."

Bai Chongxi frowned: "Draw up a plan?"

"The Battle of Wuhan is imminent, and the command doesn't even have a battle plan right now?"

Li Zongren shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Jiansheng, you have just taken over the work of the headquarters again, and you don't know the inside story."

"Considering the current situation, it is inevitable that the Japanese invaders will attack Wuhan, but how and how they will attack remains unknown."

Bai Chongxi thought for a moment and said, "It's because of Wang Feng."

Li Zongren responded: "Yes."

"The only troops still fighting on the Longhai Line, besides the East Henan Corps, are Wang Feng's troops."

"What kind of combat plan these two troops formulate depends on how long they can resist."

"But this..." Bai Chongxi was still puzzled. "Could it be that the Chairman still hopes that Wang Feng and Xue Yue will join forces to fight a great victory on the Longhai Line comparable to the Battle of Taierzhuang?"

Li Zongren nodded.

Seeing this, Bai Chongxi was anxious to speak, but he didn't know what to say: "This..."

Li Zongren was somewhat puzzled: "Why is Jiansheng like this?"

"As far as I know, the situation has improved. The siege of Yongcheng has been lifted. Although Lanfeng is in danger, the Henan East Corps has surrounded the 14th Division on the outer battlefield with its superior forces."

As they were speaking, Bai Chongxi handed over a telegram.

"Duke De, take a look for yourself!"

Li Zongren was somewhat confused.

Could it be that something unexpected happened in the war situation?
He stayed in the Chairman's headquarters throughout the day, temporarily handing over the military affairs of the Fifth War Zone to Bai Chongxi.

Li Zongren took the telegram and glanced at it.

Then he frowned.

"The Japanese troops in Xuzhou are speeding up?"

"How could such a big thing happen!"

Bai Chongxi: "It is possible that Terauchi Juichi and Hata Shunroku came up with some evil plan after meeting in Xuzhou."

Li Zongren immediately stood under the light, trying to see more clearly.

"Wang Feng called for help?"

When he saw the last sentence, he was speechless.

Ever since Gui Yongqing's troops fled, the entire war situation suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse, and unknowingly, it has reached this point.

Bai Chongxi asked, "Duke De, how should we respond?"

Li Zongren folded the telegram and looked out the window: "Prepare the car!"

"I will go and ask the chairman in person!"

"Jiansheng, count the troops that can still participate in the battle and transfer them all to Dangshan!"

Bai Chongxi was stunned: "Duke De, are you going to execute first and report later?"

Li Zongren responded hastily while putting on his clothes: "Yes!"

"How long ago was the battle report?"

Bai Chongxi thought for a moment and said, "Three hours!"

"After the Air Force took the photo, it passed through my hands first, and then it reached the garrison."

Li Zongren: "According to what you said, three hours ago, the Japanese army was less than five kilometers away from Dangshan."

"It's been so long now, we can't delay any longer!"

"Mobilize the troops first!"

"Our friendly forces are in danger. We cannot just sit there and wait for death. Besides, Zhengzhou has fallen. These Japanese troops are also going to Wuhan. It doesn't matter where the battle is fought!"

While the two were talking, the guard drove the jeep and stopped safely at the door.

Li Zongren opened the car door and got in without saying a word.

Bai Chongxi recovered, picked up the phone on the table and spun the roulette wheel.

"Hey! I want the theater staff!"

--------

East of Dangshan.

The tracks of the Type 97 tank rolled over the grass, and it advanced forward rapidly with the rumbling sound of its engine.

"General!" An officer riding a tall horse walked parallel to a tank numbered "12".

"Just ahead is Dangshan!"

The top of the Type 97 tank turret was opened and the commander of the 5th Division, Tetsuo Higashino, came out.

"Order the tank regiment to keep moving forward!" Tetsuo Higashino pointed at the night ahead with great interest.

Chief of Staff Tomotada Hamada hesitated: "But."

Higashino Tetsuo waved his hand: "Keep going!"

"quick!"

Tomotada Hamada: "Sir, according to reliable intelligence, the Chinese army has already built fortifications. If we just rush over, I'm afraid."

Tetsuo Higashino: “Don’t be afraid!”

"The Chinese defense cannot stop the Empire's chariot!"

As he spoke, he patted the tank turret.

"Type 97 Medium Tank, the sharpest sword in the Imperial Army!"

Thinking of the tank, Tomotada Hamada felt more confident: "Hai!"

The Type 97 Medium Tank is the latest development of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Currently, among all the troops in China, only the 5th Division is equipped with this tank.

This is also the largest tank Tomotada Hamada has ever seen in his life.

(End of this chapter)