Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 203 Puyang
Chief of Staff Masao Inaba pushed open the door, strode to Toshizo Nishio, and bowed: "Hi! Commander!"

Nishio Juzo hurriedly asked, "Is there any news from headquarters? When exactly will reinforcements be sent to North China?"

Masao Inaba: "The news of the troop increase has been confirmed, but it is estimated that it will not be possible until next year."

"The Cabinet has passed a bill to increase troop numbers in the China theater, and it is expected that ten three-regiment divisions will be recruited and formed around the beginning of next year."

"They are all Class B troops."

"Where exactly will they be sent?" Nishio Toshizo didn't care about these things. What he really cared about was how many of these ten newly formed divisions would be sent to North China and placed under his command.

Masao Inaba shook his head: "We haven't received any definite news yet."

Nishio Toshizo's hopes were dashed. He paced back and forth in the room, the heavy thud of his military boots echoing on the floor: "How's the situation in Puyang? Has the new batch of Red Agent arrived?"

Inaba Masao nodded: "The transport team has arrived at the battlefield, General. From my observation, the Chinese troops attacking Puyang do not seem to be well-suited for street fighting. They should be second-rate troops. They also do not have heavy artillery support. As long as we send planes to bomb their supply lines and block the main force of the Chinese army coming from Heze, the chances of holding Puyang are very high."

Nishio Toshizo: "But do we still have troops to intercept Wang Feng?"

Masao Inaba: "Sir, the remnants of the 14th Division still have an infantry regiment stationed in Yutai. We can send them to harass the Chinese reinforcements from the rear. If all goes well, we can at least delay the battle for half a month. The Battle of Dangshan is almost over, and the 5th Division can move north at any time to encircle the garrison of the Allied Provinces of China!"

"We only need half a month or a week, or even that's fine!"

Toshizo Nishio sighed: "Is the 59th Regiment still in Uotai?"

Masao Inaba nodded.

Toshizo Nishio: "Didn't I issue an order a few days ago to send the 59th Regiment to support Heze? What are these Kanto idiots up to?!"

Mentioning this incident still infuriated Inaba Masao. As a military chief of staff, to be looked down upon by a mere regimental commander who dared to disobey orders made him feel as if his dignity had been utterly humiliated.
"General! Two days after the General Staff sent the telegram, we received a reply that they refused to carry it out. The wording of those idiots in the telegram was very strong: resolutely execute the order issued by Kiyoshi Katsuki of the First Army to remain in place and await further orders!"

Enraged, Nishio Juzo slammed his fist on the table: "Katsuki Seiji!"

"A parasite on the empire! Why hasn't he been dismissed and investigated yet?"

Masao Inaba: "Lord Terauchi has already submitted a telegram to the Ministry of the Army impeaching Kiyoshi Kazuki. Given his prestige and influence at the General Headquarters, it is estimated that there will be a result soon."

Nishio Toshizo was furious. He couldn't understand why the First Army was trying to sabotage the defense of Heze. It was Terauchi Hisaichi who had been opposing Katsuki Seiji, and he himself didn't have much interaction with him.

"Send another message to the 59th Regiment, telling those Kanto idiots to immediately send troops to harass the provincial garrison from behind," Nishio Toshizo sneered. "No mistakes allowed. Anyone who dares to disobey orders will be dealt with according to military law!"

The 14th Division suffered heavy losses, and its commander, Kenji Doihara, went missing. Now, the only remaining member of this division is in the territory of his Second Army. His superior, Kiyoshi Katsuki, is in dire straits, and he is ostracized by everyone.

Nishio Toshizo simply stated his position directly: if the 59th Regiment still refused to obey orders, he could execute the regimental commander without consulting Terauchi Hisaichi.

Masao Inaba: "Hai!"

--------

6 month 1 day.

morning.

After more than ten hours of travel, Wang Feng finally arrived at the outskirts of Puyang. He could faintly hear the sound of gunfire, which must have come from inside the city.

As soon as he jumped out of the car, before he could even get a good look at his surroundings, Liu Zhijian and Kong Zhiyong surrounded him.

Half a year had passed since they last met. Liu Zhijian hadn't changed much, but Kong Zhiyong, perhaps because he was eating more oily food or something else, had become much more muscular. At first glance, Wang Feng almost didn't recognize him.

"Sir!"

The two men immediately walked up to Wang Feng, snapped to attention, and saluted in unison.

Wang Feng raised his hand and returned the greeting slightly: "Let's not talk about old times for now. How is the situation in the city? Has the Japanese army made any unusual moves?"

In fact, while he was in the car, he had been observing the battle situation in Puyang from an overhead perspective. He knew the current stage of the battle better than the two pre-battle commanders.

But the necessary procedures still need to be followed.

Liu Zhijian truthfully stated: "As of now, our army has occupied most of Puyang City. The Japanese army is holding firm at two corners, has broken through the houses, and has connected the various defense zones into one. Their resistance is extremely tenacious, and they are also using poison gas bombs from time to time. We lack heavy firepower, and it is feared that the subsequent offensive will be difficult to continue. The battle has reached a stalemate."

Seeing Liu Zhijian speak so bluntly, Kong Zhiyong quickly winked and made suggestive gestures from the side.

Brother!

How can you repay someone like that?

The subtle and euphemistic style of writing!
Reporting false intelligence to superiors on the battlefield and deceiving or concealing the battle situation is indeed a major taboo in military strategy, but don't make it sound so real!

Wang Feng nodded: "Yes, it is indeed difficult for you to carry out siege warfare on the plains with the mountain column. Withdraw some troops and let the 1st and 4th Columns take over!"

Liu Zhijian saluted:
"Yes!"

Zhao Fangyuan ran over upon hearing the commotion, and after hearing these words, he was somewhat worried: "Sir, the Fourth Column is probably..."

During the Second Battle of Dangshan, the Fourth and Sixth Columns suffered more than half their losses. Although they were replenished on the way, it was not appropriate to throw them into the next battle so quickly, especially since it was street fighting.

Wang Feng thought for a moment and said, "Let's compress the Fourth and Sixth Columns and merge them into one, with Chu Yunfei as the commander-in-chief and Wang Mingzhang as the deputy. Let's go into the city first and then talk about it."

"The same applies to the Seventh and Eighth Columns; have them stand guard outside the city!"

Reorganizing the severely damaged troops was a last resort; Wang Feng would not have wanted to do this if there were sufficient reserves available.

Zhao Fangyuan: "Yes!"

Wang Feng: "Order the artillery column to immediately prepare for battle and launch the first round of artillery fire in half an hour!"

Upon hearing that the artillery column was going to participate in the battle, Liu Zhijian became interested: "Sir, if the artillery column is going to participate in the battle, does that mean we will have heavy artillery support?"

Wang Feng responded:
"They're all large-caliber heavy artillery, so it all depends on how well you coordinate." He turned to look at Zhao Fangyuan, "Are the phone lines connected?"

Zhao Fangyuan: "Everything is ready!"

Wang Feng glanced at the time: "Notify all troops that the attack will begin in forty-five minutes. Strive to eliminate the stubborn enemy in Puyang City within two days!"

The three men stood with their heels together and saluted in unison:
"Yes!"

--------

In terms of artillery column.

Several artillerymen were busy working around the Shanxi-made 122mm howitzer.

"Come and lend a hand, help me set this up!"

"Hey guys over there, give it your all, I can't hold on much longer!"

The battalion commander stood on the makeshift earthen mound, glanced at the hands of his pocket watch: "Hurry up and get ready, there are only fourteen minutes left!"

"Where is the observation team? Have the parameters been calculated yet?"

He glanced to the side and saw a technician sitting on the ground, fiddling with an iron box in his hand, from which came the occasional sound of metal gears turning.

"What's this thing called again?"

The adjutant reminded him, "We've used the computer a few times before."

The battalion commander scratched his head and said impatiently, "How could I not know? Tell me, how is this thing designed? How many presses does it take to calculate a number?"

Adjutant: "It seems so."

The battalion commander lit a cigarette and looked into the distance: "Our own cigarettes are still the most comfortable to smoke. The Japanese cigarettes are harsh on the throat and have no strength!"

As he spoke, he handed one to his adjutant:
"After this battle, we can go to Shanxi. Do you miss your wife?"

The adjutant chuckled, somewhat embarrassed: "Of course I miss it. After fighting for so long, how could I not?" "I'm just looking forward to going home!"

The battalion commander exhaled a puff of smoke. He crossed his arms and said, "Going home... is good."

The adjutant was taken aback, then immediately realized what was happening:

"It should be soon. I heard that after the Battle of Wuhan ends, the Commander-in-Chief's next plan is to gradually recover Shanxi."

"Sir, I remember you're from Datong."

The battalion commander grinned, his tone somewhat self-deprecating: "Going home... going home, actually, it's not that interesting."

He clearly remembered that day when the Japanese used bayonets to slit his father's and mother's throats, and blood splattered three meters away. His wife was shot in the chest and lay weakly against the wall. His only son was drowned alive by the Japanese devils by being stabbed into a cesspool.

And what about yourself?

Hidden in the bushes behind the fence, he witnessed everything, but dared not utter a sound in order not to be discovered.

He also wanted to rush out and fight the Japanese devils to the death.

But it was no use; the Japanese soldiers had guns, and one bullet could kill him.

Join the army! Fight the Japanese!
From that time on, this idea took root in his mind.

Now, sometimes when I'm alone at night, I think it's better not to go back home.

The instructor used to say something all the time, something like this...
The battalion commander scratched his head: "We won't return until we've defeated the enemy. It's not too late to go home after we've finished fighting the Japanese!"

The adjutant nodded.

He was a native of Changzhi. His family was very safe under the protection of the army. He and his family often corresponded by taking advantage of the opportunity to transport supplies back and forth.

The letter said that his wife worked in a textile factory and earned a good amount of money each month. In addition, his military pay was also left for the family, so the children's schooling was no longer a problem, and the family could even have a meat meal from time to time.

"Report sir!"

"Calculations complete!"

In no time, the technician wrote down the firing data on a piece of paper and handed it over.

The battalion commander threw away his cigarette butt: "Prepare to fire!"

The adjutant saluted: "Yes, sir!"

--------

The 122mm howitzer on the position opened fire.

With a loud bang, a high-explosive shell shot out of the cannon barrel, streaked across the sky, and crashed directly into the city of Puyang.

On a Japanese position, a machine gunner, crouching behind cover, pulled out a can of food. Just as his hand touched the pull tab, he suddenly heard a whooshing sound.

He lost consciousness the next second.

"boom--!"

A single 105mm grenade is not powerful enough to destroy the world, but a 122mm grenade has already reached that level.

The smoke from the explosion enveloped the position, and the buildings along the street shook violently. When the fire and smoke dissipated, the position that had originally housed two squads was now riddled with holes.

Broken, charred remains of limbs were everywhere, and sandbags used as cover were torn by shrapnel, with the sand inside leaking out uncontrollably.

"boom--!"

The artillery barrage was in full swing, with more than 20 105mm heavy guns and 2 150mm heavy guns firing simultaneously, and almost all Japanese-occupied areas suffered severe shelling.

The artillery of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Columns were also busy, with 12 artillery battalions and nearly 200 75mm field guns participating in the battle.

For a time, the Japanese soldiers in the city were beaten so badly they couldn't even lift their heads.

"Boom!"

The intense shelling destroyed a crumbling four-story building. Earth and rocks collapsed, and dust scattered everywhere. The Japanese soldiers who were hiding inside and nearby had no time to escape and were buried under the ruins.

After a 15-minute bombardment.

The soldiers, rifles in hand, rushed out of their bunkers and charged onto the defensive positions before the Japanese could react.

"Kill!"

"Kill the Japanese devils! Damn it, we can't let our artillery brothers see this and make us a laughingstock!"

Shouts and sounds of fighting echoed through the streets. The Japanese troops, realizing what was happening, hastily put up a resistance, but having just been bombarded, they found it difficult to reorganize their fighting strength in a short time and were quickly driven back, forced to retreat.

outside the city.

Wang Feng's perspective returned to reality, and he turned to look at Zhao Fangyuan: "Immediately order the front-line troops to cease their attack, and have the artillery column readjust its firing data and fire another round!"

After the artillery bombards, the infantry charges; after the infantry charges, the artillery bombards again.

This is the most classic three-pronged attack in Japanese army operations.

From the perspective of current tactical thinking, the strong World War I style is indeed somewhat outdated.

But in certain situations, it really does come in handy!

At this critical juncture, Wang Feng did not want to use human lives to fill every street in urban warfare. Where artillery could be used for bombardment, infantry charges would not be used.

This can be considered an example of using someone's own methods against them.

Let the Japanese devils taste what it's like to be hit by your own three-pronged attack.

Zhao Fangyuan stood at attention: "Yes, sir!"

"Drip-drip-drip—!"

To facilitate operations, Wang Feng arranged for the communications unit and the general command post to be located together. The sudden presence of so many people in the room, along with the occasional sound of the telegraph machine, was somewhat unusual.

It's almost over!
After we finish fighting in Puyang, we can go back to Shanxi and rest for a while!
Wang Feng turned his head to look at the huge hanging picture on the wall.

"Changzhi and Wuhan are separated by a thousand miles."

The thought of it gave him a headache.

The Battle of Wuhan was of paramount importance. If it could be fought brilliantly and the invading Japanese army was severely damaged, it might not be able to reverse the course of the war, but it would at least make the subsequent battles much easier.

They have been fighting continuously for nearly a year.

Japan's domestic capacity to withstand pressure is also nearing its breaking point, and both sides need a period of rest.

------

6 month 2 day.

Wang Feng hadn't slept all night. As soon as he stepped out of the command post, he ran into Zhao Fangyuan.

"Report sir!"

News has come from inside the city!

(End of this chapter)