gnovel Chapter 48: Raid on the headquarters of the Japanese 42nd Regiment, killing the Japanese regimental
Chapter 48: Raid on the headquarters of the Japanese 42nd Regiment, killing the Japanese regimental
Inside Feng Shengfa's command post, he and Sato Masakazu were experiencing completely different emotions.
The reinforcements promised by the higher command have not yet arrived. Just as the front of Niushou Mountain was stabilized, a large number of Japanese troops launched a fierce attack from the flank.
Only one battalion of more than 300 men remained on the flank, and under the current Japanese offensive, it was difficult for them to hold out.
Frustrated, Feng Shengfa even sent wounded soldiers to provide support.
But he knew that if no reinforcements arrived from headquarters, it would be difficult to hold Niushou Mountain.
"Commander, when will reinforcements arrive? We really can't hold on any longer!"
Feng Shengfa said with utter helplessness.
"Just grit your teeth and hold on a little longer. The troop deployment in the city is currently chaotic, and the number of troops I have is also limited."
Chunhua needs support, Zhenjiang also needs support, and enemy troops are even operating north of the river. I'm in a real bind.
Tang Shengzhi said helplessly on the other end of the phone.
"Even a whole battalion would be fine."
Feng Shengfa almost pleaded, "If this continues, even if our entire 58th Division is wiped out, we still won't be able to hold out."
Finally, Tang Shengzhi seemed to have made up his mind.
"Alright, I'll send my garrison over there. You all must hold on and make sure we get there before dawn."
"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief!!!"
As Feng Shengfa said this, a weight was lifted from his heart.
But dawn... can they hold on until dawn?
Once the flank is breached, the front will also be unable to hold, and Niushou Mountain will inevitably change hands.
Tang Shengzhi had no choice. Although there were many soldiers in Nanjing, they were mostly defeated soldiers, and there were very few relatively well-organized troops.
You can't just gather a bunch of defeated soldiers together and throw them onto the battlefield; that would be no different from a rabble, and they'd just be sent to their deaths.
All he could do now was pray that the 58th Division could grit their teeth and hold on a little longer, at least until the garrison regiment's reinforcements arrived.
On the flank of the Japanese 42nd Regiment, Li Jianghe lowered his binoculars and discovered that the Japanese soldiers opposite him were also very bold. Their command post was blatantly displayed, and the camp lights were still on, as if they were afraid that the scouts would not be able to find them.
Sato Shoichi had reason to be bold, because the Nationalist army in Nanjing was short of artillery and posed no threat to them.
If troops were to launch a surprise attack, Sato Masakazu would be even happier. He had deployed a considerable number of machine gun positions on the perimeter and was hoping that Nationalist troops would come to ambush and die.
Long Wenzhang ran over and said:
"Commander, Zhu Zi's side is ready. Ten field guns, plus six captured Japanese heavy guns, are just waiting for your order."
Upon hearing this, Li Jianghe glanced at his watch. There were less than three hours left until dawn. If he didn't launch a surprise attack under the cover of darkness, the effect of the attack would be greatly diminished by daybreak.
"Fire! Bomb it to the bone!"
Wang Chengzhu began directing the artillery to fire.
Sato Shoichi was leisurely smoking a cigarette when news of another victory arrived from the front: a breach had been torn in the enemy's flank.
This pleased him greatly, and he thought that breaking through the enemy's flank positions before dawn would not be a problem.
Just as he was feeling smug, the whistling of artillery shells suddenly came.
Sato Masakazu was taken aback, because he hadn't called for artillery support. Why were the shells getting closer and closer?
"Boom!!!!!"
More than a dozen high-explosive shells exploded in the blink of an eye at the headquarters of the Japanese 42nd Infantry Regiment.
At the moment of the explosion, the shockwave, carrying deadly fragments, instantly covered the entire command post camp.
A large number of Japanese soldiers in the camp were torn apart by the violent shockwave in the blink of an eye.
Countless shrapnel fragments tore through their uniforms and skin, penetrating their muscles, internal organs, intestines, and even their hearts and lungs.
Amidst the billowing smoke, Sato Shoichi was somewhat bewildered.
Something's not right. Judging from the sound of those shells, they're from their 150mm and 105mm guns. How did they end up hitting their command post?
Did the artillerymen get the coordinates wrong?
His command post was partially buried, but it had not yet been destroyed by artillery fire. However, many Japanese soldiers were not so lucky.
One round of shelling left corpses strewn everywhere and blood splattered all over the place.
While he was still in a daze, another round of shelling arrived, followed by round after round.
After continuous shelling, the 42nd Regiment's command post was in complete disarray.
Everywhere there were screams, groans, shouts, and the whooshing sound of flames burning fiercely.
Sato Shoichi struggled to crawl out of the trench, looking equally disheveled.
"Baka! What are the artillerymen doing? Why are they bombing our command post?"
He was unaware that his heavy artillery had been captured by the enemy and still believed it was an accidental bombing.
Just then, a buzzing sound came from the darkness.
In the dissipating smoke and under the clear moonlight, he saw blurry outlines of trucks and motorcycles moving quickly, their target seemingly their command post camp.
While Sato Shoichi was still wondering whether it belonged to the enemy or to them, the MG42 and MG34 machine guns began to roar.
The flying bullet instantly shattered the body of a staff officer next to him, startling Sato Masakazu into jumping into the trench.
The next moment, another explosion was heard. It was the Panzerfaust 60, which launched 100mm over-caliber armor-piercing shells directly through a projectile launch, carrying out a second bombardment on the Japanese positions.
Immediately afterwards, motorcycles and trucks rushed into the Japanese positions, and the soldiers on them used submachine guns, rifles, or machine guns to massacre the Japanese troops who were in chaos and had no time to organize a defense.
One-sided massacre!
Sato Shoichi roared, trying to reorganize the defense.
"Hold your ground and do not retreat!!!"
Machine gun positions, open fire! Suppress the enemy truck advance!
Infantrymen moved into shell craters and trenches, using grenades to slow the enemy advance!
Just as the Japanese soldiers scrambled into the trenches, streams of fire erupted from them.
At that moment, the flamethrowers carried by the engineering corps were aimed at the Japanese troops inside the trenches and spewed flames.
"ah!!!!"
The fuel was sprayed onto the Japanese soldiers and instantly burned by the flames, turning them into burning figures in the blink of an eye.
Some of them rolled wildly inside the trenches, while others crawled out, screaming and running around in a panic, only to be shot down by machine guns or submachine gun bullets.
A complete rout, a rout with no doubt about it!
"Commander, let's retreat! We can't hold out much longer!!!"
The chief of staff shouted and pulled Sato Masakazu backward.
"No retreat! If we retreat, the offensive will lose command and collapse!!!"
Sato Shoichi was clearly unwilling to accept defeat.
But the next moment, a 100mm high-explosive warhead fired from a Panzerfaust 60 was launched toward the trench where they were.
"Boom!!!!!"
The explosion came, and Sato Shoichi had nowhere to retreat now, because his buttocks were blown off, leaving only half of his body inside the trench.