Chapter 201: Attack on Linjiaji Stronghold
Hearing the shouts of the telegraph operator in Wei Dayong's commando team, Ding Wei quickly raised his hand and grabbed the bugler who was about to blow the charge.
"What's going on?
What happened in the First Battalion?"
"Captain Ding, the First Battalion of the New First Regiment reported that an unknown force launched an attack on the Dawangzhuang stronghold. The Japanese inside the Dawangzhuang stronghold did not come out, but exchanged fire with the unknown force.
The commander of the first battalion of the new first regiment hopes that you, Commander Ding, can verify the unknown force to see if it is a friendly force attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold and whether they are providing support. "
Listening to the telegraph operator's report, Ding Wei was stunned.
"What?!
An unknown force is attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold? !
Send a telegram to the brigade commander immediately and ask him if he has arranged other troops to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold? ! "
"After sending the message to the brigade commander, send another message to the 772nd Regiment, asking them if they have made a mistake in the target of attack, and if they are the ones attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold!"
"Yes!"
……
Linjiaji stronghold.
Commander Cheng of the 772nd Regiment was leading his troops to prepare to attack the Linjiaji stronghold.
"Oh, Ding Wei is a rich guy. His cannon is really powerful."
Although the gunshots could not be heard due to the distance, thanks to the relatively quiet environment around him, Captain Cheng could still vaguely hear some artillery explosions coming from the direction of Dawangzhuang.
Listening to the rather dense explosions, Captain Cheng looked towards the direction of Dawangzhuang with some envy.
Judging from the sound of the explosion, Captain Cheng could tell that Ding Wei had at least an 82mm mortar.
The sound of the 60mm mortar shells exploding couldn't reach this side.
Captain Cheng was also somewhat envious of Ding Wei, Li Yunlong and others.
Because of Qin Yangming, their two main regiments were not only equipped with a large number of artillery, but also had sufficient artillery shells, so they could fight however they wanted.
Unlike his 772nd Regiment, not only did they have few artillery pieces, they also lacked artillery shells.
You should know that the 772nd Regiment was one of the earliest main force regiments, but its development was not as good as the basic regiments formed later.
Not only can the core regiment become self-sufficient in terms of equipment, but it can also hand over a large amount of equipment to the brigade headquarters.
And his 772nd Regiment still needs weapons and equipment allocated by the brigade.
After learning about Qin Yangming's situation, Captain Cheng began to doubt himself and wondered if his vision was really not good enough.
Or maybe he was too old-fashioned, which prevented the warriors from displaying their true abilities.
As a result, he missed out on a top fighter like Qin Yangming who was both good at fighting and getting equipment.
After returning to the 772nd Regiment from the meeting at the brigade headquarters, Commander Cheng and the political commissar of the 772nd Regiment directly launched an elimination campaign against the entire regiment, wanting to see if there were any other people like Qin Yangming in the regiment, but they were buried because of him.
Captain Cheng had made a decision. If there were any more soldiers like Qin Yangming in the 772nd Regiment, he would have to learn from Li Yunlong and ask the brigade commander for the right to act independently even if it meant getting scolded.
If the brigade commander does not give it to him, he will exchange people with Li Yunlong. After all, he has no right to act independently. If there really are soldiers like Qin Yangming in the regiment, it would be better to put him in the 772nd Regiment and bury his talent.
It would be better to give it to Li Yunlong, so that more equipment can be obtained for the Eighth Route Army.
However, after Captain Cheng and the political commissar conducted a rough check of all the soldiers in the regiment, they did not find anyone with abilities similar to Qin Yangming.
Due to time constraints, we can only wait until the battle is over before conducting a detailed check of all the soldiers in the regiment.
"Captain, the New 1st Regiment has begun to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold. Should we wait a moment?
The New 1st Regiment launched a fierce attack on the Dawangzhuang stronghold. The Japanese will definitely provide support to Dawangzhuang, and the nearest Japanese troops are the ones at the Linjiaji stronghold.
We can wait for the Japanese troops in the Linjiaji stronghold to go out and support the Dawangzhuang stronghold before launching an attack on the Linjiaji stronghold.
This way, it will be much easier to attack the Linjiaji stronghold."
Just as Captain Cheng was thinking about how to ask the brigade commander for the right to act independently after the battle was over, he was also observing the Linjiaji stronghold.
Captain Cheng's guard listened to the faint sounds of explosions coming from the direction of Dawangzhuang and spoke his thoughts to Captain Cheng.
Captain Cheng frowned after listening to what the guard said, then raised his hand and slapped the guard on the head.
"Your idea is good, but it's not practical."
"If we let the Japanese soldiers in the Linjiaji stronghold leave at this time, where will we get the troops to ambush the Japanese reinforcements?
If we don't care, we will be relieved, but the pressure on the new regiment will be great."
At the beginning, Captain Cheng also considered whether to wait for the New 1st Regiment to launch an attack on the Dawangzhuang stronghold, send reinforcements from the Linjiaji stronghold, and then have the 772nd Regiment surround the stronghold and attack the reinforcements first, and then attack the Linjiaji stronghold after eliminating the Japanese reinforcements.
However, due to time and manpower constraints, Captain Cheng gave up this idea and prepared to directly attack the Linjiaji stronghold.
After all, the 772nd Regiment was not only responsible for attacking the Linjiaji stronghold, so its military strength was relatively tight.
Therefore, it is necessary to capture the Linjiaji stronghold as quickly as possible, and then divide the troops to defend the stronghold.
The guard was patted on the shoulder by Captain Cheng. After listening to Captain Cheng's explanation, he realized that there was something wrong with his idea just now. After smiling embarrassedly, the guard stopped talking and carefully followed Captain Cheng's arrangements.
"Hiss, the Japs in the stronghold are getting ready to move out!"
"Has the artillery battery arrived yet?!"
Captain Cheng used a telescope to watch the Japanese soldiers in the Linjiaji stronghold reorganizing their troops and starting the trucks. He immediately realized that the Japanese soldiers in the Linjiaji stronghold were preparing to support the Dawangzhuang stronghold.
He quickly turned around and asked the political commissar who had just arrived behind him.
"The artillery company is here and is setting up artillery positions!"
"Okay, tell the artillery company to speed up the construction of the artillery position, and the mortar gunners to fire first and blow up all the Japanese outside!"
"No problem, I'll pass on the order!"
After hearing the order from Captain Cheng, the political commissar turned around and began to convey the order to the artillery company.
Because artillerymen are technical talents, and many of the soldiers of the 772nd Regiment are literate after learning.
However, playing with cannons requires more than just knowing how to read; certain mathematical abilities are also required.
However, the only person in the 772nd Regiment who had received formal education was the political commissar, and only the political commissar knew some mathematics.
In addition, due to time constraints, the brigade has not yet assigned qualified artillerymen.
When the artillery company involves long-range strikes and needs to calculate the trajectory, only the political commissar can go there to calculate the trajectory. So now the artillery company of the 772nd Regiment is temporarily managed by the political commissar.
It is different from the artillery companies of the New 1st Regiment, Independent Regiment, and Pioneer Regiment, which were called the local tyrant regiments by Commander Cheng and other Eighth Route Army commanders.
The artillery company of the 772nd Regiment had only two Type 41 mountain guns, three Type 92 infantry guns, and six 60mm mortars.
The political commissar climbed down the mountain and ran to the artillery position behind the hillside, and conveyed Commander Cheng's order to the engineers and artillerymen who were building the artillery position.
The mortar gunners in the artillery company were the first to build the mortar position. Six 60mm mortars were lined up in a row with their muzzles pointing obliquely at the sky.
Looking at the artillery on the artillery position, the political commissar's heart was also burning with excitement.
Not long ago, the 772nd Regiment had only two mortars and a Shanghai-made mountain cannon sent by the brigade.
But now the 772nd Regiment already has six mortars and three Type 92 infantry guns.
Two Type 41 mountain cannons that can be considered heavy artillery.
That’s right, although for Qin Yangming, only 150mm artillery can be called heavy artillery.
But for ordinary Eighth Route Army soldiers, the 75mm mountain cannon was enough to be considered a heavy artillery.
After all, if there were no Qin Yangming, most of the Eighth Route Army troops would have been lucky to have one or two mortars that lacked shells.
If a Type 92 infantry gun could be captured, the regimental commander would be able to sleep with it in his arms, not to mention the Type 41 mountain gun which has greater power and a longer range.
"Get the mortars ready. Launch a round of artillery fire on the Linjiaji stronghold first and kill the Japanese soldiers outside!"
"Yes!"
"Political Commissar, Political Commissar, there's a call from the Brigade Headquarters and the New 1st Regiment! Urgent message!"
Just when the political commissar had just given the order and was about to go back to calculate the coordinates and let the gunner fire.
A cavalry messenger from the 772nd Regiment rushed over on horseback with two telegram documents.
Hearing the cavalry communicator's call, the political commissar hurried forward and took the telegram from the other party.
After taking a look, the political commissar ran to Captain Cheng with the telegram.
"Commander, something has happened. The brigade commander and the New 1st Regiment have sent a telegram asking if our 772nd Regiment has sent troops to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold!"
Commander Cheng, who was on the top of the mountain, had already heard the shouts of the cavalry communicator below, but he was busy organizing the attack, and when he saw the political commissar going to get the telegram, he did not go down.
Listening to what the political commissar said, Captain Cheng immediately took the telegram from the political commissar's hand.
"What does Ding Wei mean?
Isn't he attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold? Why is he asking whether we have arranged for troops to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold?
Hmm? We intercepted a Japanese convoy... Are there any unknown troops attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold? Ask if the 772nd Regiment made a mistake in the target and is attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold.
If so, please contact the New 1st Regiment as soon as possible. The New 1st Regiment will be ready to provide support at any time."
“Reporting to the brigade, our 772nd Regiment did not arrange for troops to disguise themselves as bandits to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold.
Send a telegram to Ding Wei and tell him that the people attacking the Dawangzhuang stronghold are not from my 772nd team. My 772nd Regiment is preparing to attack the Linjiaji stronghold. Ask Ding Wei to ask if it is Li Yunlong who sent the troops over.
Among the Eighth Route Army troops nearby, I, the old squad leader, was the most unruly. "
Looking at the contents of the telegram, Captain Cheng was a little confused at first, then he thought about it quickly and made sure that he had not issued an order to send troops disguised as bandits to attack the Dawangzhuang stronghold.
He immediately gave instructions to the communicator who had just climbed up.
If he didn't explain clearly, the brigade would think that it was his 772nd Regiment that launched the attack on the Dawangzhuang stronghold, and the consequences would be serious. To put it nicely, it was a mistake on his part.
A more serious case is disobeying orders on the battlefield, especially at such a critical moment. Even if he chopped off Ping Lu Yongfu's head, the brigade commander would rush over from Baihuling and kill him.
"Yes!"
Following Captain Cheng's order, the communicator quickly went down the mountain and rode away again to inform the telegraph operator to send Captain Cheng's message.
……
"The whole army obeys the order!
Prepare to attack! "
"Boom, boom, boom..."
When Captain Cheng saw that the troops were ready for the attack, he immediately ordered them to launch an attack on the Linjiaji stronghold.
The mortar gunner who had been prepared in the back quickly loosened his hands, and the shells slid into the barrel and hit the firing pin at the bottom of the barrel.
On the top of the mountain, the grenade launcher shooter set up the grenade launcher and began to fire at the Linjiaji stronghold.
More than a dozen small grenades from grenade launchers and six 60mm mortar shells flew rapidly towards the open space near the central artillery tower of the Linjiaji stronghold.
As the whistling sound of artillery shells rang out, the Japanese soldiers in the Linjiaji stronghold heard the whistling sound of artillery shells and began to hide.
But the Japanese had just climbed onto the truck and were ready to set off. How could their dodging speed be faster than the speed of the flying artillery shells?
A mortar shell landed directly in the middle of a truck loaded with Japanese soldiers and exploded.
Because more than a dozen Japanese soldiers were standing too close together, and the ammunition in the truck compartment was caused by the explosion of a mortar shell, more than a dozen Japanese soldiers and the truck under them were directly turned into pieces.
Those Japanese soldiers who managed to jump off the truck wanted to go to the artillery tower or bunker to avoid the artillery fire, but the bunker and artillery tower areas were the areas that the grenade launcher shooters focused on.
A large number of small grenades were fired around the bunkers and artillery towers, preventing the Japanese from entering between the artillery towers and bunkers to avoid the artillery fire.
"Da da da~"
Several Type 92 heavy machine gunners stationed at high places looked at the Japanese soldiers who were forced to run around in the stronghold by the artillery shells, and they couldn't bear to see them wasting their energy.
Under the order of Captain Cheng, he aimed at the Japanese and pulled the trigger.
Although the Japanese Type 92 heavy machine gun has a low firing rate and is a bit heavy compared to machine guns of the same type.
However, the Type 92 heavy machine gun is far superior to similar machine guns in terms of shooting accuracy.
Thanks to the sufficient weight of the Type 92 heavy machine gun, the muzzle jump of the machine gun is offset by its weight.
Therefore, the Type 92 heavy machine gunners of the 772nd Regiment were very accurate in their shooting.
A three-round burst from the Type 92 heavy machine gun, about six to twelve bullets, would definitely hit a Japanese soldier.
The Japanese soldiers in the turret wanted to set up a heavy machine gun to fight back, but as soon as the heavy machine gun in the turret opened fire, it was immediately met with direct fire from the Type 92 infantry gun that was pulled to the top of the mountain.
The heavy machine guns in the bunker were unable to fire at the mountains due to their range and angle, so they could only block the roads.
"Baga, send a message to the brigade commander! Our Linjiaji stronghold is under attack by the Eighth Route Army and we are unable to send troops to support it!"
After the Japanese soldiers who were responsible for guarding the Linjiaji stronghold were attacked, they immediately arranged for personnel to send a telegram to Hattori Naoomi.
(End of this chapter)
