Chapter 15 Relics of the old dynasty

After the Battle of Xuzhou, in addition to the enemy pursuing westward along the Longhai Line, the 14th Division of the Japanese Army crossing south from the Yellow River also posed a threat to the troops retreating westward. The Fourteenth Division eventually fell into the encirclement of the Chinese side. This is the most spectacular scene in the Battle of Lanfeng.A total of 100,000 troops of the Eastern Henan Corps launched a full-scale attack on the 14th Division of the Japanese Army entrenched in Neihuang and Yifeng from the east, west, and north. As the forward of the 74th Army, Wang Yaowu personally led the 51st Division to rush into Inner Yellow City and started a fierce battle with the Japanese army.

The terrain of the Central Plains is quite different from that of the water towns in the south. In particular, Neihuang is full of sand and gravel.This flat terrain created conditions for cavalry operations. Hundreds of Japanese cavalry charged the 51st Division on horseback, and the 51st Division's offensive was frustrated. Some people hit the cavalry first on the horse, and after the cavalry fell off the horse, they used light and heavy machine guns to attack.Wang Yaowu did the opposite. He ordered the snipers to occupy the commanding heights and directly ordered the cavalry one by one.

The method is different, but the effect is the same.Seeing that the cavalry in front were shot off their horses one after another, and the cavalry in the rear had to retreat, the 51st Division took advantage of the momentum to attack and regained Neihuang City in one fell swoop. At the same time, the Japanese army in Yifeng also abandoned the city under the Chinese attack.The 14th Division of the Japanese Army did not really lack the strength to defend Neihuang and Yifeng. The main reason was that in the absence of a follow-up corps, its rear contact line had also been cut off by the Yudong Corps.The head of the division, Doihara, sensed the danger, and decided to move the rear from Longhai Road to Liuyuankou on the south bank of the Yellow River.

Liuyuankou is an old ferry along the Yellow River. The 14th Division of the Japanese Army can pass through Liuyuankou and get food and ammunition supplies from the north bank of the Yellow River. The Eastern Henan Corps launched another siege, and Zhou Zhidao led the 151st Brigade of the 51st Division to attack Maoguzhai.The walls of the siege are very strong, and it can't do anything without heavy weapons.Although the Nanjing Defense War caused the 74th Army to lose all its heavy weapons, during the training period, the 51st Division was re-equipped with medium-sized mortars.Before the attack, Zhou Zhidao ordered to use mortars to aim at the stockade and bombard it. After the small opening was blasted, he sent the commando to rush in at night.

That night, after five hours of fierce fighting, the 151st Brigade captured Maoguzhai in one fell swoop after annihilating hundreds of enemies and destroying five Japanese tanks. It was relatively easy to win Maogu Village. In contrast, Luowang Station, Sanyi Village, Quxing Village and other strongholds were much more difficult to conquer.Luowang Station is a small station on the Longhai Railway, but because it is located between Kaifeng and Lankao, its strategic position is very important, so long before the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, there was a permanent building made of reinforced concrete here. Defense fortifications, artillery bunkers, machine gun bunkers, shelters, headquarters, everything is available.It was originally used for the Anti-Japanese War, but as the situation changed dramatically, it was used by the Japanese army instead, which is unexpected.

On May 25, when the 58th Division and its friendly forces launched an offensive on Luowang Station, the Japanese army used these fortifications to resist desperately, and the battle was very fierce. At 6:00 p.m., the 172nd Brigade of the 58th Division once broke into the shelter of Luowang Station, but lost it again an hour later.At this time, Yu Jishi had already served as the commander of the 74th Army, and Feng Shengfa, the deputy commander of the 58th Division, was also the commander of the 58th Division. Seeing that the troops suffered heavy casualties, Feng Shengfa ordered to suspend the attack.

Luowang Station has become the focus of the tug-of-war between the enemy and us.At this time, Xue Yue, the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Henan Corps, found that the frontline food delivery was not ideal, and some soldiers had not eaten for more than a day, so he hurriedly issued strict orders to the logistics supply department by phone, demanding that they be improved quickly. People are like iron, food is like steel, they are full of food and drink, and after a night of rest, the morale of the attacking troops is boosted. On May 26, Feng Shengfa, the commander of the 58th Division, went to the front to supervise the battle in person, and concentrated artillery fire on the Japanese positions.

Like the 51st Division, the 58th Division was reequipped with heavy weapons, and the division artillery battalion was equipped with six German Krupp field guns.These Krupp field guns were purchased from the German Krupp company in the late Qing Dynasty. The guns are also engraved with "Guangxu Years of the Qing Dynasty" and a round auspicious dragon logo.Although it is a relic of the old dynasty and its style is relatively old, don’t underestimate it. The artillery produced by Krupp has always enjoyed a reputation for good quality and high shooting accuracy. During World War II, not only China, but also Japan Did not give up either.

The Krupp field artillery was really powerful, and it could smash the Japanese army's position to pieces, so that the Japanese army had to temporarily use the truck on the station as a protective bunker.With the support of artillery fire, the 58th Division approached the station step by step through individual blasting and group assaults. On May 28, Luowang Station and Luowang Village were recovered successively. In the command post of the Japanese army, the Chinese army seized a command sword worn by Doihara himself, which confirmed that Doihara personally commanded the battle for the king of Luo, which shows how much he attached importance to securing the Luowang station.The failure to capture Doihara was regretted by the whole army at that time. However, from a rational point of view, with the strength of the Chinese army at that time, this goal was extremely difficult to achieve.