Chapter 32 Absolute main force

Being able to severely damage the 106th Division of the Japanese Army in Wanjialing relied on opportunity, strength, and more importantly, will and determination.As early as when the Japanese army landed in Jiujiang, the reporters accompanying the army saw the "Three Forgets of Soldiers" written in chalk on the wall of Jiujiang Station: "Forget your wife when you leave home, forget your home when you leave the country, and forget your body when you go out to fight." After that, all the soldiers seized by the Japanese army The family letters of Chinese officers and soldiers, without exception, all revealed the situation of front-line combat and the determination to serve the country to the death, and rarely mixed with personal affairs.

The Japanese have always been proud of their samurai spirit of sacrificing their lives, but the "Three Forgets of Soldiers" made them realize that there are also a group of iron warriors who think the same in this land they are eager to conquer. If it is said that these are just slogans and language, the amazing endurance shown by Chinese soldiers on the battlefield is even more amazing.In Wanjialing, although the 74th Army and other departments are not in danger of food shortages, life is still extremely difficult.On the one hand, the conditions are limited; on the other hand, the Chinese government itself does not pay much attention to logistical support, let alone the improvement of the lives of ordinary officers and soldiers. Apart from rice and salt, the military depots are supplied with non-staple food such as cooking oil, vegetables, and meat. Procured by the company itself.But on the battlefield where all the common people have fled, even if the company has enough funds, where can it buy non-staple food?

In addition, malaria, dysentery, and even cholera were the most harmful to officers and soldiers.Curing and preventing these diseases requires specific medicines. However, there is a serious shortage of medicines on the front line. Many sick soldiers are fighting until they fall to the ground and cannot move. These are insurmountable difficulties in the eyes of Westerners. They think that the officers and soldiers of any country have a reason to give up fighting because of this, but the Chinese soldiers have all endured it. They are even better than the Japanese soldiers who are also accustomed to endurance. They can climb mountains and endure hardships .The female reporter Ateli has witnessed many times similar scenes that made her feel so sad that she was about to cry: there were wounded or sick Chinese soldiers along the road, many of them trembling on the side of the road with livid faces, and some people were already on the verge of collapse, but they were still moving slowly. Move to the front.

Hard work and patience finally paid off.When the news of the Wanjialing victory spread to the rear, the streets and alleys suddenly exploded with firecrackers. The people agreed that this was one of the most exciting days since the "September 18th Incident".Fifty-five congratulatory messages were sent from all over the country. In the congratulatory message, Ye Ting, the commander of the New Fourth Army, praised the great victory of Wanjialing as "saving the flood capital from danger and protecting Jianghan". They are "there are three tripods, and their reputation should be immortal."

In the Wanjialing victory, the Seventy-Fourth Army, like other friendly troops, paid a great sacrifice.As of October 15th, more than 9,900 dead, wounded, and missing officers and soldiers accounted for more than half of the troops participating in the battle. Among them, the 51st Division suffered five regimental commanders (including acting commanders) and seven battalion commanders, and the 58th Division suffered casualties. Two regiment commanders, six battalion commanders, and more than 100 company platoon leaders suffered casualties in the two divisions.After the war, in addition to awarding a pennant to the Seventy-Fourth Army, Xue Yue also specially allocated 5,000 yuan to the wounded officers and soldiers as an encouragement.

Through its outstanding performance in the Battle of Wanjialing, the Seventy-Fourth Army gained a reputation and was recognized as a strong army capable of fighting tough battles.Handpicked by Chiang Kai-shek, the Seventy-Fourth Army was listed as the strategic general reserve directly under the Central Military Commission and became the vanguard of the three major theaters in central China. If we make a horizontal comparison, the 74th Army and the 116th Division of the Japanese Army have some similarities in the history of army establishment.The 116th Division of the Japanese Army is also a special division, but unlike the 101st and 106th Divisions, it has always been very active. In the middle and late stages of the Anti-Japanese War, it almost became the backbone of the Japanese invaders.The reason why the 116th Division was able to stand out, according to Okamura's analysis, was that after the division was mobilized, it conducted basic training in a campsite in the countryside for about a month.This kind of camp training is very effective, even in normal times, one week is worth a month or more of barracks training.

The same goes for the Seventy-Fourth Army. Before it went to the Songhu battlefield, it already had relatively solid basic skills, so it showed its aggressive nature in the first year of the War of Resistance.Although the troops suffered great losses in the successive battles since then, due to their strong bones, strict training and discipline, the 74th Army has always been able to maintain a vigorous momentum of development. In the Battle of Songhu, the Seventy-Fourth Army was only the second main force. In front of it, there was a group of seemingly insurmountable ace troops: the German Armor Division (88th Division, 87th Division, and 36th Division) , Teaching Corps, First Army, Eleventh Division, Tax Police Headquarters...

Now that the Seventy-Fourth Army is in its early stages, it has become China's leading absolute main force. This is not only due to the current situation, but also the result of its own hard work and continuous struggle. Just imagine, with so many regiment and battalion commanders who have suffered casualties, they have taken the lead in the front and charged into battle. This army How could it not be strong? In view of the outstanding military exploits of the Seventy-Fourth Army, the Military Commission gave priority to adding a batch of weapons and recruits to the Seventy-Fourth Army.At that time, the military resources available to the Chinese government were relatively limited, and it was impossible to achieve equal distribution. Therefore, there were often insufficient weapons and equipment and recruits. It is enviable that the 74th Army can receive this treatment.In addition, the 57th Division was also transferred to the 74th Army, increasing the number of troops belonging to the 74th Army to three divisions.Because the designations of the three divisions all start with "five", the Japanese have since called the 74th Army the "35th Army".

The Fifty-seventh Division was originally a local miscellaneous army. It was formed by mixing local troops from Anhui and Shandong. Most of the mid-level and above officers were from the north.Before being incorporated into the Seventy-Fourth Army, the division's record was not outstanding, but its combat effectiveness, equipment, and officer quality were all good, and it also had a specialty, that is, it was good at building field fortifications and organizing defensive warfare.After joining the Seventy-Fourth Army, the Fifty-seventh Division quickly integrated into this group, and its specialties became more and more obvious, and its record was not inferior to the other two brother divisions.

Due to the effective replenishment, in terms of comprehensive indicators, the Seventy-Fourth Army was at the leading level in the country at that time: the infantry held all medium-sized rifles, and each company had nine Czech-style light machine guns, and was equipped with 60 mortars and rifle grenades.Each battalion also has a machine gun company equipped with six Maxim heavy machine guns (most of them are actually Chinese imitation Maxim Type 24 heavy machine guns).The soldiers are basically sufficient, and each company has 150 combat soldiers. Without the call of passion, one cannot find the direction of persistence; without hard search, it is difficult to reach the ideal palace.The Seventy-Fourth Army "struggled more and more bravely", and began to get better and better on the road of national salvation and defense of military honor.