Chapter 35 heroic nature

In addition to the tear gas and sneezing gas bombs, the more vicious mustard gas bombs can stun people in mild cases and kill people in severe cases. On March 31, the Japanese army released poison gas on the position of the Second Battalion of the 347th Regiment located in Sigong Mountain. The poisonous smoke enveloped the defensive position. More than 100 officers and soldiers of the battalion were poisoned. Most mustard gas bombs did not kill instantly, but they put a person in a poisoned coma within 30 minutes of inhalation, allowing Japanese troops in gas masks to rush in and occupy positions.Knowing that a corner of the position had been breached by the Japanese, Lao Guanying, commander of the 174th Brigade of the 58th Division, hurriedly sent reinforcements to intercept it.

When the reinforcements arrived, the poisonous gas had dissipated, and the officers and soldiers mounted bayonets, and after charging and fighting several times, they finally repelled the enemy, and the position was turned into safety again. Since April 1, the main force of the 106th Division of the Japanese Army occupying Nanchang has gradually shifted to Gao'an.The 111th Brigade was able to attack with all its strength, and a brigade of its forwards rushed towards the position of the Chinese 51st Division in front of Gao'an. Qian Zhigen, who had been on the front line for almost a week, finally had his turn to fight.Japanese artillery shells kept flying past his eyes, and then scattered all over the position. At the same time, the shrieking sound of the Japanese Type 92 heavy machine gun "clack" was also extremely harsh, directly oppressing the Chinese position.

As soon as the fire cover was over, the Japanese infantry began to charge, and Qian Zhigen saw that Japanese soldiers had already appeared on the position about 400 meters ahead. Seeing the enemy rushing up, the Artillery Battalion of the 51st Division immediately conducted a test firing, and at the same time the heavy machine guns also fired.The position of the 51st Division was located on a hill, and the troops dug more than a dozen long and short, winding trenches along the mountain, from the front to the back of the mountain.Due to the sparse vegetation on the hills and only a few rows of large and small pine trees, the officers and soldiers standing in the trenches have a very wide view and the shooting effect is relatively good.Taking advantage of the gap where the attacked Japanese army lay down and concealed, the artillery battalion turned its muzzle and fired at the other Japanese army, temporarily curbing the opponent's fierce offensive.

After a while, the reorganized Japanese army launched an attack again, this time with more fierce firepower, the battlefield was filled with gunpowder smoke, and missiles rained like rain. The situation became extremely urgent.Deputy commander Li Tianxia personally supervised the battle. He decisively transferred the reserve team up and organized the 51st Division to launch a counter-charge against the enemy.After the charge horn sounded, except for the cover of the light and heavy machine gun group in the trench, the rest of the officers and soldiers rushed out with guns and grenades.During the fierce battle, Qian Zhigen was injured in his leg, but he himself was unconscious until a soldier in the platoon saw blood seeping from his trouser leg, and upon inspection, he found that the thigh above the knee had been pierced by a bullet.

The soldiers carried Qian Zhigen back to the battlefield, and the stretcher team simply bandaged him and carried him to the field clinic for treatment.It wasn't until he got off the ground and relaxed his mind that Qian Zhigen felt the severe pain in his left leg and was unable to move. When Qian Zhigen was withdrawn, there were more than twenty people in his platoon that were brought down at the same time due to casualties.Although the 51st Division repelled the Japanese attack that day, the battle was indeed very fierce and arduous. The former enemy commander-in-chief Luo Zhuoying judged that Gao'an was isolated and it was too difficult to defend. Unknown, the 74th Army has become the only powerful strategic reserve army.In order to preserve the combat power of the 74th Army, he called Yu Jishi and instructed the 74th Army to withdraw from Gao'an.

The Battle of Nanchang was generally a victory for the enemy and we were defeated. However, even in the situation of being defeated like a mountain, the Seventy-fourth Army still did not lose its heroic qualities. The task of advancing westward can be regarded as a rare highlight in the battle. On April 10, Chiang Kai-shek sent a special telegram to the Seventy-Fourth Army: "I am very excited about the victory of this battle (Battle of Gao'an), and the public opinion of the whole country is especially encouraged." A week later, the Military Commission made a statement on the situation of the lost battle in Nanchang, claiming that the battle of Nanchang "has reached the goal of a war of attrition", and that Nanchang was abandoned by the Chinese side on its own initiative. ".

Whether it is beneficial or not, it is useless to say it yourself, it depends on how others judge.Wang Jingwei, who had fled from Chongqing, made a statement in Hong Kong's "South China Daily", claiming that the fall of Nanchang "was a great victory for the Japanese army." Chiang Kai-shek was very annoyed when he saw it.At this time, the Military Commission judged that the Japanese army in northern Jiangxi was still in a state of dispersion. If they could fight hard, it would not be impossible to recover Nanchang.The counter-offensive campaign against Nanchang was thus launched. On April 20, the various departments of the 74th Army were ordered to cross the Jinjiang River eastward and take Gao'an City directly.The offensive strategy adopted by Yu Jishi was a three-prong attack: the 51st Division rushed forward from the front, the 58th Division covered the flanks, and the 57th Division was responsible for the detour.

Wang Yaowu, the commander of the 51st Division, has also served as the deputy commander of the 74th Army. In addition to being sick and hospitalized, the deputy division commander Li Tianxia acted as the division commander.The 51st Division has the experience of entering and exiting Gao'an twice, and is quite familiar with the terrain and fortifications around Gao'an. Half of the area is hilly, and the other half is flat rice fields. You can take advantage of the gaps to insert into the rear of the Japanese stronghold for clever attacks .Soon, under the command of Li Tianxia, ​​the 51st Division captured 3 of the 4 Japanese strongholds outside the city.

Garrisoned in Gao'an are two infantry regiments belonging to the 101st Division of the Japanese Army.Finding that the Chinese army was approaching the city, and dispatched a large force, they hurriedly organized a counterattack, but they were still unable to contain the opponent's offensive. By April 23, the 74th Army had completely surrounded Gao'an City. At the same time, the fifty-seventh division who implemented a detour also broke into the Longevity Palace in Xishan.The Longevity Palace has a military depot, which is the throat of road traffic between Gao'an and Fengxin. The Japanese army's reinforcements to Gao'an and their logistics supplies all need to pass through here.

On the same day, the 106th Division of the Japanese Army transported a new regiment stationed in Fengfeng to the front line of Gao'an by car.Yu Jishi got the report and sent the 58th Division with flank cover to stop it.Feng Shengfa, commander of the 58th Division, mobilized the 343rd Regiment and 344th Regiment to set up an ambush circle and launched a surprise attack on the Japanese convoy.The Japanese army was caught off guard, many vehicles were destroyed, and the troops were forced to retreat. At dawn the next day, the sober Japanese army began to counterattack the blocking position of the 58th Division.Some enemies rushed into the position and fought hand-to-hand with the defenders, and the shouts of "kill, kill, kill" resounded in the ears.The battle lasted until five o'clock in the afternoon, and the Japanese offensive was thwarted, and the reinforcements could not reach Gao'an for the time being.

The reinforcements of the Japanese army forced the frontal attack to change the stalemate as soon as possible.Yu Jishi drew out two battalions from the 57th Division and launched a side attack on the Japanese army.This tactical adjustment caused the Japanese army to be in chaos, and the 51st Division took advantage of the situation to advance in depth. On the evening of April 25th, Li Tianxia, ​​acting commander of the 51st Division, went to the front line to direct the siege battle.During the battle, the 2nd Battalion of the 305th Regiment captured the commanding heights in the north of Gao'an City, and was able to shoot condescendingly at the Japanese troops in the city.Under the cover of the Second Battalion, the rest of the main attacking force climbed the city wall and made a breakthrough on Gao'an City. At one o'clock in the middle of the night, the main force of the 51st Division entered Gao'an City and started street fighting with the Japanese army.Because it was night and the visibility was low, the Japanese army's light and heavy machine gun blockade was restricted, while the Chinese army's customary grenade throwing showed its power. Seeing that the situation was not good, the Japanese army hurriedly released poison gas.Poisonous gas is indeed poisonous, but it is also difficult to succeed in this kind of tug-of-war that intersects with each other. The Japanese army had to clean up the guys and chose to break out in the direction of the Longevity Palace in Xishan. In the early morning of April 26, the remaining enemies in the city were completely wiped out, and the 74th Army regained Gao'an. Under the circumstances at that time, if the Japanese army had gained a firm foothold in an area or a city, it would not be easy to take it down.When the Military Commission called Yu Ji, it believed that in this high-security campaign where three losses were made and three gains were made, the Seventy-Fourth Army's "strength in combat power" was fully demonstrated, and it played a role in "intimidating the enemy".