Chapter 56 Chapter Fifty-six: Fighting to win

When shrinking the position on the southern front, the 7th Regiment of the 3rd Division guarding the Hengyang West Front guarded the first-line positions from Duxian Temple, Yangcun Temple, Yilai Temple to Qingshan Street, and County Middle School.It's not that there was "all peace on the Western Front", and the fighting was also going on fiercely. In the past few days, the Japanese army's violent air bombing and poison gas attacks have caused great casualties to the officers and soldiers of the national army. Xie Ying, the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 7th Regiment, died heroically while commanding the troops to counterattack; Chu Houfan, the commander of the 2nd Company, and Dai Chuwei, the successor company commander, also died successively, and Major Hou Shude, the deputy of the 7th Regiment, took over as the battalion commander.Most of the defenders guarded the houses and fortifications, and the Japanese planes bombarded the targets accordingly, causing heavy casualties to the national army.Many officers and soldiers of the national army were burnt to death painfully in the fire caused by a large number of incendiary bombs dropped by Japanese aircraft on the 16th.

Guarding the positions of Yanwuping and Dujiagang to the northwest of Hengyang is the 190th Division of the National Army.Although it was also continuously attacked by Japanese artillery and infantry.However, because most of the area is surrounded by rivers and blocked by fish ponds and paddy fields, only a few officers and soldiers were killed or injured, and the fortifications were destroyed and strengthened immediately.The Japanese attack was unsuccessful and failed to cross the flooded area one step further. Xiangjiang defense line.The national army closely monitored the river, and the Japanese army on the other side had learned from the past and did not dare to act rashly.However, near the East Railway Station, there were several enemy heavy artillery pieces, and from time to time, they fired irregularly and sporadicly at the defensive positions on our shore; of.Since there is no anti-aircraft equipment, there is nothing to do about the enemy planes; but for the enemy artillery, there are clever officers and soldiers to discuss whether to send elite personnel to dive across the river to blow him up.Later, there was a wonderful performance, so I will not list it here for the time being.

Since the start of the second general offensive of the Japanese army, the fighting for five consecutive days and nights has been mainly carried out in the main southwest position. The strength of the offensive and the solidity of the guards are in sharp contrast. The killing of 5 days and 5 nights should be calculated in hours.Fighting day and night, no hour is spent in silence.The sound of guns and guns and shouts of killing merged into waves of terrifying and trembling sound waves, which lingered and oscillated between the heaven and the earth in Hengyang without interruption, and even tens of miles away, the flames could be seen and the sound of fighting could be heard.

Later, the verdant green hills before the war in the southwestern positions of Hengyang turned into "Huangshan Mountain" where the trees were uprooted, the thorns and weeds were burned, and the land was turned over; finally, it became a mess of dead bodies and bloody , the mottled "oil painting mountain".This is a masterpiece of war, this is a human tragedy, enough to shake the world and weep ghosts and gods! Both sides in the war were exhausted, the whole position was full of gasps, and their physical strength was exhausted to the extreme. Often the opposing sides were just a few meters away, glaring at each other, but unable to move due to lack of strength.Or instinctively swinging the handle of the gun, slowly trying to bring down the opponent, unable to do so because of shortness of breath.

Hunger, insomnia, exposure to the sun, rain, corpse smell, poison fumigation, screaming planes, roaring of heavy artillery, fighting with all one's strength, stumped limbs and broken legs, corpses strewn across the field, blood stasis and gullies, all of these , It made people's nerves and physical strength to the point of collapse.Repeatedly fighting for the position, unable to rest at all, struggling with each other with all their strength, both the enemy and the enemy couldn't breathe, and they barely fell down because they barely supported; with the last bit of strength, they were able to recover at a minimum in the huge panting.People have lost their human form, with unshaven beards, sunken eye sockets, and monkey gills, like prisoners or patients who have not recovered for a long time.At the end of the fight, many people were crawling, moving slowly while crouching; as if their legs were heavy and it was difficult to move.He seemed to be drunk again, his limbs were weak, his walking was faltering, and he was limp.Reluctantly relying on the gun to struggle up, she is also like Lin Daiyu, who is so weak that it seems that a gust of wind can blow her down.

The combat power of both sides has already reached such a situation. After 5 days of fighting, the two sides are very similar to two giant beasts that have exhausted their last strength. You look at me and I aim at you, but both have more than enough energy and are helpless... Now there is a song called "hard work will win", which is absolutely accurate.This hard-fighting style of play is actually fighting, fighting for physical strength, endurance, perseverance, spirit, will, and belief, to see who is stronger.This is fighting for bravery, to see who will collapse first; this is fighting for physical strength, to see who is unable to support first; this is fighting for character, to see who can overwhelm whom; Competing for the command and dispatch of the generals on both sides is to fight for supplies, equipment, fortifications, and soldiers' combat skills;

In these 5 days of grappling, it was empty anyway.The defense of the 10th Army of the National Army and the attack of the Japanese army are the most straightforward reality. There is no empty talk. Smashing, punching, hugging the waist and legs, twisting the neck and picking the eyes, biting the ear... At this point in the battle, in the fierce offensive and defensive confrontation of the respective troops, in the close combat of close combat, and in the repeated see-saw competition, all the power of both sides The advantages and disadvantages of the students, all the quality in peacetime and the upbringing in wartime are all condensed in the word "spell".The word "fight" is like a steel blade. It depends on who is sharp, who is hard, who can "fight" better, and who can "fight" better!

For five consecutive days and nights, the two warring parties fought fiercely and earth-shatteringly on the main position in the southwest, and the result can be said to be a loss for both sides.The victory and defeat were mixed, and the Japanese had to admit that the second general attack was still a failure. The Japanese army paid the price of more than 8,000 casualties, and only opened the first-line positions of the 10th Army-the two gates of Zhangjiashan and Tiger Nest. .The 10th Army of the National Army took the initiative to withdraw and defend when all the fortifications were destroyed, while the Japanese army was unable to continue and had to be frustrated under the strong city.This is tantamount to a great failure and irony for the myth of the so-called "Great Japanese Imperial Army" in China.Because this is an unprecedented head-to-head confrontation by the Japanese!

The Japanese arrogantly claim that only their bushido spirit is invincible. They believe that there is nothing harder than the Japanese in China. The Japanese believe in using hardness to overcome softness. For the tough nemesis.How can the Japanese not be depressed, upset, or discouraged?In the end, the Japanese have nowhere to vent their anger and cannot vent.This makes the Japanese can only regain their confidence in the battle, but the opponents they encounter are stronger!Even though they are the enemy, they have to be convinced, admitting that this is another "Lvshun siege battle", the only battle of suffering worth remembering, and it is the result of the poor and blind command of the high-level military with no humanity. Bitter fruit.

The troops directly under the 10th Division of the National Army’s 10th Army Reserve and the three main regiments, as well as logistics troops such as luggage and cooking soldiers, and migrant workers who participated in the support, suffered a lot of casualties and sacrifices after nearly a month of fierce fighting.Later, those who continued to stick to the first-line positions still had the designation of the 10th Division in name, but in reality, most of them were the 8th and 9th Regiments of the 3rd Division and officers and soldiers directly under the military headquarters drawn from the second-line positions.Driven by the surviving officers and soldiers on the original position of the 10th Division, these successors carried forward the Huangpu spirit of "dearness and sincerity", helped each other in the same boat, fought against the enemy, bravely killed the enemy, and supported the endgame.At this time, the 10th Army already had a long defense line and a weak force, and there was often no one guarding the front of the defense line of more than 100 meters.

At 16:00 on July 16, the civilian hospital and Daxianping Highland of the 10th Army were occupied by the Japanese army when all the fortifications were blown up, all the defenders died, and there was no counterattack.The positions in the southwest of Xiaojiashan and Fengshushan were also invaded by Japanese troops one after another. Like the setting sun of blood, the smoke of gunpowder curls up, the twilight is hazy, the moon is thin and the clouds are light. In the next room to the war room of the 10th Army Headquarters, General Fang Xianjue, with bloodshot eyes, sat for a long time with the back of a chair, staring straight at the circles on the military map, the arrows and the enemy and us on the outer defense line. situation.After thinking for a long time, the ashtray next to him was full of cigarette butt ash.Suddenly, he picked up the military jug full of spirits and drank with his head raised. "Military seat, please slow down, don't choke!" General Sun Mingyu, chief of staff of the army, said with concern when he saw this. "Yes! Commander, you have to take it easy, the whole army is watching, rely on the commander!" General Cai Rulin, the war zone supervisor and artillery commander of the army, also expressed concern. "What? I think the military position has already made up their minds, and a brilliant move has been made!" Peng Gaocan said happily after seeing the eyebrows. "Chief of Staff, pass on my order!" At this time, Fang Xianjue shouted loudly: "Immediately inform all divisions to abandon the southern half of Wuguiling, the southern part of 141 Highland, Fengshu Mountain, the Citizen's Hospital, Xiaojiashan, Zhang Feishan and other positions, after evacuating at night, changed to guard the second-line positions. The special deployment is as follows: 1. About 300 people from the 1st Company of the Search Battalion of the 8th Regiment of the 3rd Division occupied Waixin Street and the northern positions of Wuguiling 2. Prepare about 350 people from the search battalion of the 28th Regiment of the 10th Division (less than the 1st company), and occupy the first-line positions of Jielong Mountain, Huayao Mountain, and Yueping Mountain. 3. About 80 people from the engineering battalion of the military headquarters are attached to the newly formed 2nd Battalion of the 29th Regiment. About 150 remaining officers and soldiers from the 29th Regiment and the 30th Regiment will be formed. Long; 100 people from the artillery battalion of the military department buried the cannons deeply, and the artillery was changed to infantry; the above two battalions occupied the high ground positions in the middle of Wuxian Temple and Suxianjing.Major General Zhang Yuequn, the deputy commander of the 10th Reserve Division, led the staff officer, Major Zhang Quan, to sit in command. 4. About 350 people from the 9th Regiment of the 3rd Division occupied Tianma Mountain, the northern part of Highland 141 in Xinghua Village, and the position of Xichan Temple. 5. About 90 people from the 570th Regiment of the 190th Division occupied the residential houses on the west side of Jielong Mountain, Yanfeng Temple, Zhongzheng Hall, and the electric lamp company as the second line of positions. 6. All units in the frontline positions are under the command of General Ge Xiancai, commander of the 10th Reserve Division. 7. The supply regiment of the military headquarters and other non-combat units of the military directly under the military can organize two combat battalions, each with about 300 people, as the reserve team of the army, and control them in the vicinity of Qingquan Road and Yueliangtang respectively. . 8. Help political workers and medical personnel to persuade slightly injured officers and soldiers to return to the front line. 9. The deployment of the rest of the troops is the same as before. " "Yes! Military seat! I will arrange it right away." General Sun Mingyu replied while recording. Subsequently, the telephone rang in the war room of the 10th Army Headquarters, the staff officers gave orders, and the telegrams rang together.Those who could not contact the front line had to send cavalry communicators to convey orders. The sound of tick-tock horseshoes spread far and near in all directions. "Come, come, smoke, smoke!" Fang Xianjue distributed his few cigarettes to the nearby generals, and seemed to be in a better mood for a while.Now smoke is more precious than gold!