Chapter 9 Chapter 9 The Lost Helmet

For the third increase in troops in Shanghai, Japan not only mobilized three divisions from home, but also included a Taiwan brigade composed of Japanese garrison troops stationed in Taiwan. Didn't it mean that the Shanghai Dispatch Army has suffered serious losses, and some regiments have reached the point where they cannot be replenished? They should quickly deploy as many as 10 brigades of supplementary troops from North China to help the Shanghai Dispatch Army recover. Behind the infantry, there are a lot of special attached units: heavy artillery units, field artillery units, mountain artillery units, mortar units, tank chariot units, cavalry units, engineering units...

With food in hand again, Matsui immediately dispatched troops to launch a new round of fierce attack on the northern battlefield. Chen Cheng is also constantly asking for help. During that time, on all the roads leading to Songhu, "King Qin's Division" could be seen everywhere. Their scale and number of people were unprecedented since the Anti-Japanese War. These armies all come from all directions, from all corners of the country.Among them, there are not only the central army, but also the local army, mainly the southern army, including the Guangdong army, the Hubei army, the Hunan army, the Sichuan army, and the Yunnan army. There are also some northern armies, such as the Northeast Army.

Compared with the original "armed princes", these so-called local armies are obviously different. The difference is that they have all been "centralized" in accordance with the government's army consolidation plan. Even the troops sent to Songhu by the Sichuan and Yunnan provinces are actually not direct troops controlled by Liu Xiang and Long Yun, but can be regarded as regular national defense forces. ", and the combat effectiveness has also been significantly improved compared with the past. Before these local armies were "centralized", they all came through the scramble of the civil war. They fight today and fight tomorrow, just like children playing house, and they didn't fight ugly. When a civil war is called a "national war", I immediately have a sense of honor of defending my home and country, and I feel that this is like a real national defense soldier.

Standing on the parade stand, Chen Cheng can see and dispatch any general: Xue Yue, Hu Lian, Wang Yaowu, Zhang Lingfu, Sun Liren... Now that so many troops have come for reinforcements, the generals have asked whether they can replace the original core troops and take a rest. Chen Cheng said, it cannot be changed! The old troops have experience and can fight. They know how to tell the devils "don't be afraid". No matter how heavy the casualties were, we still had to hold on during the day, and at night, when the Japanese artillery fire weakened, we would draw troops from the dispatched troops to replenish them.

At that time, many new troops, especially the local army, could not immediately reach the level of the first-line central army in terms of combat effectiveness and combat experience. In the bloody battle in Luodian, the reason why Chen Cheng was able to hold on was mainly because of the continuous "blood transfusion" in this way of bringing the old with the new, so as to maintain the vitality of the troops. When the battle entered a fierce stage, even Chen Cheng, who was the former commander-in-chief of the enemy, almost fell in Luodian himself. Chen Cheng was not tall, but he was very courageous. He never entered the air-raid shelter during an air raid, and it was useless to persuade him.But when an enemy plane attacked, the adjutants saw that something was wrong, so they went up together and pulled him out of the command post.

A bomb fell and the house collapsed.If Chen Cheng went out one second later, his life would be over. In this round of hard fighting, Matsui failed to open any gaps from the front, and as of September 29, the number of casualties of the Japanese army in Shanghai had exceeded the 10,000 mark! At this time in the north, the Battle of Baoding had ended, and the "Battle of Datong" planned by Yan Xishan had also died. Comparing the generals who invaded China, Matsui's report card was the worst, and his eyes were full of red crosses, too. It's hurtful. In the past, it could be said that there were not enough people, but now that the five divisions are in place, there are even a lot more. Of course, this reason can no longer be used as a shield.

After all, Matsui is the "China Hand" in Central China. After comparing and comparing, he finally found out where he lost. During the "January 28th" battle, Kenkichi Ueda, who had just landed in Shanghai, was at a loss in Jiangwan. Now they hit the same wall. The Songhu North Battlefield is the expanded Jiangwan.During the day, you can use cannons to blast the defenders' fortifications, and you can use tanks to open the way, but due to the geographical environment, tanks and cavalry are very slow to move. Sometimes they can only advance a few miles in one day, and get up the next day. At first glance, the defenders took back all the areas within a few miles in one night. Of course, the result was nothing.

It seems that we still have to choose another ideal battlefield. When Ueda switched from Jiangwan to Temple Bank, although he was still a loser, there is no doubt that at least the use of special forces was smoother. Matsui decided to enter the southern battlefield and fight in the Miaohang area. To enter the southern battlefield, one must forcibly cross Yunzaobang. What an amazing river. During the "January 28th" battle, the two sides forcibly crossed twice, and this time in Matsui was already the third time. On October 5, the Japanese army forcibly crossed Yunzaobang. After Zhang Zhizhong's resignation, Chen Cheng has actually assumed the responsibility of commanding the entire battlefield in Songhu.After he realized Matsui's intentions, he immediately mobilized the army, and the two sides launched a new bloody fight on the south bank of Yunzaobang.

The wind and clouds are moving, the drums of war are beating, everyone's eyes are widening, and their pupils are constricting. The only large-scale positional warfare in the eight-year war of resistance has reached its climax.Historian Huang Renyu pointed out that since the Battle of Songhu, there was no such example of large corps gathering together in a small area to fight during the entire Anti-Japanese War. The troops who came to Shanghai to fight were all transferred from various places under the banner of "War of Resistance". To use an inappropriate analogy, they are like the Eight-Power Allied Forces. Their equipment and training are very different, and their tactics and qualities are also very different.

In the past, they were all heroes based on the top of the mountain, but now they have to listen to the orders of one general. If you don't concentrate in a narrow area, let alone command and transfer, you may not even be able to gather all the heads. From a purely military point of view, Chen Cheng had better fight like this: Use miscellaneous troops to attract the firepower of the Japanese army, use direct troops as elite maneuvers, wait until the enemy's attack is frustrated or enter our first-line defensive position, and then outflank from the flanks. It's a good trick, but it's easy to be regarded as a "trick" by others.

Aren't you borrowing a knife to kill people, and you want to sacrifice our miscellaneous cards to preserve your direct lineage? It's hard to be human.Maybe before the fight was halfway through, half of the people dispersed first. Therefore, for Chen Cheng, everyone can only line up and go on the ground in batches. If this batch is disabled, another batch will be replaced. This cycle can ensure that the position is not lost. It was the Tax Police Headquarters that Chen Cheng placed high hopes on. This is a legendary force that became famous in the "January 28th" battle. The Tax Police Headquarters originally belonged to the nature of the investigation brigade, and its powers were limited to arresting smuggled salt dealers and protecting the salt farms.However, after being included in Song Ziwen's Ministry of Finance, it has almost developed to the same level as the Whampoa Military Academy Teaching Corps. Song Ziwen implemented a high salary system in the Tax Police Headquarters, and trained troops according to the U.S. Army drill code, so it is also known as the American Legion. In the "January 28th" battle, this American army joined the 5th Army and created an astonishing record that the number of Japanese troops killed exceeded the number of its own losses. As the old saying goes, people are afraid of being famous and pigs are afraid of being strong.Even Chiang Kai-shek knew that the Tax Police Headquarters could fight, so it was firmly remembered. After the Battle of the Great Wall, Song Ziwen, the backstage boss of the Tax Police Headquarters, patted the table with Chiang Kai-shek because of military expenditures. In a rage, he resigned from the position of Minister of Finance and left.As soon as his brother-in-law left, Chiang Kai-shek immediately asked Huang Jie to take over as head of the Tax Police Headquarters. Huang Jie was a first-year student in Whampoa. After he went there, he carried out a Whampoa-style transformation of the Tax Police Headquarters. Not only did the training methods change, but the commanders of the two detachments were also appointed by Whampoa officers. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Tax Police Headquarters is Chiang Kai-shek's secret weapon. But as the saying goes, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. After Chen Cheng pulled the two regiments of the Tax Police Headquarters up, they collapsed within a day or two. At the beginning, everyone thought that the first team was nothing, and it might be because they were not used to it just after playing. Wait until the six regiments of the Tax Police Headquarters are all gathered before going on. Unexpectedly, this time it still didn't work. A few days later, the first three regiments of the Tax Police Headquarters had more than half of their casualties, and basically lost their combat effectiveness. Among the six regiments that fought successively, only the fourth regiment played the best. In addition, other troops took turns to relay. Although Chen Cheng failed to push Matsui out of Yunzaobang, he still succeeded in blocking Matsui from the temple. After crossing the river, the casualties of the Japanese army were close to 20,000, and sometimes two or three thousand people were killed or injured a day. The worst part is running out of ammo. In the third troop increase, the 9th Division of Kanazawa was the only standing division among the three divisions. In addition, it also participated in the "January 28th" battle, and it can be called the leading brother among the younger brothers. Originally, Matsui specially allocated the field heavy artillery regiment to it, hoping to help it. Unexpectedly, the Kanazawa division was eager to make contributions, closed its eyes and clattered, and suddenly the cannon fell silent. Looking down, it turned out that all the shells had been fired. . Next to the Kanazawa Division is the Nagoya Division. Hey, I'm out of play, can I borrow some? However, the Nagoya Division has already turned the tide. It landed earlier than the Kanazawa Division, so there are so many shells available. The two divisions who were suffering from each other felt distressed.I am used to the tactical coordination of infantry and artillery. I didn't know how to walk without shells for a while.Of course, shells can also be replenished from the rear, but replenishment takes time. If we don't attack forward, Commander Matsui will come up with a baton. Sure enough, the Japanese have a lot of potential for invention. Didn’t they run out of ammunition? It’s easy to do. Take a piece of bamboo, make a bow and arrow, soak some gasoline, and shoot at the defender’s position! This trick probably came from school. Both sides of the war often shoot rockets at each other in this way. It can be seen that our country's classics are also very popular on the small island of Dongying. Taking advantage of this gap, Chen Cheng invited the famous Guangxi Guijun. One side supports one side of people. Guangxi has a fierce folk custom since ancient times. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a saying that "Guangxi wolves are the most powerful in the world". As for the soldiers, let them hack and kill for a while. Among the southwestern provinces, the only ones who can compete with Guangxi people are Hunan people. Both of them are screaming when they fight. During the Taiping Rebellion in the late Qing Dynasty, it was almost people from the two provinces who were fighting. The Hunan Army was mainly composed of Hunan children. The foundation of the Taiping Army came from the old brothers in Guangxi. When it came to the Northern Expedition, the Guangxi army surpassed the Hunan army in one fell swoop like sitting on a rocket. They no longer compared with the Hunanese in the north, but compared with the Cantonese in the east.In the Northern Expedition, there was the term "Second Iron Army". The "Iron Army" refers to the 4th Army in Guangdong, and the "Steel Army" refers to the 7th Army in Guangxi. Originally, it was supposed to defend like the Tax Police Headquarters, but Bai Chongxi, then deputy chief of staff, insisted on taking the initiative to attack and fight a beautiful blitzkrieg. On October 21, the 48th Army of the Guangxi Army launched an attack on the Japanese army. The blitz had to surprise the enemy, but unfortunately this goal was not actually achieved.After replenishment, the divisions and regiments of the Japanese army, which already had sufficient ammunition, "blitzed" the Gui army ahead of schedule—a full 12 hours ahead of schedule, that is to say, half a day sooner. The Japanese are extremely capable in deciphering telegrams, and the failure of the blitzkrieg is likely to be the result of the leak of the action plan. The Gui army suffered a lot in this battle. Guangxi officers and soldiers fought bravely. On the battlefield, they all rushed to the front with bayonets in their hands. Everyone was afraid of falling behind, and no one was willing to bend or crawl forward. This was also a tactic in the Civil War, and it worked.Because everyone's firepower was not strong at that time, the most fearful thing was to rush straight forward with such a blank face, and the timid would be so scared that they would pee their pants. But a foreign war is not a civil war. The Japanese army's guns were too fierce. In the end, it became a scene similar to the scene in "Burning the Old Summer Palace". , until the last flag bearer was left struggling in a pool of blood. After Bai Chongxi heard the battle report from the rear, he was in such pain that he refused to eat anything for several days. It is impossible to attack, and can only be retracted to defend. After tenacious defense, the offensive troops put into the front line by the Jinze Division were beaten into a miserable situation by the Gui Army. There used to be 180 infantry squadrons, which is equivalent to a Chinese reinforcement company. Now there are only less than 20 people left. Classes are difficult.The total casualties of the entire division reached more than 6,000, which means that half of the main force is gone. You must know that these are veterans who have undergone years of training. Other divisions suffered even more. The 101st Division suffered close to 9,000 casualties, and there were very few basic troops left, to the point of wanting to cry without tears. Since the launch of the new offensive, the casualty rate of the Japanese army has set a new record again, marching towards 30,000, and the total casualties are close to 60,000! The size of the Japanese divisions is usually between our divisions and the army. The main force is about 12,000 people, and with the addition of seven or eight special-purpose troops, it can reach more than 20,000. That is to say, if there is no supplementary source of troops If you continue to help, there are at least 4 to 5 divisions that can directly cancel the designation at this time. Shanghai is too difficult to play. Not only Matsui did not expect this, but most of the Japanese soldiers who came to Shanghai to participate in the war, including the citizens behind them, were also unprepared. In the 1980s, many elderly Japanese were very familiar with Jiangsu and Shanghai in China, and could even call them the names of Baoshan, Luodian, Yuepu, Yunzaobang, and Dachang. I'm not talking about veterans of the invasion of China. In fact, many military family members received a notice from China at that time.It was a death notice, and the death in battle column on it was filled with the above place names without exception. This unforgettable impression will probably be difficult to disappear by itself for a long time. At the same time, news of "continuous battles and victories" in the North China battlefield continued to come. The 1st Army of the North China Front Army occupied Shijiazhuang, Hebei, the 2nd Army reached Dezhou, Shandong, and the Mengjiang Corps captured Baotou in Suiyuan. Do not believe!Do not believe!Do not believe! We are exhausted, almost using blood and corpses to pave the road, but we are still struggling to occupy every position, and countless people will be killed and injured. How can the guys in the north succeed so easily? Isn’t it that we are facing the same China? army? Matsui really couldn't figure it out, but if he couldn't figure it out, he had to bite the bullet, because it was really hard to get off. While he was in a hurry to the high command, asking for more reinforcements, he continued to supervise the advance of the division. The Kanazawa Division is the first to bear the brunt. Survivors, let's gather together, hold the final oath, express our determination to the military flag handed down by Emperor Hirohito, march forward bravely, and decide the position. However, seeing the dire situation in front of the battle, the officers and soldiers already knew that if they left, they would not survive, so the swearing-in meeting that was supposed to be "strong and fierce" turned into a mournful farewell meeting. On October 23, the southern battlefield reached a boiling point. After three days of bloody battle, the Gui army basically wiped out all the essence, and none of the veterans who could fight or kill survived.Previously, the casualties of officers of other armies were at the regiment and battalion level at most, and the brigade level was very few, but the brigade commander of the Guangxi Army killed six or seven officers in battle, and even all the officers of one division were killed or injured. Chen Cheng was forced to withdraw the Gui army to rest, and the defense line retreated to the field. Before Chen Cheng withdrew, the offensive launched by the Shanghai Dispatch Army had almost come to a standstill and could not be fought anymore, especially for new recruits like the 101st Division. Faced with such heavy casualties, some officers and soldiers even expressed pessimism and war weariness in their diaries. Emotions. But as soon as the defenders withdrew to the field, Matsui immediately regained his spirits, as if he had been given a booster shot. He can free up the site and use the relatively open and flat terrain in the south to start building a land airport. In fact, since the Shantongji Division landed in Chuanshakou, Chinese fighter planes have rarely been seen in the sky of Shanghai. The Japanese army has complete air supremacy. Therefore, Matsui's starting point is not to conduct air combat, but to use the uniqueness of the air special forces. With the advantage, go to attack Chen Cheng's ground troops. The ebb and flow in the air is due to the change of the Japanese army's flight tactics. For six weeks of relative silence, the Japanese naval air force did not sleep at home, but engaged in a fierce quarrel behind closed doors. It will compete with the relatively weak Chinese Air Force. In the end, they came to a conclusion and corrected their mistakes, which will bring disaster to the Chinese Air Force. When it made a comeback again, the bomber was surrounded by escorting monoplane fighters, and its name was Type 96. The Type 96 was the best fighter in Japan at the time, and probably the best fighter in the world, and it was much faster than the American Eagle. The Type 96 has actually been developed a long time ago, but it has not been used much due to the influence of "the theory that fighter jets are useless". With 9 bombers and 27 Type 96s, the Chinese Air Force dispatched 16 Eagle Types. As a result, 11 were shot down, while the Type 96s were unscathed! Chennault was shocked, but he soon discovered that all of this was helpless, because the Type 96 was not only slightly better than the Eagle in terms of performance, but also the technical and tactical level of its pilots overall surpassed that of Chinese pilots—even among them. The best part. Unlike bomber pilots, Japanese fighter pilots have received strict air combat training, not only cooperate with each other tacitly, but also good at creating various traps in the air. Such as decoy tactics.Like Chennault's "Aerial Circus", it is also composed of three fighters, one of which is deliberately exposed. If you can't tell, you are lured into the ambush circle by it, and the other two will bite you tightly. tail until it knocks you to the ground. Another example is the cage tactic, which is actually a decoy tactic. If you suddenly see a group of Type 96 fighter jets tumbling in the air, like squirrels in a rotating cage, you must not try to approach or attack them, because it is a terrible trap. Once you are fooled and tricked into this "cage", a Japanese plane will quietly leave the team, and then suddenly appear from behind you until the murder is invisible. These tactics require extremely high flying skills to cooperate, even the top Chinese Air Force pilots, few people can fully do it. Chennault once personally drove an Eagle fighter jet to observe closely, but even he himself was almost trapped in the "cage" and could not get out.Thanks to the excellent flying skills of the Americans, they adopted the method of rolling together with the Type 96, so that the killer behind them could not find an opportunity to take advantage of. First-class aircraft performance, first-class flight technology, coupled with first-class flight tactics, when the 96-type escort bomber rushes over, the confronting Chinese fighter jets are shot down like swirling snowflakes, only some of the best technology can do it To flee at full speed in the plane. Of course, there are also men who refuse to admit defeat, such as Chennault's Chinese apprentice Liu Cuigang. Seeing the Japanese planes raging in the sky over Nanjing every day, and as if entering no one's land, he was so angry that he yelled - a man can be killed, he can't be humiliated, and he swears to kill you and other idiots! A fierce general like Zhongguan Yunchang stroked his long beard and shouted: "Take my precious sword here." Before boarding the fighter plane, Liu Cuigang took out his wallet and handed it to a Northeast fellow at the airport: "There is not much money in the wallet. If I die on the spot, I will donate it to the resistance fighters in the future as a token of my gratitude." Liu Cuigang single-handedly attacked the enemy group. As soon as he broke in, he fell into an ambush, and a Type 96 suddenly rushed out from behind, biting Liu Cuigang tightly. Liu Cuigang tried his best to get rid of it, but Yingshi was still injured.After being injured, the fighter plane began to lose its balance, and could only turn left, not right, and was even in danger of crashing, but the Japanese plane still persisted and followed closely. If you fly high, he will fly high, and if you fly low, he will rush against you. With a higher climb and speed, he will firmly press down on you. The distance between the two planes became shorter and shorter, and the Type 96 was already close to the tail of the Eagle. The Japanese pilot was inexplicably excited. In his opinion, the prey had already gained wings and could not escape. In this situation, even if you are an ace pilot, 100% have to surrender your gun or die. However, at the moment when the Japanese plane was about to aim and shoot, an astonishing scene appeared. The Chinese plane suddenly made a "clever sharp turn". This action looked like a straight "8" from the trajectory. Immediately, the Eagle was out of the range and firepower of the Type 96. One hundred percent is going to be over, but Liu Cuigang belongs to that one hundred and one percent. Naturally, the Japanese pilot refused to let it go. In his opinion, the opponent was already a rabbit with arrows in his body. Even if he could make a few life-saving moves before dying, he believed that he would not be able to jump a few times. If you come straight to "8", I will too, but it's just following the gourd. Once, twice, the two aerial combat masters used all their strength, sweat dripping down. After two rounds with one arm straight to the figure "8", Liu Cuigang still couldn't get rid of the pursuit. Every minute, every second, there was a possibility of being swallowed by him. This air chase has entered the most tense moment. The god of death keeps diving and diving. It opens its bloody mouth and stares at the two sides of the duel. In the ear, it seems that the sound of teeth gnawing at a piece of meat has already been heard. There were bursts of exclamations on the ground. Those who avoided the air raids walked out of the air-raid shelters in advance and became the audience of the "hand-to-hand combat in the air". At the extremely thrilling moment, some people couldn't help covering themselves with their hands They really don't want to see their heroes fall from the sky. Straight "8" for the third time. Ascending, descending, passing by, the Japanese pilot suddenly realized that he was at the back, but now he was at the front. It was just a very brief moment, so electric that it was almost imperceptible. But enough is enough. Liu Cuigang, who was behind him, turned his back on the guest. After a series of long shots, the 96-style fell to the ground. The people on the ground were stunned. Many people didn't know when this subtle change occurred. They only saw the Japanese plane emitting white smoke, hitting the ground, and then being smashed to pieces. Before and after, only a few minutes. Touch the cup on the table, the hot wine is still warm. He had already become the prey of others, but he could temporarily create an ambush circle by himself and put the opponent in the cage in turn. This kind of courage and skill even the ace pilot of the Japanese army was amazed. However, such scenes of shooting down the Type 96 are rare after all, and Liu Cuigang also risked his life and death to take off into the air to fight. Chennault saw that many pilots died in battle, and the number of outstanding ones was decreasing. In order to keep the seeds, he had to take measures to temporarily "snow" as much as possible the best pilots he thought, but he also knew that these survivors were like moving targets in an indoor shooting range. Having escaped the pursuit of death, you may not be so lucky next time. In a snowstorm, the withering of flowers is only sooner or later. On October 27, 1937, during an emergency landing, Liu Cuigang accidentally collided with a small building on the ground due to the lack of night flight equipment, resulting in the crash of the plane and the death of everyone. On November 21, Gao Zhihang was bombed and killed by the Japanese air force at Zhoujiakou Airport in Henan. When Gao Zhihang tested the Soviet aircraft in Lanzhou, he sent a message to his fellow countrymen in the Air Force Command: The Soviet fighter plane is fast enough, and it is hopeful that it can defeat the Type 96. The day will be defeated, and I will win. We will soon be able to return to our hometown in Northeast China. There is a poem in the Tang Dynasty that says: relatives and friends in Luoyang are like asking each other, and a heart of ice is in the jade pot. But in the end, most of these Northeast pilots failed to return alive. The misfortune of the world is beyond human ability to reverse. The tragedy continues. On December 3, Le Yiqin, a Sichuan pilot known as the "Steel Helmet of the Jiangnan Land", took to the air to fight.At that time, his Eagle car was already damaged, and he could only temporarily drive the last Italian fighter jet in the airport. The performance of the Italian plane is very poor. It is slow to turn around, climb slowly, and everything. Le Yiqin drives this broken plane, as if dancing in shackles. Soon the plane was hit by a bomb, and due to the late opening of the parachute, Le Yiqin fell to the ground and died. So far, three of the "Four Kings" of the Chinese Air Force have lost their seats, and the outstanding pilots standing at the forefront have all suffered casualties. One day, Song Meiling asked Chennault to accompany her to meet the returning plane. There were 11 planes in total. When they landed, one ran off the runway and fell into the rice field, one somersaulted and caught fire, and one crashed into a car that came to fight the fire... 11 out of 5 crashes, 4 pilots were killed. These are all pilots trained by Italian instructors. There are no outstanding ones, we have to let them go, and this is the result after going up. Soong Meiling was dumbfounded, she cried and asked Chennault: What should we do, what should we do? Chennault was speechless, not even a word of comfort. God, what can we do now. Entering October, of the 80 aircraft of the Chinese Air Force participating in the Battle of Songhu, there are less than 12 left. It is true that even the gods have nothing to do.