Chapter 21 4. A battle broke out at the northern end of Xuefeng

When the guns in the central and southern battlefields of Xuefeng Mountain rumbled, the battle in the northern important town of Xinhua broke out again. This is the combat plan formulated by Ichiro Sakanishi of the 20th Army to support the 116th Division.The 116th Division Yan Yongwang attacked quickly, but within a few days, it was stubbornly blocked by the Chinese army, and the progress was not smooth for a while. Sitting in front of the map, Banxi Ichiro had a whim and sent a powerful force to first capture the important town of Xinhua, consolidate the northwestern part of Hunan, and then cooperate with the 116th Division to annihilate a large number of Chinese troops in the area east of Yuanshui and west of Zishui. Vitality.The staff officers of the 20th Army believed that this idea was good and feasible.

Because the 131st Regiment of the 47th Division, under the command of the commander of the regiment, Shigehiro Sanma, attacked Xinhua via Shaoyang, and encountered almost no trouble along the way.The captain of the Chongqing-Guangzhou Sanma United sent a telegram to the headquarters saying that even the difficult task of crossing the river by Zishui went smoothly unexpectedly, and won the victory at a small price. Shigehiro Sanma's report increased Sakanishi Ichiro's confidence.He also sent the 86th Brigade, an independent mixed brigade, one division after another, to break through the Chinese army's defense line with heavy troops and occupy Xinhua in one fell swoop.The head of the brigade, Major General Ueno Harayoshi, is the powerful brigade of the 11th Army Yokoyama Isamu, with a strength of more than 4,000 troops.

The Ueno brigade was full of momentum, and the head of the brigade was ambitious. He opened the way with cavalry and infantry in the middle. After the heavy artillery fire was cut off, he went straight to Sunjiaqiao and Jiejiaao.The 15th Division of the 73rd Army was fortified in this area. The division commander Liang Zhiliu knew the strength of the Japanese cavalry.But that was on plain or hilly terrain, and in deep mountains and ravines, the power of the Japanese cavalry was greatly reduced. Having said that, Chinese soldiers still have lingering fears.The squad platoon company commander announced to the soldiers that the cavalry is not scary, the mountains are dense and the forests are dense, the cavalry horses cannot run, and the movements are slow, as long as we hold our breath and aim at the Japanese horses.Always remember that when fighting cavalry, you must hit the horse first, because the horse has a big target and is easy to be hit. Without the horse, the cavalry will become infantry.All the soldiers on the battlefield laughed.

The division commander Liang Jiliu didn't want the soldiers to suffer from the cavalry. He thought of a simple way to give the Japanese army a disarm first, and let Ueno Harayoshi's cavalry make a fool of themselves first.Liang Zhiliu is a brainy person with a lot of tricky ideas.He borrowed cannons from the Miao family and the Tu family in western Hunan. These cannons were left over from the Qing soldiers. After being filled with gunpowder, the barrels of the cannons were not filled with iron sand and stones, but filled with chili powder and quicklime powder. Things, set up a few cannons in the woods where the Japanese cavalry must pass.

Ueno Haraji ordered the cavalry to go through the woods and outflank the left flank of the Chinese army.The cavalry captain Taro Taro led the cavalry all the way like a storm, and they robbed and burned all the villages along the way.After the cavalry entered the bushes, they still maintained an invincible posture and went straight into the jungle. Qianwei walked to a fork in the forest, not knowing which way to go.They hesitated to open the map and took out the compass. The troops behind also came up, and dozens of war horses gathered at the intersection.Suddenly several cannons fired rumblingly, and several war horses jumped up in surprise, neighing for a while.

Four or five cannons were fired, but there was no shrapnel flying, but a cloud of gray powder mist diffused in the woods, covering the cavalry in a short while.The powder mist was choking and hot, floating in the eyes of people and horses, making people and horses howling, sneezing one after another, snot and tears all over their faces. Feeling bad, Taro Tahara quickly turned his horse's head and wanted to exit the bush.Unexpectedly, a series of wire ropes were stretched on the grass, tripping over a dozen horses, and the horses' legs were cut deeply by the wire.The ankle bones of horses are most afraid of this thing, and if they trip over the wire, they will almost be destroyed.

When the cavalry was in chaos, there was a clatter of submachine guns everywhere, and the four or five Japanese soldiers who were still riding on the horse fell headlong.Taro Taro, the captain of the cavalry, drew out his command sword and ordered to mount his horse and pursue him.As soon as the words fell, there was another burst of intensive gunfire, and the explosion of seven or eight grenades. The Japanese army chased in the direction of the shooting, but saw nothing. The surroundings were surrounded by dense forests and thorn bushes. The Chinese soldiers had already gone into the forest.Ambushing in the jungle was a platoon of Chinese soldiers. According to the arrangement of Master Liang, they let the Japanese cavalry brigade have a taste of the earth in western Hunan, and then quickly retreated to the mountains.

Taro Tahara lost more than a dozen horses and cavalry in vain, and walked out of the woods angrily.He ordered the brigade to ride their horses directly on the avenue and head straight for Sunjiaqiao.The Sixth Division Commander Liang Zhi also set up defenses on the way to Sunjiaqiao.He ordered the troops to dig trenches on the east bank of the stream, one after another, to introduce water from the Zijiang River into the trenches, and the trench network was interlaced to form a water array to stop the Japanese cavalry. In the ditch that is difficult for men and horses to jump over, sharp bamboo stakes are inserted, and several heavy machine guns are set up on the commanding heights of the water network.The Japanese cavalry has great abilities, but it is difficult to pass.They had no choice but to wait for the arrival of the main force.

The Uenohara Ji Brigade arrived at dusk.It started to rain at that time, and the rain was pouring hard, and the Japanese soldiers were drenched like soaked rats.During this period, the equipment of the Japanese army was not as good as before. The Japanese soldiers did not have raincoats, and they could not issue raincoats. After fighting for so many years, the national strength was already unbearable. On the contrary, the equipment of the Chinese army has become superior.The Chinese soldiers standing on the ground were all wearing rubber raincoats made in the United States, and even the machine guns and heavy machine guns were covered with tarpaulins.Sixth Division Commander Liang Zhi was wearing a raincoat and brought a few staff officers to the frontline command post.He watched carefully in the binoculars, and this was a good opportunity. He ordered the light machine gun, heavy machine gun, and mortar to fire at the enemy at the same time, catching them by surprise.

Da da da, boom, boom.Machine guns and shells suddenly hit the Japanese army.All of a sudden the Japanese army dispersed, and they rolled around in the muddy water.The head of the Ueno brigade hurriedly leaned down, and a string of machine gun bullets splashed the mud and water, making Ueno Harayoshi's face covered with yellow mud and water.He ordered the brigade artillery to fire and destroy the light and heavy machine guns on the Chinese defenders' positions.The artillery fire of the Japanese artillery was very fierce, and all the Chinese defenders went into underground bunkers several meters deep.

The Japanese infantry charged forcefully. They first crossed the water net ditch, and after passing the water net ditch, there was an open paddy field.In the paddy fields, the Chinese defenders planted extremely sharp bamboo pickets. The bamboo tips were buried just right, neither deep nor shallow. Generally, it was not easy to find them. When they stepped on them, they pierced the leather shoes and went straight into the center of the soles of the feet. In this way, the charging Japanese army could not run, and crawled like snails in the paddy fields, trying to find the place under their feet. The Japanese soldiers turned their attention to their feet and became living targets on the Chinese army's position.The Chinese soldiers took their time and aimed at one by one.A corpse fell in the paddy field.Ueno asked the follow-up troops to step on the corpses of their own soldiers, but human corpses were not easy to step on. They either slipped or tripped, and they were the targets of light and heavy machine guns. The Ueno brigade stopped fighting. They turned their heads and turned to Zhangjiachong at the junction of Xinhua and Anhua, hoping to cross the Zishui River from there.The weather was not good, and it rained heavily for several days, and the Zijiang River coincided with the surge of Taohuashui River, with rapid currents and turbulent waves. The Japanese army built a pontoon bridge, which took a day to build. When Chennault and his planes flew over, two bombs were dropped, and the bamboo and wooden pontoon bridge disappeared.After repeated bridge building and repeated bombing, Major General Ueno felt helpless, so he had to change his route again. Only the Chongguang Sanma Regiment crossed the Zijiang River, and the 131st Regiment led by him went deep alone.The Japanese army never had the concept of going deep into it alone, they never put their opponents in their eyes, and they never feared no matter how many Chinese troops they encountered.In front of them is the 77th Division of the 73rd Army, and tens of thousands of people are blocking the Zhongguang Sanma United. The 131st Wing used the attack tactics in turns, one squadron after another attacked the 77th Division's position.The two sides fought in darkness, and the Japanese army could not attack for a long time, so they adopted the tactics of sneak attack at night.Captain Shi Yuan selected a small group of strong soldiers, prepared enough ammunition, formed a commando team, and went straight to the defenders' positions through the back road.This is the best fighting method of the Japanese army. The commando is characterized by ferocity and speed. Their task is to penetrate to the end, so when they advance, they run straight forward regardless of everything. He rushed to the position, beat the Chinese defenders fiercely, and then rushed into the fortifications for hand-to-hand combat, and drove the defenders away from the fortifications with desperate efforts of Saburo.Cooperating with the main force of the Japanese army in the frontal attack, they flanked the Chinese defenders.However, the main regiment of the 77th Division guarding the position is also a force that is good at fighting fierce battles. When the enemy's foothold is not stable, they immediately organize a counterattack.There was chaos on the battlefield, and soldiers from both sides intertwined and mixed together. The Japanese soldiers were beaten back again.Zhongguang Sanma ordered the artillery to use the mountain artillery. After the violent mountain artillery bombardment, the defenders' positions were dead silent.The Japanese infantry charged in a group. When they came to the middle of the mountain, mortars, light and heavy machine guns poured down like a storm. More than 200 Japanese soldiers were killed and injured, and they retreated. The Chongqing-Guangzhou Sanma United Team was held back by the 77th Division, and could not advance half a step westward.Commander Han Jun ordered the 77th Division to strengthen the frontal assault, and at the same time ordered the 15th Division to turn around and head west to attack the Japanese army on the left side of the back.The two divisions formed a pincer attack and completely surrounded the headquarters of the 131st Regiment of the Japanese Army in the hills and mountains around Xiaotang.The 3rd Battalion of the Japanese Army carried out the rescue and covered the Wing Headquarters to break out of the encirclement. The main force of the Japanese army that broke out of the siege did not go far, and was blocked by a reinforced regiment of the 77th Division.The whole regiment concentrated its artillery fire on the Japanese army, and the planes of the Sino-US United Air Force also came to help in the battle, beating the enemy into a very embarrassing situation.Chongguang Sanma immediately ordered to dig temporary tunnels and build fortifications. We must hold on and wait for the arrival of the army. Sakanishi Ichiro received a call for help from the Chongguang United Team and was trying to rescue them.The only one that can be used is Ueno Harayoshi of the 86th Brigade on the northern front line.However, this brigade of more than 4,000 people was stubbornly blocked by the 73rd Army and the 100th Army of the Chinese Army along the way.This is an army composed of local ethnic minorities. They once followed Chief Du Yuming on an expedition to Burma, and after returning from abroad, they were assigned to the 73rd Army.In the Xiangxi battle, the main task was to cooperate with the 15th Division to fight. Ueno Harayoshi doesn't want to fight with this group of minority soldiers. They are not like regular soldiers, they always follow behind you.When Uenoharakichi entered Xiangxi, he was blocked by the 15th Division. He couldn't cross the river at Sunjiaqiao. This made the always arrogant Major General Uenoharakichi very embarrassed. One night, the Japanese independent mixed brigade, in accordance with the instructions of the head of the Ueno brigade, suddenly transferred troops, and rushed back to the defensive position of the 15th division.At the same time, throw away the temporary 6th teacher behind the buttocks.The main force of the 15th Division went to assist the 77th Division, and went to encircle and wipe out the Chongqing-Guangzhou Wing. There was only one reorganized regiment left on the defense line of the position. In order to prevent the invasion of the Japanese army, Zheng Hui led the whole regiment to build fortifications on the small high ground on one side of the road by taking advantage of the temporary lull in the war to cut off the Japanese army's retreat.But he didn't expect Ueno Harayoshi to turn his head around so quickly, and suddenly rushed out from their sides. The main force of the Japanese army was pressed down from a high place, and it was a large area of ​​blackness, which was a bit insolent. Zheng Huituan was confused for a while, so he had to rush to fight.After all, the Japanese army was a mixed brigade, and the firepower was very fierce. After a short while, the whole regiment was squeezed into a mass grave in a depression, and the situation was very dangerous. Zheng Hui hurried to the Sixth Division Commander Liang Zhi for help.Master Liang said that the distant water could not quench the near thirst, so he organized a counterattack on the spot, seized the high ground, insisted on relying on the terrain, and waited for the rescue of the main force.Master Liang put it lightly, how can a regiment deal with an independent mixed brigade?Zheng Hui had no choice but to rely on himself. He immediately organized a commando, planning to rush out of this depression and seize the high ground opposite. However, several batches of commandos organized by Zheng Hui failed, and they were all forced back by the Japanese army in front of them. The fierce fighting lasted until the afternoon, and the troops suffered heavy casualties. Two of the three battalion commanders were seriously injured, and one company commander was killed.The Japanese offensive was still fierce, and the shells blew up the stone tablets in the random graves all over the sky.A radio station was also blown up by shells, and it was no longer possible to communicate with the division headquarters. Head Zheng mobilized on the battlefield, and the whole regiment launched a group charge in the form of echelons. They desperately wanted to kill a bloody road, rush out of the mountain pass, and save a seed for our regiment. We must not stay in this depression and be beaten passively.He ordered the 1st Battalion to be in the front and the 2nd Battalion to be in the back. All members of the regiment headquarters must take up weapons and fight the current enemy. They had just organized their formation when dense gunshots sounded from the back hill.The sound of shouting and killing was like the pine waves in the mountains, like thunder rolling in, from far to near, coming from the mountain ridge, shaking the soldiers in the chaotic graves.Holding up the binoculars, Zheng Hui was pleasantly surprised to see that the Japanese army was in disarray. He shouted that the reinforcements had arrived, and the main force of the division had returned. Zheng Hui immediately ordered an attack to cooperate with the main force to attack the Japanese army.Ueno Harayoshi was stunned, where did this come from the Chinese army?Under the front and back attacks of the Chinese army, the Japanese army suffered heavy casualties. The brigade commander quickly gathered his troops and broke through the encirclement hastily before the attacking Chinese army blocked the road. The two units of the Chinese army joined up. Only then did Commander Zheng know that it was not the main force of the 15th Division who came to rescue the siege, but the friendly neighbors of the 6th Division.The 6th Temporary Division has been following the Japanese brigade, and they have been following when the Japanese army turned around.The panic-stricken head of the Uenohara Ji Brigade has been looking for opportunities to join the Chongguang Sanma United, but they can't do it. They can't break through the barriers of the 15th Division and the Temporary 6th Division. Commander Wang Yaowu heard that the 6th Temporary Division was able to fight, so he happily issued them new uniforms. Each company was also equipped with several new light machine guns, and the rifles in the soldiers' hands were also made in Hanyang.These were all replaced by the direct line of the Kuomintang, and if they were not used, it would be better to send them to these miscellaneous troops to fight devils.Just like that, Temporary 6th Teacher was overjoyed. The head of Uenohara Ji's brigade had a hard time on the northern front. He believed that it would not be impossible for his brigade and Shigehiro Sanma's unit to occupy Xinhua. In a state of isolation and helplessness, it is impossible to form a joint force.Even if there is a joint force, it seems that it will not be able to destroy the defense line set up by tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers.What's more, the current Chinese army is equipped with all American equipment, and has absolute air supremacy, and its morale is very strong.So Ueno Harayoshi kept sending telegrams to Ichiro Sakanishi, asking for reinforcements. Sakanishi Ichiro doesn't have any mobile troops to adjust. His headquarters in Shaoyang City has almost no troops to defend. It is all puppet troops transferred from the Northeast. What he sang in Shaoyang is an empty city plan.In response to Ueno's telegram, Sakanishi Ichiro called back and asked them to move closer to Shaoyang and serve as Shaoyang's security mission. Uenoharakichi couldn't ask for more, he didn't want to stay for a day.This place has big mountains and deep ravines, and it is an unlucky place. He is worried that there will be no place to bury him if he dies.After receiving the telegram from Ichiro Sakanishi, he immediately packed his things.Of course, the more careful it is at this time, the Chinese army must not be aware of anything, and it will be troublesome if something extraneous is caused.Uenohara Kichi didn't even dare to smile, he suppressed his joy and joy in his heart, and he was more taboo when extreme joy begets sorrow. The withdrawal of troops was carried out quietly.In order to confuse the Chinese army, the sun flag on the roof of the headquarters was not removed, and the flag was hung there. If there is a military flag, there must be an army, so that the Chinese army will not act rashly.In addition, the troops had to take small roads, pass through mountains and forests, avoid the surveillance of the Chinese army, and return to Shaoyang smoothly after getting rid of them. The actions of the head of the Uenoharaji brigade were still discovered by the Chinese army, which was a very accidental thing.There was a reconnaissance company in disguise. They were wearing plain clothes and encountered Japanese troops in a valley.According to common sense, when a company encounters a brigade of Japanese troops, they should avoid it, and no one will make irresponsible remarks.But this company of the Chinese army dared to block the way and opened fire on the Japanese army as if it had eaten the guts of a leopard. They blocked the entrance of the mountain canyon, and several machine guns beeped and swept towards the Japanese army. The Japanese army's vanguard fell down, and the Japanese soldiers behind rushed up. The Chinese soldiers threw grenades, and the sound of explosions resounded through the valley.Fearing that reinforcements would be called in, Uenohara Kichi used mountain artillery to bombard the mouth of the gorge. In the end, the company of the Chinese army did not survive.