Chapter 230: Five Steps and One Shovel Vs. Nine Steps and Two Cannons with Full Support

West Line of Zhongtiao Mountain, the former Third Army position.

Looking at the explosion smoke in the rear, the corners of the mouth of Lieutenant Colonel Okawa Changwu twitched. He now firmly believed in one thing, that is, no one could survive under such dense artillery fire.

Ninety percent of his own division commander is in danger. But given the current situation, isn't it a kind of happiness to die directly under the enemy's artillery fire.

"Baga, at least more than a hundred barreled guns."

"Which enemy is so generous? Am I really in the battlefield of the Republic of China? I really don't know what the Special High Technology Department does for a living. It actually allowed such a large enemy force to sneak into the rear quietly."

"If I can go back alive, I will."

At this point, Okawa Changwu was silent.

The enemy not only has a large number of artillery clusters, but also fighter planes like locusts.

Not only is our side at a disadvantage in manpower and firepower, but it is now sandwiched between two enemies and even lost air supremacy, the most important area on the modern battlefield.

In summary, he didn't think he had any chance of leaving Zhongtiao Mountain alive.

If he could not be so cruel to himself, maybe suicide would be a good choice, at least he would not have to spend the rest of his life in fear.

As for surrender, the traitors of the country should know about it.

Even the division commander has been killed. If a small lieutenant colonel dares to surrender, he will definitely be torn to pieces by the grassroots officers and soldiers.

Throwing out the complicated thoughts, Okawa Masaru first tidied his military uniform and walked towards his position as the commander of the regiment.

At this time, Colonel Ota Sanji was making pre-war mobilization. He was wearing a veil with a flag of victory on his head. Holding the family-inherited samurai sword in his hand, his expression and tone were full of fanaticism, and he looked like a war maniac.

"Our war has reached its final stage!"

"His Majesty the Heavenly Locust needs us! Japan needs us too! Now is the time for everyone to be loyal! Warriors! Take up your weapons and tear apart the enemies who dare to challenge the 36th Division!"

"Long live the Heavenly Locust! Long live Japan! Gentlemen! Let's meet at Kudanzaka!"

As soon as the words fell, nearly a hundred Japanese soldiers, who were also wearing ointment flags and turbans and bare-chested, responded to the call immediately. They shouted fanatical slogans with red eyes, and their rationality had long disappeared without a trace.

These people had ferocious faces, and most of them had white foam of unknown composition at the corners of their mouths. It was obvious that they were taking drugs.

It is worth mentioning that the weapons used by the death squad were also very special. In addition to Molotov cocktails and rifles, everyone carried a large amount of explosive packs, and most of them were going to play human bombs in a while.

"Long live His Majesty the Heavenly Locust, long live Japan!"

"See you at Kudanzaka."

Seeing this scene, Okawa Changwu behind the position couldn't help but sigh. This is not because he feels sorry for the brainwashed death squads.

Bushido plus ice, the combination of the two is definitely the best way to tame the lower-level soldiers.

After being indoctrinated by the superior officers, not many people can walk out of the recruit camp normally. Basically, they will become murderous madmen before leaving the factory.

At the critical moment, coupled with the stimulation of drugs, the soldiers are absolutely fearless.

Throwing Molotov cocktails at close range and waiting for the opportunity to rush into the crowd with explosive packs are common operations of the death squads.

As a lieutenant colonel in the country, Okawa Changwu strongly agrees to use the lowest cost to stimulate the potential of the lower-level soldiers. After all, there are always casualties in war, it's just a matter of rational use of resources.

The reason why he sighed was because he felt a little emotional because the defeat was already decided.

Obviously, the situation was very good in the previous second, and the command post, supply center and reserve team in the rear were all gone in the next second.

According to the current remaining ammunition of their regiment, all soldiers will run out of ammunition and food in a maximum of one and a half hours of fighting.

"Sir Colonel! What should we do next?"

"Should we hold our position and wait for the support of the 41st Division? Or should we concentrate our existing forces and break out to both sides?"

After hearing his adjutant's question, Ota Sanji brought Okawa Changwu to the temporary command post.

After no one was around, the fanaticism in the eyes of the Japanese colonel disappeared completely.

This old Japanese is really a good actor, saying one thing in front of others and another behind them. He doesn't want to die. Now the First Army has lost two division commanders and one brigade commander, and the vacant position is very tempting.

"Next, we will neither hold our position nor break out to the east or west!"

"Now our regiment is surrounded by two enemy forces. We can only hold out for an hour at most. Who knows if Commander Okamura Ningji has any backup plans."

"I plan to let two infantry battalions and artillery squadrons take the lead, and then break out to the south with the elite forces of the regiment. You go and prepare, and bring more dry food and ammunition."

In fact, Ota Sanji's decision was correct. The 120th Division has begun to deploy on both sides of the battlefield. Once the Japanese rushed into the encirclement in a panic, they would be greeted by a thunderous blow!

Breaking out to the south is indeed the way to survive with the highest chance of survival. After all, after five and a half days of continuous fighting, the spirit of all the soldiers of the Third Army has reached its limit.

Although the Eighth Route Army airdropped supplies to them, physical strength and spirit cannot be replenished by eating.

"Get ready for battle, the enemy will not give us too much time to prepare!"

"Hi!"

······

The battle on the Western Front entered a fierce battle from the beginning.

Although the 36th Division, the 37th Division and the 16th Independent Mixed Brigade only had 10,000 people left, and they had lost their own leaders and unified command.

But the devils did not wait to be killed. All the survivors were in regiments, using the relatively high terrain to block the enemy layer by layer, and their determination to resist was very tenacious.

There was hardly a Type 92 heavy machine gun on the front position, and all tactics were based on grenade launchers and Taisho Type 11 light machine guns.

Those were infantrymen with insufficient ammunition. Their mission was to use their lives to test the firepower points of the 120th Division's advancing troops.

Once the mission was completed or the few ammunitions were consumed, the devils would launch a charge, trying to use their lives to pull as many soldiers as possible into the water.

The heavy machine guns were placed on the flanks, and the machine gunners would wait patiently for the opportunity and never expose themselves until the critical moment. If there was a suitable opportunity, they would not hesitate to pull the trigger even if there were comrades in front.

Even those suicide squads who took medicine did not rush forward howling. They tried their best to stay awake, or hide in bunkers or disguised as corpses.

As long as the soldiers of the 120th Division showed a flaw, these devils would rush forward directly with a full amount of explosives.

Some lucky suicide squad members even got the chance to rush into the crowd and self-destruct with the cover of smoke bombs or gunpowder.

If it weren't for the high combat literacy of the comrades and the assistance of veterans, they might have been caught off guard by the enemy.

But there was nothing they could do about it. The 120th Division had been experiencing continuous personnel transfers since four years ago.

Although there was sufficient food and weapons and ammunition supplies, the troops were expanded by nearly one-fold, and each regiment-level unit strictly enforced daily training.

But training is training after all. Many comrades were on the battlefield for the first time and had serious lack of experimental experience.

Those enemy infantrymen who rushed out of trenches, craters, and even piles of corpses were really hard to defend against.

Faced with the devils' life-for-life fighting style, the casualties of troops at all levels were somewhat pessimistic. Almost every step forward had to pay a certain price.

The battle had been going on until now, and there was a hint of war again.

Looking at the real-time battle report sent back from the front line, the head of the 715th Regiment was furious. He picked up the phone beside him and issued new orders to the battalion and company levels.

"Have you forgotten what our advantage is? It's firepower! Play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses, understand?"

"The troops are equipped with so many mortars, and this time they brought a huge number of shells! You should use them!"

"We are no longer the Eighth Route Army of the past! Use shells to clear the way for me! As long as there is a suspected enemy in any position! First, bombard me with a round to confirm the situation!"

After receiving the order from the regiment commander, each unit gave full play to the theory of superior firepower.

During the advancement, the company's 50mm mortars, the battalion's 60mm mortars, and the regiment's 81mm mortars performed well.

Once any organized resistance occurs, it will be quickly eliminated.

When encountering trenches or large-scale craters, first suppress the surrounding enemies with rifles and light and heavy machine guns. Then the infantry advances steadily, regardless of whether anyone throws grenades first.

When encountering a Japanese corpse, first shoot half a magazine with a submachine gun, and pretend to be dead to make him really dead.

Faced with the firepower of the 120th Division at all levels, the casualties of the Japanese soared. This is a crushing of logistics capabilities. How can a shovel at five steps beat a full support company with two guns at nine steps?

Even though some death squads used their comrades' lives as cover, only a few broke through the defense line, and even fewer devils could exchange their lives for their own.

The balance of victory has tilted towards their side, and Hu Zi Division Commander nodded with satisfaction. However, the political commissar did have some opinions. He pointed to the casualties column and said seriously:

"Our soldiers are still too kind. We should kill those inhumane Japanese beasts!"

"After this battle, we have to conduct special training. I don't want to let the hard-won recruits be exchanged for those worthless devils."

"Just now, the Third Army sent a message that they are ready to cooperate with us to launch a general attack!"

Hu Zi Division Commander nodded at the words of his own political commissar. The Eighth Route Army also had death squads in the early days of the war, but that was a helpless move due to the lack of heavy weapons.

Facing the enemy's firepower points, artillery towers and even tanks, there was no direct firepower and the soldiers could only rely on their lives.

To put it bluntly, at the critical moment of the big battle, our own death squads were even worse than the devils now.

However, the nature of the two sides is different. The enemy's high-level officials regard infantry as consumables and do not care about casualties at all.

And our comrades sacrificed themselves for their comrades, not to mention that everyone would try their best to protect themselves. No one would think of dying together from the beginning.

"Hey, those enemies have been brainwashed, and they have definitely taken drugs."

"We have arranged veterans in each unit. After experiencing this battle, the comrades will definitely grow up."

"Pass my order, let the troops at all levels launch a general attack! Join the Third Army to attack the remnants of the enemy! Try to end the battle before dark! It will be troublesome if it drags on until night."

"Yes!"

After receiving the order for the general attack, the various units doubled their firepower.

Under the baptism of mortars of various calibers, the mountain of Zhongtiao Mountain seemed to be shorter. In a sense, it is a bit difficult to find a complete body on the devil's position.

······

West Line of Zhongtiao Mountain, Defense Line of the Third Army.

At this moment, the soldiers of the three divisions are in place. Even the 27th Division of the 80th Army next door had two regiment-level units that broke through the enemy's blockade and successfully joined forces.

After a short rest, the soldiers shook off their previous fatigue.

Inside the command post, except for the 7th Division Commander Cun, a corps commander and two division commanders were all in place, and they were ready to cooperate with the 120th Division's attack.

"Commander, the Eighth Route Army is really rich."

"I just went to the frontier observation post, and they really used artillery shells to clear the way every step they took. Even the devils in 1937 didn't fight so exaggeratedly."

"And the weapons they support are all good stuff! Unlike the bald guy in the southwest, every time he replenishes ammunition, he is stingy, just like sending beggars."

Hearing the words of his old subordinate, Commander Tang glared at Division Commander Li without saying a word.

In fact, he understood the hidden meaning of the other party's words, which was nothing more than taking advantage of the opportunity to fight side by side to bring the two sides closer. If possible, it would be better to join the other party directly.

However, some things can only be thought about, and there are many tricks behind the scenes.

"Rich as hell? I think you've eaten too much meat!"

"Put away those dangerous thoughts. Bringing the troops to join the enemy now will only cause trouble for them!"

"I have just communicated with the 120th Division of the Eighth Route Army. In fifteen minutes, we will launch a general attack on the 36th and 37th Divisions of the devils! We will avenge our brothers ourselves!"

"Okay!"

Boom boom boom!

As soon as the voice fell, there were bursts of explosions from the outside world.

The three people in the room rushed out immediately. Through the telescope, they saw huge explosions and smoke rising violently, lifting up the dirt and debris on the front-line positions.

Everyone present was an officer with rich combat experience and was familiar with various types of artillery.

The explosion and lethality just now were definitely not the Eighth Route Army's miss. Judging from the sound and destructive power, it is most likely the devil's Type 92 infantry gun and Type 94 mountain gun.

Soon, the front line sent back specific information.

"Commander! Four thousand enemies from the northwest are launching a fierce attack on our position!"

"The enemy should be a fresh force, not only with more than a dozen barreled cannons, but also with sufficient ammunition for the infantry."

This news made Commander Tang very unhappy. The devils dared to fight on two fronts, clearly treating their Third Army as a soft persimmon.

If they couldn't defeat the Eighth Route Army head-on, they would leave the rear troops behind. The elite troops broke out to the south, trying to enter Zhongtiao Mountain and join the rest of the divisions.

"Order troops at all levels to hold their positions! That's just the enemy's desperate struggle!"

"As long as we hold on for two hours, friendly forces will definitely join us! Then we can eat up all the enemy forces! Execute the order!"

"Yes!"

I shouldn't be able to come out in the early morning of the 15th. I've been too uncomfortable staying up late these days. I can't stand it.