Chapter 38: Complete Victory (Part 1)

  The two armies soon clashed heavily together.

  The sound of weapons clashing, the sound of bones shattering, the sound of sharp blades tearing through flesh, and the angry curses of soldiers from both sides, as well as their mournful cries before death, all blended together in an instant.

  It must be acknowledged that the bayonet fighting of the 17 regular divisions of the Japanese army is indeed formidable.

  The guard company of Hua Hanlin is also considered to be one of the best, with a significant advantage in military strength, but it's unexpectedly unable to gain the upper hand. Generally speaking, three Japanese soldiers standing back-to-back can block at least six National Army soldiers' encirclement!

  However, the guard troops had an absolute advantage in terms of troop strength, and this numerical superiority became more pronounced as they went further back.

  At first, the guard company had more than 180 people against the Japanese army's 60 or so people. However, in less than half a pack of cigarettes' time, the guard company was left with fewer than 90 people, and the little devils were left with fewer than 20 people. The situation on the entire battlefield instantly became five against one. Nevertheless, those who remained were all masters of close combat, so it wouldn't be easy to decide victory or defeat.

  However, at this time, the fleet carrying the main force of Nakagawa's allied forces was also approaching Jingjiang Wharf.

  On the opposite bank, Nakagawa's main force was unable to land normally as the enemy and our troops were already mixed together on the dock, and the scene was chaotic. He was suddenly annoyed and gave an order, and the six 92-style heavy machine guns mounted on the bow of the ship opened fire simultaneously, sweeping the dock indiscriminately.

  The two armies of officers and soldiers suddenly fell down like cut weeds.

  In less than a moment, the dock was empty of people, whether it was the Japanese army or the National Army, all fell in the blood pool, and the blood stains shed by the soldiers of both sides even dyed the entire dock as if it had been washed with blood, a bright red...

  …………

  Several hundred meters away is the command post of the Baoshan Regiment.

  Yue Weihan's eyebrows furrowed instantly.

  Cao Xinglong on the side also said in disbelief: "This little devil is really inhuman, even killing his own people!"

  "The enemy is landing. The little devils have started to come ashore." Lieutenant Liu Xin was also standing beside Yue Weihan, holding a Browning pistol, but he didn't know when he had gotten there.

  Yue Weihan also saw it without Liu Xing reminding him.

  This was truly beyond Yue Weihan's expectations. Originally, Yue Weihan had still hoped that the guard company could drive the vanguard of the devils back to the edge of the dock, so that the attack route of the main devil force following up would be blocked. If the devils didn't want to retreat, they could only deploy their attacking formation on both sides of the riverbank at the dock.

  Otherwise, large Japanese forces would be bunched together and become easy targets.

  However, a random shot from the Japanese army shattered Yue Weihan's plan.

  But thinking calmly, this is also normal. The situation on the battlefield has always been changing rapidly and can never develop according to anyone's predetermined plan. If the progress of the war had always gone according to Yue Weihan's plan, it would not have been a battle but a military exercise.

  When faced with sudden unexpected events, the commander's ability to make quick decisions will be ruthlessly tested.

  An excellent commander is always quick to react and can nip danger in the bud, while a poor one often reacts slowly, makes wrong decisions, and ultimately leads to irreparable disasters!

  Yue Weihan immediately turned around and ordered Liu Xin: "Pass the order to fire the cannons continuously, and immediately bombard the dock."

  "Yes!" Liu Xin hastily stood up straight, just about to turn around and leave when Yue Weihan added with a ferocious expression, "Tell Niu Dageng not to save artillery shells for me, I won't forgive him if he does!"

  "Yes!" Liu Xuanjiao responded with a single word, before turning around and hastily leaving.

  Faced with sudden changes, Yue Weihan had no good strategy and could only take a risk!

  Let the big root of the cow's cannon not spare blood to attack the dock is a reckless move, because the cannon's ammunition is quite limited, rapid firing can only last for a few minutes at most. The Japanese army only needs to hold on for a few minutes and will find that their opponent is just making a false show of strength. By then, the situation facing the Baoshan regiment will be even worse than it is now!

  Soon, rows of shells whizzed over the Paoshan regiment's position and dived down towards the Jingjiang dock. In an instant, a burst of dazzling red light erupted on the dock, and the artillery company, which had already set its sights, fired off ten rounds in rapid succession, instantly turning the Jingjiang dock into a mess of splintered wood and flying stone chips.

  The two Japanese troops that had just rushed onto the dock were blown to pieces before they could even deploy, and the remaining few dozen wounded soldiers were quickly knocked down by the crossfire of the two Baoshan camps. In short, artillery is the trump card in field battles, whoever has a strong artillery, basically stands on the ground of invincibility.

  Of course, if tanks and air forces were involved on a large scale, that would be a different story.

  But in the eight-year war of resistance, it was basically impossible for a large-scale confrontation between tanks and air forces to occur, so artillery became the absolute king of field warfare! In fact, this was indeed the case. In the early stages of the eight-year war of resistance, the main reason why the Japanese army could almost annihilate the National Army on the front lines was that they possessed an absolutely superior artillery and air force.

  …………

  Across the river.

  Seeing the two infantry squads on the shore quickly disintegrate under the intense artillery fire of the Chinese army, Nakagawa's face suddenly turned iron-green. He put down his binoculars and said viciously: "Hachigaya, Bao Shan Camp was just a mob of defeated soldiers, how did they get artillery? Are there other Chinese government troops on the opposite bank of the river?"

  The lieutenant next to him reminded: "Colonel, judging from the intensity of the artillery fire just now, there is at least a battery of Chinese artillery on the opposite bank of the river! Our fleet is in great danger now and may be covered by Chinese artillery fire at any time. We have only two choices, either retreat and wait for Colonel Honda's artillery battalion to arrive before advancing again, or launch an attack formation ahead of schedule, but this will cause our army to get stuck in the muddy beach..."

  "Nakagawa Commander ordered without hesitation: 'Pass on to each squadron, immediately deploy the attack formation!'"

  "Attention!" Seeing that Nakagawa had given the order, the lieutenant did not say anything more and immediately turned around to command the flag signaler to pass on the orders to each infantry company on the opposite bank of the river.

  …………

  Jiangbei, Baoshan Team Headquarters.

  As soon as Yue Weihan saw the Japanese army's fleet crossing the river and rapidly deploying to both wings, he knew that the Japanese army was going to launch a preemptive attack formation. At this moment, his back was covered with cold sweat. If the Japanese could hold on for a few more minutes and send out two or three small teams to launch a probing attack on the dock, the artillery company would be exposed immediately.

  By then, the Baoshan regiment could only watch as the Nakagawa detachment landed on a large scale from the Jingjiang dock. At that time, even if Cao Xinglong's 1st battalion launched a desperate charge, it would not have worked, because this time the landing was not just over a hundred devils, but more than a thousand elite devils of half a brigade!

  If it really came to that point, Yue Weihan would probably have no choice but to order a retreat if he didn't want his entire army to be annihilated.

  Fortunately, all this did not happen. The Nakagawa Alliance launched an attack formation ahead of schedule without knowing the details of the Baoshan Gang.

  Cao Xinglong beside him couldn't help but punch his palm with excitement, saying: "Good, the little devil finally can't hold back!"

  "What's good?" Yue Weihan wiped the cold sweat from his palm on his military uniform, and said in a low voice, "Even if the devils are trapped in the muddy beach of the river, there are still over a thousand elite troops! Don't expect the river beach to cause much trouble for the devils, the fierce battle is yet to come, let your 1st battalion be prepared, ready to launch a desperate counterattack at any time!"

  "Yes!" Cao Xinglong hastily straightened up and immediately turned around and left in a hurry.

  Yue Weihan's caution is not unreasonable. The Nakagawa detachment had already launched an attack formation, and the riverbank caused great difficulties for their offensive, but the elite troops were indeed elite, whether it was individual tactics, marksmanship, determination to fight to the end, or tactical coordination between squads, companies, and battalions, all of which were fucking perfect!

  Each infantry squad was equipped with two grenade launchers, which became a nightmare for the entire Baoshan Corps!

  In the end, the Baoshan Regiment was unable to stop the Ichigayato Regiment from crossing the river and setting foot on solid ground. In the blocking battle, the Baoshan Regiment paid an extremely heavy price. The two battalions of the Baoshan Regiment stationed on the two small hills in front were subjected to almost all the firepower of the Japanese army. Within less than half an hour of fierce fighting, these two battalions were almost wiped out.

  However, the Nakagawa troops also paid a heavy price, and the muddy riverbank still caused them great difficulties.

  The main force of the Nakagawa Alliance had more than 1,500 people, but at this time, more than half of them had been injured or killed, and only more than 700 people walked out of the riverbank and stepped on solid ground. But what was even more deadly was that in the intense firefight just now, the reserve ammunition carried by the army, which was originally prepared for subsequent attacks, had already been consumed by more than half.

  Moreover, after more than half an hour of fierce battle, the Japanese officers and soldiers also made a large number of tactical movements such as lying down, rolling over, and crawling forward in the muddy riverbank. Whether mentally or physically, they had already shown signs of fatigue. The Japanese army was elite, but ultimately it was flesh and blood, not iron-clad steel.

  ……