Chapter 44: The Wind Rises in Ji Nan (7)
Meng Xi shook his head and said, "That won't do. Our regiment's mission is to block the enemy and ensure the safety of the 26th Brigade and the 1st and 3rd Battalions attacking Zengjiashan. If we take the initiative to attack, if the enemy breaks through our defenses, we'll be in big trouble, and it will be considered disobedience on the battlefield. However, if this 55th Division is attacking our blocking position and is defeated or even annihilated by us, then we are not disobeying orders. The order didn't say that we can only block the enemy and not eliminate them."
Xu Fang patted his thigh: "Great! You're a great talent, Meng Xi, my chief of staff. What's your plan? Speak up quickly, don't hesitate!"
Meng Xi explained his idea, and Xu Fang was overjoyed. He immediately ordered: "Move all six 75mm mountain artillery companies and all 82mm mortars to the top of the mountain in one line. Make sure to camouflage them well. These artillery will be concentrated under Meng Xi's direct command. At the same time, the entire regiment must prepare for an attack."
Early in the morning, Han Fuju, the chairman of Henan Province in Kaifeng, received a telegram from Shi Yousan, saying that an army corps of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army attacked Zengjiayao in southern Hebei, and he had dispatched the 26th Brigade to rescue them.
Regarding Sun Dianying's affairs, Shi Yousan did not keep them from his elder brother. He and the one who was also called Feng Yuxiang's 13th Taibao were now struggling to make ends meet, without even a piece of land, and after the downsizing of troops, Shi Yousan's troops were reorganized into the 24th Division, stationed in Xinyang, still relying on his old brotherly relationship to entrust him with the task of clearing the countryside. The military salary was allocated by Nanjing according to the reduced personnel quota and paid uniformly to the Second Group Army Headquarters, which then allocated a portion of the funds downward. This military salary was only enough to sustain the troops' basic needs, truly just enough to keep them from starving but not enough to make them prosperous. However, this way, Shi Yousan's downsized troops did not have their military salaries resolved. Under Feng Yuxiang's tacit approval, all the troops of the Northwestern Army were downsized according to the demobilization plan, but the personnel who were downsized were retained under various pretexts, such as Shi Yousan's 26th Brigade and his 55th Division in Linzhou, which were both already disbanded troops. In other words, these troops now had no formal numbers and were "black households". Although Feng Yuxiang often helped Shi Yousan out, after all, Henan's finances could not be used entirely for the military, and he also had 60,000 to 70,000 troops to feed, clothe, and arm.
This time, Shi You San was able to get money from Sun Dian Ying, and to be honest, he was still very happy for this old brother. Shi You San knew that the Jin Sui army attacking Zengjiazhai had a division, but he still dispatched the 26th Brigade. Han Fu Quan knew that this was Shi You San's only choice, and he had to go rescue them, otherwise he would cut off the tens of thousands of dollars in financial aid every month. Although they generally looked down on the Jin Sui army's combat effectiveness, the enemy had more people and momentum. His brother had worked hard to accumulate these assets, and if he lost this brigade, he would not be able to face Shi You San. Therefore, after receiving Shi You San's telegram, Han Fu Quan immediately ordered the 55th Division stationed in Linzhou to set out immediately and cooperate with the 26th Brigade in battle.
Han Fuju's 55th Division received the telegram and did not dare to slack off. The six main force regiments immediately set out, followed by two supplementary regiments and a divisional artillery battalion. During the Second Northern Expedition, Han Fuju was known as the "Flying General" because his troops were fierce and powerful, and good at fighting tough battles. His troops were the first to reach the city of Beiping, and the vanguard that opened the way was one regiment from this division. This time, the order required the elimination of the old and weak, but due to years of war, many civilians had been displaced, and there were plenty of soldiers. There were basically no old and weak troops in the army. Moreover, not all the troops disbanded by Han Fuju and Shi Yousan were weak in combat strength. On the contrary, some were their main force troops. The 26th Brigade and one regiment from this so-called 55th Division were all elite soldiers. This was done to facilitate rapid expansion once the situation changed.
After a journey of dozens of miles, the urgent march arrived in just over three hours. During the march, reports were received that the 26th Brigade had already clashed with the enemy after entering the mountains, and the sound of cannons was very fierce. When he brought six regiments to the mountain pass, the cannon fire could no longer be heard. He believed that the previous cannon fire must have been the 26th Brigade receiving a surprise attack from the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, and now that there was no cannon fire, both sides were fighting together in close combat, which was too far away to hear gunfire. Because he absolutely did not believe that the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army would annihilate the 26th Brigade within an hour with just one division. As a burst of gunfire rang out at the mountain pass ahead, the vanguard reported that there were enemy forces blocking the way.
The commander of the 55th Division no longer hesitated and immediately ordered a full-scale attack by one regiment, determined to break through the blocking position at all costs. The other five regiments did not need to deploy or build fortifications, but maintained their marching formation. As soon as the first regiment broke through the blocking position, the entire division would follow. Because he was convinced that the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army's 26th Brigade was going to be annihilated, and therefore they would certainly send a large force to surround and annihilate them, while only a small force was left to block here. He believed that as long as he quickly broke through the blocking position and rushed forward, he would catch the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army off guard. What he didn't know was that it was precisely this incorrect judgment that would ultimately doom his troops and cost him his life.
Xu Fang, observing the enemy situation in a hidden bunker on the mountain, was overjoyed to see the deployment of the 55th Division and exclaimed: "Heaven's will! Heaven's will!" He immediately changed his original plan to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy troops at the first line of defense before launching an attack. He ordered all 60mm mortars to open fire on the enemy's attacking troops when they were 200 meters away from the front line. At the same time, all 75mm mountain guns and 82mm mortars concentrated their firepower on the five regiments waiting in reserve.
According to the general rule, the artillery position should be set at least 2 li behind the front line. In that case, the five regiments of the 55th Division are now all out of range of the mountain guns. But what they absolutely did not expect was that someone would set up an artillery position on the first line of defense, and even on a mountain. Such a setup suddenly increased the range of the 75mm mountain gun by four or five thousand meters, and his troops were now deeply entrenched within the firing range.
The 55th Division's assault team, with three battalions in echelon formation, all fixed bayonets, and the regimental commander personally led the guard company to supervise the array. Without any artillery preparation, as soon as the order was given, they shouted and started charging. Suddenly, a burst of "bang" sounds from 60mm mortar fire erupted behind the blocking position, followed by dozens of smoke trails bursting in the attacking column of the battalion at the forefront, with shrapnel, rocks, and blood flying everywhere. Then, hundreds of light and heavy machine guns and thousands of rifles on both sides of the mountain began to fire fiercely, dense and intense bullet rain and mortar shells scattered, immediately knocking down nearly half of the soldiers in the battalion at the forefront. Almost simultaneously, a sharp whistling sound flew high over the attacking division, piercing through their heads, and brutally plunged into the densely packed formation of the five following divisions. Nearly a hundred 75mm mountain guns and 82mm mortar shells exploded violently among the crowd, instantly raising a bloody mess and severed limbs, and the commander of the 55th Division was torn to pieces by two mountain gun shells that fell beside him before he could even regret it. The continuous and dense artillery fire quickly obscured the troops of the five divisions with smoke.
Since the first shell landed, these five battalions have been bombed into chaos. Many people rushed to the rear, wanting to leave the main force and escape the artillery range as soon as possible. But this run immediately led to a rout of the main force, and those who had originally lain down to avoid the shells also got up and joined the fleeing crowd.
The 1st Regiment of the 55th Division, which was advancing, did not retreat even when the first round of 60mm mortar shells landed among the attacking troops and during the intense and fierce light and heavy machine gun fire from the blocking positions. They continued to charge forward, shouting loudly, although people in the charging team were constantly being blown up or shot down by bullets. The ferocious and powerful style of the Northwest Army was revealed at this time without a doubt. However, the dense and intense explosion sounds on the position of the five regiments behind them, as well as the chaotic scene of the crowd fleeing wildly to the rear, completely dispersed their morale. The regiment commander who was directing the battle knew that it was no longer possible to break through the positions now, and the question was whether his own regiment could hold on or not. He immediately ordered a full retreat for the entire regiment.
To thank friends who care about this book, I'll post another chapter tonight!
