NABC Chapter 174: Huangyadong Attack and Defense
Chapter 174: Huangyadong Attack and Defense
The 39th Brigade of the Japanese Army, inside the temporary command headquarters.
"I don't understand why you let the troops retreat, Brigade Commander. We can attack the enemy position if we just hold on a little longer."
Goro Mano said angrily to Sekigahara Roku.
Sekigahara Roku glanced at the complaining Mano Goro and said slowly, "Can you first tell me about the casualties of your troops?"
"this........"
Mano Goro's tone slowed down, and he said guiltily: "The statistics haven't been released yet, but the casualties should not be too great."
"Since you haven't figured it out yet, figure it out first, and then come talk to me!"
Guan Yuanluo said calmly.
"Hi."
Goro Mano nodded and saluted, then turned and left the command center, and found his adjutant who was counting casualties.
"Have the casualties been counted?"
Goro Mano asked in a deep voice.
"The statistics have just been completed."
The adjutant handed a casualty list to Goro Mano with a grim look on his face.
"Three hundred soldiers died, twenty were seriously injured, sixty were slightly injured, and one of them, the battalion commander, died."
"idiot!"
Goro Mano thought that the casualties this time would be heavy.
After all, the enemy's firepower is comparable to theirs, or even slightly stronger than theirs.
But he didn't expect the casualties to be so heavy.
Three hundred people are almost equivalent to scrapping a squadron of soldiers.
"Captain of the Regiment, what did the brigade commander say?"
Seeing that Goro Mano looked gloomy, the adjutant asked carefully.
"Do your thing!"
Goro Mano glared at his adjutant like a cat with its fur standing on end, then turned and walked towards the headquarters.
"hey-hey....."
Although he was scolded, the adjutant was in a surprisingly good mood. He hummed a little tune and continued to deal with the wounded in the troops.
When Goro Mano returned to the headquarters again, a military map of Taihang Mountains was hung up.
The Japanese Air Force commander who was in charge of alert and the guide Liu were also called over.
"Captain Mano, please tell us in detail about the casualties of your troops!"
Sekigahara Roku glanced at Mano Goro who came in and said in a calm voice.
"Hi."
At this time, Goro Mano no longer had the arrogance he had at the beginning. He took the casualty list and read it obediently.
"Three hundred of our soldiers died, twenty were seriously injured, sixty were slightly injured, and one of them, the battalion commander, died."
Everyone present was shocked to hear the casualty data, and Hikari Tadashi even asked in a lost voice: "How is this possible?!"
"Mano-kun, did you get the wrong data?"
"He didn't take the wrong one."
Sekigahara Roku glanced at Mano Goro and helped explain: "The enemy's firepower is very strong, and the front position is in full view. The 77th Regiment is fighting very hard."
"Brigade Commander!"
Goro Mano was a little touched.
Sekigahara Roku waved his hand to tell him not to worry about it, then continued preaching while looking at everyone.
"I saw today that this group of Eighth Route Army soldiers is very powerful. They are fully equipped with light and heavy machine guns."
"We have grenade launchers, mortars, and everything else. We also have ammunition. More importantly, we have a very tough fighting style and we are not afraid of life or death."
"Such an opponent, once they have taken advantage of the terrain, is very formidable!"
"If this is true, it would be impossible to break through the enemy's position in a short period of time!"
Hikonya Tadashi frowned.
With a "bang", Goro Mano slammed the table and said excitedly.
"The brigade commander is giving me another chance. Although my troops have suffered heavy casualties, the enemy has also suffered some losses."
"Give me two days, and I will definitely take the front line and offer the brigade commander a road to the 386th Brigade, the brigade headquarters."
"No!"
Sekigahara Roku refused, saying, "We have already lost the opportunity. It would be unwise to force a breakthrough."
"I have called for chemical bombs and aviation support. Please wait patiently."
After that, he looked at Rikongya Zhong and said, "During this time, you can take Guide Liu around to see if there is a small road that can pass the large army."
"Hi."
...............
Huangya Cave.
"Give me the chicken!"
A Japanese commander drew the sword from his waist and let out an angry roar.
A squadron of Japanese soldiers, with the support of artillery, once again launched an attack on the Weng'erlang position.
"The enemy is coming again, fight them!"
The commander of the third company of the first battalion of the special forces regiment responsible for the defense shouted.
Suddenly, the two heavy machine guns deployed in the two concrete bunkers made a "chi chi" sound.
In less than a moment, more than half of the Japanese soldiers in this squadron were killed or wounded and had to retreat.
The next moment, Japanese artillery fire came, causing dust to rise in the bunker.
"idiot."
In a hidden observation post, the commander of the 20th Division of the Japanese Army, Lieutenant General Ushijima Minoru, saw his troops being beaten back once again and could not help but curse.
"Please calm down, Commander. Huangyadong is narrow and steep. It will take time to capture it."
Chief of Staff Uchida Ginnosuke, who was standing by, quickly persuaded him.
"How are the attacks in the other two directions going?"
Ushijima Minoru put down the telescope and asked unwillingly.
It has been two days, and in these two days, he has suffered nearly a hundred casualties.
So far, he hasn't even entered the gate of Huangya Cave. How can he not be angry?
"I'm sorry, Shuiyaokou and the southeast pass of Taohuazhai are just like here, full of mines and various cement bunkers."
"Our men attacked several times but didn't make any progress."
Uchida Ginnosuke whispered.
"Baga, how long will it take for the heavy artillery to arrive?"
"Where are those bastards from the aviation unit? Why haven't they come yet?"
In response to Ushijima Minoru's series of roars, Uchida Ginnosuke responded quickly.
"At 3 pm, the heavy artillery troops will be deployed in Chiyu Village and Zhaogu Village, and can then directly bombard the southeast pass position of Taohua Village."
"As for the aviation force, it will probably be in place tomorrow morning."
"Yoshi!"
Ushijima Minoru, who finally heard the good news, nodded with satisfaction and then asked.
"Any news about the search for the Eighth Route Army headquarters personnel?"
"Yesterday, Lieutenant Commander Teng Tianmao sent a message saying that they had found traces of Eighth Route Army headquarters personnel in Yupo Township, Taihang Mountains."
"very good."
The current situation is that Ushijima Minoru led the 20th Division, the 40th Brigade, and the 3rd Mixed Brigade of the Imperial Army to besiege the Huangyadong Arsenal.
The 40th Brigade, the 80th Cavalry Regiment, led the Kuomintang's "Death Three" and "Pig Bad Bin" units to encircle and suppress the Eighth Route Army headquarters personnel.
In Ushijima Minoru's opinion, although the situation is not going well now, everything is still within an acceptable range.
As long as the planes arrive tomorrow, he will launch a general attack and destroy the Huangyadong Arsenal.
Then they turned around and cooperated with the 80th Cavalry Regiment to encircle and suppress the personnel of the Eighth Route Army headquarters.
"Once the aviation unit arrives tomorrow, Lieutenant Commander Morimoto will lead his men in three directions to attack Shuiyaokou."
"Captain Suzuki is in charge of Taohua Village, the southeast pass."
"As for the Weng'erlang position in the front, it will be under the charge of Brigade Commander Wang."
At night, in the headquarters of the 20th Division, Ushijima Minoru was talking to the many officers in front of him about tomorrow's battle plan.
"Don't worry, division commander. With the help of the aviation unit and the heavy artillery unit, it won't be difficult to capture the small Huangya Cave."
Everyone shouted with confidence.