A Dream of Jinling Chapter 324 Retreat (1)

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"I think there are too few artillery and machine guns under the battalion. With more machine guns to accompany the attack, it would be much easier for us to deal with the enemy hiding in the house. Captain Shi Qian's voice was quite loud. At the summary meeting of the troops on the second day after the battle, Captain Shi Qian was full of confidence and confidence.

This is the summary battle in the division, and the company led by Captain Shi Qian suffered many casualties, and the results were equally huge. The other companies probably only captured about twenty houses before the end of the battle, and Captain Shi Qian's company swept through a street of more than sixty houses. Even if they consumed five times or more more guns and grenades than other troops, no one would mention the problem of ammunition consumption in the face of such impressive results.

Qi Rui took a notebook and recorded the questions he was interested in, and Captain Shi Qian's questions were very interesting. Qi Rui also felt that the current establishment was unsatisfactory, and the formation of the army was obviously unable to meet the requirements of maximizing efficiency.

The chief of staff was silent, and the division commander Ma Xiaoming couldn't say nothing, he asked: "Company Commander Shi, how do you think it should be adjusted?" ”

"The platoon directly under each battalion was expanded into a company, and a fire company was added. In this way, the three infantry companies can receive fire reinforcements and reinforcements at any time when they are fighting. Captain Shi Qian talked eloquently, which made many regiment commanders and battalion commanders look sideways. A company commander recounted his views on the reorganization of battalion-level combat units, and not to mention whether what he said was justified or not, this courage alone was very 'admirable'.

Listening to Captain Shi Qian's opinion, Qi Rui's eyes couldn't help but light up a little. It must be said that this soldier from the grassroots level said the construction that Qi Rui was very concerned about.

After Qi Rui finished attending the meeting of the three divisions, the regiment commanders and battalion commanders could go to rest. And the division commanders and army-level cadres had to continue to hold meetings. Qi Rui already had his own ideas in his heart, and the Staff of the 24th Army Headquarters took it out after classifying and summarizing it according to Qi Rui's instructions.

"There are probably two views of the troops, one is that the intensity of our battle is not strong enough, and we should increase the number of troops and equipment, and strengthen the way of firepower delivery and output to improve combat effectiveness. The other is that they feel that the combat intensity is relatively large, so they want the motorized infantry to return to the speed and combat intensity of traditional infantry combat. Qi Rui wanted the cadres attending the meeting to tell his views.

Ma Xiaoming looked at the summaries briefly listed by the headquarters, if according to Qi Rui's classification criteria, most of them belong to the category of "hoping that motorized infantry will be restored to ordinary infantry", that is, to make motorized infantry become a group of ordinary infantry driving cars. Since Qi Rui has listed such a clear way of distinction, it seems that there is no need to ask more about his own position.

Army Commander Zheng Minglun did not speak as usual, Qi Rui's progress was indeed great. As a military-level cadre, it is necessary to be able to clearly express one's views in this way. If we do not have a clear attitude on such a key issue, we will only be confused by the majority of chaotic opinions. Zheng Minglun may not really be particularly accustomed to the marching speed and combat intensity of motorized infantry, but this is a new type of military that Governor Wei Ze recognizes, and Zheng Minglun has a very thorough understanding of this fundamental issue.

The acting chief of staff drew a line, and the meeting immediately had a direction. Even if there is a minority opinion that agrees with the strengthening of combat effectiveness, there is no doubt that the minority will overwhelm the majority. However, this has led to the question of how to solve the gap of insufficient troops in order to strengthen combat effectiveness.

"Commander, let's ask the front command for reinforcements." Qi Rui wanted Zheng Minglun to say.

The rest of the military department did not dare to speak up, and the boldness of this construction made everyone speechless. The 24th Army is a real force, and it is not surprising that there have been many adjustments and corrections. But the requirement to change the composition of troops in front-line battles is already somewhat almost insane. Everyone's eyes fell on the face of the army commander Zheng Minglun, Zheng Minglun thought for a moment, and said to everyone: "I will send a telegram to the front line command now." ”

A considerable number of the cadres in the military department widened their eyes, and some cadres looked at Qi Rui. But seeing Qi Rui's calm expression, such a big decision didn't seem to have any effect on him.

Similar to what the cadres of the 24th Army thought, this construction caused quite a stir in the front command. The front command immediately telegraphed back to the 24th Army, "The shipping lanes of Lake Superior are basically clear, and your supplementary troops will arrive immediately." But the expansion will come later. ”

The front command did not expect the 24th Army to send back a message soon, "Even if the heavy equipment cannot be satisfied, please ask the front command to provide ordinary infantry in the amount we requested." ”

Seeing that the guys of the motorized infantry corps had a lot of intentions, the front-line command simply handed the lawsuit to the theater command. The 24th Army is a unit valued by the Theater Command, and every issue is decided by the Theater Command. On the day the telegram was sent, the theater command sent a telegram back, "First increase the number of infantry to the level requested, and first increase the infantry part of the logistics supply." ”

Since the theater command issued an order, and the 24th Army itself is willing to reorganize and train while fighting, the front-line command naturally has no nonsense. The next night, the reinforcements arrived in Duluth.

On the same day that the reinforcements arrived in Duluth, it took five days for reinforcements from the south to reach their destination, Duluth. In an instant, Duluth was filled with 70,000 troops. The next day, on the 29th, the 1st Division replenished its forces with great speed and marched west out of Duluth.

On the 30th, American troops appeared on the road 60 km from the city of Duluth. They are the Union Army of South Carolina, which not so long ago was involved in the defense of the Northern Front. Upon hearing the news that Duluth was besieged by the heavy troops of the squadron, the commanders immediately chose to retreat. Opposite the northern line of defense was a large number of squadrons, and if Duluth, the transportation hub in the rear, was lost, these people would be surrounded in the poor mountains and waters of Minnesota.

The reconnaissance unit at the head suddenly stopped, and a position leaning on the mountain appeared in their line of sight. The positions on the side of the main road sent a message to the US Army that perhaps their retreat to the east had been cut off.

The South Carolina forces did not attack immediately, and they immediately sent scout cavalry to other routes. By evening, the scouts had returned, and all the news was the same. On all roads there were defensive positions set up by the Chinese. Minnesota is known as the state of a thousand lakes, with many mountains and rivers, and gentle areas surrounded by mountains and rivers are everywhere. However, all roads within a radius of about 20 kilometers were blocked. Confederate troops in South Carolina could only pause and wait for dawn.

The next day, before the Union army in South Carolina could figure out a way, a friendly army came from behind. When contacted, the army was a federal army from New York State, also withdrawn from the Northern Front. As soon as the two sides exchanged information, everyone understood that there were only two options left for them at the moment, either to detour dozens of kilometers away to see if there was a road that could be passed, or to break through the Chinese defense line and go to Duluth. Another option was to go back the way you came, which was so stupid that the commanders on either side did not discuss it.

The two forces together numbered about 10,000 men, and the two commanders felt that it would be too unreasonable for such a large force not to try to attack the defensive positions of the Chinese. The two commanders humbled in, and on a first-come, first-served basis, South Carolina troops sent a force of 300 men to launch a tentative attack.

The first obstacle to the attack is the barbed wire, the Chinese's barbed wire is not completely connected, the US Federal Army soldiers advancing with rifles see three barbed wire, each barbed wire is fixed by wooden stakes, I don't know if the Chinese are not able to make too long barbed wire, there are gaps left in the middle of the iron. It's just that these gaps are not straight ahead, but intersect with each other. When the Federal Army figured out these obstacles, it had to go around here.

As they walked by, the Union Army soldiers were nervous, and to their surprise, the gang was not attacked. After passing through these three barbed wires, they found that there were two barbed wire fences close to each other behind these three barbed wires, and there was no gap in this obstacle for these people to pass through Guò.

There were federal servicemen who tried to cut the barbed wire with bayonets from their rifles, and just as he was just trying, gunshots rang out from the opposite side. Luckily for the Union soldier, the bullet just flew past his head and lifted off his military cap, causing no more damage than a dozen hairs.

But the fright did not diminish because of this, and the federal soldier turned around in fright and ran. He forgot that he had come here through a gap in the barbed wire, and he rushed straight to the barbed wire. Before he could close his feet, the unlucky man threw himself on the barbed wire, and then let out a terrible scream.

At this time, there were more than 100 people who were passing through the barbed wire, and dozens of people were passing through the guò. Dozens of others are waiting as backups. Captain Shi Qian, who had just been promoted to deputy battalion commander, could see clearly from the binoculars, and he put down the binoculars and ordered the troops, "First kill those Yankees who are carrying barbed wire!" Hit the inside of the barbed wire first! ”

"Hit those inside the barbed wire first" The soldiers of the Liberation Army in the defensive positions passed the orders of the deputy battalion commander one by one, and the snipers and sharpshooters aimed at the target and fired according to the order.

Without the need for binoculars, Captain Shi Qian could see with the naked eye that the enemy had been shot one by one. Being inside the barbed wire, even if you are not killed by a single shot, you will fall on the barbed wire after being injured. Not to mention the living crimes received, their screams alone can put great psychological pressure on the Yankees who attack later.

At the front of this defensive position were four barbed wire blocking positions, and behind the blocking positions were two lines of defense. Each line of defense is preceded by at least three barbed wires, and between the two lines is a minefield. The troops used the terrain to build improvised fortifications that could defend against artillery.

Captain Shi Qian watched the troops kill and wound the Yankees' pathfinder troops like rabbits, and his heart was very happy. While being refreshed, Captain Shi Qian couldn't help but give his division commander an evaluation, "Cunning enough!" ”

When he first received the order to carry out the expansion, Captain Shi Qian still felt that the troops should be engaged in offensive warfare. Unexpectedly, the troops received an order to set up a defensive position. Defensive warfare was far easier to fight than offensive warfare, and after more than a day of working together, Shi Qian was able to connect the names and faces of the new company commanders of the two new companies with the platoon commanders.

"Thanks to the Yankees for being slow to act!" Captain Shi Qian gave the enemy on the opposite side a taunt with malice. If they had started attacking yesterday before they arrived at the position, the position that had not been laid out for a long time would still be quite flawed. And the Yankees gave the Liberation Army an extra day, and the Liberation Army that was arranged would not let the Yankees go.