Kusunoki Kotaro also had to admit that it was not for nothing that Li Yunlong's independent brigade was able to stir up the Japanese troops who occupied most of Jin Province.

The strength of the independent brigade is indeed very strong.

"Your Excellency Dazuo, a minute ago, I personally ordered the communications staff officer to send a telegram to the military headquarters in Taiyuan, urging the reinforcements to speed up and go north. The military department has already called back that the 77th Brigade of the reinforcement army in the north has 10,000 elite imperial troops and is fully organized. At present, it has been rapidly moving north from Taiyuan, and the transportation speed of the special train has been mentioned to the maximum. The military headquarters ordered us to defend the north bank of the Kouquan River, hold the railway bridge over the Kouquan River, and block the attack of the Independent Brigade! Kotaro Kusunoki was stunned for a moment and hurriedly replied!

Hearing this, Masuda Kentai's eyes were gloomy. In silence, he took the telescope and looked in the direction of the independent brigade on the south bank of the Kouquan River.

Seeing that there was a dead silence in the south bank area, although the Independent Brigade did not immediately launch an attack on crossing the river, the momentum was already pressing, so that Masuda Kentai secretly maintained the greatest vigilance in his heart.

"Order the 2nd Infantry Brigade to hold the main position of the north port of the railway bridge and on both sides of its riverbank. The depth continued to increase, and layers of blocking trenches were constructed. Chief of Staff, you send a department to immediately go north and build fortifications in Maojiasoo Town, in case of emergency. Suddenly, Masuda Kenyasu, who had put down the binoculars, whispered to Kotaro Kusunoki on the side.

Kotaro Kusunoki was startled, and after hesitating for a while, he figured out the deep meaning of Masuda Kentai, "What does Your Excellency Osa mean is that it is possible that we will not be able to withstand the attack of the Independent Brigade and lose the railway bridge?" ”

"There is a high probability of this! We now have only about 2,700 men left, although there is still an artillery brigade, two machine gun squadrons, and other light and heavy weapons. Relying on the position of the north port of the Kouquan River railway bridge and the blocking position along the river on the north bank of the Kouquan River, it was able to block the independent brigade for a while. However, the artillery of the independent brigade is now at least the size of two artillery brigades, and once the other side starts to seize the bridge, it will inevitably suppress the artillery on our north bank. When the time comes, we cannot expect the artillery brigade to be able to effectively suppress the enemy infantry attack! ”

After a pause, Masuda Kentai immediately said: "Therefore, if you can stop the independent brigade from attacking the railway bridge for a while, you can't stop it for an hour." The 77th Brigade, which had already been transported north from Datong, was still a long way from us, at least about three hours, and it was impossible to reach Kouquanhe here. And the strength of the independent brigade is enough to crush us and capture the railway bridge over the Kouquan River. In order to stop the Independence Brigade, I had to find a way to slow down the Independence Brigade's northward movement. Maojia Soap Town, here can also hold on for a while. This is the last stronghold of the railway bridge to block the independent brigade from going north to Datong. Chief of staff! ”。

"So, the lowly office understands! I'll do it right away! ”

Nanmu Kotaro nodded, just thought of something, and then said: "It's just Your Excellency Dazuo, Maojiasoo Town is not guarded by the imperial army, and there is no fortification. I'm afraid that it is necessary to send more troops north to Maojiasoo Town to build fortifications. ”。

"You send two squadrons to the north, and let them build several fortifications in Maojiasoo Town in about half an hour. Although the town is not big, it is the only way to go north to Datong, and there are many buildings in the town, which is conducive to relying on a large number of buildings in the town to build street battle fortifications! Just go! ”

Masuda Kentai waved his hand and said in a condensed voice, this is already a matter that is about to be handled.

Kotaro Kusunoki nodded, then walked to the rear, urgently transferred the strength of two Japanese squadrons, and took advantage of the night to go north along the railway to Maojiasoo Town to build fortifications.

At this time, just when Masuda Kenyasu had just ordered Kusunoki Kotaro to send troops north to Maojiasoo Town to build fortifications, preparing to once it could not hold the Kouquanhe Railway Bridge and the blocking position on the north bank of the Kouquan River, the rest of the wing quickly withdrew north to Maojiasoo Town to continue to strictly defend and block the independent brigade from going north to Datong.

In less than a minute, suddenly the rumbling cannon sound in the area on the south bank of the Kouquan River resounded over the Kouquan River. 61 Library

In the eyes of all the Japanese soldiers on the north bank of the Kouquan River, in a certain rear place on the south bank of the Kouquan River, suddenly a stream of light quickly hit the north bank.

Masuda Jiantai saw it for the first time, and his face suddenly changed greatly.

"Yaga! Artillery of the Separate Brigade, order the artillery of the wing, give me the suppression of enemy artillery fire! All Imperial soldiers, immediately hide and prepare for battle! Masuda Kentai pretended to be calm, and waved his hand to the devil staff officer who sent troops.

"Hay, Your Excellency." The devil staff officer in the wing headquarters quickly gave the order.

At this time, the artillery battalion of the Independent Brigade, under the command of Wang Chengzhu, had roughly demarcated and demarcated the approximate range of the artillery positions of the 313th Wing of the Japanese Army on the north bank of the Kouquan River when the previous artillery on the south bank suppressed the artillery on the north bank.

Wang Chengzhu used seventy percent of the artillery battalion to suppress the artillery of the 313th Wing of the Devil Son on a large scale, and the rest of the artillery was to shell the defensive positions of the infantry on the north bank of the Japanese army to cover Zhang Dabiao's regiment, and Ma Wenhai's three regiments and two divisions attacked and advanced north from the railway bridge of the Kouquan River.

"Boom, boom!!!"

It was too late, but it was too late, and I saw shells whistling in, and the devils of the Masuda Wing who had blown up were in hell on earth in the position on the north bank of the Kouquan River.

In the night, the defensive positions of the Japanese infantry on the north bank of the Kouquan River, especially at the northern end of the railway bridge, were subjected to the heavy artillery fire of the independent brigade.

The 313th Wing of the Japanese Army, in accordance with the order of Masuda Kenyasu, promptly countered the artillery fire of the Independent Brigade on the south bank. But as soon as the battle began, it was immediately met with accurate artillery fire from the artillery battalion under the command of Wang Chengzhu. The devil artillery on its artillery positions was quickly covered by the artillery fire of the independent brigade, and the bombing suffered heavy casualties.

The commander of the Japanese artillery brigade in charge of the Devil Masuda Wing hurriedly directed the devil artillery on the artillery position under his command to transfer the artillery, but it was still night at this time, and the artillery transfer was still very difficult.

In less than five minutes, most of the devil artillery positions of the 313th Wing were destroyed. Only three Type 92 infantry guns in the remnants were actually transferred by some devil artillery with great willpower, but this artillery could no longer effectively suppress the artillery fire of the independent brigade on the south bank.

Masuda Kentai was already in a hurry at this time, and his temporary wing headquarters was suddenly bombarded by several independent brigade shells. A Japanese staff officer in the temporary wing headquarters, seven devil soldiers protecting the wing headquarters were killed on the spot.

"Your Excellency, look! The infantry of the separate brigade is on the bridge! It's coming from the north! Masuda Kenyasu got up from the temporary headquarters in a hurry, and saw a devil staff officer of the command headquarters suddenly have piercing eyes, and shouted with his finger to the railway bridge of the Kouquan River in horror.

Masuda Kentai then hurriedly picked up the binoculars, and when he looked at it, he was immediately frightened.

I saw that on the railway bridge of the Kouquan River, at least two battalions of troops of the Independent Brigade had already stepped on the railway bridge, and they were advancing in coordination amid the suppression of the fire point of the Japanese infantry positions on the north bank by the artillery fire of the Independent Brigade. The soldiers of the Independent Brigade at the forefront were already less than 100 meters away from the Japanese infantry positions at the railway bridge on the north bank.