The 13th Field Artillery Wing fired a total of 45,747 shells and 41,496 rounds of various guns during the entire operation, killed 644 soldiers, wounded 555, lost 54 artillery pieces, and killed 1,040 horses. Wing Commander Ise Takahide Osa led the remnants to move to the division headquarters in the direction of Rakunan, and was attacked by the 6th Tank Brigade of the Northeast Army on the way. After a short battle, Nobuo Morikawa, the commander of the 2nd Brigade, was killed, and Ise Takahide Osa escaped. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, when the Yama Prefecture troops were finally annihilated, Ise Takahide Osa committed suicide by disembowelment near the old sapper bridge on the Gurustu River.

All the staff officers of the 23rd Division Headquarters were seriously wounded, and the chief of staff, Tokusa Okamoto, had both legs blown off during the breakout and was killed with a knife by the hospital's wounded in the hospital.

The Muling Heavy Artillery Wing was annihilated, and only one soldier escaped, and the acting Wing Commander, Kyozo Umeda, committed suicide when the wing was surrounded and annihilated.

All 24 Type 92 100-mm cannons of the 7th Wing of the Reading Field Heavy Artillery were destroyed. The soldiers were killed and wounded, and the wing commander, Eagle Division, escaped alone, and was stripped of the title of Baron, suspended for reflection.

At this moment, the army is facing a complete collapse on the battlefield.

On the west bank of the Mulberry River, the forward command of the Chinese army.

The sound of artillery in the distance was still coming, and from time to time there were groups of fighter planes flying in the sky, Zhong Liwei, who was sitting in the office of the headquarters, looked up at the Chinese fighters passing by the window and the column of smoke rising in the distance, and refocused his attention on the notebook in his hand.

“…… The pilots who have won the title of Chinese Heroes have carried out a lot of training and education work with us, and they have passed on their combat experience to the new young pilots. It didn't take long for this work to pay off. ”

“…… Our 95 fighters engaged in a fierce air battle with 120 planes of the Japanese army in the skies over the Siberian lord. Quite a number of heroic Chinese pilots took part in the air battle, and they gave the pilots a hard lesson. On 24 August, the air force again carried out an intensive attack, and was again severely attacked. After the defeat, the command of the army withdrew from the battle in extreme confusion. ”

"On 26 August, nearly 60 planes appeared over Lake Sur in the 'Arowana' area and engaged in a fierce and brutal air battle with our fighters. Judging from various indications, the soldiers who took part in this air battle were relatively experienced pilots, but they still failed to win. Later, it was confirmed that the command of the army had transferred the best air force in the country to participate in the war. ”

"In the air battle from August 22 to 26, the army lost a total of 164 aircraft. Until 1 September, air battles were not as fierce as before, but they were almost every day. Through this series of air battles, our pilots have improved their skills and tempered their will to win. ”

“…… I often remember with gratitude to the soldiers for these remarkable pilots, who had superb flying skills. And he is extremely humble, an excellent leader and instructor. All the young pilots sincerely love them. ”

"It is no accident that the activities of military aircraft have intensified. After analysis, it is clear to all of us that they are pursuing such an aim: to seriously inflict a serious setback on our air force and to seize air supremacy in order to guarantee the large-scale offensive campaign that their troops are about to carry out. In order to achieve this goal, the enemy transferred from Hailar the troops that had been scheduled to operate within the formation of the 6th Army, which had already begun. ”

"It was the intention of the army command to complete this offensive campaign in the first half of August, in order to conclude all military operations in Siberia before the arrival of autumn. The command of the Yue army was very sure of the victory of the Yue army, and they even invited some foreign journalists and military attachés to the combat area to watch their victorious march. Among the invited guests were German and Italian journalists and military attachés. ”

"Before dawn on September 3, Colonel Wang Xiaolai went to Bayindagang Mountain to inspect the defense of the 6th Cavalry Division of the Northeast Army, but it was completely unexpected, he found that there was an army there, and the army secretly crossed the Sangye River at night and was attacking the 6th Cavalry Division of the Northeast Army. Due to their numerical superiority, the army occupied Mount Baindagang and its adjacent areas before dawn on 3 September. The 6th Cavalry Division of the Northeast Army retreated to the northwest area of the Bayindagang Mountains. ”

"Considering the danger of the new situation, Colonel Wang Xiaolai immediately came to the command post of the army headquarters and reported on the situation at Bayindagang Mountain. It is evident that in this area the army can carry out unhindered assaults on the flanks and rear of the basic grouping of our army. ”

"In view of the situation at that time, all our reserves, immediately after receiving the battle alert, were dispatched and ordered to advance without delay in the direction of Mount Baindagang and attack the enemy. The 1L Tank Brigade was ordered to attack the enemy from the marching room. The 24th Motorized Rifle Regiment reinforced an artillery battalion and was ordered to attack the enemy in conjunction with the 11th Tank Brigade. The 7th Motorized Armored Brigade was ordered to assault the enemy from the south. At the same time, the armored battalion of the 8th Cavalry Division of the Northeast Army also advanced in this direction. ”

"In the early morning of September 3, I and the generals of the Northeast Army came to the area of Bayindagang Mountain. The heavy artillery battalion of the 185th Artillery Regiment was ordered to send an observation post to the Bayinda Gangshan and to carry out artillery shelling of the Japanese army group. At the same time, the artillery of the 9th Motorized Armored Brigade, which was located on the east bank of the Sangye River, was ordered to also fire at the Japanese army on the Bayindagang Mountain. All our planes took off after receiving a combat alert. ”

"At 7 a.m., our first batch of bombers and fighters flew to the Bagdagang Mountains and began bombing and attacking the enemy. It is very important to pin down and stop the enemy at Mount Baindagang with the attack of aviation and artillery fire before the arrival of our counter-assault reserves. In order to prevent the enemy from continuing to cross the river and concentrate forces in the area of Mount Baindagang, I ordered the intensification of bombardment and artillery shelling of the Sangye River crossing. ”

"At about 9 o'clock in the morning, the vanguard detachment of the 11th Tank Brigade Advance Battalion entered the area of Mount Bayindagang."

"Our side has the heroic 11th Tank Brigade (nearly 150 tanks), the 7th Motorized Armored Brigade (154 armored vehicles), and the 8th Armored Battalion of the Northeast Army equipped with 45-mm cannons."

"Therefore, our trump card is the armored tank corps, and we have decided to use them immediately to annihilate the army that has just crossed the river from the march, not allowing the enemy to build fortifications and organize the defense of the tanks. A counter-assault on the enemy must not be delayed,? Because, having discovered the arrival of our tank units, the enemy had quickly taken defensive measures and began to bombard our tank columns. But the enemy had nowhere to hide, for for hundreds of miles around it was completely open, and there was not even a bush. ”

"At 9:15, we met with Major General Kang Dengxuan, commander of the 11th Tank Brigade, who was advancing with the main force of the avant-garde battalion and directing the battalion's operations. Having analyzed the situation at that time, we decided to call in all aviation, accelerate the movement of tanks and artillery, and launch an attack on the enemy no later than 10:45. At 10:45, the main force of the 11th Tank Brigade was deployed and launched an attack on the army from the march. ”

"The following is what a soldier Nakamura wrote about the situation on September 3 in his chronicles:"

"Dozens of tanks suddenly rushed towards us. We were panicked; The horses neighed and dragged the artillery carts around; Cars are also scurrying around. In the air, two planes of our army were shot down. The officers and men were terrified. The words that come out of our mouths more and more often are 'terrible', 'pathetic', 'terrifying', 'thrilling'. ”

On the 4th of September, the fighting continued day and night, until 3 a.m. on the 5th, when the enemy's resistance was finally crushed, and the army began to retreat in panic towards the ferry. But their own sappers, fearing the breakthrough of our tanks, have blown up the ferry. The officers jumped into the water in full armor, and our tank crews saw them drowned in the water. ”

"The remnants of the army that invaded and occupied the Bayindagang Mountain were all annihilated on the eastern slope of the Bayindagang Mountain by the Sangye River. Thousands of corpses, a large number of horses killed, piles of destroyed artillery, mortars, machine guns and vehicles covered the Baindagang hill. In the air battles of the past few days, the Syrian army lost 145 aircraft, including 60 dive bombers. ”

"The commander of the 23rd Division, Michitaro Komatsubara, saw that the war was not going well, and on the night of September 3, he led the combat group to retreat to the other side of the river. Regarding the evacuation of the commander of the army and his entourage from the battlefield, Sergeant Kotani of his headquarters wrote in his chronicles: "

General Michitaro Komatsubara's car moved forward slowly and cautiously. The moon illuminates the plains as daylight. The night was quiet and tense, like our group. The moonlight shone on the surface of the river, and the water reflected the light of the flares dropped by the enemy. What a terrible night scene. We finally found the bridge and crossed the river without a hitch. It is said that our troops are surrounded by a large number of enemy tanks and are in danger of annihilation. Be very vigilant. ”

"On the morning of September 5, there were no gunshots on the west bank of the Bayindagang Mountain and the Sangye River. The fighting in this area ended with the crushing of the main group of the army. This battle was a model of active defensive actions of the Red Army. After this battle, the Yue army no longer dared to risk crossing the Mulberry River. ”

At this time, the fighting on the east bank of the Sangye River was still going on intensely. The enemy, routed at Mount Baindagang, moved the remnants to the east bank of the river in an attempt to support the Angang forces, which had been tasked with pinning down, but also suffered heavy losses and made no progress. ”

"Our army smashed the heavy army group of the Yue army at the Bayindagang Mountain and held the defensive position on the east bank of the Sangye River, and these two victories greatly boosted the morale of our army. The officers and men of the unit sincerely and warmly congratulated us on our victory. ”

"The 11th Tank Brigade, the 7th Motorized Armored Brigade, the 8th Armored Battalion of the Northeast Army, and the artillery and air forces that worked in tandem with the above-mentioned units played an important role in the battle of Mount Baindagang. The combat experience of Baindagangshan shows that a tank and motorized mechanized unit that is good at fighting in conjunction with the air force and mobile artillery is the decisive weapon for carrying out rapid combat operations with resolute objectives. ”

"Now the enemy is limited to combat reconnaissance operations; However, on 12 August, an infantry regiment reinforced with artillery, armored vehicles, and some tanks, supported by 22 bombers, attacked the 22nd Cavalry Regiment of the Northeast Army and occupied the Dasha Heights at the southern end of the front. ”

"The enemy actively builds defenses along the entire line: bringing in timber, digging trenches, building shelters, carrying out engineering work to strengthen positions, etc. The enemy's air force, having suffered heavy losses (116 aircraft shot down from September 23 to August 4), was confined to reconnaissance flights and small bombardments of our central crossings, artillery positions and reserves. ”

"The command of our army carefully carried out preparations for the general offensive. The general offensive is expected no later than 20 August, with the aim of finally crushing the Syrian army that has invaded Siberian territory. ”

"In order to carry out the general offensive, new troops, weapons, and material and technical equipment were transferred from the country at the request of the Military Council of the 1st Army Group. Two additional infantry divisions, one tank brigade, two artillery regiments and other units were sent to this line, and bomber and fighter aviation were reinforced. ”

"In order to carry out this extremely complex campaign, we also had to transport large quantities of supplies from the supply depot along a 650-kilometre dirt road to the Sangye River, which required 3,500 trucks and 1,400 tanker trucks to get them before the campaign began, when Army Group had only 2,724 trucks and 1,912 tankers. It was not until 14 August that another 2,250 trucks and 1,375 tankers were brought in from the country, but there were still several hundred of these two vehicles. ”

"The main burden of transportation is carried by the cars of the troops and the vehicles of the platoon (including artillery tractors). We decided to take such a last resort because, firstly, there was no other way out, and secondly, we were convinced that the defense of our army was quite strong. ”

"Our warriors, the car drivers, did the practically impossible. In scorching hot conditions, a round trip of 1,200 to 1,300 kilometers takes 5 days! ”

"The Mongolian Military District has given us great help in organizing transportation and logistics. Without their help, we would certainly not have been able to build up a reserve of materials, technology, and equipment needed for the campaign in a very short period of time. ”

"We believe that the sudden surname of the campaign tactics is the decisive factor in determining the victory or defeat of this campaign. We will act suddenly so that the enemy will not be able to withstand the assault of our annihilation, nor will we be able to counterattack. At that time, we particularly noted that the army did not have a good tank corps and motorized mechanized units, and could not quickly transfer troops from secondary areas and from depth to resist our assault group (the action of our assault group was to assault both flanks of the enemy's defensive position in order to achieve the purpose of encircling the 6th Army). ”

"In order to conceal our actions and keep them absolutely secret, the military council of the army group drew up a plan to deceive the enemy in terms of campaign tactics while drawing up a campaign plan. Included in the program are:

- covert transport and concentration of troops transferred from within the country for the purpose of reinforcing army groups;

- covert mobilization of troops and weapons for defense on the east bank of the Sangye River;

- the covert crossing of the Mulberry River by troops and material reserves;

- on-site survey of the area of departure, the area and direction of the movement of the troops;

-- Increasing the number of troops in this campaign to conduct special covert exercises on various subjects;

-- Supplementary reconnaissance is carried out covertly by all branches of the armed forces;

- Disseminating false information to deceive the enemy so that he cannot understand our true intentions. ”

"By the above-mentioned measures, we have tried to give the impression to the enemy as if we had no preparations for an offensive in any way, so as to make the enemy think that we have done a great deal of work for the purpose of organizing the defense, and only for the purpose of organizing the defense. In order to deceive the enemy, it was decided that all movements, concentrations, and changes in deployment should be carried out only at night, because the enemy's aerial reconnaissance and visual observation at night were greatly restricted. ”

"Until 17 and 18 August, it was strictly forbidden for troops to enter the area of departure (from which a surprise attack was launched with the aim of advancing troops to the flanks and rear of the enemy group). Commanders conducting field surveys must wear army soldier clothing and can only travel in cargo trucks. ”

"We knew that the enemy would conduct radio reconnaissance and tap telephones, and in order to create false information, we had developed a full radio and telephone communication plan. The call was only about the creation of defenses and defensive preparations for the autumn-winter campaign. Radio calls mainly use codes that can be easily deciphered. ”

"We printed thousands of leaflets and a number of soldiers' defense instructions, and threw them at the enemy's positions so that the enemy could see what the focus of our army was."

"The concentration of our troops (the concentration of flank assault clusters) and the entry into the area of departure of the offensive are scheduled for the night of August 19. 20Before dawn, the whole army should go covertly into the concealed fortifications that had been erected in the trees along the coast. Artillery, mortars, towing tools and technical equipment of all kinds should be carefully covered with camouflage nets made of toiletries. Tank units should enter the area of departure in small groups from different directions before the start of artillery fire preparation and aviation fire preparation. The tank units were moving at a high speed, which allowed them to do so. ”

"The movement of troops at night was covered by a variety of noisy sounds (aircraft flying, artillery, mortars, machine guns and all kinds of guns). The troops created all kinds of noisy noises in strict accordance with the schedule drawn up in accordance with the redeployment plan. ”

"In order to camouflage the movement of the troops, we also used various audio equipment. These devices realistically simulate the sounds of piling, airplane flight, tank movement, and more. 12 to 15 days before the assault group began to move, we began to simulate various sounds to make the enemy accustomed to them. At first, the army took this simulated sound as the sound of the real movement of the troops, so they fired at the place where the sound was generated; But then, perhaps they got used to it, or they knew what was going on, and they stopped paying attention to any sound. And that's extremely important when we really change the deployment and centralize it. ”

"In order to prevent the news of our offensive campaign from leaking out, the general offensive plan was drawn up by the commander, chief of staff, and chief of operations in the headquarters of the army group. The Commanders of the Arms and the Heads of Logistics shall draw up their respective plans only on the basis of the plans approved by the Commanders. Only one typist is responsible for the printing of battle plans, orders, battle orders, and other operational documents. ”

(To be continued)