At dusk, the gunfire ceased for a moment. In a forest at the Mengya Gorge, in the headquarters of the special forces of the Eighth Route Army, the atmosphere of the war was still tense. Commander Mu Shixiong, political commissar Xiao Hua, and chief of staff Deng Guangming summoned Hao Yi and several other regiment commanders to a temporary meeting. Mu Shixiong looked around at the generals and said: "The Japanese army stopped attacking, and the headquarters of the expeditionary force ordered us to take the initiative to attack. Let the units rest for a few hours and attack at 10 p.m. The deployment was as follows: The special operations regiment launched an attack in the center, and it was necessary to decisively and boldly penetrate deep into the enemy's position and disrupt the Japanese formation. ”

"The 2nd Mountain Regiment served as the left flank attack, and the 3rd Regiment as the right flank attack. The attack should be sharp, and the various departments should be coordinated. The command of the expeditionary force called, and the 55th Division of the expeditionary force was blocking the Japanese on the front line of the Laika road, and the 49th division launched an attack in the Dagon direction. The 200th Division launched an attack on the Taunggyi Point tonight, and the 29th Division launched an attack in the Nam Lan direction. There are two key points in the effectiveness of the attacks of each department: Mon Ya and Taunggyi. The troops were ordered to seize the time to rest and start the operation on time at 22 o'clock. ”

At 9 o'clock that night, the 29th Division reached the vicinity of Nanlan. At night, a few lanterns were lit in a forest, and the lights reflected the figures of the people. Division Commander Ma Weiji said: "Brothers, it's finally our turn to make a move. The Expeditionary Force Headquarters ordered our troops to wave troops to Nanlan and launch a counterattack against the Japanese army attacking Jiaomei. The headquarters is strategizing and commanding well, and we must not disappoint the expectations of the headquarters and must display the prestige of the 29th Division. Now I'm going to make a military deployment! ”

"It is reported that the reconnaissance cavalry is on the road from Nanlan to Jiaomei, and it is found that the Japanese artillery unit is advancing in the direction of Jiaomei." Division Commander Ma Weiji did not wait for the deployment, and a new situation emerged.

"Commander, the opportunity is great! The artillery units of the Japanese army must have supported the Japanese troops in the direction of Jiaomei, and it was recommended to immediately launch an attack on the artillery units of the Japanese army," a subordinate crumbled. "Division commander, is it appropriate for the headquarters to order us to attack the 113th and 146th wings of the Japanese army from the flank?" The chief of staff reminded. Ma Weiji said: "The military situation is urgent, immediately send a report to the expeditionary force headquarters!" "Division commander, is it appropriate to directly bypass the military headquarters and send a report to the headquarters?" The chief of staff continued to remind. "It's too late!"

The telegram from the headquarters replied very quickly, and there were only 4 words on the telegram: Decide immediately! The meaning of the command is clear, to fight or not to fight, the commander of the 29th Division has complete autonomy. Ma Weiji's blood was immediately boiling, and he immediately issued a battle order, the cavalry regiment detoured to the front to intercept, and the three infantry regiments launched a fierce attack from the southwest. This Japanese artillery unit was ordered by the division commander Watanabe Pio to quickly reinforce the 113th and 146th Artillery Wings of the 56th Wing. The 56th Artillery Wing had only one brigade of guards, and bad luck unexpectedly befell them.

In the dark night, the road from Nanlan to Jiaomei was brightly lit, and the Japanese trucks pulled cannons and marched in the direction of Jiaomei, seemingly unguarded. At the sound of an order, the sound of mortars suddenly sounded, and the 29th Division concentrated all mortars to bombard. Suddenly, the flames of the explosion on the highway soared into the sky, and the Japanese army was in chaos. After three rounds of bombardment, the soldiers launched a tidal attack. The Japanese guards resisted for an hour, and had to retreat to the northeast, and the artillery on the road, including a large number of light and heavy, was forced to abandon.

The combat effectiveness of the Japanese artillery units was far from good, and in addition to the sudden blow, it was natural to flee in confusion when the disparity in strength was huge. This battle was the first battle since the officers and men of the 29th Division entered Burma, and they naturally had high morale and looked like little tigers. The fierce attack led to the collapse of the Japanese guards. The Japanese retreated to the northeast while holding back, and at this time the cavalry regiment launched an attack from the front, and in the dark night, the cavalry waved their sabers and iron hooves and shook the earth, sweeping like a furious hurricane.

Under the double blow, the Japanese soldiers were terrified and began to flee in disorder. Soon the Japanese lost their effective command, and the battle gradually extended across the road into the wilderness and woods. On the south side of Mengya, Watanabe, the commander of the Japanese division, unexpectedly received a telegram from the 56th Artillery Wing asking for help: The headquarters was fiercely attacked by the Chinese army in Nanlan, and the enemy strength was about one division. Watanabe was shocked and immediately ordered Shizuo Slope to rush back to rescue the 56th Artillery Wing.

The sudden appearance of a division of Chinese troops in the Nanlan direction is self-evident. "Report! The enemy attack was unusually fierce, and the artillery wing lost contact! Watanabe broke out in a cold sweat when he heard this, and said in a hurry: "Order Shizuo Slope to retreat to the main force immediately." The engineer wing was ordered to immediately dispatch to meet the artillery wing. "At that moment, there was a sudden sound of gunfire and explosions on the north side. The operational staff officer hurriedly called the northern alert unit, and the news was quickly fed back. "Report, the Eighth Route Army launched a large-scale offensive in the north." Just then, another shot was heard from the southeast.

Watanabe received news that the baggage wing in the south had been attacked by a large number of Chinese troops. The situation has become very bad, and the enemy army dares to launch a large-scale attack? What was the situation, Watanabe lost his judgment and immediately reported to the Yangon command. Soon the commander Iida Shojiro called, thinking that this was a trick of the enemy's donkey skills, and asked Watanabe to not panic. Although the 56th Division has more than 30,000 troops, all of them are concentrated on the highway and stretch for dozens of kilometers, and such a concentration of troops is very unfavorable to the operation. The point is that the Japanese army is on a long line, and the flanks are very vulnerable. In the face of the enemy's counterattack, the Japanese army suddenly fell into a situation of passive beating.

The special forces of the Eighth Route Army are good at night battles and close combat, while the 56th Division of the Japanese Army is a standard division regiment of the first type, which is good at attacking fortified battles and regular operations, and is not suitable for the extraordinary tactics of the special forces of the Eighth Route Army. Although the 56th Division can adapt to night battles, it has never experienced such passive night battles. In the past, the battle was offensive, but now it is a passive defense, and the combat effectiveness of the Japanese soldiers has been greatly reduced. The Japanese soldiers were accustomed to the command of the upper peak, and if the commander was at a loss, the soldiers hardly knew how to fight.

Such a large army was suddenly attacked by an asymmetrical attack and could not exert combat efficiency. In particular, the Japanese troops did not have any defensive preparations, and even many artillery pieces were covered with gun vests, and many soldiers slept in tents on both sides of the road. After the battle broke out, the special regiment cover brigade used mortars to first carry out indiscriminate bombardment of the Japanese alert troops. In the face of the machine-gun positions of the Japanese troops, the gun grenades of the covering brigade played an extremely high strike efficiency, and even bazookas went into battle. The Japanese machine-gun positions were suppressed, and the special operations regiment assault group quickly tore a hole.

The combat characteristic of the assault brigade is that it is attacking, and all its units are equipped with submachine guns. Submachine guns are extremely efficient in close combat, night fighting, and melee battles. After a fierce battle, most of the two Japanese squadrons on the front were wiped out, and the assault group was the first to rush into the enemy position. The Japanese army began to requisition tanks and armored combat vehicles to resist, but the Japanese army did not expect that it was difficult for tanks to maneuver on the road, and the terrain on both sides of the road was not suitable for tank combat. The next battle was staged with the classic infantry fighting tanks.

The battle was in full swing on the road and on both sides. The characteristic explosion is the sound of a rocket, and each blast indicates that the tank has been destroyed by a bullet. In addition, the Molotov cocktail is the nemesis of the tank. This "pediatric" weapon, although it will not destroy the tank, can make the tank instantly incapacitated, especially for the crew in the tank. As long as a fire is ignited, the high temperature generated after more than ten seconds, the tank members can't stand the scorching heat at all, and even if they go out and die, they have to jump out of the turret without hesitation.

During the melee, the special operations team seized the opportunity to attack the Japanese in depth. They formed 30 combat detachments in groups of 10 people, and they were like 30 sharp knives in the Japanese formation, and the knives stabbed at the vital points. Due to his outstanding combat performance in the jungle during the day, Li Gang was promoted to the rank of detachment leader of the first team. "Squad leader, look at the dense gunfire at 10 o'clock, it seems to be the Japanese headquarters!" A subordinate reported. "Squad leader, on the west side is the 2nd regiment attacking, we must help them!" "We went around to the back and caught him off guard!"

In less than 10 minutes, Li Gang led the detachment and made a detour back to the rear of the Japanese headquarters. This was the headquarters of a brigade of the Japanese army, defended by a squadron of soldiers. At this time, the soldiers of the 2nd Regiment on the north and west sides attacked with engines, but were suppressed by fire. Entering the attack position, Li Gang took the lead in throwing a grenade, and then more than a dozen grenades flew towards the Japanese army. By the light of the explosion, the cover group quickly killed the Japanese machine gunner, and Li Gang led the team to rush into the enemy position. The Japanese were in disarray, and the soldiers of the 2nd Regiment took the opportunity to attack.

Two Japanese machine guns held on to a tent, and several grenades flew towards the target. With the heavy explosion of machine guns, the tent burst into flames. At this time, a Japanese soldier rushed out with a crooked machine gun, and Li Gang raised his hand to shoot it, only to see that the Japanese soldier holding the machine gun was shot in the head. The guy seemed to be unwilling to die, and the moment he fell to the ground, the machine gun fired a burst into the air and formed a string of bright spots in the air.

The team quickly rushed into the tent, and the movement of pistols was heard inside, and the remnants of the enemy were cleared. Li Gang walked up to the Japanese machine gunner and checked it with a flashlight. "Damn, it's the captain of the Japanese army, this guy must have a sword." "Haha! It turned out to be Brother Li who helped. Thank you! I'll invite you to drink after the battle! A battalion commander of the 2nd Regiment appeared in front of him, obviously familiar with Li Gang. But before Li Gang could reply, the battalion commander led his subordinates to rush forward. After the battle, Li Gang never had the opportunity to see the battalion commander again, and the battalion commander died heroically shortly after they separated.

In the face of the fierce attack of the special forces of the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese division headquarters was forced to retreat south. After retreating about 5 kilometers, the Japanese army organized a defense on the spot and stabilized its position. At about 12 o'clock, the Japanese formed a solid defensive position, and at this time the road was in shambles. There were wrecked trucks, tanks, armored fighting vehicles everywhere. The tents on both sides of the highway were blazing, forming a dotted "bonfire" battlefield, and the scene was terrible. Although the Japanese army formed a circular defensive position, it was still hit by cold guns and cold running.

In particular, the cold guns of the blocking brigade hardly dared to raise their heads when the Japanese troops were hit. The Japanese soldiers were most afraid of headshots, believing that if their heads were mutilated, Apayasu would punish them.

After the Japanese army stabilized their position, they were still tormented. At this time, the division commander Watanabe Pifu's eyes were blurred and his face was pale. It is said that the combat effectiveness of the Eighth Route Army is strong, and its special operations are famous all over the world, and this time he really understood it. "Your Excellency, the armored brigade has been dealt a devastating blow. The enemy used a new type of weapon, called a gasoline incendiary bomb, which was very scary! "Report, all artillery of the 56 Artillery Wing has been abandoned, and the headquarters is retreating to the main forces!" Watanabe was shocked when he heard this, and his face turned pale.