Huhu ~ A Japanese convoy crossed Xinle County and headed north, followed by 38 field guns pulled by six horses, a total of eight. This is a mixed unit led by Yamaguchi Haruhara Shaosa, the commander of the 3rd Infantry Brigade, and is composed of two infantry squadrons of the 3rd Brigade, an ammunition squad, an infantry artillery squadron, and two field artillery squadrons.

Seeing the reinforcements disappear from view, Yanagawa Shinichi Osa breathed a sigh of relief, and walked towards the communication vehicle again, ready to ask Kumano Shaosa and the 2nd Brigade about the current situation. He had already lost one brigade and could not afford to lose a second.

"Hey, Komatsu-kun, what are you doing there?" Seeing that Komatsu Ichiro was still there in a daze, Yanagawa Shinichi rushed over angrily and scolded sternly: "Is it so complicated to convey an order to retreat?" ”

Komatsu Ichiro looked frightened and stammered: "Lian, Your Excellency Captain Lian, Lian, I can't get in touch." ”

"Baga, why can't you get in touch!" Yanagawa Shinichi scolded angrily, and suddenly thought of a possibility, only to feel that his eyes were dark, and his body shook and almost fell.

Komatsu Ichiro hurriedly stepped forward to help, but was pushed away by Yanagawa Shinichisa.

Boom! At this moment, a loud noise suddenly came from the south, and the sound shook the four fields, like a thunderbolt on a sunny day. There was no warning at all, it was too sudden, and the Japanese troops present were taken aback and looked south. However, what happened next made them even more alarmed, and the ground trembled as the loud noise continued. Faced with this sudden situation, Shinichi Yanagawa and his friends were stunned.

"There was an earthquake! Is it an earthquake? There are also earthquakes in China! ”

"Nonsense. How can an earthquake be so loud? ”

"I think it was caused by heavy artillery bombardment, and it's on the edge of the Ci River five kilometers away!"

"No, how can the sound of heavy artillery be so loud?"

……

The Japanese soldiers present exchanged words and discussions. The officers were at a loss for what to do, and not only did they not discipline themselves, but some of them even participated in the discussion themselves. However, it didn't take long for them to discuss the truth. Cihe is very close to Xinle County, and news soon came.

"Report! Your Excellency, the Cihe Railway Bridge to the south suddenly exploded, and the bridge was completely destroyed! The nearby highway bridge was also damaged! ”

"Nani?" The Japanese soldiers couldn't believe their ears. The Shahe Bridge was blown up in front, and the Cihe Bridge was blown up in the back. Isn't it a dilemma? As the saying goes. Misfortune is not a single line, but blessing is incomparable. Just when the Japanese army was panicking, bad news came one after another.

"Report! To the west of the county seat, the Shina army was found, and the fields were everywhere. Cannot be counted. Can't be counted! ”

"Oh no. Taijun! The stronghold of Xiaogezhuang in the east lost contact, saying that the national army in Jizhong had killed it! ”

"Report, 100,000 urgent! Your Excellency Wing Commander. A fierce battle suddenly broke out in the north of the county seat, and the third brigade was intercepted by the enemy and failed to get in touch with the second brigade! ”

……

One bad news after another came, and the Japanese army soon fell into a panic. In fact, when it was in a desperate situation, the performance of the Japanese army was not much better than that of the Chinese army. It's just that the Chinese army is weak and its tactics are unreasonable, and it is rare to push the enemy to such a point.

Yanagawa Shinichi's face turned black and terrifying, and he asked in a deep voice: "Komatsu-kun, check it out immediately, how many troops do we still have?" ”

Komatsu Ichiro hurriedly replied: "There are four squadrons of infantry (one is left in the second brigade, two is left in the third brigade, and one can be made up of the original defending troops and the wing headquarters), one wing artillery squadron, one field artillery squadron, and one squad each for engineers and cavalry." And ......"

"What else?" Yanagawa asked.

Komatsu Ichiro hurriedly said: "The first brigade of the 163rd Infantry Wing also crossed the Cihe River by train, and the news of the bombing of the Cihe Bridge just now was reported by them!" However, the railway has been damaged in many places and is still being repaired urgently. ”

Yanagawa Daisa's face softened slightly, and he ordered: "Tell them to leave the train alone, and immediately walk closer to this place!" I sent another urgent telegram to His Excellency the Brigade Commander, requesting to take over the provisional command of this unit. ”

Komatsu Ichiro hurriedly bowed down and said, "Hay! ”

The 133rd Infantry Brigade is responsible for reinforcing Baoding, which has the 110th Infantry Wing and the 163rd Infantry Wing. The 110th Wing was the lead, followed by the 163rd Wing and the Brigade Headquarters. Therefore, Jizhong cast this net, not only caught the 110th Wing, but also brought in a brigade of the 163rd Wing by the way.

"Your Excellency, Yamaguchi Haruhara, I would like to ask you to speak!" The radio signal corps reported.

Yanagawa Osa hurriedly took the speaker and said, "Moxi Moxi, I'm Yanagawa Shinichi!" Yamaguchi-kun, what's the situation on your side, and have you gotten in touch with the second brigade? ”

Haruhara Yamaguchi's trembling voice came from inside: "Your Excellency, the Chinese army has crossed the Sand River in a big way, the second brigade has been routed, and the enemy army is outflanking our department, please withdraw, please withdraw immediately!" ”

"Yaga! Yamaguchi-kun, where is your courage? Fear of the enemy, not the Imperial soldiers! Yanagawa was furious. It's not that Yamaguchi Haruhara lost the battle, but that he didn't even want "tactical guidance" and directly asked for a retreat. This shows that Yamaguchi Shaosa has lost even the courage to fight, and he can't be forgiven!

Yamaguchi Haruhara, too, was forced to be in a hurry, and shouted regardless of his identity: "Your Excellency, if we don't retreat, our army will be in danger of being wiped out!" ”

Yanagawa Osa was shocked in his heart, could it be that the battle situation had been corrupted to this extent? In desperation, he had no choice but to agree to Yamaguchi's request to retreat, and sent two squadrons to meet him. The first brigade of the 110th wing has been determined to be wiped out in the "accident", and the second brigade cannot be saved, if the third brigade is also annihilated, then Yanagawa Shinichi will have no other way but to commit suicide by caesarean section. After the order was given, Yanagawa Shinichi sat weakly in the car like a deflated ball.

Komatsu Ichiro hurried over and reported: "Your Excellency, Your Excellency the Brigade Commander has agreed to your request, and the 1st Brigade of the 163rd Wing is approaching us. ”

Shinichi Yanagawa breathed a long sigh of relief. I was a little settled. With this new force, there will be no problem in holding the county seat, and maybe it will be able to inflict heavy losses on the enemy army and rescue the remnants of the second brigade.

Seeing this, Komatsu Ichiro cautiously added: "The brigade commander also reported that a large number of Shina troops had also been found south of the Ci River, and he could not provide us with more help in a short period of time, so we should postpone our attack to the north. ”

Yanagawa said angrily: "Then we don't care about the second team?" ”

Komatsu Ichiro didn't dare to refute. In fact, everyone understands that the second brigade has mostly ceased to exist. The most important thing now is not to rescue the second brigade, but how to preserve the existing troops.

The Japanese search force has confirmed that a large number of Chinese troops appeared in the west of the county, the number is unknown, and the largest is the Eighth Route Army. What made Yanagawa even more frightened was that there was also a large army in the east, the same as in the north. All are well equipped. Firepower is strong and well-trained.

"Yaga! The people of China are trying to eat us completely! Yanagawa Shinichi was shocked and angry, surprised when did the Shina army have such a strong combat power? The anger is that since the Chinese army is so strong, why don't you dare to fight fairly. What kind of ability is it to blow up a brigade and attack a brigade secretly?

Just when Shinichi Yanagawa was thinking nonsense. The herald has good news. The Yamaguchi troops finally withdrew. After hearing the news, Yanagawa Shinichi hurriedly rushed to the north gate to greet him. Although he is also very dissatisfied with Yamaguchi Haruhara, but this situation is now. If you come back more, you will have a better chance of winning, and even if you go to a military court in the future, he will also have an explanation. He had already lost two brigades, and he really couldn't afford to lose more.

In the anticipation of Yanagawa Daisa, the remnants of Yamaguchi Haruhara finally arrived at the north gate, but three field guns were lost, and more than half of the two infantry squadrons were also killed. panicked all the way, like a rabbit chased by a wild wolf, so he was not embarrassed.

"Your Excellency, Wing Commander! If you are ineffective in fighting, please punish you! Yamaguchi Haruhara, Shaozo, didn't expect that Captain Yanagawa would come to greet him in person, so he hurriedly stepped forward and choked up. This kind of life and death encounter made him very excited.

Yanagawa Shinichi waved his hand impatiently and said, "What's the use of talking about this now!" Yamaguchi-kun, what the hell is going on? I've got eight field guns for you, so what would you fail with such a powerful firepower! ”

Yamaguchi Haruhara's face instantly turned pale, and he said in horror: "Your Excellency, Wing Commander, the Shina army is too strong!" One of our wings is not an opponent at all, and I suggest that we immediately abandon Xinle County and join the main force of the brigade! ”

Yanagawa Shinichi's face suddenly became gloomy, and he snorted and said, "Yaga, seeing that you have no fighting spirit, are you still an imperial soldier?" Tell us everything you saw on the Northern Front! I'd like to see how powerful the Shina army really is! ”

"Hello!" Haruhara Yamaguchi didn't dare to hide it, and hurriedly reported the situation to Shinichi Yanagawa in the north. However, when he led his troops north to reinforce the Kumano Division, the Kumano Division had basically been wiped out, and it was not clear what had happened in the early stage, so it could only be speculated.

At that time, the 91st Division was ordered to move south to participate in the Battle of Xinle. It happened to run into the Kumano Division of the 2nd Brigade of the 110th Wing of the Japanese Army and a local unit of the 1st Division of Jizhong in the area of the Shahe Bridge. Kumano wanted to collect the bodies of the fallen soldiers of the 1st Brigade, and the local unit was ordered to carry out the task of shielding the battlefield while also securing the southward passage of the 91st Division. Besides, even if there were no such tasks and the battlefield was not cleaned, how could the Japanese army be allowed to pass? So the two sides slammed and pinched, and neither of them would take a step back.

After the division commander Zhao Yi discovered the enemy situation, he immediately reported to Captain Feng Zhan of the 63rd Army, who had full command of the battle. When Commander Feng heard this, he immediately understood, what did he understand? That is the unique "artillery group" tactic of the artillery of the Northeast Army. Its main feature is that different artillery pieces are mixed and grouped, a large number of artillery pieces are used in a concentrated manner, and different ballistics are used to carry out three-dimensional strikes.

This tactic is best suited for complex terrain, such as the "South Exit" in the Great War with the Northwest Army that year. But it can still be used in the plains, and the power is not diminished.

Therefore, the department concentrated 12 Type 38 field guns of the army-affiliated field artillery regiment, 8 Type 41 mountain guns of the division's mountain artillery battalion, plus a total of 12 150-mm heavy mortars of three infantry regiments to bombard the Japanese positions at the same time. Such ferocious firepower blew up the Japanese army on the spot, and even Kumano Shaosa's headquarters was hit by artillery fire.

After succeeding, the 91st Division responded with one regiment, and the other two regiments detoured from the left and right at the same time. Surround the terrified Kumano remnants. Almost when it was almost wiped out, reinforcements led by Yamaguchi Haruhara Shaoza arrived.

Yamaguchi Haruhara's division has 8 field guns, and the firepower is not weak, but the force is seriously insufficient. After a scuffle, he was beaten by the 91st Division, and if it weren't for the maneuvering of the car, he would not be able to escape destruction.

Yanagawa Shinichi's face changed greatly after hearing this, and he questioned: "Yamaguchi-kun, are you saying that the Shina army has very powerful artillery?" And more than a division? ”

Haruhara Yamaguchi replied with great certainty, "Hay! Your Excellency, Wing Commander, so Xinle County cannot be defended, so you can only retreat south! ”

Shinichi Yanagawa sighed. Regretfully, "It's late." You'd better think about how to hold out until reinforcements arrive! ”

Haruhara Yamaguchi was taken aback and hurriedly looked at Ichiro Komatsu, the chief of staff.

Komatsu Ichiro shook his head with a wry smile and explained, "Your Excellency Wing Commander is right, the Cihe Bridge has been blown up. There is nothing we can do but stand by and stand by! ”

There is no way back. On the contrary, the Japanese generals calmed down. Begin to form fortifications on the spot and prepare to defend them. After the battle began, many people in the county fled. However, many people were lucky enough to hide in their homes, and as a result, all of them were searched by the Japanese army to serve as coolies, and they were slaughtered if they resisted a little. For a time, there was a river of blood in the small Xinle City.

Soon after, the 1st Brigade of the 163rd Wing also arrived on foot, slightly alleviating the dilemma of the lack of Japanese troops. However, the Chinese army also came quickly, and before the Japanese army could complete the fortifications, they pressed from three sides and surrounded the Japanese army in Xinle County.

To the west, the 3rd and 4th subdivisions of the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army, under the command of Huang Xuqian, commander of the 3rd Division, swept the large and small strongholds west of Xinle County with overwhelming momentum. In order to enhance the Eighth Route Army's ability to attack fortified positions, Zheng Weiguo also specially allocated four 45-mm Soviet-made anti-aircraft guns to the Third Division, and the Japanese army's earthen artillery buildings could be penetrated with one shot.

Rumble! One shot went down, and another turret was destroyed. The puppet army squatted upstairs and shouted in horror: "Grandpa Balu, don't bombard, let's surrender!" ”

Commander Huang laughed happily and said, "Damn, it's cool to bombard!" Don't stop, give me two more shots! ”

To the east, the 33rd Division under the command of Li Liangrong, commander of the 33rd Division, the main force of the First Army Division, the Mountain Artillery Brigade, the Heavy Artillery Brigade, and the Air Defense Brigade were each one. With such a strong strength, the Japanese army could not resist it at all. Division Commander Li was busy and let the main force of the First Army Division return to the front line of Cihe, completely blocking the possibility of the Japanese army fleeing south.

To the north, Division Commander Zhao Yi commanded the 91st Division to destroy the remnants of Kumano's Brigade and then quickly moved south, and joined forces with friendly and neighboring troops to completely trap the enemy of Xinle.

Subsequently, Feng Zhanhai, the commander of the 63rd Army, the commander-in-chief of the battle, also personally led his troops to the periphery of Xinle. Under the command of Commander Feng, the various units of the Chinese army took the lead in launching an artillery battle. The Japanese army had only a dozen artillery pieces left, and they were no opponent at all, so they had to retreat into the city in a hurry.

As mentioned earlier, Japanese artillery had the problem of a serious shortage of maximum firing angles. In addition, the city is very small, and the mountain artillery can only be fired under the east wall to the west. The field artillery was basically scrapped, because the muzzle of the cannon could not be raised, and if it went down, it would bombard the city wall. Without the threat of artillery fire, the various departments of Jizhong took advantage of the situation to concentrate artillery fire on the city wall, and soon collapsed several sections.

Yanagawa Shinichi was helpless, so he had to desperately ask for help from the brigade headquarters and the division headquarters. However, the commander of the 133rd Brigade, Major General Tsuda Yoshitake, did not have many troops in his hands, and there were only two infantry brigades left, and they had to deal with the harassment of the guerrillas of the Eighth Route Army and the local troops in central Hebei, so they did not dare to cross the river at all.

The commander of the division, Lieutenant General Kuwaki Chongming, had no choice but to leave an infantry brigade to defend the city, and organized Shijiazhuang and nearby Japanese expatriates to assist in the defense. He personally led the 110th Cavalry Brigade and the 140th Infantry Wing to the north for reinforcements. As for some small strongholds around Shijiazhuang, some of them were left to the puppet army traitors to guard, and some of them were simply discarded if they were far away.

Boom...... As soon as the Japanese army arrived on the banks of the Hutuo River, with several loud noises, the bridges were blown up as the sky shook and the earth shook. Traffic between Shijiazhuang and Zhengding was also cut off. At this point, the 110th Division was completely divided into five parts by the Hutuo River, the Ci River, the Shahe River, and the Tang River.

"Yaga!" Lieutenant General Kuwamu Chongming stood in front of the bombed bridge and almost vomited blood.

Chief of Staff Matsuda Yan Dazuo hurriedly persuaded: "Your Excellency, Division Commander, the only way to do this is to ask the aviation unit for tactical guidance. It is also necessary to ask the front army to send more troops, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable! ”

Kuwaki Chongming nodded, and cheekily asked the commander of the North China Front, General Terauchi Shouichi, for help. In fact, General Terauchi had already done his best, not only ordered the aviation troops to reinforce along the Pinghan line, but also ordered the 21st Division, the 27th Division, and the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th Brigades of the Independent Mixed Brigade to either reinforce or attack Jizhong to contain the forces in Jizhong. He even wanted to transfer the 26th Division of Datong or the 9th Division of the Kwantung Army to reinforce him, but the far water could not save the fire.

In the afternoon of the same day, Dingxian County was declared to be recovered. The Japanese army originally had a brigade in the area (the second brigade of the 139th Wing), but in order to reinforce Baoding, most of them crossed the Tang River to the north, and there was only one Japanese squad and a puppet army squadron left in the county seat. Although most of the officers of the 92nd Division, which was responsible for the attack, were recruits, the officers were drawn from the 91st Division. After a fierce battle, the leader of the puppet squadron saw that the general trend had gone, so he led his troops to kill the remnants of the Japanese army, and then opened the door to surrender.

The 2nd Brigade of the 139th Wing of the Japanese Army hurriedly returned to help after hearing the news, but was ambushed by the 92nd Division and several regional and county brigades of the 1st Division on the bank of the Tang River, and the whole army was annihilated. The 92nd Division then went north to recover Wangdu County, completely isolating the defenders of Baoding.

The next day, Baoding City West Street, the headquarters of the 108th Brigade of the Japanese Army. A group of soldiers shouted inside with a loudspeaker: "Listen to the devils inside, the time has come, if you don't come out and surrender, we will open fire!" This is the most remedial ultimatum, the most reluctant! ”

At this time, all the streets and commanding heights outside the Japanese headquarters were controlled by the 34th Division. The reason why there was no general offensive was only to persuade surrender. The Military Commission and the 41st Group Army have negotiated, and the senior officers of the living Japanese army are clearly priced, and Tong Su is not bullied! If you die, it will be worthless, at most a few thousand oceans or a medal of blue sky and white sun.

The artillery battalion commander asked: "Division, the time we set has come, and the little devil still refuses to surrender, do you want to open fire?" ”

Zhao Yunxiang said distressedly: "What to open?" As soon as you go down, the materials promised by the chairman will shrink by ninety! Go and urge again. ”

Chief of Staff Fan Zixia suggested: "Master, I think the little devil is a sideways, no matter how much you urge, it's useless." It's better to pretend to negotiate with the little devil, secretly send someone to kill through the back door, and capture a few alive! ”

Division Commander Zhao thought for a while, hated the Japanese army for not being interesting, gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, just do it!" ”

Rumble! Ten minutes later, the fighters of the divisional reconnaissance battalion finally blew open the back wall and rushed in. The brigade commander, Major General Ishii Kaho, originally wanted to commit suicide, but he held the saber for a long time but did not do so, and was captured alive by the soldiers. The rest of the officers were either captured or killed, and none of them slipped through the net. So far, Baoding City has been fully recovered, and the 100-kilometer-long section in the middle of the Pinghan Line has also been recovered. On the contrary, the Japanese army in Xinle had more troops and was unable to take it for a long time.

"Report, Commander-in-Chief! The enemy's 110th Division has broken through the Hutuo River on all fronts and is advancing in the direction of the Cihe River, less than 30 miles away! The enemy's 5th Brigade and the 8th Brigade of the Independent Mixed Brigade have also arrived in Shijiazhuang and are advancing northward! ”

Captain Feng Zhan nodded and said, "Okay, I know the truth!" Chief of Staff, you immediately give the departments another hour. If you can't take it, I will personally lead the army directly under the army to attack the city! (To be continued......)