Wang Mingyuan, fearing that the main forces of Huttier occupying Vinnytsia would withdraw, resolutely ordered the 9th Army to cut off the Ternobor-Vinnitsa line of communication and close the back door of Vinnitsa according to the predetermined plan.

In the early morning of February 4, the 73rd Regiment of the 9th Army's avant-garde regiment braved the freezing cold of minus 40 degrees Celsius and launched an attack on Kolinsk, a small town 35 kilometers southwest of Vinnytsia. The town is stuck in the middle of the railroad and the road, and it's definitely a point in the game.

In the opinion of the acting regimental commander, Lieutenant Colonel Meng Enfan, the attack on Kolinsk was too hasty, and he did not have time to reconnoiter the terrain in detail, but only listened to a lieutenant who had been stationed in the town brought by Lieutenant Colonel Zhong Shi, an intelligence staff officer sent by the headquarters, to describe the layout of the town of Kolinsk; The troops were too tired, and the non-war attrition was strict (since Korosjian went south, the 73rd Regiment evacuated as many as 140 sick people, and even the regiment commander, Colonel Zhao Xin, contracted typhoid fever and had to leave the unit); The main forces of the division, especially the heavy artillery, have not yet arrived; The most important thing is that the enemy situation is unknown, so much so that he yelled at Lieutenant Colonel Zhong Shi, who was at the same level as him, "You have one possibility, but I can't fight on the possibility of hostility!" ”

But the military order is like a mountain. The handwritten order of the commander of Qin Feng's division is very clear: Occupy Kolinsk by 14 o'clock on the same day (February 4) and hold it until the main force arrives.

According to the information provided by Lieutenant Colonel Zhongshi, the Germans in Kolinsk were no more than a battalion, and they were sappers. And Kolinsk is not very large, the town runs southwest-northeast, parallel to the railway line. Conventionally. As long as the forces were concentrated in the center and the town was breached, the town was breached.

Time was too short for him to carry out fire reconnaissance in accordance with the regulations to find out the firepower of the Germans, and apart from sending scouts to cut the telephone line between the town and Vinnytsia, Meng Enfan did not deploy his troops. Instead, his team was given a two-hour break to give the troops a hot meal. This is a must, the officers and soldiers are not machines, even if they are machines, they still need to be maintained.

"Commander Meng, I think you should attack by surprise......" Lieutenant Colonel Zhong Shi said.

". The troops have long been exposed! Yesterday afternoon, the planes of the Germans hovered over my head all the time! ”

Smoke was lit in each company. On a bitterly cold morning, there's nothing like a hot meal to boost morale. Meng Enfan summoned the battalion commanders and arranged the attack plan against the lieutenant's hand-drawn sketched map, "Concentrate all the assault guns of the whole regiment here." Shoot at close range. The assault guns of the battalions were under the command of the machine gun company of the 1st battalion. Destroy all the houses for me! Mortars concentrated on the central part of the town, which is in this direction. The 1st Battalion, led by me, completed the intermediate breakthrough. The 2nd Battalion was in the north, and the 3rd Battalion was in the south," he said, looking at his pocket watch, "The 1st Battalion attacked at 8 o'clock sharp, and the 2nd and 3rd Battalions delayed their attack by half an hour. After entering the town, the battalions launched a centripetal attack in the direction of the church, taking care not to go through the streets, but attacking through the house as much as possible. Got it? ”

"Understood." The three battalion commanders stood up.

"Commander Meng, your task is to command the whole regiment, don't affect my command." The 1st battalion commander, Dong Xiaomao, objected to the acting regiment commander personally going into battle.

"My replacement is the Chief of Staff, let's act." Meng Enfan ignored the commander of the 1 battalion. He briefly took the 1st battalion because Dong Xiaomao was injured, and he knew this battalion and trusted her more. So he took her as an assault battalion and decided to lead the assault himself. In the tradition of the Wehrmacht, it was rare for a regimental officer to lead a charge, but Mon Enfan decided to do so anyway. First, he was the newly promoted deputy regimental commander, and now he commands the entire regiment as acting regimental commander. Second, he was very worried about the enemy's lack of clarity, and following the assault battalion would make him feel more at ease.

An explosion rang out in the woods, followed by several more. followed by the sound of shouting for medical soldiers, Meng Enfan fell down on his stomach when he exploded at the first time, and several regimental and battalion-level officers were very skilled in their movements, worthy of being veterans.

The shelling took only a few minutes, and dozens of shells fell between the trees, not heavy artillery, but mortars with a caliber of 60~80mm.

"Good luck." The commander of the 3rd battalion got up with a grin, "It seems that the intelligence is true, and the enemy forces and firepower in the town are not strong." ”

"I hope so!" Meng Enfan underestimated.

Shortly after the shelling stopped, Wang Feilong, Meng Enfan's guard and signal soldier, brought him a hot broth, and the staple food was still frozen hard black bread. With hot soup, the bread is not hard to swallow. Immediately afterwards, the regimental combat staff officer reported casualties, and the shelling just now caused 4 dead and 7 wounded.

"Lao Chang, the regimental headquarters and the guard company are left to you, pay attention to the liaison division, I think the main force of the division is coming up soon. I went to the 1 battalion. Meng Enfan took off his coat and threw it under the tree at will.

"Be careful, don't rush in the head like a sergeant."

Meng Enfan waved his hand and led Wang Feilong towards the assembly area of the 1st Battalion.

The artillery preparations of the 73rd Regiment began at 7:45 p.m., and soon after dozens of mortars began to bombard the town, four 75mm infantry assault guns that risked their lives to occupy the high ground northeast of the town began to roar. In Meng Enfan's binoculars, the houses on the edge of the town facing the 1st Battalion rose into the sky.

"That's a good thing. Fortunately, there are things, and the power of the mortar pulling point is still a little worse......" Dong Xiaomao squatted beside Meng Enfan, "Let's start?" ”

"Let's go!"

As a red flare was raised, more than a dozen heavy machine guns deployed on both flanks of the 1st Battalion's infantry assault route let out a deafening roar, and three infantry companies of the 1st Battalion jumped out of their attack positions, unfolded their attack formations, and launched an attack on the target.

Meng Enfan handed the binoculars to the guards, drew his pistol, and ran forward with the charging team.

All the Germans' firepower was exposed, light and heavy machine guns and mortars desperately held back the attackers, the shells exploded in the 1st Battalion's attacking ranks, and the dense machine guns rained down the attackers in pieces.

"Fuck, order the artillerymen to hit me and spill all the shells." Meng Enfan, who entered the battlefield, no longer felt cold, and his body was boiling with hot blood, he ordered Wang Feilong to convey the order to the artillery, and quickly caught up with the officers and soldiers of the 1st Battalion who were a little hesitant. yelled, "I'm the acting head of the regiment, Meng Enfan!" Follow me! Don't forget that we are the 73rd regiment! ”

Possessing a mustle discarded by a soldier who had fallen in a pool of blood, closing the pistol and tucking it on his belt, Meng Enfan sped past the soldiers and ran forward desperately......

A shell exploded not far away, and the bounty of soil smashed on Meng Enfan's face, he covered his eyes and squatted down, and Bai He, the commander of the 2nd Company, hurriedly ran over, "Deputy Regiment Commander, how are you?" Medic! Medic! ”

Restrained from severe pain and dizziness. Meng Enfan struggled to his feet. "Quick, take your company and rush up!"

"Send the head of the regiment down!" Bai He saw blood dripping from the edge of Meng Enfan's palm covering his left eye.

"Fuck off! I'll kill you if you talk about it again! ”

It was a nasty open field, the 1st Battalion had been crushed to the ground by German fire, and now there was no need for assault companies and reserves. A few hundred men of the 1st Battalion were alive and dead, all lying on their stomachs in the open field. 2 in the middle. The 1st Company is on the left and the 3rd Company is on the right, and they are fighting separately. Each company organized a charge. But all failed, death always favored the brave, and the officers and soldiers who charged at the forefront were defeated.

"This will not work," said Captain Baihe, who climbed up to Meng Enfan.

"Organize light machine gun fire to suppress the enemy, send a signal, ask for artillery support......" Meng Enfan's left eye was so swollen that he couldn't open it, "Don't rush, but don't retreat either!" Attract the enemy and create conditions for the 2nd and 3rd battalions ......"

This is the point of arranging for the 2nd and 3rd battalions to attack half an hour later. Sure enough, after explosions rang out at the north and south ends of the town, the pressure on the front of the 1st Battalion's attack plummeted. The three company commanders, all seasoned commanders, of course seized the opportunity and launched a fierce attack, and the three companies tore through the German defenses almost simultaneously......

Lieutenant Colonel Meng Enfan was dizzy and entered the town one foot at a time, and several houses on the side had been destroyed by flat-firing assault guns, and the main force of the 1st Battalion was already advancing in depth...... Meng Enfan stumbled forward with the troops, wounded soldiers and corpses everywhere, and choking smoke filled the air.

"Regiment commander, I'll wrap you up......" The delicate medical soldier Xiao Hu couldn't help but drag Meng Enfan under the half-low wall, took out a bandage and began to bandage him.

"Well, it's much better. You're ...... to be smart."

"Listen to the gunshots, the 3rd battalion has already come in......"

Thank God!

"Regiment commander, regiment commander," Lieutenant Wu Jianguo, an operational staff officer, found Meng Enfan, "The 3rd Battalion has joined the 3rd Company, and only the north ...... remains."

"Very good, I want Battalion Commander Dong to fight north. Fast. By now, Meng Enfan has basically put his heart in his stomach, and his task has been completed...... "Hurry up and transfer the assault fear in and destroy the enemy's firepower point with artillery!"

At 11:18, the gunfire in the town of Kolinsk thinned out, and the defenders chose to surrender after the assault guns fired, and a total of 171 Germans walked out of the dilapidated houses with their hands raised, including more than 40 wounded.

It was indeed German sappers stationed in the town of Corinsk, but the actual strength was less than 1 battalion. Both the firepower and the strength were overwhelmed by the 73rd Regiment, and if it were not for the temporary addition of a mortar platoon by the Germans, the casualties of the 73rd Regiment would have been much smaller. Rao is like this, the rapid attack of the 73rd Regiment still paid more than 130 casualties, and the 1st Battalion suffered the heaviest casualties, mainly concentrated in the ten minutes of the open attack.

Lieutenant Colonel Zhong Shi and Major Chang Fumin entered the town and found Meng Enfan, who had turned into a one-eyed dragon, "Old Meng, are you injured?" ”

"Don't talk nonsense! Got in touch with the Master's Department? ”

"Got in touch! The 74th Regiment has come up, just west of us. I have already reported to the headquarters, which has ordered your regiment to hold on to the town, and a detachment of German troops has come down, and it looks like it is about to retreat. Lieutenant Colonel Zhongshi suppressed the excitement of victory, "Your eyes don't matter, do you?" ”

"Blind one, isn't there another one? Give me a cigarette, right? My cigarettes are all in my coat. ”

"The coat has been brought to you," Major Chang Fumin draped Meng Enfan's military coat over him, "You rest, I'll go and deploy the defense." ”

"Let's go together." Meng Enfan stood up with a cigarette in his mouth.

The German troops who came out of Vinnitsa to rescue Kolinsk were a reinforced artillery regiment, which launched the battle to retake Kolinsk from the afternoon of the 4th...... Monvenfan's troops reversed their roles and acted as defenders of the town of Corinsk.

By this time, the main forces of the 25th Chinese Division had already come up, and the 74th Regiment captured another market town about 13 kilometers west of Kolinsk, covering the back of the 73rd Regiment, while the 75th Regiment occupied positions on the heights north of the town of Kolinsk (that is, the woodland where the 73rd Regiment had assembled last night) and began shelling the German units attacking Kolinsk. Brigadier General Qin Feng, commander of the 25th Division, entered Kolinsk with a capable command team. With the 25 Division Artillery Regiment joined the battle. The two German attacks were repelled by the Chinese army, which already had the advantage in firepower and strength, but the Germans did not withdraw to Vinnitsa, but retreated a few kilometers and began to build positions to confront the 25th Division. That night, the main forces of the 9th Army arrived, deployed forces around the town of Kolinsk, and began to cut off all roads leading from Vinnitsa to Lviv, forming an encirclement on the southern flank of the Chinese Expeditionary Force against the 9th Army of Khutil. To the north of Vinnytsia, the 16th and 21st armies of the Chinese army began to press Vinnytsia, and the 11th Army (owed to the 33rd Division), the last fresh force in Wang Mingyuan's hands, approached the city from the east of Vinnytsia.

Now, around Hurtier. 11 infantry divisions of 4 armies of the Chinese army were assembled. The long-range heavy artillery of the 2nd Heavy Artillery Division of the Expeditionary Force began to bombard Vinnitsa, assuming the posture of encircling and annihilating the 8 divisions of the main force of the 9th Army of Huttier.

On the same day, near Ternobor, 130 km west of Vinnytsia, the Chinese 7th and 15th armies launched a counterattack against the Germans in front of them. The two corps faced 3 divisions of the 24th German Infantry Corps. The Germans were forced to retreat. Driven back by the Chinese army, Ternobol began to hold on and wait for reinforcements. The line of communication between Lviv and Vinnitsa was completely cut off.

The great change in the situation in Vinnitsa shocked the German army, and not only the German command on the Eastern Front was in disarray, but even Berlin was alarmed. Hindenburg called Ludendorff, who was still in Lublin. Why is this happening? Ludendorff was asked to immediately relieve the siege of Vinnitsa. Ludendorff quickly judged the situation and decided that the Chinese army could not annihilate Huttier's 8 divisions with its existing forces. Ludendorff quickly formulated a plan and ordered Hurtier to hold on to Vinnitsa for reinforcements, and urgently recruited nearby Germans to form a rescue regiment to relieve Hurtier's urgency.

Ludendorf was now no short of troops, the Brest Agreement had been signed, and the Germans could theoretically mobilize reinforcements sufficiently. General Hoffmann calculated that it only took 10~12 days for the German army to gather about 10 divisions of reinforcements, which was enough to completely defeat the Chinese expeditionary force.

But the reality is not encouraging. The first is the question of time, how long the main force of Huthir can hold out after the cut off of foreign aid must be considered, first of all, the problem of food. Vinnitsa was once the logistics base of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, but when Huthir occupied Vinnytsia, he found it a truly empty city, not only did he not seize the hope of provisions, but most of the inhabitants were evacuated. It is not accurate to say that the city is empty, and the Chinese engineers have laid countless mines in the city, which is simply overwhelming the German army, and more than 180 officers and soldiers were killed and wounded in two days after occupying Vinnitsa, which made Huttier angry.

If the Chinese army adopts a siege strategy, Hutil will run out of food in a week, and even if the horses are killed, they will not be able to hold out for long, and they will lose the operational ability of the troops. So time was not on the side of the Germans. The second is that the Germans must first break through the obstacles in Ternobor, and the 24th Army is still asking for help, will it take time? If you don't get through the interception of Ternobor, how can you save Vinnitsa's troops? The third is that the Chinese army also has reinforcements, they have three corps parked on the railway line and it is useless, these troops can be used in the Vinnytsia battlefield, because the Chinese army controls the railway line, according to the general situation, at most, the troops of the Chinese army closest to Ukraine can be transferred to Vinnytsia to join the attack. Moreover, the Chinese army can also transfer the units of the Russian Patriot Union in Ukraine, which has been formed, and most of those troops are adapted from the Russian regular army, which cannot be said to have no combat effectiveness. In this way, it became questionable whether Hurthir would be able to hold out until his reinforcements arrived.

The German Eastern Front Command no longer had any doubts about the combat effectiveness of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, especially the operational staff officers, who were much calmer than Ludendorff and Hoffmann. If the Romanian campaign underestimated the movement of the Chinese army, the Battle of Bodong and the subsequent Battle of Grujec-Tomaszow fully proved the combat effectiveness of the Chinese army.

And most importantly, in this way, the entire plan of the German General Staff would be completely broken. The Eastern Front of the German army will be dragged in Ukraine and cannot move, it is already February, how is it possible to transfer the main forces of the Eastern Front to the Western Front in March? The thought of the American soldiers being shipped to France by ship made the staff officers of the German General Staff shudder.

As expected, Berlin began to criticize the commanders of the Eastern Front. Even Field Marshal Hindenburg, the chief of the General Staff who had always trusted Ludendorff and allowed him to "usurp power", lost his temper and blamed Hoffmann for underestimating the enemy, and then accused the troops of the Eastern Front of ignoring the overall situation and causing a situation of all-out war with the Chinese army. Once again, I remind you that the key to solving the problem is not on the Eastern Front, but on the Western Front! You are burying Germany's last hope!

Of course, the leaders of the Entente saw this. After the outbreak of the Battle of Vinnitsa, the French General Headquarters was jubilant, and all previous suspicions about the Chinese army came to naught. General Foch, the current commander-in-chief of the French army, immediately sent a telegram to Wang Mingyuan, "The contribution made by your army to our common cause will be engraved in history, and I only express my highest respect to the great Chinese expeditionary force on behalf of all the officers and men of the French army and on behalf of France, and wish your army a complete victory in the Battle of Vinnitsa!" ”

Political leaders of the United States, Britain, France, Italy, and other countries also sent telegrams to President Long Qian in different ways to express their gratitude and respect to China.

That's just great, isn't it? Thanks to the Chinese, who pinned down the Germans on the Eastern Front, it is hard to believe that Germany will abandon Hutier's army group. Moreover, every German soldier killed by the Chinese is the most direct support for the Western Front! As for how many Chinese will be killed and injured on the battlefield in the ice and snow, that is not a question for them to consider. (To be continued......)