The bloody battle of Zhang Gufeng was about to begin, and although the 59th Frontier Brigade did not receive more reinforcements as in history, according to Li Xiaofeng's strict orders, their preparations for the war were still more adequate than in history.

By the night of July 3, 1938, the fortifications built by the border troops on Zhanggufeng were basically completed. The 59th Frontier Corps deployed a special detachment on Zhanggufeng, under the command of three mobile platoons, a heavy machine gun platoon and an engineer platoon, with a strength of about one reinforced company. The commander of the special detachment was Captain Sidorenko, and the commissar was Lieutenant Zabavny.

On the morning of 4 July, the officers and men of the 59th Frontier Corps drove up to Shacao Peak and began to build positions, in order to avoid the position from being attacked by the Japanese army, the 59th Frontier Corps also deployed a heavy machine gun on the 68.8 high ground near the Shacao Peak to provide fire support to friendly troops on the Shacao Peak, and at the same time deployed a reinforced squad on another 304 high ground, and also added two supplementary observation points.

At the same time, the Japanese army was also actively carrying out operations, and according to the order of Otaka Kamizo, the Japanese army crossed the Tumen River, one team from the northwest, and another team from the southwest direction of the 147 heights (located between Zhanggu Peak and Shacao Peak, near the Korean General Peak) to reach Shacao Peak.

At that time, the construction of the fortifications of Shacaofeng was not over, and only part of the sentry posts were put into use. There were only 11 border guards at these posts, and they were poorly armed with only ten rifles, a DP light machine gun and grenades.

Through the mist that gradually dissipated. The forward commander, Lieutenant Maharin, spotted two Japanese squads approaching their posts. Maharin immediately informed his brother troops on Zhang Gufeng by telephone in the field: "A large number of Japanese troops have entered our borders. We will fight to the death! ”

At the same time, the Japanese finally fired the first shot, and the two squads each fired light machine guns at the top of Shacao Peak, but under the command of Lieutenant Maharin, the Soviets did not panic and responded calmly, until the Japanese troops shouting "Long live" approached the position, and they began to counterattack with rifles.

Soviet border guards stubbornly held back an enemy several times their size. Private Alexander. Savine killed five devils with five bullets, and it can be said that there is no bullet in the bullet. Another private, Roman. Lisniak was simply bandaged with a bullet in his right arm and immediately returned to the battlefield.

However, although the Soviet border guards fought bravely, after all, the number was limited, and they fell into passivity for a while. This situation was seen by the friendly forces on Zhanggu Peak, and Captain Tereshkin used the heavy machine gun on Zhang Gu Peak to support Shacao Peak. However, he was rejected by Pogodanov, chief of the political department of the border military district, and Colonel Glebinnik, chief of the 59th Frontier Corps, who believed that the ultimate goal of the Japanese army must be Zhang Gufeng, and Zhang Gufeng's firepower should not be exposed prematurely. Once the firing point is knocked out by the enemy, Zhang Gufeng is very likely to be lost, and at that time, the devil can easily hit Poshet.

In this case. Colonel Glebinnik ordered two squads of the reserve of the second line to be transferred to support Zhang Gufeng, and the border guards were again drawn from the Pakshekori post of the third line to replenish the less adequate reserves.

Meanwhile. Li Xiaofeng also received the information that the Japanese army had brazenly fired the first shot, and he immediately gave an order to the NKVD border guards: "No matter what, we must hold our positions, find a way to transport artillery to the front line, and we must destroy the enemy troops who invaded the northern heights of Zhanggufeng in our country!" ”

Of course, Li Xiaofeng also knew that relying only on the 59th Frontier Corps was not enough, and he convened a plenary meeting of the Military Committee of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front on the one hand, and urgently telegraphed Moscow on the other. At the same time, he gave an order to the 1st GRU Special Combat Brigade, which was ordered to approach Zhang Gufeng, and asked them to rush to the Zhang Gufeng battlefield as quickly as possible at any cost.

Why did Li Xiaofeng give such a strict order? After all, the battle has just begun, Shacaofeng and Zhang Gufeng are in the hands of the border guards, and the Japanese army's investment is not large, and it is likely that the increase of troops to Zhang Gufeng at any cost will further deteriorate the shape, which is afraid that it will lose points in politics.

The reason is actually very simple, Li Xiaofeng knows quite well that Zhang Gufeng is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and once it is captured by the Japanese army, it is afraid that it will cost a heavy price to take it back. The lessons of the Red Army in history are laid out there.

Later, it was proved that Li Xiaofeng's worries were justified, because at this time, the shape of Shacao Peak was very bad, and before the reinforcements arrived at Shacao Peak, Lieutenant Maharin and his soldiers had already engaged in a white-knuckle battle with the Japanese troops who rushed up.

At that time, Lieutenant Maharin shouted: "For the Motherland, forward!" "The first to jump out of the trench and lead the fighters in a counter-charge, the warrior Ivan. Shmelev and Vasily. Pozdeev died one after another, and Maharin was soon pierced through the chest by the enemy's bayonets. In the end, only six Soviet troops broke through. When the Soviet reinforcements arrived, the Japanese saw that they did not have the advantage in their forces, so they withdrew to a short distance west of Shacaofeng to monitor and confront the Soviet army until late at night.

At 19:20 that night, the commanders of the Far Eastern Frontier Army and the Military District of the Internal Affairs Forces reported to the Far Eastern Red Banner Front with a special line of troops: "At 18:20, our army recaptured Shacaofeng, and found the remains of Lieutenant Maharin and four other soldiers, and the Japanese army had withdrawn from Shacaofeng and was stationed in China 3,400 meters from the border line......"

On the other hand, the 19th Division of the Japanese Army, its first battle report was delivered to the Korean Army Headquarters in Seoul at 17:30, and the report tried to emphasize that the situation of Shachobong and Janggufeng was different, that it was not an area with unclear boundaries, and that the responsibility for the first qiē was borne by the division commander (Otaka Kamizang).

In fact, the meaning of Odaka Kamezo's words is very clear, he believes that the Soviet army has invaded and occupied Shacao Peak, and as the suzerainty of the puppet Manchukuo, the Imperial Japanese Army has the reason and responsibility to recapture Shacao Peak. In fact, it means that it is justified to go to war, and there is no crime in going alone.

However, Nakamura Kotaro was quite dissatisfied with Otaka Kamezo's approach, because the army base camp had emphasized that it was okay to be ready for battle, but it was not okay to start a war without obeying orders!

Why is Kotaro Nakamura so "conservative"? Because His Majesty the Emperor was very dissatisfied with the Japanese army's methods. As the problem of Zhang Gufeng gradually deteriorated, the newly appointed Japanese Minister of War Ita Heng Seishiro and the chief of staff Kanin Miyashihito tried to persuade Emperor Hirohito to find a place in Zhang Gufeng.

However, at that time, Emperor Hirohito's attitude was rather ambiguous, and the emperor was interested in recovering the field. On the other hand, they are worried that the situation will get out of control. After all, at this time, the Japanese army had already fallen into the quagmire of China. There were not enough energy and material resources to provoke the USSR. Therefore, Hirohito was noncommittal to the request of Ita Heng Seishiro and Kanin Miyashihito.

It stands to reason that His Majesty the Emperor is against it. Then Itahiro Seishiro should stop a little, but this bold man is really not ordinary, and this thing lied in front of Hirohito, saying that the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Utsune Kazunari) and the Minister of the Navy (Mitsumasa Yoneuchi) were in favor of the occupation of Zhanggufeng. And Hirohito knew very well that those two were against this mention.

Immediately Hirohito was furious: "The army's approach is too unreasonable...... As my army, I have repeatedly adopted undeserved and despicable means, and in the future, without my orders, not a single soldier can be moved! ”

However, Itako Seishiro still did not give up. Another trick was to "only" demand the mobilization of two or three divisions to the eastern border of Manchuria in the Army's submission of Hirohito to the Soviet Union, while the crucial command of these troops was placed in the "Remarks" column, saying: "Please appoint the Chief of the General Staff to be responsible for the future movement of these troops." ”

Obviously, this is the preparation to bypass Hirohito, and naturally Hirohito is not so stupid and will definitely not agree. As a result, Itahiro's plan to use force on a large scale was put on hold, which also led Nakamura Kotaro to hesitate.

If everything is done according to the rules, then the conflict between Zhang Gufeng may not break out immediately. The problem is that Otaka Kamezo is a dishonest guy who doesn't take Nakamura's orders seriously at all. That goods have long been looking forward to creating a zào point "great achievement". In order to win greater "glory". In the words of the Japanese themselves: "Lieutenant General Otaka Kamezo is known as an active and courageous general, and the captains of the wings under him are also strong men. ”

To put it bluntly, the 19th Division is a group of brave and ruthless wolves, tigers and leopards who like to "go alone", and Ozaka Kamizo ostensibly said that he would obey Nakamura Kotaro's orders, but in fact he was ready to make a bold attack and fight with the Soviets.

What's more, Nakamura Kotaro's order to Odaka Kamezo was too soft, and he didn't even use a word of complaint and accusation, such an order had no effect on Odaka Kamezo. This thing even thinks that these so-called orders are actually the tacit approval of his superiors to his actions, so he plans to take advantage of the conflict in Shacao Peak to play a big vote!

After talking about the Japanese side, let's look at the Soviet side. Apanashchenko was indeed taken aback by the sudden outbreak of the battle at Shacao Peak, and almost couldn't help but jump back from the inspection site. However, after he heard that the Japanese army had been repulsed and that Shacaofeng had regained calm, he immediately continued to sit firmly on the Diaoyu Tai.

Why? This goods still thought that the Japanese army would not dare to make a big deal out of it, although this kind of friction was not much after the Battle of the Haraha River, but it was not impossible, anyway, since he became the commander of the Red Banner Front in the Far East, he encountered several incidents. In the end, it was all a big thing and a small thing, and in the end, it was over.

And the conflict at Shacaofeng seemed to Apanashchenko to be the same as before, there was no need to make a fuss at all, and he didn't even show disdain for someone's unchanging mind at all-such a trivial matter is worth alarming the Military Commission? Is it necessary to immediately convene a plenary meeting of the Military Council of the Red Banner Front in the Far East?

Anyway, Apanashchenko calmly said that he would not attend this meeting and did not approve of convening it. Under his influence, some of the senior officers of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front, especially the senior officers of the army, chose to sit and wait. Most of the participants were officers of the Navy and Air Force. For example, the commander of the Pacific Fleet, Viktorov, the deputy commander of the Red Front of the Far East, Popov, the deputy commander of the Air Forces, Rychagov, and all the officers of the Second Air Army at and above the army level.

Speaking from the heart, this meeting could hardly go on, the army only came to the deputy commander Popov, not even the chief of staff, and Zhang Gufeng's problem was basically the army's problem, and the main owner was not in a hurry, and it seemed that the air force and navy were meddling.

Li Xiaofeng was naturally very unhappy, he was really murderous to Apanashchenko, this thing has been stabbing him again and again, if he doesn't teach him a lesson, how will he mix in the army in the future?

Thinking of this, Li Xiaofeng made up his mind, you Apanashchenko don't pay attention to it, right? Then Lao Tzu will leave you aside, anyway, after the matter is over, see who gets slapped in the face.

"Comrade Viktorov. Can the Marines send some of them to support Zhang Gufeng? Li Xiaofeng asked.

Viktorov didn't actually have to attend this meeting. Because he is not a member of the Red Banner Front in the Far East. He is the commander of the Pacific Fleet, one level higher than Apanashchenko, but who asked Li Xiaofeng to convene this meeting. He can not give face to Apanashchenko, but he can't help but give face to a certain immortal. What's more, the conflict that occurred in Zhang Gufeng was inextricably linked to the location of his fleet.

However, Viktorov did not expect that Li Xiaofeng would ask his navy to come forward without asking the army as soon as he came up, which was somewhat unruly. After all, Zhang Gufeng is the defense area of the Red Banner Front in the Far East, and the navy is considered an outsider. Reckless meddling is likely to lead to conflicts between the services. What's more, what kind of temper Apanashchenko is in that birdman, he knows very well that if he offends him, the rest of the work will not be carried out.

Of course, Viktorov knew that Apanashchenko was not easy to offend, but Li Xiaofeng could not be offended at all, the elder of the Politburo, the giant in the Military Commission, and a consistent supporter of the Navy, he did not dare to offend Li Xiaofeng if he offended anyone.

He groaned for a moment. He cautiously replied: "After all, Zhang Gufeng is a defense area of the border troops and the Far Eastern Red Banner Front, and it is not appropriate for the marines to enter rashly. If the Naval Operations Department is able to allow ......"

Viktorov is not finished yet. Li Xiaofeng interrupted him: "I have communicated with Marshal Orlov, and he has agreed that the Pacific Fleet will carry out an amphibious landing exercise in the near future, and the exercise will be held in the Bay of Poshet. Orders will be communicated to you soon, can you prepare in advance? ”

Viktorov immediately agreed, because Li Xiaofeng had done things very well, with the order of the Naval Operations Department, and under the guise of a live-fire exercise, what else could Apanashchenko say?

Without saying a word, Viktorov immediately withdrew from the meeting and returned to his headquarters, and half an hour later, the 31st Regiment of the 3rd Marine Division under the Pacific Fleet received a notice of urgent assembly, and two hours later, they began to board ships one after another to prepare for the so-called live-fire exercises.

Continuing to return to the meeting site, Li Xiaofeng got Viktorov with three clicks and five divided by two, which made Popov a little embarrassed, after all, Zhang Gufeng was the army's business, and now someone directly transferred the Marine Corps without asking the army. It's a bit of a slap in the face!

"Comrade Andrei, is it too reckless to do this? After all, Comrade Apanashchenko judged ......"

"I don't care about Apanashchenko," Li Xiaofeng immediately blocked it back, "My judgment is that the Japanese army must make a big fuss around Zhang Gufeng, and a fierce battle is imminent." At this time, only a stupid pig will stand still! ”

"But?" Popov was embarrassed and wanted to say something, but Li Xiaofeng glared at him: "But what?" ”

Popov was entangled for a moment, and then said, "Do you want to ask the Military Commission to make a decision?" ”

"This is a matter for the Navy, do you need to ask for instructions?" Li Xiaofeng glared at him again, "When will the navy conduct an exercise, it will depend on the face of your Far East Red Banner Front?" ”

Popov knew that it was useless to say anything, someone was determined to let the Navy intervene. He couldn't stop it, so he could only sit back in a daze.

Originally, he planned to give an order to the Second Group Army of the Air Force under the jurisdiction of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front through the Air Force Operations Department to directly transfer the Third Brigade of the Airborne Forces under its command to Zhang Gufeng.

However, after some consideration, Li Xiaofeng still gave up, after all, as a composite force of all arms, although the Second Group Army of the Air Force belongs to the Air Force, it is under the dispatch of the Far East Red Banner Front. Directly crossing the command of the Red Banner Front in the Far East to give an order to the Second Army of the Air Forces, there was a suspicion of overstepping the command.

This is not only a direct slap in the face of Apanashchenko, but also indirectly makes it difficult for Rychagov, and it is Apanashchenko who does not deal with Li Xiaofeng, not Rychagov. A certain immortal has never harmed the innocent. Since the Pacific Fleet is directly under the command of the Naval Operations Department and the Military Commission, it is better to see Apanashchenko's face than to see what is more.

Of course, Li Xiaofeng also gave instructions to Rychagov, asking him to raise his combat readiness level, call back all the officers and soldiers who were on vacation, and be ready for battle at any time. In particular, it is necessary to strengthen patrols in the airspace near Zhanggufeng, so that ground forces can be directly supported when necessary.

Such an order is completely psychologically stressful for Rychagov, and if Apanashchenko has to blame him for even this, then he is not doing it in person, and the aviation is not a horse boy of your army.

The Air Force and the Navy chose to cooperate, but there were not many ways to deal with the Army Li Xiaofeng, and it was obvious that Apanashchenko had a good control over the Army of the Red Banner Front in the Far East, and no one dared to blow up the stab with him.

Fortunately, with the cooperation of the navy, the impact of the army's non-cooperation has been reduced to a minimum, and after giving an account to the air force and navy, Li Xiaofeng only lukewarmly ordered Popov to "strengthen vigilance," and there were no superfluous words.

Popov also knew that this time the Far Eastern Red Banner Front had completely offended Li Xiaofeng, and with someone's means, it was inevitable to wear small shoes in the future. For the sake of his future, he could only persuade the commander who was too rigid and self-serving...... (To be continued......)

PS: Bow and thank you to Chuanliu Huagui, Parasite Schistosomiasis, Million Thirty, Pig Chic 2, cjsky, agz00025, hzwangdd, Juventus, Power Ignition Point, agz00025 and Comrade Potato in seconds!