mtl008 Chapter 303 Everyone Has Their Own Plans
Chapter 303 Everyone Has Their Own Plans
After listening to Zhang Wenwu's idea, Ouyang Heng nodded. He also felt that there was no need to fight the Japanese army to the death here. Since the conditions for annihilating the enemy were not mature, there was no need to force it. You must know that the casualties were not just the troops of the New 100th Division. The New 210th Division responsible for blocking and the New 211th Division on the front battlefield would all suffer losses in the crazy attack of the Japanese army. It is better to fight less such a battle where you cannot gain any advantage.
At the headquarters of the 132nd Brigade, which was responsible for the frontal attack on the west bank of the Pearl River, the brigade commander, Major General Goto Juro, was discussing with the chief of staff, Colonel Kawakami Mamoru, about withdrawing troops to reinforce the th Division's flanking force.
"Your Excellency the Brigade Commander, our staff department feels that we can withdraw the two battalions that were originally the 21st Regiment from the troops attacking the South China Sea to form a reinforcement force to open up the logistics supply line of the 5th Division's flanking troops. At that time, the cavalry battalion will be responsible for the security and defense of the supply line." Chief of Staff Colonel Kawakami Mamoru also reported the plan discussed by the staff to the brigade commander, Major General Goto Juro.
"Okay, Kawakami-kun. In addition, you should ask the commander of the 42nd Regiment, Colonel Hidenosuke Yamada, to organize troops to continue attacking the defensive positions of the New 22nd Army of the Chinese government outside Nankai City. After occupying Nankai City, the troops will attack in the direction of Sanshui and reinforce the surrounded troops of the 5th Division as soon as possible." The brigade commander, Major General Goto Juro, took a sip of tea on the table with a relaxed look on his face before speaking slowly.
When Chief of Staff Colonel Kawakami Mamoru heard the order from the brigade commander, Major General Goto Juro, he immediately understood that the brigade commander was just pretending. Everyone knew that it would be difficult for the Chinese army to eliminate the 5th Division's flanking force within a day.
In that case, the encirclement operation of the Chinese army was more of a deterrent. The commander of the Chinese army was not mentally ill, so how could he fight to the death with the troops of the Fifth Division? There was no need for the Chinese army to lose a large number of troops to do such a meaningless thing.
However, the orders of the 21st Army Headquarters must be executed, and at this time, the troops must be seriously required to execute them. Only in this way can the expeditionary force and the headquarters be satisfied after the war. This is also laying a foreshadowing for one's future. Who can predict what will happen on the battlefield? One day, one may need other troops to rescue him. This time can be regarded as laying a good cause for the future.
After receiving the telegram from Major General Goto Juro, commander of the 132nd Brigade, Colonel Hidenosuke Yamada, commander of the nd Regiment, and Lieutenant Colonel Kinsaburo Yasumi, chief of staff, became really anxious. The th Division was their own unit. If something unexpected happened to the division commander, what would they do in the future?
Immediately, the regiment commander, Colonel Hidenosuke Yamada, organized the two infantry battalions and one cavalry battalion dispatched from the 21st Regiment, and ordered them to attack along the previous route of the flanking troops, and to make sure to establish contact with the flanking troops to ensure the smooth transportation of supplies and ammunition.
At the same time, he also ordered the rest of his regiment to prepare to launch a more fierce attack, strive to occupy Nanhai City as soon as possible, and then reinforce the division commander.
The Japanese army really fought desperately this time. The officers and soldiers of the 211nd Regiment became very excited when they learned that their division commander and his troops were surrounded by the Chinese army. This surprised the officers and soldiers of the new th Division who were defending the army. How come the Japanese army, which had been so demoralized before, now seemed to be full of energy? Their fighting spirit was like a completely different army.
At this time, the officers and soldiers on the defensive positions of the New 211th Division put all their strength into defending against the Japanese attack. Moreover, it was the first time that the New 211th Division sent a battle report to the military headquarters before the battle was over. This meant that the Japanese attack had already laid waste and the New 211th Division felt strong pressure.
The commander of the 18th Division, Lieutenant General Nagana Seiichi, led his troops and rushed into Yangcheng, where there were no Chinese troops stationed, at noon. Lieutenant General Nagana Seiichi set up the division headquarters in the original Yangcheng City Hall. At the same time, he ordered the 55th Regiment to strengthen the two infantry battalions of the 56th Regiment and the 18th Artillery Regiment of the division to form a reinforcement force, and attack Nanhai City until they arrived at Sanshui City and joined up with the flanking troops of the 5th Division.
The attacking forces of the Japanese 210th Division moved very quickly. At four o'clock in the afternoon, they arrived at the defensive blocking position of the new th Division in the north of Nanhai City.
The troops of the 18th Division had won victory after victory against the troops of the 12th Army Group, and did not take the Chinese troops on the opposite blocking position seriously at all. In their view, as long as their artillery attacked, and then they attacked with all their strength and seriousness, no Chinese troops would be able to stop their advance.
But the officers and soldiers of the new 211th Division dealt a heavy blow to the attacking forces of the proud Japanese th Division, which immediately woke the officers and soldiers of the th Division up.
"This should be the troops of the new 22nd Army of the Chinese government. Their combat power is indeed very strong, much stronger than the 12th Army of the Chinese government that we encountered before. Yo, this is interesting. They are worthy of our 18th Division to show its true strength." Colonel Shiro Yamazaki, commander of the 55th Regiment, put down the binoculars in his hand and said seriously.
Indeed, the 18th Division had been through many battles before, having fought from Shanghai all the way to Nanjing. The Chinese troops they had fought against ranged from local miscellaneous troops to government troops, but the 18th Division had never been stopped in its advance by any of them. Colonel Shiro Yamazaki had the capital and confidence to be proud of it.
Colonel Shiro Yamazaki watched the attack very carefully from behind. At first, he did not take the Chinese army on the opposite blocking position seriously. But when he saw that his attacking force was suppressed by the tightly organized defense position of the Chinese army on the opposite side and could not move forward, Colonel Shiro Yamazaki knew that he had met a worthy opponent this time.
Colonel Shiro Yamazaki knew that this must be the New 22nd Army of the Chinese Government that had defeated several divisions of the Empire of Japan. Colonel Shiro Yamazaki had heard a lot about this elite force of the Chinese Government when he was in the Daya Bay battlefield. After seeing the combat effectiveness of this force for the first time today, Colonel Shiro Yamazaki also recognized this force in his heart. He felt that such an opponent was worthy of his full effort and serious treatment.
"Order the troops to withdraw, and the rest of the troops to prepare for defense on the spot to prevent a sneak attack by the Chinese army. It is getting late now, and we will rest here tonight. Send all the scouts out to scout the defensive positions of the Chinese army on the opposite side, and then launch a full-scale attack tomorrow." Colonel Shiro Yamazaki looked at the time. He knew that there was not enough time today. Facing such a powerful opponent, he must make sufficient preparations so that when the full attack is launched, his troops will be able to exert their due combat effectiveness.
The officers and soldiers of the new 211th Division welcomed the Japanese army's cessation of the attack. As long as tonight was over, they could retreat. It would be best if the Japanese army did not attack during this period so that they could save some energy.
Division Commander Cai was also very generous regarding the Japanese reconnaissance. He asked the sharpshooters to take care of the Japanese scouts. Division Commander Cai did not care whether the Japanese could detect the details of his position. He had just sent a telegram to the military headquarters, reporting that the reinforcements of the Japanese 100th Division had started exchanging fire with him. He also asked Commander Huang about the current situation of the new th Division and whether they should attack the surrounded Japanese troops.
As a result, Commander Huang only sent him a brief telegram: Wait for orders and be ready to retreat at any time.
Commander Cai knew that Zhang Wenwu must have given up on destroying the Japanese troops in the encirclement. Also, it was a bit unrealistic to destroy the Japanese troops that were already defending on the spot in just one day, as there were too many variables.
Now too many Japanese troops have gathered on the north and south sides of Nanhai City, and the pressure of defense is gradually increasing. While the initiative on the battlefield is on our side, we should retreat early and not be entangled by the Japanese troops.
On the new 100th Division's side, Ouyang Heng also followed Zhang Wenwu's orders and dispersed all the sharpshooters and suicide squad officers and soldiers in the unit, allowing them to fight freely around the Japanese defensive positions, shooting secretly or throwing grenades, as long as they could do anything that could make the Japanese army nervous.
At the same time, Zhang Wenwu also dispatched a regiment of troops to reinforce the defensive position responsible for the Japanese army's rear, and together with a regiment of the new 210th Division that was previously seconded here, they defended against the Japanese reinforcements coming from the rear, ensuring that during the retreat of the New nd Army, the rescue Japanese troops would not be able to join this Japanese army. After completing the mission, the two regiments could retreat directly to the west on their own.
The Japanese troops in the encirclement have been in a tense defense since dawn. Last night, the Chinese army bombarded their camp for nearly an hour. Who knows how fierce the artillery attack the Chinese army will launch when they attack today? After all, the Chinese army dropped a lot of shells during last night's shelling.
However, what made the Japanese officers and soldiers in the encirclement a little "disappointed" was that the Chinese army did not launch an artillery attack after dawn, but instead gave a little "surprise" to all the Japanese officers and soldiers on the positions by shooting them from behind.
The Chinese army's mode of giving surprises also caused considerable trouble to the Japanese troops on the battlefield, which made all Japanese officers and soldiers very cautious when they acted, for fear that they would be targeted by the sharpshooters of the Chinese army.