coobybook Chapter 672 I have fought many battles, but none as tragic as today.
Chapter 672 I have fought many battles, but none as tragic as today.
According to Lin Zhenhua's plan, with the help of a fighter squadron, he should be able to take over the Pingding Gold Mine easily. But in fact, it was not the case. The situation was much worse than Lin Zhenhua expected. What he never dreamed of was that the effectiveness of fighter planes in mountainous areas was very low and could not cause huge damage to the Japanese.
Especially after learning the lesson from the previous attack on the gold mine, the Japanese were not stupid. They quickly patched up the loopholes and spent nearly two months building fortifications, which allowed the Yamamoto Regiment to take advantage of them. This caused great trouble to the attacking troops. Even Lin Zhenhua's targeted elimination plan was not as effective as imagined, and the battle situation fell into a stalemate for a while.
"College student, something is not right. The Japanese soldiers who pacified the gold mine have retreated like turtles, deploying their main forces near the mine. Even in the mine, some of them are lying in ambush. It is impossible for us to wipe out the Japanese soldiers in a short period of time."
"The most hateful thing is that the Japanese stored ammunition and food in the mines. Our heavy artillery and aerial bombs are of little use. If we risk our lives, even if we win, I'm afraid there will be only a few people left, and we won't be able to support the front line."
"I suggest that we surround the Pingding Gold Mine, set up one stronghold after another, and firmly seal the Japanese inside the Pingding Gold Mine, waiting for the Japanese to run out of bullets and food before launching an attack. The Japanese have infiltrated and it is impossible for them to carry a large amount of weapons, ammunition and food. According to my estimation, the Japanese can only hold out for four or five days at most. By then, the Japanese will take the initiative to break out, and then we can use our firepower advantage to teach them a lesson!" Xiao Zhongyuan suggested with hope on his face.
After some thought, Lin Zhenhua agreed with Xiao Zhongyuan's suggestion. The troops he had now were very scarce, and he really couldn't use them to fight the Japanese head-on, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous.
"Xiao Zhongyuan, immediately deploy strongholds in these eight places, cut off all the Japs' roads out of the mountains, and turn our searchlights over to illuminate the Japs' positions at night. The bombardment of the Japs must not stop. We can't let the Japs conserve their energy. Don't let them eat. If they don't eat well, they won't sleep well. Every time we wait for the Japs to eat, we launch an attack. I want to see how long the Japs can hold out!"
Lin Zhenhua adopted a delaying tactic and informed Li Yunlong of the matter, who strongly agreed with him, which made Lin Zhenhua breathe a sigh of relief. He handed over the command of the position to Xiao Zhongyuan, and went to Taiyuan City overnight to check the defense of Taiyuan City. After confirming that there were no problems, he ventured back to Niangzi Pass.
Compared with the small-scale battle to pacify the gold mine, the battle of Niangzi Pass was extremely brutal. Miyamoto Ichiro and Asano Ichiro, who had fought in vain, had no patience at all. They directly sent two puppet army divisions sent by the headquarters, plus two reorganized infantry brigades, to launch wave after wave of attacks on the main position of Niangzi Pass, making Li Yunlong breathless.
If two battalions of fresh troops had not joined in, Niangzi Pass would have been lost. After a whole day of fierce fighting and five battalions of casualties, Li Yunlong was able to hold on to the main position.
Lin Zhenhua rushed to Niangzi Pass and could not believe his eyes after seeing the tragic situation in the rear camp. He never expected that more than 4000 people were killed or injured in just one day. This was completely beyond his expectations.
"College student, the Japanese launched a general offensive today. Only five of our ten battalions are left, including the wounded. Now there are only four battalions that can really fight. If the support doesn't arrive tomorrow, Niangzi Pass may be lost. I think there is no need for the last reserve of our air force regiment to hide any longer. It's time to use it." Li Yunlong muttered while chewing on a white flour cake.
Lin Zhenhua took the steamed buns and a bowl of pork stewed with vermicelli handed over by Monk Wei, and replied while eating: "Old Li, I didn't expect the battle of Niangzi Pass to be so tragic. It seems that the Japanese are desperate and it is time to use the last fighter squadron. We must fight to win back the air supremacy on the battlefield and smash the Japanese's iron wall encirclement plan."
"The Pingding Gold Mine has been handed over to Xiao Zhongyuan, so nothing serious should happen. I brought a company of soldiers with me when I came here, and I will have them join the defense in a while and contribute to the defense of Niangzi Pass."
"I have just contacted Lao Zhao and asked him to continue airlifting two battalions of soldiers over. I also contacted Lao Kong and Lao Ding and asked them to speed up their march. They must arrive early, otherwise Niangzi Pass will most likely be lost early!"
Li Yunlong really had no objection to Lin Zhenhua's arrangement. It was useless to say more after the battle had been fought till now. Any tricks would be useless in the face of real strength. The only good news was that they had the advantage in the air, otherwise the situation would be even worse!
"College student, I plan to launch a night attack on the Japanese tonight, using all the heavy firepower we can mobilize, and cover the Japanese with firepower while they are tired. I plan to use up all the heavy artillery shells and rockets in my hands in one go, so as to eliminate the Japanese's manpower and reduce the pressure on tomorrow's defense."
"To be honest, I have fought many battles, but none as tragic as today. The Japanese were like crazy, attacking Niangzi Pass with 30,000 troops. There were Japanese and puppet troops everywhere. Even though we had super firepower, we still lost the left and right wings. This shows how crazy the Japanese were."
Lin Zhenhua could imagine the horrible hellish scene that took place during the day. The more desperate the Japanese became, the more it proved that this war would not last long. Especially after losing half of the core area, the strength of the Japanese 12th Army had been greatly weakened.
"Old Li, as long as we hold on for a while longer, a turning point will come soon, and we will be able to rest and recuperate. I have arranged for Old Zhao to transfer the reserve forces from the base, leaving only half of the garrison to guard the base."
"If nothing unexpected happens, the situation will be completely clear in half a month at most!"