Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 23: Life and Death Blockade (Seeking Follow-up Reading)

3月3日凌晨，娄塘，87师259旅517团警戒阵地

After the main force of the 517th Division captured Liuhe Town, it immediately attacked the th Army's defense line. The vanguard Xichuan Battalion rushed all the way and after a quick march of more than ten kilometers, it was blocked by the th Regiment in Loutang, and the two sides immediately engaged in a fierce battle.

The Xichuan Battalion was like a chicken with blood, launching wave after wave of attacks on the 517th Regiment's position overnight;

Under the leadership of Colonel Zhang Shixi, the 517th Regiment responded calmly and repelled the Japanese attacks many times. The two sides fought fiercely all night and suffered casualties on both sides.

At 517 o'clock in the morning, the enemy's offensive intensified, and the defensive pressure on the th Regiment increased sharply. Deputy Regiment Commander Yu Bo reported to Zhang Shixi:
"Captain, it's bad. The Japanese reinforcements have arrived. There are about 4 of them. Please ask the brigade commander for support."

Zhang Shixi shouted coldly:
"Why panic? If an enemy comes, we will fight back. If a flood comes, we will block it with earth. It's just a few thousand devils, right? Let the brothers hold on. As long as the people are here, the position will be there!"

Seeing Yu Bo still looking at him, he had no choice but to say:

"What are you still standing there for? Send a telegram to the brigade commander right now!"

Yu Bo then left in a hurry. The 517th Regiment had only more than 2 people. It was indeed very stressful to withstand the successive attacks of 5 Japanese soldiers. They were afraid that the Japanese soldiers would continue to send more troops.

After receiving the call for help, Sun Yuanliang, the commander of the 259th Brigade, immediately asked General Zhang for help. General Zhang was worried about the loss of the 517th Regiment, so he immediately sent the 87rd Regiment of the 3th Independent Brigade to rush to the rescue.
What you worry about will come true. By ten o'clock in the morning, the Japanese reinforcements arrived in an endless stream, and the total strength had increased to seven or eight thousand people. They launched a fierce attack on Loutang Town and Zhujiaqiao defended by the 517th Regiment.

The Japanese attack still used the same old routine: artillery bombardment followed by infantry charge, and artillery bombardment followed by infantry charge. They used the same tactic over and over again. It was a new tactic that worked everywhere.

The 517th Regiment's position in Loutang Town was well-built. As the best general of the 259th Brigade, Zhang Shixi was very good at fighting. Although the Japanese had several times more troops than them, the 517th Regiment remained calm and fought back wave after wave of attacks, leaving the front of the position covered with their corpses.

"Bakayaloo, what a bunch of rubbish!"

The division commander, Lieutenant General Atsutarou Atsuto, cursed angrily. No wonder he was angry. Time was very precious to them now. The flank of the Fifth Army had been exposed.

After landing in Liuhe Town, the 11th Division and the 14th Division divided into two routes to encircle Liuxing, where the Fifth Army headquarters was located. Whoever arrived first would take the credit.

He did not expect that his troops were blocked by a regiment of defenders at the Loutang line, and the two regiments failed to take it after attacking for a whole morning.

Several regiment commanders lowered their heads in shame. The commander of the 12th Infantry Regiment, Nakamura Tetsuzo, stepped forward and bowed to Lieutenant General Houdong:
“Your Excellency, the 11th Division is full of famous generals. Senior Nogi and Commander Shirakawa have created an invincible military spirit for the division. How can we lose to the 14th Division!

Please allow me to personally lead the 12th Regiment to launch a Banzai charge in the center, with the 22nd and 44th Regiments assisting on both wings, to annihilate the defenders in one fell swoop."

Lieutenant General Hou Dong's face looked better. Daring to launch the Banzai Charge was the magic weapon for the 11th Division to defeat all powerful enemies. Even Russia, one of the great powers, couldn't stand it, so the Chinese with low combat effectiveness naturally couldn't stop it. Thinking of this, he said to Colonel Nakamura with satisfaction:

“Yoshi, I know how brave Nakamura-kun is, so I’ll do as you say;

The glory of the 11th Division must not be tarnished. I am waiting for your good news."

Several regiment commanders shouted and took the order and left. They were ready to fight to the death with the 517th Regiment.

The Japs' long live charge, also known as the "pig charge" tactic, was not like in the legendary TV series where they lined up in neat formations and puffed out their chests to die. They were not that stupid.

Colonel Nakamura focused the assault on the squadron. He divided the troops into ten waves, each with about 3 men, and launched an attack front of about 500 meters, with each wave about 100 meters apart.
After one wave is defeated, another wave will follow, wave after wave, giving people a feeling that they will never be able to kill them all.

This would not only cause great psychological pressure on the defenders, but also greatly accelerate the consumption of their ammunition. After ten waves, ordinary troops could not bear it at all. Sure enough, when wave after wave of Japanese invaders launched continuous attacks on the 517th Regiment, the soldiers of the 517th Regiment were numb from shooting. Although they killed many Japanese invaders, they also suffered many casualties. The most fatal thing was that the consumption of ammunition was soaring.

Seeing that his troops could no longer hold out, Regiment Commander Zhang Shixi led the reserve troops into the battlefield to kill the enemy himself. The killing continued until the sky was dark and the ground was covered with corpses.

After ten waves were finally passed, the Japanese soldiers who had been scattered before automatically filled their positions and formed several attack camps, and once again launched a continuous offensive. Finally, the Japanese rushed into the position and the two sides engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

At the same time, the two wings were also attacked. The 517th Regiment tried its best and fought until the afternoon before repelling the Japanese attack. The corpses of the Japanese on the position were piled up layer by layer, which was shocking.

Colonel Nakamura's hands were shaking as he held the telescope. He had not expected the defenders to be so tenacious. The legends passed down by word of mouth were not as good as they seemed. Although the pig-rush tactics put great pressure on the defenders, their own casualties were also unbearable. They killed 800 enemies but lost 1,000 of their own!
"Sir, the losses of each battalion have been counted. The total number of casualties is over 1200, and there are 5 casualties among officers above the rank of squadron leader—"

"Bagaya road!"

Colonel Nakamura stopped the senior senator, Major Matsushita, from continuing. He could not accept such an outcome.

It turns out that the legends are all lies. The pig-charge tactics are just pig-like tactics. They might have been successful decades ago due to the limitation of firepower, but in front of the Maxim heavy machine gun, it is just suicide.

He had to bear the consequences of his own actions. He was now in a difficult situation and immediately said to Major Matsushita:
"Mr. Matsushita, order all battalions to reorganize their forces immediately and continue the attack!
The Imperial Army suffered heavy casualties, and the defenders also suffered many casualties. We must destroy them even if we have to use the blood of our warriors."

At the defending position, Zhang Shixi watched the Japanese finally retreat, and then he fell to the ground with his eyes blacked out...

"Captain—Captain!"

The guards shouted loudly and found that Zhang Shixi had multiple injuries on his body. His uniform was stained with blood and he had fainted from excessive blood loss.

After hearing the news, Deputy Head Yu Bo came running over with wounds all over his body. He felt his breath with his hand before he let out a long sigh and loudly ordered:
"The commander is still breathing. Bring some people to carry him down quickly and tell Doctor Wang to save him, or I will skin him alive!"

The group, who had lost their core, hurriedly carried Zhang Shixi away, and Yu Bo took over the command.

Each battalion also sent people to report casualties, and the battalion commander in charge of the central defense cried out loudly:
"Deputy commander, more than half of our men have been killed or wounded. Two of the three company commanders are dead. We have very little ammunition left. We can't fight anymore. When will the reinforcements arrive?"

Yu Bo shouted coldly:

"What are you yelling at me for? You have to hold your ground even if you can't fight me. If you don't have bullets, use your bayonet!"

Gelong Town, 259th Brigade Headquarters

It was already 15: p.m., and the reinforcements had not yet arrived. Brigade Commander Sun Yuanliang was already as anxious as an ant on a hot pot, and he shouted to the deputy brigade commander:
Send another telegram to the teacher:

The 517th Regiment is surrounded by enemies that are several times our number. I intend to die in Gelong Town!
Qianmentang will be in danger, please move it."

The deputy brigade commander took the order and left in a hurry, while Sun Yuanliang continued to circle around in the same place. He had no troops to send. The 518th Regiment was doing its best to stop the th Division, and there was only a regimental headquarters left by his side.

The Japanese were obviously heading for the military headquarters in Qianmentang. He did not dare to withdraw his troops without authorization and could only wait patiently for Commander Zhang's reply.

Fortunately, the military's call back did not make him wait too long. After a while, the deputy brigade commander ran in excitedly and said loudly:
"Brother Yuanliang, the teacher sent an urgent message, reinforcements will arrive soon, and the 517th Regiment can retreat to Gelong Town after sunset."

(End of this chapter)