Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 50: Generals do not fear death, soldiers do not seek survival (4 words long chapter, please read it later)

Ai Jian waved his fist excitedly. In order to ensure that everything would go smoothly, Ai Jian arranged two rocket launcher groups at each firing point, which was equivalent to double insurance. If the battalion commander saw this, he would definitely call him a prodigal son, but the effect was indeed good.

The two firepower points of the Japanese were destroyed, and the heavy machine guns were blown up. Only a few riflemen were left, and they could no longer make any waves.

The troops on both wings took the opportunity to attack the annex building and rushed into the building before the remaining Japanese soldiers could react.

After the remaining remnants resisted for a few minutes, they were all wiped out. In just the second round of attack, the Second Battalion captured the crucial annex building.

The news that the Second Battalion had taken over the auxiliary building soon reached the brigade headquarters. This was a great progress. Brigade Commander Huang praised excitedly:

"Our junior brother is really good at fighting. It looks like we will have no problem taking down the enemy stronghold before dark!"

"Brigade Commander, I think Commander Liao's suggestion is very good. Just hand over the Patriotic Women's University to Yue Qianli, and move the brigade headquarters as soon as possible!"

After listening to this, Brigade Commander Huang said nonchalantly:
"My brothers are fighting on the front line, so how can I, as the brigade commander, hide behind?
You forgot the school couplet!"

Gao Zhisong took over and said:

"If you want to get promoted or get rich, please take another path. If you are greedy and afraid of death, don't enter this door."

"This is the teacher's admonition to me, the Whampoa students. How can you and I hide behind because we are afraid of the enemy's bombing?

Come on, let's not stay in the headquarters anymore, follow me to the front and see the style of our junior students."

Gao Zhisong quickly stopped him and said:
"Brigade Commander, there is danger ahead, or—"

"Okay, why don't you stay at the command center and I'll take a few people over to take a look. Don't worry, we won't get close."

Seeing that Brigade Commander Huang was determined, Gao Zhisong had no choice but to follow him and followed closely with a guard squad.

The gunfire from Patriotic Women's University attracted the attention of Brigade Commander Huang. He found a place with a good view to watch the battle. He nodded as he watched and said:
"The tactical qualities of the officers and soldiers of the Second Battalion are very high. Their formation is rigorous, their coordination is tacit, and their attacks are sharp. Yue Qianli is very good at leading troops. After this battle, we must promote his experience to the entire brigade."

Gao Zhisong agreed deeply and took over the conversation and said:
"Five years ago, I spent some time with Yue Qianli when he was just a company commander in the temple. This guy is very good at training and leading soldiers. This time, he came back from studying abroad for a few years, and his skills have improved even more.
As the saying goes, a single flower does not make a spring. How many nails can the Second Battalion alone achieve? I also agree to promote some good tactics to the entire brigade——"

Gao Zhisong's face changed as he spoke. He heard the roar of the aircraft group, and then he looked up and saw a group of black spots in the sky rushing towards him. They became clearer and clearer, and then he shouted:

"Enemy attack—cover the brigade commander's evacuation!"

"Why panic? We are still far away! Notify the brigade headquarters to evacuate immediately."

After Commander Huang finished speaking, he evacuated under the cover of the guard squad. Seeing Gao Zhisong following him, he said loudly:
"Separate and hide, so as not to be wiped out by the devils!"

Not long after the two men ran away, the Japanese aircraft group arrived, the number of which was beyond their imagination.

Bombs are falling densely from the sky, and you have no idea where they will fall. Whether you can avoid them depends entirely on your luck.

"Boom boom boom boom..."

"Boom boom boom boom..."

Since Yue Qianli had been prepared for the enemy's air raids, the battalion headquarters were dispersed and hidden, so they did not attract the enemy's attention;
Brigade Commander Huang and his companions were preparing to hide in a concrete room when a heavy bomb dropped from the sky and exploded beside him. Shrapnel flew everywhere and one of the shrapnel hit him squarely in the body. Brigade Commander Huang fell in a pool of blood...

"brigadier!"

"brigadier!!"

"boom!"

Another bomb fell, and the huge shock wave shattered the internal organs of the guards. Only three people survived by chance, and Brigade Commander Huang died.

The Japanese bombing caused a lot of casualties to the brigade headquarters and the second battalion, but it was still far less than the thousands of people in another time and space.

The inertia of history was too strong, and the main force of the 527th Regiment escaped the disaster, but Brigade Commander Huang was not spared and became the first general of the National Government Army to be sacrificed since the war began.

"Brothers, charge! Kill all the devils!"

After the Japanese aircraft group left, the officers and soldiers of the Second Battalion shook off the rubble on their bodies and continued to attack the main teaching building. Even if the Japanese had planes to help, the Second Battalion would wipe out all the Japanese in the Patriotic Women's University.

The Japs seemed to have sensed that the end was approaching and became even more frantic. They held on to the few remaining machine guns and fired madly at the attacking troops, with people being shot and falling from time to time.

"boom!"

A rocket accurately hit the location of the Japanese machine gun, destroying it, and the surrounding machine gun crew members were either killed or injured.

Knowing that he could not escape, Major Ito strode forward, picked up a still usable Taisho 11-type light machine gun, and continued firing at the attacking troops.

Seeing that the enemy's firepower had obviously weakened, Liao Jianping shouted:

"Blow the charge, brothers, kill!"

Liao Jianping led the last reserve team, the third platoon, and the company headquarters to reinforce, and the second company also sent all the soldiers up. Ai Jian rushed to the front with a submachine gun.

The Second Battalion's offensive momentum increased sharply, and their morale was high. They soon broke into the main building, and the two sides engaged in a brutal fight inside the building.

Liao Jianping led the troops on the first floor to the second floor, and then to the third floor. He paid a heavy price for each floor, and finally rushed to the top floor, blocking Major Ito and the remaining few Japanese soldiers in the building;
Major Ito held an exquisite sword tightly in both hands and glared fiercely at Liao Jianping, who was covered in blood. The other Japanese soldiers were also ready for a bayonet fight, with their bayonets pointed at him.

"They are really a bunch of mad dogs that want to bite people until they die. Go to hell!"

Liao Jianping roared and fired indiscriminately at the Japanese with the submachine gun in his hand until the magazine was empty.

"Bakayaro, this is not a job for a samurai!"

Major Ito, who was hit by three bullets, fell down unwillingly, and all his sword skills that he had practiced for more than ten years were wasted.

"Shit!" Liao Jianping spat a mouthful of thick phlegm at the Japanese corpse with disdain. With MP28 in hand, he would not be stupid enough to compete with Major Ito in swordsmanship.

"What are you all standing there for? Clean up the battlefield. Aren't these bastards going to fight with bayonets?
Give them all a stab, and let them taste the pain of being stabbed!"

Everyone rushed forward and started to finish off the Japanese one by one. This was what they liked to do.

"Battalion Commander, Lao Liao and his men have attacked - look, the military flag!"

The third company commander Sun Gang shouted excitedly, and Yue Qianli looked in the direction of the voice and saw a blue sky, white sun and red earth flag already raised on the roof of the Patriotic Girls' School. He was also delighted in his heart, as he had finally gnawed this tough nut to crack.

"Why are you so happy here? Report the victory to the brigade headquarters immediately and send another platoon to assist the first and second companies in rescuing the injured brothers."

At the brigade headquarters, Gao Zhisong saluted solemnly to the body of Brigade Commander Huang, and then said:
“Senior, we have taken down the Patriotic Girls’ School, and not a single devil in the stronghold escaped!
Soul, come back, you can go on your journey with peace of mind!"

Yokosuka Port is crowded with ships, and a huge fleet is ready to go.
The temporary command post of the Shanghai Expeditionary Force was filled with old devils. The new commander of the expeditionary force, General Matsui Iwane, was in high spirits, while the other old devils sat upright, all of them familiar demons.

Seeing that everyone was present, Matsui Iwane nodded to the Chief of Staff Major General Iinuma Mamoru, who stood up, bowed to everyone, and said:
"Order from the base camp!"

All the old Japanese soldiers stood up in unison, waiting for Iinuma Mamoru to read out the order.

"…It is planned to establish the Shanghai Expeditionary Force, with General Matsui Iwane as the commander, and to include the 3rd, 9th, and 11th Divisions, the 5th Tank Battalion, the 8th Independent Light Armored Vehicle Squadron, and the Provisional Air Corps, and to go to Shanghai to fight immediately."

After Mamoru Iinuma finished reading out the combat order, all the old Japanese soldiers sat down again, waiting for instructions from the new commander.

Matsui Iwane looked around and said:

"Gentlemen, the Empire has been waiting for this day for a long time. This time, the troops dispatched to Shanghai are different from the past. His Majesty has infinite expectations for you. The target of the dispatched troops is not only Shanghai, but the entire China!

I will not withdraw my troops until China is destroyed!"

After hearing this, the old ghosts' faces flushed immediately, and they stood up in unison and shouted "Emperor Banzai". They had been looking forward to this day for a long time.

"Gentlemen, the time has come to establish an everlasting foundation for the empire. Capture Shanghai within a month and destroy China within three months!"

Matsui Iwane arrogantly shouted the slogan of destroying China, and the old devils followed suit. For a while, demons danced wildly, and dark clouds covered the sun on the sea...

On the same day, the Standing Committee Chairman also issued a national mobilization order, establishing a wartime system and dividing the country into five war zones;
The Songhu area was the Third War Zone, with Feng Huanzhang as the commander-in-chief, Gu Mosan as the deputy commander-in-chief, and Chen Cixiu as the commander-in-chief of the front line and commander-in-chief of the 15th Army. Both sides were ready for a big battle.

With the Second Battalion's capture of the Patriotic Women's University, the 88th Division had already eliminated 19 of the enemy's outer strongholds. Together with the several strongholds wiped out by the 87th Division, all of the enemy's outer strongholds had been cleared, and the time was ripe to attack the enemy's Special Marine Corps Headquarters.

Just as the Ninth Army was preparing to concentrate its forces to capture the enemy headquarters in one fell swoop, the British, American and French consuls general in Shanghai expressed their willingness to mediate with both China and Japan.

The naive Chairman of the Standing Committee issued an order not to attack that night, which gave the Japanese army a chance to adjust, and the Ninth Army missed the best opportunity to attack.

The Japanese never thought about ceasefire. After adjusting their troop strength, they arrogantly rejected the adjustments made by the consuls of the three countries and played tricks on the National Government again.

The Military Commission immediately ordered the Ninth Army to launch an attack on the enemy's naval headquarters. This was already the morning of the second day.

At this time, the enemy Marine Corps only had two strongholds left in Shanghai, the headquarters and Huishan Wharf. Commander Zhang gave these two strongholds to the 88th and 87th Divisions, which were also one of the most elite units of the National Government Army.

In addition, the 16th Heavy Artillery Regiment directly under the Military Commission (equipped with 150 German-made 88mm heavy howitzers) and part of the Air Force cooperated with the th Division in combat.

After receiving the order to attack the enemy Marine Corps headquarters, Sun Yuanliang immediately convened a meeting of major generals to deploy combat matters.

When Chief of Staff Zhang saw that everyone was present, he said:
“Ladies and gentlemen, according to intelligence, the total strength of the enemy marines in Shanghai is about 4, plus the soldiers in the countryside who have been urgently mobilized, about 6;

After two days of fierce fighting, the enemy lost about 1500 people, leaving 4500, of which 2500 to 3 were concentrated in the headquarters.

The enemy headquarters was located at the intersection of Sichuan North Road and Dongjiangwan Road. It was a four-story fortress-like building in the shape of a Chinese character "口". It was surrounded by barracks and warehouses, with a 4-square-meter playground in the middle, which could accommodate more than 2200 people.

There are multiple spacious entrances and exits, through which a large number of armored vehicles can enter and exit freely. The outer walls have been reinforced many times by the Japanese, with an average thickness of 0.8 meters.

The enemy headquarters building was a tentacle of the Japanese concession extending into the Chinese area, the purpose of which was to facilitate the control and attack of the Chinese area. It was the tallest building complex in the Hongkou area.
The Japanese set up a watchtower on the roof and installed several artillery pieces, which controlled the surrounding traffic arteries from a high position and gave them a clear view of the entire battlefield situation. It was easy to defend but difficult to attack..."

After hearing this, everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath and began to whisper to each other. It was obvious that the enemy Marine Corps Headquarters was not easy to defeat.

Seeing that no one took the initiative to speak, Sun Yuanliang coughed lightly, and when the meeting room was quiet, he said majestically:
"Everyone, although the enemy headquarters building is difficult to attack, there is no unbreakable fortress in this world. The commander has entrusted this difficult task to my 88th Division. Even if it is an iron turtle shell, we must smash it!"

The new 264th Brigade Commander, Major General Gao Zhisong, stood up and said:
"Commander, please let the 264th Brigade take charge of the main attack. We will definitely wipe out all the turtles in their shells."

Zhu Chi, the commander of the 262nd Brigade, also stood up and asked for battle:
"Commander, the 264th Brigade has already taken on the tough challenge of the Patriotic Women's University. The soldiers are very tired. Let them rest for a while. My 262nd Brigade will also meet the enemy!"

Seeing that his two brigade commanders volunteered to fight, Sun Yuanliang looked more optimistic and took over the conversation:
"The 264th Brigade suffered heavy casualties in previous operations. I have decided to transfer some personnel from the supplementary regiment to you to complete the organization and restore combat effectiveness as soon as possible, temporarily serving as the division reserve.

The task of attacking the enemy headquarters building will be assigned to the 262nd Brigade. The th Heavy Artillery Regiment of the Military Commission will cooperate with our troops in the battle. The time of the attack is set in two hours. The specific deployment is as follows..."

In the Second Battalion of the 527th Regiment, Yue Qianli was also gathering several company commanders to conduct war game simulations, and their target happened to be the enemy Marine Corps Headquarters.

They had deduced the situation over and over again, but had not found a good solution. Yue Qianli's defense was impeccable, and Liao Jianping and others had taken turns to fight but were all defeated. They were dejected like defeated roosters. Ai Jian even sighed that it was easier to shake a mountain than to break a turtle's shell.

"Old Yue, is there really no way to break this turtle shell?"

Liao Jianping asked unwillingly. He estimated that Yue Qianli didn't have any better solution, but he just felt aggrieved.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him expectantly, Yue Qianli said calmly:

"To be honest, I'm not completely sure. In the face of absolute strength, many tactics cannot be used at all. We can only wait for the opportunity to appear!"

Liao Jianping was delighted after hearing this. Even if he was not completely sure, it meant that he had some confidence. He immediately asked:
"What fighter plane?"

Yue Qianli said in a mysterious voice:

"Of course, when the enemy's forces are almost exhausted, the opportunity to fight will naturally appear. Now the enemy has two to three thousand people, strong and powerful, and I have no choice - wait.
(End of this chapter)