Bright Sword: Start with Ding Blast Bridge, Homemade Sweet Potato Cake

The small group of Eighth Route Army responsible for blocking the enemy did not engage in a bloody battle with the Japanese invaders.

After delaying the progress of Shang Xianji's troops, they decisively withdrew and moved to another battle.

The destruction work along the railway had been completed. Faced with the counterattack of the remnants of the Japanese Independent Mixed 3rd Brigade, the 4th Military Division fought and retreated.

The battle lasted for seven or eight hours, starting from the night raid and lasting until dawn.

The troops retreated to the mountains in an orderly manner.

The First and Second Guerrilla Battalions took the opportunity to cross Gang County and move to the Yunzhongshan area.

The main forces of the New 1st and New 3rd Regiments retreated into the Wutai Mountain area from the direction of Zigan Township.

After a detour through the mountains, we returned to Hongdao Town and Dongye Town.

The Ninth Brigade of the Japanese army was forced to move to the northwest in the direction of Gang County. After clearing out and driving away the Eighth Route Army, they were exhausted and out of breath.

"General, the main force of the Fourth Military Division is circling around the mountainous area. We attacked the east, and they moved to the northwest to attack the Third Brigade. When we turned back to support them, they returned to the eastern mountainous area."

Shang Xianji glared at the chief of staff fiercely. Isn't this nonsense?

He had already seen the problem, so there was no point in talking about it after the fact.

Gangxian, Dingxiang and Wutai are like the three corners of a triangle, located in different positions.

Ding Wei made a sudden attack to the left and quickly moved back to the Wutai Mountain area, where he drove the Japanese to Gang County and defeated the Independent 3rd Brigade.

At least two to three hundred Japanese soldiers were killed, and four to five hundred combatants were lost.

The wounded soldiers would delay the enemy's offensive and reduce the intensity of the mopping-up operation.

The two guerrilla battalions took advantage of the situation and entered the western region, launching an offensive against the new artillery towers and strongholds in the west.

The two battalions were equipped with two infantry guns and 2 rounds of artillery shells.

To deal with ordinary artillery towers, one shot is enough.

Against larger strongholds, 3-5 guns can also be an advantage.

The equivalent of two main infantry battalions moved into the mountainous area and wreaked havoc on the fortifications in the mountains.

The Japanese must arrange a mobile force of four to five hundred people to provide support to the western mountainous areas, otherwise the puppet troops and Japanese who are responsible for public security there will be quickly cleared out.

It’s difficult. The Fourth Military Sub-district is a difficult one.

Major General Kenkichi Ikegami reports the current battle situation to the First Army Headquarters.

"Our 9th Independent Brigade has not yet launched its offensive, and our friendly 3rd Independent Brigade and Okayama Regiment have been defeated. This is not a poor plan, but a purely command problem."

Yoshio Shinozuka was feeling a headache as the news of the Okayama United's disastrous defeat had already reached him.

Last night, the Okayama Regiment was confirmed to have been defeated, with more than half of its troops lost and countless weapons and ordnance lost.

Having lost the ability to sweep the mountainous areas, the remaining troops retreated to Fuping in disgrace.

This morning, we learned that the 700rd Independent Mixed Brigade was swept away, losing more than soldiers, making the already weak situation even worse.

The garrison in Gang County was seriously insufficient. The independent mixed brigade of 1800 people only had combatants at the moment.

Three infantry squads had to be separated and sent to the western mountainous areas with infantry artillery and indirect fire artillery for support.

The remaining infantry battalion can be commanded by Major General Shang Xianji to participate in the mopping-up operation.

The initial battle plan was to mobilize 2500 troops from Gang County, 3500 troops from the Fuping Gangshan Regiment, and 5000 troops from the th Independent Mixed Brigade to jointly deal with the th Military Sub-district.

After fighting for two or three days, the Japanese in Gang County were severely defeated and could not retreat.

The Gangshan Regiment was defeated and retreated to Fuping County to rest.

Only Shang Xianji's 9th Brigade was left. Yu Hutuohe fought off three waves of attacks. The two sides carried out evenly matched artillery bombardments, resulting in the loss of four to five hundred troops.

If it were only his Independent 9th Brigade, he would not be able to take over the 4th Military Sub-district, so he would need to send more troops.

The Japanese major general spoke highly of the combat effectiveness of the Fourth Military Division. The two main regiments guarding the Wutai Mountain area could resist the attack of a complete independent mixed brigade.

Not only that, Ding Wei's command style is quite bold, and his marching layout has a grand and open momentum.

Not only limited to defense, but also looking for opportunities to take the initiative to launch attacks.

On the Hutuo River side, troops continued to be deployed for defense.

In the morning, the soldiers ate two bites of cold steamed buns, drank a bellyful of boiled water, lay down on the ground, curled up their legs, and rested while holding their rifles.

After a night of fighting, the soldiers were exhausted both physically and mentally.

Make good use of the available time, close your eyes and go to sleep.

At this time, there were still people carrying ammunition in the fortifications. The noise was noisy and the environment was harsh.

No matter how bad the situation is, you must get some sleep.

The Japanese raids were tough battles that might last ten days, half a month, or even one or two months.

If you keep fighting, your body will break down and you will die on the battlefield.

Ding Wei received two pieces of news, one good and one bad.

First, after the guerrillas led by Zhong Zhicheng cleaned up the battlefield, the wounded were arranged nearby to rest in the mountainous countryside. Soldiers who could continue to fight were drawn from the guerrillas and unified into a temporary combat regiment of 2000 people, which was moving closer to Wutai County.

Second, the various units under the command of Brigade Commander Chen were all attacked by the Japanese, and the situation in the base area was difficult. Each regiment had to choose to split up and break through, and he suggested that the independent regiment and the new second regiment move closer to the Yu County area.

They wanted the Fourth Military Sub-district to help provide support and arrange rest for the breakout team.

Zhong Zhicheng is truly the pillar behind Ding Wei and has played a vital role in the expansion and development of the Fourth Military Sub-district.

The temporary combat regiment of 2000 people can be considered to be organized into a new Fourth Regiment to command and report to the military region.

The artillery towers in the Yu County area had been cleared out long ago, so it would be no problem for Li Yunlong and Kong Jie's troops to break out from here.

However, breaking out is bound to attract new attention from the Japanese. If we continue to send more troops to the area, the anti-mopping-up situation will continue to be severe.

Ding Wei was thinking about the upcoming battle, so he had a simple lunch. He just ate a bowl of rice soaked in hot water, which contained rice, red beans, etc., plus a plate of pickled vegetables he made himself, and then he put it all in his stomach.

After wiping his mouth, he stared at the map, thinking about how to fight.

The raid on the Tongpu Railway last night was enough to give the Japanese a headache for a while.

After the bridge was blown up, the march of the 9th Independent Mixed Brigade also encountered trouble.

It is about to rain and the water level of the Hutuo River will rise, which is good for counter-mopping up in the mountainous areas.

"Commander, our frontline scouts brought back news that a large number of the main forces of the Japanese 9th Brigade returned to the Dingxiang area, but did not launch an offensive against our army."

Ding Wei laughed.

Without the support of the Okayama Regiment, the Japanese would not take the initiative to attack.

The Independent 9th Brigade alone is not strong enough.

At present, the forces of the New Fourth Regiment are gathering together, led by Political Commissar Zhong Zhicheng. He has the main forces of three regiments under his command and has an advantage in terms of military strength.

No matter what, we have to let the Japanese into the mountains so that we can find a chance to annihilate them and deal a heavy blow to them all at once.

When fighting in the plains and the combat situation is not good, it is impossible to stop the Japanese from breaking through.

What's more, there is pressure from above, and bombers are ready to support the battle at any time.

"Strategically retreat to the mountainous area, deploy troops along the Wutai Mountain area, abandon positions along the Hutuo River, and let the New 1st and New 3rd Regiments retreat 30 miles."

I hope there will be plenty of rain in the next few days to dampen the Japanese's morale.