Chapter 108: Introducing Your Lord into the Gate (1)

Just as Naoki Matsuki hoped, the Japanese officers and soldiers of the Fourth Infantry Brigade of the 8th Division of the Japanese Army who were attacking Sengguanfeng were now stepping on thick snow, moving their clumsy bodies and climbing upwards step by step. From time to time, Japanese soldiers were shot and rolling down. Whenever someone was shot, they would cause chaos in the attacking team.

As the name suggests, Monk Guan Peak is a mountain dominated by weathered rock. The main peak is only more than 100 meters above sea level, and the side peaks form ridges to form a natural barrier. The main peak position is actually less than 70 meters long and has a depth of about 30 meters. Behind it is a slightly flat gentle slope. There are two artificially cut slow-step platforms in front of the main peak, which means that the direct firepower of the Japanese army cannot threaten the main peak position in any case. The Japanese army must climb the slow-step platform to exchange fire with the main peak position.

The Monk Guanfeng position was built by Zhang Xuewu to learn from the guidance of the classic defensive position. In order to weaken the threat of direct artillery fire in the Japanese army, many battles in history have proved that when fighting against opponents with stronger firepower than their own, setting the position on the ridge line of the front incline was already a lesson proved with blood.

Two 25-degree angular slopes were excavated before the main peak position of Sengguan Peak. Japanese soldiers could only shoot the main peak position by climbing the slow platform. The distance of fifty meters made any Japanese grenade sigh. The accuracy of the Type 38 field heavy howitzer surprised Xiyi, who ordered the shelling of the main peak, and one of them fell into the middle of the mountain. When it came to think of the dense officers and soldiers on the middle of the mountain, Xiyi closed his eyes in pain. As the saying goes, "I don't see it is clean."

Due to ballistic trajectory, the 75-mm mountain field artillery of the 8th Division could not hit the defenders' positions at all. The Chinese defenders quickly gave up the left and right wing positions exposed to the light and heavy artillery fire of the Japanese army. However, the Japanese troops occupying these positions gave up their positions and retreated not long after, because the main peak formation was nearly thirty meters higher than the two wing positions. The heavy machine gun firepower on the position could directly shoot the two wing positions, and the Japanese army was like a living target on the position.

The Japanese troops attacking the main peak were also very unsuccessful. The steep coercion made the Japanese army unable to even set up mortars and could only use grenade launchers to fight back. The Chinese defenders opened up several hidden platforms on the back slope of the hillside. Forty-six mortars of various calibers of the newly formed second regiment were hidden on these platforms, providing fire support to the main peak positions and using firepower to suppress and strike the Japanese army occupying the flank positions.

Amid the explosion of the falling mortar shells, Japanese officers and soldiers lined up in dense formations and attacked the Japanese army were killed and injured. They attacked from the flanks to try to bypass the main peak of the Sengguan Peak, and the headquarters of the 36th Brigade of the Japanese Infantry was stubbornly blocked by the preset position of the newly formed Second Regiment. Between the ditches, Japanese soldiers became targets for the defenders. The flares fired from the main peak of the Sengguan Peak made the Japanese army almost nowhere to hide. The firepower on the flanks on the top of the main peak were high and the Japanese army was scattered.

For this reason, Xi Yiyi called the field artillery corps and his own heavy artillery corps, and asked them to suppress the Chinese defenders on Monk Guan Peak with all their strength!

The two corps captains looking at each other helplessly. The attack supporting Monk Guanfeng really made Katakura Nanki and Ono Fazheng both worried. Ono Fazheng's field gun could not hit the palm-sized place on the top of Monk Guanfeng due to the shooting angle and ballistics. Katakura Nanki's 380-field heavy howitzers were so sad that they did not dare to use the tragic accuracy to support infantry attacks. The performance of these master guns was far behind, but most of the military expenditure of the empire was given to the navy every year. Although the army had complaints about this, the army's voice was loud but they were always defeated repeatedly at the imperial meeting.

In desperation, the two had to order their respective troops to fire shells at the maximum firing angle. It doesn't matter whether they can hit the enemy. Anyway, these shells will fall into Chengde City, so they will treat it as a way to block the enemy's reinforcement.

After putting down the phone, Xiyiichi also realized that the artillery might not be able to effectively suppress the Sengguan Peak. After all, the main peak position is too narrow. Even if the Chinese army launches repeatedly, it will be able to block all its divisions outside the pass as long as it drives a company. The attack on the left wing has failed. Xiyiichi has not tried it at all because the right wing will be subjected to the terrible side firepower of the Sengguan Peak and the left wing of the Tiger Gate position.

So Nishiyi decisively asked Okamura Nishi for critical support (bombing). Okamura Nishi also knew that the Eighth Division had inevitably fallen into a tough battle at Monk Guanfeng, and promised to dispatch five squadrons of the nine squadrons of the Kwantung Army Flying Team at all airports along Jinzhou to support the Eighth Division's attack on Monk Guanfeng after dawn.

Hirose Shousuke, who was also confused with the same problem as Nishiyi, was also involved in the fact that the 6th Division had already rushed into the third line of defense of the defenders for the second time. Although he was quickly driven down by the opponent, it can be expected that the 6th Division would definitely be able to take down the flank positions along the Majiagou side ridge and attack Chengde City before 8 o'clock tomorrow morning.

In this regard, Hirose Shousuke seemed helpless because from the beginning of the attack, the left-wing position under his 10th Division became the target of concentrated attack by Chinese artillery troops. On the contrary, the attacking troops of the 6th Division were only intercepted by fire from a part of the mortars, because the 6th Division was progressing rapidly?

As a waiter, Hirose Shousuke seemed to have noticed an unusual smell. The right wing broke through? But the main position and the left wing position of Majiagou Side Ridge are unbreakable? Then the troops attacked by the 6th Division can pass through the old street and penetrate directly into the central area of ​​the city? The artillery support of the Chinese defenders also seems to be too strange. Why not support the right wing that has been continuously broken through? Instead, they are all concentrated on the head of their own troops?

Faced with the rapid progress of the 11th Infantry Brigade, Masaemon Onomoto looked at his watch. It was already 6:20 in the morning. The last line of defense on the right wing of the Chinese defenders seemed to be in danger. Although the 11th Infantry Brigade suffered heavy casualties, the results of the battle were indeed there. In comparison, Nishiyichi, who was still making no progress in the loss of soldiers and generals in Seng Guanfeng, was still a little at the moment.

After sleeping all night, Okamura Nishi looked at the staff members holding phones in hand to update and inform the progress of the attacking troops on the sand table, and slowly lit a cigarette for himself. The curling green smoke, Nakamura Nishi looked at the nameplate that was constantly being pushed forward by the 11th Brigade of the 6th Division and breathed a sigh of relief.

In Okamura Yasuji's view, although the Chinese defenders may not fall into collapse after breaking through the defense of the Chinese defenders, they can undoubtedly directly take the core area of ​​the Chinese defenders. Okamura Yasuji believes that the Chinese defenders' command must be in that area.

The two Japanese field heavy artillery corps were firing artillery shells into Chengde City at this moment. A group of violent explosions rose from Chengde City, but they still could not effectively suppress the artillery fire of the Chinese defenders. Seeing the attacking troops being smashed by the artillery fire of the Chinese defenders, Hirose Shousuke was furious and called the phone to the artillery position. As a result, the captain of Kimura told Hirose Shousuke that the Chinese defenders' artillery was a single artillery position. Simply put, it was a cannon hidden in one position and fired at the calculated area that was marked through the phone.
Chapter completed!