Bright Sword: Leading the Special Operations Squadron to Fight the Japs

Nakaike Sanfu pondered for a moment, listening to the artillery fire from the south becoming increasingly sparse, as if he had guessed that the battle between the 3rd Tank Division and the 110th Division had ended, but the outcome was unknown.

"Immediately send a telegram to the 3rd Tank Division and the 110th Division to inquire about the battle situation, and copy it to the North China Front Command!"

The telegram sent to the 3rd Tank Division soon received a reply: the 3rd Tank Division suffered heavy losses, with 80% of its tanks destroyed, and had lost its combat effectiveness, and had to withdraw to Zheng County for rest and recuperation!

However, there was no response to the telegram sent to the 110th Division. Therefore, Nakaike Mitsuo concluded that the 110th Division headquarters had met with an accident and suffered heavy losses.

"Baka, the 3th Tank Regiment has retreated, so why can't our Kwantung Army retreat? Do you really think we're the scapegoats? Retreat!"

Okamura Neiji was now standing in front of the sand table, feeling worried. Day was almost dawning, and he seemed to have seen that the planes of the Independent Column were already fully fueled and loaded with bombs, ready to ruthlessly ravage the Imperial Army.

"Order the 1st Division, the 110th Division, and the rd Tank Division to move closer to Zheng County!"

Okamura Neiji's mind was in a mess now. He had given up his original plan: to completely annihilate the First War Zone.

Now there is only one goal, and that is to capture Xuchang and open up the Pinghan Line!

Therefore, he had to shrink his defense, first to preserve Zheng County and the Yellow River Bridge, and then to attack from the north and south to recapture Xinxiang, Hebi and Handan.

By eight o'clock in the morning, Luoyang fell into peace again. If it weren't for the bombing that devastated the city, people would probably have thought that yesterday was just a nightmare.

Among them, Gao Cheng, a former member of the Central Army, thought so.

These three or four hundred Central Army soldiers were organized into a stretcher team and were responsible for the Erlang Temple position of the 124th Brigade, where the fighting was the most brutal. They worked all night to carry more than two thousand wounded soldiers from the position.

They rushed to the battlefield under the bombardment, thinking that the ground would be littered with unattended wounded soldiers, but they discovered that the wounded soldiers lying on the ground had been simply treated by medical soldiers and given graded treatments.

The seriously injured soldiers were first given morphine, carried off the battlefield, and underwent surgery.

The lightly wounded soldiers moved slightly back and were bandaged on the battlefield. Those who could fight continued to fight, while those who could not fight waited for the stretcher team.

The wounded soldiers who were carried down were not just thrown into the hospital like the Central Army did.

Instead, they were lifted directly onto a car that was waiting not far from the front line and pulled directly to the rear.

There are also many field medical vehicles that can directly perform simple and urgent operations and provide secondary treatment.

Zhao Gang rushed to the Erlang Temple position, and his heart ached when he saw the corpses all over the ground, many of whom were soldiers from the Independent Column.

"Political Commissar Zhao, you're here!"

Li Jiayu quietly walked behind Zhao Gang and spoke softly.

"Well, Commander Jiayu, you guys have worked hard. Although the losses were not small, the results were great. We defended Luoyang! Not bad!"

Li Jiayu's eyes were red. In this battle, the Eighth Army suffered more than 6,000 casualties. Although it was not a serious loss, it was still a serious injury.

The Ninth Army in Ruzhou and Pingdingshan suffered more than 5,000 casualties, but also repelled the enemy's attack.

The 10th Army in Luohe was still engaged in fierce fighting, with casualties reaching more than 5,000.

"Political Commissar, the enemy is more difficult to deal with than we thought, but our Fourth Army is not a coward. The number of enemy killed is more than three times our casualties!"

"Well, Commander Li Yunlong and Chief of Staff Wang Meng have entrusted me to congratulate you on your great victory. That's great!"

Li Jiayu put his legs together and saluted.

"Thanks to the column leaders for their encouragement! Our Fourth Army will continue to work hard and defend Luohe!"

"Well, go and do your work!"

Li Jiayu saluted again and returned to his headquarters in Luoyang, ordering the Ninth Army to dispatch an armored division to support Luohe.

Zhao Gang continued to patrol the battlefield and saw Gao Cheng sitting in his position thinking about life.

"Captain Gao, haven't the wounded been carried away? Why are you still here? Don't you want to take a rest?"

When Gao Cheng saw Zhao Gang coming, he quickly stood up, brushed the dust off his hands and saluted.

"Political Commissar Zhao! I'm not tired. I'll just check on the battlefield to see if there are any wounded. We can't let our brothers who are killing the enemy be missed on the battlefield."

"Haha, you are thoughtful. Your makeshift stretcher team was pretty good last night. I mean, really good! The severity of this battle was even more brutal than we expected.

At the Erlang Temple position below us, a brigade withstood the attack of a division. This was unimaginable before, right? "

Gao Cheng nodded in admiration. He looked at the bodies of the sacrificed soldiers of the Independent Column, all of whom were in fighting postures, and knew that they had really fought for their lives.

"Political Commissar Zhao, I'm ashamed to say that even if we randomly pick the troops in the Central Army right now, we can't find a brigade, or even a division, or an army to withstand the attack of a division of the Japanese devils."

"Do you know why the 124th Infantry Brigade is so powerful? A few months ago, they were the same as you, or even worse than you."

Gao Cheng shook his head.

"Weapons and equipment are one aspect, but being able to use the weapons in your hands, mobilizing resources, and having the will to fight are all essential.

If you don't know how to use the weapons in your hands, those semi-automatic rifles are just fire sticks, and those tanks are just moving targets! If you don't have the will to fight, then no matter how good the equipment is, it's just for show!

You may not believe it, but even though the battle was so difficult, the 124th Infantry Brigade never asked the army group to retreat, and the Fourth Army never asked the headquarters to retreat!

What they ask for most is ammunition! The more ammunition the better! "

Zhao Gang looked at the bodies of the soldiers on the ground with red eyes, then patted Gao Cheng on the shoulder.

"Captain Gao, if you are willing, I welcome you to join the independent column!"

After Zhao Gang finished speaking, he led the team away.

Gao Chengcheng reacted and immediately shouted at Zhao Gang's back:

"I am willing!"

Zhao Gang didn't look back, but waved his hand.

At ten o'clock in the morning of that day, all radio stations received the latest information on the Battle of Central Henan provided by the Independent Column.

"Special broadcast: The Fourth Army of the Independent Column has defeated the enemy forces besieging Luoyang, Ruzhou, and Pingdingshan, and has firmly controlled Luohe in the hands of the Chinese people. So far, more than 45,000 enemies have been killed!"

The whole country was jubilant.

The independent column turned the tide. Even though they took over a terrible mess, they did not expect to achieve such outstanding results, which boosted the morale of the entire Chinese anti-Japanese war!

Originally, the pessimistic and desperate Chinese people were prepared to accept the fate of national destruction and genocide, but they did not expect that this independent column would be the savior. With the strength of only six divisions and three brigades, they blocked the rampant attack of the Japanese invaders who had twice their number of troops!

The Independent Column is a blessing to the nation and the country!