Bright Sword: Construction starts from southeastern Shanxi

At exactly midnight, the silent night sky was suddenly torn apart by deafening artillery fire.

Following the order from Yang Nengjun in the command center, the artillery regiments of the first and third columns of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region quickly fired artillery shells.

The flares pierced the night sky, illuminating the entire Wutai County as if it were daytime.

Immediately afterwards, dense artillery shells rained down on the Japanese-fortified county town, and the artillery fire covered the city walls, bunkers and important military facilities in the city.

In the mountains and fields, the Eighth Route Army troops in various positions around Wutai County launched attacks at the same time.

The second regiment from Dong Lei's direction took the lead in attacking after lurking in Dongma Village in front of the north gate of the rapid march.

The entire regiment began to advance rapidly along the rugged road under the cover of artillery bombardment, with the goal of capturing a high ground near the east gate in order to control the attack route from a high position.

At the same time, the Third Regiment in the direction of Donggang Village also began to move. Their target was the group of bunkers at the south gate, trying to open a gap and create conditions for the large force to rush into the county town.

The Japanese army obviously did not expect the Eighth Route Army's offensive to be so swift and fierce.

Before this, the intelligence department in North China had issued an order for the Eighth Route Army troops in North China to assemble abnormally.

Despite Kuribayashi Tadamichi's preparations, the county's defenses were still severely damaged by the first wave of artillery fire.

Some Japanese bunkers were directly destroyed and the machine gun positions on the city walls were blown to pieces.

Even the bunker where the county headquarters was located was violently shaken by the explosion of a shell, and dust fell from the walls.

"Baga!" Tadamichi Kuribayashi hurriedly evacuated from his residence to the underground command post as soon as the shelling started.

In the command center, Kuribayashi Tadamichi suddenly stood up from his chair, his face livid, and shouted sternly,

"Organize a counterattack immediately! Have the troops stationed at the north gate reinforce the east gate. Everyone, get ready for battle!"

However, just as the Japanese army tried to readjust its defense line, the Eighth Route Army's assault troops had already arrived at the battlefield.

In the southwest, the Second Column of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Army, which was responsible for blocking the retreat of the Japanese army, built a tight ambush position in Guyugou.

They ambushed on both sides of the canyon, waiting to annihilate the Japanese army in one fell swoop when they retreated from Wutai, while also preparing to block the Japanese reinforcements heading towards Xinzhou.

Less than twenty minutes after the battle began, the scouts urgently sent back the following intelligence:

The Japanese 109th Division's troops along the Wutai to Xinzhou line have begun to gather and approach Wutai, and are expected to arrive at the battlefield at three in the morning.

After receiving the intelligence, Commander Xiao of the Second Column decisively adjusted the deployment, ordered the troops to set up an ambush in advance, and sent a reinforced battalion to sneak into the rear of the Japanese army, launching harassment on their march and slowing down their reinforcement speed.

Sure enough, when the Japanese reinforcements reached Guyugou, they were suddenly ambushed fiercely.

The Eighth Route Army soldiers ambushed on the hillside concentrated their firepower to attack the Japanese vanguard. Grenade launchers, light and heavy machine guns, and rifles formed a fire network that tore the Japanese troops apart.

The ambushed Japanese army fell into chaos in an instant, and the Eighth Route Army squad that sneaked into the enemy's rear took the opportunity to attack the Japanese logistics team and cut off its supply line.

Before this, Kuribayashi Tadamichi had prepared a plan for fighting against the Eighth Route Army.

Whenever Wutai was attacked, the signalmen would immediately send a telegram to the 41st Division in the direction of Xinzhou asking for reinforcements.

At the same time, the regiments along the Xinzhou to Wutai line also immediately moved closer to Wutai.

Sure enough, after learning that the reinforcements were blocked, Kuribayashi Tadamichi's face began to turn gloomy.

He knew very well that if the passage from Wutai to Xinzhou could not be opened in time, the Wutai defenders would be isolated and helpless, and eventually be surrounded and annihilated here by the Eighth Route Army.

Therefore, Kuribayashi Tadamichi decisively ordered the troops inside the city to defend the city with all their strength, and at the same time organized a suicide squad to try to break out and meet up with the reinforcements in the southwest.

At 1:30 a.m., after continuous artillery bombardment, the First Column of the Eighth Route Army finally broke through the Japanese army's outer defense line.

The Second Regiment of the Southwest Highlands has successfully occupied the commanding heights in front of the east gate and blocked the main streets in the city with heavy machine guns.

The assault troops of the Third Regiment broke through the group of bunkers in the direction of the South Gate, rushed into the urban area, and engaged in fierce street fighting with the Japanese army.

The streets and alleys of Wutai County are narrow, and the Japanese army had already built a large number of strong strongholds and set up machine gun fire points on both sides of the streets.

As soon as the Eighth Route Army entered the urban area, they were immediately subjected to fierce crossfire.

The street fighting was extremely brutal. Eighth Route Army soldiers fell in rows, but more soldiers rushed forward one after another, using explosive packs and grenades to forcibly break through the Japanese defense line.

The artillery tower in the direction of the east gate was an important defense node of the Japanese army. The Japanese squad stationed there put up a stubborn resistance, which hindered the attack of the Eighth Route Army.

Seeing that the situation was unfavorable, Zhang Changhe, the assault team leader of the Second Regiment, immediately led an assault squad, used the bunkers to quickly approach the artillery tower, and threw three explosive packs in succession under dense machine gun fire.

Boom——

A corner of the artillery tower collapsed, and smoke and dust billowed.

Taking advantage of the enemy's confusion, the commandos rushed forward quickly, strafed the remaining Japanese troops with submachine guns, and eliminated the remaining enemies one by one with bayonets.

The east gate was successfully breached, and the subsequent large troops quickly poured into the county town.

As the East Gate and South Gate were breached one after another, large forces of the Eighth Route Army swarmed in and attacked the core area of ​​the county town.

However, the fighting in the city was far more intense than expected.

Relying on pre-built barricades, bunkers and tunnel fortifications, Kuribayashi Tadamichi commanded the Japanese army to launch a desperate resistance, which greatly hindered the advance of the Eighth Route Army.

On the main streets of Wutai County, the Japanese army used abandoned houses, sandbags and overturned carriages to build barricades, and every street became a cross-fire zone.

As soon as the Eighth Route Army commandos entered the city, they were met with fierce machine gun fire. Bullets rained down, bricks and stones splashed everywhere, and the soldiers in the front row fell one after another.

"Get down!" Commando team leader Zhang Changhe rolled into the bunker and quickly observed the situation on the battlefield.

Behind the barricades, the Japanese army deployed several heavy machine guns, staggeredly blocking the streets, making it difficult for the Eighth Route Army to advance.

"Demolition team, move on!" Zhang Changhe waved his hand, and three soldiers, holding explosives, quickly approached the enemy barricade from the side alley.

They crawled along the wall, braving the fire of Japanese machine guns, and moved through the ruins in the streets.

"ignition!"

The explosive pack was quickly placed under the barricade, and the demolitionist lit the fuse with a match and immediately evacuated.

"boom--!"

With the loud explosion, the first barricade built by the Japanese army collapsed.

The soldiers seized the opportunity, jumped up and charged with submachine guns and rifles, pouring out rows of bullets, suppressing the enemy behind the bunker.

A Japanese soldier was shot dead as soon as he poked his head out. His body tilted and he fell into the ruins.

Seeing this, the remaining Japanese troops retreated in a hurry, attempting to reorganize their defense in the next street.

"Brothers, charge before they recover!"

Zhang Changhe shouted and led the soldiers to rush forward and quickly occupied the barricade position.