A Journey Through the Flames of War in the Republican Era

The commander of the 35th Regiment, Suekichi Fujii, was standing in front of the observation post, intently observing the battle situation through binoculars.

The battle was fierce. From the intense gunfire of the defending troops, he could tell that the machine guns and mortars of the Huaxia Army Training Corps were indeed extraordinary, far stronger than those of the previous Central Army troops.

"It seems the artillery preparations before the attack were ineffective and failed to reduce their firepower," he muttered to himself.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly: "The fact that they dared to let our army get within a hundred meters of us before suddenly opening fire, rendering our heavy artillery ineffective, shows that their fighting spirit is absolutely not to be underestimated."

The 1st Battalion of the 35th Regiment launched two attacks, both of which failed, forcing Battalion Commander Major Miyake to request "tactical guidance" from Regiment Commander Suekichi Fujii.

"The enemy's automatic weapons were rampant near the village. We were under intense fire, so we suppressed them with artillery, rapid-fire cannons and machine guns. However, the enemy had cover, clever disguises, and was flexible and mobile, making it difficult to capture them. Our battalion's two attacks failed, and the advance of the reserve was also very difficult, almost leading to isolation."

"I can hear it; the enemy's firepower is still very intense." Fujii Suekichi took the microphone and said to Major Miyake, "The attack squadron will turn back and take a short rest, while our artillery strikes the enemy positions again."

Major General Jing Shuxuan, commander of the 6th Brigade, looked grim. Not only had the 35th Regiment suffered a setback, but the 7th Regiment's attack on Xujia Lane on the west side had also been repelled. Both regimental commanders "requested tactical guidance" from him.

"The original assessment of the combat effectiveness of the Huaxia Army Training Corps was wrong," He Jingshuxuan thought to himself. He no longer had his former arrogance; a strange sense of unease welled up in his heart, as if only pacing back and forth could alleviate that anxiety.

After much deliberation, He Jingshuxuan decided to request the division commander, Yoshizumi Ryosuke, to conduct another round of artillery bombardment on our army's defenses with large-caliber heavy artillery.

The billowing smoke that blotted out the sun and moon obscured the light, and the continuous, almost uninterrupted roar of exploding shells nearly deafened people.

The devastating heavy artillery bombardment had barely ceased when two field artillery battalions, two mountain artillery battalions, and two regimental artillery companies, reinforcing the 6th Brigade's attack direction, opened fire again. A deluge of shells, accompanied by sharp, eerie whistles, rained down, leaving our positions in ruins.

In this open wilderness, there were no natural defenses to be found, and the hastily constructed fortifications were extremely rudimentary, unable to withstand the power of Japanese aircraft and heavy artillery. Guided by observation balloons, the Japanese heavy artillery achieved remarkably high accuracy.

After days of bombing by the Japanese army, the area was already devastated, with shocking shell craters scattered all over the ground, resembling meteorite craters on the surface of the moon.

The Japanese then adjusted their tactics, advancing slowly under the cover of advancing field artillery and infantry guns. They would stop every short distance to construct fortifications and fire with heavy machine guns, followed by infantry guns and anti-tank guns, aiming and firing directly at our heavy machine gun positions. Once they had established stable positions, they repeated this process.

"Reporting to the regimental commander, the Japanese army has changed its tactics and is advancing towards our positions step by step." The forward officer reported to the regimental headquarters.

Song Hongfei ordered: "Pay close attention and increase vigilance!"

Afterwards, Song Hongfei went to the 1st Battalion's bunker and observed for a long time. He frowned and muttered to himself, "If we had an artillery regiment to provide artillery cover, the Japanese would just be throwing their lives away with this move."

"The Japanese are too arrogant! They're completely unguarded. This is a perfect opportunity! Regimental Commander, let's request the artillery battalion to provide cover," Battalion Commander Wang Jingxiong suggested to him.

Song Hongfei sighed helplessly, "The artillery is suppressed by the enemy's heavy artillery and aircraft, so it is not easy to go into battle during the day."

He knew that on the Shanghai battlefield, Japanese planes and balloons were closely monitoring and trying every means to find our artillery. As soon as they opened fire, they would be met with fierce Japanese artillery counterattacks. Our artillery could only hide during the day and enter the position under the cover of darkness at night. After each shelling, they had to quickly withdraw and move.

Artillery could not be concentrated and was mostly dispersed into companies and platoons, using two cannons or even one cannon to strike the Japanese army in a "guerrilla" manner. Although this demonstrated the ingenuity and bravery of our artillery, it also reflected the helplessness and bitterness and the huge gap in strength.

Song Hongfei then said to Wang Jingxiong, "No matter what, I'm going to give it a try."

He then reported the situation to the battalion commander, Gui Shuaizhen, by telephone from the 2nd battalion headquarters, requesting the artillery battalion of the battalion to bombard the Japanese troops.

But Gui Shuzhen told him: "Japanese aircraft are frequently conducting reconnaissance and bombing of our artillery positions, making it extremely difficult for the artillery battalion to operate during the day."

"There's no other way," Song Hongfei said to Wang Jingxiong after hanging up the phone.

Both of them were somewhat disgruntled.

Lou Dishan, the artillery battalion commander of the brigade and known as the "God of Artillery," was also indignant at the arrogance of the Japanese army, but he was powerless to do anything about it. The artillery battalion had been dispersed into companies and platoons and were hiding and waiting for orders.

Lou Dishan was itching to fire at the Japanese troops exposed in the open field, but when he looked up and saw the Japanese reconnaissance planes flying by from time to time, he could only suppress his anger and desire.

The National Revolutionary Army was in such a difficult situation that it could not produce its own artillery. Every gun lost was one less, and every gun was extremely precious. The 10th Regiment of 150mm heavy artillery on the Shanghai battlefield was personally controlled by the commander of the Third War Zone, and the right to fire had to be requested from the army group commander.

Song Hongfei could only sigh helplessly: "These insignificant Japanese devils dare to bully me because I have no cannons!"

Even though the Training Corps was the most "well-equipped and well-trained" in the National Revolutionary Army, it only had one 75mm mountain artillery battalion. Compared with the Japanese army's large number of aircraft, large-caliber heavy artillery, howitzers, mountain guns, tanks, and naval guns, its firepower was still weak, and it was in a passive and vulnerable position.

“Just taking hits without fighting back isn’t our regiment’s style! I’m transferring an 82mm mortar platoon to reinforce your battalion. You’ll be in charge, and you can fire as needed without asking me again.” Song Hongfei pondered for a moment, then said to Wang Jingxiong, “But remember one thing: the gunner is more valuable than the cannon!”

"Yes!" Wang Jingxiong's expression immediately brightened.

At this moment, to avoid being detected by the enemy, the infantry artillery company and the anti-tank artillery company of the 3rd Regiment had to mostly camouflage and conceal themselves, unable to carry out artillery fire. Occasionally, they would sneak up and fire a single shot, causing little damage; it was just a cautious steal, and after firing a shot, they would immediately hide again.

The 3rd Regiment could only rely on 82mm mortars to conduct covert "hitting the enemy from behind the mountain" and "guerrilla artillery warfare." Although they could inflict some casualties on the Japanese army, they could not achieve the effect of stopping the Japanese army's advance.

Whenever our 82mm mortars fired, the Japanese would retaliate with several times or even ten times the number of shells. Our soldiers were furious but helpless, and their morale was also affected.

The Japanese army adopted a piecemeal tactic, advancing step by step, until they reached the north of Caijiazhai, where they began to rebuild their positions.

This location is extremely strategic, only a few hundred meters from the forward position of the 3rd Training Corps. By using this as a base, the Japanese army could greatly shorten their attack distance and launch attacks on our army at any time. Armored vehicles could also make full use of their powerful mobility by utilizing this starting position.

This undoubtedly puts enormous pressure on our army, which is on the defensive.

After the 3rd Regiment of the Training Corps took over the Qujiaqiao position, Song Hongfei ordered the reconstruction of three defensive zones overnight, increasing the depth of the tiered defense. An additional forward position was also deployed, extending all the way to cross the unnamed ditch south of Caijiazhai, which was no more than 100 meters away from the now-flattened Caijiazhai.

Song Hongfei then widened and deepened the existing trench about 50 meters from the bridgehead on one side of our army, turning it into an anti-tank trench. He also dug several more trenches on both sides and laid anti-tank mines, forming a semi-circular encirclement and carefully setting a trap for the Japanese tanks.

If Japanese tanks were to cross this stone bridge, only one could cross at a time. They wouldn't notice anything unusual on the bridge, but after driving dozens of meters down the bridgehead, they would suddenly find themselves surrounded by fire, unable to advance or retreat.

Song Hongfei had already planned to use this firepower encirclement to teach the Japanese tanks a lesson they would never forget.

Judging from the fact that the Japanese army seemed to deliberately avoid bombing the stone bridge with both aircraft and heavy artillery, they must have intended to use it.