A Journey Through the Flames of War in the Republican Era

Fengzhuang, north of Yaojiadu on the Wusong River.

The headquarters of the 9th Division was located in a sturdy compound.

Division Commander Yoshizumi Ryosuke sat quietly in his chair, leaning on his katana, his face expressionless, but his gaze as cold as a blade.

A row of officers stood silently in front of him, not daring to utter a sound in front of their superior, who was known for his love of reprimanding his subordinates.

Several days of unsuccessful attacks had already fueled Yoshizumi Ryosuke's anger, and the words of Commander Matsui Iwane, telling him to send the 101st Division to "help with the attack," only made him more agitated.

What he found particularly unbearable was that the liaison officer sent by the 101st Division was so nonchalant, acting as if he were taking over the role of the host, as if the 101st Division could easily break through the enemy lines and penetrate their territory once they set out.

Yoshizumi Ryosuke felt extremely insulted. How could the prestigious 9th Standing Division maintain its dignity?

After seeing off the 101st Division's liaison officer, Yoshizumi Ryosuke's face was ashen, his eyes flashing with cold light. He had barely managed to suppress a fit of rage.

He wanted to use the blood and battlefields of the Chinese army to show the 101st Division Commander, Masayoshi Ito, what a truly elite, permanent division of the Imperial Army should be!

Looking at the rising sun, Yoshizumi Ryosuke gave the order:

"After the first round of artillery fire, the 35th, 7th, 36th, and 19th Regiments launched reconnaissance attacks to ascertain the enemy's main defensive deployments and firepower. Then, another round of artillery preparation was carried out, during which the troops ate lunch. At 3:45 noon, the attack was launched!"

This brief order, carefully crafted by the headquarters staff, became a specific "tactical guideline" and was quickly distributed to each regiment.

Yoshizumi Ryosuke not only deployed all the artillery under his command, but also requested air support from the dispatched army.

After nearly an hour of continuous Japanese artillery fire, it began to extend. The Japanese 19th Regiment, which could no longer hold back, launched an attack on the Nationalist 154th Division on the left side of Tiandori!

The vanguard of the 19th Regiment, the Yamamoto Battalion, quickly formed a skirmish line and advanced toward the 154th Division's position. Lieutenant Colonel Yamamoto rested his command sword on his shoulder, occasionally waving it sharply forward and shouting, "Advance!"

As a probing attack, Yamamoto's battalion spread out its skirmish lines very wide, with one battalion's strength almost covering the front of the 154th Division's Tadaori position.

"The enemy is advancing! Take position! Prepare for battle!"

A sharp whistle rang out from the defensive positions of our 154th Division. Officers shouted, urging the soldiers to take their positions and stand ready for battle.

Rows of Maxim heavy machine guns were dragged from the anti-artillery bunkers into the firing positions, their gleaming yellow ammunition belts flashing coldly.

This unprecedented artillery barrage from the Japanese army made our troops deeply aware that this offensive would be exceptionally fierce.

At the same time, the Japanese 36th, 35th and 7th Regiments also launched attacks on Xujialong and Qujiaqiao.

In the semi-underground regimental command post, Song Hongfei observed the Japanese troops through the binoculars of the artillery unit. Their attack formation was entering our firing range.

The Japanese attack formation looked rather sparse. Song Hongfei observed it repeatedly and felt that something was wrong. The Japanese bombed for half a day without regard to cost, but it turned out to be all bark and no bite.

Our 82mm mortars fired a barrage of barrages, the shells exploding amidst the Japanese ranks, creating plumes of smoke.

The Japanese army's grenade launchers and heavy machine guns provided continuous suppressive fire, while the Type 92 infantry guns fired sporadically at a leisurely pace, and infantrymen crouched low as they advanced.

Suddenly, a storm of gunfire erupted at our front lines. Under the fierce barrage of fire from our heavy machine guns, dozens of Japanese soldiers fell to the ground almost simultaneously.

The Japanese troops immediately returned fire with grenade launchers and light and heavy machine guns, exchanging fire with our troops.

In an instant, gunfire erupted and bullets flew everywhere.

Amidst the shouts of the squad leader brandishing his command sword, the Japanese infantry deployed into assault formation and launched a full-scale assault on our positions with fearless abandon.

More and more of our forces' firing positions continued to emerge, unleashing a barrage of intense fire.

A short while later, the Japanese troops suddenly began to retreat in panic.

Song Hongfei's expression suddenly changed, and he shouted sharply, "The Japanese are probing with fire! Order the forward firing positions not to fire, and to take cover and await orders!"

He then shouted, "Immediately notify neighboring units! Quickly! Withdraw the frontline troops! Beware of artillery fire!"

Several staff officers rushed toward the telephone.

Song Hongfei's insight was undeniably sharp; the Japanese army's large-caliber heavy artillery seemed to have swept over in the blink of an eye, and our forward positions were instantly engulfed in flames.

The Japanese heavy artillery fired three rounds of rapid fire at our positions, followed by close-range direct fire from mountain guns, infantry guns, and anti-tank guns in conjunction with heavy machine guns, destroying our exposed firing points and bunkers one by one.

Groups of Japanese planes flew in, circling and bombing back and forth as if showing off their power.

Bang! Song Hongfei slammed his fist on the battle map spread out on the table!

"Damn it, we're just taking the beating!"

Fortunately, he was alert and acted quickly, giving the order decisively.

Each battalion reported its losses to the regimental headquarters. The 1st and 2nd battalions, which were deployed in an inverted triangle formation at the front, and the 3rd reserve battalion at the rear, all suffered some casualties.

Because the Training Corps had a very large depth of flexible defense deployment, dispersed troops, and worked tirelessly to build fortifications, with complete shelters and anti-artillery bunkers, and its retreat and evacuation were relatively timely, its losses were not so great.

The 154th Division's firepower density was far lower than that of the Training Corps, so it could only deploy more densely to enhance its firepower. The two regiments in front suffered heavy losses, and the front lines were eerily silent. Apart from the scorched earth, shell craters, and severed limbs scattered everywhere, there was no sign of any human activity.

Due to their limited mobility, half of the Maxim heavy machine guns, along with their firing positions and bunkers, were destroyed by direct-fire artillery fire, resulting in heavy losses for the machine gunners.

"The Japanese army isn't stupid. Remember this bloody lesson!" Song Hongfei looked around at everyone. "The Japanese army is not only not stupid, but on the contrary, they are very cunning. We absolutely cannot let our guard down!"

"We must learn from this painful lesson. A single oversight on the battlefield can cost us lives and the shame of defeat." In the command post of the 3rd Regiment of the Training Corps, everyone was heavy-hearted.

"Warfare is based on deception!" This profound principle of military strategy has never been so deeply imprinted in people's hearts.

They were all well aware that if they hadn't been equipped with the best Type 24 rifles and machine guns, and had sufficient firepower to ensure a wide depth, the outcome for the Training Corps would have been no different from that of the 154th Division.

In the afternoon, after another round of overwhelming artillery preparations.

The densely packed Japanese troops, like locusts, fiercely swarmed towards our positions.

The Japanese army organized a "human bomb charge," with more than two hundred ferocious Japanese platoon leaders and officers forming a suicide squad. They stripped off their shirts, some wielding swords, others carrying rifles with bayonets, and charged at the forefront of the attacking force, howling as they went.

The battle was extremely fierce, with the thunderous sounds of gunfire reaching their peak. The 3rd and 1st Regiments of the Training Corps were fully engaged in the battle.

Our army organized light and heavy machine guns to concentrate fire on the Japanese suicide squads with mobile firepower, while 82mm mortar gunners desperately tried to block the fire at top speed.

The Japanese army fired back furiously with heavy machine guns, infantry guns, and grenade launchers.

Dense machine gun fire swept across the battlefield, mortar shells exploded in the ranks of the Japanese troops, blood and flesh splattered everywhere, and hit Japanese soldiers fell one after another.

The fanatical Japanese suicide squads completely disregarded human life, continuing to charge relentlessly against our barrage of bullets in skirmish formation.

The frenzied Japanese soldiers howled as they charged with the suicide squad. Although they were swept down in droves by our army's bullets, they still fearlessly charged to the north bank of the unnamed ditch south of Caijiazhai, which was the distance at which the two sides threw grenades at each other.

The defensive line deployed by the 3rd Regiment of the Training Corps along the nameless river ditch seemed to be an insurmountable chasm.

Within this short, deadly distance of a few dozen meters, the Japanese army launched two forced charges, both of which ended in failure.

The nameless ditch was only three to five meters wide, but the Japanese army could not jump across it. The original wooden bridges had been burned down by our army. The river was more than one meter deep, and the banks and the bottom of the river were covered with thick silt.

Some Japanese soldiers tried to wade across the river, but the short-legged Japanese soldiers, who were only 1.5 meters tall, immediately found themselves submerged. The more they struggled, the deeper they sank, until they were unable to move and cried out incessantly.

Our guns and cannons swept across the river, and Japanese soldiers fell in droves, their blood staining the river red...

The Japanese army then used the terrain on the north bank to engage our troops. Many Japanese soldiers piled up the bodies of their comrades to use as fortifications, and set up grenade launchers and light and heavy machine guns to exchange fire with our troops.

Our grenades and Japanese grenades flew through the air, then landed on the positions on both sides of the river and exploded, sending up clouds of smoke and scattering blood and flesh.

The 154th Division's position on the west side of Tianduoli was fraught with danger.

Two companies at the forward positions of the 462nd Regiment were almost completely wiped out by the fierce attack of the Japanese 19th Regiment, and the positions were lost.

The 462nd Regiment launched three counterattacks in succession, but due to the intense artillery fire from the Japanese army, they ultimately failed due to heavy casualties.

A large number of Japanese soldiers then broke into the second line, but the 462nd Regiment put up a stubborn resistance and fought to the death.

Regimental Commander Wang Fuwen took the lead, wielding his MP18 submachine gun and firing at the Japanese troops, shouting, "Brothers, hold on! Hold on!"

A fierce hand-to-hand combat broke out between the two sides.

"Damn it! You short Japanese devils!" Company Commander Liao Daoming roared, brandishing his bayonet as he charged towards the swarming Japanese troops. "Charge with me! I'm not a coward! I'd rather die than leave this mountain!"

The soldiers of the 154th Division of the Guangdong Army roared and charged towards the Japanese army with their company commander.

"Mortar company, provide artillery support to the 462nd Regiment! Engage the Japanese follow-up echelons!"

Song Hongfei saw the perilous situation of the 154th Division on the left flank through his binoculars and immediately ordered artillery support.

The mortars of the Training Corps fired at top speed, and shells rained down on the Japanese follow-up echelons that were pouring into the 154th Division's rear through the breach.

"This is so timely! Thank you so much!"

With tears welling up in his eyes, Wang Fuwen, the commander of the 462nd Regiment, roared, "Friendly troops are coming to our aid! Charge! Kill!"

Brigade Commander Liang Shiji arrived with his reserve team, bayonets in hand, and together with Regiment Commander Wang Fuwen, charged towards the Japanese troops and engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

Several seriously wounded soldiers, who could not be moved away in time, helped each other and used their last strength to support themselves, carrying a bundle of grenades as they rolled from the position toward the Japanese assault team.

With a deafening roar, the flowers of heroism bloomed on the land of the motherland, and also annihilated the ferocious enemy.