The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

The 17th Cavalry Regiment, directly under the 13th Division, suffered almost no losses in the shelling because it was stationed at a relatively far distance.

Therefore, Di Zhou Libing decided to leverage the cavalry's advantage of rapid assault, sending the cavalry regiment to lead the charge.

Following closely behind the cavalry regiment was Yamada Umeji's 103rd Infantry Brigade.

The brigade suffered relatively light casualties in the shelling, with a total of over 200 killed and over 400 wounded. The brigade currently has a total strength of over 7,000 troops.

Next came the 19th Mountain Artillery Regiment and the 13th Engineer Regiment, both directly under the division.

The next unit to suffer the most casualties in the shelling was Numata Tokushige's 26th Infantry Brigade.

This brigade suffered over a thousand dead and over four hundred wounded.

The last of the marching column was the 13th Supply Regiment, along with the division headquarters, communications unit, medical unit, and field hospital.

Although the Japanese suffered considerable losses, it did not frighten or terrify them.

The Japanese soldiers, like their division commander, were eager to vent their anger on the Chinese army.

They had even decided that if they didn't encounter the Chinese army, they would massacre Chinese civilians along the way to avenge themselves.

Therefore, Miyamoto Saburo, the commander of the 17th Cavalry Regiment of the Japanese army, ordered his more than 400 men to advance at full speed.

Around 11 a.m., the sentries sent out by the First Army reported that a Japanese cavalry force of about four or five hundred men had appeared.

As the commander of the First Army, Chen Yiding immediately gave a knowing look to Long Fei beside him.

"Commander, there are only a few hundred Japanese cavalrymen, not even enough to fill the gaps between the teeth of our First Army."

Long Fei was amused by Chen Yiding.

"Hmm, you're speaking with more confidence now. With over four thousand men, you have hundreds of light and heavy machine guns, thousands of submachine guns, dozens of mortars, and rifle grenades."

"The Japanese have really messed with you. But don't be careless. The Japanese 13th Division is a top-class division. In addition to the Type 32 cavalry sabers and Type 44 cavalry rifles, the cavalry regiment is also equipped with grenade launchers, machine guns and mortars."

"Furthermore, this should be the vanguard of the Japanese army, and an infantry regiment must be following behind."

Chen Yiding nodded and said confidently.

"Commander, don't worry, we've set up a U-shaped pocket formation as you requested. I guarantee that within ten minutes, this entire Japanese cavalry regiment will be wiped out."

"Okay, then I'll watch your performance."

After saying that, Long Fei lit a cigarette and gestured for Chen Yiding to take over the command.

Miyamoto Saburo rode a large Japanese horse in the middle of the procession, occasionally picking up his binoculars to observe his surroundings.

However, the soldiers of the First Army were well hidden and were not discovered by Saburo Miyamoto.

Once the entire Japanese cavalry regiment was inside the ambush, Chen Yiding immediately ordered them to open fire.

Dozens of mortars, light and heavy machine guns, and submachine guns fired at the Japanese soldiers simultaneously.

"Boom boom boom... Rat tat tat... Bang bang bang..."

Countless mortar shells landed on the Japanese cavalry, causing chaos and casualties among the Japanese soldiers.

Before the Japanese soldiers could react, a dense barrage of bullets instantly enveloped them completely.

Miyamoto Saburo was incredibly unlucky; he was killed in the first round of artillery fire, and the remaining four hundred-plus Japanese cavalrymen were all taken down before they could even fire back.

From the start of the fire to its end, it only took three or four minutes, during which an entire Japanese cavalry regiment was wiped out.

Following the cavalry regiment, the 65th and 104th Regiments of the 103rd Brigade were left several kilometers behind.

Upon hearing that fighting had broken out ahead, Yamada Umeji immediately ordered both regiments to advance at full speed.

When Yamada Umeji arrived with his team, they found only the corpses of cavalrymen and their horses at the scene.

The cavalry regiment's weapons and equipment had all disappeared.

"Baka! What's going on? An entire cavalry regiment was wiped out in just a few minutes? This is unbelievable!"

When Yamada Umeji arrived at Miyamoto Saburo's body, he suddenly felt a sense of sorrow for the passing of his fellow rabbits and couldn't help but sigh.

A sudden, deep fear gripped Yamada Umeji. He ordered his troops to halt their advance and immediately reported to Division Commander Tsutomu Dizhou.

"Nani! The entire 17th Cavalry Regiment has been wiped out! Baka! This... how is this possible...?"

Now that they have lost their cavalry regiment, Di Zhouli's army is in a precarious situation and it is even more impossible for them to turn back.

"Order Yamada Umeji to have them carefully search and advance, and once they discover any trace of the Chinese army, they must surround and annihilate them."

Upon receiving the order, Yamada Umeji could only command the troops to continue advancing.

However, to avoid being ambushed, he sent out several reconnaissance teams to investigate the situation.

After annihilating the 17th Japanese cavalry regiment, Chen Yiding was very pleased and prepared to continue to strike hard against the Japanese infantry regiments behind them.

Unexpectedly, Long Fei ordered him to quickly clean up the battlefield and then immediately retreat to Chuxian County.

"Commander, why are we retreating? Wouldn't it be better to take advantage of the victory and teach the Japanese devils behind us a good lesson?"

"No." Long Fei answered decisively.

"Why?" Chen Yiding asked, puzzled.

"Because the troops have not undergone systematic training, their combat effectiveness is not strong enough, while the Japanese 13th Division, although it was shelled last night, is still strong."

"Your First Army only has a little over three thousand men, while the Japanese 13th Division has at least twenty thousand."

"Even if we have the advantage in weaponry, there will still be considerable casualties once a war breaks out, which is not what I want to see."

"Most importantly, our goal is to lure the Japanese 13th Division to Coffin Hollow and eliminate them at the lowest possible cost, so there is no need to confront the Japanese head-on."

Long Fei's reasoning was simple and clear, so Chen Yiding stopped insisting after hearing it.

The soldiers cleaned up the battlefield in just a few minutes, and the dozen or so surviving Japanese soldiers were also eliminated.

After Chen Yiding led the First Army to retreat, Long Fei put the captured weapons, equipment, and dozens of Japanese warhorses into the system's storage room.

Although Long Fei did not want the First Army and the First Special Operations Division to confront the Japanese head-on, it did not mean that they would teach the Japanese a lesson if it was safe to do so.

Therefore, after retreating to outside the site in Chuxian County, Long Fei ordered the First Army to continue retreating towards Guancaiwa.

He then deployed twenty Tiger tanks, setting up ten inside the south gate and the other ten on the east and west sides outside the south gate.

Now that Chuzhou County was a ghost town, Long Fei had no more scruples and ordered the south gate to be opened wide.

When the reconnaissance team dispatched by Yamada Umeji arrived outside the south gate of Chuzhou County, they found the area deserted and the gate wide open.

These bastards suspected there was an ambush in the city and dared not enter it rashly.

The Japanese reconnaissance squad hurriedly reported to Yamada Umeji.

Yamada Umeji was always cautious, so he ordered the reconnaissance squad to stay in place and keep watch until the main force arrived.