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

The crew members driving the Tiger tanks remembered Long Fei's orders and, despite the Japanese bombardment, only occasionally fired an armor-piercing shell to destroy the Japanese tanks or armored vehicles.

The Japanese had sixteen tanks and twelve armored vehicles, which, when spread out among the six Tiger tanks, amounted to less than five vehicles.

So, a dozen minutes later, after confirming that they had destroyed all the Japanese tanks and armored vehicles, the six Tiger tanks quickly fled.

Upon receiving the report, Fujita Susumu was so angry that he slapped the soldier who came to report several times.

"Baka...Baka...Two tank squadrons were wiped out, how is this possible..."

Suddenly, Fujita recalled the soldier's report earlier, saying that the other side had no chance to fight back, only occasionally retaliating, and quickly escaped.

Fujita then confirmed again: "What you just said, the Chinese army's tanks rarely fired their cannons and quickly fled."

"Hai, General, that's the truth. If the enemy hadn't had armored shells, our tanks wouldn't have been destroyed at all."

This time, Fujita Susumu once again made a wrong judgment out of his own arrogance.

He concluded that the Dragon Flame Army's tanks, like the enemy's artillery, were severely lacking in ammunition, so they would flee as soon as they ran out of shells.

However, not long after the start of the day, the artillery and armored units were all lost, which left Fujita Susumu somewhat lacking in confidence.

In other words, Fujita Susumu could only rely on his infantry regiments, along with a small number of mortars and grenade launchers, to engage the enemy.

After considering it for several minutes, Fujita Susumu realized that if he retreated like this, he would be accused of desertion.

He will definitely be held accountable by Hata Shunroku, and not only will his future be ruined, but his personal reputation will also be tarnished.

"No, we must not retreat. I still have more than 20,000 Imperial Warriors, who are fully capable of fighting against the Dragon Flame Legion."

"As a soldier, as a division commander, I must be loyal to the Emperor, even if it means dying on the battlefield."

After making his decision, Fujita Susumu ordered the Sixth Regiment to continue advancing, but warned them to be wary of a possible ambush by the Dragon Flame Legion.

He, meanwhile, led the main force, following slowly behind.

Half an hour later, the Japanese Sixth Regiment arrived at Guiyun Cave.

Chen Yiding immediately used the walkie-talkie to ask Long Fei for instructions.

"Commander Chen, don't fight too hard. I've assigned dozens of snipers to each of your corps. They're to pick off Japanese grenade launcher operators, machine gunners, mortar operators, and officers."

"You must not expose too much firepower. Resist for half an hour, then retreat to Taoyuan Cave in stages."

"Yes, Commander, understood."

Chen Yiding knew that Long Fei's ultimate goal was to lure the Japanese to Wolonggou, so he instructed each army not to engage in full-scale resistance along the way, but to treat it as a live-fire exercise.

Let everyone use the Japanese soldiers as live targets to practice their marksmanship.

Because they occupied a high vantage point, coupled with the outstanding performance of the snipers.

Therefore, the First Army, with its superior position, did not use machine guns, but only Garand rifles, and even switched the Thompson to single-shot mode.

They also drove the Japanese troops so far that they couldn't advance an inch.

Upon seeing this, Chen Yiding realized that continuing the fight like this was not feasible, so he ordered half of his troops to withdraw.

After discovering that the Longyan troops' firepower had weakened considerably, the Japanese launched another attack.

"Listen up, everyone. Once we repel this Japanese attack, we'll retreat."

Everyone had had a great time killing the Japanese devils, and when they heard about the retreat, they were all a little reluctant to leave.

But military orders are absolute, and everyone must obey them.

Thus, the Japanese 6th Regiment, after losing three or four hundred men, finally captured the Guiyun Cave position of the First Army.

Regimental Commander Yoshimasa Matsuyama hurriedly reported to Susumu Fujita.

Fujita Susumu was now even more confident and ordered Matsuyama Yoshimasa to continue leading his troops forward, insisting that they keep a close watch on the Dragon Flame Legion.

Not long after, the Sixth Regiment arrived at the Taoyuan Cave position, which was guarded by the Second Army.

Zhu Ci, the commander of the Second Army, followed the same pattern as Chen Yiding's First Army.

After eliminating more than 400 Japanese soldiers, they voluntarily retreated to Dafeng Mountain together with the First Army.

The Sixth Regiment continued its advance, and by 5 p.m., it had successfully captured the Phoenix Mountain position held by the Fifth Army.

Now only Langya Peak, where the Sixth Army is stationed, remains, and beyond that is Wolonggou.

As darkness fell, Fujita Susumu ordered a halt to the attack, and at the same time, he led his main force to set up camp less than a kilometer away from the Sixth Regiment.

After a day of fighting, Matsuyama Yoshimasa was inwardly groaning, because after his regiment occupied Phoenix Mountain, its strength had been reduced from more than 3,700 to less than 2,000, losing half of its troops.

After the troops were stationed on the spot, Matsuyama Yoshimasa rushed over to see Fujita Susumu.

"General, my Sixth Regiment has been reduced to half its strength after a day of fierce fighting. Should I send another regiment to replace it tomorrow?"

Matsuyama Yoshimasa's request was very reasonable, and Fujita Susumu naturally wouldn't refuse.

"Commander Songshan, you fought very well today. Thank you for your hard work. I will ask the Commander for commendation on your behalf when we get back."

"You all get some rest tonight. Tomorrow I will send Inoue Kintoku's 34th Infantry Regiment to take over for you."

"Hai, thank you for your kindness, General. I will take my leave now."

After Matsuyama Yoshimasa left, Fujita Susumu ate a quick dinner and then began to study the map carefully.

Because Fujita Susumu decided to surround and annihilate the Dragon Flame Legion tomorrow, he devised an encirclement and annihilation plan.

Fujita Susumu planned to have the 34th Regiment launch a full-scale attack on Langya Peak the next day, while he would send two regiments to outflank it overnight.

In his opinion, the Dragon Flame Legion's repeated defeats and increasingly weaker firepower indicated that the enemy's ammunition was running low.

Moreover, according to his observation, there are at least 30,000 enemy troops on Langya Peak, indicating that the main force of the Longyan Army is currently concentrated on Langya Peak.

Although Fujita Susumu currently has no artillery, he believes that with the fighting power of the Imperial Warriors, he can still win.

We will definitely be able to capture Langya Peak tomorrow and annihilate the main force of the Dragon Flame Legion in one fell swoop.

In order to achieve his operational goals, Fujita Susumu decided to convene an operational meeting overnight.

Those attending the meeting included the division chief of staff, Toshio Tazono; the commander of the 5th Brigade, Ichiro Katayama; the commander of the 29th Brigade, Ichiro Ueno; and the commanders of each regiment.

At the meeting, Fujita Susumu shared his analysis and judgment, as well as the battle plan for the next day, with everyone.

However, Chief of Staff Toshio Tazono expressed a different opinion.

“General, I have specifically looked into this Dragon Flame Legion. They are not only extremely powerful in combat, but also very advanced in weaponry and equipment.”

"Therefore, so many of the Empire's troops were killed by them before."

"But after observing today's battle, I found that the enemy is not as bad as the rumors said. Their firepower is very weak and their combat effectiveness is also poor."

“The Chinese are very cunning. The contrast is so great that I am very worried that there may be a trap. Should we be more cautious?”

Although Toshio Tazono spoke eloquently, Susumu Fujita completely disagreed.

“Tian Yuan Jun, I think you’re overthinking it. The Dragon Flame Legion has been trapped in Langya Mountain for three months without receiving any supplies.”

"The fact that the enemy is so weak today proves that the strategy set by the commander was very correct. The enemy is about to run out of ammunition and food."

"Our Third Division has been given high hopes by the Commander this time, and we were specially transferred here from Suzhou. Therefore, we must complete our mission and annihilate the Dragon Flame Legion."

Fujita Susumu's words left Toshio Tagore speechless, as he could not produce any evidence to prove that the Dragon Flame Legion was deliberately hiding its strength.

Seeing that even the chief of staff had nothing to say, the other division commanders and regimental commanders naturally complied.

At 10 p.m. that night, as instructed by Fujita Susumu, the 18th and 68th Regiments quietly set off, preparing to outflank Langya Peak from the northwest and northeast directions to cut off the retreat route of the Longyan Legion on Langya Peak.

When the 34th Regiment launches its attack from the south tomorrow, the 18th and 68th Regiments will also launch their attacks simultaneously, striving to encircle and annihilate the Dragon Flame Legion on Langya Peak.