novelden Chapter 160: Bridge Defense (2)
Chapter 160: Bridge Defense (2)
The first team's defensive position had not yet been fully built, and enemy planes had already flown over. Fighter planes dived and strafed, and 20mm machine guns wreaked havoc on the guerrilla defense positions around the bridge. The shells raised a mud mist several meters high, extending in a line. Some soldiers who failed to dodge in time were hit, and their limbs and arms flew everywhere. The scene was extremely bloody.
Fortunately, the US Air Force arrived in time and drove away the enemy planes. The US Air Force transport planes dropped a large amount of supplies, which looked like white flowers in the sky.
Also airborne along with the supplies was the Sino-US Joint Airborne Commando. Captain Bai Lang (an American, whose English name is Kate Houston Mahathir) held the rank of Major. Upon meeting Lieutenant Colonel Tang Xuesi, he saluted. Upon learning that Lieutenant Colonel Tang was the supreme commander, he immediately handed him Commander Liao Yaoxiang's handwritten letter and said to him, "The 9th Assault Company is under your command."
Tang Xuesi briefly read Commander-in-Chief Liao's handwritten instructions and gained a better understanding of his mission. He quickly called Bai Lang and, with the help of his translator, discussed with him how to deal with the impending Japanese counterattack.
Bai Lang believed that his commando team should be sent to the highway west of the bridge. They had their own strengths and knew how to deal with the mechanized advance of the Japanese army. They would try to stop the Japanese army from launching an attack along the highway, but the Japanese army was coming through the mountains and forests, and Bai Lang and his team were powerless.
Tang Xuesi secretly laughed. Americans are a bit self-righteous. He thought: If your commando team can stop the enemy from attacking along the highway, defending the bridge will be much easier. The enemy comes from the mountains and forests, which is the guerrillas' strong point against them. In addition, the Japanese army can't bring heavy firepower when they penetrate the mountains and forests. They only have some infantry guns, mortars and grenade launchers, and the threat to the bridge is limited. The first team is more confident in defending the bridge.
After Tang Xuesi discussed countermeasures with Bai Lang, he gave them a large amount of bazookas, explosives, etc. from the airdropped supplies. After Bai Lang's 9th Assault Company left, Tang Xuesi asked the 3rd Battalion to withdraw its troops and strengthen the defense of the mountains and forests around the west side of the bridge. After thinking about it, he transferred a company from the 2nd Battalion and deployed it on the highway behind Bai Lang.
Thanks to the airdrops, the First Detachment's defenses were significantly strengthened, especially with artillery shells and explosives, more than enough to sustain a large-scale operation. This was the first time the First Detachment had received such abundant supplies, and the soldiers were beaming with joy, feasting on American canned food and biscuits, full of energy.
The Japanese army coming from the west was a battalion of the 13th Security Brigade. Behind it, a regiment of the 115th Division was mobilizing vehicles, and some weapons such as mountain artillery had already begun to move. The enemy knew very well that they must find a way to recapture the bridge, and if that didn't work, they would blow up the bridge.
Bai Lang's 9th Assault Company launched the first counterattack. Several bazookas destroyed the few vehicles of the Japanese 13th Security Brigade's battalion. The Japanese battalion commander was furious and immediately ordered his men to dismount. The battalion's mortars and grenade launchers from each squadron launched a counterattack against the 9th Assault Company. Then, a squadron of Japanese soldiers climbed up the hillside and engaged the 9th Assault Company.
To be honest, Bai Lang and his men from the 9th Assault Company simply looked down upon the Japanese army's firepower. These professionally trained soldiers fought in an orderly manner. Before a Japanese squadron could even reach the top of the hill, more than half of them had been killed or wounded. The Japanese captain was so frightened that he opened his mouth wide and forgot for a moment that he was the commander.
The adjutant had a hard time waking the captain up, and for this, he was slapped in the face for nothing. The Japanese captain tried hard to cover up his incompetence, but the battle situation was undeniable. He had no choice but to withdraw the squadron and order the squadrons to deploy along the highway, letting the mortars and grenade launchers bombard the area indiscriminately to cover up his predicament.
Tang Xuesi received a report from the 2nd Battalion's 1st Company and was impressed by Bai Lang and the 9th Assault Company. This could significantly delay the enemy's attack from the west. Calming down considerably, Tang Xuesi hurried back to the east end of the bridge to find the deputy detachment commander to learn about the eastern defenses. Meanwhile, he subtly expressed his dissatisfaction with his deputy's unauthorized handling of the prisoners.
The deputy commander was nonchalant. "It's just a few Japanese prisoners of war, isn't it? The Japanese can shoot our compatriots without a care in the world. Aren't these Chinese and ethnic Chinese killed by them enough? This commander is just ignorant and old-fashioned. Okay, next time I won't report it. I'll just kill them directly and say they were killed because they resisted stubbornly."
Tang Xuesi had no idea what the deputy commander was thinking. One day, when a member of the American advisory group reported to the higher-ups that the First Guerrilla Army's Detachment had massacred prisoners, Qin Shi called Tang Xuesi over and started yelling at him. Only then did he realize his deputy commander had caused him trouble. Qin Shi said to Tang Xuesi, "Originally, you were going to be promoted to colonel and become the regimental commander during this reorganization. Now, you'll have to continue as acting lieutenant colonel."
In private, Qin Shi whispered to Tang Xuesi, "You idiot, why do you have to be so sneaky when executing the Japanese? Why not do it in a big way? Find an opportunity to gather them together and give them a chance to resist. Then you can kill these devils in an open and aboveboard manner."
It turned out that not only the Qin Shi Guerrilla Army, Liao Yaoxiang's Indian Army, and the Second Corps of Southern Yunnan, but also the Chinese soldiers had deep hatred for the Japanese, especially those Japanese troops transferred from China. They had no excuse to survive!
The 115th Division of the Japanese Army finally appeared in front of Bai Lang's 9th Assault Company. The commander of the regiment slapped the commander of the security brigade several times right from the start. Not only did his brigade fail to make any progress, but its destroyed vehicles and supplies also blocked the way of the 115th Division.
Under the strict order of the brigade commander, the security brigade had to push their scrap metal cars off the road, and then under the strict supervision of the brigade commander, the security brigade had to climb up the hillside, one to attack Bai Lang's 9th Assault Company, and the other to detour through the hillside, pass through the mountains and forests, and attack from the flank towards the bridge.
Bai Lang and others saw that the enemy had artillery and knew that they would not be able to defend it. When the Japanese regiment commander was reprimanding the battalion commander, they had already quietly retreated. The 9th Company had buried a large amount of explosives on both sides of the cliffs on the road, waiting for the Japanese army to come and prepare to give them a heavy blow.
The Japanese artillery bombarded the area indiscriminately, wasting ammunition and achieving nothing. The Japanese security brigade, inexplicably, attacked up the hillside and, following the brigade commander's orders, weaved through the forest. The brigade commander nodded in satisfaction, muttering, "Yo-shi-yo-shi," and ordered his troops to clear the way, following the highway and advancing toward the bridge.