Chapter 5 The Fifth Brigade's Predicament

No sooner had the Fifth Brigade headquarters dispatched its telegrams than reports arrived from various battalions, delivered by their respective messengers: the Chinese Nationalist infantry had launched an attack.

Almost simultaneously, dozens of locations reported being under assault and requested reinforcements.

Katayama Riichirō, the brigade commander, marked all the reported attack locations on a map in the brigade's command post.

He immediately gasped, "Encirclement with one side open!"

This wasn't a conspiracy by the Nationalist forces; it was an open strategy!

The Fifth Infantry Brigade's only option to avoid falling into their trap was to break through the encirclement and launch a direct, fierce assault towards Tanghe.

Katayama Riichirō was a decisive commander. He immediately ordered the relatively intact Sixty-eighth Infantry Regiment: "Regiment Commander Ito Kaisen, lead your entire regiment in an attack advance towards Tanghe."

He also ordered the remaining units to hold their lines at all costs, buying time for the brigade to break out.

Once again, he reported the Fifth Infantry Brigade's situation, predicament, and the Nationalist forces' plan in detail.

His intention was singular: to request reinforcements as quickly as possible.

Without reinforcements, his brigade was in danger of being completely annihilated.

Division Commander Yamawaki Masataka clearly thought his subordinate brigade commander was too timid.

How could a brigade of over thirteen thousand men be so easily wiped out?

Of course, he didn't say this directly to Katayama Riichirō.

However, Division Commander Yamawaki Masataka did report the Fifth Infantry Brigade's new predicament to Commander Okamura Neiji.

Commander Okamura Neiji was very concerned. He immediately ordered the Nineteenth Infantry Brigade of the Sixteenth Infantry Division in Tanghe to reinforce the Fifth Infantry Brigade at once.

It was imperative to annihilate the main force of the Nationalist troops still in Xingwan and Luying Town.

Regardless of when external reinforcements arrived, the Fifth Infantry Brigade needed to save itself.

Sixty-eighth Infantry Regiment Commander Ito Kaisen had already issued the order to attack.

His regiment had miraculously survived the pre-dawn artillery bombardment, suffering only some casualties from the daylight air raids.

He dispatched Captain Ishiguro Reo leading his unit as the vanguard, immediately attacking towards Tanghe.

The Japanese soldiers of Ishiguro Reo's battalion turned back, but had only traveled less than five *li* when they encountered the remnants of the defeated Third Battalion of the Sixth Infantry Regiment, numbering just over two hundred soldiers.

Captain Oyato Masato of the Second Battalion of the Sixth Infantry Regiment was commanding his soldiers to construct temporary defensive lines, preparing to engage the enemy.

"Oyato-kun! The best defense is offense!" Captain Ishiguro Reo sneered.

Captain Oyato Masato had no response. He was indeed afraid, which was why he ordered his entire battalion to adopt a defensive posture first.

He could only watch as the thousand-strong force of Ishiguro Reo's battalion passed through the newly established defensive lines.

Captain Oyato Masato then began to shout orders again: "Continue building the defensive positions!"

If his soldiers weren't given something to do, they would start overthinking things.

Keeping them busy at this time would prevent them from dwelling on things and make them easier to command.

Ishiguro Reo's battalion advanced less than a kilometer before encountering the First Company of the Eighth Regiment.

Company Commander Miao Haoqiong was leading the charge with six heavy machine guns pushed to the front.

Upon seeing hundreds of Japanese soldiers charging towards them, it went without saying: he immediately ordered the entire company to defend in place.

The six heavy machine guns were set up, and a defensive line was established, using them as fortresses.

This proved disastrous for the Japanese soldiers of the Toyokawa Ryo platoon, who were at the very front. The bullets from the six heavy machine guns were more than they could bear.

Coupled with the bombardment from five mortars, two infantry guns, and three rocket launchers.

In an instant, more than twenty soldiers from Toyokawa Ryo's platoon fell.

Sergeant Hiramiya Aozora dared not continue charging. He lay prone on the ground, anxiously watching the force that had occupied the road ahead.

No matter what, Sergeant Hiramiya Aozora was unwilling to get up and charge, even though Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi was urging him from behind.

Platoon Leader Toyokawa Ryo clearly saw how fierce the firepower of the force ahead was.

Although his platoon had begun to return fire with machine guns and grenade launchers.

However, the machine gun bullets had no effect on the carts parked on the road.

They weren't carts at all, but were as thick-skinned as tanks.

This put Toyokawa Ryo's platoon in a difficult position: breaking through was essential!

Upon receiving news that the advance was being blocked, Captain Ishiguro Reo issued only one order: "Break through at all costs!"

With the order, "At all costs!" being issued.

Toyokawa Ryo's platoon couldn't continue like this.

Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi loudly urged and ordered his soldiers to stand up and charge.

He could also see that the firepower ahead was something that flesh and blood could not overcome. He urged them twice, but not a single soldier stood up.

This infuriated Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi. He waved his command saber and roared, "Baga! (idiot)

Everyone! Charge immediately! Otherwise, you will be court-martialed!"

He was truly enraged this time: he couldn't even command his soldiers on the battlefield.

What kind of unit was this?

"Baga!" The final warning had no effect.

Sergeant Hiramiya Aozora quietly crawled further to the side, away from the squad leader.

"Baga!" Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi waved the command saber in his hand, and cut down two soldiers in the squad who were lying on the ground.

This time, it finally frightened the soldiers of the entire squad.

Sergeant Akanishi Yutaka was now in a difficult position: a very difficult position!

Charging meant death! Not charging meant certain death!

Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi was glaring at him menacingly with his command saber at his side.

Unable to avoid it, Sergeant Akanishi Yutaka reluctantly got up from the ground.

Trembling with fear, he held his rifle and started charging forward with a bowed back.

With the first soldier standing up to charge, and with Squad Leader Kudo Hiroshi threatening them from behind with his command saber.

Most of the soldiers in the entire squad stood up and began to charge.

Gunner Ikuta Ichiro was not among the charging soldiers. He stayed in place and began firing.

The entire squad had three machine guns and three grenade launchers.

Now only two machine guns remained firing. The other fire points had been destroyed.

Platoon Leader Toyokawa Ryo kept urging the attack! Attack!

It wasn't just Kudo Hiroshi's squad that was attacking, but also Takashima Hyoei's squad and Matsuyama Naoki's squad.

The simultaneous attack by three squads did not make the Nationalist soldiers blocking the road retreat even half a step.

The six heavy machine guns were like they had taken root, staying still on the road.

Countless bullets from Toyokawa Ryo's platoon hit the carts of those heavy machine guns, only causing sparks to fly.

And then nothing happened.

What made the soldiers of Toyokawa Ryo's platoon most desperate was that the Nationalist soldiers relied on these six heavy machine guns to establish six defensive positions.

Each heavy machine gun was assisted by two other machine guns, which was fatal for the Japanese soldiers.

Sergeant Akanishi Yutaka mustered his courage to charge, but only advanced thirty meters before falling.

This time, he could no longer get up. Of the entire charge launched by Kudo Hiroshi's squad, Akanishi Yutaka had charged the furthest.

Then all the soldiers of Kudo Hiroshi's squad fell. How many of them were pretending to be hit was impossible for the squad leader to check amidst the hail of bullets.

Platoon Leader Toyokawa Ryo watched as the entire platoon of over a hundred soldiers fell on the road of the charge.

The blood flowing from those soldiers had gathered into a stream on the road, which indirectly proved that only a few of them were pretending to be dead.

After receiving the news that the vanguard platoon led by Toyokawa Ryo had been completely annihilated, Captain Ishiguro Reo personally went to the front line to investigate.

When he arrived at the front, the Japanese soldiers were not attacking, and the First Company was not firing.

Captain Ishiguro Reo saw that there was only one line of defense, six carts.

And then there were the corpses of over a hundred Japanese soldiers lying in front.

He was silent for a moment, and immediately ordered: "The Inohara Keita platoon will continue the attack."

This time, he dispatched a new infantry platoon to charge.

He ordered Platoon Leader Inohara Keita: "You! Immediately lead the entire platoon in the attack!"

Even a common machine gunner, even a single Japanese soldier, was to be hunted down.

Not to mention, there were so many more Japanese soldiers waiting to be hunted down below.

Six ground attack aircraft scattered the Sixthy-eighth Infantry Regiment.

Hu Die Lan