pappabearbooks Chapter 148 Tang Enbo, I gave you a chance but you failed!
Chapter 148 Tang Enbo, I gave you a chance but you failed!
The key issue right now is Tengxian. We must take control of Tengxian as soon as possible in order to completely cut off the Jinpu Railway and block the Japanese army's retreat.
Their attack on Teng County mainly consisted of two parts.
Part of the attack was on the railway station west of Tengxian, which was a railway station that the Japanese army had to pass through if they were to flee north by train.
Another group attacked Tengxian County.
However, the attacks from both directions were not very successful.
Although the 20th Army Group had an absolute numerical advantage, the Japanese troops were highly skilled and tenacious, and they did not flinch in the face of the Nationalist army, which outnumbered them by tens of times.
The fierce battle continued until after 2 a.m., and the fighting had lasted for two hours. The 20th Army had made some progress, but the Japanese reinforcements were advancing much faster.
The 221st Regiment, which was responsible for blocking the attack, underestimated the offensive capabilities of the Japanese cavalry regiment and tank company.
The Japanese tank company launched a frontal assault, while the cavalry regiment outflanked them from both sides. In just three charges, they broke through the 221st Regiment's blocking position, and the soldiers fled in disarray.
Inside the 20th Army Group headquarters, Chief of Staff Wan Jianfan looked at the telegram sent by the 221st Regiment with a rather grim expression.
"The 221st Regiment can't hold out any longer; Japanese reinforcements are still marching rapidly toward Tengxian."
These words surprised Tang Enbo, because he knew very well that the 221st Regiment was a main force regiment with more than 2,000 men and even a separate artillery battalion.
"What's going on? What's Yu Zhenjiang doing? Aren't the enemy forces not that many?"
Tang Enbo turned and questioned him.
"The enemy's numbers are indeed not many, but they have a tank company that can inflict heavy casualties on our troops with each charge."
There were also cavalry units that outflanked the enemy. The 221st Regiment withstood the first two waves of attacks, but couldn't hold out against the third.
Wan Jianfan gave a brief report on the general situation of the entire battle.
The situation began to subtly change, because these reinforcements were only the vanguard of the Japanese army's support force.
Once the passage is opened, more reinforcements will inevitably be sent to support Tengxian County.
At that point, the 20th Group Army will only become more passive.
"Immediately mobilize troops and find a way to stop this enemy force. If they enter Tengxian County, it will be even more difficult for us to take this place."
Tang Enbo's tone had become more agitated.
Compared to Tang Enbo, the commander of the 20th Division, Fumizaburo Kawagishi, appeared calm and composed.
"The enemy ambush in the south of Teng County has been defeated by our army. The reinforcements will be able to enter Teng County in at most one hour."
Listening to the communications officer's report, Fumizaburo Kawagishi showed no surprise.
"Hmph, do these Nationalist soldiers think they're as capable as Li Jianghe's Third Detachment?"
As Kawagishi Bunzaburo said this, he immediately pointed to the map and said:
"Send the tank squadron into Tengxian, and the cavalry regiment to support the Tengxian railway station."
The second batch of support troops will depart immediately.
The second batch of support troops he mentioned consisted of a newly assembled infantry battalion, a heavy machine gun company, and a mountain artillery company.
This unit has fewer than two thousand men, but in terms of combat effectiveness, it is equivalent to two brigades of the National Revolutionary Army.
He was full of confidence, knowing that once the second batch of reinforcements arrived, the enemy's offensive against Tengxian would be basically dismantled.
The news that Tang Enbo's troops had been stalled in their offensive in Tengxian County was already on the desk of the Fifth War Zone Command.
"What is Tang Enbo doing? With so many people, he can't even take over a small county like Teng County."
Commander Li slammed his hand on the table and said.
Commander Bai's face was grim as he said:
"The more critical thing is that enemy reinforcements have broken through the blocking positions of the 20th Army Group and are rushing to Tengxian. They will arrive in at most an hour."
"And there's the latest news: the second batch of Japanese reinforcements has set off, nearly two thousand men, and there are also quite a few artillery pieces accompanying them."
Commander Li knew very well that if this Japanese unit also arrived at the Tengxian battlefield, the original surprise attack would turn into a protracted battle.
"Where are Li Jianghe's troops?"
Commander Li asked at that moment.
This is the only unit we can count on.
Commander Bai shook his head and said:
"It's unclear. They adopted radio silence to avoid being detected by the Japanese army's electronic reconnaissance department on the battlefield."
Li Jianghe himself probably doesn't even know where his troops are now.
"Sigh, we can only wait."
Commander Li knew very well that there was nothing he could do to help now, and he could only wait.
At 4:00 AM, the Japanese tank squadron successfully entered Tengxian County, while the cavalry regiment directly supported the Tengxian Railway Station.
Originally, Tengxian Railway Station was about to be captured by the soldiers of the 20th Army Group, but the cavalry that suddenly attacked from the flank caught them off guard, causing chaos in their formation, and they had to withdraw their charging troops.
Inside the 20th Army Group's command post, bad news kept coming in, making Tang Enbo extremely uneasy.
"The second batch of Japanese reinforcements has already set off. They have a lot of artillery and are traveling in trucks, so their support is coming very quickly."
"The second batch of Japanese reinforcements has already set off. They have a lot of artillery and are traveling in trucks, so their support is coming very quickly."
Wan Jianfan reported and guided.
Tang Enbo took a deep breath and said:
"Deploy more troops to block them in the southern part of Teng County. We must not allow them to enter Teng County again."
This time, he directly transferred an infantry division there.
"Can·····"
Wan Jianfan said with some concern:
"But the key problem is that the enemy is moving by truck, while we are on foot. By the time we get there, we may not be able to catch up."
At that moment, a communications officer suddenly stood up and said:
"Report: The second batch of Japanese reinforcements was suddenly attacked not far from Zaozhuang."
"Which unit? Do we still have troops here?"
Tang Enbo asked with some surprise.
The communications officer said:
"Based on the description from the forward reconnaissance troops, it is very likely Li Jianghe's Third Detachment, because the troops involved in the battle were mainly armored vehicles."
"What? Li Jianghe's third detachment is here too? Wasn't he in Taierzhuang?"
Tang Enbo said in astonishment.
His emotions were somewhat complicated.
On the one hand, the support from the Third Detachment did indeed relieve his immediate crisis; on the other hand, he felt that the arrival of the Third Detachment might steal his credit.
Regardless, he does need a third team to help him alleviate his current predicament.
In Guanqiao Town, north of Zaozhuang, a truck unit supported by the Japanese army was suddenly attacked from the flanks by anti-tank guns and vehicle-mounted machine guns when it reached this point.
That was the First Motorized Infantry Battalion led by Yang Ruifu, with hundreds of vehicles lined up in the darkness.
The anti-tank guns, short-barreled guns, machine guns, and vehicle-mounted machine guns mounted on the armored tracked vehicles were opened fire decisively once the Japanese troops entered the ambush zone.