si-mexico Chapter 1086 A Little Pride
Chapter 1086 A Little Pride
"Commander, tell me how well we fought. Several regiments rode through the night until their tires were worn out, but not a single brother complained of being tired or suffering. We ran all night, but our combat effectiveness didn't drop at all. We literally killed them with artillery fire."
When Ma Leizi was reporting to Li Shaoyi, his voice was unusually loud; it could be heard from two offices away.
"You did a good job fighting that battle, but I have to warn you, bigger problems are coming soon. The Japanese suffered a loss at your hands and didn't take your second-line troops seriously before. Now they've added two divisions and the first-ever fully-fledged artillery brigade. You'd better watch out. If you have any difficulties, just say so."
Li Shaoyi had to remind this kid that he'd been so arrogant these past few days, mainly because he hadn't been on the battlefield for a while. Now that he'd finally achieved some success, he couldn't wait to let everyone know that he wasn't just there to defend the city; he was capable of fighting in the field too.
"I was just a little overjoyed. I know I need to regroup now and focus on the next battle. I'm really facing some difficulties. I can't move the main force; they all have to stay at the naval base. And to support you, all the troops I've mobilized are second-line units. My biggest fear is the Japanese launching a full-scale river crossing. If they cross a 100-kilometer stretch of river, I really won't be able to stop them. So, I was thinking about how we used both of their garrison regiments last time we fought, right? This time I..."
After Ma Leizi finished speaking, Li Shaoyi understood what was going on.
Tang Guoping and Liu Xiaoshan's armies were also crucial in the north, constantly confronting the northern giants, so they couldn't spare large numbers of troops. However, their garrison regiments had been previously drawn by Li Shaoyi, and at that time, these two units, though only two regiments, were the most powerful in the entire army. According to Ma Leizi, those two regiments could suppress an entire division.
"You really know how to get men. They only withdrew from Pujiang not long ago. Sending them from the north to your place is a bit much. They suffered heavy losses in Pujiang, with each unit losing at least 20% of its men. They'll have to lick their wounds after returning to the north. But apart from their Guards Regiment, I'll give you two regiments from each unit, and I'll airlift them to you."
Tang Guoping and Liu Xiaoshan's garrison regiment was undoubtedly the most powerful in the entire army. But you can't keep an army constantly on the move; they get tired too. They had just withdrawn from the Pujiang battlefield less than a month ago, and according to Li Shaoyi's regulations, many were still on leave at home. If you were to send them to the battlefield immediately, they simply wouldn't have had enough rest.
Fatigue can be deadly for a soldier. Soldiers need a break from work to maintain their fighting capacity. We've only been away for a short time, so we have to keep our word. At the very least, we can't offer any discounts on this leave.
"Then it's up to you, sir. With their troops, even if the Second Army crosses the river on all fronts, I can't guarantee that we can stop them, but we can certainly tear a piece of flesh off them."
Hearing Ma Leizi's words, Li Shaoyi nodded with satisfaction. At least the kid still had some sense; he hadn't become arrogant just because he won a battle. He was setting goals that were simply impossible to achieve. If that were the case, Li Shaoyi would have to consider replacing Ma Leizi.
"Just remember this: the tactics I'm using here now are all small-scale battles, nothing. I'm sending out small teams at random times each day. If I can take out two or three thousand of them a day, that's fine. Anyway, the Japanese can't do anything to me. The goal is to deplete their manpower as much as possible. The longer you can hold off the southward-bound Japanese, the more two or three thousand I can take out. It's like I've cut the Japanese in the body, and you're blocking the doctors from coming to bandage their wounds in the north. Let's see how long the bleeding lasts."
Li Shaoyi's analogy was very apt, and Ma Leizi readily agreed with a smile. After this incident, the Japanese would certainly not launch an attack anytime soon. The military intelligence department also received the news that the Second Army, in a meeting at its highest levels, clearly stated that it would wait for the arrival of the artillery brigade.
It's understandable that they had this idea. In previous engagements, they had been suppressed by us every time due to a lack of large-caliber heavy artillery. However, for us, the Japanese heavy artillery brigade should be eliminated in advance; otherwise, fighting on both sides of the Yellow River could very well blow up the Yellow River dike.
After returning, Ma Leizi didn't concern himself with important combat missions, but instead delegated them to his subordinates. Instead, he led many engineers to survey the Yellow River dike and reinforce any dangerous sections. The three engineering battalions worked tirelessly every day, doing this task without a moment's rest.
The Japanese never cared about that; after blowing it up, they could just find higher ground to hide in. But we had to consider the lives of the surrounding people. Therefore, it was imperative to protect the Yellow River dike. No matter what happened, we couldn't allow our people to become victims. This was something we couldn't forget during the war.
The Japanese withdrawal of this heavy artillery brigade caused great dissatisfaction among the troops, especially the removal of the 105mm artillery pieces, which made the various units feel uncertain.
Originally, Japanese divisions were not equipped with 105mm howitzers. However, after several battles with the 72nd Army, the Japanese military made a major decision: each division would be equipped with six 105mm howitzers.
However, these artillery pieces hadn't yet been integrated with each division, and suddenly they were taken to the north. The army headquarters' orders were very clear: they must all be assigned to the Second Army, so that the Second Army could first overcome the obstacle of Ma Lei Zi, and then the rest could be discussed later.
Although domestic production was ramping up, artillery is different from other things, especially large-caliber heavy artillery, in which Japan lacked certain technologies. The 105mm artillery currently being produced was still similar to that of the last World War, further widening the gap with European and American countries.
So those division commanders also understood that relying on the homeland to supply us was just empty talk; you can take it with a grain of salt...