Chapter 27

At the forward command post of the Third Army of the Fengtian Army in Hanzhuang Town, Deputy Army Commander Guo Songling stood at the observation position in the shelter, using a high-powered telescope to observe the positions of the 6th Division opposite.

A week ago, Zhang Zongchang reported to General Zhang that he could no longer continue the fight, and that anyone who wanted to go south to Jiangsu could go. General Zhang was very surprised, "How long has it been? Could Zhang Zongchang, who is usually arrogant, be beaten to the point of losing his temper? This young man with the surname Gao is not weak at all."

At a high-level meeting within the Fengtian Army, a group of bandits all wanted to secure a territory for themselves. Jiang Dengxuan, Yang Yuting, and Guo Songling all wanted to go. After a heated argument, with Zhang Xueliang's strong support, Guo Songling, who performed well during the battle at Shanhaiguan, got this opportunity.

Although the Fengtian Army had hundreds of thousands of troops, at least half of them had to stay in Northeast China to watch over the Japanese and the Russians. General Zhang was not at all reassured by them.

The troops that entered the pass were scattered across Rehe, Zhili, Shandong, and Chahar. In addition, they had to keep an eye on Feng Yuxiang's National Army in Suiyuan, Yan Xishan in Shanxi, and the remnants of the Zhili Army in Henan. Guo Songling could only bring two divisions to the front line in Zaozhuang, and this was only because Zhang Xueliang deliberately favored him. Yang Yuting and others did not say anything openly, but they were all furious and tried to make things difficult for him behind the scenes.

"Damn, what are they eating at noon?" Seeing the meal trucks directly delivering lunch to the enemy's positions, Guo Songling envied and cursed. In this era, everyone ate only two meals a day, simply because there was not enough food.

Three days ago, when Guo Songling first arrived in Zaozhuang, he observed the attack by Zhang Zongchang's troops at Tai'erzhuang. The luxurious style of the enemy greatly surprised him.

Not only did they eat three meals a day, but the way they fired guns and artillery like pouring water made Guo Songling's eyes twitch. Although the Fengtian Army had its own Shenyang Arsenal, he had never seen such waste. Guo Songling personally witnessed that in just one attack of two to three hundred people, the enemy used two rounds of 105mm heavy artillery! How much does one shell cost?

Are the troops in the south so strong? He heard that the enemy was a security force. Guo Songling thought that if even a security force in the south was so fierce, he would not bother to be the military governor of Jiangsu. He would immediately take off his uniform and return to Shenyang to open a grocery store.

Guo Songling, who had been in the military for many years and had fought many battles, understood after observing the battle situation at Tai'erzhuang for a day that a frontal breakthrough was impossible. There was no advantage of time, place, or people. After returning to his command post, Guo Songling studied the map for a long time and finally found a loophole: Weishan Lake.

The 6th Division's defense line only extended to the edge of Weishan Lake, and except for the area near Hanzhuang Bridge, most of the troops were on alert.

Guo Songling planned to use the ice sleds, a winter transportation method used by people from Northeast China, to cross the frozen Weishan Lake and attack the rear of Hanzhuang Bridge from the flank. After capturing Hanzhuang Bridge, they would advance along the Jinpu Line to Xuzhou. As for the 6th Division's troops at Tai'erzhuang, Zhang Zongchang would watch them. If they dared to reinforce Xuzhou, they would be caught between Zhang Zongchang and Guo Songling.

After the plan was set, Guo Songling was very satisfied. He had a good night's sleep and began to secretly mobilize his troops to advance towards Hanzhuang Bridge the next day. On the third day, the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, Guo Songling's troops launched a probing attack on Hanzhuang Bridge to investigate the 6th Division's firepower deployment and attract attention. After breakfast, over a thousand elite soldiers rode the sleds around Weishan Lake towards the rear of Hanzhuang Bridge.

It must be said that Guo Songling was skilled in warfare, and this move would have worked in most cases. Unfortunately, it was seen through by the German advisors who had fought in the European war for several years. A feint attack on the front and a surprise attack from the flank was a common tactic of the German army.

Major Beiguer quickly mobilized a full battalion of reserves from Xuzhou to advance to Hanzhuang Bridge. The division's artillery regiment had a battalion of 12 105mm howitzers that could provide fire support. Guo Songling did not fully understand Gao Yang's strength and assumed that the main artillery was concentrated on the front line at Tai'erzhuang.

Gao Yang, biting into a steaming bun, observed the opposite bank through a telescope. The Fengtian Army had no cavalry, and their uniforms and tactical movements were uniform. At the very least, they knew to bend their waists and run when walking.

Unlike Zhang Zongchang's troops, who seemed to be afraid that the enemy would not see them, standing straight and making loud noises. However, in the past few days, they had improved. Frontline reports said that there were usually no people visible on the enemy's positions, all hiding in the trenches.

The German mercenaries and the sharpshooters they trained gave Zhang's bandits a vivid lesson. Those who walked around straight were picked off by the sharpshooters. Those who made loud noises were greeted by artillery shells. Eventually, even smoking in the trenches at night would attract a barrage of shells!

Now, Zhang Zongchang's front line was quiet, with no one visible, and morale was very low.

After lunch, Beiguer led the reinforcements and immediately took command of the scene, as ordered by Gao Yang. Search teams were sent out in a fan-shaped pattern within a three-kilometer radius of Hanzhuang Bridge towards Weishan Lake. Why three kilometers? First, the visibility was low due to the snow, and second, the range of the artillery providing fire support was three kilometers from Weishan Lake.

Around 3:00 PM, distant gunshots were heard on the ice of Weishan Lake and grew louder. At this time, the command post received a report that a large number of enemy troops were rapidly advancing towards the main position on the ice of Weishan Lake, about two kilometers from the shore. Beiguer quickly ordered the supporting artillery to adjust parameters and calculate the range of the bombardment, waiting for the command.

At this time, the Fengtian Army on the opposite side of the position also began to move. Over a thousand soldiers, crouching, advanced in several lines along the river towards the position of the 1st Battalion. At the same time, over a dozen armored cars quickly drove onto the railway bridge, followed by a large number of infantry. The sound of artillery fire began, and a large number of shells exploded on the position of the 1st Battalion.

Gao Yang smiled. "The tactical coordination is quite good. Artillery support for infantry charges, flanking attacks, and suppression, even with armored units. Truly the elite of the Fengtian Army, learning Japanese tactics quite well."

"Commander, this area is within the range of enemy artillery. Please move to the reserve command post for safety," said Battalion Commander Zhang Xinhai, who came to Gao Yang's side. Zhang Xinhai was one of the few non-German regular commanders in the 6th Division. In the 6th Division, German mercenaries usually held the main command positions.

He was a graduate of the Baoding Military Academy and served in the 13th Division, rising to the rank of battalion commander. A few years ago, he left the army and returned to his hometown in Anqing to do business. After Gao Yang raised an army, he joined Gao Yang and performed excellently in the battle for Nanjing, earning a recommendation from the staff to become the commander of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment.

"Can't you hold the position?" Gao Yang looked at him and said. "I guarantee to hold the position," Zhang Xinhai said urgently. Gao Yang waved his hand. "Go do your job." He turned his head and continued to observe the battlefield.

Beiguer did not pay attention to this. In the German army, it was normal for the division commander to go deep into the front lines during battles, but if the division commander went to the company level, he would stop him.

At the beginning of the battle, the soldiers knew that the division commander was behind them, which boosted their morale. If Gao Yang had run away at the start of the battle, it would have severely affected the soldiers' morale.

The Fengtian Army moved quickly, and soon the skirmish lines were on the ice. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion in the front-line defensive positions silently endured the artillery bombardment, waiting for the order to fire. This was the first time they had been suppressed by enemy artillery since the formation of the division.

Soon, the Fengtian Army crossed the midline of the canal. With a shout, the 1st Battalion's position suddenly erupted in gunfire, and the leading Fengtian soldiers fell in a row. Watching from the rear, Guo Songling's eyes twitched. The marksmanship was too accurate. The results of months of live-fire training finally showed.

The Fengtian Army continued to advance rapidly, but the machine gun positions on the 1st Battalion's position did not fire. They were waiting for the Fengtian Army on the bridge to enter the machine gun's flank fire range.

Soon, when the Fengtian Army on the bridge entered the flank fire range, dozens of machine gun positions opened fire almost simultaneously. The 11.43mm bullets turned the armored cars into sieves, and soon all the cars were disabled.

The infantry following the armored cars were mowed down by the powerful flank fire, even those lying on the bridge could not escape the hail of bullets. The infantry quickly turned and fled, leaving a trail of bodies on the bridge.

After the Fengtian Army on the bridge was repelled, the heavy machine guns turned to fire at the skirmish lines approaching the shore. At this moment, hundreds of Fengtian soldiers were about to cross the canal but were suddenly hit by intense machine gun fire, suffering heavy casualties.

Guo Songling urgently ordered artillery support to cover the retreat of the front-line Fengtian Army. However, it was easy to come but hard to go. Running back and forth on the slippery ice? Not to mention the physical strain, how could they run across the open ice under the enemy's intense gunfire?

The Fengtian Army's artillery positions received strict orders to provide full artillery support to rescue the front-line troops. The artillerymen, disregarding the lifespan of the barrels, began to fire wildly at the opposite shore.

However, before long, a shrill whistling sound came from the sky. Three large-caliber shells exploded near the artillery positions, raising clouds of dust. The Fengtian artillerymen were startled. "Oh no, the shells are being tested!" They all knew the procedures well.

Immediately, the artillery positions were hit by a barrage of shells. Dozens of large-caliber shells turned the Fengtian artillery positions into a scene of chaos, with several large guns being thrown into the air and the shells stacked next to the guns exploding in a chain reaction, turning the artillery positions into a sea of fire.

The 12 105mm howitzers of the 6th Division's artillery regiment had already bombarded the Fengtian Army's flanking attack on Weishan Lake, creating numerous large holes in the ice. Hundreds of Fengtian soldiers were sent to the bottom of the lake, and the remaining Fengtian Army fled in disarray.

The Fengtian Army's artillery had been firing for a long time, and their positions had already been estimated. After the 6th Division's artillery adjusted their aim and locked onto the positions, there was no time for counterattack or evacuation. The Fengtian artillery positions were engulfed in flames, with huge explosions and debris flying everywhere, and thick smoke rising to the sky!