Chapter 3, a Pyrrhic victory in the initial battle

Li Congwen felt a sudden "boom" in his head, reached for the machine gun, and while fighting back with all his might, shouted, "Brothers, use grenades!" At that moment, the heavy machine guns positioned on the second line of defense began to unleash deadly fire, slightly curbing the enemy's charge. Subsequently, about ten grenades flew out from behind the sandbags, landing among the Japanese soldiers several dozen meters away. Accompanied by intense explosions, the enemy was torn apart, with several Japanese soldiers in the center being obliterated. Li Congwen shouted, "Push the little devils back!" Standing up from behind the sandbags with the machine gun, he fired fiercely forward, and the soldiers also opened fire. The ferocious firepower suppressed the Japanese soldiers to the point where they could hardly raise their heads. The enemy, having lost the initiative, was forced to begin their retreat. The remaining seventy to eighty Japanese soldiers, under the cover of light and heavy machine guns, carried their wounded and dead while fighting and retreating, soon disappearing into the night at the end of the street.

The defenders behind the barricade continuously threw three waves of grenades, yet they were still unable to halt the advance of the Japanese troops. The soldiers in front fell, but those behind surged forward even more frantically, quickly reaching the front of the barricade. A Japanese soldier, brandishing a bayonet, charged through a blown-open gap and was immediately pinned to the sandbags by a defender's bayonet. However, before he could pull out the bayonet, another Japanese soldier leaped onto the barricade and stabbed him in the chest from above. The Japanese troops, possessing superior numbers, surged in through the gaps in the barricade, from both ends and above, engaging the defenders in fierce close-quarters combat. At this moment, the Japanese displayed exceptional tactical proficiency and superb bayonet skills: they advanced in groups of three, with one providing cover while two thrust forward; in defense, two would block while one counterattacked. The defenders, at an absolute numerical disadvantage, could only rely on their tenacity to fight back against the enemy. If it were not for the close-range shooting by the squad leaders with their carbines, which posed a significant threat to the Japanese, the defense would have long since collapsed. At this critical juncture, two squads led by Sun Baili arrived. After firing a bullet, the soldiers charged into the enemy ranks with their bayonets. Dozens of Japanese soldiers fell directly under their gunfire, and the remaining Japanese, seeing the Chinese troops still firing during the close combat, became extremely enraged, howling as they charged forward, completely disregarding their fallen comrades. As more Japanese reinforcements continued to arrive, the balance of war tilted once again, and after losing several men, the defenders could no longer hold their ground, gradually retreating step by step.

The Japanese tanks charged forward like frenzied wild buffalo, heedless of their surroundings, rushing towards the positions of Company 1. The infantry behind them howled incessantly, their weapons spitting flames that intertwined with the machine guns of the tanks, creating a deadly web of fire, enveloping the sandbag fortifications in smoke. Although the defending troops, under the command of Li Congwen, fought back valiantly, most of the bullets struck the enemy tanks, failing to inflict effective damage. The Japanese forces quickly advanced to the front of the obstacles, and the hastily repaired barbed wire and wooden fences were smashed open as if made of paper. Just as the enemy tanks were about to reach the barricades, the situation became extremely critical! At this moment, the firepower point hidden in the building engaged in battle just in time, and several bundles of cluster grenades fell from the sky, one of which landed directly on the top of a tank. After a violent explosion, the tank quickly caught fire, and with an even more intense explosion, the entire turret was blown off. Another tank had its track blown off, blocking the path of two other tanks attempting to advance. The remaining grenades fell among the Japanese troops, causing limbs and body parts to fly through the air. The enemy, caught off guard by the sudden assault, panicked and began firing their weapons aimlessly upwards, while the tanks turned their turrets in search of the source of the attack. The elevated firepower point opened fire fiercely on the Japanese infantry, successfully drawing all of the enemy's attention away.

Not long after the Japanese army retreated, Li Congwen immediately commanded the soldiers to conduct a sweep of the battlefield. The results were quickly tallied: in this offensive, a total of seven soldiers were killed, twelve were injured, the number of Japanese soldiers killed exceeded twenty, and the number injured should be over thirty. Thirteen rifles and one grenade launcher were captured

1 Squad Leader Li Congwen crouched behind the sandbags, intently watching the approaching enemy. 300 meters, 200 meters, as the distance continued to shrink, Li Congwen felt his heart racing faster. His hand gripping the gun was already drenched in sweat. Although he had fought against different armies over the past 5 years, he had never encountered such a composed opponent: the enemy was only 150 meters away from the barricade and still showed no intention of charging, instead continuing to advance rapidly while utilizing the shooting blind spots created by the winding street! At this moment, the only threat to the enemy was the anti-tank strongpoint, but once the target was exposed, the Japanese troops would be on guard, and the element of surprise would be lost when dealing with the tanks. Li Congwen wiped the sweat from his hands on the sandbags, steeled his resolve, and decided to take a gamble. He whispered to the soldiers behind the barricade: "No firing without orders! Let the enemy come closer before we shoot!"

In the early hours of January 28, the Japanese army launched an attack on the 19th Route Army. The battle first erupted on Baoshan Road, where the Japanese initially conducted a brief and intense shelling of Company 1's positions using mortars. Although the enemy's artillery technology was quite advanced, due to the constraints of the terrain, most of the shells fell on either side of the street, resulting in minimal casualties for the defending troops. Before the smoke from the battlefield had cleared, over a hundred Japanese soldiers had already appeared at the other end of the street, and then, under the cover of darkness, they quickly advanced along both sides of the street.

After repairing the works, sending off the wounded and the bodies of the fallen soldiers, I returned to the back of the shelter and gazed at the pitch-black night sky across from me, thinking: "We have lost nearly one-third of our forces in just one attack; this battle truly seems difficult to fight!"

At this moment, the defending troops had been driven out from behind the fortifications by the enemy and were gradually retreating to the second defensive line. The troops behind were afraid of friendly fire and dared not provide fire support; they could only fix bayonets and run forward to assist in the battle. However, even if they arrived in time, it would be difficult to withstand the enemy's offensive due to the overwhelming strength of the Japanese forces. In this critical moment, intense gunfire suddenly erupted behind the Japanese troops, and large numbers of enemies fell to the ground. The defending troops, fearing friendly fire, dared not provide fire support; they could only fix bayonets and run forward to assist in the battle. However, even if they arrived in time, it would be difficult to withstand the enemy's offensive due to the overwhelming strength of the Japanese forces. In this critical moment, intense gunfire suddenly erupted behind the Japanese troops, and large numbers of enemies fell to the ground. The sudden attack stunned the Japanese forces, who thought they were trapped in a siege, and they finally panicked and turned to flee. Sun Baili seized the opportunity to order a counterattack, and the light and heavy machine guns and mortars positioned behind also opened fire on the rear of the Japanese forces. The concealed fire points on the high buildings also timely joined the fray, occasionally throwing bundles of grenades into the crowd. The heavily damaged Japanese forces fought while retreating, and only escaped the fate of being completely annihilated under the cover of tanks.

At eight o'clock the next morning, the Japanese army, having reinforced its troops, launched a second attack, once again choosing Baoshan Road as the breach point. Perhaps realizing that the artillery bombardment had not been effective, the enemy did not fire before their charge. Hundreds of soldiers, under the cover of four tanks, charged directly down the road. Observing the fierce faces of the Japanese soldiers and the gleaming bayonets on their Type 38 rifles through his binoculars, Sun Baili felt that the enemy was determined to succeed in this assault. He quickly took a few guards and ran out of the command post, advancing towards the first street barricade.

After advancing for several dozen meters, the Japanese troops finally came to a halt, as the last stretch of the street became straight. No matter how they moved, they would be exposed to the firepower of the defending troops. After slightly regrouping, with the commander shouting hoarsely, the Japanese soldiers jumped out from both sides of the street, forming a dense formation, howling as they began their charge, while the heavy and light machine guns positioned behind them opened fire for cover. Li Congwen shouted, "Fire!" and all kinds of weapons on the position began to shoot simultaneously, enveloping the entire area in smoke. The Japanese soldiers at the forefront fell to the ground, becoming the first casualties. The enemy behind paid no attention to the flying bullets around them, continuing to howl and rush forward. After a few more fell, they finally reached the barricade. Some Japanese soldiers sought cover on the spot, or simply lay flat on the road to exchange fire with Company 1, covering other Japanese soldiers as they attempted to destroy the barricade. The Japanese fire was frighteningly accurate, even in the dim night. A light machine gunner lying next to Shen Congwen suddenly tilted his head and fell onto the sandbags, white brain matter oozing from the hole in his military cap. With one less machine gun, the defending firepower weakened significantly, and the Japanese seized the opportunity to quickly destroy the barricade, then charged forward with gleaming bayonets.

Sun Baili, feeling a sense of relief, set down the telescope. The enemy displayed exceptionally high tactical proficiency, and their soldiers were remarkably formidable! Just a single probing attack was already so difficult to handle; if the Japanese forces launched a full-scale assault and deployed tanks to assist, how would they cope? He was uncertain about the casualties in Company 1. Without the flames of gunfire, the view from the building was hazy, and nothing was clearly visible on the battlefield. He had no choice but to call over a messenger and instructed, "Go to Company 1 immediately and have Li Congwen report the results of the battle. At the same time, notify the fire support points that they should not wait for the enemy to deploy tanks before joining the fight; as long as the situation is critical, they should launch an attack immediately! Then inform the reserve troops to be ready to engage in battle at any moment." He then raised the telescope to look in the direction of Qiujing Road.

It seems that this time it is merely a probing attack, with not even a tank deployed! Otherwise, the Japanese forces are too arrogant, attempting to break through the defenses with such a small number of troops. Bai Li put down the binoculars and turned to issue an order: "Notify the anti-tank positions, do not fire unless absolutely necessary, to avoid revealing our location! Their target is the enemy's tanks!" A messenger responded and turned to go downstairs. Bai Li picked up the binoculars again, intently observing the battlefield situation.

Just as Sun Baili arrived at the second barricade, he recognized the rare opportunity and ordered the heavy machine guns to open fire, suppressing the enemy while leading two squads of soldiers to advance rapidly to reinforce Li Congwen. The defending troops behind the first barricade also seized the chance to counterattack, taking down seven or eight Japanese soldiers exposed in the street. At this moment, a Japanese officer waved his sword, directing the Japanese forces to use tanks and the street as cover to launch a counteroffensive: three machine guns fired continuously at the concealed firing points in the high buildings, preventing several defenders from raising their heads. The remaining Japanese soldiers aimed at the front-line defenders, and the dense rain of bullets riddled the makeshift fortifications with holes. Initially, the defenders were able to exchange fire with the enemy, but as time passed, the advantages of the Japanese weapons began to take effect, gradually suppressing the defenders' firepower. The Japanese commander unhesitatingly issued the order to charge, and the enemy completely abandoned the support of the tanks, quickly regrouping and launching an assault in a dense formation under the cover of fire.

Sun Baili had already taken down four Japanese soldiers with his carbine, yet he could not change the tide of battle, feeling an intense regret in his heart: he had misjudged the situation, believing that two squads of reinforcements would be sufficient to drive back the enemy, which was indeed a grave oversight. As he was lost in self-reproach, a Japanese soldier suddenly charged at him from the side, the gleaming bayonet aimed directly at his vulnerable spot. Sun Baili raised his hand and fired. A blood hole immediately appeared in the soldier's chest; his steps faltered, and he let out a wolf-like howl, using all his strength to take a step forward, completing the thrust just before death struck. Sun Baili sidestepped, managing to evade with his body, but his right hand holding the gun was struck, causing the carbine to fall to the ground. He hurriedly bent down, using his left hand to pick up a rifle, but before he could straighten up, he received a heavy kick to his backside and fell to the ground. The attacking Japanese soldier stepped on his back, raising the bayonet to stab down fiercely. A nearby Chinese soldier quickly kicked the enemy away, then executed a beautiful thrust, piercing the Japanese soldier through.