Traveling through 1937, starting from the Battle of Songhu

Chapter 212: The Japanese Attack Purple Mountain

The fierce attack of the Japanese army once again bathed the entire Jinling in the flames of war. The first to bear the brunt was the Purple Mountain Training Corps.

Under the command of the Japanese Prince Asaka, the Japanese 16th Division and the 9th Division began to attack Purple Mountain with the belief that they would win.

Afterwards, flames of war broke out one after another along the lines of Zhonghua Gate, Guanghua Gate, Taiping Gate, and Mufu Mountain.

The Japanese Guoqi Detachment took the opportunity to attack the Xiaguan Pukou area.

"Gu boy, do you still think we can evacuate now?" Tang Shengzhi said with a slightly sarcastic tone.

Being detained by Gu Changfeng in Pukou, he had no other thoughts and just let it go.

He now wanted to see what solution Gu Changfeng had to break the impasse.

Gu Changfeng came to Tang Shengzhi just to see the situation on the battlefields. Now, hearing Tang Shengzhi's expression, he couldn't help but sneer and said, "Commander Tang, I'm different from you. You can abandon the people of Jinling, but I can't."

"Also, even if we can't resist the Japanese, what does it matter? With your orders in place, would the mid-level and low-level officers dare to leave?"

"I'm afraid no one has the courage!"

Although he was anxious now, the Japanese attack was also within his expectations. His only worry was whether the defenders in various parts of Nanjing would be defeated too quickly.

"Gu kid, you only mentioned the middle and low-level officers. Do you really think you can't handle some of the higher-level officers?"

Tang Shengzhi said with a smile. He was not annoyed by Gu Changfeng's ridicule. At his age, he was still in such a situation. Instead, he calmed down.

Tang Shengzhi's words made Gu Changfeng fall silent.

In fact, he was not afraid of intercepting the top leaders, but he was afraid that Song Xilian, the commander of the 36th Division, could not withstand the pressure.

Although the Pukou and Xiaguan lines were not entirely under the responsibility of the 36th Division, if Song Xilian let them pass, he would have no good solution.

It can be said that half of the credit for his efforts and the people he transported was due to the cooperation of Song Xilian.

Seeing that Gu Changfeng was silent, Tang Shengzhi stopped teasing him and said seriously, "Gu kid, make preparations as soon as possible. The Battle of Xuzhou has already begun, and with the two major battlefields in North China and Taiyuan, the government has no time to deal with Nanjing."

"Don't you see that the supplies are running out? The chairman is under a lot of pressure too."

"Let me remind you, the Jinling defenders can't hold out for much longer. I estimate that in just two or three days, the armies will run out of ammunition. By then, even if they don't retreat, they won't be able to continue fighting."

Gu Changfeng was silent. The Battle of Nanjing lasted much longer than in his previous life. Coupled with the delays in several battlefields after the Battle of Shanghai, a long time had indeed passed.

Now that the Japs have opened up the Xuzhou battlefield again, it's normal for Baldy to be under a lot of pressure.

The main reason is that there is no hope of defending Jinling, nor is there any hope of defeating the Japanese. Otherwise, Baldy would still be willing to continue supporting it. He has to do it for the sake of the people's hearts.

However, in the current situation, retreating to preserve strength has indeed become the best solution.

Boom boom boom!

A violent explosion resounded in the Purple Mountain position.

The Japs attacked and started with heavy artillery bombardment.

The 16th Division, backed by the heavy artillery regiment, was unstoppable, causing heavy losses to the teaching corps on the main front.

"Hide away from me, don't look up!"

Some Kuomintang officers shouted loudly, asking the soldiers to hide.

Faced with such heavy artillery bombardment from the Japanese, they had no means of counterattack at this time.

The Teaching Corps has been fighting for so long that its funds have been almost depleted.

In just over ten minutes, the number of casualties among the front-line soldiers was close to that of a battalion, and the total strength of the teaching corps was only more than 6000.

Now facing such an attack from the Japanese, it is very difficult for them to stop them.

Finally, after another ten minutes, the Japanese artillery bombardment stopped.

As the Japanese artillery bombardment stopped, the soldiers in the fortifications returned to their firing positions one after another.

Da da da!

The machine gun sounded and fired at the Japanese soldiers who were approaching.

The Japanese were very good at seizing opportunities. They took advantage of the artillery bombardment and had already reached the front of the position.

As soon as the soldiers entered the firing position, fierce gunfire broke out between the two sides.

The 16th Division came well prepared this time. In addition to the heavy artillery regiment, they also had their own division's artillery regiment, plus all the infantry and a regiment of the 9th Division. At this time, the number of people attacking Purple Mountain had reached an astonishing number.

This time, the division commander Nakajima Imao was determined to take the strategic location of Purple Mountain in one fell swoop, risking his entire division.

"Come on, little devils!"

Da da da,

On the main position of Zijin Mountain, a heavy machine gunner of the National Army, with his machine gun, crazily fired at the Japanese soldiers who appeared in front of him.

The dense bullets killed several Japanese soldiers in an instant. The other Japanese soldiers did not dare to look up and crawled on the ground waiting for an opportunity.

"Baga, call the artillery to shoot down the Chinese machine gunner!"

The Japanese captain who was in charge of the charge couldn't help but shout loudly as he watched his soldiers being suppressed in the rear.

Soon, artillery fire came.

Rumble!

With a loud explosion, the Kuomintang machine gunner became completely silent.

But then, gunfire was heard again from another machine gun position, and the Japanese soldiers who had just stood up suffered again.

The National Army soldiers on the position had no choice. Faced with so many Japanese devils and the bombardment of Japanese tanks, they could only use this life-for-life tactic.

Purple Mountain Command Center.

Several officers at the headquarters looked at Gui Yongqing and Qiu Qingquan. One officer spoke first, his eyes red as he pleaded, "Commander, Chief of Staff, let's break out. After a few hours, our brothers have suffered heavy casualties and can't fight any longer."

In just a few hours in the afternoon, more than 1000 people died and more than 300 were seriously injured on the front line, which made these officers think of retreating.

"Do you know what you're talking about? Who's behind us? Hundreds of thousands of people from Jinling City. We're breaking out now, and you still have the nerve to face them?"

Qiu Qingquan's madness broke out and he yelled directly at the officer who was speaking.

"It is a soldier's bounden duty to defend our country. Brothers, you have come to this battlefield to fulfill your duty. What does it matter if you make a greater sacrifice? If it really comes to the end, I, the staff officer, will be the first to go up and fight the devils!"

Qiu Qingquan's words were so powerful that they silenced the other officers who wanted to persuade him.

The command center fell silent.

After a while, Gui Yongqing coughed twice and said awkwardly, "Staff Officer Qiu is right. We can't just give up our position to the Japanese. Let's hold on a little longer, brothers!"

In fact, if Qiu Qingquan hadn't spoken first, he would have really thought about breaking through.

From the time he swore to defend Jinling until now, his thoughts have gradually shifted, and he no longer has the desire to gain some credit.

The Japanese were very powerful, so powerful that even he, the captain, felt afraid.

As night fell, the Japanese attack continued. Nakajima Imao went completely crazy. The prince gave him three days, and he planned to end the battle in two days.

So, this night is destined to be a sleepless night...