PFC Chapter 163: Result of the Battle in Qingyang County
Chapter 163: Result of the Battle in Qingyang County
"What?"
Upon hearing that the positions outside the city had been lost and only 5,000 troops had returned from leaving the city, Yuan Yuhao was so shocked that he stood up.
The guard regiment and gendarmerie regiment that left the city were completely wiped out, and the reconnaissance battalion, special service battalion, and firepower battalion, totaling less than a thousand people, returned.
There were only 92 people left in the 91nd Division, and only people left in the st Division.
Yuan Yuhao's face was grim, his mind was racing, thinking about how to solve the current dilemma. At this time, the commanders of the 91st and 92nd divisions and others were waiting outside the door, waiting for Yuan Yuhao to summon them.
Not long after, Yuan Yuhao opened the door of the commander's room and tiredly instructed the communications director: "Send a telegram to the military headquarters, saying that our troops are in Qingyang County and have encountered a stubborn attack from the Southern Army. The troops have suffered heavy losses and are requesting support."
"Also tell the military headquarters that there are only more than 5,000 people left in our unit." The communications director was about to send a message when Yuan Yuhao suddenly thought of something and gave another order.
If he only said that the losses were heavy, Yuan Yuhao was afraid that those people in the military would think that he was conserving his strength and misjudged the situation here.
It would be bad if the military thought that the Ninth Army still had more than 10,000 people and that he could hold on to Qingyang County without sending support.
After saying this, the communications director went to send the message, and Yuan Yuhao sat down on the doorstep.
At this time, he was a little afraid of the combat effectiveness of the Southern Army. Together with the artillery regiment, there were more than 16,000 people participating in the battle, but more than 9,000 were wiped out in a blink of an eye. How could Yuan Yuhao accept this?
After scanning the crowd, Yuan Yuhao asked, "How do you think we should defend Qingyang County?"
"Commander, given the current situation, Qingyang County is difficult to defend. It is better to abandon Qingyang County." The commander of the 91st Division hesitated.
The commander of the 92nd Division also nodded and said, "Yes, the enemy's firepower is too strong. If we wait for them to surround the city, we really won't be able to get out."
The two division commanders were a little intimidated by the firepower of the Southern Army. Not to mention the cannons, the number of automatic firepower was also beyond their reach.
The most important point is that when they were besieged on three sides, the enemy dispatched troops densely, roughly estimated to be no less than 10,000 people, which made them have no confidence in defending the city.
Yuan Yuhao's face darkened. Although more than 15,000 men were killed in the two battles, Yuan Yuhao was confident that with the remaining 7,000 troops, it would be no problem to defend the county.
Five thousand men returned, and more than a thousand artillerymen remained.
There are also the Logistics Department, the Engineering Battalion, and civilian officers who can gather more than a thousand people. Although these people are not very strong, they can still fight.
Although he was annoyed by the two division commanders' cowardly words, he did not lose his temper. He only said, "Without the military's order, we will be punished by the higher-ups if we retreat now."
The retreat this time is different from the last plan to abandon Qingyang City. The last time was purely for the purpose of completing the mission, and they gave up Qingyang to support Linjin City.
But this time, we can't take more than 7,000 remaining troops with us to support Imjin City.
It would be safer to defend Qingyang City than to bring 7,000 people to support Linjin.
When the two division commanders heard this, their faces changed. Their families were all behind them, and no matter how many ideas they had, no matter how much they wanted to save their lives, they couldn't help but think about the safety of their families.
The two division commanders looked at each other and sighed. The commander of the 91st Division stepped forward and asked, "Commander, I wonder what you plan to do."
"From the enemy's actions today, we can see that the enemy is swift and has strong firepower." Seeing the two men lower their heads obediently, Yuan Yuhao felt a lot better.
"We were too careless and reacted too slowly, which allowed the enemy to gain the upper hand."
"Now we only have 7,000 people left. There is no other way except to defend the city. I plan to reorganize the remaining troops into three infantry regiments and one artillery regiment."
"The 91st Division was reduced to the 91st Regiment, with the remaining 92 people forming a guard regiment with the reconnaissance battalion. The logistics department, engineering battalion, and the remaining troops of the 92nd Division were also reorganized into the nd Regiment."
"The 91st Regiment will place one battalion at the South Gate and one battalion at the West Gate, with the rest stationed at the South Gate for support. The 92nd Regiment will place one battalion at the East Gate and one battalion at the North Gate, with the rest stationed at the East Gate for support."
"The artillery regiment will set up positions in the city and provide support to the city walls at any time, and the guard regiment will also serve as backup support."
Although the commander of the 91st Division was very dissatisfied with this proposal, he had to endure it for the sake of his life and his family at the rear.
Unless they defect to the Southern Army or become bandits, if they still want to stay in the Northern Army, they have to obey the arrangements obediently. Yuan Yuhao's background is not something they can afford to mess with.
The commander of the 92nd Division had no objection to this. There were only more than 92 people left in the nd Division, and being able to supplement them with more than people was a gain no matter how you looked at it.
While the troops inside the city were reorganizing, the First Division outside the city had already cleaned up the battlefield and reported their results.
Fang Guoxuan did not lead the remaining troops across the river, but only moved the division headquarters to the south bank of the Qingyang River. The main reason was that the temporary floating bridge could not allow the heavy artillery of the First Division to cross the river safely.
Chief of Staff Xie Yuan came forward to report: "Division Commander, today's results have been fully counted."
After Fang Guoxuan nodded, Xie Yuanhui reported:
"In the morning, the 102nd Regiment raided two positions outside Qingyang City. About 1825 enemies died in the shelling, more than 5857 were killed, 207 were captured, and 25 Daxin XI-type guns, 102 light machine guns, and 415 heavy machine guns were seized. In this battle, people from the nd Regiment died."
After the morning battle, the prisoners and captured weapons had already been delivered to the division headquarters.
Xie Yuan continued to report: "In the afternoon, on the 101st Regiment's position, we killed 1445 enemies, captured 703, seized 1871 Daxin XI-type guns, 15 heavy machine guns, 165 light machine guns, and 45 box guns. In this battle, 101 people from the 441st Regiment died."
"The 103rd Regiment was attacked on the north bank of the river in the afternoon, killing 1641 enemies, capturing 364, and seizing 1745 Daxin XI-type guns, 216 light machine guns, and 68 box guns. In this battle, 103 people from the 346rd Regiment were killed, and 104 people from the 153th Regiment were killed."
"In the final attack on the main position, we killed 1861 enemies, captured 2587, seized 3145 Daxin XI-type guns, 36 heavy machine guns, and 327 light machine guns. In this battle, 102 people from the 279nd Regiment died, 103 people from the 144rd Regiment died, and 104 people from the 267th Regiment died."
In the final battle, because the 91st and 92nd Divisions were half-surrounded and most of the troops were only concerned with escaping, the results were much greater.
Upon hearing this victory result, Fang Guoxuan was happy but also a little heavy.
Although the number of enemies killed and captured was about 2045, the Nanshan Army also lost soldiers in the battle throughout the day.
Putting aside his heavy heart, Fang Guoxuan ordered: "Let the 101st, 102nd, 103rd, and 104th regiments rest in place, and transport our wounded, enemy prisoners, and captured weapons back to the division headquarters."
"Attack South City and East City tomorrow, observe the enemy's deployment, and then make follow-up arrangements."
Upon receiving the order, an officer from the communications office went to send the telegram.
More than 2,000 soldiers were killed in the battle and many were injured. The First Division had its own medical team. Although it was not as good as a field hospital, the medical conditions were sufficient to treat ordinary wounded.
In addition to weapons and ammunition, a lot of medicines were also carried on this expedition.
After the four regiments outside Qingyang City on the north bank received the telegram, Fang Tianming quickly arranged the defense of the positions and ordered each unit to make fires and cook. After eating and drinking, he let the soldiers have a good rest and prepare for the battle tomorrow.