Rise from eight hundred.

Chapter 1524: Sunset Glory

Afternoon of September 1944, 9!

The autumn sun was not warm at all, but rather scorching. The sun was almost white, and the temperature that day reached as high as 35 degrees.

But the atmosphere at the Hengyang Command Center located in the underground tunnel was extremely gloomy.

Even the battle-hardened commanders had thought about the annihilation of their entire army or dying on the battlefield, but they never imagined that this battle would last for a full 108 days.

But they had enough to be proud of. It had been nearly 50 days since the position in the south of Hengyang City was breached. Every day seemed to be precarious. The Japanese army continued to break through the blocks and advance into the city, but in just one night, most of the positions would be recaptured again.

  There were more than 30 blocks that were repeatedly lost and regained, with the two sides changing hands more than 20 times!

The Japanese army not only deployed a large number of infantry, but also used large-caliber artillery and tanks to bombard the streets. The Chinese side also retaliated with mortars, grenades and even explosive packs, so that in the end the streets were no longer ruins but had been bombarded into a cemetery.

Because those blocks were filled with the corpses of Japanese and Chinese, and the ground was covered with blood, some red, some brown, and most of them were black after drying. Even the living had blood red in their eyes.

However, the generals knew that they could not hold the city.

Because Hengyang has already tried its best.

There were less than 3000 soldiers still able to fight. What was even more terrible was that Hengyang had run out of food ten days ago.

The field radio had already used up its last reserve battery and was out of power, and they had completely lost contact with the Military Commission.

Every day, transport planes arrive over Hengyang, dropping no more than 5 tons of supplies and the same warrant that has been repeated for almost two months, which is still the same old tune: "Reinforcements will arrive tomorrow."

That little bit of ammunition, food, and medicine was just a drop in the bucket for Hengyang at that time. The little food available was basically sent to the field hospital to serve the wounded soldiers, who still numbered as high as 1.5.

Starting from September 9, the food supplies of the front-line armies mainly came from the killed Japanese soldiers, so that in the end the battle was not just to hold the position, but to survive.

Without the supplies the Japanese carried, the Chinese officers and soldiers in the ruins would have starved to death.

In fact, many infantrymen have abandoned submachine guns and Mauser pistols and switched to using the Japanese Type 38 rifle. It was not because Japanese weapons were more advanced, but because the ammunition was easier to obtain.

The end of the road is what Hengyang is like at that time.

This was the third time in a week that Fang Xianjue had convened a meeting of several commanders stationed around Hengyang City.

However, compared with the military meeting two months ago, the people present were more or less different; it could almost be called a conference of disabled people.

  The commander of the 10th Reserve Division, Ge Youcai, was seriously injured and had not recovered yet, but he was also carried to the headquarters on a stretcher;

The 190th Division's Rong Youlue was missing an arm. That was because 20 days ago, the major general division commander was shot by the Japanese army when he led his troops to counterattack. As a result, the major general division commander still went into battle despite the injury and did not go to the field hospital for treatment for two consecutive days.

Fang Xianjue went to the frontline personally to escort the major general to the field hospital for treatment, but it was too late. The hot weather caused the wound to become infected and gangrene occurred. If the limb was not amputated immediately, his life would be in danger.

The 3rd Division's Lieutenant General Zhou Qingxiang was not in good health either. A shrapnel had cut off 3 taels of flesh from his buttocks, and his white bones could be seen. Until now, he could only lie on a soft bag, forming a pair with Ge Youcai who was lying on a stretcher.

The three division commanders under the 10th Army were all badly injured, not to mention the officers and soldiers of the 10th Army. It is said that the regiment commander and battalion commander have been replaced by a round, and the company and platoon leaders have been replaced several times. Many people don’t even recognize the regiment and battalion commanders.

Several generals were disabled, and the handsome chiefs of staff were not much better off.

Zhao Junmai, who was always particular about his appearance, was now shirtless and wearing shorts, with a bald head and no eyebrows or beard. He looked like a big boiled egg, and did not look like the fourth commander of Hengyang at all. Instead, he looked like a homeless man, and a homeless man who was about to die.

There were large, shocking scars on his arms, chest and back. Several pieces of skin were gone and tissue fluid was still oozing out. Those were not ordinary injuries but burns.

Three days ago, he was organizing people to transport supplies and the wounded when he was attacked by Japanese artillery fire. In order to rescue those precious supplies, the HY mayor went back and forth in the sea of ​​fire several times and almost turned into a burnt man.

Sun Mingyu, the chief of staff of the 10th Army, who once had clear eyes and a resolute face, was now covered in bandages below his eyes. A bullet entered his right cheek and exited from his left cheek, taking away his six teeth and leaving a hole the size of a pigeon egg on one side of his face. That was the result of him taking over Ge Youcai's command of the remnants of the 10th Reserve Division.

Of course, if it weren't for the injury that almost cost him his life, the straightforward Ge Youcai would probably not have a good face when seeing him.

After all, of the 7700th Reserve Division, which had a strength of more than 10 before the war, only 500 people are still able to fight. It is nonsense to say that only one in ten is left.

  No matter who is the teacher, they would be heartbroken!

Perhaps the most complete one is Tang Tuanzuo. The parts on his head are complete, and his hands and feet are also complete. Nothing is missing. The only thing he has is an 8-centimeter scar on his cheek, extending from under the ear to the chin. The stitches on that scar have not healed yet, and the crooked stitches and scars make him look like a hideous centipede from a distance.

It is said that it was after the war, because there was a shortage of medical staff, so Mrs. Tang, Tan Tai Mingyue, sewed the wound herself. In order to save anesthetics for the seriously injured, she didn't even use anesthetics. From those crooked stitches, one can clearly see the mood of Dean Tan Tai, who is usually calm and wise.

This couple are indeed the most ruthless of the ruthless.

This injury is naturally nothing compared to the several generals who will basically receive disability certificates of level three or above in the future, but no one dares to question the role played by Director Tang in this battle.

Needless to say, the fighting outside the city of Hengyang, if it weren't for the deployment of Tang swords and the hard fighting of the Four-Line Regiment, the 10th Army could have held out for at most a month, and there would be no chance to start street fighting with the Japanese in August.

During the fighting inside the city, Director Tang was even more fierce. Not only did he have to deploy battles for hundreds of blocks, he also personally led his troops into battle more than 15 times.

The scar on his face was caused by him personally leading a part of the mountain infantry company in a counterattack against a block.

In that battle, he led 6 infantry squads and 200 reserve soldiers in a bloody battle with a Japanese infantry battalion all night, killing more than 600 Japanese soldiers and successfully driving the Japanese troops with large artillery support out of the neighborhood.

Even more, the blood-thirsty Tang Tuanzuo personally led Longyan and eight soldiers, put on Japanese military uniforms, followed the defeated Japanese soldiers into the Japanese-controlled area, and started a killing spree.

Taking advantage of the Japanese army's unpreparedness, they crazily killed several Japanese lieutenants, lieutenants and dozens of Japanese soldiers, then rushed into a Japanese-controlled neighborhood and engaged in a melee with the Japanese army.

The most amazing thing is that it was just these 10 people who actually blocked the crazy attack of hundreds of Japanese soldiers and persisted until nightfall, and then escaped by sneaking into the underground passage through a secret tunnel entrance that the Japanese soldiers had not discovered.

Before leaving, he did not forget to place an oversized booby trap at the entrance of the tunnel, which killed seven or eight Japanese soldiers who were following him and successfully destroyed the entrance to the tunnel.

In fact, even if the Japanese army discovered the entrance to the underground passage, few dared to go in and track it. There were even mines buried there. Anyone who was not familiar with the underground passage would basically die if they dared to come in.

During these forty days, the Japanese army discovered at least seven or eight entrances to the tunnels. Hundreds of elite soldiers were sent in, but they were basically swallowed up silently. The Japanese army simply destroyed them with explosives and never wanted to send soldiers into those dark tunnels deep underground that were like the mouths of giant beasts.

The Hengyang defenders did not know that the person killed by Commander Tang who infiltrated the Japanese rear in a surprise attack was not an ordinary lieutenant, but the new commander of the 68th Division, Mikio Tsutsumi.

Otherwise, the Japanese army would not have gathered at least 2000 infantrymen like crazy, and used 6 tanks and 18 artillery pieces to bombard the block where Tang Dao and others were hiding. Fortunately, the artillery battalion of the Fourth Regiment knew that their commander was there, and used the last 300 rounds of artillery shells to provide fire support. Otherwise, even if Tang Dao had three heads and six arms, and Long Yan was a machine gun god, he would not be able to escape this disaster.

  After Tang Dao returned, the supreme commander Fang Xianjue was furious. It was already too much for you, a director of the operations department, to fight in the front line. You even got so angry that you led your men to the rear of the Japanese army. Even if you wanted to give away your head, you shouldn't do it this way!

Especially now, the Four-Line Regiment, which still has more than a thousand people, has become the main force of resistance in the city. If Tang Dao, the regiment commander, were to have his head chopped off by the Japanese army, one can imagine how much of a blow it would have on the morale of the armies in the city. It would be no less than the death of any division commander under his command.

Fortunately, there was a wound on Tang Dao's face so deep that the bone could be seen. Fang Xianjue scolded Tang Dao for just one minute and then sent him to treat the wound. This allowed the bloodthirsty Tang Tuanzuo to escape the disaster.

However, this battle made the entire 10th Army understand why this guy was able to offend that person and still live to this day. This guy is really a madman, and a madman with explosive combat power.

Of course, the most important thing is that the entire Four Elements Group dares to go crazy with their leader.

However, without this madman and that group of madmen, everyone knows that they may be able to hold out for 30 days, 40 days or even 50 days, but forget about it to hold out for 100 days.

However, now the situation is at its worst, Fang Xianjue decided to give his subordinates a chance to speak. The war has come to this point, and all the Chinese in Hengyang have done their best. He can't not even give them a chance to speak their minds!

"You and your subordinates have done your best. If you have anything to say, feel free to say it. Even if you want to negotiate with the Japanese, everyone present will know that there will be no written record." Fang Xianjue set the tone before the meeting.

What this means is that everyone can speak freely today, regardless of whether it is what he wants to hear or not.

"We will be unable to hold on sooner or later! The Japanese troops closest to our Hengyang headquarters and field hospital are less than 500 meters away." Zhao Zili, the chief of staff of the Hengyang defenders, spoke first in a heavy tone.

"Yes! Even if we are not considered, we still have to consider the more than 1 wounded soldiers and half of the remaining reserve forces. More than 4 of our men have died in battle inside and outside Hengyang City. We have done our best for the country and the nation. If we have to say sorry, it is that person who is sorry for us, and the hundreds of thousands of troops outside who are sorry for us. Even if it is just one person and one gun, we will recognize the kindness of coming to help. But it has been almost 3 months since Teliang came, and we haven't seen a single hair of theirs." Zhou Qingxiang, the commander of the rd Division, who was still lying in the soft pocket, was no longer angry, but said in near despair.

Seeing Fang Xianjue pursed his lips and frowned, the lieutenant general did not back down: "Commander, I am not a wimp, nor am I giving in, but..."

A week ago, he was still a staunch advocate of war, but as supplies in Hengyang City were exhausted, the veteran knew that if the battle continued, the 3000 men who were still able to fight would be killed, and the remaining wounded and reserve troops would all be slaughtered by the Japanese.

"My Taishan Army has fought the Japanese army here for over a hundred days and killed tens of thousands of Japanese soldiers. Who dares to say that we are cowards? I understand your thoughts." Fang Xianjue waved his hand.

"I have nothing to say. I will listen to the commander in chief in everything." Ge Youcai said weakly.

Under normal circumstances, this fierce general who could be regarded as Fang Xianjue's most trusted confidant would definitely fight to the end. But at this moment, thinking that he had only 500 people left in his 10th Reserve Division, he was unusually weak. He probably also wanted to preserve the last spark of his 10th Reserve Division.

Fang Xianjue turned his gaze directly to Rong Youlue, who was missing an arm.

Although the new commander of the 190th Division sided with Commander Ling Fangxian, who was absolutely disliked by the top leaders of the 190th Division, the regiment from the 190th Division, under the leadership of Rong Youlue, proved with facts that they were also heroes.

"General, among the 2100 brothers I brought here, only 200 can still fight. The regiment, battalion and company commanders have all been killed or wounded, and I, as the division commander, have become a useless man. Having a small number of people also has its advantages. Before coming here, I asked for their opinions one by one. The last infantry company of my 190th Division is determined to live and die with the city of Hengyang!" Rong You shook his head slightly bitterly, but his eyes were filled with an extremely firm will.

Everyone was silent for a while, and even Fang Xianjue was slightly surprised. He did not expect that among his three division commanders, the one who was the most disliked by him, the major general, would be the one with the strongest fighting spirit.

"Okay! I understand what you mean." Fang Xianjue nodded slightly, and finally turned his gaze to Tang Dao who was sitting on the side.

"I want to show you something." Tang Dao did not express his opinion directly, but took out a rice ball from his pocket, a rice ball that was stained with blood and exuded a strong smell.

"This was brought to me by a platoon leader of my reconnaissance company in the afternoon. This is the spoils of war that the soldiers in their platoon found from a Japanese soldier they had just killed."

Sun Mingyu took the rice ball from Tang Dao and looked at it carefully. He then sniffed the bandaged nose and frowned slightly. "It's hot in the summer. This rice ball must have been there for at least two days. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so rotten."

"The food treatment of the Japanese is too bad now. They actually carry a stale rice ball with them as if it were a treasure. Are they afraid that they will give it to our army as supplies?" Zhao Junmai also frowned.

  Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind!

There was a sudden silence in the tunnel!

Holding the stale rice ball, Zhao Junmai suddenly looked at Tang Dao with surprise in his eyes: "No, Captain Tang, you mean..."

"That's right, Mayor Zhao, that's what I wanted to say." Tang Dao smiled. "Not only are we at our wits' end, but the Japanese are too. This week I've asked all departments to report on the results of the search for spoils from the Japanese. Not only is their food getting less and less, but even the bullets in the Japanese bullet boxes are far less than before, with the least being only 10 rounds, which was almost impossible in the past."

"Is it possible that this is a Japanese strategy to confuse the enemy? To make us mistakenly believe that they are short of logistics," the young Sun Mingyu answered instinctively.

"My Chief of Staff Sun! The battle has come to this point. We are fighting them face to face. Whoever has more strength can kill the opponent. Who has the time to think about other things?" Ge Youcai, who was lying on a stretcher, angrily rebuked the young major general.

Thinking that the remnants of the 10th Reserve Division were almost turned into an infantry battalion under this person's command, Lao Ge still felt a little resentful.

Sun Mingyu, who was being criticized, should be aware of this in his heart. In addition, what Ge Youcai said was also the truth, so he was really thinking too much.

At this time, the Chinese and Japanese armies in Hengyang City were like two wild beasts fighting each other, using all their claws and teeth, not caring how much blood they shed, they just wanted to kill the other side first. Any other strategies were useless.

"So." Fang Xianjue's eyes lit up slightly.

"So I think what Chief of Staff Zhao said just now is very right. We can no longer hold on. Instead, we must fight back, gather our last strength, and counterattack the enemies in the city. We must use our actual combat power to tell them that not only can we fight again, but we can also fight for another 58 days." Tang Dao stood up with a determined look.

"Or, we will fight with them as long as they want! And we will fight with them even if we shed our last drop of blood.

I’m just afraid that Yokoyama Yong doesn’t have the courage!”

All the generals in the tunnel looked at Tang Dao as if he were a madman, even Rong Youlue who had already decided to live and die with the city.

"I can be sure that there is a big problem with the Japanese logistics and transportation. Although our hundreds of thousands of reinforcements on the periphery have not yet attacked, they are not hundreds of thousands of pigs. They can still be of some use to some extent. Besides, I have all the air supremacy." Tang Dao said.

"As long as we show our strength and will, we will completely crush the last glimmer of hope of the Japanese!"

"So." Fang Xianjue's hands suddenly clenched the back of the chair, and his veins were exposed.

"So in this battle, all the soldiers of the Hengyang garrison who can fight will participate in the battle. All the wounded soldiers who can walk and follow the troops will participate in the battle. 1.5 reserve troops will be mobilized and all of them will be issued guns to participate in the battle. All 16 tanks of the Fourth Regiment will participate in the battle. The artillery battalion of the Fourth Regiment will empty the last 800 rounds of artillery shells! Artillery, cavalry, baggage soldiers, communication soldiers, etc. will all participate in the battle with guns.

This battle is codenamed 'Sunset Glory'!"

  Everyone, including Fang Xianjue, was shocked!

The so-called glory of sunset is nothing more than either bursting out with the brightest light to sweep away everything, or falling into darkness forever after the light!

Regardless of victory or defeat, this will be the last battle for Hengyang City!

Put it on the gambling table, this is called Soha!

But the bargaining chips are the lives of more than 4 people still alive in Hengyang City!

Tang Dao is definitely the craziest gambler they have ever seen in their lives!

But, they were actually moved because of the rotten rice ball that Tang Dao took out!