Age of Rebirth

About eight kilometers away from Mokpo, there is a small village of about a hundred households. The residents in the village have long since run away amidst the rumbling gunfire during the day. The Ninth Brigade Headquarters is located in At the east end of the village, in a relatively spacious courtyard, after fighting during the day, the Ninth Brigade, which suffered serious losses, was withdrawn from the front-line attacking force by the Corps Headquarters, and adjusted to the battlefield here to rest.

Although it was not late at night, there was almost no movement in the various regiments and battalions of the Ninth Brigade. The sentries were standing guard vigilantly. After a day of fierce fighting, the soldiers were already very tired, but how many of them could sleep?

During the day, on the beach, the tragic scene still appeared before the eyes of the officers and soldiers, especially in the second regiment station, which was shrouded in a sad atmosphere, just approaching the ninth brigade station, still in the military jeep The old Ma Chaoyang felt the sad atmosphere in the air, and he sighed inwardly. The Ninth Brigade was hurt in this battle.

The car lights shining in the distance have long fallen into the eyes of the vigilant soldiers. When Ma Chaoyang's car just entered the village entrance, it was stopped by several sentries, "Password!" A serious shout came .

The battalion commander of the guard battalion next to Ma Chaoyang replied loudly: "Attack!" Then, he also asked loudly: "Return order!" The sentinel replied: "Fight!" The password and meeting order were both accurate, and the sentinels obviously relaxed .

While asking each other for passwords and answering commands, Ma Chaoyang looked around carefully. He found that under the illumination of the car lights, behind the wormwood and trees on the left and right sides, there was a faint metallic luster. of careful observation.Didn't notice at all.

"It should be the reflection of the gun, it is the lurking sentry of the Ninth Brigade!" Ma Chaoyang came to the judgment, and he was a little relieved that there were heavy casualties. Although the Ninth Brigade was immersed in grief, the vigilance of the troops was not at all. There is no relaxation, this is the momentum of a real army.

An officer with a morning rank came over with a flashlight.However, he didn't open it, put his hand on the holster of the pistol, and asked politely: "How many people, which unit do you belong to. Unit number?"

The battalion commander of the security battalion jumped out of the car and took out his ID.Said: "Yu Dayong, battalion commander of the guard battalion of the Corps. Escort the commander to your brigade headquarters!"

The captain officer was obviously taken aback, but he still turned on the flashlight and shone a light on Ma Chaoyang's face, and he could see clearly that it was indeed Commander Ma himself, "Report to the commander. Li Tianxin, the company commander of the second regiment of the Ninth Brigade , I am performing a security mission, please give instructions to the commander!" He stood at attention with a "snap" and reported loudly.

Ma Chaoyang nodded.Greeting: "Commander Li, take us to the brigade headquarters, don't call, just go there!" He stopped the company commander of the guard company from calling to inform the brigade headquarters, and the car then drove into the village.

In the temporary brigade headquarters of the Ninth Brigade, a gas lamp illuminated the small room brightly. The Mokpo Landing Battle Review Meeting attended by commanders of each regiment battalion and above was in progress, and dozens of people did it The room was full, and the room seemed crowded. In addition, these officers were smoking non-stop, and the entire venue was shrouded in smoke, which made it hard to breathe. What was even more oppressive was the heartache of the officers attending the meeting. .

The brigade commander, Major General Hao Jiasheng, with red eyes and a hoarse voice, was roaring angrily, "Qi Guodong, stand up for me! Let me ask you, why did your second regiment suffer so many casualties? The three regiments spread out side by side. Attacking at the same time, the first and third regiments also suffered casualties, but the two regiments combined didn't have as many casualties as your second regiment!"

"You lost more than 2000 men to me in a beach landing battle. In your second regiment alone, there were more than 500 soldiers, and they fell on the beach of Mokpo forever. You don't feel sorry, I feel sorry, what a good soldier Ah! Following us officials, we ran all the way to the Korean peninsula, just to die? Qi Guodong, your second regiment has been maimed by the little devils, and half of its strength has been lost. You want to go to the military Court! No! I will kill you with my own hands!"

The officers lowered their heads and smoked fiercely, and no one spoke. Colonel Qi Guodong, the commander of the second regiment, stood there with a pale face and sweating profusely. When Chang was about to shoot himself, he trembled all over, raised his head, and there was a look of resignation and grievance in his eyes.

The casualties of the second regiment accounted for more than two-thirds of the casualties of the ninth brigade. No matter what the reason was, it was the dereliction of duty of the regiment commander, but the brigade commander said that he didn't feel sorry for the soldiers who died. I feel aggrieved from the bottom of my heart, and if I say distressed, I feel more uncomfortable than anyone else.

They were all his own soldiers. After the battle, Qi Guodong looked at the corpses of soldiers from the Second Regiment on the beach. He fell to the ground, vomited a mouthful of blood, and fell into a coma for more than two hours. It was only after being rescued by a military doctor that he woke up. After waking up, the head of the regiment, with the rank of colonel, commanding more than 4000 soldiers, a five-foot-tall man, wailed loudly, and everyone heard the unspeakable pain in their hearts. The casualties of the second regiment happened for a reason. However, the brigade commander in a rage, would he listen to his own explanation?

Hao Jiasheng finished his roar, grabbed an enamel jar on the table, "Gudu, Gudu!" He took a few mouthfuls of boiled water and wiped the water droplets from the corners of his mouth. His voice lowered a lot, but his tone became colder, " Qi Guodong, when you are dying, I want you to be an understanding ghost. If you have anything to say, don’t hold it in your heart. I will give you a chance to speak in front of our Ninth Brigade brothers! Tell me, why did your second regiment suffer casualties? so big?"

Qi Guodong had to explain that it was not for his own future and life, but for the second regiment. He raised his head, eyes full of bloodshot eyes, looked at the brigade commander, and then at the other officers. The head of the brigade was an old guy who had known each other for many years, and there was worry and sympathy in his eyes. The casualties of the second regiment were so heavy, and the head of the brigade was furious and wanted to shoot Qi Guodong.

With a hoarse voice, Qi Guodong said: "Brigade Commander, the casualties of the Second Regiment accounted for more than two-thirds of the casualties of the entire brigade. I am sorry for the Brigadier Commander and the soldiers who died in battle, and I am willing to accept any punishment from the Brigadier Commander!"

"Brigade Commander, I have followed you and the commander for many years. When did I meet Qi Guodong? I was a coward on the battlefield. Our Ninth Brigade is the first to attack, and the Second Regiment is in the middle. In addition, the Tenth Brigade On our left wing, brigade commander, think about it, two brigades were deployed at the same time, with more than 3 people, the width of Mokpo Beach is only as wide as that of Mokpo Beach. This is a fact!"

"However, those hidden underground fortifications and firepower points that have not been destroyed, when our two brigades assault side by side with such a large force density, the lethality is very amazing, brigade commander, I saw with my own eyes, a little devil The heavy machine gun knocked down nearly a hundred of my soldiers, and even some soldiers were cut in half by the heavy machine gun bullets right in front of my eyes, and the blood and minced meat were splashed everywhere, what a pity!"

Qi Guodong's voice was choked, and he could hardly continue. He wiped away his tears, "Brigade Commander, the second regiment in the middle of the offensive position has suffered most of the remaining firepower from the little devils. I intend to adjust my tactics and temporarily stop the attack. , do you still remember, I reported to you, how did you say, 'Qi Guodong! Don't fucking complain to me, even if the second regiment is wiped out, the whole brigade cannot be hindered'!"

"From the beach to the little devil's position, the soldiers of the second regiment spent hundreds of lives step by step. We lack the equipment to deal with the little devil's underground fortifications, or we are not prepared enough. From the corps to the brigade, there is no Lacking experience in this area, and believing too much in the effects of bombing and shelling, the soldiers can only use cluster grenades to blow up the little devil's remaining underground fortifications!"

"Just before the meeting of the brigade headquarters, Brigadier Chen, Li, and Xiao of the Marine Corps came to our brigade and talked about the casualties. After listening for a long time, I realized that the Marine Corps They are dedicated to beach-grabbing and landing battles, and their equipment, tactics and tactics are the nemesis against the little devil's beachhead fortifications!"

"Brigade Commander, no matter what you say, the huge casualties of the Second Regiment are all the responsibility of the regiment commander. I have finished my sentence. I accept any punishment imposed on me by the brigade headquarters. I, Qi Guodong, will not defend myself, whether it is shooting or dismissal. I accept everything, so I feel better!"

After finishing speaking, Qi Guodong sat down calmly. In the room, including the brigade commander Hao Jiasheng, no one spoke. Everyone was smoking desperately, and the atmosphere was dull and depressing. Casualties are so high, there is a reason.

First of all, the Corps Department believed too much in the power of the bomber fleet and naval guns, thinking that after a round of violent bombing and shelling, the Japanese beachhead would be completely wiped out, but it did not take into account that the remaining Japanese underground fortifications, Still have the ability to fight back.

Secondly, the density of attacking troops on the beachhead was too high. There were more than 3 people in two brigades attacking together. The width of Mokpo Beach was limited, and the density of troops was extremely high. Japanese soldiers hardly needed to aim. One bullet could even concentrate two people. A heavy machine gun knocked down nearly a hundred soldiers. Qi Guodong was not alarmist. After the war, Hao Jiasheng also went to the battlefield to check on the ground. The soldiers' bodies were covered with the charge road.

According to the actual situation of Mokpo Beach, it is enough to use one brigade after launching the attack. If it is found that the Japanese army still has remaining fortifications, they can call in naval guns and ship-based bombers to carry out secondary shelling and bombing. The remaining underground fortifications of the Japanese army, Can it withstand another blow?

It is a pity that neither the Corps Headquarters nor the Brigade Headquarters was aware of this problem. In the end, it was insufficient preparation, lack of necessary equipment, and the troops had no experience in beach landing operations. In fact, Qi Guodong also pointed out that if the navy On the troops of the clan, the casualties are probably much smaller!

(to be continued) (to be continued...)