Chapter 152 What is the Martyrs Cemetery? (First update!)

"What?" At the headquarters of the 15th Army, Kawabe Masamitsu looked at the telegram that had just been delivered and said in disbelief.

"The Sichuan Army's target is actually Lashio?"

At the same time, he subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

Attacking Lashio is not a big deal as long as it is not Mandalay.

It’s no wonder he thinks so. If the two places have to be given up, Mandalay will definitely be more important.

After all, Mandalay concerns the safety of three divisions.

Lashio only has one 56th Division, and it is a division that has lost its heavy artillery regiment.

Although Lashio's geographical location is also very important, it is still a little inferior to Mandalay.

Therefore, the previous discussion was based on the overall strategy, and it would be more meaningful to attack Mandalay from the south.

Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao.

Prompting the 18th and 33rd Divisions to retreat.

In that case, all of Mutaguchi Ren'ya's efforts would be in vain.

Only Yahara Hiromichi who was standing aside asked with some confusion.

"Commander, why doesn't the Sichuan Army go south to Mandalay?"

"From an overall strategic perspective, going south to Mandalay makes more sense."

"After all, if Mandalay is lost, it means that the crisis in Imphal will be resolved soon. After all, we can't just watch the demise of the 18th Division."

Hiromichi Yahara's words were echoed by many people.

Even Kawabe Masazo had to admit that what the other party said was indeed correct.

"You're right. This is also what I can't understand. What do you think?" Hebian Zhengsan shook his head, also looking confused.

"Either the Sichuan Army has some other conspiracy, repairing the plank road in the open while secretly marching through Chencang." Yahara Hiromichi analyzed calmly.

These top students at the Army University particularly admire the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and are very familiar with these classic tactics.

"Or someone doesn't want them to go south."

Regarding the first point, many people agreed that the Sichuan Army might be attacking Lashio on the surface, but in fact it was preparing for a sneak attack on Mandalay.

After all, Mandalay is far superior to Lashio in terms of both military strength and firepower.

It may not be so easy to take it down by relying on brute force.

If it is a sneak attack, there is still a possibility of success.

As for the second point, some people don't want them to go south.

This sentence made many people fall into deep thought.

"Tell me in detail." Kawabe Masamitsu had limited information, so he could only rely on his staff for analysis.

"The reason why we don't want them to go south is that we don't want the Sichuan Army to become too powerful. The people in Shancheng should be the most worried about this. After all, the Sichuan Army was just a ragtag army. For those people in Shancheng, it's not that easy."

"They are nothing more than cannon fodder, but if they continue to grow in size, I'm afraid they won't be so easy to deal with."

"So it's possible that the people in the mountain city told them not to go south, but to go north to Lashio to ease the predicament in southwestern Yunnan."

"Restoring the China-Burma Highway is what Shancheng urgently hopes for." Yahara Hiromichi pointed to the map and told his analysis in detail.

"Yoshi, what you said is right, but don't forget that they are now directly under the Allied Command and there is no need for them to obey Yamashiro's orders." Kawabe Masazo shook his head to deny his opinion.

Yahara Hiromichi was not disappointed about this. After all, he was just a combat staff officer. All he had to do was analyze the intelligence and let the military commander make the judgment.

"Then the only thing left is that the Allied Command doesn't want him to go south, but this is not in the interests of the US military." Yahara Hiromichi said in a deep voice.

"The reason why the U.S. military cooperated with Shancheng was to hold us back and prevent us from transferring more troops to the Pacific battlefield."

The Japanese army is not stupid, so they can naturally see the intentions of the US army.

That's why they tried every possible means to cut off the China-Myanmar Highway, isn't it just for these reasons?

"Excluding all the impossible, there is only one thing left, that is, the British army does not want them to go south." Yahara Hiromichi took a deep breath and said slowly.

"The British army doesn't want them to go south?" All the military staff looked at each other in confusion.

What is this operation?
If Hiroto Yahara hadn't proved himself with his excellent analytical skills before.

Everyone must have thought he was talking nonsense.

This is a British colony. Why not let them go south to recover the lost territory?
"Yes, that should be the reason."

"To put it bluntly, the British army is still in charge in Southeast Asia. If they strongly oppose it, even the Sichuan Army will be useless."

"As for the reason, I guess it is that the British army's strategy is to attack Europe first and Asia later. They want to resolve the war in Europe as quickly as possible and then come back to clean up the mess here." Yahara Hiromichi sighed.

In fact, he had always been opposed to launching a Pacific War, believing that it would slide the empire into an unknown abyss.

But there was no way, they could no longer contain the growing navy.

When the northward movement failed, the only option left was to move south.

Although countless resources have been plundered and certain conflicts have been eased, new conflicts are emerging.

America's terrifying industrial capacity is exploding, making it increasingly difficult for them.

"What you said is very likely. After all, this is a British colony. The British army gave up on their own initiative when they entered Burma this time. Apart from a few battles with the expeditionary force, they rarely fought with the British army."

"They must take Myanmar back if they give it up in vain, otherwise the people here will lose their morale." Hebian Zhengsan sighed.

In fact, he knew very well that the morale of the Japanese troops here was gradually dissipating.

Especially the heavy taxation and extortion in recent times have aroused a lot of resistance.

But there is no way, the orders from the base must be followed.

He also knew what the consequences would be, but there was nothing he could do.

If he doesn't do it, there are plenty of people who will.

Those generals in the reserve are all eyeing the situation covetously.

So he had no choice but to grit his teeth and allow the Japanese army to impose heavy taxes and levies, and make some money for himself at the same time.

"In that case, there is no need to worry about Mandalay's safety. Do you think we should send reinforcements?" asked Kawabe Masazo.

"Reinforcements must be sent. Lashio cannot be lost. There is a full division there. We must not give up easily." Yahara Hiromichi said.

"Then let the 55th Division dispatch two regiments to attack Hsipak and force the Sichuan Army to return for support." Kawabe Masamitsu was also a decisive person and gave the order immediately.

"Commander, I suggest you send two more divisions of vassal troops. With more than 30,000 people, we will have a better chance of facing the Sichuan Army." Yahara Hiromichi suggested again.

"Yoshi, what you said makes sense. Let's allocate two divisions from the Thai army that just arrived and transfer them to Hsipaw." Kawabe Masazo said.

"Hay."

…………

On the other side, at the frontline, hundreds of artillery pieces blew the Japanese army's first line of defense into pieces, and the remaining Japanese troops hid in the broken trenches in panic.

They never imagined that one day they would be bombed by heavy artillery and have nowhere to hide.

"attack!"

The artillery fire did not stop, but the tank battalion, which had been waiting impatiently, rushed towards the Japanese defense line at Zhao He's roar.

Infantry and artillery coordination, infantry and tank coordination.

After honing it for a while, I can finally show it off.

After all, no matter how well you train, you still need actual combat to hone your skills.

"Charge! Follow me to kill the devils!"

"go ahead!"

"go ahead!"

"Watch your step."

"Be careful and don't stick your head out."

"Watch out for stray bullets."

"Boom! Boom!" The tanks made a rumbling roar, leaving the infantry behind them with only shouting to convey orders.

More than twenty tanks appeared on the battlefield.

Zhao He was too lazy to come up with any tactics and just deployed all the tanks of the entire tank battalion.

At this moment, the soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Battalion were also holding their breath.

From the very beginning they were only responsible for the feint attack and basically never got any success in the main attack.

Now that I have finally become the main attacker, I naturally have to perform well.

Zhao He was even more skilled and courageous. At the age of sixteen, he directly commanded the tanks to crush the Japanese positions.

In the sky, heavy artillery shells began to extend backwards, bombarding the Japanese second line of defense.

This is to prevent accidental explosions.

Besides, the tanks have already rushed forward, and it won’t be long before the Japanese army is completely wiped out.

At this moment, all over the battlefield, artillery shells were roaring, rifles were screaming, and tank artillery was roaring.

The earth is shaking, and the enemy is shaking too.

Facing such powerful firepower!
The Japanese army's first line of defense had long been torn to pieces, like tofu dregs, and could not withstand the fierce attack of the Sichuan Army.

The remaining Japanese troops could only wail under the tank tracks.

Dense bullets swept over, and the Japanese troops who wanted to fight back were shot into pieces.

The so-called death of honor becomes pale and powerless in the face of powerful firepower.

Faced with such fierce firepower, the Japanese army suffered successive defeats.

The Japanese captain on the first line of defense, Major Akita, looked confused.

Is this still the Imperial Japanese Army?
Is this still the cannon fodder-like Sichuan Army?

Why does he feel like he is cannon fodder?
Their grenade launchers hit the enemy tanks without causing any damage.

Some fearless Japanese soldiers wanted to hold on to the explosives and die together with the tanks, but they were shot to pieces by submachine guns of the infantry hiding behind the tanks.

Not to mention that the machine guns on the tanks were still firing back and forth.

The shells and bullets were free of charge and the Japanese army suffered terribly.

Finally, the Japanese army began to collapse.

"These Japanese soldiers are really not afraid of death." A soldier from the Sichuan Army Corps said in surprise as he looked at the Japanese soldiers who were hugging their explosives and committing suicide.

"A new recruit, right? Is this the first time you see me?" The veteran soldier next to him recognized him at a glance; this soldier must be a new recruit.

"I've seen this happen many times. We used to blow up the Japanese bastards in this way. My squad leader and platoon leader were killed in this way."

After the veteran finished speaking, he caught a glimpse of a Japanese soldier trying to sneak over and blow up the tank.

Ta-ta-ta-ta!

A volley of bullets hit the opponent directly, causing the explosive pack to explode instantly.

boom!
It was blown to ashes in an instant.

A big hole was blown out as a result.

"Remember, you must shoot again, and stand farther away when you shoot. Be careful of the Japanese soldiers who may be holding explosives under their bodies, so as not to blow yourself up," the veteran reminded.

"Yes."

As the tanks charged, the soldiers of the Sichuan Army had already rushed into the trenches. When they encountered a corner, they would throw a grenade first, wait for the grenade to explode, put their finger on the trigger, and then rush in. If they encountered something wrong, they would immediately pull the trigger.

These are veterans with rich combat experience.

The mistake that new recruits make is not throwing grenades and just rushing forward stupidly.

Ta-ta-ta-ta!

Screams rang out on the battlefield, and some Japanese soldiers who still wanted to fight back were knocked to the ground by dense bullets.

In close combat, the submachine gun is definitely a powerful weapon.

For a rifle, you have to pull the bolt, but for a submachine gun, you just have to pull the trigger.

Fortunately, the veterans holding submachine guns carried six to eight magazines on their bodies.

Although it was very tiring, it became much easier as each magazine was emptied.

Not to mention, there are new recruits behind him to help carry the magazines, so he can provide continuous firepower output.

A battalion of more than 900 people is meant to ensure continuous output of firepower, isn't it?
Otherwise, once the bullets are used up in one charge, how can we attack the rest?
After a fierce attack, all the Japanese troops on the position were wiped out, and no one was left alive.

The Japanese troops who originally wanted to provide support were suppressed in the trenches by heavy artillery fire and could not advance at all.

They could only watch helplessly as the Japanese troops on the first line of defense were completely wiped out.

Major Akita was even killed in a tank bombing.

The main reason was that the firepower was very dense where he was.

The Sichuan Army was too lazy to compete with him and directly used tanks and artillery.

There was absolutely no movement for five minutes!
According to Cun Yunsheng, if something can be solved with artillery shells, don't use human lives to solve it.

"Your Excellency the division commander, our first line of defense has been breached." The combat staff officer said weakly.

"I understand." Watanabe Masao's fingers trembled subconsciously.

So fast!
It only took half an hour!

The key point is that the Sichuan Army’s heavy artillery never stopped from beginning to end.

This is what scared him!

"Now they are attacking the second line of defense, what should we do?" the operations staff asked again.

This was the first time they had encountered such powerful firepower. Even when they faced the British army before, it was not so exaggerated.

It really tests your fighting spirit.

"Where is the tank squadron?" After thinking for a while, Watanabe Masao felt that it would be difficult to stop the Sichuan Army's offensive by relying solely on fortifications.

You can only use some trump cards in advance to slow down the opponent's attack speed.

At least he had to wait until reinforcements arrived.

"We're ready and awaiting your orders at any time," said the operations staff.

"Then let the tank squadron set off. Let them find a way to destroy the Sichuan Army's tanks and slow down the opponent's offensive speed." Watanabe Masao said.

"Hai!"

On the other side, Cun Yunsheng received the telegram from Yao Ma and a smile appeared on his lips.

"We took down the first line of defense in half an hour. Well, that's not bad."

"With more than a hundred casualties, it's still too great." After seeing what happened next, he couldn't help but shook his head.

Although he had been mentally prepared, he still felt a little sad about the casualties of more than a hundred people.

These are the elite troops he has spent months training.

Faced with such a huge advantage, there were still more than a hundred casualties, which really made him feel a little distressed.

"Commander, there will always be casualties in a war. More than a hundred people are not a lot. We wiped out six or seven hundred Japanese soldiers. This is a great victory." Meng Fanle comforted him.

"Okay, I understand. Let Yao Ma collect the bodies of the sacrificed soldiers. After we take Lashio, I will build a martyrs' cemetery for them." Cun Yunsheng nodded and gave the order.

"Yes, Commander." Meng Fanle looked at the other party with some surprise.

"Commander, what is the Martyrs' Cemetery?"

If they died in battle at this time, they would either be buried in a pit or have a monument erected.

If conditions permit, the ashes will be cremated and shipped back. This is the first time I have heard of a martyrs' cemetery.

"Soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country are called martyrs, and the cemeteries built for them are called martyrs' cemeteries, so that future generations can pay homage to them and remember that they sacrificed their lives fighting for the country." Cun Yunsheng's tone was filled with a hint of sadness.

　I got up late this morning! Sorry! I still have time in the afternoon!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)