Resistance against Japan: Starting with the local militia

Chapter 194 Pre-war Planning

On the evening of the same day the intelligence was received, Tang Weiguo held another staff meeting.

"Yes, according to the intelligence department, the newly added Japanese regiment to Wolong Mountain belongs to the Sakai Regiment of the Japanese 107th Division and has experience in mountain warfare."

"Commander, it seems this unit is our formidable enemy," Zhang Haoshan said.

"Yes, so we need to pay close attention to this Japanese regiment."

"Furthermore, according to intelligence, in addition to the newly added Sakai Regiment, two additional battalions of Japanese troops have been sent to reinforce Aoyama County. It is clear that the Japanese are targeting us."

"Therefore, we are still facing an attack from more than 6000 Japanese soldiers. In other words, our first phase of the operation to kill Japanese soldiers has failed and we have not achieved our goal of reducing the number of Japanese attackers."

"Furthermore, this battle has exposed the strength of our militia. The Japanese will definitely be more cautious when they attack us again. To prevent the Japanese from breaking through our two defensive positions themselves, you should strengthen the connection between the two positions based on the original battle plan," Tang Weiguo instructed.

"Commander, I suggest keeping the Fifth Battalion as a reserve force to provide support to both positions at any time," Zhang Haoshan continued.

“I agree with Deputy Regiment Commander Zhang’s opinion. In addition, I suggest that we keep an extra mortar company as artillery support,” Long Wenying added, standing up.

"Okay, we'll do it your way." Tang Weiguo thought for a moment and nodded.

"Yes."

"The Japanese troops have already been deployed. I predict that they will definitely make a move in the next two days. We don't have much time left. So you must continue to finalize the operational details in the next two days to ensure that there are as few oversights as possible when the actual battle begins."

"Yes."

"In addition, we will inform the commanders of all units of the current situation so that they can prepare themselves mentally in advance."

"Yes."

"Alright, meeting adjourned now." Tang Weiguo waved his hand, signaling everyone to leave.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Tang Xiaohu got up early to inspect the defensive positions of Tangjia Town. Since receiving the latest intelligence from the regimental headquarters the previous night, Tang Xiaohu was filled with fighting spirit.

Tang Xiaohu, along with Deputy Battalion Commander Shen Lei and Staff Officer Yao Xing, continued to survey the terrain of Tangjia Town.

"Let's adjust this spot. If we set up a heavy machine gun here, it would be enough to suppress the Japanese soldiers around us," Tang Xiaohu said, pointing to the two-story teahouse in front of them.

“This terrain is the highest point in the area, and it's also the main street of the town in front of us, making it a very suitable location to deploy heavy machine gun positions,” Yao Xing said.

“However, setting up heavy machine gun positions will require some thought; the Japanese artillery fire is not to be underestimated,” Shen Lei offered his opinion.

"I think we should let the Second Company Commander handle this. He's got a lot of tricks up his sleeve," Tang Xiaohu continued.

“The second company commander is fine, and this place is conveniently close to his defense zone.” Yao Xing nodded.

"I'm leaving this matter to you," Tang Weiguo instructed Yao Xing.

"Ah."

"Battalion Commander Tang, you're here! I was just about to go find you again."

"Xiao Long, you're here so early." Tang Xiaohu turned around when he heard the voice and saw Tang Xiaolong walking towards him.

"I don't know when the Japanese will attack. The sooner I complete the mission, the more relieved I'll feel," Tang Xiaolong said.

"Makes sense."

"You said you wanted to see me, is there something you need my cooperation on?"

"Well, I have an idea now. Our artillery battalion happens to have some training rounds in stock, so I was wondering if we could conduct a live-fire exercise to calculate the ballistic data."

"However, I'm worried about unexpected problems during the test. It would be bad if it harmed the townspeople."

"So that's what it is. Xiaolong, you're right, we do need to rehearse it beforehand."

How many training rounds were there?

"There are three boxes in total, with three pieces in each box."

"Xiaolong, what are you planning to do?"

“Select one firing point in each area, and fire two test shells at each test point.”

“You’re in charge of artillery, so this makes it easier for you to make arrangements. You decide which shelling points to choose, and I’ll send people to evacuate the surrounding crowd.”

"it is good."

"Let's test the communication while we're at it," Tang Xiaolong continued.

"Great!" Tang Xiaohu's eyes lit up. This advance rehearsal gave him even more confidence for the upcoming defensive battle.

Tang Xiaohu and his team worked all morning and finally completed all the testing tasks.

"How is it?" Tang Xiaohu asked.

"Yes, the result is good, the drop in elevation is no more than 5 meters. However, in order to prevent accidental injury, the frontline soldiers must retreat to the underground passage 5 minutes after reporting the intelligence."

"I just recorded the time. From the time the coordinates were reported to the time the artillery opened fire, it took about 7 minutes. So for safety reasons, we had to retreat after holding off the Japanese for 5 minutes."

"Okay, I've got it. I'll definitely tell the company commander."

"Alright. Battalion Commander Tang, I've completed my mission. I'll return to the artillery position now and modify the artillery data."

"It's not a long time. It's lunchtime. Why don't you stay for lunch?" Tang Xiaohu invited.

"Okay, then I'll follow Battalion Commander Tang's arrangements," Tang Xiaolong said, glancing at the time.

"Okay, let's go. I've already had someone prepare the food in advance. Let's eat and chat."

"Ah."