After the military meeting, Du Yuming led the two divisions and military headquarters of the 5th Army and continued to retreat northward, of which the 96th Division served as the vanguard, and the new 22nd Division followed up, and Du Yuming led the army to move with the new 22nd Division.
At 7 o'clock in the morning of May 10, 1942, Yu Shao led the 96th Division, the artillery regiment, and the anti-aircraft artillery battalion to set out from Yindao. Before leaving, Du Yuming cheered up Yu Shao and said that all the shells were hit in Mizhi. That, I can't open it if I don't believe it.
In order to speed up the march, the military headquarters automobile company sent vehicles to support the operation of the 96th Division, and the northern part of Myanmar is full of woods and sparse roads, mainly cattle lanes.
A large number of military vehicles galloped north along the cattle lane in the forest, which was quickly crushed into a car lane, and the branches and skins of the trees on both sides of the road were scraped off, revealing white trunks, which became the road signs for the troops' advance.
No enemy troops were found along the way, and the troops marched quickly, traveling hundreds of miles in a day, and at 11 a.m. the next day, the 286th Regiment of the vanguard reached Menggong.
From Meng Gong to Mizhi. Although it is only 15 kilometers, it has entered the mountain pass, and the traffic is more difficult, and there is not even a cattle road. Yu Shao ordered the 286th Regiment to rest on the spot, and then move to Mizhi when the follow-up troops arrived. That marches.
At this time, Du Yuming got information, Ba Mo and Mizhi. The Japanese army had received a large number of reinforcements in that direction, and the 113th Wing of the 56th Division of the Japanese Army had cut off from Meng Gong to Michi from Ba Mo and down the Irrawaddy River. The pass of that.
The 55th and 33rd Divisions of the Japanese Army, along the Irrawaddy River and the Manmi Railway, advanced from south to north, by land and water, in an attempt to join up with the 56th Division and encircle our army in the area north of Kasa.
The enemy concentrated the superior strength of three divisions, and once a combined encirclement was formed, it would be difficult for our troops to get out.
The situation suddenly changed, Du Yuming did not dare to slow down a little, and immediately decided, "The purpose of the army is to quickly break away from the enemy, that is, to change the area west of the Manmi Railway and move radially to the line of Mengguan and Daluo." ”
However, at this time, the troops of the 96th Division had advanced north to Menggong, and the distance between them and the troops of the new 22nd Division was more than 100 miles, and it was difficult for the troops of the two divisions to concentrate their actions.
Du Yuming had no choice but to order the 96th Division to turn back from Menggong and be in Michi. To the south of that, he crossed the Irrawaddy River and chose the road back to China.
After receiving the telegram, Yu Shao believed that there were already Japanese patrol boats operating on the Irrawaddy River, and that there were heavy Japanese troops along the coast, and that under such circumstances, it would be too dangerous to cross the river.
Since it is a return to China, it is safer for him to choose his own route according to the situation. He sent a telegram to Du Yuming, stating his opinions, which was approved by Du Yuming, who also instructed that all vehicles be burned on the spot, but that the cannons should be carried back to China.
On the 11th, Du Yuming's troops left the Miwa Highway from Yindao and diverted to the northwest. At this time, the only people who Deputy Commander-in-Chief Du could command and follow the action in front of and behind were the military headquarters of the 5th Army and Liao Yaoxiang's new 22nd Division.
The troops walked for several days, the situation became more and more bad, the road became narrower and narrower, and the trees on both sides covered the sky and the sun, and the atmosphere of terror and oppression made people breathless.
On May 15, Du Yuming received a warrant telegram from Chiang Kai-shek through Lin Wei, which read as follows:
Vice Commander Lin: Commander Du has now tried to transport food and ammunition by air to receive help, and as soon as the land and air contacts are confirmed, the implementation can begin.
In this way, the younger brother does not need to act too urgently, and should calmly design a separate detour to avoid the secret branch. That's safe. China and Italy should take Mengguan as the overall goal, followed by Qingjialin, Kamut and Longtong and Hongba, and then Homalin and Daman.
The road grain or easy to buy, not to wait for air transport also. However, the road from Longtong to Gamai must be occupied by a strong force reconnaissance camera, which can cover the advance of all troops on the western side.
If the road from Longtong to Gamai cannot be accurately grasped, you can only go to Homalin and Daman for temporary rectification and maintenance, and then act on standby. Forehand open. ”
Chiang Kai-shek's telegram put forward three plans for the retreat route of the troops, the first was to return to China through the Mengguan, the second was to return to China from Qingjialin and Kamut, and the third was to re-establish it at Khommarin.
Khommarin was on the Burma-India border, and Chiang Kai-shek limited the troops, if they arrived in Khommarin, "they should be temporarily rectified and maintained, and then they should act again." That is, at this time Chiang Kai-shek did not approve the entry of troops into India.
Chiang Kai-shek's telegram was in line with Du Yuming's previous plan of "moving radially to the line of Mengguan and Daluo", so after receiving the telegram, Du Yuming urged his officers and men to step up the march.
However, the Japanese army still did not let go of the remnants of the Chinese expeditionary force that had withdrawn into the jungles of northern Burma. It was a stronghold, and troops were sent to surround and intercept it, and they controlled Michi. The vast area west of that and north of Mengguan once again cut off the retreat of Du Yuming's troops from Mengguan.
On May 23, Du Yuming had no choice but to order the troops to retreat to Qingjialin and Kamut according to the second plan proposed by Chiang Kai-shek.
The troops began to enter the wild primeval jungle of northern Burma, the sappers opened the way in front, and the troops advanced along the trail, the further they went, the denser the forest, the narrower the road, the towering trees covered the sky and the sun, and the ground was densely covered with artemisia grass.
Dead trees and leaves, a thick layer, dim light in the jungle, the howling of wild beasts, eerie and terrifying.
One day, the troops came to a small cottage in the forest, and further on, there was not even a cattle lane, and the sappers were exhausted, some threw away their swords and axes, leaned against the big tree, and some fell to the ground.
All kinds of military vehicles crawled slowly in the forest, slower and slower, and finally stopped, and a long steel dragon was set up in the dense forest.
The soldiers got out of the car and got through the woods, but could not find the road, and the soldiers smashed them with their fists and kicked the big tree that blocked the way like a fence, and scolded: "You have come to death!" ”
Liao Yaoxiang rode over, he walked to the front of the team and asked, "Why did it stop?" ”
Regiment Commander Deng Junlin reported: "Division, there is no way." ”
Liao Yaoxiang looked at the dense woods and sighed: "Alas! ”
Du Yuming also drove over in a jeep, and Du Yuming looked at the scene in front of him with a gloomy face.
Liao Yaoxiang walked over and said to Du Yuming: "Military seat, the road is gone." ”
Du Yuming was silent, the huge convoy was trapped in the dense jungle, unable to move, and a mechanized army finally reached a dead end.
Du Yuming looked around to check the terrain, but saw that behind the stockade was a cliff, under the cliff was a canyon, in the canyon, the fog rose, unfathomable, the mountain wind blew, the forest waves burst, and the tiger roared and the ape cried.
There is no road ahead, and there are pursuers behind, what should the troops do? What about the vehicle equipment? Du Yuming circled around the village a few times, determined to make up his mind, looking at the chariots and cannons parked on the road, he didn't feel distressed!
These equipment are all the first squadron to adhere to the war of resistance, in exchange for blood and life, some new artillery, in the Burma battlefield has not had time to fight, what now?
If you open it and then you can't drive it away, you can't lift it, and if you throw it away, you are afraid that it will fall into the hands of the Japanese army, but it will endanger our army.
Du Yuming is the old commander of the ** mechanized army, and these equipment are all accumulated by him, little by little, and they are all the meat of his heart!
However, the troops have reached this point, they can't wait for death here, the lives of officers and soldiers are the most important thing!
Du Yuming thought about it again and again, and it wasn't until the sun went down that he gave the order that he regretted for the rest of his life: abandon the car and go up the mountain!
Yunnan-Burma Highway [No. 42].
About the Author. Since I was a child, I liked words, and when I was a primary school student, I often used to do sample essays. During the literary youth, many articles won awards. After decades of wind and rain, his hobby has not changed, he likes to read literature and history, insists on writing, and welcomes exchanges.