During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the squadron successfully eliminated the ace unit of the Japanese army, the Wudao Cavalry Squadron, which greatly boosted the morale of our army and laid an important foundation for the victory of the War of Resistance against Japan.
In this battle, the Eighth Route Army misjudged the enemy's situation, but still relied on firm conviction and heroic and fearless spirit to successfully repel all the enemy, demonstrating the determination and strength of the Chinese people to stubbornly resist the invasion.
In 1940, he was the deputy commander of the Eastern Hebei Army Division and the commander of the 13th Regiment. In July, Ouyang Boping, as chief of staff of the 12th Regiment, led two companies of the 1st Battalion to escort more than 200 cadres who had completed training back to eastern Hebei.
They camped in Panshan, and Bao Sen and Zeng Kelin came to meet them. After meeting, Bao Sen and Zeng Kelin decided to live together in a village in Panshan. Bao Sen was experienced and accustomed to surveying the terrain in advance, so he sent two scouts to the vicinity to reconnoiter while he was placing his troops.
Scouts Yang Ze and Gao Dazhang carried out a reconnaissance mission of the Japanese army together, they first explored the movements of the Japanese army in the county seat of Jixian County, and then returned to the camp from the east side of Panshan Mountain.
However, as they were about to return into the mountains, they suddenly heard the sound of horses' hooves in the distance, and they immediately found a high ground and looked behind them, and found a group of Japanese cavalry.
Fourteen-year-old Gao Dazhang only knew that the Japanese soldiers were coming, while the experienced Yang Ze realized that this group of Japanese troops was most likely coming to attack the Panshan base of the Eighth Route Army.
We can't miss this opportunity, go! Let's follow them and see what exactly they want to do. So, taking advantage of the terrain, two scouts quietly followed the cavalry in the mountains.
The Japanese cavalry did not expect that this secret operation would be discovered by the scouts of the Eighth Route Army, so they did not rush into action, but stopped in a village east of Panshan to form a formation.
Yang Ze and Gao Dazhang looked at each other, and knew in their hearts that this was an excellent opportunity to report the news, and the two immediately ran away and galloped all the way to the base. When they arrived at the base area, it was already more than five o'clock in the morning, and the soldiers were having breakfast, and they were all startled when they saw Yang Zeye and his wife panting and rushing in the door, and they couldn't take care of breakfast.
And Yang Ze didn't rest after coming in, and ran directly to Bao Sen to report, because he ran too violently all the way, when he arrived in front of Bao Sen, Yang Ze couldn't even breathe, let alone report.
Yang Ze felt that the situation was urgent, he took a deep breath, then patted his chest, adjusted his breathing, and then reported to Commander Bao completely: "Commander Bao, a team of Japanese cavalry came to Shifo Village, about 70 people. ”
After hearing this, Bao Sen immediately asked, "How many people?" Yang Ze replied: "About 70 people." When Bao Sen heard this number, he smiled, because the soldiers of the 12th Regiment under his command were also elite, and the number of our soldiers was five times that of the enemy.
Therefore, he immediately made a decision and ordered the whole army to set up an ambush in Baicaowa, preparing to annihilate the enemy army in one fell swoop.
Why did Bao Sen not hesitate to let the troops ambush in Baicaowa? Because he carefully analyzed and judged according to the characteristics of the enemy's actions. This time the enemy came with cavalry, and due to the limitations of horses, they had to enter the mountains through the existing paths.
There is only one road from Shifo Village to Panshan, and this road will pass through Panshan Shihai and Baicao Valley. The terrain of Baicaowa is complex, it is a north-south ravine, and the ditch is full of huge rocks, caves, and rugged roads, which is very suitable for ambushing cavalry.
However, when the cavalry appeared on the hill, Baussen realized that he had made a crucial mistake, which was to miscalculate the identity of the enemy troops.
After the redeployment of troops, Bao Sen reminded everyone: "We need to be patient and wait for the enemy to enter the encirclement before attacking. "The cavalry units that appeared this time were highly disciplined and apparently a regular army.
Judging by the military flag, this squadron should belong to the Wudao cavalry. The soldiers of the Takeshima Cavalry were all veterans who had enlisted in World War I, and most of the junior officers and soldiers were from noble backgrounds, and they were not only experienced in combat, but also highly educated, and had rigorous battle plans, making them the elite troops that the Japanese army was proud of.
If this cavalry is not a pseudo-Mongolian cavalry but a Wudao cavalry, then our chances of victory will be greatly reduced. But Bao Sen was very calm, and he and Chief of Staff Zeng Kelin reworked the battle plan, using a total of four companies of troops for ambushes, and the rest of the troops were transferred to the depths of the mountains to preserve strength.
Bao Sen himself led a platoon of the special service company, a platoon of the 1st battalion of the 12th regiment and the 3rd company, and the guard squad and communications squad of the headquarters to lay an ambush on the hill north of Baicaowa.
Zeng Kelin and a company of the 1st Squadron, as well as two platoons of the 3rd Detachment and the direct special service company, were ambushed on the slope southwest of Baicaowa; Ouyang Boping, chief of staff of the 12th Regiment, and Zhang Zuolin, commander of the 1st Battalion, led the 2nd and 3rd companies of the 12th Regiment and the communications platoon to ambush east of Baicaowa.
After rearranging the troops, Bao Sen reminded everyone: "You must stay calm and wait until the enemy forces enter the encirclement before acting." "Eventually, this ambush turned into a blocking war.
At half past six in the morning, after waiting for many days, Bao Sen finally saw the Japanese cavalry on horseback appear in sight. He held his breath and gestured to the warriors behind him not to act rashly.
When the Wudao cavalry marched to the western slope of Baicaowa, they found an ambush. Although Takeshima Suda of the cavalry squadron found that there might also be an ambush on the hills to the east and north, he did not care.
He thought that his Wudao cavalry squadron was victorious in a hundred battles, and these ambushes in the mountains posed no threat to them, so he just secretly sent a cavalryman back to the county seat of Jixian to deliver a message.
However, when Bao Sen saw the cavalry triumphantly entering the encirclement, he immediately ordered an attack. His goal was to attack behind the cavalry, to strike the enemy by surprise and prevent them from escaping or seeking rescue.
The troops to the east were commanded by Ouyang Boping and Yang Zuolin, who divided into two lines to form a flanking attack and besiege the enemy.
In the White Grass Depression, the Japanese cavalry led by Bao Sen made full use of the terrain and successfully avoided the fire coverage on the eastern slope and the north hilltop, and launched a fierce attack on the western slope.
Seeing this from the top of the hill, two squads of our soldiers immediately decided to throw grenades, but before they could reach the best point of delivery, they were accurately hit by the marksmanship of the Japanese cavalry.
Zen Klin, seeing this on the western hillside, understood that a grenade attack at close range was not feasible. If the distance is too far, the advantages of the grenade cannot be fully realized.
He ordered his fighters to take out the grenades and at the same time throw the grenades at a point towards the cavalry who were about to rush to the top of the hill. The power of more than 30 grenades was enormous, and they exploded into huge flames when they were concentrated together, and even the iron bones of King Kong could not withstand such huge firepower.
Coupled with the effect of the wind, the flames quickly spread, and when the dozen or so cavalrymen in front saw this, they had to stop their horses and retreat together with the cavalry behind.
Zeng Kelin observed carefully and found that the Japanese army's support firepower was weak, only two light machine guns under the mountain, and immediately ordered the machine gunners to concentrate their fire to suppress and create opportunities for the soldiers in ambush around.
Bao Sen also adopted the same strategy, ordering his sharpshooters to suppress the Japanese machine-gun fire, so that the Japanese cavalry down the hill could not resist the attacks of both sides, and the advantage was lost.
During the second counterattack of the Japanese army, Bao Sen commanded the spy company to aim at the Japanese cavalry on horseback, one shot at a time, so that the Japanese army continued to roll off the horseback, suffering heavy casualties, and this counterattack was declared a failure halfway up the mountain.
Subsequently, Takeshima Suda tried to lead the cavalry to break through, but Bao Sen had already anticipated this and blocked their retreat first. Takeshima Suda was helpless and wanted to find another exit, but the white grass valley was like a pocket, and the exit was small and there was only one exit, which was the northwest exit guarded by Bao Sen.
During one of the battles, the Japanese cavalry lost their way and rammed in the ravine, allowing our troops to find an opportunity to counterattack. Seeing that the cavalry had suffered heavy losses, Takeshima Suda decided to stop resisting, leaving a few men to feint at the northwest entrance, while the remaining forces hid behind rocks and prepared to wait for Japanese reinforcements from Jixian.
Our troops also suffered heavy losses in these two raids, and now there are less than two companies of troops, and all the ammunition for the machine guns has been used, and even the ammunition for the rifles is very little, so we must end this battle as soon as possible.
Bao Sen immediately clarified the current situation and redeployed his forces. Taking into account the small losses of two companies in the 12 battalion of the 1 regiment, it was decided to let the assault team, under the cover of the accurate fire of the sharpshooters, launch a continuous charge and throw grenades to destroy the enemy.
However, the cunning Japanese cavalry hid behind the stones, shrunk like turtles, and refused to show their faces easily. Their intention was to stall for time, wait for reinforcements to arrive, and then ** in one fell swoop.
This situation is very bad for our army.
Batches of the Eighth Route Army followed one after another, heroically resisting the Wudao cavalry squadron. Their grenades, like "cans and bottles", fell precisely on the heads of the cavalry, and most of them fell on the path of the charge, blood stained the hillside red, but never to return.
The Wudao cavalry squadron did not expect such a stubborn resistance, and panicked for a moment, which instantly allowed the soldiers to find a breakthrough, and the attack was more fierce and concentrated. The battle continued until the sun set, Takeshima Suda was killed by sharpshooters, part of the cavalry died from "canned bottle" grenades, part from sharpshooters' bullets, and in the end there were only a dozen cavalrymen left.
But even if these people were left, they did not give up and hid behind the stones. However, the soldiers of the Eighth Route Army were already red-eyed, and they were determined to die with the enemy and annihilate the cavalry of the Wudao squadron with all their might.
Bao Sen and the soldiers decided to use a last ditch fight to penetrate deep into the enemy's army. The fighters asked for battle, saying that they could complete the task. Bao Sen and the others were moved to tears, and after careful consideration, they finally chose a young and flexible fighter.
The warrior saluted the crowd and said loudly and firmly: "Guaranteed to complete the mission!" "Under the cover of sharpshooters, the soldier of the Eighth Route Army bravely and quickly threw a basket of hanging grenades into the cave.
In the huge ** sound, more than a dozen cavalrymen hiding in the cave instantly flew flesh and blood. Seeing that there was no hope of victory, the remaining cavalry rushed out of the cave screaming, vowing to fight to the death with the Eighth Route Army, but when they did not go far, they were killed by the grenades of the Eighth Route Army.
Two heroic cavalrymen ended their lives with swords, drawing a heroic end to the Battle of Baicaowa. Bao Sen and Zeng Kelin became famous in this battle.
However, Bao Sen died young, and on February 17, 1942, he died heroically in a fierce battle with the Japanese puppet forces. Even at the last moments of his life, he remained committed to fighting and maintained his enthusiasm for the revolution.
In contrast, General Zen Kelin had a much luckier ending.
The life of General Zeng Kelin is a moving revolutionary epic. With firm faith, he unswervingly fought for New China, and finally witnessed the birth of New China together with many revolutionary martyrs.
In 1955, he was awarded the rank of Major General and held key positions in the army, demonstrating his outstanding talents and leadership charisma. However, on March 12, 2007, the great revolutionary died of illness in Beijing at the age of 94.
His life was full of twists and turns and challenges, but he always persevered, and used his actions to explain what it means to be brave and fearless, and what is a firm belief. The brutal suppression of the Kuomintang, the ruthlessness of the Japanese army, and the hardships of the people's life failed to stop his revolutionary footsteps.
General Zeng Kelin chose to stand up and fight for the country and the revolution all his life. The spirit of these revolutionary forefathers who were not afraid of sacrifice and persisted in resistance is worthy of our eternal memory and learning.
Bao Sen won more with less in eastern Hebei, showing excellent wisdom and bravery, and was known as "Commander Bao". His heroic deeds have been widely praised and he has become an outstanding representative of the Great Wall people.