Devil's Army

Chapter 2025 Recapture of Suzhou

With the 12th Brigade soldiers breaking through the Japanese Taoyuan-Wuzhen defense line, the Japanese three-tiered defensive line was declared a failure.

Soldiers from the 1st Regiment of the 12th Brigade surrounded the western city gate of Suzhou, while soldiers from the 2nd Regiment began to clear out Japanese and puppet army strongholds in the towns and villages west of Suzhou.

Soon after, the soldiers of the 15th Brigade also broke through the Japanese defense line in the Pingwang-Nanxun Canal area, reached the East Gate of Suzhou, and began their attack.

The First Army Air Force also rushed to provide support upon request, launching a fierce bombing and strafing attack on the Japanese artillery positions.

Under the combined bombing of the First Army's air force and artillery, the Japanese and puppet troops on the Suzhou city wall suffered heavy casualties. However, the Japanese and puppet troops inside Suzhou city continued to rush to reinforce them, hiding in the collapsed fortifications and fiercely resisting the attack of the 12th and 15th Brigades.

After three days of fierce fighting, the 1st Regiment of the 12th Brigade entered Suzhou City through the Pingmen Gate in the west.

The Japanese troops retreated to the east side of Pingmen Bridge and continued their stubborn resistance.

The Japanese also deployed two armored vehicles to block the attack of the 1st Regiment of the 12th Brigade. However, they were quickly destroyed by the regiment's artillery.

A small number of Japanese artillerymen, hidden on the east side of Pingmen Bridge, also opened fire fiercely, blocking a regiment from crossing the bridge.

The regimental commander arranged for a Golden Eagle drone to scout out the hidden Japanese artillery positions and transmitted the coordinates to the regimental artillerymen.

Soon, artillery shells from the regiment flew towards the Japanese artillery positions like locusts.

They destroyed the Japanese artillery regiment and, under the cover of artillery fire, continued their fierce attack on the east side of Pingmen Bridge.

Meanwhile, the 15th Brigade of the First Army broke through the Japanese Loumen defense line from the east and entered the city at 2 p.m., engaging in fierce street fighting with the Japanese army.

At this point, Division Commander Kobayashi had no choice but to recall the Japanese troops from the outposts north of Suzhou back to Suzhou to block the attacks of the devilish troops from the east and west of Suzhou.

Meanwhile, the New Fourth Army and the waterborne guerrillas in central Jiangsu, north of Suzhou, took the opportunity to attack the Japanese strongholds and captured several bunkers and strongholds that were only guarded by puppet troops.

Commander Kobayashi was helpless in this situation. He could only sacrifice a pawn to save the king and ensure the safety of Suzhou.

As the fighting continued, the defensive line advanced deeper into the interior of Suzhou city. Subsequent troops from the 12th and 15th Brigades of the 1st Army entered the city and engaged in fierce fighting with the Japanese army.

Intense gunfire and explosions rang out throughout Suzhou.

The Japanese 60th Division's room for maneuver was gradually compressed by the 12th and 15th Brigades of the First Army.

They finally retreated and put up a stubborn resistance in the streets surrounding the Suzhou headquarters.

This is the bustling downtown area of ​​Suzhou, filled with residential buildings, where the air force could not provide fire support.

Soldiers of the 12th and 15th Brigades of the First Army launched fierce attacks on the Japanese strongholds and positions time and again with their own flesh and blood.

The fierce fighting lasted for nearly a week before the Japanese 60th Division inside Suzhou was finally completely defeated.

With this, Suzhou, an important city in southern Jiangsu, was finally recovered.

The Japanese troops in Changzhou, Nanjing, and Zhenjiang, northwest of Suzhou, were on high alert. This was especially true for the Japanese troops stationed in Nanjing.

At that time, Nanjing was the military command center of the Japanese army in China, the core of the puppet regime's control, and a transportation and economic plunder hub in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It was the location of the headquarters of the Japanese Expeditionary Army in China. It was the "heart" of Japanese rule in China, with a tight troop deployment and defense system.

It integrates command, political, economic, transportation, and security functions, supporting its operations and rule in East China and the interior of China; at the same time, it is under the dual pressure of guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines and Allied air strikes, making it a core stronghold where high-pressure stability maintenance and continuous attrition coexist.