"...Faithful and brave French warrior, you fight for God, with a open mind, God will forgive all sins you have committed, and your soul will be rested...Amen!"

In front of the mound of wooden crosses, the military priest prayed for the dead in a kind and generous tone. The companions took off their hats and stood silently, mourning their deceased comrades. (Baidu search.

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m,) The breeze blows, and Lieutenant Leglis turns his head and looks around. The scenery around him is still the same, but it turns out that there is no peace and tranquility of yesterday, and he has nowhere to talk about it. After this battle, the paratroopers he is in are reduced by nearly half, and the lost soldiers are not allowed to be raised by just a few from the recruits. To become a qualified paratrooper, you must undergo a series of technical, tactical and psychological training. The elimination rate during this period ranks first among all types of troops, and after six parachuting, Chapter 57

The real disaster (above) side can obtain real paratrooper qualifications - this is just the most basic threshold. In today's French airborne troops, about two-fifths of people have participated in the battle against the Soviet Union. These people have honed their courage and will in the cruel European battlefield, and their psychological qualities and combat skills are better than ordinary soldiers. They are precious wealth of France. However, in the past ten hours, many such officers and soldiers have been killed in the "chaotic battle" where North Vietnamese armed forces do not play according to routines and are killed by some opponents who do not even understand basic gun maintenance. What a sad thing...

In a trance, Leglis stood there for a long time, and even Sergeant Laurent walked to him without paying attention.

"Sir, Lieutenant Colonel and the others are coming soon!" this subordinate and old friend reminded.

Leglis turned around in a daze and saw a long team coming along the river from afar. Most of the people in the team had their heads hanging down and they had no energy to conduct military parades before going to war. They were wrapped in gauze, leaning on crutches, supported by their companions, and the wounded lying on stretchers cast a layer of frustration on the army. Leglis sighed heavily, waved his hand, and called on the surviving soldiers to gather. At this moment, an airplane was roaring with a deafening roar. Chapter 57

The real disaster (top) passed over the top of the head, and its height was so low. People on the ground could even see the almost flattened huā pattern on the wheel. They saw it continue to descend, and the airflow of the propeller rolled up the ripple on the river surface, and then fell on the open area on the other side with concern, which was the temporary airport found by the 1st Paratrooper Battalion yesterday.

The landing of the transport plane will inevitably bring combat supplies. Taking away the wounded and other personnel arranged to evacuate, Leglis speculated that the paratrooper battalion that had lost most of its combat effectiveness should retreat to the rear and rest, waiting for an opportunity to be more suitable for airborne combat, and re-proof in the next battle. Soon, the paratroopers evacuated from the river position came to the front, and Lieutenant Colonel Jerome, the commander of the 2nd Light Paratrooper Battalion. His pace was still steady, but the bright eyes of the past were gone. Instead, it was a gloomy look. Seeing Leglis and his 17 remaining soldiers under his command, Leglis left the team and stopped on the side. After saluting Leglis, he spoke: "Thank you, young and brave soldiers, your performance has saved some face for the French paratroopers. Here, I would like to pay tribute to you on behalf of General Lorrins!"

Turning back to see the newly filled tomb piles and the crosses with steel helmets, Lieutenant Colonel Jerome drew a cross with his right hand: "May their souls rest in peace!"

During this process, Leglis almost said nothing. After the lieutenant colonel issued an order, he silently led the soldiers to the end of the team. While the North Vietnamese army had already crossed the river at night, it was meaningless to continue to defend the south bank of the river with paratroopers. Their positions were handed over to the foreign corps, and the long team continued to go up the river until they crossed the stone bridge to reach the north bank of the river, and stopped on the grass not far from the temporary airport.

Faced with everyone's doubts, Lieutenant Colonel Jerome's staff officer gave an explanation to the companies and platoons: "The order we received was to assemble here, the wounded were transferred first, and the rest of the personnel were evacuated one by one. Please wait patiently!"

The army troops advanced from Guangping took over the defense of Shiqiao, and the headquarters of the 1st Paratrooper Battalion, which was originally stationed in Shiqiao, was dejectedly waiting to evacuate by the airport. Not long after, the 4th Paratrooper Battalion also arrived on foot. Judging from their personnel situation, they were also attacked by North Vietnamese armed forces last night, and the personnel, equipment and confidence were all hit hard. It seems that the five elite paratrooper battalions had been confident and devoted to the battle for only one day, but three battalions had lost their normal combat effectiveness. The bleak result was probably beyond the expectations of most people.

After unloading supplies and loading the wounded, the American c47 took off and left in a deafening roar. The remaining French paratroopers looked forward to it, hoping that their planes could take them away from this place full of sad memories as soon as possible. However, the innate conditions of this temporary airport were not as good as people imagined. The first plane had already left a deep mark on the grass when it took off and landed, which meant that the larger the plane, the more difficult it was to take off and land. In the next hour, only two c-47s flew from the south to stay here, and their carrying capacity was equivalent to the previous c46. Therefore, only a few wounded people were able to leave, and most paratroopers were still waiting.

Amid another mechanical roar, the tanks of the French ground troops appeared on the south bank of the stone bridge. The lightweight "Stuart" drove across the stone bridge without any scruples, but the "Sheerman" who had a combat weight of more than 30 tons could only take a detour to the cement bridge five kilometers away. Seeing the mechanized column equipped with tanks, the French paratroopers gathered near the airport were completely at ease. In their concept, no matter how crazy the attack of the North Vietnamese soldiers was, they could not resist the hard steel and the fiery artillery fire. They suffered losses last night and fought in light equipment. Not to mention tanks, there was not even an armored vehicle.

As the French ground troops arrived in the Songhe River continuously, the platoons who arrived early continued to advance north. The paratroopers who were sitting next to the temporary airport waiting to evacuate soon heard the rumbling sound of artillery from afar. Most people thought that their ground troops were progressing smoothly with the support of tank artillery fire. However, in the afternoon, some bad news came from the ground troops: Due to the large number of landmines and **, the French vanguards could not advance or retreat in the hilly areas north of the Songhe River. What's worse, the combat method of the North Vietnamese rebels was very different from the frontal battle on the European battlefield. Although their main force had retreated across the Songhe River, they were in

The strong combat power guerrilla troops were still ambushed between Guangping and Songhe. They used jungle cover to frequently attack French ground troops, and even ambush French support troops on the spot. This led to the threat of normal combat supply of French troops propelling to Songhe by land. It took time and could not guarantee that the troops would continue to advance northward. The French command center, which was distributing troops everywhere, felt increasingly short of troops. By dusk that day, their order broke the paratroopers' urgent desire to escape from the sea of ​​suffering. The 2nd and 4th Light Paratrooper Battalions were temporarily merged into the 17th Mobile Combat Column, responsible for protecting the northern section of the C3 Highway.

At the beginning, due to the obstruction of the French vanguard troops in the hilly areas, less than 10 kilometers of roads needed to protect the paratroopers. With the lessons learned on the eve, the commanders decided to divide more than 700 paratroopers into five combat groups, each with more than 100 people, with additional combat vehicles, and build fortifications in highlands or open flats near the road. The bloody lessons made the French paratroopers completely abandon their luck. When they arrived at the defense area, night had already fallen. They did not have to eat supper and devoted themselves to digging trenches. Everyone did their best. Without the officers' request, they could dig fortifications according to strict standards. By 10 pm, the five combat groups had built ring fortifications in designated areas, machine guns, mortars and ammunition were all in place, and more than a dozen additional armored vehicles sent by friendly forces had also arrived at the combat position.

After nightfall, the battle on the front line did not subside, but instead, one after another. The sound of guns and cannons was sometimes dense, sometimes scattered, sometimes from the northeast, sometimes from the northwest, and sometimes from the northwest. It made people feel that the North Vietnamese armed forces were elusive and everywhere. The news from the French ground troops were also sometimes good and sometimes bad: French tank troops broke through the defense line of the North Vietnamese army, and the troops of both sides fought fiercely somewhere, the North Vietnamese army was defeated, and the French tank troops were ambushed during the pursuit, resulting in heavy losses. The North Vietnamese army was put into Soviet tank combat, and the news that the North Vietnamese army used tanks was proved to be a misrepresentation. French tank troops broke through the enemy's deep defense line... These news sometimes made the French paratroopers happy, and sometimes made them frightened, so that they were restless and unable to sleep.

Sitting in the trenches that were dug with his companions, Leglis filled every magazine with bullets, placed grenades in every position, and stood up to observe every once in a while, but these actions did not really make him feel at ease. The battle scenes of the previous day were still vivid in his mind. The North Vietnamese armed forces' vicious and cunning offensive tactics made him feel unprecedentedly afraid - the depth of the trench here is enough, but without wooden strips reinforcement, a few shells or grenades may collapse; the guns and bullets here are dense enough, and two armored combat vehicles are ambushed nearby, but the North Vietnamese armed forces may use attacks from all directions.

These are the defensive defenders. What's more serious is that it is rumored that the North Vietnamese army has equipped the most elite regiments with Soviet weapons. How is the ordinary North Vietnamese army in the North Vietnamese army so terrifying? What kind of amazing performance will the resisters who learn to control new weapons? The reason why the elite French paratroopers were sent here is because the French command believes that the Songhe area will become the key to the current battlefield. If the North Vietnamese understanding of the center of gravity of the battlefield is consistent with it, they are likely to send the best troops here. Once the French ground troops with poor supply are defeated, the light-armed paratroopers may be pushed to the front line of the battle again! (To be continued
Chapter completed!