An American soldier who survived the Korean War, in his old age, was interviewed by a reporter and asked about one of the battles he remembered the most, suddenly the soldier's eyes were hollow, his look became nervous, and in the process of recalling the battle, the soldier repeatedly emphasized, almost in a warning tone, to warn people: Don't try to shoot at the Chinese soldiers! Who is this American veteran? What kind of battle he went through would make him so nervous, so let's take a look at what kind of unpleasant experience this American soldier who survived on the Korean battlefield had in Korea.
Korean War
The American soldier, named Bolden, was a member of the U.S. Marine Corps and landed on the Korean Peninsula with his troops when the United States declared its involvement in the Korean War. As for why he was so afraid of the volunteers, and even why he was still living in fear of being dominated by the volunteers until his old age, this actually began with the battle of Pingli, when the battle was called a fierce battle, the United Nations army was severely damaged by the volunteers, and Bolden was their company, one of the few survivors.
In the pingli
According to Bolden's dictation, at that time they were tasked with advancing to Tongpingli, and their company was relatively lucky, only needing to be stationed in the bunker, which was not only warm but also very safe in the winter, and they did not know that the danger had quietly descended.
Volunteers
To this he said: "If I had not seen it with my own eyes, perhaps I would not have believed the rumors of the volunteer army circulating on the front line, I remember that it was very late, we had just finished our heavy tasks, and suddenly we felt that there was movement around the bunker, and we were alert to each other to all enter the state of alert, but when we came outside, we did not see a single figure, and suddenly less than five meters below the eyes, there was suddenly a lump of white moving, and in an instant a large number of volunteers rushed to them, and we were directly frightened and stupid! ”
blockhouse
Only then did Bolden fully wake up and put away his previous prejudice against the Volunteers. Fast back to the end of 1950, after the "Christmas Offensive" of Commander-in-Chief MacArthur became a bubble, the United Nations Army was completely reduced to the handle of the world's shame, and it was the world's first "U.S. Marine Corps" that was ridiculed by itself as a "peasant with a gun". After a crushing defeat, the UN forces had to begin retreating in the snow and ice, and it was at this time that the commander of the U.S. Army's Eighth Group, Walker, was mistakenly injured by a friendly drive, and Ridgway came to the Korean battlefield as Walker's replacement.
MacArthur
Based on his knowledge of the Volunteers and the current situation on the battlefield, Ridgway developed a set of tactical methods specifically aimed at the Volunteers and ordered the troops to launch a new round of attacks. In January 1951, Ridgway launched Operation Raiden, launching a third campaign before the Volunteers. Here we have to mention this old fox Ridgway, whose military prowess is really not covered, he and MacArthur are completely two extremes, if MacArthur is notoriously arrogant, then he is extremely calm.
Ridgway
He had only been on the Korean battlefield for less than a month, and only by virtue of a few confrontations between the US army and the volunteer army, he had judged the fatal shortcoming of our army's logistics, and he was completely fighting with his brain. Judging from the situation at that time, Ridgway was sure that the level of logistical supplies of the volunteer army would not be sent to the front line so quickly, so he sent the United Nations army to carry out a search in a group of divisions, taking the initiative to find the volunteer army and attack it! On January 29 of the same year, a U.S. army unit met with the 125th Division of the Continental Volunteer Army during the advance, which was resting mainly in the railway culvert, and after detecting the American army, the two sides exchanged fire.
Volunteers
This battle was known as the "Battle of the Twin Tunnels", and the result of the battle was just as Ridgway predicted before the war, and it was difficult for our army to resist the surging attack of the US army in the absence of supplies. The volunteer army's side has been suppressed by the enemy's firepower, and forced by the helplessness of our army to fight and retreat, until it retreated to the hilly area outside The periphery of Tongpingli and entered a defensive state.
Korean War
This exchange of fire also became a prelude to the battle in Pingli, where we will interject a little bit about how important the geographical location of this small mountainous area is. 40 miles north of the Line from Tongpyeong-ri is the "38th Line" of the Korean Peninsula, 50 miles to the west is Hanseong, the capital of South Korea, which our army has just liberated, and 20 miles to the south is Yeoju. If our army can grasp this place, then every move of the UN army will be within the vision of our army, that is, the so-called initiative.
Volunteers
It was only when Ridgway was also aware of the importance of this place, and because of logistical supplies, our army did not launch the third campaign for a long time, and Ridgway took advantage of a loophole to take the initiative to launch an attack on our army, and the third head-on confrontation between the two sides officially began. Well, let's get back to the point, when the UN army advanced further into Pingli, Bolden was also one of the fighters. At that time, North Korea had the coldest winter in 50 years, and the U.S. military was complaining about the ghost weather along the way, but no one dared to strike until the task was completed.
blockhouse
At that time, for the sake of safety, with the lessons of the previous failures, Ridgway specifically advised the US military not to relax the night reconnaissance. At this time, Bolden was sent to scout the enemy situation in the surrounding area. The cold wind blew on Bolden's face like a blade, the snow around him was white and the north wind was whistling, and he was still complaining in his heart, so he scrawled and returned to the bunker after finishing his inspection. Of course, Te did not realize the last silence before the storm came. In the early hours of this morning, the volunteer soldiers had quietly marched to the front of the American position in the cold wind, and a major battle was about to break out.
Korean War
But the firepower of the volunteers did not increase but decreased, more and more black shadows rushed down the hillside, and what surprised Bolden even more was that the opponents in front of them really did not have a decent heavy firepower except for the old rifles in their hands, and the grenades in their waists would not be easily pulled out until the critical moment, and when Bolden was still lamenting how tenacious the willpower of the volunteers was, some of the volunteers had rushed to their faces, and there had been close combat on the front line.
U.S. military firepower
After being attacked by fire, the United Nations army defended according to the defense project built in advance, and thought that after being suppressed by the US army, the volunteer army would give up, but it did not expect that there were still US troops falling one by one. In such a harsh environment, some U.S. troops whose psychological quality was not too hard could no longer hold back and began to hide in the fortifications and shouted for help. Soon the volunteers launched a counterattack, grenades and mortars evenly hit the American positions, and then one figure after another emerged from the half-meter-deep snow and began to attack the Americans.
Volunteers
Bolden realized how terrifying his opponents were, using ice and snow as their cover, and it was no wonder why they could only hear the gunshots but couldn't find where the volunteers were. Before they could think too much, their superiors had already issued orders to launch a counterattack on all fronts, and at the same time the American army called for air support, and even tanks and artillery drove to the front line, and for a time the sound of artillery fire resounded throughout the night sky. All the un soldiers, including Bolden, hoped that with this firepower they would be able to completely repel the Volunteers, because the weather was really too cold at this time, and every time the trigger was pulled, they had to endure severe pain.
Lake Chosin
But the firepower of the volunteers did not increase but decreased, more and more black shadows rushed down the hillside, and what surprised Bolden even more was that the opponents in front of them really did not have a decent heavy firepower except for the old rifles in their hands, and the grenades in their waists would not be easily pulled out until the critical moment, and when Bolden was still lamenting how tenacious the willpower of the volunteers was, some of the volunteers had rushed to their faces, and there had been close combat on the front line.
Volunteers
At this moment, he was completely panicked, because he had never thought about the scene of the American army still losing to the volunteer army with heavy firepower, even as a veteran who had experienced hundreds of battles, his heart began to tremble involuntarily. Several of the recruits around him, obviously frightened by such a scene, threw their grenades in front of their positions in a panic, almost affecting their own people. Soon the volunteers broke through the first line of defense set up by the US army in advance, and the US troops in the rear hurriedly set up machine guns to suppress the fire of the volunteers.
Volunteers
Bolden did not want to die on the battlefield like this, but also took up the weapon in his hand and hurried to shoot at the volunteers, only to see the volunteers under the strafing of the machine guns, as long as a piece fell, then a new batch of rushes up, shells fell at their feet, even if the teammates were blown apart, they still could not stop their charge, so back and forth. Bolden was completely numb, completely impressed by the opponent in front of him.
Volunteers
Bolden looked at the comrades on the front line, one by one, holding the most advanced submachine guns in the United States, and the volunteers were still holding the Hanyang-made left over from the War of Resistance, the weapons gap was clear at a glance, the US side could "burst" a shuttle last time, the volunteers could only shoot one shot at a time, and he did not understand what force supported the advance of the volunteer army. When he was in a daze, the volunteer army's three-three tactics took shape, with three people as a combat unit, repeatedly interspersed in front of the position, relying on the fortifications of the US front, constantly approaching them, and what is more, the US artillery shells blew out a pit, and the hind feet of the volunteer army used the crater as a cover.
Volunteers
It is difficult to imagine that if the conditions of the volunteer army were a little better at that time, not to mention that the volunteer army was replaced with the same equipment as the US army, even if there were a few more artillery pieces, and each person's ammunition would be dozens of rounds, it would be very uncomfortable compared to the US army. Borden had heard of the volunteers' bravery from friendly troops long before the start of the war, but Borden didn't believe it at all, thinking that his comrades were being beaten and scared, and he didn't think that it was his turn to have such a nightmare today.
United Nations Army
Of course, the continental volunteers will not stop because of this, whenever someone on the front line falls, then another person will pick up the explosive package and continue to rush to the bunker, and some volunteer soldiers will use their bodies to block the gun hole of the bunker with their bodies in order to cover the rear teammates to complete the task. Although he had long seen the bravery and fearlessness of the volunteers, the scene in front of him still shocked Bolden, and this fighting spirit and steely will deeply infected him. Bolden seems to understand what forces are supporting them, desperate to defend their glory and dignity.
Volunteers
Indeed, when everyone is only one step away from death, who can guarantee that they will not escape from the battlefield? If a choice had to be made, I think only the volunteers would be able to put life and death aside. Bolden can be said to have a deep understanding of this, for the Chinese soldiers' spirit of not being afraid of sacrifice, no one has more say than him, on this point, he once said in an interview, as long as anyone encounters volunteers on the battlefield, then he will definitely be unlucky! After this encounter with the volunteers, Bolden also deeply realized that no soldier of any country could fight with the infantry alone.
Volunteers
The battle continued, the volunteers still did not fall under several rounds of charge, there was always a steady stream of volunteers emerging from the night on all sides, and finally the sky gradually cleared, the air support of the American army came to the scene, and the volunteer offensive gradually retreated. This was the first time Bolden had engaged the Volunteers, and for him it was probably the hardest night of his life, thanks to the fact that it was getting dark, and it was hard to imagine that if the sun came out half an hour later, his position might really be captured by the Volunteers. Personally aware of the horrors of the Volunteers, Bolden no longer dared to underestimate his opponents in front of him.
Volunteers
And all this is just the beginning, Bolden recalled another fight with the volunteer army, but also the most tragic one between the two sides, unlike the previous battle, this battle completely refreshed his understanding of the Chinese army! After being attacked several times by the volunteer army, the US army no longer dared to be careless, and if they were not careful, they might lose their lives, so the US army also added to the heart of the family slaves, as long as there is any wind and grass in the surrounding area, they will immediately enter a state of first-level combat readiness. One night, the Volunteers once again launched a surprise attack on the American bunkers, and the Americans quickly entered a state of combat and began to resist the Volunteers' attack.
American
Unlike the last time, this time they were armed with explosives packs one by one, rushing towards their bunkers, and the volunteers were simply godlike at that time, and the bullets could not be hit, and they evaded the bullets of the American army through the obstacles in front of the position and the craters left earlier. Soon the volunteers were close to the American bunkers, and borden could only watch in the face of the destroyed bunkers. However, as the distance between the two sides is closer, the firepower of the Us army can also be reduced and concentrated on attacking the volunteer army in front of the position.
United Nations Army
Of course, the continental volunteers will not stop because of this, whenever someone on the front line falls, then another person will pick up the explosive package and continue to rush to the bunker, and some volunteer soldiers will use their bodies to block the gun hole of the bunker with their bodies in order to cover the rear teammates to complete the task. Although he had long seen the bravery and fearlessness of the volunteers, the scene in front of him still shocked Bolden, and this fighting spirit and steely will deeply infected him. Bolden seems to understand what forces are supporting them, desperate to defend their glory and dignity.
United Nations Army
The battle was over, and Bolden breathed a long sigh of relief in the face of a messy battlefield, last night's battle was so fierce, the volunteers were so crazy, he was very glad that he could survive. When he walked to the outside of the bunker, the scene in front of him stunned him, the corpses of the volunteers could be seen everywhere, and it was rare to see a corpse intact, and when he looked closer, there were many soldiers wearing thin Spring and Autumn coats, and even some people's ears were directly frozen, it was difficult to imagine how they acted in an environment of minus thirty or forty degrees. There are also scattered potatoes on the ground, and their hardness is the same as that of stones, and many American troops do not know what this is used for, and it is estimated that no matter what they think, they will not guess the rations of the volunteers.
Volunteers
Bolden sighed that the Chinese soldiers were simply too terrible, and if they were replaced by themselves, they would certainly not be able to do it. Even if they knew that this was a mission with no return, they would have to exert their last strength to deal a heavy blow to the enemy, and it was this indomitable will that created their immortal myth. Bolden is also worried that he can survive this time, but also rely on his teammates to pull himself out of the pile of dead people, otherwise he will confess in this ice and snow. This time he was seriously injured, and instead of feeling sad, he acted very comfortable, because he no longer had to face such a terrible opponent, and he no longer had to live a life of fear every day.
Volunteers
Looking back on yesterday, it seemed like a dream, there was no impression of how he fell, he could only vaguely remember that at that time, all the bunkers were breached by the volunteer army, and many American troops directly abandoned the bunkers and came out to start a hundred beheadings with the volunteers, but the larger the volunteers, the more the more the volunteers, the more they were, and Bolden's troops realized that they had fallen into a disadvantage and hurried to ask for support from the surrounding troops. Soon the volunteers all rushed to the high point, and the American army successfully broke through under strong firepower. Bolden was also seriously wounded in the identity during the retreat.
United Nations Army
He desperately searched for surviving comrades on the battlefield, despite his wounds, and soon the Volunteers organized a round of attack, and Bolden almost shouted with tears, don't shoot them! This allowed them to finally withdraw from their stronghold in Pingli. Bolden also lost too much blood and fainted on the way to retreat with the American troops. After being rescued by the rear hospital, he was finally rescued from the danger of life. Bolden has been a soldier for so many years, and has fought no more than 100 but 80 battles, and he can be regarded as a veteran of the battlefield.
He has seen all kinds of enemies, only the emergence of the volunteer army has completely subverted his understanding of battle, the volunteer army is simply the existence of wisdom and courage, to have tactics and tactics, to be brave and fierce, everyone is not afraid of sacrifice of good men, there is no fault at all. If the United Nations army and the volunteer army were equipped with the same weapons and equipment, it is difficult to imagine how badly the Us army would be beaten. To this day, those nights are Bolden's lingering shadows.