Meridian Ridge Campaign - 2nd Battle

2nd Battle

At 10:00 AM, the nationalist cavalry launched their attack on the enemy positions held by the communist 3rd Regiment of the 1st Garrison Brigade by first bombarding the enemy. The defenders managed to repeatedly beat back nationalists assaults but suffered heavy casualties in the process: the crack troop of the regiment, Mu Chengguang (穆成光) Platoon, a heroic platoon named after its platoon commander Mu Chengguang (穆成光), was completed annihilated with every member in the platoon killed. The fight last until the afternoon when the communist 3rd Regiment of the 1st Garrison Brigade finally received the order to retreat which was first issued before the battle had started, and the defenders gradually retreated eastward.

The 1st Company of the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Regiment of the communist 1st Garrison Brigade defending the most northwestern position did not receive the order to retreat in time, and was totally surrounded by the attacking nationalist cavalries. Most of the members including the deputy company commander Yang Zhankui (杨占奎) were killed, and the company commander Wang Sanxu (王三绪) jumped off the cliff after exhausted the last round of ammunition, but he was lucky that he survived, and after he was recovered from his severe injury weeks later, he returned to his original post. By 4:00 PM, the 3rd Regiment of the communist 1st Garrison Brigade successfully retreated and disengaged the enemy, while the 5th Regiment of the communist 3rd Garrison Brigade took over to continue the fight of delaying actions with the pursuing nationalists. At the same time, the 2nd Regiment of the communist 1st Garrison Brigade and the 6th Cavalry Division at the flanks also engaged the nationalists in their fights to delay the enemy, and the communist force soon disengaged the pursuing nationalists and begun their planned retreat.