On 30 March 1939, the Nationalist Government announced in Chongqing that with the full cooperation of the Ninth and Third Theaters, more than 300,000 Nationalist troops had launched a liberation operation against Nanchang, which had recently fallen.

The news soon spread throughout China, whether it was in the occupied area or in the unoccupied area, all the people had great expectations for this largest counteroffensive battle since the defense of Wuhan, although the defense of Wuhan was carried out vigorously a few months ago, but in the end it still ended in retreat, since Nanjing another capital fell, the morale of the people throughout the country was also hit, and some pro-Japanese people headed by Wang Jingwei again preached the old tune that Japan was invincible, and advocated that only by talking with Japan could there be a way out. In order to raise the morale of the people and seize the commanding heights of public opinion, the Propaganda Department headed by Chen Bui began to launch a propaganda machine against the Nanchang Campaign and launched a huge propaganda campaign.

Politics and war are never separate individuals, they are a pair of closely connected twins, war is a continuation of politics, and when the war begins, politics must also serve the war, after the propaganda machine is activated, in just two days, almost half of the people in the country know that the national army has launched a counteroffensive against the Japanese army.

Later, not only the Chinese people knew about it, but even the commander of the North China Dispatch Army, Tada Jun, who was far away in Suzhou, was also under great pressure.

"Ishihara-kun, it seems that Okamura Ninji is really in a hurry, otherwise he wouldn't have even sent such a telegram asking for help."

In a garden building full of the style of Suzhou Jiangnan Water Town, Tada Jun sat in a gazebo and looked at the information just sent by the staff officer, with a worried look on his face.

At the other end of the stone table, Ishihara was wearing a tweed lieutenant general's uniform, his eyes narrowed into a slit, and he didn't make a sound for a long time.

Seeing Ishihara's tepid appearance, Tada Jun was a little anxious. "Ishihara-kun, I'm asking you, as the chief of staff, you have to give an opinion, right?"

"Opinion...... What advice to give? Ishihara asked rhetorically: "Okamura Ninji asked us for reinforcements from at least two divisions, do we have two divisions for him now?" ”

Tada Jun was dumbfounded, and then said angrily: "If I have two divisions for him now, will I still be so worried?" ”

"That's the end of it!" Ishihara snorted and pondered for a while before saying, "Then there is only one way." Send a telegram to the base camp asking for reinforcements from the base camp. ”

"What? Sending reinforcements from home? Tada Jun couldn't help but be dumbfounded: "Ishihara-kun, haven't you woken up yet, is it too late to transfer reinforcements from the mainland?" ”

"It's too late to adjust!" Ishihara said resolutely: "From the Nanchang incident, it can be seen that the empire's troops in China are still too small, and if you want to defeat China, you must increase your troops in China!" ”

"That's for later." Looking at Ishihara Wan'er, who had been crooked, Tada Jun said helplessly: "The most urgent thing for us now is how to relieve the siege of Nanchang. ”

"The Siege of Nanchang?" Ishihara sighed softly: "What else is there to understand, Nanchang may not be able to stand it." ”

"Can't hold it?" Tada Jun looked at Ishihara's eyes wide, "Ishihara-kun." Didn't you say that before, didn't you say half a month ago that Nanchang shouldn't be a big problem? Now you tell me that Nanchang can't hold it, are you playing tricks on me? ”

"This time and that time." Ishihara Wan'er didn't feel embarrassed to arrive because the prediction was exposed, but said lightly: "If there is no independent brigade, the probability of the Chinese army capturing Nanchang should be less than 30 percent, but with the addition of the independent brigade, the probability of the Shina people capturing Nanchang has exceeded 60 or even 70 percent." Because I have now counted the entire North China dispatch army, I find that I can no longer send a single soldier to support Nanchang, which is the reason why I say this. ”

"You ......"

Tada Jun was angry at first, and then softened like a deflated ball. Because he found that he couldn't even refute Ishihara's words. The current North China Dispatch Army nominally has two armies, the 11th and 13th armies, with a total of nearly 400,000 troops, but North China is so large. The use of troops has long been overstretched, and no army can support Nanchang in the short term.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but mutter, "What then? You can't just watch Nanchang fall like this. ”

"It's the best way to go." Ishihara said with a resolute expression: "Only when those old men in the base camp realize that the conquest of China is not an overnight thing, will they retract their arrogant eyes and reconsider the "encroachment" strategy we proposed. ”

"The "cannibalization" strategy, you haven't given up on your plan yet!" Tada Jun was stunned at first. Then he shook his head with a wry smile.

As early as 1936, Ishihara presided over the revision of the "Outline of National Defense Policy," the main idea of which was: "Japan's national policy is to become the guide of East Asia, and to this end, it must have the strength to eliminate the oppression of the Soviet Union, the United States, and Britain." While enriching the armaments, especially the air forces, that can confront the Soviet, American, and British, we should do a good job of stabilizing Japan, Manchuria, and the Northern Branch (North China). Complete the groundwork for the preparation for a protracted war. Having completed the replenishment of armaments and preparations for a protracted war, active work began to force the USSR to abandon its plot to attack the Far East as soon as possible. During this period, efforts were made to maintain friendly relations with the United States, and after the Soviet Union surrendered, it established goodwill relations with it, expelled British power from East Asia, and liberated the peoples of East Asia.

It can be seen from this guiding ideology that Ishihara was resolutely opposed to Japan's all-out war against China, and he believed that Japan did not yet have the strength to swallow China in one gulp, so what Japan should do most at present was to digest Manchuria (the three eastern provinces) and North China, and only after Manchuria became Japan's inherent territory would Japan then Japan have the capital to fully devour China.

In later generations, I don't know how many Chinese scholars and military strategists gasped after reading Ishihara's revised "Outline of National Defense Policy" and then sweated profusely.

It is a pity that history has no ifs, and today's Japan is full of fanatical militarists, who have not taken Ishihara's outline seriously at all, and in their opinion, today's China has long since become a terminally ill patient, as long as it is gently pushed, this patient will fall down in an uproar, and Japan can easily occupy this nearly 10 million square kilometers of land next.

Ishihara Waner is very disdainful of this crazy idea in Japan, and he has also told his friends Tada Jun, Kenji Dohihara and others many times, and it is Tada Jun who naturally understands his inner feelings.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this, let's go visit the two big shots, Nishio Shouzo and Itagaki Seishiro." After speaking, a mocking smile appeared on the corner of Ishihara's mouth......

The sky was overcast, and the orange morning sun shone on the ruined city wall of Nanchang Cheng, which was surrounded by many bunker fortifications, which were temporarily built by the Japanese during these days, and Hiroki Inagaki and Kotaro Horiuchi hoped that with these fortifications, they could resist the attack of the Chinese army, at least until the arrival of reinforcements.

Less than a kilometer from the city walls, more than 30,000 troops in gray-green and blue uniforms lay silently on the starting position, and no one complained even when their clothes were wet in the early morning dew. Behind them, hundreds of large-caliber mortars were ready to fire, and farther away more than eighty large-caliber long-range guns with their armor removed also raised their muzzles and pointed proudly forward, and around each gun stood an unequal number of gunners, behind these gunners were piles of shells that had been loaded with insurance, all of them quietly waiting for orders.

In front of the artillery group, an oval-shaped observation balloon had already risen to a height of several hundred meters, and the Japanese defense in the entire northern area of the city was distributed in the entire Nanchang area, and the situation in the entire Nanchang area was fully appreciated by the observers on the balloon.

Su Jin, Chen Anbao, and a group of senior officers stood not far from the artillery group, quietly looking at the artillery group that was on standby.

Su Jin raised his hand and looked at Chen Anbao, who pointed at seven o'clock, and said, "Chief Chen, when the time comes, please give the order for a general attack." After speaking, Su Jin took the microphone from behind the communication soldier on the side and handed it to him with both hands.

Chen Anbao took the microphone, and looked at the neatly arranged artillery next to him, after taking the microphone, he took a deep breath, although he had fought countless battles in his life, but his heart was still a little excited, he knew that now not only hundreds of thousands of troops within a radius of hundreds of miles, but almost half of the eyes of nearly half of the people in China were staring at this city.

After trying to calm down his mood, Chen Anbao said in a deep voice: "All the artillery groups listen, I am Chen Anbao, the commander-in-chief of this siege, and now I order the general attack to begin!" ”

"The general offensive begins!"

"The general offensive begins!"

"Sixty rapid fire!"

When he received Chen Anbao's order, Bai Hongshan picked up the phone and gave an order: "Load all cannons!" ”

Within twenty seconds, fifty-four 105-caliber howitzers and twenty-seven M40155-caliber howitzers were shaken up one after another. The loader pushes the first wave of shells into the breech and closes the bolt, and the aimer positions the muzzle according to the prepared elements. At the same time, hundreds of large-caliber mortars of the independent brigade were also adjusted at the same time. The moment the minute hand and the second hand were in a straight line, Bai Hongshan gave an order to the phone.

The order is just two words: "Fire!" (To be continued.) )

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