In the Governor's Palace in Seoul, the air is unusually dull today. The pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info those high-ranking officers of the Japanese army who used to look mighty and extraordinary, but at this time, they were quietly kneeling on their soft floors, constantly holding up their wine glasses, and sending the sake in front of them into their mouths. Seeing this, the first temple was gloomy, and his heart was sad.

The domestic economy was already on the verge of collapse, the Manchurian Front was about to be cut off, and the international situation was no longer as favorable to Japan as it was during the Russo-Japanese War...... Everything has changed, but the biggest change is that the Chinese People's Army can no longer be used as a soft persimmon like the previous Qing army. The emergence of new warships, the use of new aircraft, combat vehicles, cannons, and various new firearms formed an all-round fire suppression of the imperial army on the battlefield. The intensity of its firepower became a nightmare for the Japanese Army, which advocated attack!

Japan, it's really going to be defeated! From strategic failures, to tactical failures. He began to think about what he could do for the emperor and the 50 million Japanese people under the current conditions.

"We must not accept peace talks like this!"

The dull atmosphere was finally broken by an angry roar, and Terauchi Masatsuki was quite unhappy in his heart, and when he looked up, he saw that it was Lieutenant General Michiharu Umezawa, the commander of the 6th Division, standing up. I saw that this Umezawa, who was known as a flower, was staring at his red eyes and shouted: "Ladies and gentlemen, General Akiyama Yoshiko of Kanto Prefecture is still holding on, and our 2nd Division, 6th Division, 9th Division, 12th Division, and 18th Division nearly 100,000 troops are gathered here, and now they are cowardly admitting defeat to the people of China, can they be worthy of the more than 50 million people in the country who tighten their belts and support our imperial people?" Will you be able to live up to His Majesty the Emperor's teachings and ardent expectations? ”

"Yes, gentlemen! What Your Majesty and the people want to see is not a crushing defeat of the Imperial Army, but a victory, a victory! Similarly, Lieutenant General Shigeta Fujii, commander of the 12th Division, also stood up and said.

When Terauchi Masatsuki heard this, he was silent in his heart, and it seemed that not only he was unwilling to negotiate peace, but also the new division commanders such as Michiji Umezawa and Shigeta Fujii were even more unwilling. That's right, the account of tens of thousands of soldiers spilling their blood in Manchuria has not yet been calculated, the revenge of tens of thousands of soldiers buried in Korea has not been avenged, and the lost interests of the empire have not been recovered, how can peace talks be carried out in such a hasty manner?

At this moment, Mitsutomi Kamio, the commander of the 18th Division, who was sitting next to him, suddenly stood up. This lieutenant general, who had attacked the brigade with Nogi Noshinori during the Russo-Japanese War, served as the chief of staff of the Liaodong garrison, and the director of the Dalian Military and Political Administration, his face was flushed at this time, and he waved his arms and said: "Your Excellency General! The Great Japanese Empire did not need to compromise, let alone defeat! Military personnel should not be swayed by dirty politics. So, give the order! I am willing to lead my warriors to storm Pyongyang! As long as we launch an offensive and inflict heavy losses on the Chinese army, we will not only be able to wash away all the shame suffered by the army before, but also leave the country with nothing to say. At that time, if there are still peace talks, then the treaty will also be beneficial to the empire! When the time comes, you, Your Excellency General, will be the first hero of the Japanese Empire! ”

Such a remark, not to mention the officers present around him, even the temple's eyelids jumped when he heard it. Japan's No. 1 Hero? Terauchi felt that the blood in his body was beginning to boil.

Terauchi Masashi no longer hesitated, and began to gather all the officers to discuss, but in a moment, the plan was decided, and the troops launched an attack in two directions. Among them, three divisions were assembled in the western front area, and after crossing Kaesong with the main force, and after capturing Pingshan in a roundabout way, they gathered heavy troops on the Jinchuan line to besiege the main forces of the enemy's 16th Army stationed in the area, and gave them total annihilation or heavy losses; On the eastern front, one division and regiment will be used to contain the enemy in front of them, and there is no need to take the initiative to fight, but only to wait for the western front to succeed, and then cooperate with the rest of the armies to attack on all fronts and advance in an all-round way to the north.

Pingshan, facing the Licheng River in front of the river, carrying the railway, is only half a day's trip from Jinchuan, and it is a place where soldiers must fight. Therefore, the gains and losses of Hirayama are related to the overall situation of this campaign. Terauchi Masashi thought about it and handed over the task of this roundabout attack to the well-equipped 6th Division, which had a brutal fighting style. It's just that when he thought about the Eastern Front, he hesitated a little, and after thinking about it, he set his eyes on the commander of the 2nd Division, Lieutenant General Shigeyuki Hitohara.

Although Lieutenant General Nitahara Shigeyuki felt the commander's gaze, he was embarrassed at this time. He also read the letter from General Nagaoka Waishi brought by King Kunihiko of Kurenomiya, and it is no secret that the establishment, combat strength, and equipment of the Shina Army have long been no secret. No matter how arrogant he was, he didn't think that his 2nd Division could stand alone against the opponent's army, let alone the prestigious 4th Army of China. Even if the 4th Army was now stationed in a mountainous area, and the heavy artillery fire could not give full play to half of its advantage in the plains, he did not want to take this risk.

So, after a pause, Nitahara, Shigeyuki, changed his words and said: "Your Excellency, the 2nd Division is responsible for containing the 4th Army in China, and there is no excuse. However, although this 4th Army is new, it has been famous for a long time, and its combat strength is certainly good. I heard that its commander Yin Changheng has been in the army for many years, has been in battle formations many times, and can fight fierce battles. If our division wants to contain its troops, with Yin Changheng's ability, no matter what he decides at that time, he will inevitably lead his troops south to attack our troops. If this is the case, then our division will certainly suffer immeasurable losses. ”

Hearing this, Terauchi Zhengyi lowered his head and frowned for a while, and then said: "What Rentian-kun is very worried about, then the 14th Wing and the 24th Wing of the 12th Division will be assigned to your department. ”

"It will only take ten days for your unit to contain the 4th Army of China. After ten days, a retreat may be allowed. After Terauchi Masayi finished speaking, without waiting for Nitianwara Shigeyuki to react, he turned around and ordered Lieutenant General Anton Sadami, the former commander of the Japanese Korean Army, to personally command the 9th Division and the 18th Division, and set up a line, feint to attack Jinchuan, drag the 16th Army of the Shina Army, and cover the 6th Division of Michiji Umezawa to capture Hirayama.

The campaign was launched at 10 p.m. on December 31, the last day of 1913.

……

Cao Kun didn't know the plot of the temple Zhengyi, who had just returned from Pyongyang, was now full of spirit and excitement. I only know that I am strong and strong, and my firepower is very strong.

After the fall of the entire Beiyang Army and the reorganization of the Beiyang Army into the 16th Army of the People's Army, many officers were either voluntarily or forcibly retired for various reasons, but he was fortunate to be retained and served as a major general.

Half a year of training was hard and tiring, especially during tactical exercises, people had to take off several layers of skin, even he, the army commander, was no exception. At that time, he couldn't understand why he had to stand in the sun and kick the right steps, stand in a military posture, and even run for miles as if he were a high-ranking officer, just like those big-headed soldiers, and even run for miles as if he were dead, going back and forth on the training ground. It wasn't until later that he suddenly seemed to understand something from the eyes of the soldiers who treated him, it was respect, not fear!

Another group of old buddies from the past are gone, and a lot of young people with strong blood have been added. The unit was constantly trained and constantly run-in, and after half a year, the reorganization was officially completed. The brothers began to change their hands, the infantry used to be single-fought and now semi-burst, the former 75 mountain guns of the artillery became the current 105 and 152 howitzers, and after being equipped with various small-caliber mountain guns, mortars, light and heavy machine guns, and a small number of cars and motorcycles, the entire 16th Army suddenly became a type A infantry army in the People's Army. Its military prestige is even greater than that of the Beiyang Army in its heyday.

The major generals of the People's Army naturally have a higher gold content than the lieutenant generals of the Beiyang Army. Just when Cao Kun wanted to work in the army in such a down-to-earth manner, the Sino-Japanese War broke out.

Those who came out of the old army were more or less afraid of the armies of the great powers. Cao Kun was no exception, he was originally a little panicked in his heart, how powerful the Japanese soldiers were! Even the Russian big hairy people were killed by more than 100,000 people back then, let alone Chinese who were worse than the Russians. But I never thought that as soon as this unit was mobilized, good news of its own victories came from the front line. First, the Japanese army stationed in Tianjin was completely annihilated, then the Japanese army's South Manchurian railway escort in the northeast was heavily damaged, and then the navy won a complete victory, and their own invasion of Korea, the first war was completely lost to the news of the three divisions of the Japanese army, until the current Taiwan was recovered.

Although everyone didn't believe it at first, thinking that it was fake, but when the real march reached Liaoning, Korea, and then to the Jinchuan front line, which is now defending, and saw with their own eyes that the invincible Japanese soldiers were defeated and retreated by their own army, the morale of the entire army suddenly rose. Especially now, since the fraternal troops can beat the Japanese like dogs, why can't our 16th Army? Could it be that our 16th Army is worse than anything?

I heard that when Gengzi made trouble with the Eight-Nation Alliance, the Japanese sent half of their soldiers, not only killing their comrades the most ruthlessly in the past, but now stealing the country's mineral resources is also their most ruthless. Therefore, the brothers have long been gearing up, wanting to teach these little radishes a hard lesson, so that they can see that not only are the masters of other troops in China, but also the masters of the 16th Army are not bad!

The operational order of the headquarters has been issued, and the intention is very clear, that is, with the 4th Army and the 16th Army as the main forces, the troops will attack in two directions, inflict heavy losses on the main force of the Japanese army in front of them, cooperate with the negotiations at home, and strive for diplomatic victory. The campaign was launched at 8 a.m. on January 1, 1914.

This is his opportunity for Cao Kun, and it is also the opportunity for their 16th Army, and it is also an opportunity for their old Beiyang.