The fierce attack of the Yue army made Gao Shuxun a little unbearable, although he now has two armies in his hands, but he himself knows the actual situation of these two armies best, not to mention his own new Eighth Army, the sixty-ninth army just after the turmoil is disheartened, military discipline is lax, and it is said that it is a death to the elite of the Yue army with a hundred soldiers, even if they are allowed to fight with the puppet army with the same low combat effectiveness now, they may not necessarily win. According to conservative estimates, the strength of the two divisions and 10 regiments of the 69th Army will be able to do the same thing as one infantry wing of the 69th Army at most.

However, fortunately, the troops of the army going south this time are not all elite, and the troops of the two infantry divisions and two infantry brigades are also quite good mixed into the third brigade, which can barely be regarded as elite, and the other troops are not half a star. In particular, the 32nd and 35th divisions were all new units that had just been formed less than four months ago, and the vast majority of the soldiers were recruits who had never been on the battlefield, which was the reason why General Binshan Yuan put the two infantry divisions and regiments not to be sent to the northern part of the battlefield, but let them go south to mess with the Kuomintang miscellaneous army.

Neither General Binshan Moto nor Lieutenant General Kimura Hyotaro took the 69th Army and the New Eighth Army into account, because of Shi Yousan's reasons, so the army was extremely aware of the actual situation of these two [***]. Therefore, after the troops moved south, Kimura Hyotaro did not regard the 60th Army as an opponent at all, on the one hand, of course, there was a reason for Shi Yousan, but more importantly, under the betrayal of the internal annihilation, the 69th Army's virtual and real army had been clearly investigated, according to the analysis results reported by the special high branch to the North China Front Army, the actual combat effectiveness of more than 23,000 people of Shi You's 3rd Division was equivalent to an infantry brigade of the Great Imperial Army, so Kimura Hyotaro was completely disdainful of Shi Yu's 3rd Division. The reason why he tried to force Shi Yousan to surrender several times was entirely out of political considerations, and the surrender of a lieutenant general and army commander of a Chinese political axe was still very capable of dealing a blow to China's political axe.

But no one thought that Shi Yousan would be killed by his old subordinate brother Gao Shuxun at this critical time, and it was also an upright death, and even the 69th Army, which had been listed as a friendly army by the Yue Army, was indirectly controlled by Gao Shuxun, and the results of the Yue Army's painstaking operation for so many years were suddenly in vain.

Of course, the army was extremely dissatisfied with this matter, so Kimura Hyotaro couldn't take care of the Eighth Route Army instructor who had been thinking about him before, but was ready to concentrate his forces to solve Gao Shuxun's department first. Originally, according to the analysis of the special high-tech department, the troops led by Shi Yousan and Gao Shuxun were only miscellaneous troops of the national political axe, and their combat effectiveness was extremely low, so Kimura Hyotaro was ready to solve the threat of Gao Shuxun's department in a week, and defeat or completely annihilate the new Eighth Army and the Sixty-ninth Army head-on.

But Gao Shuxun called so many helpers at once that Kimura Hyotaro was also a little anxious, according to the report of the special high-tech to the North China Front Army, the relationship between Gao Shuxun and the leader of the Chinese political axe Jiang was not harmonious, once the imperial army attacked Gao Shuxun's department, the possible surname of the Chinese political axe to rescue was very small, but the possible surname of the order Gao Shuxun's department to retreat south was a little larger. However, they still underestimated Chiang Kai-shek's vigilance against the Eighth Route Army, and when they learned that the Eighth Route Army was eyeing southern Hebei and had gathered at least forty or fifty thousand people, Chiang Kai-shek was also anxious, coupled with Chen Cheng's persuasion before, so Chiang Kai-shek ordered Sun Dianying, Sun Liangcheng, Sun Lianzhong and other troops to immediately march to southern Hebei.

The North China Front Army Headquarters ordered the troops in Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, and other places to immediately build defensive lines on the spot to block the enemy's reinforcements. At the same time, he ordered Kimura Hyotaro to increase the intensity of the attack, and there was no need to occupy Handan before the reinforcements of the [***] team arrived.

Although the number of the Central China Front was not as large as that of the North China Front, the Central China Front had won a decisive victory in the previous war, breaking through Wuhan, the most important city along the Yangtze River in China, and defeating the million-strong army of China head-on.

The North China Front has not had a good day since the strong rise of Han Yunhua's headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, especially after the loss of all the grasslands in Saibei, Han Yunhua's headquarters has a solid base area, logistics and soldiers, and directly threatens Beiping, the ruling center of the empire in North China. The situation on the battlefields in various localities was also very unsatisfactory, and the uprisings of large and small sizes, such as the great turmoil in eastern Hebei, the chaos in Shandong, and the chaos in southern Hebei, greatly restrained the energy of the front army.

Some time ago, the Imperial Base Camp sent a telegram scolding the officers of the entire Front Army, large and small, from which it can be seen that the Base Camp is dissatisfied with the Front Army. Even His Excellency Binshan Yuan is in danger of being transferred back to China, and these lieutenant generals and major generals have also been scolded by the base camp, and if they can't come up with a big victory that can be taken out, then the entire front army will be sad, and the ability of these high-ranking officers will also be questioned by the base camp. Therefore, for Kimura Hyotaro, this battle is not allowed to be defeated.

In order to march south to Handan as soon as possible, Lieutenant General Hyotaro Kimura personally commanded the battle on the Yongnian front. Defending Yongnian County was Gao Shuxun's new Sixth Division of the New Eighth Army, which was the absolute main force of the New Eighth Army.

Listening to the fierce sound of artillery coming from the positions outside the city, Ma Runchang, commander of the new Sixth Division, was uneasy in his heart, and the fierceness of the artillery fire of the army was far beyond his expectations, he was born in the army, and according to the whistling sound of the shells in the sky, it can be judged that the artillery used by the army not only has 75mm caliber mountain artillery and field artillery, but also 105mm caliber cannon, this kind of heavy artillery is rare on the Chinese battlefield, and according to the intensity of artillery fire, Ma Runchang judged that the army has at least one artillery wing or even more.

On the one hand, the weapons and equipment of the New Eighth Army, a ragtag army that was raised by a grandmother and uncle and a stepmother, were very poor, and the whole army had only 12 mortars and less than 50 heavy machine guns except for two old-fashioned infantry guns, and there were no other anti-aircraft weapons except light machine guns. Such weapons and equipment were not at the same level, so the New Sixth Division lost more than 3,000 people in just two days.

"Division commander, Regiment Commander Liu from the front line called and said that just now the Japanese army carried out a 20-minute artillery bombardment of our army's position, causing heavy casualties to our army, and the third company of the second regiment, one battalion, and three companies suddenly collapsed because the air-raid shelter was hit head-on by eight shells of the Japanese army............ Regiment Commander Liu begged the division commander to send reinforcements as soon as possible......"

"Division commander, news came from the front line, ten minutes ago, the Yamamoto Brigade of the Army launched a continuous group charge like a regiment's position, and used tank combat vehicles and air support, although the regiment repelled the enemy's attack, but he was also seriously injured, the regimental commander Zhang said that if the division commander did not send reinforcements, the position of the regiment would be supported for two hours at most, and it would fall into the hands of the enemy............"

"Tell me Liu Zhiguo and Zhang Shancannon, and say that there are no reinforcements, but the position must be defended for me, and if the position is lost, let them come to see it." Ma Runchang himself knows that although several regiment commanders on the front line are crying and shouting for reinforcements, it is easy to say that they can still support it, although there is still a regiment in his hand that has not been used, but that is the last family of the new Sixth Division, if the reserves are used so early, then how can the next battle be fought. So now he doesn't have any reinforcements, and the army commander gave Ma Runchang an order to hold Yongnian for a week, which means that within a week, don't think about the arrival of reinforcements on the Yongnian front, everything has to rely on yourself.

"Boom...... Rumble...... Boom ......"

"Boom...... Rumble...... Boom ......"

There was another rush of artillery fire, and Ma Runchang saw through the telescope that the positions of the first and second regiments of the New Sixth Division were once again shrouded in smoke. Ma Runchang's heart was dripping blood, and he didn't know how many people would die in this round of shelling. But he knew that now was not the time to talk about this, and all he could do now was to do his best to hold Yongnian County and wait for reinforcements from the army commander.

This round of shelling lasted for a long time, and it lasted for nearly forty minutes before the artillery stopped, and as soon as the artillery stopped, Ma Runchang immediately shouted: "Guards, hurry up and call the front-line positions to inquire about the casualties, and hurry up." ”

Soon the telegraph soldier said loudly: "Report to the division commander, the telephone between the command post and the first regiment was suddenly cut off, probably the telephone line was blown up by the artillery of the Japanese army. ”

"Does anyone go to overhaul it, if no one goes to you, you immediately send someone to check along the road, and the communication with the front line cannot be interrupted no matter what. Just go! Ma Runchang said loudly.

"Yes"

"Report to the division commander, the command post of the 2nd Regiment was hit by the destruction of the Japanese army, and was hit head-on by the shells of the two cannons of the Japanese army. All the officers, including Regiment Commander Liu, were killed, and it was Wang Zhihui, commander of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, who had just called us. Please instruct. ”

Ma Runchang slapped the table vigorously, his face was full of grief, and he said with all his might: "Call Wang Zhihui and appoint him as the acting head of the Second Regiment of the New Sixth Division of the Eighth Army of the National Revolutionary Army in the name of the division headquarters, with the rank of lieutenant colonel, and command the war on the front line." ”

The death of the second regiment commander was still a great blow to Ma Runchang, although the second regiment commander was not good-looking, but he was a good fighter, and his death was no less than cutting off one of Ma Runchang's arms. Moreover, there are still five full days before the deadline set by the army commander, and if the current attack intensity continues, the new Sixth Division will not be able to support it for five days at all.

However, Ma Runchang believed that the commander would not let the New Sixth Division be lost here like this, so in order to complete the task, even if it was to catch all the people of the New Sixth Division, it would be more than seven days in the eternal year.

The New Sixth Division fought hard, and the 181st Division, which defended Wu'an, fought even harder. The 118th Division is the main force of the original 69th Army, the starting unit of Shi Yousan, and in the establishment of all the two divisions and one brigade of the 69th Army, it has the largest number of people, the best weapons and equipment, and the strongest combat effectiveness, and even Gao Shuxun's new Eighth Army is also separated from the 69th Army. It is precisely because of this that Gao Shuxun handed over Wu'an's position to the 181st Division.

The army was determined to take Wu'an in the afternoon, so the third and fourth brigades of the Yue army, which was tasked with attacking Wu'an, launched a large-scale siege on Wu'an.

Don't look at the 181st Division as a division, and it is Shi Yousan's starting force, but the entire 181st Division is only more than 8,000 people, barely a few hundred more than the mixed brigade of the Yue Army, and the 181st Division is not the opponent of an infantry brigade of the Yue Army under the same strength, let alone the huge difference in strength between them. Moreover, the special high-tech department of the army also received information from the inner line of the 181st Division and knew the reality of the 181st Division, so as soon as Major General Sasaki came up, he spread out the troops and surrounded the entire Wu'an, obviously wanting to encircle and annihilate the 181st Division in Wu'an.

Zhang Yuting, commander of the 181st Division, was really frightened by this posture of the army, and hurriedly sent a telegram to Gao Shuxun, who was stationed in Handan. Gao Shuxun also knows Zhang Yuting well, knowing that although Zhang Yuting sometimes plays some slippery tricks, he is still a reliable person on serious occasions, and knows that he will not be untargeted, if it is not a last resort, he will definitely not ask for reinforcements like him.

The reinforcements of a division were quickly assembled and quickly marched to Wu'an, where Gao Shuxun prepared to defeat Sasaki in one fell swoop with the 181st Division, which was besieged in the city of Wu'an. But the wish is beautiful, but the reality is cruel. The army had long expected that Gao Shuxun would send troops to rescue the 181st Division, so they sent an infantry brigade to set up an ambush on the road from Wu'an to Handan.

In just two hours of fighting, the infantry division sent by Gao Shuxun was annihilated by the army except for more than 1,000 remnants who escaped.

The loss of an infantry division at once made Gao Shuxun, who was already short of troops, even more anxious, originally his new Eighth Army and Sixty-ninth Army were just empty shells, saying that they were two armies, but in fact there were four infantry divisions, another infantry brigade, and one cavalry brigade. Losing an infantry division at once is equivalent to defeating one-fifth of Gao Shuxun's combat effectiveness, and Gao Shuxun has a ghost if he doesn't go crazy.

And the reinforcements that should have been in place a long time ago are now not a shadow at all, Sun Lianzhong's Second Army was blocked by the Yue Army and temporarily couldn't get out of the Sulu border area, while Sun Dianying and Sun Liangcheng were beaten by Henan's Yue Army and couldn't find the north, if it weren't for Cheng Qian, the commander of the First Theater of Operations, who urgently sent the Twentieth Army of Tang Enbo of the Kuomintang Central Army, Sun Dianying and Sun Liangcheng would have really hung up this time.

Although it is said that Sun Dianying and Sun Liangcheng are out of danger for the time being, they have no intention of reinforcing Gao Shuxun, and the army is too ruthless to provoke. For the empty check promised by Lao Jiang, Sun Dianying and Sun Liangcheng almost became alone, not to mention the heavy losses of the troops, and even the relatively stable territory that they had finally found was lost.

Reinforcements were basically unable to arrive, and all of a sudden, the situation of Gao Shuxun's department became extremely dangerous. And now many people's eyes are staring here, plus the 181st Division is still surrounded by the Yue Army, and the New Sixth Division is also entangled with the Yue Army, and it is difficult to get out for the time being, so Gao Shuxun can't withdraw if he wants to.

When Gao Shuxun was struggling and uneasy, the guards ran in and said: "Report to the military seat, Brigade Commander Chen Guang of the 334th Brigade of the 115th Division of the Eighth Route Army has come to visit, and he has already arrived at the small temple fifteen miles outside the city, and he will be in the city in an hour at most." ”

"Who do you say? Brigade Commander Chen Guang Chen of the 334th Brigade? Gao Shuxun asked in surprise.

"Yes, Junzao, just now a signal soldier who claimed to be the instructor of the Eighth Route Army sent a letter of visit to our office, and then the brother of our military headquarters office passed the news to the military headquarters." The guard replied in the affirmative.

"Got it, you go down first!" After the guards went out, Gao Shuxun fell into deep thought, and Gao Shuxun was still very clear about the establishment of the Eighth Route Army, after all, he had been in North China for several years. He knew very well what level of leader a brigade commander of the Eighth Route Army was. Since the Eighth Route Army, or the current Eighteenth Army, has only a few divisions, the brigade commanders who can serve as regular brigades recognized by the national political axe are all elites in [***].

Although it is said that he, the commander of the New Eighth Army, is not a star and a half higher than Chen Guang, the small brigade commander, in terms of rank, the current Gao Shuxun is equivalent to General Peng's rating, and he is one level higher than Master Liu and Master He. However, Gao Shuxun knew that whether it was in the eyes of the commander of the Second Theater or in the eyes of Chairman Jiang, he, the army commander, was not as face-saving as Chen Guang, the brigade commander, and he was very aware of the current situation of the Eighth Route Army.

The purpose of Chen Guang's visit to him this time, Gao Shuxun is very clear, at present, the New Eighth Army is at a critical juncture of life and death, and the Eighth Route Army is here to contact him to fight devils. However, there are many taboos about cooperating with the Eighth Route Army, even if you win the battle, in the eyes of Chairman Jiang, you will change from a thing to a non-thing, so you are still very suspicious about not seeing Chen Guanggao Shuxun.

Gao Shuxun is also a veteran in the army, and he knows a lot about the boss Jiang behind him. He knew that Boss Jiang was not afraid of his subordinates being greedy for life and death, and he was not afraid of his subordinates being corrupt and perverting the law, but he was afraid of one thing, that is, he was eye-to-eye with [***]. In the army, no matter how many military exploits you have made, no matter what position you are in now, as long as Boss Jiang thinks that you are suspected of colluding with the Communist Party, then he can clearly tell you that your good life has come to an end. Even Chen Geng, who once saved Boss Jiang, was not cleaned up miserably, although in the end Boss Jiang did not ask for Chen Geng's life, but Chen Geng did not escape from Huangpu in disgrace. Gao Shuxun's self-assertion of his identity cannot be compared with Chairman Chiang's proud protégé Chen Geng, and if he sees [***] senior officers, if this arouses the suspicion of Lao Chiang, the consequences will be unimaginable.

(To be continued)