Chapter 671: South, South (continued)

Liu Yimin sent Luo Ronghuan away and returned to the courtyard of the division headquarters, and was surprised to find that Li Yun was holding Ping'er, Tang Xingying was wearing a cotton military uniform, carrying a leather bag and a pistol, holding He'er's hand and standing in the courtyard, and her guard squad was standing behind her in full armor, looking ready to go.

Liu Yimin was shocked and hurriedly asked Tang Xingying why he didn't retreat?

Tang Xingying said that according to the arrangement of the political commissar, some cadres from various departments of the Shandong Bureau were dispatched to go south with the army to help the troops do local work. She handed over the work of the Women's Committee to other comrades, and with the approval of the political commissar, she went south with the army. The other comrades left with the 1st Brigade, and she stayed behind to go with him.

Liu Yimin was annoyed: "This is a war, it's not a big job for yourself, and the children are small, how can you say that if you go south, you will go south?" Hurry up and prepare, I'll ask Li Xiaoshuai to send someone to send you away. ”

Tang Xingying said: "The Women's Committee is temporarily training women cadres and publicizing and mobilizing women to fight the war. I have already given this work to other comrades, and I will not make a mistake. Going south is a big deal, there are enemy planes in the sky, and there are devils on the ground to chase and intercept them, if you don't say it, I know that it is more dangerous than the Long March, I don't worry about you, I have to follow you. Don't worry, if I divorce you, it won't affect your and Ni Hua's lives, and it won't make it difficult for you."

Liu Yimin saw that He'er's little face was flushed, and his nose was dripping down, so he hurriedly stepped forward to wipe his son's snot clean, took off the military coat on his body, wrapped his son, hugged him in his arms, and began to complain about Tang Xingying, saying that it was to fight in the south, leap thousands of miles, and it was too unsafe to take the child. I still have to command the troops to fight, and it is difficult to take care of their mother and son, and if something goes wrong, I can't regret it. It is better to move to the central base, which is the rear, which is very safe, and the children can also go to the nursery school to study.

Tang Xingying wanted to cry, and then stubbornly raised her head: "I think about it, take my son and you to the south together, whether you live or die."

Liu Yimin wanted to say again, Li Yun was unhappy, and interjected to say that this was a war, not to see the scenery. The family is not together, they are scattered, they are dead, and they will not be found for the rest of their lives. The little devil is so fierce, it's an airplane and a warship, where can it be safe? If you don't have children, can you feel at ease when you fight? Could it be that my daughter is divorced and doesn't even have the right to fight devils with you?

Tang Xingying's personality is so stubborn, after the divorce, she basically didn't meet Liu Yimin except for meetings, and the only time Luo Ronghuan felt that Liu Yimin had never gone back to see Ping'er and his mother-in-law, and mobilized him to go back. That's it, Tang Xingying didn't talk to him too much, and Liu Yimin also slept at home with He'er in his arms. Now, he is going to lead the army south to fight with the little devil, and the strong Tang Xingying has stood up again, wanting to live and die with him, Liu Yimin is actually very moved in his heart.

He'er was also restless in Liu Yimin's arms, struggling to come down, and shouted in a milky voice, "I'm not afraid of devils, I can also fight devils"

At this time, Liu Yimin, even if he was refining refined steel, turned into a finger wrapper, kissed his son's little face, and smiled: "Okay, this is my Liu Yimin's son, and my father will take you to fight devils to see what the little devils can do with Lao Tzu."

After speaking, Liu Yimin strode into the office with his son in his arms.

After the evacuation of the river defense units of the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese troops on the northern front swarmed across the river, and when they went to the river defense position of the Eighth Route Army, they saw that they were clean and clean, and there was not even a single bullet casing or artillery shell casing left.

At this time, the commanders of the little devil's divisions and brigade commanders already knew the news that the 14th Division, the 35th Division, and the 13th Brigade of the Independent Mixed Brigade were surrounded by the Eighth Route Army. Helplessly, the heavy weapons of the Japanese army could not cross the river due to the bombing of the iron bridge of the Yellow River, and they relied on infantry alone to reinforce them, and these little devils knew that it was not a way, so they had to go into battle with infantry and sappers, and regarded both sides of the Yellow River as construction sites, and rushed to build pontoon bridges so that tanks, armored vehicles, cars and artillery could cross the river.

If the artillery group of the Eighth Route Army could rush to the bank of the Yellow River at this time, it would be lively. It's a pity that at this time, it was the critical moment for the Eighth Route Army to encircle and annihilate the main force of the Japanese army on the southern front, the artillery group could not fly, and the little devils were very well prepared, and the ice of the Yellow River was also convenient for operation.

Only the cavalry group, which had suffered relatively light losses, moved quickly, and after the river defense position was empty, it directly turned around and moved south along the Yellow River, preparing to give the Eighth Route Army a roundabout sneak attack.

By this time, the 14th Division had been surrounded by the Eighth Route Army, and was driven together like sheep by the Eighth Route Army's firepower.

On the way to Jinan and Feicheng, the five divisions of the Japanese army on the northern front that crossed the river received orders to occupy and consolidate Jinan and stop the southward advance. Even the cavalry group that was making a roundabout attack in the south received an order to stop its advance, move closer to the main force, and strictly guard against a sneak attack on the Tuba Road.

The little devil entered Jinan City very smoothly, and after a burst of artillery, the top soldiers sent to search reported that the Eighth Route Army had run away, and Jinan turned out to be an empty city.

Lieutenant General Naosaburo Gangbe, the former chief of staff of the North China Front Army, the current commander of the First Division, and the commander of the Japanese army on the Northern Front, who had already arrived in Jinan, received the report and entered Jinan City by car

When he came to the headquarters of the 12th Army of the former Japanese Army, that is, the division headquarters when the instructor was in Jinan, Naosaburo Gangbu asked the guards to shine a flashlight on the wall at the gate of the courtyard, only to see the red slogan of Douda written on the wall on the side of the courtyard gate: "Firm and correct political direction, hard and simple work style"; On the wall on the other side of the courtyard gate are also written red slogans: "Down with Japanese imperialism" and "If the little devil does not surrender, let it perish"

When I entered the courtyard, I saw a blank piece of paper pasted at the door of the building, on which it was neatly written with a brush: "No matter what level of officer you are in the Japanese army, when you enter this courtyard, the 14th Division, the 35th Division, and the 13th Brigade of the Independent Mixed Brigade of the Japanese Army on the Southern Front have been completely annihilated. I would like to remind you, and I would like to ask you to transfer the commander of the North China Front, General Shanshanyuan, that the next step of our army will be to set up a battlefield between Tai'an and Feicheng, and to learn the tactical command level and the fighting skills of the soldiers with the Guards Division, the First Division, the Second Division, the Fifth Division, and the Sixth Division, please do not let me down. "The payment is Liu Yimin, the instructor and division commander of the Eighth Route Army.

Gangbe Naosaburo had learned Chinese before, and after being in Peking for so long, he kept dealing with Wang Kemin, Qi Kuiyuan and others, and his Chinese level improved very quickly. After thinking about it, Gangbu Naosaburo still held back, and ordered the guards to take down the indiscriminate battle book written by Liu Yimin and send the content to the North China Front Army Headquarters.

After Shanshanyuan staged the ugly drama of the disembowelment attempt, he ordered the Japanese army on the northern front to stop advancing south after occupying Jinan, and wait for the arrival of the main force on the eastern front. The 27th Division, which was on standby in Zhengzhou, was ordered to be transported to Xuzhou overnight, and the 38th Division in southwest Lu was ordered to be ready to respond to and support the Longhai Line at any time.

Shanshan Yuan was really scared, for fear that something would happen to the overnight pursuit. If the Eighth Route Army seized the opportunity to annihilate the pursuing Japanese army, Shanshan Yuan felt that his reputation would be completely lost.

At this time, Shanshan Yuan came up with an idea, that is, it is better to fight steadily, and there is no need to take risks with heavy troops in his hands. As long as several divisions and regiments advance in unison during the day and camp in formation to defend at night, no matter how cunning Liu Yimin is, he will not have the opportunity to sneak attack and ambush. In the end, Liu Yimin's forces will inevitably be crushed by the heavy army group with the armored brigade as the attack arrow.

Shanshan Yuan did not expect that after dawn, he actually received two telegrams, one was a telegram informing the resignation of the Konoe cabinet, and the other was a guidance sent by the base camp, asking to use Xuzhou as bait to attract the main force of Liu Yimin's army to attack Xuzhou, concentrate the main divisions of the eastern and northern fronts, and fight a decisive battle with the Eighth Route Army around Xuzhou.

In order to complete this plan, the base camp ordered Shanshanyuan, the headquarters of the 12th Army to command the 114th Division, the Xuzhou Garrison, and the 27th Division to form the Xuzhou Garrison Corps, relying on the fortifications to hold Xuzhou, and the 38th Division in southwest Shandong quickly retreated to the Longhai line to strengthen the strength of the troops in eastern Henan. The armored brigade and the Guards Division, the Fifth Division, and the Sixth Division formed a frontal attack group and pursued Liu Yimin's forces south. The 1st Division, the 2nd Division, and the 23rd Division formed a roundabout outflanking group and made a detour along the canal in the direction of Xuzhou. The 32nd Division and the 36th Division served as the defense of Jiaoji Road. The 16th Division was temporarily stationed in Jinan and served as the general reserve of the campaign.

In order to make up for the battle losses of the 2nd Division, the 1st Division, and the 23rd Division, the base camp ordered Shanshanyuan to transfer the artillery wing and tank brigade of the 16th Division to temporarily reinforce the 2nd Division, and to transfer supplementary troops from the 32nd Division and the 36th Division to replenish the 2nd, 1st, and 23rd Divisions. After the arrival of the Kwantung Army's supplementary troops, the above-mentioned transferred troops will be returned to the formation.

The base camp demanded that Shanshanyuan concentrate naval aviation and planes of the North China Front Army to conduct a close search for Liu Yimin's troops, and to carry out a large group of aircraft attacks once they are discovered, and to use air superiority to consume Liu Yimin's strength.

Sugi Moto never imagined that Konoe Fumima would resign at this time. In this way, outsiders will think that the Konoe Cabinet resigned because of the fragmentation of the 14th Division, the 35th Division, and the 13th Brigade of the Independent Mixed Brigade, and this account cannot be settled on their own heads.