Ironically, the opponents of the Japanese came to a similar conclusion at this time.

"The Japanese don't have good marksmanship!" A Chinese soldier bandaging the wounds of his wounded comrades said jokingly to his comrades as he watched the last few Japanese soldiers fall.

The Chinese soldiers, who had just won the battle, actually inadvertently revealed the true situation of their enemies.

During the joint attack of the Japanese army and the British army on Qingdao, there were a large number of incidents of accidental hits, the main reason was that the large number of Japanese soldiers could not distinguish the difference between the British officers and soldiers and the Germans, and the Japanese soldiers often opened heavy fire on the patrolling British soldiers, thanks to the poor marksmanship of the Japanese, the number of British casualties was reduced. The British were annoyed by this, but there was nothing they could do, because even if they had changed into uniforms that were different from those of the German and Japanese armies, it would only reduce rather than eliminate the occurrence of such vicious incidents. Due to the poor hygiene standards of the Japanese officers and men, the poor combat quality, the vagaries of provisions, the inexplicable employment practices and the contradictory combat doctrines, the British officers and men had a very poor impression of the Japanese, and the arrogant racial prejudice peculiar to the British contributed to the hostility between the British and Japanese armies, so that during the entire Tsingtao offensive and defensive battles, the British Army and the Japanese Army had no cooperation at all (on the contrary, it may be because of the relationship between the Japanese Navy and the British Navy, However, the cooperation between the navies of the two countries has always been very good, and there are few contradictions).

The decline in the combat quality of the Japanese Army was to a large extent due to the victory in the Russo-Japanese War, which fueled the arrogance of the Japanese Army, and the resulting arrogance and conservatism made the training of the Japanese Army rigid and rigid, lacking innovation and change, and this inevitably brought about an overall decline in the combat quality of the officers and men of the Japanese Army. For example, the supreme commander of the Japanese army stationed in Qingdao, Lieutenant General Mitsutomi Kamio, was a rigid officer who only knew dogma and books, and when he united with the British army to launch a night attack on the German army in Qingdao, there was an incident in which the British refused to obey orders. Because the British were not willing to die in vain under his rigid command.

However, as a strange group full of contradictions, and different from the cautiousness in the face of the German army, the Japanese Army changed its rigid style in the past and showed unprecedented arrogance and contempt when facing the Chinese army. Whether it is a high-ranking general, a middle- or lower-ranking officer, or an ordinary soldier, they do not take the Chinese seriously at all, and often forget even the most basic combat rules in battle, and only think about destroying more Chinese and entering Beijing as soon as possible, but what they did not expect is that this time, on the land of China, they encountered a terrible opponent much more powerful than the Germans.

When Yang Shuoming returned to the field hospital that had been transferred to Yanzhou City, it was already a little late, and he was surprised to find that most of the wounded here were soldiers of the former army of Wuwei with braids.

"Zhang Xun and Zhang Dashuai personally led the charge of the Yangtze River patrol envoy, but the middle artillery was injured in the leg, and the wound was already infected. An adjutant reported to Yang Shuoming, "His wounds have been treated, he has also taken medicine, and he has already gotten better, and now he is clamoring to see you." ”

"Oh." Yang Shuoming nodded quietly, "Is there any news from Brigade Commander Xu?" ”

"Brigade Commander Xu has just sent a telegram that he has annihilated another group of Japanese troops in the area near Yancheng, about 1,000 people." The adjutant said, "It may also be that they came out of Jinan to pursue the former army of Wuwei." ”

With the adjutant's answer, Yang Shuoming's eyes flashed a map of the situation of the Shandong battlefield, and then according to the data and news obtained by Yang Shuoming these days, the map of Yancheng was rapidly enlarged, showing the location and situation of the warring parties.

As of yesterday, the 5th and 6th Mixed Brigades of Jiangxi Province led by Yang Shuoming had driven the Japanese army out of Yanzhou, annihilated more than 7,000 Japanese troops in total, and saved the Wuwei Front Army, which was almost collapsing on the whole line. In this battle, Yang Shuoming's Jiangxi army suffered slight losses, with a total of 375 killed and 107 wounded, while the losses of the Wuwei front army, which had fought fiercely with the Japanese army for three days and three nights, were much greater, with a total of more than 27,000 Wuwei troops losing more than 8,000 people, nearly one-third of the total number of the whole army (the specific casualty figures were not counted, so a general term such as "loss" was used, according to Yang Shuoming's estimates, the actual casualties of the Wuwei front army were not large, and most of them should have fled). ,

Equipped with what can be said to be the most advanced reconnaissance plane in China, coupled with a capable reconnaissance unit, Yang Shuoming was able to keep abreast of the battlefield situation at any time.

According to Yang Shuoming's understanding, before Japan issued an ultimatum to China, the Japanese army in Qingdao had increased to 60,000 people, and after China rejected Japan's ultimatum and Japan declared war on China, the Japanese army continued to increase its troops from its own territory. The intention of the Japanese is obvious, that is, they intend to use the Jiaodong Peninsula as a base to invade the interior of China.

On May 10, 1915, the Japanese army in Jinan began to attack the Chinese army, and the Chinese army, which had already entered the position, began to counterattack the Japanese army, and the battle between the two sides officially began.

At the beginning of the battle, Zhang Wensheng, the defender of Yanzhou, took the lead in blocking the Japanese army, but was defeated under the onslaught of the Japanese army, not only failed to stop the Japanese advance, but lost Yanzhou. In order to cut off the back road of the Japanese army, Zhang Xun led the Wuwei front army to attack the Japanese army at the end of May, once repelled the attacking Japanese army, Zhang Xun concentrated his forces to try to recapture Yanzhou, but also suffered a heavy defeat, if it was not for Yang Shuoming to lead the Jiangxi army to arrive in time, heavy artillery bombardment annihilated the Japanese army, Zhang Xun is likely to let the Japanese capture.

For Zhang Xun, he can be regarded as a great fortune this time. Because Yang Shuoming's army came, it was actually very accidental.

Although Duan Qirui mobilized the army in advance to make corresponding arrangements for the possible attack of the Japanese army, he did not give specific operational plans and guidelines to the front-line armies (Cai Yi had previously proposed a plan to attack Qingdao, but due to the difficulty of implementation, it was rejected by Xu Shuzheng), and the front-line armies were not subordinate to each other, and there was no unified command, and once the battle began, they could only be in a state of fighting separately. Yang Shuoming knew this very well, so as soon as the military meeting in Beijing was over, he hurriedly rushed back by plane.

In order to prevent the Japanese army from invading the Chinese mainland, Yang Shuoming planned to first try to intercept the Japanese troops defending the Jiaoji Railway and cut off the supply lines of the Japanese army, so he led his troops from Kaifeng (during his trip to Beijing, the troops continued to advance under the leadership of Xu Yuanjin and arrived in Kaifeng), and went straight to Jinan, but did not expect that when approaching Yanzhou, he encountered the defeated soldiers of Yanzhou town guard Zhang Wensheng, and after learning the situation from Zhang Wensheng's mouth, Yang Shuoming sent planes and scouts to investigate the enemy's situation, and after determining the enemy's position, Yang Shuoming decisively launched an attack, because the Japanese army pursued the Wuwei front army with all their might, and knew nothing about the Jiangxi army that was quietly approaching the battlefield, and as a result, it was dealt a devastating blow and was completely annihilated in the unconcealed plain.

If it weren't for Yang Shuoming's temporary intention to attack Jinan to try his edge, the fate of Zhang Xun and Wuwei's former army would probably be different.

But then again, if it weren't for the stupidity and arrogance of the Japanese army, he wouldn't have won this battle so happily.

Because Yang Shuoming, judging from the distribution and offensive performance of the Japanese army that he knew, it seemed that the Japanese were planning to attack Beijing from Shandong!

In Yang Shuoming's view, the Japanese army's operational plan of attacking Beijing from Shandong can be said to be quite stupid.

Although the Chinese army's combat effectiveness is relatively poor, the Japanese army in Shandong is not much, and most of them are infantry.

As far as the Japanese were concerned, if they really wanted to take Beijing, the most convenient way would undoubtedly be to use the navy to transport the land force to land in Tianjin, and from Tianjin to Beijing (the historical invasion of Beijing by the Anglo-French forces and the "Battle of Gengzi" of the Eight-Nation Alliance, this route was adopted), and there was no need to make such a troublesome detour to attack Beijing from Shandong and Mukden.

And because of his worries about the defense of Tianjin, he spared no effort to get a drifting mine and a pocket submarine to provide to Liu Guanxiong. And from the beginning of the war to the present, the Japanese have not taken such actions.

The Japanese have such a powerful navy and do not take advantage of it, either too arrogant or too stupid.

Or is it both?

"Is there any news from the capital?" Yang Shuoming thought for a while and asked.

"There's not much new news." The adjutant seemed to know what Yang Shuoming was worried about, and replied, "Our army had completely occupied the Japanese concession the day before yesterday, and the Japanese ships were reportedly found cruising in the Dagu Sea, but they did not fire on our troops. ”,

Yang Shuoming nodded and said, "Let's go, take me to see the pigtailed handsome." ”

Empire State Building, Tokyo, Japan.

At this time, in the conference hall of the Empire State Building, an emergency meeting was being held, including the five phases.

"Our military operation in China is not going well." Japanese Prime Minister Shigenobu Okuma's face sank as if he could burst into the water, "Our army was ambushed by the Shina army in the area from Jinan to Yanzhou. His eyes fell on the Minister of War, Nosuke Okaichi, "It is said that the damage is very large. ”

Seeing Okuma Shigenobu looking at him, Okaichi Nosuke's face twitched involuntarily, and he nodded with some effort: "Our army was suddenly ambushed while pursuing the scattered Shina army, and the number of dead soldiers is estimated to be more than 5,000 people, and it has been confirmed that the commander of the 24th Brigade, Major General Yamada, was unfortunately killed. ”

"More than 5,000 killed?" Foreign Minister Takato Kato's eyes widened for a while, "Could it be that the statistics department made a mistake?" Write an extra zero? ”

Okaichi shook his head, "The detailed casualty figures have yet to be verified, and one thing is for sure, this number will increase." ”

"How is this possible?! When did the Chinese army become so capable of fighting? Kato Takaaki asked in surprise, "You know, in our battle to attack Qingdao, there were less than 1,500 killed!" How is this possible?! ”

In the entire Battle of Qingdao, a total of 1,455 Japanese naval and army personnel were killed and 4,200 wounded, and this time in the battle of Yanzhou, more than 5,000 people were killed, no wonder Kato Takaaki was so shocked.

"I remember that we only lost more than 500 people in the battle to capture Mukden." Okuma Shigenobu looked at Okaichi and asked, "Why is there such a big difference in the casualty figures between the two battlefields?" ”

"This shows that the main force of the Chinese army was deployed on the Shandong battlefield." Okaichi said, "Instead of what we had assumed before, Yuan Shikai used them to defend Beijing. ”

"According to the information gathered by our intelligence officers in China, the combat effectiveness of the Chinese army has always been very poor, how can it cause so many casualties to our army this time?" Takaaki Kato asked, "How is it possible for their combat power to increase so much in such a short period of time?" ”

Okaichi Nosuke seemed to sense the accusation in the eyes of the people around him looking at him, and he began to fight back with some annoyance: "Of course the combat effectiveness of the Shina army is very poor! That hasn't changed to this day! According to the report, Major General Yamada's forces had previously defeated a Shina army of more than 40,000 men with less than 7,000 men! And they were extremely tired and short of ammunition in continuous battles, and they were ambushed by another Chinese army of more than 20,000 people! We have no right to blame the brave and fearless Imperial soldiers who fought to the last moment! ”

"This shows that the strength of the Chinese army in Shandong is very strong, and the total number may have exceeded 200,000." Chief of Staff Yoshimichi Hasegawa said, "This does not match what we have known before, and we should now make strategic adjustments accordingly." ”

"And as far as I know, the weapons and equipment of the Chinese army are not as bad as the intelligence officers in China say, and many of their troops, including some units that are not descendants of Yuan Shikai, are very well equipped and have no less artillery than ours. As in the battle in Yanzhou, the Chinese army used a large number of large-caliber heavy artillery, and it was these artillery pieces that caused heavy casualties to our army. Okaichi added, "According to the reports of our intelligence officers, these heavy artillery pieces were ordered by the Chinese in the United States. ”

"It seems that Yuan Shikai is prepared, so he dares to refuse the ultimatum of the imperial government." Takaaki Kato looked at Shigenobu Okuma, "It's time to reformulate a new strategy." ”

"We should conquer Beijing as soon as possible." Hasegawa said, "The Liaodong Peninsula and Shandong Peninsula operations plans that we envisioned before are no longer applicable to the current situation. ”

"We should land in Tianjin and attack Beijing." Okaichi said, glancing at Hasegawa Yoshimichi.

"But once we conquer Beijing and Yuan Shikai's government falls, China will be plunged into a mob of chaos, and we will lose our negotiating partners." Takaaki Kato immediately objected, "and it will also cause interference from Western countries." ”

"Yes, the purpose of our attack on China this time is not to defeat the Yuan Shikai government, but to strive for the greatest interests of Japan." "The reason why we chose to attack Beijing from both Mukden and Shandong is to force the Yuan Shikai government to give in and agree to all our conditions. ”,

"I understand what you mean, Your Excellency Prime Minister, you want to repeat the achievements of Prime Minister Ito Hirobumi over the years." Hasegawa said, "But things have changed now......"

Before Hasegawa could finish his good words, an officer hurriedly walked in and handed a note to Goro Ijiin, the commander of the Combined Fleet, who had been sitting there without speaking.

Ijiin Goro glanced at the note, and his face immediately changed.

Shigenobu Okuma noticed the change in the face of the commander of the Combined Fleet and immediately focused his attention on him.

"The commander of the Second Fleet, Admiral Kato, died this morning." Ijiin Goro said in a calm tone as much as possible, and at this time, he cleverly used the vague word "death" to deliberately conceal the real cause of Kato Dingyoshi's death.

"It's unfortunate." Okuma nodded sadly, "We've lost another good general. ”

"The navy should play a more important role in this war against the Chinese and should not stay only in Qingdao." Hasegawa Yoshimichi looked at the gloomy Ijiin Goro, "The coastline of the Chinese can be said to be completely open to the navy, and the navy can take arbitrary actions against the Shina people. ”

"The problem is not that the Navy doesn't want to act, it's that there are so few places for the Navy to act if they don't want to provoke protests from Western countries." Ijiin Goro said coldly.

"The Imperial Army needs naval support to land anywhere in China." Kato Takaaki noticed the tense atmosphere among the generals of the navy and army, and made a suggestion like a round, "We should continue to increase troops in Shandong and completely crush the Chinese army there." ”

"Yes, Yuan Shikai thinks that those armies in his hands can help him achieve victory, and we must use practical actions to correct his stupid idea." "When these armies were all wiped out by us, that was when Yuan Shikai surrendered to us. It was also the time when the people of China surrendered to us. We must show them our strength in order to break the will of the Chinese to resist. ”

"Yes." "We need to let the people know that their resistance is useless. Only by choosing the protection of the empire is their way out. ”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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