Since the night of 24 July, when Shen Yuquan led his troops to launch a siege on the Yamashita Brigade, by 3 o'clock in the afternoon of the 26th, the Yamashita Brigade had suffered a total of more than 4,800 casualties, and now there are less than 3,000 people who can move. Fortunately, the reinforcements from Beiping had already reached the outskirts of Zhangjiakou, and now they were only blocked outside Zhangjiakou by the hateful Chinese army and could not enter. However, with the containment of this reinforcement army, which was not large in number but had strong combat effectiveness, the Shina army already had a tendency to retreat, and Yamashita Fengfu judged that as long as it held out for two to three days, the Shina army would retreat.

However, Yamashita knew that it was almost impossible to hold the position for three days with less than 3,000 remnants of troops in his hands in such a fierce attack. Therefore, Yamashita sent three rescue telegrams to General Terauchi Shouichi in one day, and Yamashita Fumimi made it clear to General Terauchi Shouichi that if a sufficient number of reinforcements could not arrive before the 27th, Zhangjiakou would not be guaranteed.

Yamashita Fengfumi's telegram was still very effective, and that night another wing of reinforcements came from the periphery of Zhangjiakou, which was a temporary combination of two infantry brigades and some directly subordinate units drawn from Zhulu and Laiyuan by Terauchi Shouichi. The number of people is not large, only about 2,600 people, although the weapons and equipment are very good, but the combat effectiveness is very limited.

On the night of July 27, the 1st Assault Brigade used the Yellow No. 1 Special Smoke against the defenders of Zhangjiakou, and the unsuspecting Yamashita Brigade had almost no resistance under the attack of the Special Smoke, and the city walls were all lost in just one hour, and Shen Yuquan led the troops into the city. The remnants of the Yamashita Brigade, under the leadership of the brigade commander, Major General Yamashita Fengwen, guarded the Zhangjiakou Garrison Headquarters and carried out the last stubborn resistance.

After Shen Yuquan's troops entered the city, in order to quickly clean up the remnants of the enemy in the city, they organized troops to attack the two devil wings on the periphery of Zhangjiakou. At the same time, Shen Yuquan ordered Yang Chengwu's troops to dismantle and transport the finances in Zhangjiakou City, especially the large amount of weapons, equipment and food materials seized.

For a time, a strange phenomenon appeared in Zhangjiakou, the Eighth Route Army, which had the upper hand, was busy retreating, and hundreds of military vehicles and mule and horse-drawn carts drove out of Zhangjiakou City overnight and drove towards Zhangbei County. The Yue army, which was originally at an absolute disadvantage, attacked without dying, and even used the chariot troops surnamed Zhenruo.

Shen Yuquan looked at the inconspicuous place of the Zhangjiakou Garrison Headquarters and was worried, he originally thought that after the troops entered the city, a small garrison headquarters would not be able to be captured. If you don't act, you can just use field heavy artillery, this is what Shen Yuquan thought when he entered the city. However, after entering the city, he found that this inconspicuous garrison command was not simple, and it was useless to use mortars from the beginning to even field heavy artillery. The garrison headquarters in Zhangjiakou was simply a group of pillboxes, and the soldiers' repeated charges were repulsed, and the losses were very heavy.

In fact, there is one thing that Shen Yuquan guessed correctly, this garrison headquarters used to be really a bunker group, which was built after Yamashita Fengwen garrisoned Zhangjiakou, which was specially used to store special cigarettes and personal belongings. At the same time, it is also the last refuge and air-raid shelter of Yamashita Fengwen, the entire garrison headquarters is composed of more than 30 reinforced concrete houses and more than 60 ordinary houses, ordinary houses are good to say, a few mortar shells will become ruins, but those room-type bunkers supervised by Yamashita Fengwen himself are not able to be breached in a short time, and even if they are breached, the gains outweigh the losses.

After Shen Yuquan asked how many devils had fled into the garrison headquarters, he decisively ordered the soldiers to stop the attack, leaving only an infantry battalion to besiege the garrison headquarters, so as not to let these lucky surviving devils come out and cause chaos.

On July 28, with the full cooperation of all units of the Inner Mongolia Military Region, the army in eastern Hebei retreated on all fronts and returned to Zhangjiakou. The number of Kwantung Army troops entering the pass also increased from 35,000 to 46,000, and an infantry brigade was added. The southward objective of the Kwantung Army was also changed from encircling and annihilating the main force of the Inner Mongolia Military Region led by Han Yunhua, commander of the Inner Mongolia Military Region, to expelling the anti-Japanese armed forces from eastern Hebei.

At around 5 a.m. on July 26, the 2nd Division, the 1st Mixed Brigade, and the Mukden Garrison Brigade of the Kwantung Army entered the pass by train under the leadership of Lieutenant General Hideki Tojo, chief of staff of the Kwantung Army. On the 27th, he arrived at Qinhuangdao at 3 o'clock in the morning, and after resting in Qinhuangdao for 3 hours, Lieutenant General Tojo Hideki commanded the troops to clean up the chaos in eastern Hebei, he knew that there was no main combat force of the Eighth Route Army in eastern Hebei, and before going south to eastern Hebei, Tojo Hideki asked Tegaoke to secretly conduct a rough investigation, and learned that there was no regular army of the National Axe of China in the eastern Hebei region, and the main combat force of the Eighth Route Army only had an unknown number of fourth columns, although Han Yunhua's armed forces in eastern Hebei were still very strong, According to the intelligence personnel of the special high-tech department, Han Yunhua still has at least more than 40,000 elite troops in his hands, but his main force is still in the Chengde area, and he will not be able to reach Qinhuangdao in a short time. Therefore, Lieutenant General Hideki Tojo divided the troops into five attack detachments and an emergency reserve, each of which consisted of an infantry wing, a cavalry wing, and an artillery squadron, with a strength of about 6,000 men. The rest of the troops, numbering about 18,000 people, were led by Hideki Tojo himself and formed the Emergency Reserve Corps.

It is said that with the combat effectiveness of the Kwantung Army and the nearly 50,000 elites who fought against Han Yunhua's troops, it is really difficult to say whether they will win or lose, and the Kwantung Army is not only strong in combat, but also an energetic armed force. The troops led by Han Yunhua were tired divisions of long-term battles, and their mental state was far inferior to the various units of the Kwantung Army. It can be said that in a duel with the Kwantung Army, Han Yunhua's department does not have any advantage. However, the main task of the Kwantung Army now is to guard against the red giant in the north, and the battle of Nomenkan has completely destroyed the confidence of the top leaders of the Empire, and the vast majority of the generals in the army are very taboo to talk about the Soviet Union, but the threat of the Soviet Union really exists, and it is also a direct threat to the "Manchukuo" that no one else can touch in his heart, so the responsibility of the Kwantung Army is heavy.

It is precisely because of this that the Kwantung Army did not dare to enter the customs for too long, and if the Soviet Union killed from behind when the Kwantung Army entered the customs, the consequences would be serious. Although the Soviet Union said that the two countries had just signed some military agreements, everyone knew about the relationship between China and the Soviet Union, although they did not dare to say that the Soviet Union would not attack the Soviet Union from behind.

The Kwantung Army could not and did not dare to spend too long with Han Yunhua, so from Lieutenant General Commander Hideki Tojo to ordinary soldiers knew that a quick battle was the king, and it was the best way they could fight this time to attack Jidong.

In just two days, under the powerful offensive of the Kwantung Army's Fifth Route Army, most of the rebel troops in Funing, Changli, Leting and other places were annihilated, and the rest fled to the mountains to fight guerrillas. In order to find out the extent of the combat effectiveness of the Kwantung Army, the deputy chief of staff of the left ordered the fourth column to gather heavy troops and fight a positional offensive and defensive battle with devils in the Lulong area.

As a result of this battle, the Fourth Column, which had an absolute superiority, lost more than 2,300 men within three hours of the battle, while the Kwantung Army was only killed or wounded more than 500 people, and finally the Fourth Column had no choice but to retreat.

In view of this, the left deputy chief of staff had no choice but to order the rebel armies in eastern Hebei to withdraw from the battle under alternate cover, quickly withdraw to the area of Chengde, and join up with the troops of the Inner Mongolia Military Region under Commander Han Yunhua.

The Kwantung Army was not familiar with the terrain of eastern Hebei, as long as it did not fight a positional offensive and defensive battle, the combat effectiveness of the Kwantung Army would be difficult to reflect, with the full cooperation of all troops, most of the troops of the uprising in eastern Hebei withdrew to Chengde, and only a small part was defeated or captured by the Kwantung Army, including Gao Zhiyuan and some of the troops led by him.

After the deputy chief of staff arrived in Chengde, he immediately brought Deng Hua, Song Shilun, Li Yunchang and others to meet Han Yunhua. Because there were too many troops rushing to converge, Han Yunhua, the de facto controller of Chengde City, had to come out and arrange these Eighth Route Army, guerrillas, escorts, rescuers and other rebel troops. Therefore, when Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo arrived in Chengde, Han Yunhua did not go to greet him, but sent Li Dingguo to lead the Feilong Special Operations Squadron to Chengde County to wait early, and the Feilong Special Operations Team escorted them all the way to Chengde.

At half past eight o'clock that night, Han Yunhua finally met with the deputy chief of staff of the left, and as soon as he met, the deputy chief of staff gave Han Yunhua a warm hug, and said loudly: "Comrade Yunhua, you have worked hard, without you here, the people of eastern Hebei would not have achieved such brilliant results in the armed uprising." ”

Han Yunhua gave a military salute to the deputy chief of staff of the left and said: "This is what all the commanders and fighters have exchanged for their lives and blood, and Yunhua does not dare to be greedy for merit." Chief of Staff, please come with me to the conference room......."

In the conference room, Han Yunhua, Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo, Li Dingguo, Deng Hua, Song Shilun, Li Yunchang and others sat down around a luxurious conference table. First of all, Han Yunhua got up and said: "Chiefs, comrades, comrades-in-arms: after a month of hard fighting, our Eighth Route Army fought to the death with hundreds of thousands of devils in eastern Jidong, Chahar, and Suiyuan for a month. In the past month or so, we have achieved brilliant results and dealt a severe blow to the arrogance of imperialism. It not only killed and injured a large number of devils, but also destroyed the ruling power of devils in the northern part of the country, and seriously shook the foundation of the puppet rule in eastern Hebei. At the same time, we have inflicted huge losses on the economy of the areas ruled by the Japanese army, and more importantly, we have recovered the provincial capitals of Suiyuan and Rehe provinces in the nearly month-long battle, and two days ago Comrade Shen Yuquan, political commissar of the Inner Mongolia Military Region, commanded the remaining troops of the Inner Mongolia Military Region to recover Zhangjikou City, the provincial capital of Chahar Province. ”

Before Han Yunhua's words were finished, warm applause was remembered in the conference room. As soon as the applause stopped, Han Yunhua continued: "Comrades, although we have achieved a lot of results, which can be said to be an unprecedented victory for our Eighth Route Army, our losses are also heavy. At present, the specific casualties of the troops have not yet been counted, but I think they will definitely not be smaller than the army. At present, our situation is still quite grim, and now I would like to invite Deputy Chief of Staff Left to speak for us. ”

In a burst of warm applause, Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo stood up and said: "Comrades: The reason why the people's armed uprising in eastern Hebei has achieved such brilliant results is that the vast number of commanders and fighters are not afraid of sacrifice or bloodshed, and after paying a heavy price, it is the result of the efforts of the entire Eighth Route Army. In addition, we must also remember the soldiers of the Inner Mongolia Military Region, who attracted more than 100,000 puppet troops with their flesh and blood, and who built a great wall of steel around us with their flesh and blood. Comrades, we must not forget the merits of Comrade Han Yunhua, who alone and without any support from his superiors, created a large number of people's armed forces with super combat effectiveness for our Eighth Route Army. Just as Comrade Han Yunhua said, the situation we are facing now is still very grim. First of all, we will face the military pressure of more than 50,000 troops of the Kwantung Army, the most elite of the imperialist army, and although we are confident that we will fight to the death with the Kwantung Army, even if we win the final victory, there will not be many people left, and the gains will outweigh the losses. I have already sent a telegram to the head of the General Headquarters before that, and Commander-in-Chief Zhu has agreed that our insurrectionary troops in eastern Hebei and the troops of the Inner Mongolia Military Region led by Comrade Han Yunhua should withdraw to the Chahar region, and that a huge anti-Japanese base area should be established where it will span the five provinces of Chahar, Suiyuan, Shanxi, Hebei, and Rehe. ”

As soon as Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo finished speaking, the conference room remembered warm applause, this news is really exciting, and there are many anti-Japanese base areas. But the people in the conference room were all senior officers of the Eighth Route Army, so they all knew that this so-called anti-Japanese base area spanning five provinces was actually a kingdom of reading power exclusive to [***], another Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningbo border region.

Li Yunchang said with some concern: "Let's go, what about the people in Jidong, will the devils let them go?" With a surname that is not as good as a beast like a devil, I'm afraid that when we come back, there won't be a few people left on the Jidong Plain. ”

As a matter of fact, the problem that Li Yunchang was worried about was also the concern of the deputy chief of staff of the left, and when he telegraphed to the leaders of the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, the deputy chief of staff of the left also thought of this problem, but the leaders of the headquarters had nothing to do. Now it is impossible to fight anymore, and if it fights again, I am afraid that it will guide all the main forces of the army to the side of the Eighth Route Army. However, the devil's revenge psychology is very serious, after the Eighth Route Army leaves, he will definitely not let go of the people in eastern Hebei, and the devil's behavior is not restricted by the Eighth Route Army, so the head of the headquarters has no good way.

However, Han Yunhua was not worried, he stood up and said with a smile: "Don't worry, in fact, this is also very easy to solve, as long as we destroy all the things that can be destroyed in Jidong, then the people of Jidong will not be in any danger, at least there will be no tragedies such as slaughtering villages and exterminating clans." ”

Li Dingguo said curiously: "Commander, why is this? It stands to reason that the worse we destroy, the devil should also hate us, and when the time comes, the retaliation will definitely intensify, how can it make the people safer? ”

This time, Han Yunhua didn't speak, but Li Yunchang on the side said: "Hehehe, your commander is a great talent, no, it should be said that he is an out-and-out ghost talent." You can think of such a solution, hey! The devil was unlucky when he met him. The place where we are standing now still belongs to the hinterland of the Yue Army, especially Chengde, which is the capital city of Rehe Province. So as long as we destroy this place to a certain extent, even if the devil is angry, we have to find someone to rebuild, and after this battle, the production of Jidong has been destroyed in a mess, since the devil wants to use this as his rear base, then we can't let the economy of Jidong be exhausted like this. At that time, the army will definitely resume production and rebuild cities and military installations. In that case, it will definitely require a lot of people, or rather, a lot of labor. Where do the laborers come from, it's not that the Chinese people are being transferred, since this is the case, the lives of the ordinary people in eastern Hebei will be guaranteed, and the devil will not let these free laborers be wasted like this. ”

Li Dingguo said with deep feelings: "In this way, the people of eastern Hebei can't die, but it's definitely not easy." In the eyes of the Chinese laborers, there is no big animal of value, and it can be said that being a laborer is almost a lifeless thing! ”

"Hehehe! Dingguo, we are only a temporary retreat, and it is not that we will never come back, when we withdraw, I will leave a small army to persist in the struggle in eastern Hebei, and when the rumors pass, I will also lead a large army back, and then his North China Front Army will not be a kitten or two can send me away. It won't be long before our troops will return to eastern Hebei, and then the common people will be saved. Han Yunhua said.

Deputy Chief of Staff Zuo also said: "Now it can only be like this, I hope the people can forgive us." Let's not talk about this, Yunhua, tell me how we should retreat? Yesterday, Commander-in-Chief Zhu specifically told me to listen to your opinions on major military affairs. ”

"Commander-in-Chief Zhu has promoted me, but since the chief asked me to talk about it, then I will tell me my opinion! In my opinion, we should let the convoys carrying supplies go first, the auxiliary units such as artillery second, the infantry again, and the cavalry, which has a better mobile surname, will retreat last. In the end, it is necessary to leave a part of the elite troops to persist in leading the anti-Japanese cause in eastern Hebei, and everyone thinks that it will not work. Let's talk about any opinions, and we will take their own advantages from them and formulate a suitable retreat plan. Han Yunhua said loudly.

After discussing for a long time, it was finally decided that the retreat plan proposed by Han Yunhua would be the main one, supplemented by some opinions added by others, and then a complete combat plan would be synthesized together, and Han Yunhua was authorized to command this retreat with full authority.

(To be continued)