The Shanhaiguan front launched an offensive for five consecutive days, but there was no improvement. Wei Lihuang, commander of the 8th Corps, was in a very depressed mood, and before the start of the Shanhaiguan Campaign, his heart was blocked since he returned from the Beiping Joint Operations Military Conference. I thought that the march to the northeast would be hearty, but the joint command strictly stipulated the battle loss rate, and it had to report to the Beiping headquarters every day. The point is that there is no date for breaking through the first line of Shanhaiguan, which is simply incredible.

The cannon roared ahead, and from time to time warplanes flew through the sky, emitting a piercing whistling sound. At present, each division of the Wei Lihuang Division has an artillery regiment, and the scene of the attack is not spectacular. In the past, artillery shells were strictly managed, but in this Shanhaiguan Campaign, the headquarters demanded that firepower be supreme and ensure that the supply of ammunition was met. Once upon a time, combat became such a luxury. In this way, the attacking troops were relied upon, and when the attack was slightly difficult, they called for artillery support.

The generals under his command seemed to be aware of this tactic, so they intensified it. Since there was no time limit for breaking through the Shanhaiguan defense line, Wei Lihuang, including senior generals, had no pressure at all, and the generals below naturally knew it, so they gave full play to their "advantages" even better. On the first day of the war, Lao Jiang personally sent him a report, telling him to have a sense of the overall situation and not to make claims without authorization. During the war, the atmosphere in the headquarters should have been tense, but on the contrary, the various officers and staff were very idle.

Wei Lihuang was too lazy to command the battle, so he hid in the next room and drank alcohol. Wei Lihuang's department was responsible for the first-line attack from Jiangangling to the Liujiakou Great Wall, and the attack area was 70 kilometers wide. It cannot but be said that the Great Wall relies on the mountain trend to form a barrier, although the attack area is as long as 70 kilometers, but the only places suitable for breakthrough are Jiangang Ridge, Wangjiagou, Qingfengkou, Wujiagou, Wutongyu, Xiugezhuang, Liujiakou, a total of 7 breakthrough points. The headquarters demanded that the offensive should be vigorous and that it must launch an offensive on all fronts.

Wei Lihuang listened to the radio while drinking alcohol, "・・・・・・, my heroic **** soldiers, fighting bloody battles in the face of the Japanese army's strong defense line, are steadily advancing. The Japanese defense line was riddled with holes and was dying. I ・・・・・・ the Corps of the Western Front. Wei Lihuang turned off the switch angrily, and he didn't blush when he bragged, which made him feel embarrassed. At this time, the chief of staff walked in with some embarrassment: "Commander! Ouyang Feng, the commander of the 12th Army, wants to see you! It seems that there is a lot of anger! "Let him in!" "Report to the commander, this kind of battle can't be fought, and now it's turned into using artillery fire to open the way, what kind of tactics is this?"

Ouyang Feng threw his hat on the table, as a favorite general under his command, the 12th Army under Ouyang Feng's command was the most elite unit under Wei Lihuang. Due to the special relationship, the weapons and equipment of the 12th Army are also the best, and it is also the offensive and defensive unit of the 8th Corps. After all, Ouyang Feng and Ouyang Jian are brothers, and many of his lower-level officers have been trained for about a year at the Jiangxi Military School, so the combat style of the 12th Army is similar to that of the Eighth Route Army.

"Commander, I don't understand, yesterday our troops took high ground 132, why did we stop the attack?" Ouyang Feng continued to question. "Commander Ouyang, don't be impatient, I can understand your feelings, but as a soldier, you must obey orders and have a sense of the overall situation, I can only tell you this." "Commander Ouyang, the commander is not in a good mood, don't put pressure on him anymore!" The chief of staff persuaded. Ouyang Feng seemed to calm down, raised his hand and saluted and left.

At this time, the phone rang, and the chief of staff picked up the phone and answered, "Commander, it's Chen Cheng's phone." "Brother Junru, how about a hard time!" "It's a pleasure to hear you!" "You are asking for trouble, not seeking merit, but seeking no fault, soldiers take obedience to orders as their duty, why should they not get along with themselves!" "I've tried to think about it too, but I'm still torn it." "Brother Junru, Bai Chongxi is also in trouble, I heard from the operational staff officer of the headquarters that the Japanese army deliberately abandoned the beachhead."

"So Bai Chongxi is stuck in the second position?" Not only that, the Japanese army stubbornly defended in the urban area of Dalian, and a brutal street battle was inevitable. The headquarters strictly demanded that heavy weapons should not be used in the urban area, and Bai Chongxi was in serious trouble・・・・・・・ Wei Lihuang put down the phone and said in a slightly better mood: "Chief of Staff, the offensive on the Eastern Front has been blocked, and street battles have broken out in Dalian City. In particular, the intelligence of the headquarters is not accurate, and the defensive strength of the Japanese army in Liaodong Bay is 14 divisions! ”

"Commander, Chen Cheng is Lao Jiang's henchman, and he is secretly delivering news to you. Obviously, the headquarters had foreseen why we bothered ourselves. Since there are all kinds of shells at headquarters, why don't we do it. I suggested that all artillery regiments under my command take turns to go into battle, and this is a rare opportunity for actual combat training. "Good idea, you go and arrange it!" In fact, Wei Lihuang did not know that the Americans strongly supported Lao Chiang's strategy of monopolizing the northeast, not counting other military supplies, only provided 3 million rounds of artillery shells of various calibers, and they were directly sent to Dalian and Qinhuangdao by sea.

In late September, in the headquarters of the 1st Corps of the Eighth Route Army, Chief of Staff Peng Xuelan was dissatisfied: "Commander Su and Political Commissar Luo, the first line of Shanhaiguan launched an offensive for 10 days, but there was no progress. However, every day the war report reports that the annihilation of the Japanese army is more or less, isn't this self-deception? "Not necessarily!" Su Yu continued: "According to the reaction of the military observation team we sent to Wei Lihuang's department, the artillery regiment of Wei Lihuang's department took turns to fight, and almost the artillery fire never stopped. ”

Political Commissar Luo Ronghuan continued: "The forward troops attack, and the Japanese soldiers must enter the trenches. In the case of constant shelling, the Japanese army will definitely pay the corresponding price. In addition, Lao Chiang put the only flying regiment into operation, and took off hundreds of sorties from Nanyuan Airport every day. According to the information obtained by the General Headquarters, US military aid is directly delivered to the battlefield by sea, so the number of enemy annihilations reported every day is basically credible, and this is the US military's tactics of supremacy of firepower. ”

"Aside from other factors, Lao Chiang's use of this tactic is very applicable. It can not only avoid the battle loss rate, but also destroy the Japanese army in large numbers. With the support of the big bosses in the United States, why not do that? However, Bai Chongxi fought in the streets of Dalian, and it was impossible to avoid tragedy. As we judged before the war, it was a foregone conclusion that the attack would be blocked or even scorched! "Commander Su, why didn't the headquarters react at all, what are the plans?" Chief of Staff Peng Xuelan was confused.

"I can't figure out the intentions of the headquarters, we have two major corps, one is trapped in Taipei, and the other is in Tianjin. At first, I guessed that it was to use troops on the Korean Peninsula, but it is difficult to say that the war situation has developed until now, and it is even more difficult to guess that we are trapped in Tianjin. If it is to support Outer Mongolia, we should be transferred to Zhangjiakou now, but there is no such indication, and to be honest, I can't guess the intentions of the headquarters. "Report! HQ Cipher! A combat staff officer reported.

Su Yu took the telegram and checked it and handed it to political commissar Luo Ronghuan, who read it and handed it to Chief of Staff Peng Xuelan. "Commander Su, the headquarters has informed that a newly formed medium tank regiment has been secretly installed in the west and transported to Xuzhou through the Longhai Railway. The headquarters ordered this tank regiment to be under the command of our department and asked it to be on standby in Xuzhou. What does this mean, the front line of Shanhaiguan is not suitable for armored troops to fight, and it is difficult for our department to assist Bai Chongxi's department in combat? Peng Xuelan was slightly surprised.

"If you assist Bai Chongxi in the battle, it is reasonable that the tank regiment should be transported to Tanggu Port in Tianjin, and I don't understand what it means to be on standby in Xuzhou." Su Yu shrugged his shoulders helplessly, indicating helplessness. "Alright, you two don't have to guess. In short, isn't it good news that our regiment is equipped with a new tank regiment? I heard that the strike power of the new tank is very terrifying, and the turret is equipped with an anti-aircraft machine gun and a night vision device, but I have not seen a new tank. Chief of Staff, you personally went to Xuzhou to receive the tank regiment. ”

Although the Dalian landing operation was successful, the landing force was blocked by the Japanese army's second-line position. Although the landing force was deployed along the coastline, the Japanese 2nd line position was heavily defended. In particular, in the offensive and defensive operations in the urban area of Dalian, because heavy weapons could not be used, the US naval artillery could not effectively support them, so the street fighting was very fierce. The Japanese were well prepared and committed a division of troops in the city, so the street fighting began to be a bitter battle.

In order to boost morale, Bai Chongxi led his headquarters ashore and put the 22nd Army, which was carefully trained and good at urban attack and defense, into battle. Street fighting is difficult to fight, and it has been fully verified on the battlefield. Even though the 22nd Army under Bai Chongxi was specially tailored for street fighting, the Japanese defending troops were not dry, and it was obvious that the Japanese divisions defending the northern part of the city had also been specially trained. After 10 days of fierce street fighting, the attacking troops captured one-fifth of the city.

The atmosphere in the headquarters was very tense, and Bai Chongxi said: "Order the 22nd Army to put another brigade of troops into it tonight." Now we are riding a tiger and it is difficult to take it, and only by capturing the city of Dalian can we form a strong offensive. "Commander, sure enough, you are right, Okamura Ningji's purpose is to fight street battles in the urban area of Dalian, and this move is very clever." "Report, the commander of the 62nd Division reported that the headquarters of the 184th Brigade of the Division was attacked by the Japanese special forces!" The crowd was amazed.