The Ministry of Defense in Nanjing, Lao Jiang held the battle report of the Jiangyin fortress in his hand, and he could hardly believe the facts in front of him. A special combat team of 300 people eliminated 300 Japanese soldiers. Not only did they recapture the Jiangyin Fortress, but they also succeeded in blockading the Jiangyin Fortress. What's even more unbelievable is that this special combat team actually sank 8 Japanese warships and 7 cargo ships. Such an impressive result was not achieved in a day. When Lao Jiang was sighing, an operational staff officer ran over to report.

"Report, the chief of the general staff of the 18th Route Army, Ouyang, called: Judging that the enemy warships that did not escape should implement the jade crushing tactic, and the Japanese marines stationed along the river should escape from the road! The focus is on the Jiangbei region. He Yingqin said: "President, General Ouyang's judgment is consistent with that of the General Staff Headquarters. The Admiralty has been ordered to prevent the Japanese warships from dying and dying together. In addition, a telegram has been sent to the provincial guard units to make every effort to prevent the Japanese marines from escaping. ”

At this time, Lao Jiang was silent, in fact, he regretted a little in his heart, why he didn't transfer Ouyang Jian to the Ministry of Defense in the first place, but he couldn't say this to anyone. "If the more than 7,000 Japanese troops distributed along the line can be eliminated, it will be extremely beneficial to the situation of the national anti-Japanese war, and at the same time, it will also be a heavy blow to the Japanese army. In particular, it can play a key role in delaying the Japanese offensive. "It is necessary to strictly order the provinces along the river not to let go of a single Japanese soldier." Old Jiang said majestically.

"President, the Eighth Route Army is strong, and the 5th Army, 15th and 16th Divisions of the Eighth Route Army on the border of Fujian and Zhejiang have been assembled and standby, and the General Staff Headquarters recommends replacing the defense of Hangzhou, and the Hangzhou troops will be transferred to the Songhu area." He Yingqin said. Lao Jiang pondered for a while and said: "The troops defending Hangzhou cannot move, and ordered the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army to instruct the 15th and 16th divisions to deploy in Tongxiang City, northeast of Hangzhou. "He Yingqin immediately understood the meaning, this is to let the Eighth Route Army act as the first line of defense in Hangzhou."

"Report, from Hukou, eight warships led by the Yaeyama, the flagship of the Yangtze River Fleet of the Japanese Navy, have been successfully intercepted, and fierce battles are currently breaking out." "We must completely annihilate the Japanese fleet," Lao Jiang was shocked when he heard this. "Report, two Japanese gunboats and one battleship, shelling Zhangjiagang." "President, obviously this is an act of retaliation by the Japanese army, and I think the Battle of Songhu should be acted in advance." He Yingqin suggested. Lao Jiang had no objection, and He Yingqin immediately ordered Zhang Zhizhong, the commander of the 9th Army, to give instructions to launch an attack and destroy all Japanese troops in the Songhu area.

In the headquarters of the 3rd Corps of the Eighth Route Army in Jiujiang, Jiangxi, Ouyang Jian, Su Yu, Luo Ronghuan, and He Long looked at the military map. At this time, an operational staff officer came in to report: "Report, the headquarters has called, ordering the 15th and 16th divisions of our department to enter Zhejiang and deploy defenses in Tongxiang City, northeast of Hangzhou. Political Commissar Luo Ronghuan handed the telegram to Ouyang Jian, but Ouyang Jian did not answer: "Deputy Commander Su, give an order!" "Order the commander of the 5th Army, Xiao Ke, and the chief of staff, Zhang Shiying, to immediately lead the 15th and 16th divisions to quickly enter Zhejiang and deploy defenses on the front line of Tongxiang.

At this time, Ouyang Jian breathed a sigh of relief after receiving the order from the headquarters, changed the B plan of action, captured the Jiangyin fortress, and intercepted and shelled the Japanese warships, the purpose was to make Lao Jiang have no hesitation. The Ministry of National Defense ordered the 15th and 16th Divisions of the Eighth Route Army to enter Zhejiang for defense, which was exactly the result that Ouyang Jian was looking forward to. This has created the conditions for the next step of rapid dispatch of troops to Hangzhou Bay. As for whether he can change the outcome of the Battle of Songhu, Ouyang Jian knows in his heart that the overall battle situation will not change.

The reason is that the Japanese army will invest more troops, and although the various units of the Central Army have strengthened their strength compared with their original history, the Japanese army has made targeted and careful deployments. The overall strength of the Japanese army is still extremely strong, especially the detention of Japanese expatriates, the elimination of the Japanese Yangtze River fleet and the Japanese marines along the river, the Japanese attack will be even more crazy. Ouyang Jian's purpose was to destroy a large number of the Japanese army's living forces, and the Japanese army must be made to pay the price of blood. Even if you fight for your life, you have to achieve this goal.

At that time, the secret army will be sent to Hangzhou Bay, what will be the ending? Ouyang Jian couldn't judge whether he could minimize the loss, which was also another purpose of Ouyang Jian. There is another question: Ouyang Jian must think about it: If China's anti-Japanese battlefield changes the original pattern and makes the Japanese army pay a heavy price, and the Japanese government is bound to change its strategy, then there will definitely be changes between Japan and the Soviet Union, which may lead to the signing of a non-aggression pact between Japan and the Soviet Union ahead of schedule. If such a change occurs, perhaps next year's Zhang Gufeng incident will not be staged.

Ouyang Jian knew in his heart that this was the butterfly effect. And the lifting of the threat from the east was completely acceptable to Soviet Russia. If such a change occurs, the Japanese army will send more Kwantung Army to fight south. The situation on the battlefield of China's resistance against Japan is still brutal, and this will not change. Therefore, Ouyang Jian must think about the problem from a strategic height, which is his responsibility. Seeing that Ouyang Jian was silent, Su Yu asked, "Chief of the General Staff, the order has been issued, what else do you have to order!" ”

Ouyang Jian sobered up from his contemplation and said: "Order Xiao Ke and Zhang Shiying, after the troops arrive in Tongxiang, they will be on standby on the spot, no need to build field fortifications, and mobile combat at any time!" Su Yu said keenly: "Chief of General Staff, you are worried about Hangzhou Bay. "Yes, we must have a prejudgment to prevent the Japanese army from launching a landing operation in Hangzhou Bay." "Is it so difficult that the Ministry of Defense is not strategically prepared?" "I've always had doubts about the military deployment of the Ministry of Defense, and even if the Ministry of Defense has a thorough deployment, problems will still occur."

"The various departments of the Central Army, including miscellaneous units, are weak in carrying combat capabilities. If a situation is formed, the Japanese army will break it individually, and this is what I am worried about. Originally, the strategic plan formulated by the Ministry of National Defense was to attract the Japanese army to change the offensive route from south to north, so it was unknown whether the Songhu Battle could be held. We have no right to interfere with the strategic deployment of the Ministry of Defense, and we can only do so to close the loopholes. "I understand, all our preparations are for sending troops to Hangzhou Bay!"

"Report! Li Dabao led his troops into Jiangbei, please instruct! "Order Li Dabao to assist all localities along the river to strangle the retreating Japanese troops." "Chief of the General Staff, Li Dabao's naval special operations team, the losses have reached one-third, do you want them to take a break?" Political Commissar Luo Ronghuan said distressedly. "Now is a critical time for them to develop the spirit of continuous fighting. There is a political factor here, and the headquarters also means this, the purpose is to inspire the people and awaken the people's determination to resist Japan. ”

"Report, Mu Shixiong, the captain of the special combat team, called, and the headquarters has been assembled in Wuhan." He ordered Mu Shixiong to rob and kill the Japanese army in the Jiangbei area, destroy the target on the spot, and never let go of a Japanese soldier. "An operational staff officer was given the order to go. At this time, another operational staff officer walked in with a telegram in his hand and reported: "Report, the latest news has come from Hukou, more than 20 warships of the 1st and 2nd fleets of the Navy with the Zhongshan ship as the flagship have launched a hunt against 8 Japanese warships. According to the statistics of our observation posts, 4 Japanese gunboats were sunk, and 4 battleships led by the flagship Yaeyama sank by themselves. ”

The combat staff officer continued: "The Yat-sen ship and the health ship were sunk by Japanese artillery fire, and five warships including the Zhongshan ship were heavily damaged. "More than 20 warships, hunting 8 Japanese ships, actually fought like this. It's incredible. He Long was a little dismissive. Ouyang Jian said: "This is already good, the Japanese navy is well-trained and has strong combat power." I conclude that if the Japanese warships had not run out of ammunition, we would have suffered even greater losses. The trapped beast is still fighting, and the Japanese warships have no way to retreat, so they naturally have to implement the jade crushing tactic. I have reminded the Ministry of Defense, but to no avail. ”

"It must have been the Admiralty's meritorious work, and the result was self-defeating," Su Yu analyzed. "Report, the vanguard of the 19th Group Army is heading north along the Gan River and has reached Nanchang!" "We must treat each other with courtesy. We went to Xingzi County to greet the guests. I want to talk to Chen Cheng, his unit belongs to the civil engineering department, and he has some experience in defense. But in the face of the Japanese army, there must be new means of defense, and I want to communicate with him. ”

The moon is dark and the stars are dark, and a cargo ship is docked in the north of the river. This cargo ship is specially assigned to Li Dabao's naval special combat team, and there is a radio on board to keep in touch with Li Dabao at any time. The ships carried weapons, ammunition, and supplies used by the special combat team, and the cargo ships were always cruising on the river, providing logistical replenishment to the naval special operations team at any time. The special operators slept in the battery for a few hours before boarding the freighter and heading up the river.

The team members slept soundly on the boat and went ashore in Zhenjiang after dark. In the dark, Li Dabao and the brothers stepped onto the dock. In order to avoid misunderstanding, they all changed into military uniforms on the ship, and the ghostly light of the dark steel helmet shining in the dark night showed the naval special combat team

Tough. A national army commander stationed in Zhenjiang stood on the dock to greet him at this moment. Li Dabao's military rank is also colonel, and the two saluted each other on the pier.

The commander of the National Army received the upper hand order and was responsible for receiving the Eighth Route Army's naval special combat team. This devil's unit, which took the Jiangyin Fort, wiped out three squadrons of Japanese troops with the same strength, and then shelled the Japanese warships and achieved brilliant results, naturally made the commander of the national army dare not slack off. Li Dabao was arranged by the commander of the National Army at the regiment headquarters, and held a banquet to wash the dust for him. But Li Dabao did not give face to the commander of the national army.

"A certain regiment commander, I'm really sorry, my unit is here to fight. Meals and drinks are free, and the soldiers are fast, and I need to know about the escape of the Japanese army. The commander of the national army was a little embarrassed and said: "Your unit is worthy of being a capable army, and I am deeply admired. According to the report from Shangfeng, about two squadrons of Japanese troops went ashore at Yizheng, and our troops have begun to search, and no trace of Japanese troops has been found so far. Li Dabao glanced at the map and said: "This Japanese army will not flee to the north, but will definitely flee to the east." We're sorry to leave tonight after dinner! ”

"Captain Li, brother, I'm not a bad breed, it's okay to deal with just 200 devils, please Captain Li just calm down and rest tonight!" "Then it's better to be respectful than to obey your fate, brother, I thank you." Returning to the resting place, Li Dabao ordered to secretly go out of the city in the middle of the night, because he knew in his heart that the commander of the national army was a little overbearing, and his search force was scattered, and it was very likely to let go of this Japanese army!