Yamaguchi Meizi looked up at General Binshan Yuan, and then said with a slightly ashamed face: "I'm sorry, Your Excellency Commander, I don't know the true movements of Han Yunhua's headquarters of the Eighth Route Army. Although our special high-tech department sent a large number of personnel to infiltrate the Inner Mongolia Military Region, there was not much information about Han collected, and Han seemed to have disappeared suddenly some time ago, and the Inner Mongolia Military Region suddenly lost his voice. Even our agents lurking around Mrs. Han confirmed that Mrs. Han had been in the hospital for the last four months and had not lived with Ms. Han, and that Mrs. Han had been pregnant for more than six months. After many investigations, we confirmed that Han seemed to have returned to Yan'an, the central seat of [***], to report on his work. In addition, a large part of our special high-tech energy during this period was occupied by the Eighth Route Army in Shanxi and the Chinese army in the area of Dongtiao Mountain, so we know very little about the actions of the Inner Mongolia Military Region, and I ask your Excellency the commander to forgive me. ”

Yamaguchi Meizi slowed down and said: "As for whether the Chinese army will have a decisive battle with our army in Qian'an, I can't make a definite judgment, but some time ago, the nail we placed in Han Yunhua's department sent back the news that he had already figured out the number of the Chinese army, and Han Yunhua's department claimed that there were two infantry divisions and an infantry brigade, and its total strength was claimed to be more than 50,000 people, but according to our intelligence officers' investigations, we learned that the number of troops directly controlled by Han Yunhua was not more than these. Its hidden strength is at least more than 50,000, which means that the middle [***] team must have at least more than 100,000 people. At the same time, some time ago, one of our maintenance presidents sent a telegram from Qian'an, which you just mentioned, saying that the Eighth Route Army had entangled a large part of the common people in China to build fortifications, and the number was extremely large, and the most conservative estimate should be 500,000. The Eighth Route Army secretly propagated that it was going to conduct a decisive battle with our army in Qian'an, and this information has been confirmed, so I personally think that it is very likely that the Chinese army and our army will fight to the death in eastern Hebei. ”

Senior General Binshan Yuan frowned and said: "Yamaguchi, I am very dissatisfied with the work of the special high-tech department recently, although Major General Sasaki Zhiyi believes in your ability and hands over the entire special high-tech department and military police units in North China to you to manage, so no matter what the reason, you should not ignore the intelligence of Han Yunhua's department." And as an intelligence worker, I don't want to hear uncertain words from your mouth, such as maybe, probably, probably, and estimated. You must know that the authenticity of your intelligence is an important basis for the Imperial Army to formulate a battle plan, and it can be said that the entire front army is revolving around your special high-tech department, and if something goes wrong on your side, then the entire front army will be chaotic. ”

"Hay! The humble officer understands that Yamaguchi feels extremely remorseful for his mistakes in the previous period, and asks His Excellency the Commander to punish him. In the next work, Yamaguchi will definitely devote 200% of his energy and do his best to serve the Imperial Army and His Majesty the Emperor, long live the Imperial Empire, long live His Majesty the Emperor! Umeko Yamaguchi said respectfully.

General Binshan Yuan squinted his eyes at Yamaguchi Meizi, and then waved his hand and said: "Yamaguchi, according to the news from the country, I may be transferred back to China soon, so I hope that the bandits in North China can be solved before I leave, so that I can also give an explanation to His Majesty the Emperor and the marshals in the country. ”

"Hay!"

In fact, although Yamaguchi Meizi didn't tell Binshanyuan very surely, what she said just now gave Binshanyuan a very strong hint. Although General Binyama was not satisfied with Yamaguchi's answer, he also heard what he wanted to know from her.

After Yamaguchi Umeko withdrew, General Binshan Yuan took a magnifying glass and walked to the huge military map hanging on the wall to carefully look at the terrain of eastern Hebei. In fact, General Binshan Yuan is already extremely familiar with the geography and terrain of eastern Ji, and he has been playing with Han Yunhua on this map for a long time, and the most important place in the game between them is eastern Ji. In Bin Shanyuan's view, eastern Hebei is actually a long and narrow arc area, although Han Yunhua's department occupies more than 75% of the land in eastern Hebei, but in eastern Hebei, Beiping and large counties in the coastal areas are still under the control of the army, including Qinhuangdao and Tangshan, which are of great strategic significance.

According to the original battle plan of General Binshan Yuan, after the two sides started the war, the North China Front took the Yamashita Division and the 20th Division as the attack group, focusing on attacking the Zhangbei, Wanquan, Huai'an, and Tianzhen lines that Han Yunhua's troops attached great importance to, forcing the main force of Han Yunhua's headquarters to fight a decisive battle with him in this area, and at the same time ordered the Gaomu Brigade of the First Army stationed in Shanxi, that is, the 39th Brigade of the former 20th Division, to set out from Datong in conjunction with other troops of the Army stationed in Shanxi to attack the Zhong[***] team in the Qingshuihe and Fengzhen areas to attract the Zhong[***] According to the calculation of the strength of 100,000 troops in the Inner Mongolia Military Region, Bin Shanyuan believed that if the Inner Mongolia Military Region wanted to withstand the attack of the Yue army in these two directions, these 100,000 people were barely enough. However, the strategic goal of General Binshanyuan is not the Suiyuan and Chahar regions, but the "least" garrison of Han Yunhua's troops in eastern Jidong, Binshanyuan intends to concentrate the remaining four divisions, two brigades, as well as the main forces of the second division and the fourth division after the start of the war, to take eastern Hebei with lightning speed.

However, he did not expect that Han Yunhua's troops would press such a big nail in Qian'an, so that if the North China Front Army did not take Qian'an, whether it was from Changli, Qinhuangdao or Tangshan, the troops would likely be threatened by the Central [***] team to cut off the back road. Judging from the combat effectiveness of the 21st Division, General Binshanyuan really did not have confidence that the 21st Division could withstand the front and rear attacks of Han Yunhua's elite troops.

In this way, Qian'an has become a bone stuck in the throat of the North China Front Army, and it is unpleasant to vomit in the throat, and there is even a danger of suffocation.

Although Qian'an is only a small place, and the county seat of Qian'an is only a small part of the size of a fart, the geographical location of Qian'an is extremely important. Qian'an is located in the eastern part of Hebei Province, at the southern foot of Yanshan Mountain, on the bank of the Luan River. It spans more than 40 kilometers from east to west and nearly 50 kilometers from north to south. It is a warm temperate zone and a semi-humid monsoon climate.

As early as 35 years, the army began to focus on the construction of the colonial system in eastern Hebei, and Qian'an, located between Chengde and Tangshan, was also an important part of the army's colonization of North China.

Moreover, in the past few years when the army occupied Qian'an, it had repeatedly forced nearby peasants to build fortifications, of which nearly 60 artillery towers were built alone, and such dense fortifications were extremely rare in eastern Hebei. Of course, the things that the army originally engaged in were all wedding dresses for others, and after Han Yunhua's department recovered most of eastern Hebei, he deeply felt that there was no strategic natural danger to rely on in eastern Hebei, and the terrain in eastern Hebei was particularly suitable for cavalry and mechanized troops to assault, so Han Yunhua was very worried about the safety of eastern Hebei. In particular, there is intelligence that the Japanese army appears to be forming new mechanized units in northeastern China.

The original plan of the Chinese army to form a mechanized unit in Baotou was forced to abort due to the sudden appearance of Han Yunhua, and not only did it lose a large number of high-quality officers and men, but also the equipment of an entire mechanized division and regiment fell into the hands of Han Yunhua's department, which suddenly pushed forward the weapons and equipment of Han Yunhua's department for a whole five years. It can be said that the army is in Baotou, which is to lose the wife and the soldiers, and it is very stumbling.

But in any case, the economic strength and industrialization level of the Yue Ben are far stronger than China, and the most important thing is that China has not been able to produce tanks and combat vehicles so far, and even some heavy artillery with a larger caliber cannot produce it on its own, so once the mechanized troops of the Yue Army are formed and their combat effectiveness is formed, then Han Yunhua's troops will be extremely threatened. As a far-sighted officer, Han Yunhua knew the power of it, which was equivalent to putting a sharp sword on the head of the Inner Mongolia Military Region that could fall at any time.

Han Yunhua was not a person who sat idly by, so after receiving the information that the army had formed a new mechanized division in the northeast, he immediately enriched the cavalry brigade of Aolige, and even equipped the cavalry brigade with two medium-caliber mortar battalions, which greatly strengthened the cavalry brigade's attack capability. At the same time, Han Yunhua upgraded Wan Guoquan's mechanized brigade and used all the resources of the military district in an inclined manner, which greatly improved the long-range combat capability of Wan Guoquan's mechanized brigade, and also organized mechanized brigades to conduct long-distance combat drills many times.

In addition, Han Yunhua transferred Li Dayong, who was able to fight well in the military region and could implement his orders 100%, to the eastern part of the country, and also ordered Li Dayong to build a buffer zone and a strong bridgehead in eastern Hebei at all costs. Han Yunhua's demand was that no matter how many troops were fought in other places, no matter how many troops the army came, and no matter what methods the army used, this bridgehead in eastern Hebei would absolutely not fall. Even if the entire Inner Mongolia Military Region was defeated by the Yue Army, this bridgehead must also be in the hands of the [***] team. Han Yunhua firmly believed that as long as there was such a stronghold in eastern Hebei, and then a force with strong combat ability and fierce fighting will was dispatched to defend it, the Yue army would never dare to go deep alone unscrupulously.

Therefore, based on Han Yunhua's strong request, Master Chen and Li Dayong spent nearly a year on site selection and construction, and some time ago, they even mobilized more than 700,000 people to help build it, and it took three months to finally build Qian'an into a complete and solid strategic fortress.

Not to mention that this really stumped Binshan Yuan, although the army had specially hoped that the [***] team would have a real head-to-head confrontation with the imperial army, in the past, even if the army lost a division, it was inexplicable, and when the high-level of the army reacted, they had already entered the sea and the tiger roared in the mountains and forests without a trace.

But right now, Han Yunhua's department is really good at picking a time and location, and General Binshan Yuan also knows that this is Han Yunhua's terrible place, don't you want to fight with me Han Yunhua with real swords and guns, then I'll have a big battle with you in Qian'an, don't you take a fancy to Chengde, I just want to place a heavy army in Qian'an, under the cover of strong fortifications, as long as the ammunition is sufficient, then even if the empire really takes Qian'an, the main force of Han Yunhua's department of the Eighth Route Army inside will suffer extremely heavy losses. Typical lose-lose.

However, Binshan Yuan thought that he had seen all this clearly, but unfortunately he himself was not able to change, he knew that he was now riding a tiger and was difficult to get down, and put on such a big formation, if he really retreated in Qian'an, a place that could not be regarded as a fortress, then he, the general in the army, could only go home to coax the child, and in desperation, Binshan Yuan could only be ruthless and take Qian'an City first.

Soon the reply from the North China Front Headquarters was placed on Lieutenant General Yoshio Shinozuka's desk, although it was now during the march and the war was only a military tent, but Lieutenant General Yoshio Shinozuka's headquarters was not at all as simple as the former enemy headquarters in eastern Hebei. In addition to the necessary maps, sand tables, and marching beds, Yoshio Shinozuka's headquarters also included hardcover sake that he had brought from Tokyo, flower arrangements, and a young and beautiful woman.

After reading the call back from the headquarters, Yoshio Shinozuka looked worried. He personally commanded the attacks of the past two days, and he was deeply shocked by the tenacity of the squadron. With that kind of death-defying momentum, let alone attacking the Chinese army entrenched in strong fortifications, even the price to be paid for attacking an ordinary line of defense is enormous.

However, seeing this order personally signed by His Excellency the commander below, Yoshio Shinozuka felt a wry smile and took Qian'an at all costs. Although Qian'an has a bad reputation, it is definitely a hard bone. However, the military has such an advantage, that is, once the order is given, they will rise to the occasion knowing that there are great difficulties, maybe this is the only thing that the army and the squadron have in common.

Now the highest rank on the eastern Hebei front is Yoshio Shinozuka, so he knows that if this battle does not achieve the expected goal, it will definitely not be General Binshan Yuan who will take responsibility.

"Ordered, the 33rd Infantry Brigade Regiment and the 10th Infantry Wing cooperated with the Artillery Wing to continue the attack on Li Jiaji, and the 39th Infantry Wing continued to attack Pig Brain Mountain. The 40th Wing of the 8th Infantry Brigade and the 4th Wing of the 2nd Division attacked the outer positions of Qian'an from the northeast. Tell Major General Setakehira and Major General Kei Seya that they only have three days, and if they still don't make progress in three days, let them explain it to His Excellency the Commander themselves. Yoshio Shinozuka gave orders in a cold voice to the newspaper soldier standing respectfully on the side.

After doing all this, Yoshio Shinozuka is still not at ease, after all, the combat effectiveness shown by the Inner Mongolia Military Region is stronger than when he was in Wuhan a year ago. And that momentum is far worse than any army of the National Political Axe, maybe only Wang Yaowu, Zhang Lingfu's 74th Army and Du Yuanming's Fifth Army can overwhelm this Eighth Route Army in terms of momentum. Therefore, Yoshio Shinozuka sent another telegram to the North China Front Headquarters, hoping that General Binshan Mototo could transfer Yanagi Shengjun's special combat team to eastern Hebei to coordinate the operation.

Senior General Binshan Mototo also knew that there was a lot of pressure on Yoshio Shinozuka's side, so he quickly agreed to put Yanagi Toshi's special combat team under the command of the 10th Division, but it was not the entire strength of the special combat team, but only one infantry squadron.

But even so, Yoshio Shinozuka was extremely happy. He knew the strength of the special combat team very clearly, and during the second battle of Wuhan some time ago, the North China Front sent the only two infantry squadrons of special operations units to the front line to fight with the 10th Division and the 109th Division. It was also during that battle that Yoshio Shinozuka saw what a real special operation is, to be honest, compared with the first Wuhan battle, the national political axe for the second Wuhan battle is still very sufficient, both the number and quality of troops are much more than the first Wuhan battle, and the navy and air force are also on standby, planning to fight a main decisive battle with the Central China Front on the periphery of the question.

Moreover, this time the commander of the armies from all walks of life is still full of experience, but Chen Cheng and Minister Chen, it stands to reason that no matter how much you fight this time, there should not be a big rout like the one in the end. But the result was like that, the two sides only clashed for less than three months, and the national political axe lost Wuhan, and finally had to withdraw from Wuhan. Of course, such a result was a strategic mistake on the part of the Kuomintang, but the irrational tactical arrangements and the strong combat effectiveness of the army were also reasons that could not be ignored. The 109th and 10th Divisions of the North China Front, which shone in the Second Battle of Wuhan, had a clear and unambiguous understanding of the power of special operations, and there was almost no need for special high-tech to collect information, and the situation of the enemy forces on the opposite side would be sent to the headquarters of the division commanders the night before. The enemy's troop deployment, troop number, number of troops, firepower, military commander's name, age, graduation school, preferences, and so on can be collected by any special combat team you can imagine.

At the same time, sniping enemy officers and technical units on the battlefield, assassinating at night, touching the whistle and scratching the tongue, and so on, are also endless, and even the location of the enemy's arsenal can be figured out and destroyed at all costs. It is precisely because of the cooperation of the special combat team that Yoshio Shinozuka will be like a fish in water on the battlefield in Wuhan, and every battle is hearty, and his brilliant exploits are called the "Tiger Division of the Imperial Army" by Okamura Ningji, commander of the 11th Army of the Central China Front, and the name of Yoshio Shinozuka "Tiger General" has also spread.

This time, the battle situation in eastern Hebei was confusing, and the [***] team changed the habit of guerrilla warfare in the past and started a positional battle with the imperial army, and even prepared to fight the main decisive battle with the imperial army in Qian'an, so Yoshio Shinozuka subconsciously thought of Yanagi Shengjun's special combat team, and Yoshio Shinozuka believed that with the cooperation of the special combat team, no matter how strong the defense line was, it would not be difficult to be torn apart.

(To be continued)