The softest of the soft of the Japanese army is the line of communication, and the line of communication is still the lifeblood of the Japanese army. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

In order to deal with the threat of anti-Japanese forces behind enemy lines to the lines of communication, the Japanese army is still desperately building roads, but it is no longer an ordinary road, and it is easy to understand and accurate to call it a "steel blockade".

This kind of road is "five feet above the ground, the ditch on both sides is eight feet to one zhang deep, the inner bottom is six feet wide, and the ditch surface is one zhang and six feet." In fact, to use the concept of modern geometry, there is a trapezoidal ditch dug next to the road. The Japanese army built a bunker not far from each other on this kind of road, and it was like a beacon tower on the ancient Great Wall that appeared not far away.

The Baijin and Lin (Fen) Han (Dan) railways divided Taihang and Taiyue districts; Relying on the Pinghan Road to expand eastward, the Japanese army rushed to repair highways from Shijiazhuang to Nangong, Neiqiu to Julu, Xingtai to Weixian, Handan to Daming, and divided the base areas in southern Hebei; On the west side of the Pinghan Line, it actively built more strongholds and highways to block the traffic between Taihang and southern Hebei; In addition, the Longhai Railway is under construction, the Cangshi Railway is under construction, and the Jinan Railway to Handan via Daimyo is also being repaired......

At the same time, the Japanese army strengthened the protection of railway and highway trunk lines. In particular, the Zhengtai Line is not only a strategic transportation artery connecting the two provinces of Shanxi and Hebei, but also a barrier separating the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base area from the Shanxi-Hebei-Henan base area.

In the face of the Japanese army's "weaving net" tactics and the situation that the base area would be divided by railways and highways, the Eighth Route Army in North China felt heavy pressure and carried out several counterattacks.

Baijin Railway Attack, Pinghan Road Attack, Zhengtai Road Attack, Daoqing Road Attack, Tongpu Road Attack...... In the face of the Japanese army's reliance on railways and highways to resist the division and encroachment of the Japanese base areas, the struggle between the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese army in North China on the communication lines became increasingly fierce and complicated.

Tada is doing a better job than his predecessor, and he is indeed doing a better job than his predecessor. But he also had his own troubles, that is, the importance of North China was not fully recognized by the Chinese troops.

At a time when Tada Jun asked for the military strength in North China to be strengthened in order to completely change the situation in North China, the Chinese Dispatch Army not only did not meet his request, but instead demanded that the North China Front send part of its troops to support the operation in Central China, and at the same time send some troops to carry out the war of vehicle manufacturing.

Obviously, there are great differences of opinion between the Chinese Dispatch Army and the North China Front Army on operational thinking, especially on political strategy, mainly because they do not have a sufficient understanding of the development and strength of the Eighth Route Army and other armed forces behind enemy lines.

To sum up, the Japanese military offensive on eastern Henan was delayed. After all, after several battles, the strength of the Third Column (the New Seventh Army) should not be underestimated, and the quality of weaponry and personnel exceeded that of the Eighth Route Army by a lot, and it was difficult to win the sweep and sweep at the brigade level and even at the brigade level. An attack with more troops would require a longer period of preparation and planning.

For the New Seventh Army, which was tired from the long battle, this was undoubtedly a good opportunity to breathe and recover, and Yang Tianfeng was also slightly relieved according to the intelligence of all parties. But he also realized that the Japanese army's weaving of nets and road construction was not to retreat and defend, but to create strategically important conditions for the offensive. And the retaliation after being well prepared will be even more violent and heavy.

"The chances of the enemy attacking after the winter are very high, and although we may have added more than a month of rest and recovery time, the enemy's attack will be stronger than ever." The information in Yang Tianfeng's memory shows that the Japanese army only transferred two divisions from Central China to reinforce North China after the Battle of the Hundred Regiments, but because of his own appearance, it is not ruled out that there will be major changes in history.

"A division?" Chief of Staff Liang Moqing's voice on the phone was not surprised, "It's unlikely that the Standing Division or the B Division is unlikely, right?" Division C, when we complete the expansion, plus the 1st Cavalry Division, the 14th Cavalry Brigade, and other friendly troops, we should be able to resist. ”

At the end of 1938, the Japanese army began to reorganize its forces, that is, it entered China with a large number of newly formed independent brigades and C-level reserve divisions, and exchanged guards with the standing divisions and B reserve (adhoc) divisions that had been originally put into the battlefield. The troops that were replaced were either driven back home to be mobilized, or the Kwantung Army was transferred to fight the Russian threat.

Don't look at it, they are all called divisions, but there is a big gap in strength. The standing division is the standing army of the Japanese army, which is organized into a four-unit system, also known as a division and regiment, with a total strength of more than 28,000 people, as well as 16 mountain artillery pieces, 36 field artillery pieces and other heavy weapons and equipment. The C Division was expanded from a mixed brigade with a strength of about 15,000 troops, and its artillery was also greatly reduced.

In the establishment of the Japanese army in North China, there are also divisions and regiments, which are also expanded by mixed brigades and regiments, and only have three infantry wings under their jurisdiction, and the other arms only have brigades or squadrons, and the strength is only more than 11,000 troops. However, due to its flexibility, it is often used to sweep the base areas behind enemy lines in North China.

According to the army expansion plan, the new Seventh Army will not lose Sun Dianying's troops, plus recruiting troops, it will reach more than 30,000 people, as well as the reinforcements of the 1st Cavalry Division and the 14th Cavalry Brigade, as well as the reinforcements of the National X Army troops in western Henan and Anhui provinces, and more than 40,000 people will deal with the 15,000 devils of the C Division, resisting rather than defeating, as long as the tactics are reasonable, it can still be done.

"Don't take it lightly, the main thing is to base yourself on yourself." Yang Tianfeng groaned and said, "Expand the army, and expand another five or six thousand people." With the number, and the recovery of the eastern Henan Plain, there is no need to worry about food and salary for the time being, in this densely populated area, we must seize the opportunity. Training should also be stepped up, and large-scale martial arts competitions should also be carried out persistently. In short, all methods that can improve combat effectiveness can be adopted, and the planned goals must be completed within two months. ”

On the phone, Liang Moqing seemed to be thinking, and then agreed, but put forward another suggestion, "For the anti-Japanese forces north of Longhai Road, can we increase support to reduce the pressure on our army?" ”

"This can only be done after the expansion of our army's equipment." Yang Tianfeng had already thought about it, and said almost without thinking: "A small amount can be considered, but it will not be a free gift." ”

"Understood." Liang Moqing hesitated for a moment and said: "Regarding the matter of dividing the activity area with Longhai Road as the boundary, can we try to negotiate or make a guarantee in the form of words. ”

"Actions are fine." Yang Tianfeng paused for a moment and said: "We must pay attention to the influence, such a major matter as dividing the activity area is not within our power, it is still up to the war zone to decide!" ”

After discussing and discussing some things, Yang Tianfeng put down the phone, returned to the table, sat in the chair and fell into a long thought. (To be continued.) )