Linxun County, in the eastern part of the Yimeng Mountains, is a strategic point to hold the throat of eastward expansion. This is a semi-mountainous area, and the terrain is not suitable for large corps to attack fortified positions. A Japanese brigade and a Manchurian mixed brigade were stationed in Linxian County. The strength of the Japanese brigade was about 1,200 people, and the strength of the Manchurian puppet army was 3,500 people. The captain of the Japanese army is called Yuichi Tanaka, and the brigade commander of the puppet army is called Tong Guangzu, who is a banner man.

A Manchurian division was transferred from the northeast to the Shandong Peninsula at the beginning of the year to participate in the defense, with the aim of strengthening the Japanese army's insufficient strength. Almost all the officers above the regimental level of the Manchurian division are Manchurians, and it is obvious that the composition of the Manchurian puppet army can be called two devils in general. Tong Guangzu graduated from the Tokyo Army Academy in Japan and has a high level of military literacy. However, his experience in fighting in the northeast was only to deal with the Anti-Japanese Union, and he did not experience a brutal war.

After the plan to sweep the base area died, Tong Guangzu judged that the Eighth Route Army had increased its strength and would definitely move its troops eastward, and he was not eating dry food. At this time, at the headquarters of the Japanese army, Tong Guangzu said to Tanaka Yu: "Tanaka-kun, the attack of the 111th Division has been defeated, and the situation on the Shandong Peninsula is not favorable to us. I heard that the Eighth Route Army has already arrived at the city of Xuzhou, and the imperial army in Jinan will not be easily mobilized. At present, the central part of the peninsula is empty, and the Eighth Route Army will definitely move eastward. Although the fortifications of Linxian County are strong, there are too few imperial troops in the city, and it is difficult for us to hold the city once the road army attacks the city. ”

Tong Guangzu's military vision is not bad, and he has the ability to make a minimum judgment. Since he was an officer of the Manchurian puppet army, there was no obstacle to the use of Japan and dialogue between them, so Tanaka was more polite to him. "Tong Sang, you're too worried. The 111th Division Chen Bingfei County, the Eighth Route Army did not dare to act rashly. Even if the Eighth Route Army draws troops to the east, it will not be too many. Although the Eighth Route Army has strengthened its armament, it does not have the ability to attack fortified positions, so we need not worry. In addition, I have already conveyed to Commander Guan that he will urgently reinforce if necessary. The combat effectiveness of the Imperial Allied Army is not good, but I am still relieved of the army in Manchuria, and there is no doubt about your loyalty to the Imperial Army. ”

"Tanaka-kun! At this time, my soldiers may not fight to the death, this is what worries me the most! "Tong Sang, don't worry, my troops will be scattered in your team, and they will play the role of supervising the team." "Report, the Eighth Route Army troops have been found in the west of the city!" A subordinate reported urgently. "It's coming so fast! As I expected! A hint of panic appeared on Tong Guangzu's face. Previously, he had called Commander Guan and made a strong statement about the situation, asking to abandon the county seat of Linxun and retreat along the coast. However, the division commander warned him that he had no right to withdraw his troops unless the Japanese gave orders.

There was an enemy situation in the west of the city, and Tong Guangzu accompanied Tanaka to the west city gate to watch the enemy's array, and sure enough, he found that there were traces of the activities of the Eighth Route Army in the west of the city. "The Eighth Route Army really changed its guns, and even its military uniforms were changed, and the big bosses in the United States are really rich," Tong Guangzu said insincerely, holding up the binoculars. "Tong Sang, don't grow the enemy's prestige, the Imperial Japanese Army is an army that creates miracles, the Imperial Army continues to inflict heavy losses on the US Army in the Pacific Theater, and has achieved brilliant results, and the Great Japanese Empire is invincible." Due to the strict blockade of news by the Japanese army, not to mention Manchurian officers of the rank of Tong Guangzu, even the lower-level officers of the Japanese army did not know the real news. Even if the Japanese army suffered setbacks one after another and retreated one after another, it would have to slap a swollen face and become fat.

The appearance of troops of the Eighth Route Army in the west of the city confirmed Tong Guangzu's prediction, and although he was in a nervous mood, he had to face the battle. Tong Guangzu ordered his subordinates to enter combat preparations! Coming to Shangfeng to inform him that the Eighth Route Army in Shandong lacked food and clothing, and the weapons and clothing were very simple, and the Eighth Route Army here could only engage in guerrilla warfare. Now these Tubalu shotguns have been replaced with artillery, and they have actually defeated the powerful 111th Field Division. Previously, it was explained that these dirt eight roads were not bad in combat effectiveness, but because the weapons were not too bad. Now the Eighth Route Army's shotguns have been replaced, and its combat effectiveness is beyond doubt. I heard that the Eighth Route Army had artillery, and if the artillery bombarded it, the soldiers under his command would definitely be frightened, which worried him the most.

In a forest west of the city, Shi Meng and several regiment commanders were studying the battle plan. At this moment, his expression was focused, his eyes stared at the map and said: "Dusk, the artillery company will pull up, and I have decided to launch an attack tomorrow in the morning!" The situation of the enemy army has been figured out, and a Japanese brigade of about 1,200 troops is stationed in the county. The puppet army is the 22nd Brigade of the 67th Division transferred from Manchuria, with a strength of about 3,500 people. The column headquarters asked us to annihilate a large number of the living forces of the puppet army, so we aimed at this Manchurian puppet army. How to annihilate the puppet army in large numbers, the best effect of besieging the city and sending reinforcements. The headquarters of the 22nd Division of the puppet army is located in Weifang City, if there is a crisis in the county seat, the Japanese army in the city will definitely ask for reinforcements, and we will encircle and annihilate the reinforced puppet army in the east of the city. ”

Shi Meng continued: "Tomorrow the 1st Regiment will launch a feint, and the attack must be vigorous, and the offensive must be fierce." The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th regiments set up ambushes, responsible for encircling and destroying the puppet army with reinforcements, do you understand? "Understood," the regimental commanders replied in unison. Now that you understand, let's prepare! After several regiment commanders dispersed, Shi Meng said to Gong Shan: "Captain Gong, your unit assists in the reinforcement operation, and the shorter the time to eat the enemy's reinforcements, the more advantageous it is, your task is to hunt down the commander of the puppet army and disrupt his command system." "Rest assured, the mission is guaranteed!" Gong Shan raised his hand in salute and turned to leave.

When night came, the Japanese puppet army defending in the city was even more worried. The reason why the Eighth Route Army outside the city did not launch an attack was undoubtedly to use the cover of night to launch an attack. The subordinates were nervous, but Tong Guangzu was relieved. The delay of the Eighth Route Army in launching an offensive shows that they did not have artillery. Tong Guangzu said to his subordinates: "There is a possibility that the Eighth Route Army will launch an attack tonight, so that the brothers are highly vigilant. The city wall of Linxun County is strong, and it is not so easy for the Eighth Route Army to break the city. Tell the brethren that we are fighting for His Majesty the Emperor, and that we are here to fight for the great Qing Dynasty. ”

After dark, the artillery company pulled up from behind, and four black mountain guns showed a ghostly majestic posture. The 4-door baby is Shi Meng's heart, and he and the political commissar greet him personally. The artillery positions had already been selected, and the commander of the artillery company reported the situation in the dark. "The brothers have worked hard all the way, rest early, and tomorrow morning let the enemy taste the power of our artillery." "Please rest assured, the subordinates will ensure that the task will be completed!" When Shi Meng saw that the soldiers of the artillery company began to rest, he walked around the cannon and muttered: "Hehe! It's up to you, old man! You're going to give me a face! The political commissar smiled: "You, you are simply crazy!" ”

"Commissar, you should understand my feelings, with artillery how many casualties we can reduce. In the past, the devil infantry artillery, mortars, and grenadiers made us suffer a lot, and I dreamed of having artillery. "I said old man, you have a lot of time to appreciate, it's not early, let's sleep for a while!" On this night, in addition to interspersed with troops on the march, the troops preparing to attack fell asleep early, but the Japanese puppet army in the city was worried all night. In order to prevent the attack of the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese puppet army was waiting on the city wall.

At midnight, the soldiers of the Japanese puppet army were struggling to endure, and most of them were sleeping in the defensive positions. Brigade Commander Tong Guangzu inspected the defensive situation and returned to the brigade headquarters to prepare for rest. But for some reason, I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep. Could it be that I will have bad luck this time? Tong Guangzu got up and hesitated for a while, then picked up a pen and wrote a letter to his wife. After the letter was written, it was carefully reviewed and sealed, and then handed it to his own soldiers, and instructed him to go to Weifang overnight and hand it over to Master Guan. He knew in his heart that he and the division commander were brothers-in-law, and if there were three longs and two shorts, the division commander would give the letter to his wife.

As soon as the sky was light, there was a sudden rumbling of cannons. Tong Guangzu was awakened by the sound of cannons. "Where's the gun?" Tong Guangzu asked. "Brigade commander, the sound of artillery is coming from the West Gate!" The guard replied in a panic. Tong Guangzu hurriedly called and confirmed that the cannon sound came from the West Gate. Judging by his experience, the Eighth Route Army used 75-mm mountain guns, and at least 4 cannons. Thinking of this, his scalp suddenly tingled, and the artillery of the Eighth Route Army came up, indicating that the main force also came up. Tong Guangzu hurried to the Japanese army headquarters and found that Tanaka was on the phone: "????, Linxun County was fiercely attacked by the Eighth Route Army, and the Eighth Route Army has artillery, so I request urgent reinforcements!" ”

The Eighth Route Army had artillery, and apparently Tanaka was aware of the danger. "Tong Sang, don't panic. Division Commander Guan promised to mobilize a brigade for rapid reinforcements, and two squadrons of the Imperial Army came with him. Reinforcements arrived in trucks and arrived at dusk. As long as we hold out until dusk, the danger will be lifted. Tong Guangzu was very satisfied with Tanaka's knowledge of current affairs and said: "Tanaka-kun, your judgment is very astute. I estimate that the Eighth Route Army will definitely storm the city gate, and I hope that the Imperial Army troops will concentrate their forces on holding the city gate. Tanaka understands Tong Guangzu's intentions, and now he can only rely on the imperial army to set an example.

In the forward command post in the west of the city, Shi Meng saw that artillery fire was enveloping the city gate, and the wooden city gate had been blown away. The Japanese army piled up sandbags and built fortifications in the doorway. "Haha, cannons are worthy of being the god of war, and little devils are also afraid of cannons. Order a fire cover to attack! With the sound of the trumpet, the soldiers rushed in a skirmish formation to the city gate. The attack was swift and sharp, and the Japanese defense at the city gate was very tenacious. When the attacking troops gradually approached the city gates, Shi Meng ordered the attack to be stopped. Because he found that the attacking troops braved the dense rain of bullets, and seemed to have the posture of taking the city gates.

After a while, the commander of the 1 regiment called and said that his assault team was about to take the city gates, why stop the attack. Shi Meng reprimanded on the phone: "Is your brain flooded, your task is to feint and not take the city gate." The city gates are guarded by Japanese troops, and you can't figure it out. Remember, don't rush forward blindly in the second attack, concentrate your firepower to suppress the enemy's firepower, and strive to kill and damage the enemy's living forces in large numbers. The second attack will drag on a little longer. ”

The Japanese defenders moved all the infantry guns from the city wall to the door hole, so as to avoid the artillery fire of the Eighth Route Army. The Japanese army's heavy firepower began to exert its power because it avoided the threat of artillery fire from the other side. Once again, the enemy attack was repulsed. The morale of the Japanese army was greatly increased. After the reconfiguration and reorganization of the Eighth Route Army, the division did not have a brigade-level establishment, and the 1st Division had 4 regiments, each with a strength of 2,500 and a total strength of 11,000. It was almost noon, Shi Meng ordered the attack to be stopped, because he had received a report from the ambush force that reinforcements from Weifang were about to enter the ambush circle.

At the brigade headquarters of the puppet army in the city, a subordinate reported: "Brigade commander, the firepower of the Eighth Route Army is fierce, and our department has suffered more than 400 casualties on both flanks of the city gate. The Japanese suffered more than 500 casualties in the fierce battle at the city gate, and the Japanese health team was full of wounded soldiers. If the Eighth Route Army launches another attack in the afternoon, Captain Tanaka will definitely requisition our troops to strengthen the defense. Tong Guangzu said: "The reinforcements arrived at about dusk, and now we have no other way out, we must unite as one." You take a battalion to take the initiative to go to the city gate and defend it with the Japanese army, lest Tanaka sue him in front of the division commander Guan and say that we are greedy for life and afraid of death. ”

"My subordinates understand!" Shortly after his subordinates left, Tanaka called and praised Tong Guangzu. The Eighth Route Army's firepower was so fierce, but its ability to attack the fortified positions was not strong. Tong Guangzu believed that the Eighth Route Army only had 4 artillery pieces, which was not enough to pose a substantial threat to the city wall. As long as reinforcements arrived, the Eighth Route Army would not want to break the city. Thinking of this, Tong Guangzu's confidence increased greatly, and he immediately called his subordinates to cheer him up and establish confidence and courage to stick to it. Frankly speaking, the light weapons and equipment of the Manchurian puppet army are basically Japanese-style equipment, but there are differences in heavy weapons. The combat effectiveness of the Manchurian puppet army was stronger than that of the Imperial Army, so the Japanese army also attached great importance to the Manchurian puppet army.

In the west of the city, in the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, the atmosphere was solemn. The reinforced enemy army was about to enter the ambush circle, and the encirclement and annihilation operation was about to begin, Shi Meng took out his pocket watch from time to time to check it a little anxiously. The first siege and reinforcement operation, excitement and nervousness were intertwined. "Report: Commander Xiao is calling!" An operational staff officer handed him the telegram. I saw that the telegram wrote: Commander Shi, if the enemy army in the city finds that the reinforcements are surrounded, will the enemy choose to abandon the city and flee! Do you have a follow-up? "Commander Xiao is clear, my mind is almost faint again!" After reading the telegram, the political commissar reported: "The enemy army in the city already knows my strength, and if the reinforcements are besieged, they will definitely abandon the city and flee!" ”

The chief of staff said: "If the enemy chooses to escape, he will definitely choose Anqiu in the southeast direction to escape to Qingdao through Gaomi, this route is the closest, and Qingdao has heavy Japanese troops!" "Get the 1st Regiment Commander immediately!" After a while, a regimental commander came in a hurry. "Division commander, reinforcements are about to begin, is it an immediate siege!" "Not a siege, but a detour! Your regiment left a battalion to confuse the enemy, and the main force immediately lightly armed and bypassed the south of the city. Give you 4 hours to make sure you get to Atuo by 4pm. ”