Because the headquarters of Lieutenant General Matsumoto was located was two kilometers from the position selected by the artillery. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

It was not until the end of the artillery coverage of the Liaodong Army that the battlefield fell into silence again that Lieutenant General Matsumoto received the news from the artillery wing.

Of course, this news only included that he was attacked by a large-scale artillery unit of the Liaodong Army.

When he first heard the news, Lieutenant General Matsumoto was still worried.

Within a minute, as soon as the shelling stopped, the worry on Lieutenant General Matsumoto's face disappeared.

In Lieutenant General Matsumoto's view, the reason why the shelling stopped so quickly was due to the fact that the artillery wing lived up to expectations and achieved results in a short period of time.

Seat a proud officer, he would not and never thought that his own artillery wing would fail.

However, just as he waited for the artillery wing to continue firing and cover the Fengcheng garrison.

A young officer suddenly rushed towards him with a miserable face.

Before the person arrived, Shao Zuo's frightened report had already reached the ears of the two division commanders......

"The artillery was hit by the artillery fire of the Liaodong Army, and the whole army was annihilated......"

"How can it be ......?" This was the first reaction in the hearts of the two division commanders after hearing the news.

However, when they saw that this young lieutenant was the staff officer they had sent to the artillery wing for liaison. The faces of the two lieutenant generals quickly turned pale.

Especially Lieutenant General Matsumoto, while his face was pale, a trace of bad premonition appeared in his mind.

Facing Lieutenant General Sakata, who was still in a daze because of the shock, he said in a firm tone: "Conspiracy, this must be the conspiracy of the Liaodong Army...... Eat our artillery first, let us lose the advantage in firepower...... And then through other means, little by little, wear down our forces until they wipe us all out...... The Liaodong Army must be planning to annihilate more than 20,000 of us here......"

"It's impossible to ......" Sakata, who was taken aback by Matsumoto's bold inference, said in denial without thinking about it.

"We still have more than 20,000 elites, even if there is no artillery, the Liaodong Army can't help us...... Matsumoto-kun. You're thinking too much......"

Matsumoto shook his head and replied, "Sakata-kun, I didn't think much of it...... To tell you the truth, my premonition of this conspiracy has grown. You know, on the battlefield. My hunch was 80% accurate. ”

Lieutenant General Sakata's face also became solemn.

Matsumoto is right, he does have the ability to do so. Besides, no matter how bold Matsumoto was, it was impossible for him to joke about such a thing.

So, Lieutenant General Sakata, who had a solemn face, subconsciously asked, "Matsumoto-kun." So what do you think we should do next......"

Lieutenant General Matsumoto replied in a heavy tone: "If the Liaodong Army really intends to destroy us here. Now, they must be deploying heavy troops, blocking all the passages we might retreat from, trapping us outside Fengcheng......"

"Now we have lost artillery, while the Liaodong Army has massive artillery available. In addition, there is no dangerous terrain around to defend. Once we are surrounded by the Liaodong Army, the Liaodong Army can bring us a devastating blow with just artillery fire......"

"To avoid this from happening, I recommend. We're going to retreat right away......"

If Yang Xingguo were here, he would find that Matsumoto's analysis, except for some details, was strikingly similar to his own thoughts.

If the more than 20,000 Japanese troops were under the command of Matsumoto, he could only bite off a piece of meat from the 20,000 Japanese troops at most, and it would be almost impossible to completely annihilate them. Because, Matsumoto's sense of smell is too sharp, and as soon as he started to act, he deduced his entire plan of action.

But. He did not command this force alone.

Fortunately for Yang Xingqing, there was still an old and very proud division commander standing next to Matsumoto, Lieutenant General Sakata.

For Sakata. Retreating out of fear without even seeing the shadow of the enemy was not only an insult to oneself, but also to the entire Imperial Army of the Japanese Empire.

Therefore, as soon as Matsumoto's words came out, Sakata refused.

"No, Matsumoto-kun. Even if this is a real conspiracy, we cannot retreat...... The Imperial Japanese Army is invincible, and we still have more than 20,000 elites with plenty of ammunition......"

"Even if the Liaodong Army has artillery, they destroy so many of our warriors, and they also take Fengcheng, their losses must be very large, and the total strength may not even be 10,000 people......"

"So, I think, we can't retreat, we should fight here......"

"I believe that with the combat effectiveness of the warriors, even if they lose artillery, they can defeat the Liaodong Army......"

"Besides, Matsumoto-kun, if the battle situation is really worse than we imagined. We have more than 20,000 people, and even if the Liaodong army surrounds us, we can easily break through......"

"Therefore, I think that we should fight with the Liaodong Army first, and then retreat in principle......"

"If we retreat without even a tentative attack, even if we succeed in returning, we will be court-martial by the commander-in-chief......"

"You must know that the empire has hoarded too many materials, weapons and ammunition in Fengcheng, and more than 100,000 soldiers on the front line cannot do without these materials. As far as the commander-in-chief is concerned, as long as Fengcheng can be recaptured, even if our two divisions are wiped out, they will not hesitate to ......."

"Baga ......" knew that this was a big conspiracy against himself, and he had to drill into the trap. Lieutenant General Matsumoto couldn't help but scold. However, no matter how angry he is, he has to accept this fact.

After a short silence, Lieutenant General Matsumoto had to speak: "Sakata-kun, since there is no way to retreat, then we must take Fengcheng in the shortest time and at the lowest cost......"

"We have two divisions and five more infantry wings, and my idea is that two infantry wings will attack from the north gate......"

"Then send two infantry wings to attack from the south gate and the west gate respectively, leaving the south gate behind......"

"This style of play is called a siege of three missing one in Chinese terms, and it can shake the morale of the defenders in the attack......"

"In addition, these three offensive forces are not divided into main attacks and assists, and the three troops will go all out to launch an attack on Fengcheng......"

"Before the attack, the heavy machine guns equipped by the two divisions were all taken out and divided into three directions to provide fire cover for the attacking troops."

"For two hours, we launched an attack on Fengcheng for two hours in a row. If Fengcheng is still as solid as a rock, then it proves that the remaining strength of the Liaodong Army far surpasses ours. In order to avoid unnecessary casualties, we abandoned Fengcheng and took the initiative to retreat. ”

"If there is a possibility that Fengcheng will be captured by us, we will continue to attack......"

"As long as we can take Fengcheng and recapture Fengcheng's weapons and ammunition. With the replenishment of Congfeng City, we will have the strength to fight a decisive battle with the Liaodong Army......"

After a brief hesitation, Lieutenant General Sakata, although still a little reluctant, faced a big concession and compromised a lot of Matsumoto. Sakata had no choice but to take a step back and agree: "Okay, so it's decided......"

"The last infantry wing left behind is a reserve, ready to enter the battlefield at any time and deliver a fatal blow to the defenders of Fengcheng. (To be continued.) )