Although the 71st Army was the second unit to enter the town, Song Xilian was the last army commander to arrive in the town. Pen Fun Pavilion www.biquge.info Song Xilian, who should have reported the victory as soon as possible for the capture of the town, suppressed the telegram of the victory.

The reason for this is also very simple, it was not they who actually attacked the town, but the new 67th Army. It can even be said that without He Zhengdao's troops directly smashing the Japanese headquarters, there would not have been the victory of the 71st Army breaking through into the town.

In this case, if Song Xilian reported the victory in advance, he was afraid that it would make people feel that he was suspected of taking the merits of the war. In fact, the four troops participating in the battle, including He Zhengdao, did not report the situation in the town.

Now He Zhengdao initiated the invitation, and they all gladly accepted it. Perhaps on how to share the fruits of victory, the four of them felt that they could sit down and talk about it. After all, this was their first joint operation in the 5th theater of operations.

According to the order of the Fifth Theater of Operations, the 71st Army was undoubtedly the main attacking force of this campaign. The other three corps are the troops that play the role of assist. But the development of the war seems to be the Eighth Route Army, which assists, stealing the limelight from the battlefield.

Under the protection of a guard cavalry battalion, after Song Xilian handed over the affairs of the headquarters to the chief of staff, he also appeared in the town that had stopped raining but was still full of bloody gunsmoke.

Looking at the Eighth Route Army and the Central Army, which had already started patrolling in the town, the patrols of the two armies were doing their own things. Song Xilian also felt that these Eighth Route Army were indeed a little different from the Red Army he had come into contact with before.

As a military commander, Song Xilian's vision is naturally not too bad. From these stern-looking patrols, he could somewhat judge that the new 67th Army, which had proud achievements after the start of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, was really a powerful force.

If the other main divisions of the Eighth Route Army active in the northern battlefield are the same as this army, Song Xilian is also somewhat worried, and if they clash with the Eighth Route Army in the future, the outcome is really unpredictable.

Not long after Song Xilian arrived in the town, a squad of the Eighth Route Army soon appeared in front of him. The leading soldier also saluted politely: "General Song, hello!" ”

Looking at the young man who saluted, Song Xilian, who turned over and fell off the horse, also returned the salute: "Hello, who are you?" ”

'I am Li Xiangdong, commander of the 108th Brigade of the New 60th Army, and I have come to meet General Song on the order of our army commander. Commander Xu of the 51st Army and Commander Feng of the 77th Army had already arrived, and our commander was entertaining them, so he couldn't come in person. ’

Li Xiangdong, who briefly explained his intentions, also behaved very politely in front of Song Xilian. Even if he knew in his heart that the contradictions between the two armies still existed, he still needed to protect each other on face.

Hearing that the other party was the young brigade commander who had a conflict with the 87th Division, Song Xilian also did not mention the previous conflict, and said with a smile: "I'm tired of Brigade Commander Li, please lead the way!" ”

'General Song, this way, please! ’

Under the guidance of Li Xiangdong, Song Xilian didn't bother to go up to check the situation of the entire town. At least he knew that at present, in addition to their 71st Army, the Eighth Route Army and the other two armies all had troops stationed in the town.

On the way to the underground headquarters, Song Xilian also asked a few words casually. Regarding Li Xiangdong, the major general and brigade commander of the Eighth Route Army, Song Xilian actually didn't know much about it, but he knew that this major general was not simple.

During the joint anti-Japanese war between the two parties, the Nationalist Government gave the rank of commander of the main division of the Eighth Route Army, and most of them were major generals and lieutenant generals. Since the beginning of the war, the independent column has been the largest number of officers who have really been promoted in military rank.

A brigade commander at such a young age can be promoted to a major general recognized by the national government, and he must also have real combat exploits. From another point of view, Li Xiangdong must also be He Zhengdao's confidant and favorite general, so he has the qualifications to take over people on behalf of He Zhengdao.

Not long after the march, Li Xiangdong also said in a timely manner: "General Song, in front of you is the location of the underground headquarters of the Japanese division in the town. Considering the small location there, your guard battalion may not be easy to bring over.

If General Song doesn't mind, please bring two guards with you. As for your guard barracks, we will arrange it as well. Here, too, we have only one guard battalion, and the other two generals are the same. ”

"Yes, then I will have to worry about Brigadier Li's arrangement!" ’

Song Xilian didn't feel any surprise when he only brought two guard battalions over. From here, it is less than 100 meters away from the underground headquarters where the Eighth Route Army is standing. If anything really happens, the guard battalion can rush over immediately.

What's more, no one dares to cause more trouble at this time. If you really want to fight in the town, whether it is him or He Zhengdao, it is estimated that it will be difficult to escape the blame. Being able to bring two guards shows that the Eighth Route Army is also very polite.

The only thing that is a little unhappy may be that Song Xilian feels that at this time, the Eighth Route Army has become the master of the house. Just think about it, it was the Eighth Route Army that took the lead in capturing the town and taking the Japanese headquarters, and it was natural to be the main one.

Just when Song Xilian waved his hand to let the cavalry guard the battalion and wait outside. Li Xiangdong also said in a timely manner: "General Song, our army commander has come out!" ”

When I turned my head, there were several people standing at the entrance of the underground headquarters. Although his vision was not good at night, Song Xilian could somewhat recognize that Xu You, who was standing next to a young man, was often with Feng Zhi'an.

Being able to walk out of the headquarters to greet him in person can be regarded as giving him enough face. Anyway, if you really want to talk about military rank, when he sees He Zhengdao, Song Xilian still has to salute and ask, 'Sir He, good'!

The generals promoted by the Nationalist Government may not be easy to use on the side of the Eighth Route Army. But when you get to the national control area, even the Central Army has to give some face. This is also a benefit that many soldiers of the Eighth Route Army have personally felt after arriving in the national control area.

Although He Zhengdao was still wearing the standard military uniform of the Eighth Route Army, he did not wear the general uniform of the Central Army issued by the national government. But Song Xilian walked to the front of the headquarters and saluted: "General He, hello!" ”

'General Song, that's so polite! I have been in the war zone for so long, and I have always heard of General Song's prestige, so I only have the opportunity to meet today. General Xu and General Feng were both here before, and I couldn't greet each other in person, so I hope General Song will forgive me! ’

He Zhengdao, who was smiling with a smile on his face, actually didn't know much about Song Xilian, who was later called the 'Eagle Dog General'. But he somewhat knew that the 71st Army was the real trump card main force of the Central Army.

Being able to be the commander of this army is enough to show his status in Lao Jiang's heart!

'General He's words, I don't dare to take it! I was able to capture the 16th Division this time, and I would like to thank your unit for your help. If you hadn't captured the town in advance, we wouldn't have had a chance to stand here! ’

'It's all allies, so why be so polite!' I have prepared a little coarse tea inside, and if General Song doesn't mind, let's go in and drink and chat. As for the battle outside, General Xu and General Feng have both made arrangements, and they should not get in the way. ’

When he smiled and stretched out his hand to lead Song Xilian into the underground headquarters, Song Xilian did not forget to say hello to Xu Youchang and Feng Zhi'an. They belong to the same war zone, and it's not the first time they've met, but it's still appropriate to be polite.

After taking a seat, after talking about the scene, He Zhengdao also took the initiative to say: "General Song, we had a little conflict with your department before, and I hope General Song won't mind." Our Eighth Route Army is poor, and we really can't move our legs when we see good things.

When the troops transferred the supplies, they were a little too anxious, and they might have offended in their words, and I hope General Song will be considerate. Compared to you, we have a lot of things that we can only capture. So, we did get a little more greedy for the loot. ”

After this kind of self-defeating words came out, Song Xilian also smiled and said: "General He is too polite!" Speaking of which, it should be my subordinates who are confused. If it weren't for your help this time, I'm afraid we haven't taken the 16th Division yet! ”

I don't dare to take General Song's words. The 16th Division that can take down the little devil is also a great contribution to your army. Besides, the performance of your army during this period is obvious to all, and if it weren't for your good fight, we wouldn't have this opportunity.

It just so happens that there is a rare opportunity today, and the commanders of our four troops are here, so it is better to say something openly. I believe that after this war, our cooperation in the war of resistance should not be over. Presumably, in the future, we still have the possibility of joint operations.

Although this time, we worked together to solve the 16th Division of the little devils. But all three should know that the little devil should not be willing to accept this failure. Next time, it is estimated that they will increase their troops quite a bit.

After this bitter battle, our new 67th Army also suffered heavy casualties. The 1st Division, which was responsible for blocking the 13th Division of the Little Devils, also sent a telegram saying that in the past few days, the casualties of the main force of the division were close to half, and the battle was too hard.

As for the 51st Army, General Xu also said earlier that after their statistics, the casualties of the troops are estimated to be close to 10,000. In the case of the 77th Army, the situation is also a little unoptimistic. As for your ministry, after this hard fight, I'm afraid the situation won't be too good?

This means that the overall combat effectiveness of our Fifth Theater has also dropped sharply. If the little devil makes a comeback, and if we want to fight such a tough battle, I'm afraid we will also be powerless! ’

Listening to He Zhengdao's words, the three of them all showed relatively bitter expressions on their faces. After all, their own family knows their own affairs, even if they played well this time. But the losses of their respective troops are also obvious to all.

Following He Zhengdao's words, Song Xilian nodded without denying it: "Yes!" Although we won this time, the price paid by our 71st Army was indeed not small. Of my three main divisions, almost none of them were complete.

In the next step, if you want to fight such an offensive battle, I am afraid that you will be powerless. But no matter what, this time our Fifth Theater can eliminate the two divisions of the little devils, and your new 67th Army is the real main force! ”

The sedan chair was carried by everyone, and in the face of He Zhengdao's complaints, Song Xilian naturally complained about his grievances. The purpose of this is also very simple, that is, he hopes that when the results are distributed in the future, he can reap a little more benefits. (To be continued.) )