However, the six infantry regiments that followed closely behind the Yue army were also very hard. However, in the face of the repeated bombing and strafing by the 12 planes of the Chinese army, more than 10,000 troops had to be dispersed to the mountains, forests, and farmland next to the highway to avoid the bombing of the little devil's planes.

At the same time, the entire force had to stop and replenish the physical strength expended by the night's pursuit. However, after learning that at this moment, the troops of the Yue Army were also resting, and the distance between the two armies was not disturbed by the Yue Army, and after the distance was widened, the two brigade commanders who led the team slowly relaxed their hearts. At this moment, Lieutenant General Yamaoka Shigehou, the commander of the division, was lying on a bed of marching quilts, eating dry food, replenishing the physical strength consumed overnight.

"Your Excellency the division commander, the situation of the troops has been counted..."Looking at the division commander who was eating dry food in front of him, Chief of Staff Kuramoge Daisa said with a list that had just been counted.

"Cangmaojun, say it, I'll listen..."The division commander put down the dry food in his hand and said in a low voice.

"Hi, Your Excellency Division Commander, after statistics, there are still a total of 5,687 imperial troops left around us. A brigade in charge of the broken rear last night, so far, no one has returned, if nothing else, it should be annihilated under the siege of the Eighth Route Army... Also, the avant-garde wing lost more than 1,300 soldiers along the way...," the chief of staff reported in a whisper.

"Alas, Cangmao-kun, I really didn't expect it. A few days ago, we confidently attacked the Eighth Route Army. In less than a few days, there were more than 20,000 soldiers of the Imperial Army, but only about 5,000 remained, and they were beaten by the Eighth Route Army and fled, and they didn't know how much they could escape in the end..." Instead, he let out a long sigh and shook his head helplessly.

"Your Excellency, Division Commander, please don't be discouraged. I believe that with the reinforcement of the air planes, we will definitely be able to take the remaining troops out of Shanxi Province, please rest assured... However, we are now faced with a very huge problem that must be solved immediately. Chief of Staff Kuramoge Osa replied loudly.

"Nani? Cang Maojun, what is the problem, so important? The division commander immediately frowned and asked.

"Your Excellency, Division Commander, it's a matter of food. Because we gave up all our baggage, and the soldiers generally had only one meal of dry food on them. Therefore, after this break, the troops have run out of food. If there is no food, the soldiers simply do not have the energy to make a long and rapid march...", replied the chief of staff, Kurashige Daisa, with an equally frown.

"Grain, Cangmao-kun, you're not wrong. Even if the troops have no food, we can go to the villages along the way to grab food, but don't the people in the villages along the way have no food at home? The division commander asked puzzled.

"Hi, Your Excellency Division Commander, I have just sent a few small detachments to the nearest village nearby to raise rations for the troops. However, there is not a single common person in every village, let alone food... If my guess is correct, the people along the highway should have been transferred by the Eighth Route Army" Listening to the words of the division commander, Chief of Staff Kuramoge Osa shook his head speechlessly.

"Baga, the cunning Eighth Route Army....this must be a conspiracy of the Eighth Route Army, they want to starve to death my Imperial Army, and then when our army is very tired, gather and annihilate it. Eight grid tooth road..."The division commander scolded fiercely.

"Cangmao-kun, since this is the case, the only way now is to ask His Excellency the Commander for help. Immediately send a telegram to His Excellency the Commander, requesting His Excellency the Commander to airdrop food to our army. Otherwise, our 109th Division, under the conditions of hunger and cold, will definitely not be able to get out of the sphere of influence of the Eighth Route Army..."In the end, the commander of the division, Lieutenant General Shigehou Yamaoka, who had nothing to do, could only pin his last hope on the commander of the Beiping Command, Senior General Okamura Ninji.

"Hi, Your Excellency the Division Commander..."

Five hours of time is very precious for these physically and mentally exhausted little devils. However, it was also very short-lived. While these little devils were still immersed in sleep, they had to stand up again and start a rapid march under the urging of their respective commanders.

However, the troops of the Eighth Route Army, which were more than ten kilometers away, had no way to face the little devils who were going farther and farther away. Because, right above them, there are always at least six bombers circling, dropping a bomb whenever they see any moving target on the ground... More than 10,000 troops, under the harassment of the planes of the Syrian army, in order to avoid unnecessary casualties, could only watch the military disappear into their field of vision, but they could not pursue it..."Commander, urgent telegram. Because of the constant harassment and bombing of the little devil planes, our more than 10,000 pursuing troops had to stop and hide. The thousands of little devils who have broken through now are getting farther and farther away from us under the cover of the planes..."Just when the commander Gao Yuan in the headquarters was just about to go to the battlefield to check the situation, political commissar Chen Dazhong hurriedly rushed in with a telegram in his hand.

"Damn, it's a little devil's plane again..."After reading the telegram in his hand, Gao Yuan couldn't help frowning and scolded fiercely. Then, looking at the huge military map in front of him, he began to quietly think about possible countermeasures. As time passed, the hovering highway on the map slowly unfolded into the eyes of the plateau.

"Lao Chen, the little devils are on the road, although they are covered by planes, but they have no food. So, the speed of their marches, as time goes on, will get slower and slower. We, on the other hand, can rest during the day, and at night, we will begin to march rapidly and pursue, so that the gap between the two armies will not be particularly large. In addition, Lao Chen, you see, the army is retreating along the road, and the whole road is completely semicircular. Therefore, I plan to send a force from here, straight into the past, block the path of the little devil's retreat, block the army here, and then carry out total annihilation..."Gao Yuan, who thought of the idea, pointed to the map on the table and briefly introduced.

"I'll see, old Gao, that's a really good idea. If it happens, the establishment of another division of the army will be erased from their combat sequence... I agree with you, it's just that which force is going to be sent to intersperse ... You must know that this area is basically covered with mountains and forests, and more importantly, when the time comes, it will be necessary to block the attack of the Yue army for at least half a day, and this unit must have very strong combat effectiveness..."Looking at a straight line drawn by the commander Gao Yuan on the map, after a few seconds of thinking, political commissar Chen Dazhong replied affirmatively.

"The Military District Guard Brigade, this unit has always followed our commander, and I believe that their combat effectiveness will definitely exceed our imagination ... When the time comes, the three regiments will be blocked in front of the little devils, and the three regiments will be blocked behind them, and I will see where these thousands of little devils are running..."Gao Yuan replied affirmatively, his tone full of confidence.

"Okay, Lao Gao, I'm going to send a report to the two brigade commanders, so that they can immediately divide the troops..." Hidden in the woods, the two brigade commanders, who were still very anxious, breathed a sigh of relief at the same time after receiving the telegram from the plateau. Under the command of the brigade commander Bruce Lee, the guard brigade quickly turned into the dense forest next to the highway with a guide. The troops, of more than 5,000 people, were like a swimming dragon, quickly swimming towards a predetermined target nearly 100 kilometers away.

At the same time, the 3rd Brigade of the Column directly under the pursuing, under the command of the brigade commander, except for leaving the necessary observation posts. The rest of the warriors were well fed and drunk, lying on the ground to rest, waiting for the evening to come.

Finally, as night fell, the last wave of reinforcements from the little devil slowly disappeared from everyone's field of vision. After a whole day's rest, the soldiers got out of the jungle where they were hiding and walked onto the road. At the command of the brigade commander, three regiments and nine tanks of the armored battalion joined the pursuit.

And at this moment, after an afternoon of marching, the army can be said to be hungry and cold. However, at this moment, the troops have no food except boiling water. As for the little food dropped by the air force in the afternoon, it was just enough for these soldiers who had been marching for a day to eat half full, and they could not even fill the most basic stomachs.

As there was only a little left in the stomach, as the long march slowly digested, the pace of the soldiers' advance became heavier and heavier, and the span between the two steps became smaller and smaller... In this way, invisibly, the marching speed of the army has increased from five kilometers per hour at the beginning to four kilometers per hour... Until now, it's three kilometers per hour..."Baga, the speed of the troops' march is really too slow. Now that it's getting dark, all the planes reinforcing us must be back. And the Eighth Route Army, which had rested all day, must have been in a frantic pursuit behind us. Cangmao-kun, we must speed up the march. Otherwise, the distance of dozens of kilometers that has just been opened will be shortened again, and it will even be directly caught up by the troops of the Eighth Route Army..."Looking at the slower and slower marching speed, the division commander on the war horse couldn't help frowning, and said dissatisfiedly to the chief of staff Kuramo Daisa, who was beside him.

"Your Excellency, Division Commander, now is not the time to speed up. After a day's march, the little food dropped by the plane had already been digested. Now almost everyone is hungry and cold, and there is no strength to continue the march. If there is no food, there will be a few hours at most, and the soldiers will not be able to take a step..."Regarding the division commander's scratch, the chief of staff, Kuramoge Daisa, smiled wryly, and could only reply speechlessly.

"Baga, it's a food problem again. Now it's pitch black everywhere, and there is not a single grain in the surrounding villages, so where can I find so much food. Eight Tooth Road... Boom..."Just as the division commander was about to vent, a loud explosion suddenly came from the avant-garde wing. Needless to say, it must have been a war horse that stepped on a mine arranged by the Eighth Route Army..."Yes, war horse, how did I forget the war horse, we still have hundreds of war horses... Cangmaojun, when there is food, he ordered the troops to stop the march and immediately collect the war horses that were killed by the explosion, if it was not enough, he went to the avant-garde wing to find a few wounded war horses and kill them. In a word, we must ensure that every soldier has at least one pound of horse meat to eat in his hands..."Hearing the explosion, the division commander immediately thought of the war horses that had been killed, and commanded loudly to the chief of staff in front of him.

"Hey, Your Excellency the division commander, I'll go and give the order right away...."The chief of staff was also excited and replied loudly. Soon, just now, the little devil who was still listless and had no morale at all. Just under the command of their respective commanders, piles of bonfires were lit and horse meat began to be cooked ... An hour later, a pot of fragrant horse meat was distributed into the hands of these little devils. These hungry little devils, who didn't know where they suddenly got the strength, immediately began to eat in large gulps. A pound of horse meat is enough to fill the stomachs of these little devils..."Order the troops, continue the march, and before dawn tomorrow, if they can march forty kilometers, the same one person will have a pound of horse meat..." While rejoicing in his wise decision, the division commander once again gave the order to continue the march to the chief of staff beside him.

"Hey, Your Excellency the Division Commander..."Also because there was a pound of horse meat to replenish, the chief of staff at this moment also replied very loudly, turned around and began to convey the order of the division commander... In this way, the remnants of more than 5,000 people in the army invisibly solved the crisis of their own food shortage.

Because of the food, the marching speed of the army has not slowed down in any way. With the cooperation of the air force, the distance between the air force and the third brigade of the column directly under the reading division behind him was a full 50 kilometers in less than two days. This also invisibly added an even heavier burden to the shoulders of the guard brigade blocked in front of the little devil....

At this moment, more than 5,000 soldiers of the Guard Brigade finally walked out of the mountains after two days and two nights of rapid marching in the dense forest. One day ahead of the army, they arrived at the blocking point designated by the commander on the plateau. Prepare to attack here and the directly subordinate columns in front and back, and completely annihilate the remaining thousands of people of the 109th Division of the Japanese Army.

"Brigade commander, I just received a telegram from the commander of the third brigade directly under him, and the distance between them and the army has widened to almost 50 kilometers. Therefore, we need to be here and block the army for at least 10 hours before we can complete the encirclement of the army with the cooperation of the three brigades directly under the column..."Just when Bruce Lee, the commander of the guard brigade, led a group of commanders and observers to observe the terrain in front of them, the communications staff officer of the brigade headquarters hurriedly ran over and reported with a telegram in hand.

"Ten hours... Brigade commander, it seems that here, there is a tough battle to be fought in our guard brigade....although the little devils are about the same number as us, and none of them carry any heavy weapons. However, after all, the army has aircraft reinforcements, and after a bombardment, ordinary civil fortifications can be almost destroyed, and it is very difficult to really block the attack for ten hours..."Huang Zhengqing, the commander of the first guard regiment, opened his mouth and analyzed with a look of surprise..."More importantly, there are still four hours to go, and the sky will become dark....In these four hours, it is impossible for us to build fortifications under the noses of the little devil planes... If the little devil plane knew that in front of our guard brigade in front of them, their plane would definitely chase us and bomb us..."Hu Zhengping, the commander of the second regiment, also said with palpitations.

"What's the matter with you, the battle hasn't been fought yet, you're all starting to complain. Is it that after a long time in the guard brigade, you will not even be able to fight. Let me tell you that when Commander Gao entrusts us with such an important task, he believes in us and the combat effectiveness of our guard brigade. When the time comes, if anyone dares to say a word that disturbs the morale of the army, he will give me a direct exit from the guard brigade, our guard brigade does not have such a bad seed..." Bruce Lee, the commander of the guard brigade, couldn't help but burst into flames, and scolded loudly at several regiment-level commanders around him.

Seeing a few people who were still talking just now, they just finished their words and stood there motionless. Brigade Commander Bruce Lee put his eyes on Zhang He, the commander of the Third Guard Regiment who had not spoken: "Commander Zhang, you haven't spoken just now, tell me what you think?" ”

"Brigade commander, I think so, since the little devil has the support of the plane, if we put all the forces on one point. When the time comes, in the face of the intensive bombing of enemy aircraft, not only will they not be able to stop the attack of the little devils, but they may also suffer big losses... However, if we divide our forces and block them step by step, even if the little devil planes come, they will only be able to break through one line of defense one line at a time. If we arrange ten lines of defense in front of the little devils, it will be enough for these little devils to spend a while and move forward little by little..."Seeing the brigade commander's expectant gaze, Zhang He did not hesitate and directly said what he thought in his heart..."Okay, well said, as long as you can drag the little devil here, even if you complete the task....Lao Zhang, tell me more about what you think in your heart..."After listening to Zhang He's words, the brigade commander Li Xiaolong, who was also frowning just now, immediately lit up his eyes and hurriedly asked.

"Yes, Brigadier Commander... I want to disperse our entire guard brigade into battalions, and build a blocking position at intervals of 500 meters. When the time comes, every blocking position, after blocking for an hour, will immediately retreat. Let's be here, slowly fighting with the little devils, we can afford to fight, but the little devils really can't fight..."The third head Zhang He replied confidently.

(To be continued)