In the dense tropical jungle, Dai Anlan was leading the assault group to the north.

By this time, the rainy season in Myanmar had passed, and the terrain did not pose much hindrance to the march of the assault group.

After receiving Yue Weihan's order, although Dai Anlan had doubts in his heart, he still resolutely carried out the order, and immediately led the tank regiment and the main force of the 200th Division to bypass Longdong and rush north, and when the commander of the 55th Infantry Wing of the Yue Army, Yoshio Nasu, got the news and came out of the tunnel, the expeditionary force was already a hundred miles away.

Yoshio Nasu was shocked, and on the one hand, he urgently telegraphed the headquarters of the 18th Division, and on the other hand, he led his troops to chase after him.

As a result, the 55th Infantry Wing of the Yue Army crashed into the ambush circle of the main force of the 200th Division, and after two hours of fierce fighting, the 55th Infantry Wing of the Yue Army suffered heavy casualties and was forced to withdraw from the battle.

As the troops reached the banks of a small river, Dai found two tanks broken down.

Dai Anlan immediately jumped out of the jeep and stepped forward to ask, "What's the matter?" Got a mechanical breakdown? ”

"Reporter!" The [***] officer, who was resting against the tank, hurriedly stood up and said, "There is no fuel!" ”

"Out of fuel?" Dai Anlan frowned when he heard this, and turned back to the adjutant and said, "Call the headquarters immediately and ask when the Americans' transport plane will arrive?" ”

As the words fell, the rumbling roar of aircraft engines suddenly came from the northwest airspace.

"Division, plane!" The attendant lieutenant pointed to the northwest airspace and shouted, "Allied transports!" ”

Dai Anlan put his hand on the awning and looked into the sky, and sure enough, he saw the Allied transport plane painted with the star stripe pattern and the rice character pattern, Dai Anlan was overjoyed, and immediately ordered the attendant adjutant: "Quick, immediately send a signal to guide the Allied transport plane to airdrop supplies!" ”

………… Gamai, the headquarters of the 18th Division of the Army.

Takeda Shou Dasa walked into the war room with a black face, and said angrily to Mutaguchi Ryoya: "Your Excellency the division commander, Yoshio Nasu is in a hurry, the Shina chariot cluster has bypassed Longdong, and with the coordination of the 200th division of the Shina Division, it has penetrated towards Gamai, and our division will soon fall into a desperate situation of being attacked on the back of the enemy!" ”

"What!?" Mutaguchi Lianya's face suddenly changed drastically, "The chariot cluster has bypassed Longdong?" Isn't the Chinese Army afraid that the 55th Division will cut off their logistical supply routes? ”

"The Chinese army doesn't have to worry about logistics at all." Takeda Shou smiled bitterly, "The aviation scouts report that the Allied transport planes have just airdropped supplies to the northbound assault group of the Shina Army!" ”

"Airdrop supplies?" Mutaguchi Ryoya was shocked, "Why didn't the 55th Wing try to stop it?" ”

"Your Excellency, Division Commander, the 55th Wing has done its best." Takeda Shou sighed gloomily, "The 55th Wing was able to hold back the chariot cluster of the Chinese Army in Longdong for three whole days, which actually exceeded expectations, but the tenacity of the Gamai defenders far exceeded our expectations, which made our division fall into the predicament it is today." ”

"Yagayalu." Mu Taguchi Lian also vigorously ripped open his shirt, and said angrily, "Order, all infantry wings immediately shrink, build a ring defense ring based on the division headquarters, and prepare to defend to the death!" Then call the Corps Headquarters and ask the Army Air Corps to urgently airdrop disinfectant and ammunition supplies! ”

"Hello." Takeda Shou bowed his head suddenly, and immediately took the order away.

By now, the 18th Division had no choice but to shrink its defense.

Don't look at the 18th Division, there are still more than 30,000 people, but there is not much food and ammunition left, and the shells of the mountain artillery wing have already been exhausted, if it is only the new 22nd Division in front of Gamai, Mutaguchi Lian still has the confidence to defeat it, but if you add the tank cluster and the 200th Division that detour from the south, the 18th Division will only be left to be beaten!

If the 18th Division still has a chance to resist stubbornly, once the tank cluster and the 200th Division of the Chinese Expeditionary Force arrive, it only takes one charge to break through the defense line of the Yue Army, which lacks depth.

………… Yangon, the headquarters of the 15th Army Corps.

Major General Haruki Isayama hurriedly walked into Shojiro Iida's office, and immediately retracted his feet and said uprightly: "Your Excellency Commander, the 18th Division is in an emergency, the North and South China Army has formed an encirclement situation, the 18th Division has been forced to shrink its defense, and Mutaguchi Ren also asked the aviation to urgently airdrop ammunition and anti-poison potions to him!" ”

"Yagayalu." Iida Shojiro said angrily, "Burma's air supremacy has been lost, and rashly dispatching transport planes to airdrop supplies to the 18th Division at this time is tantamount to suicide!" Order the 18th Division, no matter what, hold on, the 55th Division has already moved north from Mandalay, and in three days at most, the 55th Division will be able to reach Gamai! ”

"Hello!" Isayama Haruki bowed his head suddenly, and then walked away with his saber on his shoulder.

………… Meng Gong, Expeditionary Force Headquarters.

Chu Zhongtian strode into the war room and said to Yue Weihan: "General, the 55th Division of the Chinese Army has left Mandalay. ”

"Okay, Iida, this old devil finally can't hold his breath!" Yue Weihan said again, "Has the Sixth Army been assembled?" ”

As soon as the words fell, General Peng Bisheng, acting commander of the Sixth Army and commander of the 49th Division, strode into the war room and saluted Yue Weihan Lizheng: "Report to the general seat, the Sixth Army of the Chinese Expeditionary Force of the National Revolutionary Army has been assembled, please instruct!" ”

"Okay." Yue Weihan nodded, and said in a deep voice, "Senior Commander Peng, I think you have also heard of it, that's right, I said it in front of everyone, your Sixth Army is a rabble, and resolutely not to transfer your Sixth Army to the Garmai front line is also worried that you will drag back, I know that you are not convinced, and I am holding my breath in my heart, now, I will give you a chance to prove yourself!" ”

"Command, please!" Peng Bisheng glared at Yue Weihan coldly, and he wanted to kill with his eyes.

Yue Weihan strode to the wall, pointed to the map and said: "Mandalay, the straight-line distance from Menggong is 350 kilometers, the 55th Division of the Yue Army originally stationed in Mandalay has gone north, and the current Mandalay is almost undefended!" My mission to your Sixth Army is to take Mandalay in five days and nail me there! ”

"It won't take five days!" Peng Bisheng said coldly, "Isn't it 350 kilometers?" Three days is enough! ”

"Okay, then I'll give you three days!" Yue Weihan was also not polite, and immediately followed Peng Bisheng's tone and said, "However, there is one thing I must remind you that the Southern Army Command has dispatched the Guards Division and the 31st Division to Burma for reinforcements, as fast as twenty days, as slow as seven days, and the reinforcements of the Yue Army will arrive in Mandalay!" ”

After saying this, Yue Weihan said again: "Also, after discovering your whereabouts and intentions, the 55th Division of the Yue Army going north is likely to turn around and return south, that is to say, after you capture Mandalay, it is very likely to be besieged by the three field divisions of the Yue Army, among which the Guards Division is still a first-class elite division!" ”

"So what?" Peng Bisheng said with a murderous awe, "No one in the Sixth Army is afraid!" ”

"Okay, there's momentum! I hope that your Sixth Army will be consistent in your words and deeds, and will not disappoint me and my countrymen! Yue Weihan nodded and said solemnly, "Execute the order!" ”

"Yes!" Peng Bisheng stood upright, and then turned around and walked away.

Seeing Peng Bisheng's figure disappear into the distance, Yue Weihan said to Luo Zhuoying again: "Brother You Qing, immediately call General Chennault and ask the Flying Tigers to send fighter jets to block the airspace over the Sixth Army's marching route, at least not so that the aviation scouts of the Sixth Army can discover the whereabouts of the Sixth Army before it gets dark tomorrow!" ”

Although the military air force has lost air supremacy in Burma, it is no problem to dispatch reconnaissance planes to conduct aerial reconnaissance, and in order to ensure that the whereabouts of the Sixth Army are not exposed in advance, it is necessary to request the Flying Tigers to block the airspace along the marching route.

"Okay, I'll arrange it." Luo Zhuoying immediately took the order and left.

………… Meng Gong was close to effect, the assembly place of the Sixth Army.

More than 20,000 officers and men have been assembled, and three huge phalanxes have been formed in the wilderness with divisions as units.

Division Commander Peng Bisheng was speaking to all the officers and soldiers through the microphone: "Brothers, the headquarters orders us to rush to Mandalay within five days!" I said, not five days, three days is enough! Isn't it a 120-kilometer march a day? Tired and undead! Listen to everything, throw away all the useless things, the whole army is lightly armed, and set off! ”

Suddenly, more than 20,000 officers and men turned around one after another and marched south in four columns.

Half an hour after the Sixth Army set off from Meng Gong, the "escort formation" of the Flying Tigers arrived.

There are two roads to go from Mong Gong to Mandalay, one is to march along the Mangong (Dele) Mi (China) Railway, and the other is to march along the Irrawaddy River, the Sixth Army chose the Irrawaddy River route, because the 55th Division of the Northern Army will definitely take the railway line, and if the Sixth Army also takes the railway line, the two armies will meet on a narrow road.

The next morning, the Flying Tigers, who were "escorting" the troops, suddenly discovered the whereabouts of the army.

Across the Gangao Mountain in the middle, on the left is the Yue Army going north along the railway, and on the right is the Sixth Army of the Expeditionary Force going south along the Irrawaddy River, however, because the Flying Tigers blocked the nearby airspace, the reconnaissance planes of the Yue Army could not approach, so the Yue Army on the left side of the Gangao Mountain did not know that at this time there was a large [***] team rushing south on the other side of the Gangao Mountain.

There is no doubt that both armies are racing against time! The 55th Division was moving north at full speed, trying to catch the 18th Division before it was destroyed, while the Sixth Army of the Chinese Expeditionary Force was moving south, trying to capture Mandalay, which was empty, before the army could react!

(To be continued)