"Commander-in-Chief, the situation of the War of Resistance in Northern Jiangsu is now developing in the direction we predicted in advance. You see, are we predetermined the battle plan and started to implement the second step of the battle plan....." Chief of Staff Zuo Quan suggested.

"Of course, we must not miss this opportunity, and immediately issue specific combat orders to all combat units under our command in accordance with the operational plan drawn up by the General Staff. At the same time, the commanders were announced to the commanders that the specific strategic plan and deployment of the General Headquarters in this general battle made them have a number in their hearts. Liu Hua replied very affirmatively, and his face was immediately filled with a strong look of confidence. Yes, Commander-in-Chief ... √'Mouth' Wait a minute...,." Looking at the chief of staff who was about to leave, Liu Hua, who was still a little worried about Huai'an City, hurriedly spoke.

"Chief of Staff, the key to the success of this Huai'an battle is whether our Seventh Corps can hold Huai'an City with its limited strength and gather hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops to the periphery of Huai'an City. Then, together with several corps outside the city, they attacked inside and outside, and annihilated them all outside Huai'an City in one fell swoop. Therefore, immediately in my name, send a telegram to Commander Deng Hua, emphasizing the importance of holding Huai'an City....." Liu Hua said with a serious face.

"Commander-in-chief, you can rest assured, I know Commander Deng Hua, we can put ten thousand hearts in Huai'an City to him..." Regarding Liu Hua's concern, Chief of Staff Zuo Quan replied with great certainty.

In Huai'an City, after the continuous attack of the Japanese army that lasted for more than an hour slowly ended, the entire battlefield finally quieted down. At this moment, on a silent battlefield, Commander Deng Hua, Political Commissar Chen Kang, Chief of Staff Sun Shiquan and others are standing on the majestic and tall city wall of Huai'an City with a solemn face, paying attention to the bleak battlefield in front of them.... Looking at the wide position in front of him, the corpses of the Japanese puppet army wearing khaki military uniforms were scattered in front of the position.

In addition, in the middle of the battlefield, the thick black smoke rising from the air and the destruction of the Japanese puppet army's artillery fire have turned into a defensive position in ruins. With the two beside him, Commander Deng Hua spoke first.

"Lao Chen, Lao Song, look at the nearly 1,000 corpses left by the Japanese puppet army on the battlefield. I'm sure the battle must have been fierce for just over an hour. How about it, the losses of the defending troops were not significant, and in addition, the fortifications outside the city, under enemy fire, the losses were not serious ...

"Commander, it is true that as you said, the battle just now was very fierce. The Japanese puppet army outside the seventh f, changed the previous character of being afraid of death, and under the supervision of the supervising team behind them, they launched round after round of attacks on our city fortifications. At that time, if it were not for the several permanent pillboxes outside the city, the uninterrupted firepower output was always maintained. Perhaps, these outlaws have broken through the defenses we have deployed outside the city....." Chief of Staff Sun Shiquan, who had been commanding operations on the front line and had personally experienced the battle for more than an hour, couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

"Old Sun, how are the casualties of the troops...." Nodding, Deng Hua asked.

"The casualties are still within our control, but because the enemy is armed with a large number of artillery, the fortifications outside the city, with the exception of some permanent reinforced concrete pillboxes, are still standing and serve as permanent fire points for our troops. The remaining fortifications were almost completely damaged under the continuous shelling of dozens of mountain runs by the Japanese puppet army. Correspondingly, the troops defending these fortifications paid a very heavy price under the enemy's bombardment. ”

"According to the latest data from various solid newspapers, in the more than an hour of fighting, we paid a huge price of more than 600 killed and more than 800 seriously injured and lost their combat effectiveness. However, it is fortunate that these casualties are mainly on the prisoners, and the veterans in our hands only paid more than 200 casualties..." Chief of Staff Sun Shiquan replied.

"More than 1,400 people. In this way, we have less than 3,000 soldiers left in the battleable army deployed outside the city...,." Commander Deng Hua asked with a solemn face.

"Yes, there are only more than 2,900 people left...."

"These forces cannot be allowed to hold out any longer. Otherwise, the huge casualties will definitely make these troops composed of prisoners and without any training completely collapse...." After receiving an affirmative answer from the chief of staff, Deng Hua said with a worried face. ,

"Commander, what should we do next..."Four battalions of troops were drawn from the reserve, and all of them were replaced for a short rest. Look at our veterans, how they fought. At the same time, do a good job in the ideological work of these troops....." Facing the rhetorical question of the chief of staff, after a short period of contemplation, Deng Hua ordered very decisively.

"Yes, Commander....."

Just as Chief of Staff Sun Shiquan was about to leave, a communications staff officer rushed up the city wall panting and stood in front of everyone.

"Commander, commissar, chief of staff, secretary of the headquarters ....."

"Secret telegram, the headquarters sent a secret telegram at this time, could it be that something happened?" Deng Hua, who was puzzled, quickly took the telegram and began to read it.

A minute later, a long sigh came out of Deng Hua's mouth. Then, under everyone's incomprehensible gaze, Deng Hua spoke.

"Lao Chen, Lao Song, this time, we have thoroughly estimated the strategic policy and objectives of the headquarters... Let's go, let's go back to the headquarters first, and talk as we go...."

In the war room, looking at the combat map in front of him, Chen Kang, the political commissar who had clearly known the entire battle plan, spoke first: "Commander, chief of staff, according to the plan: our Seventh Corps, under the enemy's joint attack on air and ground, needs to hold Huai'an City for at least three days and three nights before it can be regarded as completing the task.

But the forces we have in our hands..." Lao Chen, I'm also thinking about this problem, the strategic policy of the headquarters, all of our previous troop deployment will be overturned at once..., so, now our urgent delay is how to transfer the troops hidden outside the city into the city before the arrival of the Japanese puppet reinforcements...," Deng Hua nodded approvingly and said.

The eyes of the three people, after a brief exchange.

Almost at the same time, they gathered on the drawings of the city defense in front of them and began to think about specific solutions... A few minutes passed in a blink of an eye, just when the entire battle was completely enveloped by this solemn atmosphere, and it was almost breathless. Commander Deng Hua raised his head and then spoke.

"At present, it seems that there is only one way to transfer troops from outside the city into the city, and that is to attack at night. Through a night attack, a breach was opened in the weakest section of the Japanese defense, and troops were transferred into the city from the breach. The chief of staff immediately dispatched a special operations battalion attached to the headquarters to reconnoiter the specific location of the weakest part of the Japanese encirclement outside the city. After that, we are working on a specific battle plan...."

"Yes, Commander....."

In Muyang County, more than 20 kilometers away from the county seat, in a group of mountains, on the surface, although there is no difference. However, if you look closely, you can see very clearly that there is not a single sign of animal and bird activity in the huge mountains..... And in the middle of these mountains, two days ago, it became the station of the 10th Corps of the East China Field Army.

In the center of the station, a heavily guarded tent is the temporary headquarters of the 10th Corps. In the dark green tent, Commander Yang Dezhi, Political Commissar Luo Yuanfa, and Chief of Staff Xie Youfa were sitting on a stool made of bullet boxes with a depressed face and no energy, complaining. "Commander, what's going on, there's been no news since the headquarters let us station in this mountain and completely hide it. You see, did the headquarters forget us in the mountains..." Chief of Staff Xie Youfa expressed his dissatisfaction with a depressed face.

"Lao Xie, don't talk nonsense, it's not good for the soldiers to hear it.

Besides, our corps has a total of 20,000 troops, and no matter what direction we are in, they will not forget us. If my guess is correct, at this moment, the headquarters must be preparing to play a big game of chess with the Japanese puppet army in the entire northern Jiangsu region....." Yang Dezhi glared fiercely at the chief of staff in front of him, and said with grace.

Just as his words fell, there was a sound. And the report reached the ears of the three men.

"Commander, commissar, chief of staff, headquarters secret telegram ....." Headquarters secret telegram..., Lao Xie, I'll just say, no matter what, the headquarters will not forget our Liang Wan army.

Quick, send me the telegram...," As soon as the communications staff officer's voice fell, a trace of excitement appeared on Yang Dezhi's face. Without any melancholy, he snatched the telegram from the hands of the communications staff officer and began to read it earnestly.

"Okay..., good...," after reading the telegram in his hand, a few good words came out of Yang Dezhi's mouth in a row.

Then, under the expectant gaze of the two partners, Yang Dezhi said: "Lao Xie, Lao Luo, I really didn't guess wrong just now, the headquarters is taking Huai'an City as the center, and the enemy and puppet army in the entire northern Jiangsu region are playing a big game of chess, and the name of this big chess game is called 'Huai'an General Battle'." Now this game of chess has begun. And our 10th Corps is a chess piece in this game of chess, with Huai'an City as the center, arranging a net of heaven and earth, waiting for the direction of Nanjing, reinforcing the Japanese puppet army troops in Huai'an...."

"Pass on my order, all commanders at or above the division level in the whole corps should rush to the headquarters and convene a meeting of the main station within half an hour...." Yang Dezhi, who was excited, didn't wait for the two partners to react from the shock, and ordered loudly to the guards at the door.

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To be continued