In fact, compared with North China, in the northwest region, Suiyuan, Chahar, and Inner Mongolia, the Japanese army's control power is very low, which is related to the lack of Japanese troops and the fact that the strategic position of the above-mentioned areas is not as important as other places.

However, Rehe, which borders Chahar, is one of the four provinces outside the Guanwai, and the Japanese army has a stronger control force.

Chahar is adjacent to the Pingjin region, so the Japanese army has a stronger control over this area than Suiyuan and Inner Mongolia.

Due to the lack of troops, the invading Japanese army did not completely occupy Suiyuan, Inner Mongolia and other places, but only occupied the area along and around the railway and highway for more than 10 kilometers.

Many places in Suiyuan were still in the hands of Fu Zuoyi's 35th Army and other units of the Jin Sui Army, as well as the guerrillas of the Eighth Route Army.

The regular army of the Japanese army stationed in Suiyuan and Inner Mongolia was only one corps stationed in Mongolia under the North China Front Army, which had a total of 26 units and five or six infantry brigades, with a total strength of about 20,000 or 30,000 people.

These Japanese troops were mainly stationed in Baotou, Hohhot and Ordos, and other counties such as Ulanqab and other banner counties were generally garrisoned by local Mongolian cavalry and traitors who surrendered to the country.

In addition, the main strength of the Japanese puppet army in Chahar is also stationed in Zhangjiakou, the provincial capital, with a total of about two brigades, all of which are equivalent to the combat effectiveness of the B or even C divisions.

Judging from the total strength of the Japanese puppet army, the number is more than that of the dragon's tooth column, but it is not only the more than 40,000 troops under Qiao Anbang who are responsible for marching into Saibei and carrying out a counteroffensive against the Japanese puppet army.

There are also tens of thousands of Jin Sui troops dominated by Fu Zuoyi's 35th Army, and the total strength of the guerrillas and militia of the Eighth Route Army is no less than 30,000 or 40,000.

Therefore, in terms of total strength, the Chinese anti-Japanese armed forces still have the advantage, and the Japanese puppet army has to be stationed in Baotou, Zhangjiakou, Hohhot, Ordos and other places, stretching for thousands of miles.

The forces were extremely scattered, and they basically could not pose a threat to the Eighth Route Army troops such as the Dragon Tooth Column and the Jin Sui Army.

Since the main force of the First Army in Shanxi was basically wiped out, there is no longer an organized Japanese puppet army in the Saibei area that can resist the counteroffensive of the Chinese army.

Therefore, after receiving the instructions of the Party Central Committee and the heads of the Eighth Route Army Headquarters, Qiao Youhua immediately made corresponding military arrangements according to the strength of the enemy.

The two infantry regiments that remained in Taiyuan, Yuanping, Xinzhou, Daixian and even Yanmen Pass, together with the cavalry reconnaissance battalion of the guard regiment, were all transferred north to Datong to stand by.

Because more than 20,000 fraternal troops of the Eighth Route Army have arrived in Taiyuan, they can hand over the defense of the above-mentioned areas to them.

In addition, the two infantry battalions that originally stayed in Yangquan and Niangziguan also had to hand over the defense of the other Eighth Route Army, and then withdrew north to the hinterland of the Shimen generation base to rest and wait.

As for the areas bordering Shanxi, such as Jingcheng Pass, there is no need to deliberately leave too many defensive troops because of the change in the situation in Shanxi.

In the future, the main combat direction of the Longya Column will be Shandong and the Pingjin area, and the Pingjin area is the most likely to break out, and the strength of the troops will naturally be inclined to the north.

The reason is very simple, with the recovery of Shanxi, and the recovery of Jincha, Hebei, Suicha and other places immediately. The major anti-Japanese base areas of the Eighth Route Army in North China will be connected in this way, including the Longya anti-Japanese base area with complete German-style army weapons production capacity.

If the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army decides to let Qiao Youhua's headquarters go north to the Pingjin area, then the 120,000 regular militia units of the Eighth Route Army that have been freed up in Shanxi and other places will be able to cross the Yellow River south and, with the cooperation of the anti-Japanese armed forces in Shandong, launch a recovering attack on the Japanese-occupied areas in Shandong and even in the entire East China.

After all, in addition to the Japanese puppet army, there are also several theaters of the Nationalist Government in East China and the Central Plains, and nearly one million anti-Japanese troops.

They will certainly not sit idly by in this good situation.

In this way, the total strength of the Dragon's Tooth Column in Datong exceeded 50,000 people, plus the two regiments brought by Li Yunlong, the number of infantry regiments reached twelve, including Zheng Yunshan's guard regiment.

In addition, the artillery regiment was also strengthened after being replenished with new artillery in the base area.

The two tank companies have participated in the battle until now and have made great achievements, because they have no losses at all due to their invincible firepower and solid defense.

In terms of ammunition, artillery shells are not used very much, and they are sufficient, although the ammunition consumption of vehicle-mounted machine guns is large, but because they are the same as the machine guns equipped with various infantry units, the bullets are universal.

Therefore, you can get a steady stream of supplies without worrying about scarcity. The only shortage of oil is that now they are thousands of miles away from the column base area because of the Taihang Mountain.

Fortunately, after the recovery of Taiyuan and Datong, a lot of abandoned oil from the devil puppet army was seized in the city, as well as some fuel in the transport vehicles.

Probably because the Japanese puppet army fled too quickly and didn't have time to destroy it.

Let the officers under him roughly calculate the fuel required by the tank troops, and let the transport troops give priority to the fuel supply to the tank troops, and the small-caliber artillery and artillery shells should be transported by mules and horses as much as possible.

Finally, enough fuel was freed up for the tank troops to participate in the next thousand-mile raid.

Considering that Zhangjiakou was adjacent to Beiping City, in order to prevent the Japanese army in Beiping from advancing westward, Qiao Youhua decided to equip the tank troops with the attacking troops on the North Road.

The attacking force on the northern route was personally led by Qiao Youhua and consisted of three regiments of the First Division, an artillery regiment, and a guard regiment.

The troops advancing westward consisted of six regiments of the Second and Third Divisions, plus Li Yunlong's two regiments.

At first glance, the attacking troops on the western route were more numerous than those on the northern route, but the troops on the northern route had artillery and tank units, as well as well-equipped guard regiments with strong firepower, and their combat strength was relatively strong.

However, Qiao Youhua's deployment of Li Yunlong's troops to the western route was also due to the fact that the Japanese puppet army in Suiyuan, Inner Mongolia and other places was mainly cavalry, and the anti-aircraft machine gun equipped by Li Yunlong's department happened to be the biggest nemesis of the cavalry!

After the operational deployment was properly arranged, it was necessary to wait for the troops to be withdrawn from Xinzhou, Taiyuan and other places.

Therefore, Qiao Youhua and the others rested in Datong for two more days, and two days later, reinforcements arrived.

After resting and recuperating, the soldiers of the army also recovered their body and spirit, Qiao Youhua and Zhao Youde, Zhou Dasheng, Li Yunlong and others said goodbye to each other outside the north gate of Datong City

They officially set out with their troops and embarked on a journey to sweep through the north.

At the same time, the commander of the First Army of the Japanese Army, Xiang Yue Qingji, who had just fled to Zhangjiakou in a hurry, was secretly arrested by agents of the Japanese army's special high school who had been waiting for a long time before he had time to rest and rest, and was taken away and returned to Beiping overnight.