On August 10, 1902, with the cooperation of the Tohoku Navy, the Dingbei Army troops that landed on Kyushu Island occupied Sasebo Naval Base, one of the most important home ports of the Japanese Navy on Kyushu Island.

However, the Dingbei Army troops that landed on the island were 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo Naval Base, but they encountered stubborn resistance from the Japanese Army and the Self-Defense Forces, although there were fighters from the Northeast Air Force to help the battle, but the Japanese army here gathered 7 divisions of the Japanese army and nearly 900,000 Japanese Self-Defense Forces, so that the Dingbei Army attack force chose to retreat to the Sasebo Naval Base after losing nearly 5,000 people, waiting for the arrival of follow-up troops.

Subsequently, the troops of the other two divisions of the Third Field Army of the Dingbei Army, as well as the four newly formed divisions, arrived at the Sasebo Naval Base by transport ships on the 11th and 12th, making the strength of the Dingbei Army landing on Kyushu Island more than 220,000, and Deng Zichao, the commander of the Third Field Army, was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Dingbei Army on Kyushu Island.

Deng Zichao summoned the three division commanders of his Third Field Army and the four division commanders of the newly formed division in the temporary headquarters of the Sasebo Naval Base, and Deng Zichao said in a deep voice: "Everyone knows about the battle two days ago, let the commander of the 33rd Division Wu give you a detailed introduction to the situation of that day, we must learn from the experience of the battle two days ago and prepare to continue the offensive." ”

Wu Zhe, commander of the 33rd Division, stood up and said: "The Japanese army and the so-called Self-Defense Forces have built many fortifications based on the terrain 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo naval base. If we want to continue our offensive to the rest of Kyushu, we must take it. 2 days ago. Our 33rd Division, with the cooperation of the Navy, easily occupied the Sasebo Naval Base. Sending troops to continue the attack to the east of Sasebo, when we encountered the Japanese resistance 30 kilometers away, we contacted the Tohoku Air Force to provide air support to us, never expected that the number of Japanese troops and Self-Defense Forces gathered there was a large number, originally our division's troops relied on the support of fighters, just attacked the Japanese position, and were counterattacked by the Japanese army and the Self-Defense Forces, which had an absolute superiority in numbers, and finally the battle became a tug-of-war. The attacking force of our 33rd Division lost almost 5000 people. ”

Deng Zichao said at this time: "According to the intelligence sent by the Military Intelligence Bureau, the day before yesterday, the 33rd Division faced more than one million Japanese troops and self-defense forces, including 7 Japanese divisions and nearly 900,000 Japanese self-defense forces, although the 33rd Division lost nearly 5,000 people, but the Japanese lost more, reaching about 150,000 people. The latest information from the Military Intelligence Agency is that in the past two days, 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo naval base, the Japanese have regrouped more than a million people. The new arrivals were the Japanese Army and the Self-Defense Forces in other parts of Kyushu. ”

The commander of an integrated division said: "If the Japanese lose 150,000 at once, it can be regarded as a victory." ”

Wu Zhe, the commander of the 33rd Division, nodded and said: "The Japanese can suffer such a big loss, mainly relying on the fighters of our Northeast Air Force, and hundreds of fighters have dropped a large number of bombs. However, as the bombs carried by the fighters of the Northeast Air Force ran out, the attack troops of our 33rd Division stopped attacking. Returned to the Sasebo naval base. I think we go on the offensive and we have to get the Air Force to intensify the bombing. Strengthen the continuity of the bombing so that we can do it at the lowest cost. Defeat this force of more than a million Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces. ”

Deng Zichao nodded and said: "The air force has promised to provide us with air support as much as possible after we launch an attack, considering the lack of Japanese air defense weapons, the air force is even ready to dispatch airships to bomb the Japanese, it seems that if we want to take down this Japanese army and the Self-Defense Forces, we must rely on the strong bombing of the air force." ”

Zhao Baosheng, commander of the 31st Division, said: "Commander, as long as we have the support of the air force's fighters and airships, I believe we will definitely be able to defeat the Japanese army and self-defense forces. ”

Discussion and discussion, in fact, in addition to relying on the strength of the Northeast Air Force to defeat the Japanese, Deng Zichao and they did not come up with any other tricks, but relying on this trick, it should be enough.

In the area 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo naval base, the combined Japanese army and self-defense forces have exceeded one million, and a large number of fortifications have been built; if there were no fighters and airships from the Northeast Air Force, the more than 220,000 Dingbei officers and men who landed on the island would have defeated this enemy, and they themselves did not know how much they would have to lose, and the Dingbei Army was absolutely unwilling to consume it with the Japanese.

The Dingbei Army attacking the Japanese mainland, in addition to the 1 division of the Second Field Army attacking Hokkaido Island, also the Third Field Army and 4 new divisions attacking Kyushu Island, and the other units of the Dingbei Army attacking the Japanese mainland were responsible for attacking Japan's Honshu Island and Shikoku Island, so Deng Zichao, the commander of the Third Field Army, could only rely on the more than 220,000 troops in his hands to take the entire Kyushu Island.

Because the Tohoku Air Force had a limited number of fighters, in order to support the battle on Kyushu Island, the Dingbei Army troops, which were originally planning to land on Honshu Island and Shikoku Island, postponed the landing plan, so that the Tohoku Air Force could devote all its forces to the upcoming major war on Kyushu Island.

At 9 o'clock in the morning of August 13, 1902, 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo Naval Base on the Japanese island of Kyushu, the Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces flew in the sky above the positions of the Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces, and began to drop bombs on the positions below.

This was not the end of the story, and in a short time, 28 airships that had taken off from Busan, Yalu Province, before dawn, also flew over the positions of the Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces and joined in the bombing of the positions below.

The Japanese have pitiful few anti-aircraft weapons, and the threat to fighters flying at high speed is minimal, even for airships that do not fly fast. The threat is not too great, after all, the Japanese anti-aircraft guns have not yet fired a few shots. It will be bombed by warplanes.

Immediately adding fuel to the fire, the artillery of the Dingbei Army's attack force also began to exert its might. Thousands of artillery shells were fired at the Japanese position, but the Japanese did not even have the strength to counterattack the artillery of the Dingbei Army, and the few artillery pieces had been almost destroyed by the fighters of the Northeast Air Force in the previous few days of fighting, and they could only be beaten passively at this time.

The entire Japanese position here is very vast, with fighters and airships of the Northeast Air Force and artillery of the Dingbei Army. At present, only a position in front is being attacked, and in an anti-artillery hole in the rear position of Japan, where the commanders of the seven divisions of the Japanese army have gathered, and now they have not yet received bombs or shells above their heads.

Matsumura Masakimoto, the commander of the 20th Japanese Standing Division, said in a deep voice: "Gentlemen, this time we will face the most severe test, and I, as the commander of the battle here, I order!" ”

The other six division commanders all stood up with a "snap." "Anyone who retreats will be shot on the spot, including all Imperial soldiers and citizens of the Self-Defense Forces, for the sake of the Empire of Japan. For the sake of His Majesty the Emperor, see you at our shrine! ”

The attacking troops of the Dingbei Army knew that most of the Japanese were hiding in the anti-artillery holes of their positions. Bombardment from the air and artillery shelling against the Japanese hiding in the anti-artillery hole. The effect is not very large, unless the bomb or shell hits the anti-artillery hole directly.

So after some time of aerial bombardment and shelling. At this time, in order to resist the attack of the Dingbei Army, the Japanese had to drill out of the anti-artillery hole and stand up to the bombardment of the Northeast Air Force and the artillery bombardment of the Dingbei Army, which made the Japanese casualties more and more serious.

When the officers and soldiers of the Dingbei Army rushed to the position, these members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces just wanted to start a white-knuckle battle, and it was very difficult for them to start a white-knives battle, on the one hand, there were airplanes and artillery, and on the other hand, the officers and men of Dingbei were equipped with powerful melee firepower, so that the members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces who were preparing for white-knuckle combat fell under the guns of the officers and men of Dingbei one after another.

A group of members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces could not bear such a deadly battle, so they turned around and fled to the rear position, but they had not run far before the guns in the hands of the Japanese soldiers in the rear positions rang out, but the target of these Japanese soldiers was not the officers and soldiers of the Dingbei Army, but the members of the Self-Defense Forces who fled backwards.

Immediately, the Japanese position continued to sound, "Those who retreat will be shot on the spot!" After that, there were still members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and even officers and soldiers of the Japanese Army who could not withstand such a fierce battle, but they were killed by their own people before they could escape far.

The attacking troops of the Dingbei Army did not rush to advance to the depth of the Japanese position, but chose to advance steadily and steadily, relying on the bombing of the Northeast Air Force and the artillery of the Dingbei Army to open the way, and advance little by little.

The Japanese were unwilling to let the positions they had worked so hard to build be encroached upon by the Dingbei Army little by little, so they launched several large-scale counterattacks, trying to repel the Dingbei Army, but unfortunately several counterattacks were destroyed in the bombing of the Northeast Air Force and the artillery bombardment of the Dingbei Army.

However, the Japanese are very tenacious, many Japanese have been hiding in the anti-artillery hole, waiting for the officers and soldiers of the Dingbei Army to kill the position before rushing out of the anti-artillery hole, and the officers and soldiers of Dingbei to start a white-edged battle, although many have fallen under the strong melee firepower of the Dingbei Army, but there are still many Japanese who have successfully fought with the officers and soldiers of Dingbei, so that the casualties of the Dingbei Army have also increased over time.

From August 13 to August 18, it took five days for the Dingbei Army troops to land on Kyushu Island to defeat the Japanese Army and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces 30 kilometers east of the Sasebo Naval Base.

Less than 50,000 Japanese prisoners, and nearly 300,000 more, withdrew from their positions overnight and retreated in the direction of Saga Castle.

Many of these nearly 300,000 people were officers and soldiers of the Japanese Army, and during the five-day battle, these officers and soldiers of the Japanese Army acted more as a supervisory team, forcing the members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to launch suicidal attacks.

Not to mention, such a suicide-like attack caused the attacking troops of the Dingbei Army to suffer a lot of losses in the white-knuckle battle, with more than 6,000 killed in five days of fighting, and nearly 15,000 wounded, of which nearly 8,000 were seriously wounded.

Of course, such casualties were insignificant compared to the losses of the Japanese, and the casualty ratio reached 1 to 40.

As soon as the battle here ended, the Dingbei Army troops that landed on Kyushu Island did not rest, and continued to advance eastward, pursuing the fleeing Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces with victory, and preparing to take the opportunity to attack Saga Castle, an important Japanese town on Kyushu Island.

Because nearly 300,000 Japanese were evacuated at night, and the pursuit force of the Dingbei Army only pursued it during the day the next day, so the pursuit force of the Dingbei Army arrived at the Japanese fortifications on the outskirts of Saga Castle, and did not catch up, allowing nearly 300,000 Japanese Army and Self-Defense Forces to enter Saga Castle, bringing the Japanese defenders of Saga Castle to 600,000.

The troops of the Dingbei Army, which had been caught in Saga Castle, did not launch an attack rashly, but contacted the fighters and airships of the Northeast Air Force to support them, and only then launched an attack on Saga Castle.

The Japanese built a large number of fortifications inside and outside Saga City, especially the fortifications in the city, which were almost built for street fighting, and it can be said that the Japanese faced the moment of life and death, and they were really desperate, not only Saga City, but also many inland cities in mainland Japan, all of which were built by the Japanese as large pillboxes, ready to fight for the Dingbei Army city by city.

The Dingbei Army troops who attacked Saga Castle were relatively easy when they captured the Japanese outside the city, with the support of aircraft and artillery, and the entire Japanese position outside Saga City was occupied by the Dingbei Army without using half a day, but then the battle in Saga Castle made the Dingbei Army fall into a bitter battle, that is, the planes and artillery bombed Saga Castle almost into ruins, and the Japanese still held on to the ruins of the city, so that the Dingbei Army attacked the troops, and the casualties became larger and larger. (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you for the tip of the Inquisitor Gundam and the replica artifact, and thank you for the brothers who voted for the vote