The reorganization of the troops is a very troublesome matter, and it will take at least one to three months of adaptation after the reorganization, during which the troops will hardly have combat effectiveness. After receiving the report of the secret agent, Okamura Ninji, the old fox, ordered the 37th Division to immediately launch an attack on Nakajo Mountain, in an attempt to fish in the troubled waters.

The 37th Division was stationed in the Yuncheng area north of Nakajo Mountain, and received orders to quickly advance southward. However, he was only halfway down the road when he was ambushed by the 40th Army of Ma Fa V. It turned out that Zheng Huzi knew that the Japanese army was likely to take advantage of the gap to attack, so he had already made arrangements in secret. He successively dispatched the 40th Army, the New Fifth Army (Sun Dianying's Division) and the 93rd Army (Zhu Huaibing's Division) to rush to reinforcements, but he didn't expect the Japanese army to come so quickly. Fortunately, the 40th Army was reinforced in time, otherwise it might have suffered a loss.

The 40th Army is a heroic unit that bravely defends Linyi, and after two years of recuperation and Zheng Weiguo's vigorous replenishment, its strength has jumped to the first-class backbone of the Second Theater. The 37th Division of the Japanese Army was killed, that is, a three-character division, and its firepower was not far inferior to that of the 40th Army.

When Zheng Weiguo personally arrived at the battlefield, the battle was already over, and the soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield. The 40th Army is the old foundation of the Northwest Army, which is somewhat similar to the Eighth Route Army, and they are all from poor backgrounds. Although the living conditions have improved greatly in recent years, they are still habitually careful in their calculations, and guns, ammunition, clothes, hats, shoes and socks have basically been stripped off, and they are all happy as if they are celebrating the New Year.

The commander of the Fifth Army was urging the soldiers to speed up, and learned that Commander Zheng had arrived in person. Busy trotting up all the way to greet him, as soon as they met, he complained: "Junza, oops, why did you get here?" It's dangerous here! ”

(Note: Junzuo is the honorific title of the national army for the immediate superior, usually added in front of the position and then simplified, for example, the military commander Junzuo is referred to as the military seat.) Zheng Huzi is the commander of the Second World War Zone, and his full name should be Commander Junzuo, but it is not easy to simplify, like this case, it is generally called Junzuo directly. But old subordinates often refer to their previous positions to show their identity)

Zheng Weiguo waved his hand and smiled: "Where is it not dangerous?" Don't forget that I also came out of the battlefield. Then he asked, "Gengyu." What about troop casualties? ”

Ma Fawu said happily: "The casualties are not large. Fewer than a hundred brothers were killed in battle. Alas, if it had been left in the past, there would have been hundreds or thousands of deaths in a big battle like this. ”

Zheng Weiguo nodded with some satisfaction. He also instructed: "The lives of dozens of brothers are also fate. Take care of the aftermath. Bereavement pensions should also be done well. Let the brethren walk with peace of mind! ”

"Hey!" Ma Fawu nodded heavily, and said, "Junza, we have captured a lot of weapons this time. Would you like to take a look? ”

Zheng Weiguo smiled: "Are there any new toys?" ”

Ma Fawu hurriedly said: "Yes, yes!" Xianzhou, bring the fresh toys you have captured to Junzuo! ”

A big man with the rank of major general hurriedly answered. This major general's name is Li Zhenqing, and his name is Xianzhou (not the same person as Li Xianzhou of the Central Army) was the commander of the 106th Division at the time. He has a very bold personality, and he is also an officer from the army, so he understands the hardships of soldiers very well, and can prescribe the right medicine, which is very supported by soldiers. A rising star in the Northwest Army system.

After a while, Division Commander Li Zhenqing came over with several weapons. Zheng Weiguo casually picked up a light machine gun that looked like a Czech style. This gun, like the Czech ZB30, is an air-conductive automatic method with a 30-round arc magazine. The biggest difference is that both the magazine and the handle are forward, which is the opposite of the Czech style.

Wen Bin suddenly pointed to the front of the barrel and smiled: "Hey, why is there a bayonet hanging on it, who added it?" ”

Master Li Zhenqing hurriedly explained: "We didn't add this, it was originally there!" The little devil is really stunned, and he didn't forget to fight the bayonet for anything! But this gun is not bad, Junzuo, Minister of Culture and Tourism, look at this barrel, this scope, and our ZB30 has a fight. ”

This machine gun is a Japanese-made Type 96 light machine gun, which was successfully developed as early as 1936, but it was not officially put into production until 42 years. When the Japanese army occupied Northeast China, it felt the shortcomings of the crooked handle (i.e., the Taisho 11th year), so they wanted to develop a new machine gun to replace the crooked handle. At that time, there were two trial models, one of which was a complete imitation of the Czech type, but after the trial production, it was found to be too heavy, and the last thing was changed to the Type 97 vehicle-mounted light machine gun, and there was not much equipment.

Type 96 is formed on the basis of crooked handles and absorbing the advantages of the Czech style. The appearance looks like the Czech style, but the bones are still crooked style. At the same time, it has the advantages of two machine guns, and overcomes some of the previous shortcomings, so it has been recognized by the army as soon as it is developed, but the stingy Japanese army has not been willing to replace it. It was not until 1942, when the Japanese army was preparing to advance south, that mass production began.

In addition to supplying the Southern Army, the Chinese dispatch army was also distributed. Due to the excellent performance of the Type 96 machine gun, it even caused some panic among the military and civilians behind enemy lines at that time. The Japanese puppet traitors also took the opportunity to publicize what kind of "magic spear is invincible" or the like, which made people panic. It was only later that this negatious effect was eliminated when the armed forces behind enemy lines were gradually captured and equipped with such weapons.

Having said all this, what are the advantages of the Type 96 light machine gun? First, it is relatively light, one pound and two taels lighter than the Czech type, but it has ten more bullets than the Czech type; Second, it has much less recoil than the Czech, which uses 7.92 mm bullets and Type 96 uses 6.5 mm rounds, and the third point is derived from the first and second points - it can be shot from the shoulder or waist.

On the battlefield behind enemy lines, because you have me and I have you, there is no clear battle line, and the possibility of encounters between the two sides is extremely high. And the Czech, crooked handles, although not too heavy, but it is very troublesome to shoot with them. Once you've got an enemy, you'll have to lie down and open the gun mount before you start shooting. Like in film and television works, it is actually very difficult to use the Czech style as a submachine gun at every turn, and the quality of soldiers is extremely demanding.

Type 96 is different, as long as the body is not too bad, you can basically do it. Southerners who are smaller in size and weaker in strength can also do it. Historically, after the Pudong guerrillas captured a Type 96, they specially arranged for a soldier to walk in front of the team with this gun, and once they encountered the enemy, they relied on this gun to suppress and destroy the enemy. This made the Pudong guerrillas at that time famous on the battlefield in East China, and the machine gun also became their signature, and every time the military region exhibited, the gun was borrowed and placed to deter traitors and wavering elements. It was very beautiful for a while, and it was not uncommon until more seizures were seized.

Zheng Weiguo looked at it and asked with some joy, "Xianzhou." Did you get a lot of this gun? ”

Li Zhenqing shook his head and said, "Not much." There are only twelve of them, and two of them have been smashed by the little devils, and it is estimated that they have just started to equip them. If you like it, take it all! ”

The commander of the Fifth Army of Ma Fa hurriedly said: "Look at your poor and sour appearance." What is Junzuo's identity? You can also take advantage of us! ”

Zheng Weiguo smiled: "Hehe." Don't squeeze me, you can't use Japanese-style equipment, take it yourself and ask the equipment department for a reward! Your attrition in battle. The armament department will also replenish the same. ”

Seeing that his thoughts were recognized, Commander Ma couldn't help but blush, and nodded his head busily.

Division Commander Li sneered: "Hehe, Junzuo, what about the cannon?" ”

Zheng Weiguo thought for a moment and said: "If the shells can be used universally, they will be kept, but they must also be reported to the Equipment Department!" ”

"Yes, Junza!" Ma Jun was overjoyed, and hurriedly said to Master Li: "Don't be stunned, there are all good things to move over for Junzuo to see." ”

Master Li smiled, touched his nose, pointed to a few carriages behind him, and said, "Junzuo, please look, there are a lot of good things in here!" ”

"What baby?" Zheng Weiguo walked over curiously, and it was a recoilless gun and a bazooka. Just looking at the appearance, it is still very primitive goods, and even the products of the Ping'an County Arsenal are not as good. However, with the R&D and manufacturing capabilities of the Japanese army, as long as there is a way, mature products will be produced sooner or later.

Zheng Weiguo asked with a solemn face: "This was also captured in the battle just now?" ”

Division Commander Li nodded and said, "Well, the little devil used recoilless to bombard our mountaintop position, and also used rockets to do work, but the head is average." As he spoke, he took Zheng Weiguo to the scene to observe.

Sure enough, judging from the craters, the power of these two weapons is still very good, but the accuracy and range are not complimentary. It can be seen that the Japanese army is still exploring.

There were still many Japanese corpses on the battlefield that had not had time to be cleaned up, and they were lying on the ground. Some soldiers were digging pits with the captives, presumably to bury the bodies. Other soldiers wandered around the pile of dead people, picking up something, and the position was covered with stripped Japanese corpses.

Commander Ma's face was a little unbearable, and he quickly blasted away the soldiers who had made a fortune, and then explained to Zheng Weiguo: "Junzuo, I'm really sorry. The brethren also let the hard times be afraid, and make you laugh. ”

Zheng Weiguo waved his hand and smiled: "Nothing? I think when I started the army from Ping'an County, my life was worse than yours! He asked again: "Gengyu, how many Japanese troops have you eliminated in this battle?" ”

Commander Ma thought for a moment and said, "There are nearly a thousand corpses on the ground alone, plus those that were snatched back by the little devils, I'm afraid there are two or three thousand!" ”

Master Li said with some regret: "I could have eliminated more." It's a pity that the little devil is too slippery, and as soon as he finds out that something is wrong, he desperately rushes back. Our troops haven't had time to close yet, otherwise ......"

Zheng Weiguo nodded and smiled: "The little devil has suffered a lot of losses in the past few years, and it is time to remember it for a long time." Don't always think that you are still the same as before, thinking that if you dig a hole, the little devil will jump in in a daze. ”

Commander Ma and Division Commander Li hurriedly nodded yes, and then asked for battle: "Junzuo, the little devil is now left with a 37th Division on the periphery of Zhongtiao Mountain. Why don't we take the opportunity to attack north and gnaw on another piece of devil meat? ”

Zheng Weiguo was a little moved, if the Japanese army was driven north of Yuncheng and formed a buffer zone in the south of Jin, it would be the best policy. As a result, the situation of our army became more and more serious, and thus formed an overwhelming advantage over the Japanese army. However, the current battle in North China is a staggered dog's tooth, and the so-called pulling a trigger moves the whole body, and whether it is fought or not depends on the overall situation.

Just as he was hesitating, the correspondent suddenly hurried over and reported: "Junzuo, the new army in Shanxi is calling!" ”

The Shanxi New Army is an anti-Japanese death column initiated by the Sacrifice League, which belongs to the "co-construction unit" of Yan'an and Yan Laoxi'er. After the December Incident, Yan Xishan's power in Shanxi was completely destroyed. Yan'an did not cancel this number, but took it out separately to form a force, stationed in the southwest of Jin, that is, the territory of the former Jin Sui army.

At that time, the Shanxi New Army had four decisive columns, as well as the temporary first division, the industrial and health brigade, the political and health brigade, etc., with a total of 50 regiments (including 46 regular regiments) and a total strength of more than 50,000 people. After the December Incident, the three columns of death were taken away by Yan Lao Xi'er. It was later wiped out by the Eighth Route Army. The rest of the forces were completely under the control of the Central G.

In order to retain this force, the Yan'an side decided to appoint Deputy Division Commander Xu of the 129th Division as the commander-in-chief of the Shanxi New Army, and Bo Yibo, the former commander and political commissar of the First Column of Decisive Death, as the deputy commander-in-chief and political commissar. There are three divisions and one teaching regiment. An artillery regiment. A cavalry regiment.

Among them, the three main divisions were composed of the 1st Column of Decisive Death, the 1st Temporary Division, the Workers' and Guards' Brigade, and the Political Guard's Brigade. The second column of the decisive death was assigned to the 129th Division. The Fourth Column of Decisive Death drew 120 divisions.

Interestingly, the three divisions of the Shanxi New Army were all relatively distinctive, and most of the first column of the decisive death were young students; The temporary first division was formed by the former Jin Sui army. Most of them were pro-Yan'an officers, such as the division commander, General Xu Fanting. The Workers' and Workers' Brigades and the Political Guards Brigade are composed of people from all walks of life in Shanxi, such as the Workers' and Workers' Brigades (officially numbered the 207th Brigade) are all workers. Being able to gather so many workers shows that Shanxi's industry and commerce were still very developed at that time.

After the reorganization of the Shanxi New Army, its strength grew rapidly and became a decisive force in North China. It's no wonder that among the two commanders, one is good at pulling troops (thin) and the other is good at training troops to fight (Xu), and it is difficult to prosper. Yan Laoxier said with emotion back then: "There are still talents in Shanxi, Xu Xiangqian in Wu, and Bo Yibo in Wen!" "I think that as long as these two people are willing to help him, it will be enough to achieve a career (build North China into the North China of Shanxi people, laughs). It's just that Lao Xi'er can't even use Fu Zuoyi, let alone Bo and Xu!

Straight to the point. Zheng Weiguo took the telegram and looked at it, and couldn't help frowning slightly. Wen Bin and the commander of the Fifth Army of Ma Fa hurriedly asked, "What's the matter, Junza?" ”

Zheng Weiguo casually handed them the telegram and explained: "The Shanxi New Army took advantage of the main force of the 37th Division to move south and secretly attacked the Japanese army's logistics station and some strongholds. ”

When the generals heard this, they were all a little surprised. Since Commander-in-Chief Xu took over, the Shanxi New Army has gradually formed a tough style of daring to fight and fight, and has often fought some tough battles with the Japanese army, and its prestige has become everywhere. Unexpectedly, with their strength, they failed to succeed, which shows that the Japanese army did put some thought into defense.

The commander of the fifth army of Ma Fa looked at it and said anxiously: "The little devil is actually equipped with a 280 mm heavy artillery!" ”

Zheng Weiguo said in a deep voice: "Heavy artillery is nothing, the problem is that our army didn't get the news in advance!" ”

Wen Bin's face was flushed, and he hurriedly pleaded guilty: "It's all despicable and negligent, please take the seat to punish you!" ”

Zheng Weiguo waved his hand and said, "I can't blame you alone!" He added: "I think this defeat is a good thing, so that we can finally find out the details of the Japanese army." Wen Bin, you send a special combat team to reconnoiter in the direction of Yuncheng, find out the situation thoroughly, and then report to the General Staff! ”

"Yes, Chief!" Wen Bin saluted, and was about to make arrangements, when he turned around and asked, "Then, should this winter offensive be slowed down?" ”

Zheng Weiguo nodded and said: "Let's let it go first, it's not us who are anxious now, but the Japanese devils!" ”

He stayed in Zhongtiao Mountain for a month, and only after the reorganization of the troops was completely completed, Zheng Weiguo returned to Jizhong. During this period, Okamura Ninji also made a lot of moves. One of the most obvious is to fortify the garrison section, there is a large stronghold every ten kilometers, in which two to four 280 mm heavy howitzers are deployed, and some key points are also deployed heavy cannons, all of which are decommissioned naval guns, which are extremely powerful. Under the deterrence of these heavy artillery, it was difficult for the troops to even assemble, let alone attack.

"Boss, you're back!" Chief of Staff Zhou reported: "There have been a lot of small actions of Okamura Ningji recently? ”

Zheng Weiguo said with a smile: "This old fox is always unwilling to be lonely, but the deployment of heavy artillery along the line is not a new thing. Sugiyama Moto, Tada Jun, Okamura can still play into a flower? ”

Chief of Staff Zhou hurriedly said: "Okamura Ningji's methods are indeed more powerful. He repaired the fortifications first and then deployed the heavy artillery, and the turtle shell was hard and dense, and we tried to attack several times, but we were unsuccessful. ”

Zheng Weiguo frowned slightly and asked, "What's the matter?" ”

Chief of Staff Zhou explained: "It is very strong, and even the 88mm recoilless gun with the best penetrating power we have now cannot penetrate!" In addition, the heavy artillery of the Japanese army is also very powerful, covering almost all the original railway sections, and can extend nearly ten kilometers to the left and right sides of the road, forming a very wide blockade belt. Boss, it's not okay to go on like this, we're going to be divided into several pieces by the Japanese army again! ”

Zheng Weiguo stretched out his hand and said, "Bring me the latest troop deployment map of the Japanese army in North China!" ”

Chief of Staff Zhou hurriedly took out a form from the drawer and handed it over. The troops that arrived in the autumn and winter of '41 have now returned to their original positions. The Japanese army in North China is still divided into four major parts, namely, the direct army, the 1st army, the 12th army, and the army stationed in Mongolia.

The troops directly under the central government are mainly stationed in Hebei Province, including 3 divisions and 4 independent mixed brigades: the 27th Division (stationed in Tianjin), the 35th Division (stationed in Beiping), the 110th Division (reconstructed, stationed in Shijiazhuang), the 1st Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Handan), the 7th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Cangzhou, later changed to Huimin in Shandong, to be expanded into the 115th Division), the 8th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Xingtai), and the 15th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Baoding).

The 1st Army is mainly stationed in Shanxi, with its headquarters in Taiyuan, and has jurisdiction over 3 divisions and 4 independent mixed brigades: the 36th Division (stationed in Taiyuan), the 37th Division (stationed in Yuncheng), the 41st Division (stationed in Linfen), the 3rd Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Laoxian, that is, now Yuanping City), the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Yangquan, to be expanded into the 62nd Division), the 9th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Yuci), and the 16th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Fenyang, to be reorganized into the 69th Division).

The 12th Army is mainly stationed in Shandong Province, with its headquarters located in Jinan, and has two divisions and three independent mixed brigades: the 21st Division (stationed in Xuzhou), the 32nd Division (stationed in Yanzhou), the 5th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Qingdao), the 6th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Linyi, to be expanded to the 63rd Division), and the 10th Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Tai'an, to be expanded to the 59th Division).

The Mongolian army is mainly stationed in the northern part of Shanxi and Inner Mongolia, and its headquarters is located in Guisui (now Hohhot, Inner Mongolia), under the jurisdiction of: the 26th Division (stationed in Datong), the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade (stationed in Zhangjiakou), the Cavalry Group, and the 3rd Chariot Division (stationed in Baotou).

Zheng Weiguo looked at it and found that many independent mixed brigades were preparing to expand, and said strangely: "The Japanese army wants to expand? ”

Chief of Staff Zhou nodded and said, "Well, according to the news from Tianjin, these independent brigades and regiments will be changed to two-brigade regiments. However, the main thing was to expand the infantry, and there was no field artillery wing. ”

Zheng Weiguo snorted, didn't pay attention to it, and analyzed: "Judging from this deployment, except for Shandong, which is defended by region, the Japanese troops in the rest of North China are basically stationed on the former railway line. It seems that Okamura Ninji is planning to give up all other territories and stick to the railway line with all his might! It is said that now that the railroad is gone, why is he still holding on? ”

Chief of Staff Zhou agreed: "The general seat is absolutely right, I suspect that the Japanese army is likely to intend to rebuild the railway, but we have not yet received accurate information. ”

Zheng Weiguo nodded and said: "Well, we must start investigating immediately, and once we find that the Japanese army has such an attempt, we must do our best to stop it!" (To be continued......)