Among the several divisions of the Japanese army that participated in the attack, the 40th Division was the first to be completely annihilated, and the 4th Division was also attacked by the 18th Army from the flank after retreating across the Liuyang River. With the help of Wang Haitao, one division of the 18th Army was an all-German armament division, and the other division was also equipped with the best weapons in China, and the soldiers had all formal rifles in their hands, and Czech light machine guns were also equipped with platoon levels, and the whole army also had a heavy artillery regiment and an armored regiment, and its combat effectiveness was also in the forefront of the national army.

The heavy artillery regiment of the Eighteenth Army was useless because it was moving too slowly, but the armored regiment that had learned Wang Haitao's infantry and tan coordination tactics was now in use. Although the armored regiment had only 15 German-made tanks and 40 armored vehicles, it was all German, and this was the only armored regiment in the national army, except for the 90th Army, which was an exception.

The armored regiment, under the cover of two infantry regiments, launched a surprise attack on the Japanese 4th Division. The 4th Division, which was already fleeing in a hurry, had no intention of resisting at all, leaving an infantry brigade as cover, and the rest of the main force continued to break and flee to the northeast. It took more than two hours for the 18th Army to annihilate all the infantry brigade left behind by the 4th Division, while the 4th Division of the Japanese Army had already escaped more than 10 kilometers.

In addition, the 6th and 3rd Divisions fled back under the cover of two independent mixed brigades, and Chinese troops were constantly intercepting and ambushing them along the way. It's a pity that the combat effectiveness of these Chinese troops is really limited, although they also dealt a blow to the Japanese army, but the results were not great, at most they were to destroy an infantry squadron or a baggage brigade of the Japanese army.

The fastest run of the Japanese army was the two independent field heavy artillery wings, they were the farthest away from Changsha City, and as soon as the order of the commander of Anan Weiji to retreat was given, they hung the heavy artillery on the tractor and ran backwards. Field heavy artillery units are the units that the Japanese army attaches the most importance to, and their safety must be guaranteed, which is also the reason why several divisions of the Japanese army did not get heavy artillery cover when they encountered a powerful attack by the 90th Army. If the Japanese army had been covered by heavy artillery, the armored units of the 90th Army would not have attacked so smoothly.

After the Japanese army escaped the Miluo River, they were relieved, although there were many Chinese troops chasing behind them, but with the Miluo River, they could still hold off the pursuers. On the north bank of the Miluo River, the Japanese army stopped, and all units were counting the battle losses. In this count, half of the 150,000 horses at the time of the attack were lost, mainly by the infantry.

On the south bank of the Miluo River, the pursuing Nationalist troops were also gathered, and the 99th Army, the 210th Division of the 90th Army, the 53rd Army, the 37th Army, the 72nd Army, the 79th Army, and the 18th Army were lined up along the south bank of the Miluo River. A total of six armies and one division with 100,000 horses. These units were waiting for the order of the Ninth Theater Command to make a final attack.

From the beginning of the retreat of the Japanese army, General Xue Yue knew that Changsha City was saved, that is to say, in this battle, the national army was already in an invincible position, and it depends on how great the results can be. Not long after, the battle report of the total annihilation of the 40th Division of the Japanese Army and the killing of Lieutenant General Aoki Seiichi, the commander of the 40th Division of the Japanese Army, came, and the Ninth Theater Command was full of cheers, and even the always serious General Xue Yue had a smile on his face.

The total annihilation of the 40th Division of the Japanese Army and the killing of its division commander, Lieutenant General Aoki Seiichi, this record can already be explained to Lao Chiang, and it will be even more icing on the cake if greater results can be achieved in the future. When the Japanese army fled across the Liuyang River in embarrassment under the continuous attacks of the Chinese army, Xue Yue and others also began to set off to return to Changsha City. In Changsha City, Xue Yue and others met Wang Haitao, the first hero of the Changsha Campaign, and General Xue Yue had a smile on his face.

Wang Haitao introduced Xue Yue and others into the headquarters, and in the face of General Xue Yue's praise, Wang Haitao was not excited, but looked worried, which made Xue Yue and the others very strange. When Xue Yue asked about Wang Haitao, Wang Haitao took Xue Yue and the others to the war room. Facing the Changsha battle map, Wang Haitao said that he had sent troops to attack Yueyang City before the main force of the Japanese army had withdrawn, and tried to take the nest of the Japanese Eleventh Army.

Wang Haitao's words surprised Xue Yue and others, they all thought that the 90th Army had suffered a lot of losses after nearly ten days of defense battles in Changsha City, and it would be good to send some troops to pursue the Japanese army, but they didn't expect that Wang Haitao still had the ability to send troops to attack Yueyang City. Xue Yue looked at the battle map for a while and said: "Haitao, isn't it a bit too risky for you to do this? This is a lone army, and it is a taboo for soldiers to go deep into the lone army, in case they can't capture Yueyang City, as soon as the Japanese reinforcements arrive, this lone army is afraid that it will suffer a big loss." ”

Wang Haitao replied: "Chief Xue, the two brigades I sent out are the most elite troops of the Ninety Army, and they may not be able to capture Yueyang City quickly, but there should be no problem in self-preservation." What's more, once we can capture Yueyang City, our troops can be directed at Wuhan City, and if the Japanese army wants to hold Wuhan City, it will have to transfer troops from other places. This not only reduces the pressure on other battlefields, but also allows for flexible attacks on the weak points of the Japanese army. ”

Xue Yue listened to Wang Haitao while looking at the map and thinking. After Wang Haitao finished speaking, Xue Yue spoke after a while: "I still think Haitao, your action is a bit reckless, but since the soldiers have been sent, I will cooperate with you as much as possible, I hope your subordinates can really successfully take Yueyang City." General Yu Ding Xue Yue gave Wang Haitao an order to all troops on the south bank of the Miluo River to continue the offensive and bite the Japanese army.

At the same time, he also telegraphed an order to the 27th Group Army between the Luojiang River and the Xinqiang River to block and delay the Japanese army as much as possible. Wang Haitao also gave the 210th Division an order to quickly cross the Miluo River and attack and advance towards Yueyang City, preparing to respond to the armored brigade and guard brigade. By the time Xue Yue and Wang Haitao gave the order, the armored brigade and the guard brigade had already reached the south bank of the Xinqiang River, preparing to rush across the Xinqiang River.

Except for the armored brigade and the guard brigade that exchanged fire with the Japanese army when they broke through the Japanese position outside Changsha City, they did not encounter any Japanese troops along the way, and several small units of the Japanese army that had escaped were completely annihilated by the two brigades without difficulty. After crossing the Miluo River, several reconnaissance detachments of the reconnaissance brigade merged into the ranks of the armored brigade, and with the help of these reconnaissance detachments, the armored brigade and the guard brigade had eyes and ears and moved more quickly.

When the two brigades arrived at the south bank of the Xinqiang River, the sky was already completely dark, and the soldiers of the reconnaissance detachment reported to Tang Renxin, the deputy commander who led the two brigades to attack, that as long as they crossed the Xinqiang River, they would be less than 50 kilometers away from Yueyang City, but these 50 kilometers were all Japanese-occupied areas, and they would encounter Japanese troops at any time.

Tang Renxin thought about it for a while, and asked the troops to rest in seclusion on the south bank of the Xinqiang River for a few hours, and then cross the river at night. After crossing the river, taking advantage of the unpreparedness of the Japanese army, they went to Yueyang City in one go, and strived to attack Yueyang City at dawn tomorrow. The soldiers received the order to start resting, but the soldiers of the reconnaissance detachment were contacting the nearby reconnaissance detachment through the radio to concentrate here, and what they wanted to do was to open the way for the two brigades to reconnoiter in front and ensure that the two brigades reached the city of Yueyang as concealed as possible.

At twelve o'clock in the evening, the soldiers, who had rested for several hours, regained their spirits, and the reconnaissance detachments that arrived had already numbered twelve, adding up to two reconnaissance companies. These reconnaissance detachments also brought the situation of Japanese troops on the north bank of the New Wall River. A reconnaissance detachment on the Xinqiang River had already found a place where the water was shallow and could wade in vain, and Tang Renxin gave an order, and the whole army began to rush across the Xinqiang River.

After crossing the Xinqiang River, the reconnaissance unit left only two reconnaissance detachments to lead the way for Tang Renxin and them, and the rest of the reconnaissance detachments went five kilometers forward to reconnoiter and open the way for the large troops behind. Tang Renxin took a light armored vehicle company as the lead, followed by a heavy armored vehicle regiment, followed by the first guard brigade regiment, a light tank regiment, a Cheetah heavy tank regiment, a second guard brigade regiment, an armored car regiment, a logistics regiment, and a third guard brigade regiment.

To the south of Yueyang City is a large South Lake, and if you want to attack Yueyang City, you must bypass the South Lake and attack from the east of the city. When the team marched for three hours at night and reached the town of Qijialing, ten kilometers southeast of Yueyang City, the roar of the engines of the armored regiment alarmed a Japanese squad stationed there. When this Japanese squad sent people out to check, they were frightened by the countless steel giants in front of them. The captain of the Japanese squad stationed in the town hurriedly called Changsha City to warn him.

Although the Japanese squad was completely wiped out by the reconnaissance detachment within 20 minutes, the warning call had already reached Changsha City. As soon as Tang Renxin heard that the action was exposed, he no longer marched covertly, let the troops turn on their headlights, and drove towards Yueyang City at full speed. The small units of the Japanese army that were trusted along the way, as long as they dared to stop it, the armored brigade mercilessly crushed the past and annihilated it.

Yueyang City was in complete chaos at this time, and the piercing sirens swept through the night sky of Yueyang City, breaking the tranquility of Yueyang City at night. The commander of the 11th Army, General Anan Weiji, had not rested for a day and a night because of the defeat of his troops, and as soon as he closed his eyes in the rest room of the headquarters for a while, the officers on duty hurriedly came to wake him up.

Anan was about to get angry, and the officer had already reported that a large number of Chinese troops had been found outside Yueyang City, and there were also many chariots, and the target should be Yueyang City. The officer's report made Anami and several generals angry, and hurriedly asked the chief of staff, Major General Kinoshita, to be angry. At this time, there were three infantry brigades and one gendarmerie brigade of the Ninth Brigade and one independent mixed brigade in Changsha City, as well as a mountain artillery brigade and an independent mortar brigade, with a total of 6,300 combatants.

General Anan Wei was discussing with Chief of Staff Isamu Kinoshita about guarding Yueyang City, and the alarm sounded in the city, and then Major General Kenji Chikami, the brigade commander of the Ninth Brigade who was independently mixed, also hurried to General Anan Wei. When Major General Kenyoshi Chigami reported to Commander Anami that the 39th Infantry Brigade had been sent to defend the East Gate wall, Senior General Anami was slightly relieved.