Section 59 Eleventh Army

Jiujiang County, Duanjia Village. In this place away from the Yangtze River and Nanxun line, a long and narrow river is gurgling, rolling brisk waves, heading straight to the south.

This is the Ganjia River, the north leads to the Qili Lake, the water is diverted to this point around the Jiujiang county seat, forming a wide moat, this pattern is quite common in the southern city and is also extremely effective, the wide moat and the city wall full of vicissitudes behind each other complement each other, from the bitter to the present, I don't know how many storms and rains have been blocked for the city, and how many military disasters have been avoided for the people in the city.

However, history is always washed away by the turbulent river, and the Japanese army with strong ships and artillery easily destroyed the city wall that had stood for an unknown number of years in the indiscriminate bombardment of aircraft, and captured this stronghold on the south bank in one fell swoop.

Duanjia Village is not big, about sixty or seventy households, but this small village that seemed to be peaceful and quiet in the past has completely lost its vitality, although the village is still that village, the houses are still those houses, but without those ordinary people who enjoy the summer and enjoy the coolness, there are no naughty children, the anger of the whole village seems to have been smoked away, and it has become lifeless.

In a room facing the river, two Japanese men in samurai uniforms knelt next to the collapse, with strange wine bottles and a few dishes such as beef and mutton, the coolness of the room contrasted sharply with the heat outside, and the calm here was also very different from the fiery war on the Nanxun line.

A slightly thin Japanese man reached out and picked up the wine bottle, as if he wanted to fill the wine glass opposite, this ordinary action, but it seemed to completely frighten the person kneeling there, only to see him hurriedly stand up, and bow to the side, not daring to make the slightest movement.

This thin Japanese man is fifty or sixty years old, with a little baldness on the top of his head, white temples, deep wrinkles and gradually emerging age spots, showing that his life has gone through the strongest period and is moving towards old age. This person was the former commander of the 2nd Division, Okamura Ninji, who was responsible for the formation of the 11th Army, a Chinese expert who stepped into Chinese territory in 1915.

Seeing the respectful appearance of the officer in front of him, Okamura Shouji couldn't help but smile slightly, and after pouring the wine glass on the other side, he chuckled and said, "Matsuura-kun, can you get used to this vast land of China?" ”

Junrokuro Matsuura immediately hid when he heard the commander's question, but he didn't rush to answer, it seemed that the question was not so easy.

Seeing his restrained appearance, Okamura Ninji smiled and said: "Matsuura-kun, this is a private party, there is no need for so many courtesies, besides, you are also a lieutenant general, with your age and a great future, the great cause of the empire to expand its territory, and the heavy responsibility of serving His Majesty the Emperor, you still need to bear it." ”

These words obviously made the middle-aged officer opposite a little more relaxed, in fact, it was middle-aged, and Junrokuro Matsuura was not younger than him, but compared to Okamura Ninji's drooping and old look, he looked much younger and stronger.

"Your Excellency, the time is too short, and it is really difficult to adapt to the land of China for a while." Junrokuro Matsuura said with some embarrassment.

Seeing that Okamura Ninji beckoned him to sit down, Junrokuro Matsuura thought about it and didn't postpone it any longer, and while kneeling down respectfully again, he said a little embarrassed: "This place is really too big, completely beyond imagination, looking at the mountains that stretch for more than a hundred miles, looking at the wide and narrow endless river and a large area of barren land, it is really difficult to imagine that there is such a place in this world." ”

Okamura Ninji poured the wine glass in front of him with wine, gestured with his hand, and then took a sip, and then said intoxicatedly: "This is sake shipped from Miyazaki, it's been a long time since I've tasted such a mellow taste, and Matsuura-kun has been away from his hometown for more than two months, so he might as well taste the taste of his hometown." ”

Looking at the expression of enjoyment on the face of Junrokuro Matsuura after taking a small sip, Okamura Ninji couldn't help but smile and pointed to the dishes on the table, and then said slowly: "There are too many injustices in this world, the people of Shina are ignorant and ignorant, but they occupy such a vast land, but the countless elites of our empire are crowded on narrow and barren islands, suffering unimaginable pain for ordinary people. Fortunately, the warriors of the empire were not satisfied with the status quo, and now they have set foot on this land and laid down a large area, from North China to East China, the millions of troops in China are vulnerable to defeat and defeat, and even Kyoto has fallen. ”

Matsuura Junrokuro said in a deep voice: "Your Excellency, although the people of China are vulnerable, but the territory of the people of China is too broad, once the battle line is extended, I am afraid that all kinds of unfavorable situations will appear, before coming to China, I have faintly heard that even the rifles used by school instructors in the country have been withdrawn, once they are mired in the quagmire of war, I am afraid that the problem will be more complicated." ”

A trace of dissatisfaction flashed in Okamura Ningji's heart, but after many years of ups and downs, the control of his expression had already reached the place where he could do as he wanted, and he saw that the expression on his face did not fluctuate in the slightest, and he just chuckled: "Matsuura-kun's concern is very reasonable, but once the Wuhan strategy formulated by the headquarters this time achieves the goal, as long as Wuhan and other places in the heartland of the China people are captured, the China people will definitely lose their determination to fight, and the battle on the entire China battlefield will end soon." ”

Junrokuro Matsuura nodded and said, "I am willing to be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor and be at your disposal at any time." ”

His statement seemed to make Okamura Ninji's dissatisfaction disappear, and the commander-in-chief of the Eleventh Army asked with a smile on his face: "I wonder what Matsuura-kun thinks about the current battle situation?" The battle on the Nanxun Line has been going on for a long time, and the initial goal of attacking Nanchang is now very far away, and I don't know when it will be completed. ”

Speaking of the current situation, Junrokuro Matsuura also said with a grim face: "Your Excellency, the people of Shina don't seem to be as vulnerable as rumored? ”

Okamura Ninji knew what he meant, and immediately shook his head and said: "The Shina people in front of us are the strongest part of the Shina army, not only are they well-armed, but also have a strong will, and it is very difficult to solve the other party at once, but such an army is rare among the Shina people, otherwise they would not have captured so much territory in just one year." ”

"Your Excellency, the battle situation on the Nanxun Line has been stalemate for more than a month, if it is like the current attack, not only the casualties are too great, but the effect is also very limited, but the surprise attack of the 6th Brigade Regiment in the previous round forced the Chinese army to retreat, and retreated to the front line of Wushimen Town overnight, the effect is amazing. If you can attack from the flank of the Shina army, you may be able to turn the tide of the battle in front of you. Junrokuro Matsuura said seriously.

Okamura Ninji restrained his smile and nodded, took a sip of the wine glass, and said seriously: "The reason why the previous attack worked was because the people of China were backed by Minshan and did not arrange the main force to be deployed, and now they have withdrawn to the front line of the Wushimen Formation, and behind them is De'an, and it is really difficult to find an effective target for attack with each other's horns, and De'an is a place where the people of China have been operating for a long time, and the defense is thorough, and there are not enough troops to have any effect at all." ”

"Your Excellency, I heard that the 1st Brigade of the 6th Brigade has occupied Minshan and opened up the passage to De'an, I wonder if it can be used?" Junrokuro Matsuura asked cautiously after thinking about it.

Okamura Ninji narrowed his eyes slightly, and under the thick lenses, people couldn't see what he was thinking at all, "Minshan? Matsuura-kun wants to fight Dean? ”

"It doesn't have to be De'an, if there is a chance to take a detour to the area of Yongxiu City, the results may be even more brilliant." Junrokuro Matsuura said confidently.

Okamura Ningji thought for a while, and then said with some hesitation: "Matsuura-kun, Minshan may be a trap, the people of China will not show their flaws for no reason, I heard that the 6th Division was blocked by a small group of troops of the people of China for a long time in Minshan, and now it is easy to take this trail and directly attack De'an, this kind of thing is too strange, the commander of the 9th theater of the people on the opposite side is not a simple person, when he was in Xuzhou, he made the 14th Division suffer a big loss, if it weren't for luck, The 14th Division is in danger of total annihilation. ”

Junrokuro Matsuura is obviously not a simple person, 2 months ago he was ordered to form the 106th Division, and hurried to participate in the battle, although he is also a lieutenant general, but the gap between him and Okamura Ninji is not ordinarily large, you must know that the old man opposite is the core figure who created the "Baden-Baden Covenant", is one of the most trusted figures of His Majesty the Emperor, and it can be seen that he was directly promoted from the division commander to the commander-in-chief of the 11th Army in the previous round.

Okamura Ningji is right, as the senior generals of the empire of the Shaozhuang faction, their future is very good, especially in the current period of expanding the territory, any little merit will go down in history, but the military exploits are not waiting for it, the opportunity also needs to be grasped, and now the opportunity is in front of you, what to do, it depends on whether you have the courage to do it.

"Your Excellency, what is needed for the Wuhan Raid is a flank attack on the north and south banks, and now our 11th Army has been dragged on the Nanxun line and deviated from the original offensive line, if you don't hurry up, it will inevitably delay the entire campaign, you might as well take a risk, I am willing to personally lead the 106th Division through Minshan and threaten the De'an flank, with the 9th Division on the Ruichang side, there should be no danger."

Okamura Ninji called Matsuura Junrokuro this time, naturally he also had this consideration, and now he couldn't help but be very satisfied when he heard that he didn't flinch in the slightest initiative to fight, but his expression was still solemn, and he drank the sake in the cup in one gulp, and then said slowly: "This matter, I'll think about it again, Matsuura-kun might as well tell me your opinion in detail." ”