"It is said that it was the Eighth Road that received outside aid."

Ishida Jinzo's tone was puzzled: "The intelligence department of the headquarters has been investigating this matter, but it has not been investigated until now, where did the assistance from the Eighth Route come from. ”

Hirata Kenkichi couldn't help but scold: "The intelligence officers in the headquarters are a bunch of rubbish. ”

"Your Excellency the Division Commander, Chief of Staff!"

The communications staff officer hurriedly walked in with two telegrams in his hand, and then said: "The 226th Wing and the 227th Wing have sent a telegram requesting tactical guidance at the same time!" ”

The two brigades of the 225th and 226th Wings of the Japanese Army participated in the sweep, with the 227th and 226th Wings on the outer line.

At present, the 225th Wing has lost all again, and only one wing headquarters is left to follow the division headquarters to Changzhi, and the 225th Wing Captain and the 226th Wing Commander each command more than 2,000 people to defend the county seat.

Hirata Kenkichi took the telegram, and after reading it, his face suddenly darkened: "Yaga! ”

Ishida Jinzo hurriedly asked, "Your Excellency the division commander, has the galloping reinforcement force been ambushed by the Eighth Road?" ”

When the Eighth Route had just been shelled, Hirata Kenyoshi gave the order to the two troops to rush to the aid immediately.

Ishida Jinzo was a little puzzled, although it was said that encircling the point to send reinforcements was the usual tactic of the Eight Routes, and it had only been less than half an hour, and it stands to reason that he was not ambushed by the Eight Roads so quickly.

"The Eighth Route attacked Xiangyuan and Licheng County at the same time, and the 225th Wing and the 226th Wing were no longer able to rush." Kenyoshi Hirata's face was ugly: "Each of the eight roads used at least 40 cannons of 75 mm or more, as well as a lot of 105 caliber howitzers. ”

Hearing this, Ishida's face suddenly became extremely ugly.

The Eighth Route actually attacked Xiangyuan, Licheng and Changzhi County at the same time.

And it's not a feint, it's all the main attack, and it means that if you don't take these three counties, you won't give up.

As a result, the situation becomes extremely complicated.

Ishida Jinzo helped his glasses: "Division commander, it's all my fault, it's me who miscalculated the tactics of the Eighth Road, thinking that the Eighth Route would not attack the three county towns at the same time, resulting in the dispersion of the imperial army." ”

"Ishida-kun, it's not your fault." Hirata Kenyoshi waved his hand and said, "Even if the troops are concentrated, they will have to face a siege of more than 30,000 eight-way roads, and the situation will not be much better." ”

At this moment, the communications staff officer ran in again, and said in a hurried tone: "Report to the division commander, commander, and mountain artillery wing captain Narita Osa, report that the Eighth Route Mountain Artillery and howitzers are all 5 kilometers away from the city wall, and the Mountain Artillery Wing cannot counteract the Eighth Route Artillery Unit." ”

"Nani?" Hirata Kenyoshi's face suddenly darkened when he heard this

"How accurate is the landing point of the shells of the Eighth Road?" Kenyoshi Hirata asked.

"The landing point is very accurate!" The communications staff officer said, "According to Narita Daisa's report, the Eighth Route did not test fire in advance, and as soon as it came up, it carried out artillery fire coverage on the positions outside the city and the city walls. ”

Actually shelled 5 kilometers away, there was no pre-test firing, the landing point was very accurate, is the Eighth Route Artillery literacy so good?

Ishida Jinzo said: "Division commander, it is definitely impossible for the backer artillery wing to counteract the Eighth Route Artillery position, and now it is only to see if the aviation can find the Eighth Route Artillery position to destroy it." ”

During World War II, there were three main ways to strike at the enemy's artillery positions in depth: artillery countermeasures, air strikes, and infantry sneak attacks.

The most important thing in artillery countermeasures is to find out the accurate orientation and distance of the enemy's artillery positions.

After figuring out the location of the enemy's artillery position, guide your own artillery to cover it with artillery fire.

Obviously, the observers set up on the city walls by the devils could not measure the distance and position.

"Hurry up and ask." Kenkichi Hirata's tone was a little anxious, "How long will it take for the aviation to arrive!" ”

"In addition, immediately report to Commander Shinozuka that the Eighth Route will concentrate its forces on the three county towns of Xiangyuan, Licheng and Changzhi to attack at the same time, and ask for reinforcements to rush to help!"

"Hey!" Ishida Kinzo was stunned.

……

Taiyuan, the headquarters of the First Army of the Japanese Army.

After listening to the telegram sent by Lieutenant General Kenyoshi Hirata read by the communications staff officer, the faces of Yoshio Shinozuka and Hideyoshi Kusuyama changed at the same time.

The Eighth Route Army actually attacked three heavily defended and well-fortified county towns at the same time, which he really didn't expect.

Nanshan Hideyoshi sighed in a tone of emotion: "Li Yunlong's fight is simply out of order, just like a madman, we only guessed that his target was the 37th Division, but we didn't expect him to have the courage to attack three county towns at the same time." ”

"It's hard to get an opponent like that." Yoshio Shinozuka felt the same way, "It's hard to guess what he's thinking and what he's going to do next." ”

Nanshan Hideyoshi's tone was gloomy: "Commander, Li Yunlong's move is just playing with fire, if the war is stalemate, and when the imperial army reinforcements from all walks of life arrive, Li Yunlong's corps will only have one ending in the annihilation of the whole army, I suggest that the 2nd Guards Division immediately stop the sweep and go all out to help the 37th Division." ”

Yoshio Shinozuka frowned, staring at the map in silence.

Let the 2nd Guards Division stop the sweep and save the 37th Division, then the openings to the north, east and west will be given to the Eighth Route Army.

Then the Eighth Route Army and the people in its base areas will be able to jump to the outside line from these directions.

Because once the aid is rushed, it is a concentration of troops, and there is no way to divide it into multiple ways to sweep.

Yoshio Shinozuka suddenly asked, "Nanshan-kun, have you ever thought that this may be the plan of the Eighth Route to encircle Wei and save Zhao?" ”

"Wei Wei's plan to save Zhao? Your Excellency, Commander, do you mean that the Eighth Route may not want to destroy the 37th Division, but to besiege the 37th Division to achieve the purpose of rescuing the troops and civilians in the Eighth Route bandit area? Nanshan Hideyoshi was stunned, he really hadn't thought about this problem, and he always felt that the Eighth Route Army was going to eat the 37th Division.

Yoshio Shinozuka said: "Regardless of whether the plan to encircle Wei and save Zhao was in the Eighth Route Plan from the beginning, but the current situation is that the Eighth Route has achieved the strategic goal of encircling Wei. ”

Kusuyama Hideyoshi pondered and thought about it carefully, as if this was really the case.

If the 37th Division is not rushed, the 37th Division will be eaten by the Eighth Route Army led by Li Yunlong.

If the other three troops all ran to the aid of the 37th Division, then the entire sweeping plan would be bankrupt.

When the 37th Division returns after rescuing it, it will go to sweep the Eighth Route Base Area, and the Eighth Route troops and ordinary people will have long disappeared.

"Your Excellency, Commander, what now?" Kusuyama Hideyoshi asked.

To save or not to save?

The 14th and 18th Brigades advanced slowly, and it was not known how long the 27th Division would be able to hold out.

Yoshio Shinozuka stared at the map tightly, and suddenly thought of Kazuki Yamamoto, if Kazuki Yamamoto was by his side, what would he suggest?

Suddenly, Yoshio Shinozuka saw a glimmer of heaven on the map, that is, the location of the Eighth Route Army's Huangyadong Arsenal.

"Order the 2nd Guards Division to speed up and sweep forward in the direction of the first line of sky!" Yoshio Shinozuka said.

Nanshan Hideyoshi's eyes flashed: "Your Excellency Commander, are you going to use the strategy of encircling Wei to save Zhao and forcing Li Yunlong's corps to go back to rescue the Huangyadong Arsenal?" ”

Licheng County is only 30 kilometers away from the Huangyadong Arsenal in a straight line, and even the mountain road is only about 40 kilometers.

The troops marched in a hurry and arrived in only half a day.

However, when the 40-kilometer mountain road was blocked by the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese troops said that it would take two or three days to go.

"Not bad!" Shinozuka Yoshio said, "Since the Eighth Route Army can use the strategy of encircling Wei to save Zhao, then the imperial army will use the way of others to govern their bodies." ”

Hideyoshi Kusuyama: "Hi! ”

Yoshio Shinozuka suddenly thought of something, and hurriedly stopped Nanshan Hideyoshi and said: "Nanshan-kun, please wait, remind Lieutenant General Hirata of the telegram that Li Yunlong's artillery is very good at decapitation tactics, and ask him to leave the headquarters immediately to command the operation." ”

Yoshio Shinozuka remembers very well that when Li Yunlong attacked Yangquan City and Shouyang County, he used this artillery beheading tactic to make the Japanese army lose its command system, so that it could easily capture the county seat and capture so much equipment.

Hideyoshi Kusuyama: "Hi! ”

……

Changzhi.

The mountain artillery and howitzers of the Eighth Route Army continued to rain shells on the city walls.

It was like a landslide and an explosion rumbling.

In particular, the explosion of the 105 howitzer shell exploded into the vast sky like thunder, and the movement was as loud as shaking the mountains and destroying the heavens and the earth.

Kong Jie answered a high-power call, and then said: "Commander-in-chief, Political Commissar Zhao, and the commander of the 1st Battalion of the Independent Regiment just reported that the West City Gate has been blown up by shells. ”

"Oh?" Li Yunlong and Zhao Gang raised their binoculars to look, but they couldn't see the specific situation in the direction of the west city wall.

But the northern wall in front of it has been blown to the ground, and it seems that it will not last long.

More than ten minutes ago, a wave of devil planes had already arrived.

The main target of the Devil Plane was the artillery position of the Eighth Route Army located on the outer line.

However, the artillery positions of the Eighth Route Army were either set up in caves, or they were well camouflaged, and they were very separated from each other, and even pulled a lot of camouflage nets, because the artillery would smoke, so there were special personnel who put smoke under the camouflage nets to confuse the devil pilots, and within a few kilometers around the county seat, there were hundreds of smoke spots so that the devil pilots could not figure out where the real Eighth Route Army artillery positions were, and the devil planes flew away in a hurry after strafing and dropping the bombs.

Less than three minutes later, the north city wall of Changzhi, two kilometers away in front of the headquarters, collapsed in a loud bang, and when the smoke and dust dispersed slightly, I saw a gap of more than ten meters in the north city wall.

Li Yunlong suddenly said: "Lao Kong, order the rear artillery to stop the shelling, let the mortars attack, and the infantry press up." ”

"Yes!" Kong Jie straightened up, and immediately turned around and picked up the high-power walkie-talkie to give orders.

At present, there are still the east and south city walls that have not been destroyed, but as long as the tactics arranged by Li Yunlong, the soldiers break through the north and west cities, detour along the city walls, take the city walls first, and then the soldiers fight in depth from four directions, then it is not a big problem.

As soon as the mountain artillery and howitzers stopped, the mortars began to operate again, and with a muffled tomble of the mortar positions, 60-mm mortar shells fell on the positions outside the devil's city.

This is the advantage of having walkie-talkies, so that mortars, mountain artillery, and howitzers can be seamlessly connected, so that the devil puppet army has no respite.

"Rush! Kill! "When the mortar shells landed on the devil's position, the soldiers of the Eighth Route Army, who had originally entered the attack position, rushed to the city wall with siege ladders.

The shouts of slaughter, as if from the warriors of hell, suddenly rang out.

……

(End of chapter)