"This!" Kimura Hyotaro was asked, he is not an immortal who can pinch and calculate, how can he know that there will be such a terrifying artillery cluster on the battlefield in northern Myanmar? However, Umezu Mijiro asked this, Kimura Hyotaro had to answer positively, and after a moment of silence, Kimura Hyotaro said in an uncertain tone: "From the analysis of the intelligence obtained so far, this new artillery equipped by the Chinese army has strong firepower and mobility, but the rate of fire is slow, and the consumption of ammunition is huge, presumably the cost of this new weapon will not be low, and they have not yet completed large-scale standard equipment."

Moreover, the Chinese army is united on the surface, but in fact, there are many factions, each with its own ghosts, and they are accustomed to keeping one hand in the war, and it is called "leaving the green mountains without worrying about no firewood" "The Asian People's Liberation Army under Jiang Qiang's jurisdiction is self-contained, and the well water does not interfere with the river water with the Nationalist Government, so I think such a new weapon should only be in Jiang Qiang's hands at present, and it will not be used as a surprise soldier until the critical moment, and the army of the Nationalist Government should not be equipped yet." Otherwise, it would be impossible for the Huaxia army to do a thorough job of secrecy, so that the imperial intelligence network could not get any relevant information in advance. ”

"Shw! What Kimura-kun said is extremely true, such a huge consumption of ammunition must be a great burden for the logistics supply of the Chinese army! "Yaga! Damn the Chinese Army, the Imperial Japanese Army will definitely let you pay for your blood debts and blood, and use your blood and lives to pay tribute to the heroic souls of the imperial warriors! After listening to Kimura Hyotaro's analysis, Umezu Mijiro had a feeling of a sudden opening, and then an inexplicable flame of anger and hatred suddenly welled up in his heart.

After a pause, Umezu Mijiro continued: "There is a saying in China that 'the mourning army will win', and the Imperial Army has suffered a shameful and despicable plot, although the morale has suffered heavy casualties, but it can also inspire the determination and courage of the Imperial Army to share the enemy's hatred. Kimura Hyotaro's eyelids jumped, and he looked at Umezu Mijiro with some concern and said, "Your Excellency Commander, what do you mean?" ”

Umezu Mijiro said viciously: "That's right, blood debt needs blood to pay." The 18th Army had to intensify its offensive and return to color in the shortest possible time. "Persimmon picks up the soft pinch, Umezu Mijiro is now full of fire and murderous energy, although he does not dare to continue to force the Salween River defense line, but the 18th Army on the north road can sprinkle anger on the national army troops.

Hyotaro Kimura nodded, "This is no problem. In the northern battlefield, the opposing national army only had the strength of 2 armies, although their weapons and equipment were not bad, but the imperial army still had an absolute crushing advantage. As for the two Huaxia armies around the Dongggyi Gyeongdong defensive line, it was a trouble, but it didn't matter much, because there was an Imperial Air Force that could provide fire support at any time.

In addition, the elite of the Chinese Expeditionary Force are all in the southern battlefield of Burma, and although the 18th Army faces twice the strength of the Chinese Army, even if these two Chinese armies immediately go to support the Taunggyi Jingdong defense line, the 18th Army must still be able to cope with it! ”

"Shw! The 18th Army has 3 divisions and regiments, and its combat effectiveness is the strongest among the 4 armies! Umezu Mijiro nodded thoughtfully, and then said, "On the southern battlefield, we must make adjustments. Until definite information is obtained, the offensive on the Salween line is temporarily halted, but positive pressure must be maintained.

As for the Mawlamyine defensive line, the Imperial Army had to further intensify its offensive efforts, first smashing the Mawlamyine fortress and the Motama fortress, and then launching a frontal attack from the south to the north. "What Your Excellency Commander-in-Chief said is very true, and this is also the safest offensive strategy at present." Hearing this, Kimura Hyotaro breathed a sigh of relief, and secretly said in his heart: It's okay, I'm not crazy!

Temporary command post of the 18th Army of the Japanese Army. When Anda Twenty-three was burying his head in looking at the military map, a devil communication staff officer rushed over: "Report to Your Excellency Commander, the General Headquarters of the Burma Dispatch Army has sent an urgent telegram. "Shuffle!" Anda nodded his head, then reached out and took the message and looked at it.

"Nani? Jiang Qiang's Asian Liberation Army was equipped with a new artillery with powerful firepower, which caused the 19th Army's offensive to be thwarted and suffered heavy casualties? What the hell is going on? After carefully reading the message, Anda Twenty-Three looked pensive. The telegram did not mention the specific casualty figures of the 19th Army, but it was simply brushed aside, but Anda 23 smelled something very unusual.

The General Headquarters sent an urgent telegram, highlighting the new artillery and reminding the 18th Army to be vigilant, and the message contained in this was certainly not simple. "Your Excellency, this is not surprising. The Chinese Expeditionary Force received great assistance from the Americans, and it was normal for them to obtain some advanced weapons and equipment. ”

After reading the telegram, Yoshihara didn't show a very worried look, and then analyzed: "Similarly, isn't the empire also stepping up the research and development of a series of advanced weapons, and many weapons and equipment have entered the trial production stage. The intelligence also said that the amount of equipment of this new artillery is insufficient, and only a small amount of Jiang Qiang is equipped with it. Our top priority at the moment is to follow the orders of the General Headquarters to capture the Taunggyi Gyeongdong defense line in the fastest possible time and contain a large number of Chinese troops in order to prepare for the Southern Route Army to conquer Yangon! ”

"Yo Si! It's me who is overthinking! After passing the order, all departments must strengthen the offensive, not give the Huaxia Army a chance to breathe, and the Imperial Air Force will further strengthen the cooperation operation! Anda Twenty-Three nodded. The pressure on the 18th Army was actually very great, after all, it was a lone army that went deep into the rear of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, and it was a little weak in terms of weaponry and logistical supplies.

It's no problem in a short period of time, but I'm afraid that I will be swarmed by the Huaxia army, and I don't want to play and consume. In particular, the current situation in the southern battlefield is not going well, and if it cannot complete the operational progress as scheduled and fail to smoothly join forces with the 18th Army, the 18th Army will definitely be in a dangerous situation of running out of ammunition and food. The only thing that made Anda 23 feel at ease was that the Japanese Air Force was very strong, not only providing strong fire support to keep the 18th Army from the threat of the Huaxia Air Force, but also airdropping supplies at a critical moment to continue its life.

Buzz, it didn't take long for the Japanese Air Force, which had taken off from military airfields such as Pat Chi and Huai Au in Thailand, to arrive at the Taunggyi Gyeongdong defensive line. Horizontal bombers frantically dropped bombs to bomb cities and towns on a large scale, while dive bombers lowered their altitudes to carry out precise bombing of important military targets such as forts, pillboxes, and anti-aircraft guns.

The 6th Army and the 66th Army, which had already suffered tremendous frontal pressure, magnified the pressure several times in an instant, causing panic for a while. In Wangang Shan Town, the military headquarters of the 66th Army, the telephone transmitter rang non-stop, and the signal corps ran in and out, constantly delivering all kinds of telegrams and messages to the war room, and the entire military headquarters was in a panic. "Report! The 112th Regiment of the 38th Division suffered heavy losses, the frontal defense line had been broken by the Japanese army, and the whole regiment fell into a bitter battle! "Report! The new 28th Division suffered heavy losses from the bombing of the Japanese aircraft group! "Report! The newly formed 29th Division was divided and surrounded by the Japanese army, and the Japanese army was stepping up its offensive. "Report! The Salween River road bridge on the west side of Meng Bin was blown up by Japanese planes, and our army was cut off from the 6th Army! "Report! ……”

Bad news kept coming, and army commander Zhang Zhen and more than a dozen staff officers were all overwhelmed, constantly deducing and calculating something on the map and the combat sand table. Zhang Zhen graduated from the 6th Baoding Military Academy, politically he belongs to Cheng Qian's mountain, although his qualifications are older, but because he is not a descendant of Chairman Jiang, he has been excluded and suppressed many times, especially after becoming the commander of the 13th Army, he was overtaken by Tang Enbo, known as the "puppet commander".

This time he parachuted into the 66th Army as the commander, Zhang Zhen still could not get rid of the status quo of "puppet commander", but the current war situation of the 66th Army was critical, even if he was a puppet commander, Zhang Zhen naturally had to assume due leadership responsibilities and exercise the power of central dispatch. Xu Zhihui, the combat staff officer, frowned, pointed to the sand table and said, "Military seat, the situation is not good!" The devils are besieging our 66th Army in two divisions, and now they have blown up the road bridge leading to the 6th Army, making it clear that they want to divide and encircle our army. ”

Another combat staff officer hurriedly answered: "Yes, the devil is attacking the 29th Division with all his might, once the defense line of the 29th Division is broken, the devil can go around the rear and cut off the retreat of our army, and the consequences will be unimaginable." And the crux of the matter is that the combat effectiveness of the 29th Division is the weakest division, and I am afraid it will not last long! ”

The 66th Army was temporarily formed for the purpose of forming an expeditionary force, of which the new 38th Division was reorganized from the Tax Police Corps of the Ministry of Finance, the new 28th Division was reorganized from the Military Command Special Force, and the new 29th Division was reorganized from the recruits of the 2nd Supplementary Training Department. Before entering Burma, the entire 66th Army was also newly formed with the 38th Division's combat effectiveness, and the remaining two divisions were basically made up.

Although after entering Burma, the 66th Army has been greatly improved in terms of weapons and equipment after several months of rest and training, as well as reequipment, but in terms of overall strength, it is still at the bottom of the expeditionary force and belongs to the weakest link. Especially in the face of the all-out attack of the old A division of the devils who were in high morale this time, it had only been fighting for half a day, and the 66th Army felt unbearable.

"Throne! Master Ma is calling again! Before Zhang Zhen could answer, a communications staff officer shouted at the top of his voice. I'll be right away! Hearing this, Zhang Zhen hurriedly walked over and picked up the phone and said in a deep voice: "Hey, Master Liu?" I'm Zhang Zhen! ”

As soon as Zhang Zhen's voice fell, Ma Weiji on the other end of the phone cried and shouted: "Junzao, it's not good!" The devils have already attacked the position on the right flank of our division, and our division is in a bitter battle, so we ask for immediate support, otherwise we won't be able to withstand it for long! Zhang Zhen frowned and said: "The 38th and 29th Divisions are also under great pressure, where do I have reinforcements now?" Division Commander Ma, please be sure to hold your position, the Japanese army does not have too much heavy equipment, and our army's weapons and equipment are no worse than the Japanese army, as long as it is ......"

However, before Zhang Zhen could finish speaking, Ma Weiji hurriedly shouted: "Junza, our 29th Division has been attacked by a whole devil division, how can you let us hold on?" Even if we are nailed to the position, there is no way to stop the Japanese attack! Junza, you can't see death without saving, if our 29th Division is gone, the 66th Army will only be dumplings made by devils! ”

"Master Ma, don't worry!" Zhang Zhen was really out of temper, on weekdays, these division commanders were each five or six, and they were very respectful to him on the surface, but in fact, they didn't take him seriously at all, but at this time, they asked him to be responsible. Of course, these are not the key, the key is that Zhang Zhen really doesn't understand what the situation is now! 、

The 66th Army also has more than 30,000 people, and it has long been equipped with new American weapons and equipment, and its guns and artillery are only stronger than the Japanese army, not weaker, and there are also strong positions to rely on, so it stands to reason that it should be very strong. In addition, judging from the previous examples, after the weaponry is improved and upgraded, the combat effectiveness of the troops will also increase.

For example, a regiment of Jiang Qiang could hold on to the small city of Yecheng for two days, and stubbornly blocked the frontal attack of a Japanese division. Jiang Qiang's division can harden a Japanese division in the wilderness, isn't this because of the strength of weapons and equipment? Of course, Zhang Zhen was still self-aware, and from the beginning he did not think that the 66th Army and the 6th Army could have the same fierce combat power as the Shandong Group Army, and could stubbornly block the attack of the Japanese 18th Army.

However, the two fully equipped U.S. armies held out on the front line of Dongzhi Jingdong for ten days and half a month, and at the same time inflicted heavy casualties on the Japanese army. However, the cold facts in front of him were deeply slapped in the face!

Sure enough, he responded to such a sentence: There is no harm if there is no comparison, at this time, Zhang Zhen's heart is full of sadness, and he doesn't know how to vomit at all! After pondering for a moment, Zhang Zhen hurriedly comforted: "Division Commander Ma, please be sure to defend your position, I will send troops to reinforce the 29th Division as soon as possible!"

In addition, we are asking for reinforcements from the 71st Army and Air Force units, and I am sure that reinforcements will arrive soon! "I don't understand it, I can't help it, but Zhang Zhen is really afraid that the 29th Division will completely collapse in a short period of time, which will lead to the annihilation of the 66th Army, in Zhang Zhen's view, even if the 66th Army will eventually lose to the Japanese army, but it must not be so ugly defeated, why do you have to hold on for two or three days?

"It's better to be like this, otherwise, even if our 29th Division is all killed, it won't last long!" Ma Weiji replied helplessly, not that he didn't want to block the devil and didn't want to hold his position well, but that the combat effectiveness of the entire division was really weak.

Under the indiscriminate bombardment and deadly attack of the devils, these recruits who fought a tough battle for the first time could not exert their due combat effectiveness at all, and they were blinded before they could find their senses. Immediately afterwards, Zhang Zhen began to call the 38th and 29th Divisions, asking them to allocate a part of their forces to support the 29th Division, but they received a decisive refusal, and both divisions said that it was difficult for the mud bodhisattva to cross the river now.

As a last resort, Zhang Zhen could only send the only remaining guard regiment of the military headquarters to the 29th Division. Xu Zhihui, an operational staff officer, said worriedly: "The military seat, the guard regiment is the only mobile force that our military department can directly mobilize, and it is also the last security guarantee for our military department.

If all of them are transferred to reinforce the 29th Division, once the devils have a small force interspersed in the rear, won't our military headquarters have to be served by Lian Pot? Xu Zhihui's worries are not groundless, but have a considerable basis for reality. The headquarters of the 66th Army was set up in Wangangshan Town, more than 20 kilometers away from the frontline position, but seriously speaking, this distance is really not very safe. Not to mention that the devil can drop paratroopers to be beheaded, the devil is also extremely good at infiltrating small forces, and the distance of more than 20 kilometers is only a matter of two or three hours for the infantry to march in a hurry.

"And what do you say?" Zhang Zhen glared at Xu Zhihui angrily, how could he not know that it was powerful, but now except for the guard regiment that could be commanded, he had no other cards to play. As for the retreat of the whole army or something, it is definitely not possible now, because he really can't afford this pot. Once the word "retreat" comes out of his mouth, not only will the honor of the soldier be ruined, but even his life will have to be put into it. "This!"

Xu Zhihui was asked, it was difficult for a good woman to cook without rice, and he was even more unable to deal with this kind of crisis with a mere combat staff officer. "That's it! There's no better way, stop talking nonsense! Zhang Zhen waved his hand impatiently, and then said in a hurried tone: "Instead of standing here helpless, you might as well urge again, let the 71st Army and the 6th Army send troops to rescue as soon as possible, and let the air force units come to fire support as soon as possible."

In addition, a telegram was sent to the commander's headquarters, informing us of the plight of the 66th Army, and requesting that General Stilwell and Commander Yang send a rapid mobile force to the rescue as soon as possible. "Yes!" Xu Zhihui hurriedly responded, and then rushed away.

Military headquarters of the 6th Army. "What? The 66th Army couldn't stand it so soon? After receiving an urgent telegram from Zhang Zhen asking for help, Gan Lichu immediately frowned, and said angrily: "The 66th Army has more than 30,000 people, and they are all American weapons and equipment. ”

As a close confidant of the chairman of the committee, Gan Lichu has always been loyal to the chairman of the committee, while the 6th Army, as a subordinate unit of the central government, has always been very strong in terms of weaponry and combat will. Especially after changing into advanced American weapons and equipment this time, the 6th Army has improved a lot in terms of combat effectiveness and will to fight, so although they have suffered a hard attack from the 2 devil A divisions, their current position is still very stable, and they are fighting with the devils vividly.

In the original history, Gan Lichu was dismissed in the name of ineffective command and ineffective operation in Burma, in addition to having a bad relationship with Stilwell and repeatedly violating the law, in fact, to a large extent, he was implicated in the imminent collapse of the 66th Army. Deputy Army Commander Zhou Zhiqun said in a deep voice at this time: "The 66th Army is an army temporarily formed for the purpose of forming an expeditionary force.

The 18th Army of the devils is basically a Japanese veteran with rich combat experience, and this time it was stimulated by the serious setback of the defeat of the Salween River defense line, and at this time it was naturally full of strength to find the field! The 66th Army was indeed under great pressure, and it was not surprising that it was difficult to cope for a while. Gan Li said angrily: "That being said! But the American equipment in their hands is not a burning stick, and they can't stand it in just half a day, which can't be said anyway!

If you look at the 22nd Group Army, in the past, everyone used to laugh at others as a miscellaneous army and beggar troops, but now everyone can stubbornly resist and thwart the strong attack of the devil's army under the bombardment of the devil's aircraft and artillery! ”

Speaking of which, Gan Lichu really has a sense of shame for the 66th Army, although the 66th Army is not a central descendant unit, but it is also an upright national army sequence unit, which is much more important and enjoyable than the local miscellaneous cannon fodder troops like the 22nd Group Army, right?

But why do they not give the chairman a long face? After a pause, Gan Lichu's anger did not subside, and then he vomited: "Our 6th Army is being attacked by two devil armor divisions, and we are under pressure a little more than them now, aren't we still making it difficult for the little devils to move an inch?" How can these cowards be embarrassed to ask us for help? I'm ashamed of them! ”

"Brother Riru, now is not the time to talk angrily." Zhou Zhiqun sighed lightly, and said earnestly: "Our army and the 66th Army are each other's horns, if the 66th Army is quickly defeated, my army may not be able to stand alone, and the lips and teeth are cold." Gan Lichu waved her hand angrily and said: "Now that the highway bridge has been blown up by devils, we don't have the ability to cross the river to save them!"

What's more, we now only have the ability to parry and have no power to fight back, and it is not easy for our army to barely hold the position, where will we now draw reinforcements to rescue them? ”“……”

Seeing that Gan Lichu's attitude was resolute and he just wanted to sweep the snow in front of the door, Zhou Zhiqun could only be silent. Governor's Headquarters in Yangon, Myanmar. After watching the debut of the rocket artillery unit on the spot, Jiang Qiang and others returned to Yangon by helicopter.

As soon as the front foot arrived at the headquarters, Stilwell received a telegram from the 66th Army asking for help, so he rushed to find Jiang Qiang, frowned and said, "Jiang Qiang, look at this!" What the hell is the 66th Army doing, is their defense line made of tofu scum? ”

Jiang Qiang picked up the telegram and glanced at it, and snorted coldly: "The 66th Army is in a hurry so soon? Are these guys all eating dry food? "Jiang Qiang is really unhappy in his heart, although he doesn't have much hope for the 66th Army or even the 6th Army, but you have to fight for breath, so you have to consume a wave of devils' vitality and sharpness!

Stilwell frowned and said, "What now?" Should the 71st Army be ordered to support the 66th Army immediately? "Stilwell is actually a very thoughtful and assertive person, but now he has been with Yang Fan for a long time and is used to lying and flying rhythm, so he has gradually developed the habit of listening to Yang Fan's opinions first. Jiang Qiang waved his hand and said, "Don't worry!" The 66th Army's U.S. weapons and equipment are not burning sticks, they are just too afraid of the enemy to give full play to their combat effectiveness! ”

Stilwell raised his eyebrows and said, "Jiang, do you mean to let the 66th Army continue to hold its ground?" Jiang Qiang nodded and said, "That's right, you have to let them hold on for at least two days before they can retreat!" "Hold out for two days and then retreat?" Stilwell chewed on the words, and then suddenly had a flash of inspiration and seemed to grasp a certain point: "Jiang, do you mean to let the Japanese soldiers in and then close the door and beat the dogs?" ”