As soon as these words came out, the originally noisy scene instantly became silent.

For the villagers, the most cruel thing is nothing more than giving them hope and ruthlessly destroying it.

This is not the first time that the county town of Yangquan has been recovered, and the 385th Brigade has conquered it once during the Battle of the Hundred Regiments. At that time, the common people thought that from now on, they would never be oppressed and humiliated by devils again.

It's a pity that the Eighth Route Army at that time was not yet fully fledged and did not have the ability to defend its homeland.

On the same day, at the time of retreat.

The residents of the city spontaneously helped the 385th Brigade carry supplies, and even Brigade Commander Chen, who crawled out of the mountain of corpses and blood, couldn't help crying.

Before leaving, he stood on a stone pier near the city gate and promised everyone:

"Folks, it's all our fault. The Eighth Route Army is not strong enough to let you down. We can't stop you, we can't stop you giving us the child. ”

"I swear, a year from now! We will definitely be back! Even if I die on the road, my comrades will keep their promises! ”

After hearing Brigade Commander Chen's words, the villagers did not put any pressure on him. On the contrary, he urged the 385th Brigade to retreat quickly, giving the Eighth Route Army full trust.

Now, there are still three months before the agreed time, and Ding Wei has fulfilled his promise with a new group.

I don't know who opened his mouth first, and the sound of the Eighth Route Army resounded in the sky above Yangquan County. Some of the villagers even turned around and rushed to the city, returning home to get food as quickly as possible.

Such a scene made Ding Wei, who has always been not afraid of heaven and earth, panic. He hurriedly ordered the soldiers of the whole regiment to maintain order in case there was a stampede.

In the face of the food sent by the people, everyone made a difficulty.

After all, the Eighth Route Army has rules that it cannot take a stitch from the masses. But the villagers are so enthusiastic that even if the comrades of the new regiment do not accept it, they will be forced into their arms.

In desperation, Ding Wei could only order the soldiers to take out all the ocean they were carrying with them and replace some things.

Half an hour later, the people finally dispersed.

It was the former county magistrate who helped relieve the siege and told the masses not to delay the task of the Eighth Route Army, otherwise the new regiment might not be able to get out after dark.

Although all the fighters were tired, everyone had a happy smile on their faces. The three battalion commanders each had the same fruit in their hands, and they came to Ding Wei's side with a smile.

"Commander, what should we do next?"

In this operation, the new regiment not only recovered Yangquan, but also completely annihilated the remnants of the 4th Brigade of the Independent Mixed Brigade.

This record seems to be very good, but thanks to the powerful firepower, the comrades have a feeling of unfinished.

Originally, Ding Wei was also ready to give an order to let the first battalion clean up the devils who fled back to the county seat.

But who would have thought that the comrades of the martial arts team and the county brigade would shoot extremely quickly, and they would have killed the panicked enemy half an hour ago. They even caught most of the traitors, and didn't give the new group a chance to help at all.

"The war is no longer a show, and our regiment can't leave now."

"Before the headquarters sent people to Yangquan, everyone stayed to take over the county seat and appease the people, who knows if there are any devils who are not afraid of death who dare to break here."

"Second battalion commander, send a platoon of people to take a look at the warehouse of the Devil Command. Look for any railroad supplies left behind by the enemy, and gather the spare rails and sleepers. ”

When he had just cleaned up the battlefield, Ding Wei did not find anything related to the railway in the enemy's convoy.

Yangquan is a big station on Zhengtai Road, and it is impossible not to store spare parts. If the devil hadn't blown it up in a frenzy, then the supplies would have been restored and left in the warehouse.

With these things, the comrades of the Engineering Department of the Logistics Department will definitely be able to achieve twice the result with half the effort.

Railways are important to the devils, and even more important to the Eighth Route Army.

Someone once said that in today's world, there is no country without railways.

In times of war, the military can quickly send troops to the battlefield by rail, and the logistics supply is more guaranteed.

The strategy of the invading Japanese army is the same, the devils seize control of the railway, use the occupied railway to connect the troops, and plunder all kinds of resources.

We can say unceremoniously that the railway is the lifeline of the North China Front.

Among them, the Zhengtai Railway is an important transportation lifeline connecting Shanxi and Hebei provinces.

Once the Eighth Route Army controls this route, it can not only vigorously build infrastructure in the province, but also block all invading Japanese troops outside the province.

It is worth mentioning that the original Zhengtai line used a French-style one-meter narrow gauge, instead of the 1.435-meter wide gauge unified by the Republic of China. As a result, it is necessary to transfer to Shanxi, which is very inconvenient.

This is because Yan Laoxi once implemented a policy of seclusion and self-control.

In order to resist the long-term drive of forces outside the province, he deliberately chose rails of different specifications. It is used to achieve the purpose of attacking and retreating.

In order to speed up the pace of plunder, the devils spent a year carrying out technical transformation and changed the narrow track used by the Zhengtai Railway to the standard track.

Next, the Eighth Route Army only needs to renovate the Tongpu Railway, so that it can connect with the whole country at the right time.

After hearing the words of their own regiment commander, the three battalion commanders nodded, and they were clearly prepared to lead the troops to start executing orders.

At this moment, a scout from outside the city came to Ding Wei's side.

"Regiment Commander, the 358th Regiment of the Jin Sui Army has arrived at Lion's Brain Mountain. The other side even sent a reconnaissance platoon, and now it has collided with our outer guard troops. ”

"Look, do we have to fight well?"

Before the soldier could finish his words, Ding Wei waved his hand and signaled him not to say anything that would affect unity.

Although Lao Ding had never met Chu Yunfei himself, he had heard Li Yunlong mention it a few times before at a meeting at the brigade headquarters, and he heard that he was a capable general. Perhaps before the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, his new regiment would be a little more jealous.

However, now Jin Suijun's reputation in the province is about to stink, and compared with a year ago, it is really like a cloud, basically relying on the past love.

Half an hour ago, the new group had just recovered Yangquan. If the 358th Regiment dares to do it in front of the people, I am afraid that it will not even be able to keep the last trace of incense.

This is called water can carry a boat, and it can also capsize a boat. In times of national calamity, if you completely lose the support of the people, it is no different from suicide.

"Yes!"

After the scout returned to his post, Ding Wei touched his stubble and smiled faintly.

During the period of crossing the Yellow River to the east, all units of the Eighth Route Army were poor, and the 129th Division only had six mortars.

Even 500,000 rounds of ammunition had to be begged for by the army morale master himself. At that time, the comrades looked at the equipment of the Jin Suijun and were really red-eyed.

And now, the two levels have been reversed! Yan Laoxi not only lost the Taiyuan Arsenal, but even ten artillery regiments were lost.

The 358th Regiment's American-style equipment and Bofors mountain artillery are indeed very good, but do you Chu Yunfei know what a hurricane, a Spitfire, and a transport plane are?

Do you know the gold content of a full set of French infantry small arms and paratroopers? Times have long since changed!

After laughing for a few seconds, Ding Wei shouted at the three battalions:

"Comrades! Put all your money out! Let the friendly forces see if we have the strength to defend Yangquan! ”

As soon as these words came out, the soldiers immediately burst out laughing, and even had a feeling that the old regiment commander was back. Feng Shui takes turns, who doesn't like the most simple pretending to slap their face.

······

Just when the musicians of the new troupe were giggling, the atmosphere of the 358th troupe was not very good.

Seeing his chief of staff coming with a solemn face, the soldiers along the way gave way one after another, lest they touch the other party's moldy head.

"Tuanza, I've figured it out. The troops occupying Yangquan were a new regiment of the Eighth Route Army. ”

When he heard that his chief of staff used the word occupation, Chu Yunfei subconsciously frowned. Their regiment had only changed guards with the 4th Cavalry Division a few days ago and had withdrawn from the interior of Nakajo Mountain.

Although the 358th Regiment did not fight any tough battles in this battle, the soldiers were very tired after more than ten days of travel.

As soon as they returned to the station, they didn't rest for long, and Yan Laoxi issued a military order for them to attack the eastern part of Jin Province to see if they could pick up some small leaks from the fingers of the Eighth Route Army.

The encounters along the way made Chu Yunfei upset, and he secretly sighed countless times that his situation was not good.

In the past, the people in the province had a good attitude towards the Jin Suijun. Even if it is not a welcome mecca, it will lend a helping hand in times of crisis.

But now it's good, along the way up to the big county town and down to the small village, the masses are looking at them with fear and awe.

That evasive gaze is like the feeling of looking at the warlord's troops before. Such a big gap made Chu Yunfei feel very uncomfortable.

"A new group? A new regiment of the 386th Brigade? The troops led by Li Yunlong before? ”

"How many people are there and what is the configuration of weapons and equipment? How many wounded were there after the battle with the devils? ”

As a friendly army, Chu Yunfei certainly knew the definition of the backbone regiment of the Eighth Route Army.

Under normal circumstances, he would definitely not be interested in this kind of local armament that does not even have a number. But once the matter is related to Li Yunlong, it must be studied and studied.

What's more, being able to kill 700 devils in a short period of time must have something extraordinary.

The other party did not hide it, but chose to show it generously. I went around with the reconnaissance platoon, and the other side was smaller in number than us, about fifteen hundred. ”

Speaking of this, Fang Ligong paused briefly and glanced at the face of his own group.

"But the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army has been equipped with a full set of French-style infantry light weapons, and there is not even a single Japanese weapon."

"And they are armed with a large number of mortars, at least fifteen of them with a caliber of more than 60 mm, each of which is an original French Blund mortar."

At first, Chu Yunfei didn't have much reaction, and the 1,500 people only slightly exceeded the standard of the basic regiment. At this stage, the Eighth Route Army is expanding rapidly, and it is understandable that it is overstaffed.

But as soon as the number of mortars came out, he directly broke the defense.

"How much? Sixteen mortars? Or is it a French original? ”

"Are you mistaken? The whole of North Africa can't make up sixteen original goods! ”

Although it was a bit exaggerated, Fang Ligong could understand the shock of his own group. After all, when he inspected the goods, the expression on his face was even more exaggerated than Chu Yunfei.

You must know that in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, many division-level units that were not affiliated with the Central Army only had 18~24 mortars.

This is only the number on the compilation list, considering that the traditional art card of preserved fruit is to be eaten and taken, and I don't know what extent the shortage is after the actual implementation.

Counting the attrition during the four years of war, a third-rate division may not be able to make up 16 guns.

Take the 68th Army, for example, which is subordinate to the 119th, 143rd and 36th divisions. According to the establishment, each division should have 18 mortars.

But in fact, the 119th Division had only 2 guns, the 143rd Division had 11 guns, and the provisional 36th Division had 16 guns. The total number of mortars in the whole army was only 29, which was only slightly more than half of the full strength rate.

Like the 119th Division, there are only two mortars in one division, how can you fight the devils?

Although the above are all Min20-type 82mm mortars, Chu Yunfei's understanding of the military level of the Eighth Route Army. Whenever a new type of weapon appears in its troops, it will not be long before it will be able to descend to all levels of troops.

After all, in February this year, the opponent had not even finished changing his rifle. It's only May now, and the local armed forces are using a full set of magic weapons.

"Let's go, except for the southwest of Jin, there is no place for the Jin Sui army in the province."

"Staying in Yangquan will only make the other party look down on our 358th regiment. Fall back! Back to Ji County! ”

Fang Ligong was a little hesitant, leaving now would mean that there would be no gain, and it would be difficult to give an explanation to Chief Yan.

After hesitating for a moment, he seemed to want to say something, but unfortunately he was strangled in the cradle by Chu Yunfei's sharp eyes.

"Shame on you! Walk! ”

······

Taiyuan, the headquarters of the First Army.

At this time, Yoshio Iwamatsu was staring blankly at the battle reports piled on the table. He looked listless, as if he had the word "rotten" written on his face.

There is no way, there is no good news at the front line, what ambition can the back-handed man have.

Now the soldiers fifty miles away from Taiyuan are either all broken jade, or they have died on the way to transfer.

The cage policy that the North China Front had painstakingly operated for many years was smashed by the Eighth Route Army like a toy.

The Tongpu Railway, which runs through the north and south sections of Jin Province, has been completely lost, and all the strongholds along the line have been occupied by the Eighth Route Army, and even the troops stationed in Mongolia have taken the initiative to abandon Datong.

The Zhengtai line connecting Hebei Province has also been lost, and now the First Army has no way to enter the sky and no door to the earth.

The only good news was that the defenders within fifty miles of Taiyuan had withdrawn, barely accumulating a certain amount of capital for the next siege battle.

Moreover, the food and weapons in the warehouses of their First Army were sufficient, so that there would not be a tragedy in which they ran out of ammunition and food after a few days.

After breathing a long sigh of relief, Yoshio Iwamatsu slowly came to the battle conference room.

In the room, a group of staff officers were so busy that they didn't even pay attention to the arrival of their own commander.

On the map, the entire Jin Province except Taiyuan is full of small red flags representing the Eighth Route Army. From a distance, Taiyuan City looks like a giant dumpling filling.

"How's the preparation for the defense of the city? Did all the ammunition get to the city walls? ”

"Be careful of those enemy agents hiding in the city, security is very important at this stage, and we will definitely die under internal and external troubles."

Hearing the words of their own commander, the devils nodded their heads one after another.

"Hey!"

I announce that Steel 4 has officially turned from a mustache simulator into a principal simulator!

(End of chapter)