Wanquan, the headquarters of the Mongolian army.

After a week of scheduling, the Japanese troops in the Suiyuan area finally gathered the troops needed for the attack, and prepared sufficient supplies for each soldier.

At this moment, a group of senior military officers are in the final meeting before the war.

After receiving the signal from his own commander's eyes, Major General Goro Mano, who was independently mixed into the 2nd Brigade, got up and reported:

"Our five separate infantry brigades are ready for battle, and all the samurai are currently on standby at the station near Zhangjiakou. At any time, you can attack from the northeast to the southwest, and kill Datong along the route of Tianzhen and Yanggao. ”

"There will be no unit in the entire North China Front that is more familiar with the local terrain than our independent mixed second brigade. As soon as the offensive officially begins, I am confident that I will be able to break through the enemy's line within a week. ”

"Your Excellency the Commander, please give the order!"

As soon as these words came out, Gan Shigetaro's tired old face suddenly became a little more bloody.

Since the cavalry group and the 26th Division were equipped with a large number of heavy weapons, transport trains were necessary to pull those large-caliber heavy artillery, tanks and armored vehicles to the front line.

Unfortunately, their troops stationed in Mongolia did not have air supremacy.

This means that every minute and every second of the troops may be exported by the air force of the Eighth Route Army.

Recalling the telegrams reporting the loss, Kan Shigetaro only felt like a knife. He has been in the army for 24 years, and it is the first time that he has this feeling of powerlessness.

So Goro Mano's bold words just now are the only good news the old devil heard this week.

"Good! Very energetic! ”

"Mano-kun! Your brigade can depart tonight, be sure to avoid enemy dive bombers as much as possible. ”

"I'll give you seven days, and you must kill the Eighth Route Army's defenders in Jule Fort before the middle of the month! Cooperate with the 26th Division and the cavalry group to recapture Datong! ”

"Hey!"

For the strength of the independent mixed second brigade, Gan Shigetaro is still very confident, this is the strongest lightly armed mountain force under his command.

What's more, the brigade was also strengthened in terms of strength and equipment last month.

At present, the total number of the five independent infantry brigades is 6,700 men, and the number of barreled artillery pieces of various types is 53.

As long as they don't run into the main force of the Eighth Route Army and the air force, this model force of law and order will definitely be able to complete the task, after all, there is no strong enemy in the direction of their attack.

After a few moments, Shigetaro Kan shifted his gaze to Lieutenant General Otozaburo Yano of the 26th Division and Lieutenant General Kazusaku Nishihara of the Cavalry Group.

When the eyes of the three of them intertwined, the scene was extremely embarrassing.

"Ahem!"

"Two, the plan for this attack is from General Okamura Ninji. I hope that you will take this battle seriously and strive to recapture the Datong and Tongpu railways in one go. ”

"If you need anything, I will report to the headquarters of the front army for you."

In Okamura Ninji's plan, the troops attacking Shanxi this time would be divided into four routes. Among them, the army stationed in Mongolia is responsible for half, and the troops directly under the North China Front are responsible for the other half.

The first way was a feint, with the second brigade formed by the independent mixed brigade to attract the attention of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region.

In order to successfully complete the mission, Mano Goro specially recalled the infantry brigades scattered throughout Hebei.

The second route was the main attack, which consisted of a cavalry group and the 26th Division. The task of these two troops was very simple, that is, starting from Jining and fighting south along Fengzhen, breaking through the defense line of the Eighth Route Army in Datong from the front.

If it had been a month ago, Otozaburo Yano and Kazuhara Nishihara would still be confident that they could complete the task.

After all, the troops at the level of two divisions and regiments, counting the puppet army, can make up 100,000 troops, and they will definitely not suffer a loss in fighting with the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region of the Eighth Route Army.

Can now?

Rushing to Datong is no different from playing with life.

The cavalry group suffered heavy losses, the 71st Tank Wing and the 13th Cavalry Regiment died at the hands of the 1st Marine Regiment.

Only half of the equipment of the 72nd Tank Wing arrived at the prepared assembly site on time, and all the rest were harvested by the close support planes of the 1st Air Division.

The 26th Division was slightly better, and the casualties were not particularly serious, mainly because the equipment rate of heavy artillery was really a bit unsuitable.

As the first three-wing division of the Japanese army, they did not have much heavy artillery themselves. There are only 12 large 105mm tubes, and none of the 150, 240, 280 and 305 pipes.

After the destruction of the 1st Air Division, there are now only 7 105-mm field guns left in the entire division, and how to break through the city wall of Datong has become a problem.

Seeing that the atmosphere in the combat conference room dropped to a freezing point, the newly appointed chief of staff, Toyojiro Inamura, finally stubbornly said:

"The development momentum of the Eighth Route Army in the past two years has indeed been very strong, but any expansion of the army will reduce the quality of individual soldiers."

"The Datong area was originally the former station of the 26th Division, and the local grass and trees are not unfamiliar to us, and who will die depends on the background and play of the senior commander."

"As far as I know, the commander surnamed Nie doesn't seem to be very outstanding in military affairs, don't you even have the courage and self-confidence to fight?"

The method of agitation works wonders in many cases, especially when someone is holding back the fire in their stomachs.

Hearing the newly appointed chief of staff tease himself in a yin and yang tone, the two devil lieutenant generals immediately felt that their dignity and reputation had been insulted!

"Yaga!"

"Toyojiro Inamura, did Lu Da teach you to talk to your seniors like this?"

"You are just a major general chief of staff, why are you presumptuous in front of two divisional and regimental lieutenant generals! Let me tell you, Datong will definitely be recovered by us, and the Republic of China man surnamed Nie is not worth mentioning at all. ”

The sudden anger made all the staff officers tremble, and even Gan Shigetaro, who was thinking about a way to break the game, was taken aback.

Seeing this, the old devil hurriedly got up, he first signaled with his eyes that his chief of staff had done a good job, and then he pumped the other party a big fight.

"Two, it's me who can't be trained in a way and let you be humiliated."

"Now that everyone has made up their minds, let's break up today's meeting. I hope that everyone can do what they can say and take Datong as soon as possible to open up the channel for attacking Taiyuan. ”

"I wish the three of you a victory, I am waiting for your good news!"

As soon as these words came out, Otozaburo Yano and Kazucei Nishihara suddenly felt a little impulsive.

But the matter has come to this point, and the cruel words just released are not easy to retract, and the two devil lieutenant generals can only bite the bullet and prepare to attack.

Moreover, judging from past experience, the commander of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region is really inferior to the bearded man and the one-eyed dragon, and this battle is not really completely out of chance.

It's a pity that the two didn't know that their opponents had changed this time.

Now in the north of Jinbei, there is a tiger waiting for them to take the initiative to send it to the door.

······

Datong, the temporary command post of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region.

"Commander, the devils have finally left! According to the information provided by the intelligence services and the 1st Air Division, the enemy in the northeast will arrive in Tianzhen in a day at most. ”

"The enemy in the north will be slower, and it is estimated that it will take two more days to reach Fengzhen, and the specific attack time is uncertain."

"Can you let me participate in the battle on the front line of Tianzhen-Yanggao-Jule Fort, I will definitely complete the plan to lure the enemy deep with quality and quantity, so that the devils can enter the encirclement unknowingly."

Hearing 103's self-recommendation, the tiger in the forest put down the soybeans in his hand and came to the enemy situation map.

Jule Fort is the most important defensive line around Datong, where there are defense fortifications built by the Jin family in 1935. After the reinforcement and expansion of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, it can definitely be regarded as an area that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

As long as you hold there, you can avoid the situation of being attacked on the belly and back.

"Okay, then you can cooperate well with Commander Yang of the First Division, and strive to give us a good start."

"You kid must remember that every line of defense must hold out for three days before retreating. We must pretend to be a little bit like this, so that the enemy will notice our strangeness. ”

"Communicate in time if there is any situation, go! Stay safe! ”

Hearing the advice of his own teacher, 103 only felt warm in his heart, as if the cold wind in November had been dispelled.

As a comrade-in-arms who has been with him for many years, he knows the impact of the Xiangjiang War on the other party, and he also knows that the man in front of him never fights unprepared.

Of course, prudence does not mean being conservative or timid.

After all, people who lack imagination will never be able to formulate a combat plan for the Pingxingguan Campaign.

"Yes!"

"Guaranteed to complete the mission!"

Happy Tanabata comrades

(End of chapter)