1938, May 30!
On the 10th day when the Japanese North China Front launched the Battle of Southeast Shanxi, according to the original plan, a total of ten armies from four directions, east, west, south, and north, had broken through the Chinese army's defense line and broke into the hinterland of the Taihang Mountains, carrying out the final attack on the enemy who had no time to retreat.
At the same time as annihilation, we can also carry out a "three-light" style raid on the Chinese mountain people in the Taihang Mountains.
China's Taihang Mountains should be filled with rivers of blood and corpses at this time!
However, all three Japanese armies failed to achieve their pre-war plans. Only the 108th Division achieved its tactical objectives, destroying houses in several large towns in the Taihang Mountains and destroying some green seedlings planted in the mountains.
However, this is nothing. The Japanese North China Front Army Headquarters has long considered the factors that may lead to unsatisfactory operations, such as the attack being blocked, bad weather making marching difficult, etc. The 16th Division and the Second Mixed Brigade were all prepared before the expedition.
There is sufficient baggage, and there is also a fleet of aircraft dropping supplies according to the requests of commanders at all levels. There is still no shortage of ammunition, food, medicine, etc.
But what makes Xiangyue Qingshi's head hurt is that, except for the 108th Division, which "successfully" completed the combat mission and desperately retreated, the casualties were unexpectedly high. The Second Mixed Division alone suffered thousands of casualties, resulting in
The transport team he organized simply could not transport so many corpses and wounded soldiers.
Even in the bed of a truck, the corpses were piled high like piles of logs without any regard for maintaining any dignity, and they could not transport all the casualties that the combat units had brought out from the battlefield.
Not to mention that the battle is not over yet, even now, the number of casualties calculated by various ministries has exceeded 12,000, which is close to one-third of the Xuzhou War.
But that was a large-scale battle in which both sides invested 800,000 troops! Unlike here, both sides only invested more than 200,000. Even if the final battle achieved all tactical objectives as expected before the war, this huge number of casualties would be enough to
The front army headquarters must be shocked!
For this reason, as early as three days ago, Xiangyue Qingshi, who was already a little angry, scolded the leader of the Second Mixed Brigade, Yamashita Ichi, who suffered the most casualties.
Although the Second Mixed Brigade is not directly under his First Army, how many people died is something that the big boss at the Front Army Headquarters should worry about, but now the Second Mixed Brigade is fighting under his command, Xiang Yue Qingshi, which is surprising.
The blame for the shocking casualty figures still has to be placed on him, the commander of the Eastern Route Army.
I am already dissatisfied with this arrogant guy Yamashita, who is just a major general brigade leader, and there is absolutely no need to give him any face. How can Xiangyue Qingshi, who has a head as big as a bucket, not vent his anger on this guy?
How do you feel about Yamashita, who is already very angry because of the heavy casualties in the headquarters, and was scolded by his temporary boss. The key is that he has not yet come up with any convincing results to refute.
It is estimated that among the Japanese general-level officers who participated in the war in the entire theater, he was the most aggrieved.
However, on the night of May 29, the Chinese troops who were originally fighting with his second mixed brigade actually ran away. It was thought that they could not withstand the huge casualties. This somewhat made the Japanese Army Major General, who was anxious and almost depressed, feel better.
The Chinese defense line has been broken, and the road ahead of his second mixed brigade army is smooth. Even if the 108th Division escapes, it doesn't matter. The Chinese mountain people living in the nearly 100 square kilometers of mountainous areas will all become the dead souls of his guns.
Victory is at hand!
Just when Yamashita received news from the front reconnaissance troops, the Chinese army retreated more than 10 kilometers. According to the analysis of the march traces, their main force was disintegrating into the deep mountains on both wings, and the mountains behind were much higher than those in the previous fierce battle area.
It's much smoother. Even if we fight again, it will be much less difficult. When we take a breath, we can take a breath.
Yamashita sent a telegram from an infantry brigade deployed in the rear for security: A fierce battle broke out 20 kilometers away. A transport convoy used to transport corpses and wounded soldiers was ambushed by the Chinese army and the entire army was annihilated!
Yamashita was definitely a qualified general. Even when the battle on the front line was the fiercest, he never thought of using the elite infantry brigade he deployed 10 kilometers away to guard his rear flank.
Even though various intelligence shows that the Chinese army's division-level establishment in southeastern Shanxi has been fully established, the only one that has not yet been discovered is an infantry regiment called the Sixing Regiment. An infantry regiment can only have 3,000 people at most. How can we support him?
Are more than 10,000 mixed brigades a threat?
But Yamashita still won't let his own back be empty. He firmly believes that it is extremely stupid and stupid to put your own safety in the hands of others. Only guarding it yourself is the most secure.
The battle lasted for more than 10 days, and it was precisely because of his caution that his rear wing remained stable. This was one of the reasons why he always dared to attack the enemy in front of him with confidence and boldness.
But now, enemy traces were discovered as far away as 20 kilometers away in the rear.
Looking at the telegram in front of him, Yamashita, who had lowered his head and pondered for a few seconds, suddenly turned pale with shock.
Of course, a dignified major general of the Imperial Japanese Army would not panic because a transport convoy was ambushed and the entire army was wiped out. What frightened him was how the Chinese could operate in that area that had been judged to be safe.
A transport team will generally be escorted by at least one infantry squad during this kind of war. Even if the Chinese want to ambush them all and kill them all, they will need at least one infantry company or even more troops.
"Order Major Weaver to immediately find out which Chinese army is responsible for this attack, and immediately expand the scope of reconnaissance to see which Chinese troops are moving on the rear flank of our army." Yamashita issued the military order with a gloomy face.
.
Not only that, Yamashita once again went beyond the level to request Major General Eagle II of the Intelligence Section of the North China Front Army Headquarters, hoping to obtain more information on the deployment of Chinese troops in the southeastern Shanxi region.
The entire Second Mixed Brigade was originally using the infantry brigade as a unit to search and seize the defense lines that the Chinese army had completely abandoned and stride forward. However, this major general's brigade was uneasy because of an insignificant piece of intelligence.
Under the order of the regiment commander, the advance was stopped and the troops entered a defensive state relying on the currently occupied fortification positions.
The Chinese can use more than 20,000 people to turn this place into a flesh and blood mill that consumes the lives of soldiers on both sides. The second mixed brigade can also do it. According to Yamashita's rough estimate, even if the Chinese gather an army of 50,000 and are in a defensive state
The second mixed brigade can also fight against it for more than half a month.
Of course, this was just the worst-case scenario that passed through his mind. It was hard for him to believe that a small Chinese army in southeastern Shanxi would deploy such a huge force. The 16th Division and the 109th Division alone had already held back more than 80,000 Chinese troops.
, plus the more than 20,000 Chinese troops here, the number is already nearly 100,000. This is the main reason why the Zhazha 108th Division can go deep alone.
Otherwise, how could He Dehe of the 108th Division become the first imperial army to break through the Chinese army's defense lines and enter its hinterland?
Unfortunately, the worst case scenario finally happened.
First, the captain of the infantry battalion he stayed on the rear wing, Zhizao Futuki, telegraphed to him in great panic: "The enemy troops have fled from the place where the transport convoy was in pieces. It is impossible to determine which unit they are from China, but a large number of 9mm caliber bullet casings and Czech-made bullets were left at the scene."
Rifle shells. At the same time, the Chinese laid a large number of landmines on the roads at all costs. This was also the main reason why the transport team, which consisted of 16 trucks and was escorted by an infantry squad, was completely destroyed.
In addition, 6 of the 8 elite squads sent by the brigade were attacked by the Chinese army, and without exception all members were killed. The subordinates have reason to suspect that a large number of Chinese elite troops have gathered on the rear flank of our mixed brigade."
If this was just a guess, Major General Yamashita just frowned at that time, but the intelligence coming from the North China Front Army Intelligence Section at dusk gave him a blow.
Yesterday afternoon, the First Army Headquarters in Lucheng reported the information that the 683rd Brigade under the Chinese 80th Group Army had disappeared from the battlefield to the Second Mixed Brigade.
Even though the 683rd Brigade is said by the Japanese to be the most powerful infantry brigade in China's southeastern Shanxi region, an infantry brigade has limited strength and cannot pose any threat to the 2nd Mixed Brigade. The 108th Division is the only one.
The best thing to say is that the Japanese generals, including Xiang Yue Qingshi, made almost the same judgment yesterday. The Chinese 683rd Brigade may be plotting against the 108th Division with the Si Xing Regiment that has never appeared.
Who knew they had taken advantage of the 108th Division two months ago? Such a psychological logic is completely normal.
However, when the message personally sent by Major General Takashi from the Army Intelligence Section reached Major General Yamashita, Major General Yamashita was really shocked and angry. His vision went dark and he almost was sent away on the spot.
The Chinese unexpectedly transferred an infantry corps from the central military department into the Taihang Mountains 12 days ago, two days before the front army was still dispatching troops and generals to prepare for the southeast Shanxi campaign.
An infantry corps can number at least 30,000 people.
In normal times, for the proud man, he would not frown even if there were 100,000 Chinese people, not to mention a mere 30,000 Chinese. The front army has invested nearly 80,000 troops this time, and the Chinese side does not have 200,000.
Even if they are bound to lose, these 30,000 more people are just here to die.
But after these six days of fierce fighting, he not only saw the steepness of China's Taihang Mountains, and how difficult it was to defend and attack, far beyond his expectation, but he also saw the terrifying tenacity of the Chinese soldiers who fought tooth and nail.
It could be said that his second mixed brigade conquered the opponent's defense line, but it would be better to say that the opponent retreated on his own initiative, and a similar line of defense might be created for him somewhere.
This battle was overwhelming, and it was a draw.
Another 30,000 yuan will really cost you your life.
At least, in the mind of Yamashita, who has lost a lot of his pride, if these 30,000 people come to attack him, at least half of his second mixed brigade will not be able to return to their hometown.
However, compared to the Chinese quietly recruiting 30,000 people to enter the battlefield, the Empire made a mistake in estimating the number of Chinese troops participating in the war. What makes Yamashita even more frightened is that the Chinese actually hid themselves until now.
Did not appear.
If the Chinese used these 30,000 people to block the path forward of the 108th Division from the beginning, that would be the most reasonable. 30,000 versus 20,000, plus the legendary Four Lines Regiment with strong combat effectiveness, and
It's a defensive state, so holding the line of defense shouldn't be a big problem.
But the Chinese did not do this. They just opened a hole and allowed the 108th Division to break into its hinterland and wreak havoc.
Finally, let it retreat calmly.
"Retreat calmly?" When these four words kept popping up in Yamashita's mind, Yamashita always felt that something was wrong.
"Maeda-kun, give me the battle report of those idiots in the 108th Division from the past few days." Yamashita tried his best to stay calm and said to his brigade chief of staff.
In order to make this battle go smoothly, Xiangyue Qingshi came up with a new trick. He would report the important battle reports sent by three divisions and a mixed brigade to the headquarters to other ministries. This was to let each ministry understand the battle situation of friendly forces.
And you can adjust your tactics at any time according to the fighting situation of friendly forces.
In the future, it will be called information sharing.
"The packhorses have collective diarrhea.
A large number of people were infected with dysentery, and the infection rate reached one in ten
A small number of Chinese continued to harass the army, but were all repulsed.
Reduced food reserves due to disease problems and insufficient drinking water
During the evacuation, Chinese troops appeared and our troops accelerated their march."
Yamashita's eyes quickly passed over the battle report, and his eyes gradually became frightened, "No, the 108th Division was scared away by the Chinese."
The 108th Division suffered a major defeat just two months ago and recruited more than 4,000 recruits. From a psychological and practical perspective, it is actually the weakest among these four directions. Logically speaking, the Chinese want to make achievements in a certain direction.
, they are the best choice.
But they have successfully evacuated and have now arrived in Licheng.
But how many Chinese troops are involved in this successfully evacuated imperial army? So far, it is only the so-called small number of Chinese that appear in their battle reports. That also means that the Chinese army with more than 130,000 troops is focused on the other three
in one direction.
The 16th Division involves 40,000 to 50,000 people, and the 109th Division involves more than 30,000 people. Where are the more than 50,000 Chinese troops?
Where else could it be besides his second mixed brigade.
No wonder the 683rd Brigade could disappear from the defense line against the 16th Division, no wonder the legendary most elite Si Xing Regiment could never be seen. It turned out to be all because of the existence of this infantry corps that was not part of the plan.
Yamashita, who had figured this out, was not at all grateful, but instead broke out in a cold sweat.
Because the target of the Chinese may be none other than his second mixed brigade.
A missing 683 brigade plus a four-line regiment that has never been out may not be able to make a mixed brigade with 7,500 troops left, but if you add the two infantry divisions that can still fight, or add another
What about an infantry division?
The strength comparison between the two sides will reach 6 to 1 or even 7 to 1, which is a figure that will send chills down the spine of any general.
Even from the battle report of the 108th Division's smooth advance and then its smooth withdrawal, Yamashita had an intuition that perhaps from the very beginning of the battle, the Chinese commander had his mind set on his second mixed brigade.
In fact, compared to the other three divisions, which can easily reach 20,000 troops, his mixed brigade, which has 12,000 troops but only has its own direction, is indeed the weakest.
The front army was considering how to destroy the survival potential of the Taihang Mountains area, but the Chinese had an ambitious idea.
They wanted to organically kill an imperial army and inflict heavy losses on the front army, just like they did in the Battle of Taierzhuang.
Thinking of this, Yamashita realized that despite the different geographical environment, the tactics were almost the same.
However, they always paralyze the opponent first, making the opponent think that the opponent is already trapped and still fighting, and then use the defensive terrain to let the attacker bite his back teeth to attack.
In a situation of certain death, the opponent can only do this if he is forced to do so, for no other reason than to consume the opponent's combat power to the minimum;
Finally, when the opponent's troops are exhausted and there are no reinforcements in a short period of time, send out a huge force that far exceeds the opponent's and devour them all in one go.
Of course, the only difference from Taierzhuang is that the Chinese, who had already mobilized heavy troops to quietly approach him, left him a high ground that was easy to defend but difficult to attack.
His second mixed brigade can completely rely on this high ground to wait for reinforcements!
Then, he inflicted unimaginable damage to the Chinese, letting them know that his Second Mixed Brigade was not a coward like the 108th Division who would run away when scared. If he wanted to kill them, he would have to pay a sufficient price.
However, what troubled the Japanese Army Major General, whose eyes were full of shock and anger, was that even if he inflicted heavy losses on the Chinese and made them pay a terrible price, so what?
Can his second mixed brigade hold out until reinforcements arrive?
The 16th Division and the 109th Division are still fighting fiercely against the Chinese. They are too busy to take care of themselves. Do they have enough troops to support them? As for the 108th Division, Yamashita dare not count on it. He even believes that as long as a Chinese infantry division deploys,
Even those cowards from the 108th Division were unable to break through the previous line of defense.
If he waits for the front army to send additional support and mobilizes a large army from Pingjin, hundreds of kilometers away, then its only role will probably be to collect the corpses for his second mixed brigade!
His second mixed brigade cannot expect any support for at least a week.
The original rough estimate of being able to defend for half a month under the attack of an army of 50,000 was false, but now that the accuracy is as high as 90%, Yamashita feels that being able to defend for a week is already a fluke.
This mentality is like a man and woman in love. Anyway, Xia Jiba said that there is no need to pay. When he swore, he would go through fire and water. But when the lava was actually in front of him, the man who beat his chest and swore at that time was absolutely incredible.
Save one.
Hey, man!
To put it bluntly, so what if the Second Mixed Brigade could use the terrain to kill 10,000 or even 20,000 Chinese? His Second Mixed Brigade was probably almost done by then, and maybe even the head of Major General Yamashita
They were all hung on the cliffs of Taihang Mountain.
That's the rhythm of killing a thousand enemies and killing a thousand yourself!
Less than 15 kilometers away from the entangled major general, a certain regiment member was smilingly asking several officers of the 683 brigade: "Yamashita has these three options at the moment. Brother, Xiaoqiang, and Commander Xu, what do you think of Yamashita?
What would you choose?"
...........
ps: I went out because of something else yesterday, so I didn’t update, sorry!
This chapter has been completed!