Yoshizawa Ming continued: "However, we have to guard against them. Xiangyuan City is closest to Xiantang Mountain and may be attacked by Li Yunlong."

"Deploy an infantry brigade to station in Xiangyuan City to strengthen Xiangyuan's garrison and closely monitor the movements of Li Yunlong's troops."

"In addition, elite troops and generals will be deployed to strengthen the defense forces in the areas along the Tailu Highway."

"Recruit civilians to build more gun towers along the main sections of the road to enhance the security of the Tailu Highway."

"This highway is our lifeline and must not be lost."

"Hai!"

The Japanese Major responded quickly: "I'll do my humble job now."

Yoshizawa Akira waved his hand slightly, indicating that he could leave.

The Japanese Major withdrew respectfully, and then Yoshizawa Akira personally drafted a telegram, which was reported to the commander of the North China Expedition Army, Okamura Neiji.

After writing it, Yoshizawa Akira checked it carefully again, and then ordered someone to immediately send the telegram to Peking.

…

In Peiping, Major General Yukio Kasahara found Neiji Okamura with a telegram and said respectfully: "Report to your Excellency, Commander, that the commander of the Luzhou Yoshizawa Akira Brigade has sent an urgent telegram."

"Luzhou?"

Okamura Neiji quickly asked: "What happened over there again?"

Kasahara Yukio quickly replied: "According to Yoshizawa-kun's report, Li Yunlong led his troops into the northern area of ​​Luzhou. He speculated that the Eighth Route Army seemed to have the intention to pursue the Luzhou area."

Hearing this, Okamura Neiji couldn't help but frowned and said: "Li Yunlong, since I arrived in North China, I have been hearing this name constantly. Is this guy really that powerful?"

Kasahara Yukio replied: "I have carefully studied all the information about this Li Yunlong. This guy is indeed a difficult opponent."

"Most of the imperial army's failure in Shanxi was related to this guy Li Yunlong."

"The new regiment under his command is very powerful. It is said to be the most powerful regiment under the Eighth Route Army. Its strength should not be underestimated."

"And this guy often plays cards out of common sense and is very cunning, so he has repeatedly embarrassed the imperial army."

Okamura Ningji nodded slightly and said: "I have learned about Li Yunlong's information, and it seems that our departments' evaluations of this Li Yunlong are almost unanimous."

"In other words, this guy has now become a huge threat to the imperial army."

Yukio Kasahara replied: "Hai! If Li Yunlong is not eliminated, the situation in Shanxi may be difficult to control."

Okamura Neiji stood up and walked to the map, stared at it for a while, and said: "The Luzhou area is very important to both the enemy and us. It can be said to be a battleground for military strategists."

"The Eighth Route Army sent elite troops into the Luzhou area, obviously hoping to seize this place."

"Once Luzhou falls into the hands of the enemy, the situation in Shanxi as a whole will become even worse."

"Hai!"

Kasahara Yukio responded respectfully: "What your Excellency the Commander said is absolutely true. Once Luzhou falls into the enemy's hands, the enemy's Taihang and Taiyue base areas will be completely connected."

"At that time, their strength will inevitably be further enhanced, and they will pose a greater threat to the imperial army."

Gangcun Neiji nodded and said: "Yes, so we must ensure the safety of the Luzhou area."

Kasahara Yukio said: "Yoshizawa-kun clearly means to ask for help from us when he sends this telegram, but judging from our current situation, we may not be able to mobilize troops to support them in a short period of time."

Okamura Neiji frowned and said: "Last time, the imperial army was defeated so miserably, resulting in heavy losses, and the transportation lines in various places have not been fully restored until now."

"Everywhere continues to replenish troops and restore order. It is indeed difficult to mobilize enough troops to support Luzhou."

"I have already reported to the military headquarters, requesting that additional troops be sent to North China to stabilize the situation in North China."

"But it will take some time, so for now, we can only take a defensive stance and wait for the time to mature before making further plans."

Kasahara Yukio said: "Hai! Your Excellency, Commander, is wise. In the Luzhou area..."

Okamura Neiji said: "Inform Yoshizawa-kun and ask them to stick to the major towns, closely monitor the actions of the Eighth Route Army, and refrain from taking active military action for the time being."

"We suffered heavy losses in this battle, and the Eighth Route Army also suffered heavy losses. They also need time to recover. I estimate that if we don't take the initiative to launch an attack, they may not dare to attack our heavily guarded city."

"So we can completely use this period of time to gradually accumulate strength. When the time is right, we can launch a new round of clearing operations against the Eighth Route Army."

"At that time, not only in the Taiyue and Taihang areas, but also in other places, we will completely eliminate them bit by bit."

"So we must speed up preparations. The most important thing is to ask the military to send us more troops to supplement our strength."

"In addition, we must further strengthen the strength of the various departments of the Imperial Association Army. Although these troops are a ragtag group and are far from comparable to the Imperial Army, their presence can help alleviate some of the pressure on the Imperial Army."

"Hai!"

Kasahara Yukio responded quickly: "Commander, please rest assured that we will increase our efforts in this regard to further enhance the combat effectiveness of these Imperial Alliance troops."

Okamura Neiji nodded slightly and waved his hand, indicating that Kasahara Yukio could withdraw.

After Kasahara Yukio retired, Okamura Neiji couldn't help but sigh.

Nowadays, North China is in a mess. Neiji Okamura has just taken over such a mess, and he is also feeling a headache.

Under the current situation, it is extremely difficult to stabilize the situation and completely eliminate the resistance forces in North China.

Even though Neiji Okamura was always conceited, he didn't have a particularly good solution for a while.

If he had no other choice, Okamura Neiji would really not want to take over such a mess.

The factional fighting among the little Japanese army was also very fierce, which also triggered several mutinies.

Even now, the struggle between factions is fierce.

The reason why Okamura Neiji was doing well in Wuhan and was suddenly transferred back to serve as a military counselor as a sinecure was because he was on the wrong team and became a victim of factional struggle.

However, what happened in North China this time gave Okamura Neiji a chance.

No one was willing to take over this mess, so those in the military department remembered that Neiji Okamura was here.

Okamura Neiji was forced to come to North China to take up the post. After all, if he didn't accept this position, he might be on the bench for who knows how long.

Coming to North China to serve as this commander was, after all, a promotion to the rank of commander of the front army. Before that, he was just an army commander.

Of course, opportunities and challenges coexist. As long as he does well in North China, his future will naturally be brighter.

It's just that this old devil didn't expect that this mess in North China would be so bad.

It was already here, so he could only grit his teeth and persevere.

And for his own future, he had to work hard as a commander and strive to pacify North China as soon as possible.

At this time, Okamura Neiji also tried his best to ask for rights, reinforcements, and weapons and equipment from the military headquarters.

I want everything I can get, and I have to fight for everything I can't get.

Because now the big guys in the military department also have requests from him, and they will definitely try their best to meet his requests.

And if they don't agree and can't clean up the mess in the future, he can shirk responsibility.

So now, in order for Neiji Okamura to pacify North China as soon as possible, the Japanese military headquarters will definitely agree to his request as much as possible.

However, whether it is dispatching troops or supplies, it takes time.

So now Neiji Okamura can only pray secretly that no big changes will happen during this period of time.

…

Li Yunlong finished the meeting and just walked out of the house when he saw Zhou Weiguo waiting in the yard.

Li Yunlong shouted: "Weiguo!"

Zhou Weiguo heard Li Yunlong's shout and ran over quickly.

"Captain, you have something to do with me!"

"Sit down!"

Li Yunlong pointed to the seat next to him, and Zhou Weiguo sat down without being polite.

Li Yunlong said: "The last time we attacked the Wangzhuang stronghold, you made great achievements. You eliminated thirty Japs, drove away two companies of the puppet army, and seized a large number of weapons and equipment."

"It is precisely because you weakened the enemy's strength that we were able to capture the Wangzhuang stronghold so easily. You should take the lead in this battle."

"What's even more commendable is that after a battle, only two people were slightly injured and no one was sacrificed. It was a great job."

Zhou Weiguo said quickly: "Thank you very much, Captain, for the compliment."

Li Yunlong continued: "The political commissar and I have discussed it. This time you served as the sharp knife platoon. You have completed the task very well and made meritorious service. It is really unjustifiable not to reward you."

"I have already reported it to my superiors, and I will give you a collective second-class merit. It will probably be approved soon."

"And you, Zhou Weiguo, have been promoted to deputy company commander and still serve as platoon leader."

The foreigners around were overjoyed when they heard this, and said with a smile: "So, I have been promoted again?"

Li Yunlong nodded and said, "Look at your official-obsessed look."

Zhou Weiguo smiled and said: "Don't I want to start establishing a special force as soon as possible?"

Li Yunlong said: "I'm not in a hurry for this moment, let's wait a little longer!"

"We can carry out relevant preparatory work, and when the time is right, the establishment of a special force team will be a matter of course."

Zhou Weiguo responded quickly: "Everything depends on the arrangement of the regiment leader."

Li Yunlong continued: "In recent times, each unit has basically focused on training troops. At the same time, we will also recruit new soldiers locally to expand our strength."

"That is to say, there are no major military operations for the time being."

"However, in order to prepare for the future recovery of Luzhou, we are also planning to send several small troops out to various places in the thirteen counties of Luzhou to inquire about the enemy's situation and familiarize themselves with the terrain."

"Your platoon is all veterans, so there is no need for training. You are also responsible for this mission."

"After you go out, you must seize this opportunity and strive to make a few more contributions, so that I can legitimately continue to promote you."

Zhou Weiguo said happily: "That's great, don't worry, we promise to complete the task."

"Kill a few more of his little devils by the way."

"Haha~!"
Chapter completed!