After the Battle of Licheng started, the whole Three Jin Dynasty seemed to have changed.

The Eighth Route Army troops, which had been huddled in mountainous areas and suburbs and could only barely compete with the Japanese army with the base areas they opened up, now dared to be so confident in launching a large-scale offensive against Licheng.

The land of China.

The whole country is excited!

The supreme commander of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi, Yoshio Shinozuka, who was at the headquarters of the First Army in Taiyuan City, was completely unable to sit still.

He constantly mobilized troops from all parties to reinforce the city.

If the loss of Datong has caused the Japanese Empire to lose its face.

Once the defensive operation in Licheng fails, the Japanese army will suffer a devastating blow, both in terms of troop losses and troop morale.

This is no longer a shame.

It can even mark that the Japanese army has completely become a defeated general of the Eighth Route Army.

The proud and arrogant little devil, who is even called the strongest land soldier on the road, will probably become the laughing stock of the whole world.

If it really comes to that point, Yoshio Shinozuka, as the direct commander in charge of this battle, will face not only removal from his post, but also suicide by caesarean section.

"Asshole, there is no room for loss in Licheng!"

Thinking of all this, Yoshio Shinozuka was completely prepared.

On the one hand, various reinforcements from the First Army were mobilized to quickly reinforce Licheng.

Even some elite Japanese field troops originally stationed in southern Shanxi and responsible for important cities such as Changzhi, Yuncheng, and Linfen all received orders from the First Army Headquarters and rushed to Licheng for reinforcements.

Even the Eighth Route Army in the Zhongtiao Mountain base, Shinozuka Yoshio, couldn't care about it.

Anyway, he risked his life, and Yoshio Shinozuka was completely shameless. He lowered his always proud head and kept asking for help from the Northeastern Army, the Dispatch Army to South China, and the Dispatch Army to Central China.

In a word.

Licheng must not repeat the mistakes of Datong.

Such a situation, under the Japanese army's all-out defense, indeed greatly increased the pressure on the Eighth Route Army officers and soldiers to launch a critical battle against Licheng.

As the war situation continued to evolve, troops from all directions, including the Japanese and the Eighth Route Army, crowded into the Licheng area.

It's like thousands of streams gradually converging into a river.

Seeing the scale of the battle between the two sides becoming more and more intense, the Japanese troops that were quickly mobilized were far more than just the First Army stationed in Shanxi.

Including the troops stationed in Mongolia, as well as some mechanized reinforcements sent by the Japanese army from Central China and South China.

Even the Kwantung Army appeared.

Japanese reinforcements quickly appeared on various railway lines and highway lines, heading towards Licheng.

As for the Eighth Route Army, in addition to the main force of the 129th Division operating in the Taihang area, guerrilla forces including Jizhong, Jinan, Zhongtiao Mountain, and even Shandong Province were gradually brought into this battle.

The numerous postures of the Eighth Route Army troops gathered here all indicate:

The Eighth Route Army troops are determined to break through Licheng!

This is not only believed by the Japanese army, but also by surrounding forces, including the Shanxi-Sui Army, the Chiang Kai-shek Army, and the local National Army troops.

In the direction of Licheng, the Eighth Route Army even spent a lot of effort to pull over some heavy howitzers and enhanced versions of heavy rocket launchers to frantically attack the city.

The earth-shattering momentum completely overturned the inherent scale of the Eighth Route Army's offensive battles in the history of the Anti-Japanese War.

The Japanese and puppet troops guarding the city had almost been intimidated, and they kept telling the most critical situation and asking for help from the outside world.

……

"If this fight continues, the scale will get bigger and bigger, and this chaotic situation will become more and more out of control!"

The former enemy headquarters looked at the evolution of the situation through the military map, and the boss couldn't help but feel a little worried.

Over the years, the main force of the 129th Division has developed really well, especially the frontline main force, led by Kong Jie's team.

But in the final analysis, the foundation of the isolated Eighth Route Army was really poor. Even after the outbreak of the Pacific War, elites were continuously transferred to the Pacific battlefield, and were even forced to conduct two-front operations, and even launched attacks in Southeast Asia and other countries.

The third line of combat.

This skinny camel is still bigger than a horse.

Judging from the overall foundation and strength, the Eighth Route Army troops are still no match for the Japanese army.

In addition, as the deputy chief of staff worried, "Chiang's troops are fighting on the frontal battlefield, and our Eighth Route Army is still behind enemy lines to contain the Japanese army.

But people’s hearts are unpredictable, and it might not be the case if it were the other way around.

Once the Japanese army shifts all its military focus to our Eighth Route Army troops, it will even gradually move the main force on the frontal battlefield to the enemy's rear.

Not only will some troops not take the initiative to launch an attack, not to mention containing the Japanese army, they may even clap their hands in private and watch the development of the battle, hoping that both we and the Japanese will suffer losses!"

This is even more of the problem.

Putting aside the current battle, as the Japanese army gathered in large numbers, the Eighth Route Army was on the weaker side overall.

Even if it can win, the Eighth Route Army will definitely pay a heavy price in casualties.

This is completely contrary to the Eighth Route Army's sustained anti-Japanese policy.

The boss fell silent for a moment, secretly thinking about how to break the situation.

……

……

"Lao Kong, we have to hurry up. If it's too late, by the time we get to the battlefield in Licheng, the city may have been breached and we won't even be able to drink soup!"

After successfully capturing Datong, Li Yunlong and Kong Jie, who led the mechanized combat troops in a rapid detour and moved closer to Licheng, were already galloping on the way with their troops.

With various mechanized combat vehicles as foot power, the troops can move extremely fast, much faster than ordinary infantry.

This rapid detour and interspersed speed made the soldiers quite excited, and they even lamented that if there were these mechanized combat vehicles in previous years, the rapid interlude and return operations would definitely be more brilliant.

The surprise attack on Datong has been successfully completed.

It stands to reason that Kong Jie and Li Yunlong have already made great achievements this time, and their main combat missions are basically completed.

Just a moment ago, Kong Jie had a rough understanding of the battle situation in the direction of Licheng through the communications departments of all parties.

As Kong Jie replied: "Old Li, according to the communication situation coming from the direction of Licheng, the surrounding area of ​​Licheng is basically in chaos at this time. The troops we have invested in large and small must probably be dozens of regiments.

.

As for the Japanese army, the Mongolian Army, the Japanese First Army, including Central China, South China, and even the Japanese Northeast Army have sent quick reaction troops for reinforcements.

This noise is getting louder and louder!"

"Haha, that's really interesting. This time I have to give him a good beating!" Li Yunlong became more and more impatient.

Kong Jie poured cold water on it and said, "Old Li, it was a real tough battle in Licheng, and the terrain conditions in Datong were also different.

The terrain in the northern Shanxi area, especially the area close to Inner Mongolia, is relatively flat, which is suitable for us to carry out mechanized operations. However, the terrain in the Licheng area is rugged and there are many mountains.

On the contrary, it is suitable for regular infantry to carry out operations. Even if our quick reaction force rushes over, I am afraid it will not be of much help. There is probably no difference between having it or not."

Li Yunlong was stunned, knowing that Kong Jie was telling the truth, but he still insisted:

"At worst, we can get on the car and gallop, dismount and fight, and when we get to the place, we can all turn into infantry."

The battle to attack Licheng attracted everyone's attention, and Li Yunlong didn't want to miss such a good show.

So Kong Jie then asked: "Old Li, do you think this increasingly violent battle we have launched is right or wrong?"

"Ah?"

Li Yunlong didn't react for a moment, and then replied without thinking: "What else can be wrong with killing Japanese soldiers?

We have already won many great victories this time.

I heard that in the direction of Huangyadong, all the little Japanese who entered the cave have been wiped out.

The Japanese 36th Division outside Huangyadong has also been defeated.

Brigadier Chen's side also completed the counter-mopping operation.

Old Ding commanded the remaining troops of our Iron Triangle and beat the little devil until he cried for his father and mother.

In addition, we also successfully captured Datong, turning the entire northern Shanxi into a pot of porridge.

What could be wrong with that?"

Kong Jie sighed, there were some things he couldn't tell Li Yunlong.

If he told Lao Li, the reason why the war situation gradually became more and more serious this time was that the winter counterattack launched by his team was actually the trigger.

Then, the Japanese army’s operations against the Huangyadong Arsenal were discovered.

The scale of the operation at this time is actually still limited.

In fact, according to the most reliable battle plan, only the internal fortifications of Huangya Cave are needed to complete the defense battle of Huangya Cave.

Just successfully repel the Japanese army.

However, Kong Jie was not satisfied with this. Instead, he proposed to use a large number of rapid reaction troops to quickly detour back to the Northwest Military Region, and then with the cooperation of the 120th Division, make a surprise attack on Datong.
To be continued...