A staff officer excitedly rushed into the command hall and shouted: "The new 22nd Division and the temporary 55th Division defeated the Japanese Fifty-fifth Division, annihilating a total of more than 8,600 Japanese troops. Now the remaining Japanese troops are heading southeast
Run away, now Commander Gan Lichu is commanding the troops to advance quickly towards Tonggu!"
"Very good!"
This news made the entire command center excited, and everyone was smiling.
The defeat of the 55th Division made the road to Tonggu clear for the reinforcements, and no force could stop them.
Once the siege of Tonggu is solved, the entire Myanmar war situation will undergo earth-shaking changes, and the offensive and defensive momentum will be reversed in an instant. Unless the Japanese army continues to increase its troops, the overall situation will be irreversible.
Suddenly, a staff officer walked up to Luo Zhuoying and the others and said loudly: "Sir, it's time for the Japanese to see how powerful we are. Can you please give me an order?"
"Sir, please give me the order!"
In the headquarters, the staff stood up and looked at the three top commanders.
Luo Zhuoying, Du Yuming and Gao Hongming looked at each other.
Gao Hongming shrugged his shoulders, "Look at me? I am only responsible for air support. I am not the commander of the expeditionary force."
Du Yuming spread his hands and said, "Don't look at me either. I'm just a deputy commander. You have to go to the real commander for this issue."
When Luo Zhuoying saw this scene between the two of them, she laughed angrily: "Well... you two teamed up to run against me, right? Just wait and see how I deal with you?"
Seeing Luo Zhuoying's angry look, Du Yuming looked at Gao Hongming with a "panic look" on his face: "It's over, Chief Luo is going to give us some shoes, what should we do?"
Gao Hongming waved his hands repeatedly: "It's none of my business. I'm only responsible for air support. No matter what happens, the position of commander of the expeditionary force will not fall on me. You can pinch the first and second leaders, and I will just watch from the sidelines."
"Well, Gao Hongming, you kid actually betrayed me." Du Yuming was anxious and strode towards Gao Hongming to argue with him. Naturally, Gao Hongming would not stay where he was and wait for abuse, so he quickly ran away. Suddenly, everyone in the command headquarters
The officers all burst into laughter.
After a while, Luo Zhuoying waved her hands to signal everyone to calm down.
"Okay, everyone, calm down."
Luo Zhuoying was worthy of being a veteran who had been on the battlefield for decades, and he quickly calmed down.
"Now the Fifty-sixth Division has been defeated, and the Fifty-fifth Division has also been dragged into the same ancient city by the 200th Division.
It can be said that now is the best time to recover the entire territory in front of us, and I will immediately convey my order to the entire army!"
"Wow!"
Everyone, including Gao Hongming, stood up straight, put their feet together and looked at the top officer.
"The 200th Division and the various units of the Liantai Militia in the same ancient city tried their best to hold back the 56th Division and never allow it to escape.
The newly formed 22nd Division and the temporary 55th Division will march towards Tonggu with all their strength. They must arrive at Tonggu before tomorrow... that is, December 3rd, and then join forces with the 200th Division to completely annihilate the 56th Division.
In addition... the newly formed 36th Division and the 96th Division will immediately move towards Mandalay and must reach their target before December 5th.
The 49th Division and the 93rd Division immediately deployed defense lines along the Shan State and Kokang areas to prevent Japanese reinforcements.
All ministries will execute the order immediately after receiving it without any mistakes...Those who disobey the order...will be severely punished!"
As telegrams flew to all directions, the situation in Myanmar began to change dramatically...
"Nani, the 55th Division was defeated and almost completely wiped out?"
Damoto stood up abruptly, grabbed the collar of Major General Rikichiro Sawamoto, chief of staff, and stared wide-eyed, "You are lying...How could the 55th Division be defeated?"
Where is Ishimoto Torazo, where is he now?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, according to the last telegram sent by Division Commander Ishimoto, as of December 1, the number of combatants in the 55th Division has been reduced to 657.
Now, Division Commander Ishimoto is retreating toward Mandalay with the division headquarters, the military flags of each regiment, and the accompanying guards."
"657 people?"
Damoto Zhengcai sneered: "Ishimoto Tosan is really capable. A full division was beaten by him to only such a few people. How dare he come back?"
Rikichiro Sawamoto lowered his head. The Fifty-fifth Division is a typical three-armed division. The total number of the division is about 15,000. Now it has been beaten to only more than 600 people. It is said that it has been beaten.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were all wiped out.
Any other division commander would have committed suicide by caesarean section, but instead of committing suicide by caesarean section, Ishimoto Torazo had the nerve to send a telegram to his superiors, saying that he would retreat with the regiment flag. No one else would have such shame.
It’s no wonder that many political sources have ridiculed him.
However, as a commander, after getting angry, you have to consider the war situation in Myanmar.
Tamoto Masato stared at the map and thought for a long time. After a long sigh, he said to Rikichiro Sawamoto: "Since the Fifty-fifth Division has been defeated, there is no need to fight the Tonggu Battle. If we continue to force the Fifty-fifth Division, it will serve as a lesson."
.
You immediately send a report to Matsuyama Yuzo, asking him to immediately stop the Tonggu campaign and lead the 56th Division to retreat to Mandalay.
In addition, you should immediately send a report to Commander Kimura Hyōtaro and ask him to urgently dispatch the 18th Division and the 63rd Division to reinforce Burma, otherwise the empire will risk losing Burma."
Rikichiro Sawamoto was startled and asked quickly: "Your Excellency, Commander, is it necessary to say it so seriously?"
"very necessary."
Damoto Masato said with a serious face: "Sawamoto-kun, haven't you seen the seriousness of the situation until now?
With the defeat of the 55th Division, the empire's military strength in Burma has been weakened to the extreme.
Now, the empire has only two infantry regiments in Mandalay. Once the 56th Division is defeated, what will you do if you are the commander of the Chinese?"
Without waiting for the other party to answer, he continued: "As long as the Chinese people are not fools, they will definitely march towards Mandalay. What will we do then? Do we expect these two regiments in our hands to fight against the Chinese army of 100,000 people?
?”
Rikichiro Sawamoto had nothing to say, Masato Tamoto was right to be concerned.
If he were a Chinese commander, he would definitely not let go of the important town of Mandalay, especially when this important town was defended by only two pitiful regiments.
But then he thought of another question, and his expression changed: "Your Excellency, Commander, is it possible that the Chinese troops attacking Mandalay are already halfway there?"
Tamoto Masato looked at Rikichiro Sawamoto for a while, then nodded slowly, "Sawamoto-kun, the issue you mentioned is actually what I am most worried about right now.
If this is the case, we will have to consider evacuating Mandalay proactively."