The exercise has ended, and Liu Yi already knows Yue Weihan's intentions.
In the war room, Liu Yi asked Yue Weihan worriedly: "Chief Commander, do you think the top brass of the Japanese army will be fooled?"
"Strictly speaking, this cannot be regarded as being deceived, it is just a different strategic choice." Yue Weihan mused, "By taking Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain to capture Shanxi first, and then flanking Taihang Mountain from the east and west, the Japanese army will have to pay
The cost of casualties is obviously lower than a frontal attack on Tumen Fortress."
"But it will take longer." Liu Yi said.
"That's right." Yue Weihan nodded. For China and the 39th Group Army, the most precious thing now is time.
As long as it can survive until the end of this year, the Japanese Navy will almost certainly attack Pearl Harbor. After that, US military aid will flood into China, and the dozens of elite divisions on the battlefields in Central and North China will gradually be transferred to Southeast Asia.
and the Pacific Ocean. By then, the pressure faced by China will be greatly reduced.
"Now it depends on what the top brass of the Japanese army thinks." Yue Weihan said this and then said, "However, I think Private Tojo will choose to bypass Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain."
Tokyo, Army Headquarters.
An urgent document has been placed on the desk of War Minister Hideki Tojo.
This document was provided by the Army Headquarters Secret Service. It contains details about the press conference held by Yue Weihan in the Taihang Mountains yesterday morning and a detailed description of the military exercise held yesterday afternoon. The content is very detailed, which shows that the *** Army Headquarters Secret Service
The agents put in a lot of effort.
Standing opposite Tojo Hideki were two colonel officers.
These two colonels are the main staff of Hideki Tojo. The one on the left is named Yoshio Kondo, and the one on the right is named Nobuya Miura. Both of them are senior staff officers of the Operations Department of the Japanese Army Staff Headquarters. They have their own knowledge about the upcoming battle of Taihang Mountain.
opinions, and at the same time firmly opposed the battle plan formulated by Okamura Neiji.
"What do you think?" Tojo Hideki raised the document in his hand and asked.
Osaka Kondo on the left said: "Your Excellency, General, Yue Weihan's move is obviously to boost the confidence and morale of the Chinese government and the military and civilians. It is not far from exaggerating and showing off, but I think it is basically credible. Even if Jingxing Pass is not as good as
Verdun is so strong that it will not be easy for the imperial army to capture it."
Osaka Miura on the right said: "I agree with Kondo-kun's point of view."
Tojo Hideki said thoughtfully: "Miura-kun, according to your estimate, how much price will the North China Front have to pay if it wants to conquer Jingxing Pass?"
Miura Osaka said: "The terrain of the Taihang Mountains is complex and steep, which is not conducive to the maneuverability of the imperial army's mechanized equipment. The Tumen Fortress is easy to defend and difficult to attack. If the North China Front chooses to attack from the front, the casualties will be at least twice that of the China Army.
There are 150,000 Chinese troops stationed at Jingxing Pass, so..."
Tojo Hideki's eyelids suddenly jumped violently. According to Miura's estimate, doesn't it mean that the North China Front Army needs to pay more than 300,000 casualties to capture Jingxing Pass? The total strength of the North China Front Army is currently only 450,000 people.
, once the casualties exceed 300,000, how can we maintain law and order in North China?
Kondo Osaka said: "Your Majesty, General, this is just the most optimistic estimate."
Miura Osaka said: "Compared with Jingxingguan, which is heavily garrisoned by the 39th China Army, Luliang Mountain garrisoned by the Shanxi-Sui Army and Zhongtiao Mountain garrisoned by the Central Army are easier to achieve a breakthrough. I think the battle plan for the Taihang Mountain Campaign must be revised. The North China Front Army
We should bypass Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain to capture Shanxi first, and then besiege Taihang Mountain for a long time, instead of attacking by force!"
"But in this way, the situation can easily escalate. The Chinese government is likely to continue to send more troops to Shanxi, and it is very likely to eventually evolve into a large-scale strategic decisive battle." Tojo Hideki said with concern, "If this really happens.
If this situation occurs, it may be difficult to end the fighting within a year, which will inevitably seriously affect the execution of the southward plan."
"Your Excellency, the general, is overly worried." Miura said, "I dare to say that the China government will not increase its troops in Shanxi."
Kondo Colonel also said: "What's more, even if the China government wants to increase its troops, I'm afraid it doesn't have the ability. I think this Taihang Mountain battle is at best a medium-sized local battle, and the empire doesn't even need to use it at all.
With strategic reserve materials, the North China Front alone can support this battle."
Tojo Hideki suddenly became agitated. What he was most worried about was that the Battle of Taihang Mountain would affect the southward plan. If he could win the Taihang Mountain Battle at the minimum cost without affecting the southward plan, then why not do it?
?
At that moment, Tojo Hideki said to Kondo Osaka: "Kondo-kun, immediately draft a telegram to the North China Front..."
"Hai." Colonel Kondo lowered his head suddenly, immediately opened the folder in his hand, and picked up a pen to record the message.
Shimen, North China Front Army Headquarters.
Okamura Neiji was observing the war game of the General Staff Department in the war room. The subject of the deduction was the battle for the mountainous areas outside the Taihang Mountains. The basic parameters of the Chinese Army were estimated at the highest value, while the basic parameters of the Japanese army were estimated at the minimum value.
The first phase of "offensive operations" has ended, and the results are astonishing. The battle loss ratio between the Chinese and Japanese armies was as high as 1:5!
After the results of the first phase of the deduction were obtained, the faces of the combat staff were not very good.
However, Okamura Neiji appeared calm and ordered his staff to continue the second phase of the "tug-of-war" deduction.
When the exercise was in full swing, Major General Hirata Shokan, the deputy chief of staff of the front army, suddenly walked in with a serious expression. He immediately stood upright and said to Okamura Ningji: "Your Excellency, Commander, an urgent message has been sent from the base camp, asking us to revise the Taihang Mountains Campaign.
The battle plan is to abandon the frontal attack and open a gap from Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain."
"What!?" Okamura Neji's face suddenly darkened. What he was most worried about happened.
The operational staff who were conducting war games also stopped and looked at Okamura Neji in surprise.
Okamura Neiji waved his hand, indicating to the staff to continue the deduction, and then left the war room together with Masaru Hirata.
Arriving at a quiet and uninhabited place, Okamura Neiji asked: "Hirata-kun, what do you think about the telegram from the base camp?"
"I think the telegram from the base camp is reasonable." Shogan Hirata thought for a while and said seriously, "If we attack Taihang Mountain by force, the cost will definitely be high. If we bypass Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain, we can easily achieve a breakthrough.
, with the combat effectiveness of the Jinsui Army, it will be easy for the imperial army to capture Shanxi. Once Shanxi is successfully captured, the Taihang Mountains will be besieged for a long time, or attacked from the east and west, and the difficulty of combat will be greatly reduced."
Okamura Neji looked cold. How could he not know what Hirata Masabu said?
However, once they choose to bypass Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain, the Japanese army will need to readjust their deployment. From the gathering of troops to the dispatch of combat readiness supplies, it will take at least two months of preparation time, and then to win Luliang Mountain or Zhongtiao Mountain.
The battle will take at least another three to five months, and then the capture of Shanxi will take another three to five months.
At this time, the empire's southward plan has probably already begun. Once the war in Southeast Asia breaks out, troops will inevitably be mobilized from the Chinese battlefield. Although the Kwantung Army has as many as 850,000 troops, it shoulders the heavy responsibility of defending the Soviet Union. The empire is absolutely
Those who dare not draw troops from there can only draw troops from central and northern China.
It would be fine if the Southeast Asian and Pacific battlefields go smoothly, and the main force of the front army will soon be able to return to North China. However, Okamura Neiji has to worry that once the Southeast Asian and Pacific battlefields fall into a stalemate, not only will the mobilized troops not be able to return, but they will continue to
Deploying troops from North China would be a big problem.
Once a large number of elite veterans from North China are transferred to Southeast Asia and the Pacific battlefield, the 39th Group Army dormant in the Taihang Mountains will become the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of the Japanese army in North China and may be cut down at any time. At that time, the situation in North China will be
There will definitely be repetitions, and all of Neji Okamura's previous efforts will be in vain.
Seeing that Okamura Neji was silent, Shogun Hirata reminded him in a low voice: "Your Excellency, Commander?"
Okamura Neiji calmed down and suddenly said to Shogun Hirata: "Immediately call back to the base camp. The suggestion to amend the battle plan for the Taihang Mountain Campaign will not be adopted. The front army will still implement the established battle plan."
"Hai." Masahiro Hirata immediately lowered his head suddenly, turned around and walked away.
In the battle order of the Japanese army, once the military rank reaches the level of division commander or above, they often have great authority to command the army when carrying out combat missions alone. This is also a common practice formed by the Japanese army since the Meiji Restoration.
According to tradition, front army commanders like Okamura Neiji are fully qualified to reject military orders from the base camp.
Of course, the Japanese base camp also has the power to adjust personnel and transfer Neji Okamura.
Okamura Neiji soon returned to the war room. At this time, the combat staff were conducting the second phase of the "tug of war" war game. The process of the game was exciting. The Japanese army stabilized the first place with its absolutely superior strength.
In the second stage of the tug-of-war, the battle loss ratio between the Chinese and Japanese armies was basically stable at around 1:2.
Okamura Neiji said nothing after entering the war room, quietly watching the staff continue their deductions.
When the second phase of the war game lasted six months, the Chinese team finally reached the "critical point" of collapse.
The sustained combat capability of an army is determined by many factors, the most important of which are troop strength, logistical support and medical system. In these three aspects, the North China Front completely overwhelmed the 39th Group Army.
Even if the Japanese military staff has set the basic parameters of the 39th Group Army to the highest value, they will also have a shortage of medicines in about four months. In about five months, the supply of ammunition will be in short supply.
In about six months, there will be problems with the rotation of the troops, which is the "critical point" on the verge of collapse.
After crossing this critical point, the combat effectiveness of the 39th Army will decline sharply!
Then comes the third stage of the entire war game, which is the final stage.
At this time, the 39th Group Army will inevitably collapse. Due to the loss of control of the battlefield, the casualties of the 39th Group Army will increase sharply. However, since the Japanese army has control of the battlefield from beginning to end, the injured soldiers can
If they are transported back to the rear for treatment in time, the number of casualties will be kept to a minimum.
In the third stage, the battle loss ratio between the Chinese and Japanese armies will reach 10:1.
Taking the three stages into consideration, the casualties of the Chinese and Japanese armies were basically the same.
However, since all the Japanese wounded were treated, the final number of casualties was less than 50,000. As the 39th Army finally lost control of the battlefield, a large number of wounded died indirectly because they could not receive treatment. The final number of casualties has been
The number exceeds 100,000, almost equal to the total strength of the 39th Group Army.
When the final deduction results came out, the war room burst into cheers.
Although this was just a war game on paper, it at least proved that it was theoretically possible for the Japanese army to achieve an overwhelming victory. Although the Tumen Fortress built by the 39th Group Army was extremely strong, there was no need for the Japanese army to choose to attack Tumen.
Gate Fortress, the Japanese army could completely achieve the campaign goal of consuming the 39th Group Army's continuous combat capability and ultimately defeating the 39th Group Army through mountainous competition on the left and right wings.
Okamura Neji sighed in his heart.
Six months, it only takes six months to finally defeat the 39th Group Army, but unfortunately, Private Tojo who is far away in Tokyo cannot give him another six months. Okamura Neiji can fully imagine that when
When the first phase of "offensive operations" saw huge casualties, Senior Private Tojo would definitely take action.
At that moment, Okamura Neiji said to the combat staff: "Now we will proceed with the war game deduction of the No. 2 combat plan."
The so-called "Operation Plan No. 2" is to storm the Tumen Fortress. This is the lowest plan, but it is also the most direct and possibly the fastest combat plan. However, the price is also heavy. Of course, once the Tumen Fortress is breached,
Gate Fortress, the Japanese heavy equipment can march straight in, and there is no suspense about occupying Jingxing Pass.
"What, Operation Plan No. 2?" The operational staff looked at each other.
"Yes, combat plan No. 2, let's start the deduction." Okamura Neji nodded.
If he had a choice, Okamura Neji would never choose the No. 2 combat plan. But now, Okamura Neji has no choice. Tojo Hideki, a superior soldier, forced Okamura Neji to fight.
I took a risk and chose to attack Tumen Fortress. In any case, Jingxing Pass and the 39th Group Army must be resolved before the southward plan begins.
Regarding Yue Weihan and his 39th Group Army, Okamura Neiji always maintained sufficient vigilance.
For the Chinese, Yue Weihan is their national hero, and the 39th Group Army is their spiritual support. On the contrary, for the Great Rebellion Empire, Yue Weihan and the 39th Group Army are serious troubles that must be eradicated, and...
If this serious problem is not eliminated, Okamura Neiji will not have peace of mind.