Okamura Neiji's strategy and tactics are actually very obvious, which is to gradually advance "man-operated missiles" based on infantry advancement to drive the Eighth Route Army's aviation fleet farther and farther away, preferably outside the combat radius of its supply line.
Therefore, the Japanese appear to be attacking Anfengcun Airport, but in fact they are attacking Liyuan Airport... The straight-line distance is 85 kilometers. If the Japanese infantry can advance here, then the "human-operated missiles" can also advance forward no matter what.
Forty or fifty kilometers.
In this way, "human-operated missiles" can bomb Liyuan Airport, and the Japanese air control area can be pushed forward dozens of kilometers.
Because he knew the Japanese's strategic goals, Wang Xuexin's battle plan was easy to formulate.
The first is the three groups blocking the front.
These three regiments are the main regiments of the Eighth Route Army. Each regiment has more than 3,000 men, and they are all equipped with Springfield rifles.
But of course, there are troops equipped with 38-gauges in these main regiments because of the difficulties in logistics and limited transportation capacity. Springfield rifle ammunition is not unlimited supply. The purpose of equipping 38-gauges is to obtain some ammunition from the Japanese.
Replenish.
However, such equipment can be considered "sophisticated" in the Eighth Route Army. Looking at the entire army, only the main force regiments and independent regiments that are close to the water can obtain it on a first-come-first-served basis.
However, although these three regiments were the main regiments, the task Wang Xuexin gave them was to "lure the enemy deep into the enemy's territory."
This made the group leaders quite complain. One of the groups was called the Steel Knife Group because it fought bravely and many of its soldiers were equipped with steel knives. They always liked to fight hand-to-hand with Japanese soldiers on the battlefield.
After Wu Zhenghai, the leader of the Steel Knife Regiment, heard about his mission, he reluctantly replied in the telegram: "Commander Wang, our troops are the main force fighting hard battles. You let us fight and lure the enemy."
Go deeper, isn’t this inappropriate?”
Wang Xuexin only asked: "If I send a troop with poor weapons and equipment but not enough combat effectiveness to lure the enemy deep into the enemy's teeth, do you think the Japanese will be fooled?"
With just one sentence, Wu Zhenghai was silenced.
Wang Xuexin is right. If ordinary troops are used to attract the enemy's firepower... you must know that all the enemy soldiers are veterans from the battlefield. As soon as they make contact and hear a few gunshots, they will immediately know what the enemy's equipment is.
combat effectiveness.
If they are not the main force, can they rest assured?
I must be secretly wondering where the main force of the Eighth Route Army is!
On the other hand, if the main force is right in front, then what else are you thinking about? Just chase!
As a result, not only Wu Zhenghai was silent, but the other regiment leaders also stopped complaining and followed Wang Xuexin's arrangement to fight and retreat at the same time.
This can be said to be a strong point for the Eighth Route Army. There are Eighth Route Army guerrillas everywhere in the jungle, on the highlands, and in caves. Even if the Japanese occupy many areas, they are still unbearable and disturbed all day long.
But the Japanese still pushed forward very resolutely, advancing at a speed of about ten miles every day, and in three days they advanced forty miles.
During this period Wang Xuexin did nothing, just waited.
Then, he finally heard the information he wanted.
"Commander!" the communications soldier reported: "The Japanese artillery has moved. An artillery regiment is advancing westward along the highway!"
The artillery unit is the best fire cover for infantry, especially in attacking difficult areas. In addition, if you want to control Anfeng Airport, artillery is also the best choice... With artillery, the Japanese can bomb the airport with artillery fire 20 kilometers away without directly
Capture with infantry.
"There is also an air defense wing!" Another signal soldier reported: "The air defense wing is also advancing westward!"
Wang Xuexin nodded.
The air defense wing is also very important, which means whether the Japanese artillery positions will be bombed by the Eighth Route Army's air force. In addition, when the Japanese air force comes to fight, the air defense wing can also play a significant role.
What's more important is...
Wang Xuexin believes that this is preparation for "human-operated missiles".
Although the Japanese's "man-operated missiles" have a long range and high accuracy, they still need several hours to build the launcher.
The towering launch pad can easily become a target for the Eighth Route Army Air Force.
Therefore, the Japanese call this "the soldiers and horses move forward before the food and grass are moved".
Before the "manned missiles" are launched, the air defense wing, radar warning, and fighter planes responsible for intercepting the Eighth Route Army must be ready.
Sure enough, the correspondent reported shortly after: "Twenty Zero Fighters were added to the Steel Plant Airport. At this time, there are already fifty Zero Fighters at the airport!"
This is really difficult for the devils.
With the "Zero War" flight range of nearly 3,000 kilometers, it should not have approached the steel factory airport 200 kilometers away from the Eighth Route Army Airport.
But in order to be able to take off quickly and protect the safety of the "manned missiles", they even did not hesitate to place the "Zero War" within the combat radius of the "La 5", and there were as many as fifty of them.
Wang Xuexin still stood still.
To be precise, we are not standing still, intelligence work is being done all the time.
For example, the location of the Japanese artillery positions and the location of the air defense wing were accurately grasped by the Eighth Route Army as a result of their advance.
Previously, the Japanese used the method of creating a no-man's land to the east of the steel plant to block information, which prevented the Eighth Route Army from accurately obtaining intelligence about them.
But now, under Wang Xuexin's arrangement, Eighth Route Army scouts are lurking in the highlands west of Daqingshan. It can be said that every move of the Japanese on the road below is under the surveillance of the Eighth Route Army.
And there is no need for many of these scouts. Only one or two are enough for each highland. With a telescope and compressed biscuits produced by three stores, it is not a problem to lurk in the highlands for a few weeks.
Once something happens, the scouts will immediately send the information to Wang Xuexin's headquarters through telephone lines buried underground or through the radio. Even the temporary changes in the Japanese artillery positions and the deployment of troops will be sent to them accurately.
Go to Wang Xuexin’s desk.
This was Wang Xuexin's preparation before the war.
He knows that in any battle, no matter how many troops or equipment there are, the most important thing should be accurate intelligence.
Because only with accurate intelligence can we know where to use our strength, otherwise it will just be a random fight that will inevitably turn into a bad battle.
Then, after another two days, the big fish finally came out.
Just as Wang Xuexin and Chen Songyong were discussing how to capture the Japanese artillery positions, a communications soldier took off his earphones and reported: "Captain, the Japanese's 'Human Fire' is dispatched!"
Suddenly, everyone focused their attention on the communications soldier, and then turned their attention to Wang Xuexin.
Because the commanders and fighters all knew that once the Japanese's "high fire" was deployed, it meant that the Eighth Route Army's counterattack was about to begin.