It was raining heavily, and the air was filled with moist water vapor.
In the dimly lit private house, the commanders of the brigades and regiments under the 51st Division arrived one after another. There were both familiar faces to Yang Ling and some unfamiliar faces.
Their troops lost more than 4,000 people on the Lanfeng battlefield. Officers at all levels of the 74th Army had a tradition of leading by example, so officers suffered frequent casualties.
With weapons and equipment lagging behind the elite Japanese army in all aspects, although officers at all levels took the lead in the charge and were suspected of leaving their posts without authorization, they were a strong guarantee for maintaining the combat effectiveness of an army under difficult conditions.
The division commander, General Wang Yaowu, had not yet arrived, and the officers who entered the conference room all found their own places to sit down. Some closed their eyes in silence and fell asleep, while others chatted with familiar people.
The officers who liked to smoke began to spread cigarettes to the people around them, and soon the air was filled with the smell of tobacco.
The 151st Brigade Commander Zhou Zhidao also arrived soon, and the officers in the room naturally did not dare to neglect and stood up to salute.
Brigadier Zhou Zhidao didn't have the slightest airs. If he took off his general uniform, he would look more like a simple farmer.
"Everyone, sit down, sit down." Brigadier Zhou Zhidao asked Yang Ling and others kindly to relax while twisting the water in his sleeves.
Zhou Zhidao looked at the mostly wet officers in the room and ordered to the guards outside: "Go and help find some dry clothes for them to change into. There will be a war soon, and gonorrhea will not be cured."
The guard saluted and turned around. Soon the quartermaster from the division headquarters came over with a large pile of dry clothes for Yang Ling and the others to change.
The wet clothes clung to the skin and were sticky with sweat. Although it was already July, the humidity in the south was heavy and still uncomfortable.
Yang Ling and the other captains did not care about avoiding suspicion, so they took off their wet clothes and put on dry clothes in the house. They were full of gratitude to the brigade commander Zhou Zhidao.
As soon as they changed into dry clothes, division commander Wang Yaowu came over surrounded by a group of staff officers.
"salute!"
Following the guard's loud shout, Yang Ling and others raised their chests and abdomen, stood at attention with their feet together, clicked their heels together and raised their hands in salute.
After the division commander Wang Yaowu also raised his hand in salute, he walked to the chair at the end and sat down, pressing his hands down. Then Yang Ling and the others sat on both sides of the long table according to their respective positions.
"Everyone, I just got the news that the Japanese army has captured Jiujiang in a sneak attack and is now rushing towards Ruichang and Jinguan Bridge." General Wang Yaowu paused and raised his voice to remind: "Everyone, a new battle has begun!
"
After General Wang Yaowu finished speaking, the army commanders at all levels in the room had serious faces. Except for the sound of rain falling outside, the silence could be heard as a pindrop.
They had long been mentally prepared for the Japanese army to attack so quickly. Because the news of the fall of Madang Fortress came a few days ago, they knew that this day would come sooner or later, but they did not expect it to be so soon.
General Wang Yaowu stood up from his seat, picked up his baton and pointed at the one-hundred-thousandth military map hanging on the wall.
"According to intelligence, the Japanese army mobilized nearly 300,000 troops to attack Wuhan in two directions. The enemy is coming fiercely. Those attacking us along the Yangtze River include countless elite soldiers and generals of the Japanese. I ask, are you afraid?
?!"
General Wang Yaowu's eyes swept across Yang Ling's erect bodies and asked loudly.
"Don't be afraid!"
The army commanders present here have all fought bloody battles with the Japanese on the battlefield, and many of them have also fought with the Japanese on the bayonet. They have an arrogance in their bones that refuses to admit defeat, and they answer with confidence.
"Master, the Dofeiyuan Division ran away on the Lanfeng battlefield. This time we will definitely make sure that the little devil never comes back!" the new commander of the 306th Regiment replied boldly.
"The little devil wants to eat us in one bite, so we have to see if the little devil has a good set of teeth!"
The 74th Army fought bloody battles all the way, and they were never afraid. It was a pity that Dofeiyuan ran away last time, but now the brigade commander and regimental commanders are holding back their energy.
Seeing the high fighting spirit of the officers, General Wang Yaowu also nodded with satisfaction. He continued: "Although the Japanese have mobilized nearly 300,000 army troops and a large number of aviation units to participate in the war, we are not weak either!"
His baton moved across the map: "We cover a vast area from the foothills of the Dabie Mountains to Poyang Lake and then along the Yangtze River. We have 14 group armies, eight corps and 47 corps. Nearly one million troops have been concealed in place. Behind us
There are millions of people supporting us, and this time the arrogant little devils will be beaten to death! Let them see the power of our National Revolutionary Army!"
General Wang Yaowu's voice was sonorous and powerful, making the officers in the room feel excited.
Although they learned from various channels that in order to defend Wuhan and stop the Japanese attack, the Military Commission deployed a large number of troops to hide in the mountains, but they did not know that the number of elites was so amazing.
The originally solemn atmosphere in the room was relieved. I heard that the Japanese army was approaching fiercely, and the officers were ready for a vicious and bloody battle. Now that they heard that there were so many friendly troops, their tense faces relaxed.
General Wang Yaowu immediately asked the Combat Staff General Committee to briefly explain the general strategy of the battle to the officers, so that they had a clear understanding of the situation.
Yang Ling's 74th Army was placed under the command of General Xue Yue's First Corps and was responsible for operations in the south of the Yangtze River. There were also nine other armies under the command of the First Corps, which could be described as strong troops.
In addition to the First Corps, 14 corps units commanded by General Zhang Fakui's Second Corps are also assigned to the south of the Yangtze River.
The enemies that Yang Ling and the others faced were the 11th Army Corps commanded by the Japanese Central China Front Army Okamura Neiji, as well as the Naval Air Force and the Army Air Force.
At the meeting, Yang Ling and the others clearly understood the main situation between the enemy and ourselves, so that they no longer looked at each other indifferently, but faced the new battle with confidence.
"Following Commander Xue's order, the 58th Division under our 74th Army went to the Huanglaomen area overnight to strengthen the thickness of the Jinguanqiao defense line, while our 51st Division was to mobilize immediately to build trench fortifications with De'an as the center.
, guard against the Nanxun Line and monitor Poyang Lake."
After General Wang Yaowu finished speaking, he asked the division chief of staff to read out the specific tasks of each regiment. The regiment leaders also listened carefully with their ears pricked up.
After the meeting, Yang Ling and regiment leader Zhang Handuo hurried back to the army along with the ammunition transport vehicle.
For this battle, the Military Commission also spent all its money, and boxes of bullets and artillery shells were distributed to various troops to ensure sufficient ammunition supply for the troops.
Although Yang Ling and others were the main force of the Central Army, the supply of ammunition was not sufficient in previous battles. In the absence of bullets, most of the time they had to rely on hand-to-hand combat to achieve partial victory.
But this time, every brother was assigned at least 200 rounds of ammunition, and the regiment was equipped with boxes of mortars and light and heavy machine guns. The brothers were so happy that they had never been so rich.