Taiyuan Japanese Military Headquarters, two days of painful suffering are finally over!
But the solemn atmosphere at the headquarters did not relax just because the battle was over!
Every time the staff officer sends in a battle damage report, the atmosphere in the war room becomes more solemn!
Especially the commander, whose face was red and gloomy and terrifying!
More than a thousand Imperial troops and nearly three thousand Imperial troops withdrew from the blockade. Even with the cover of aircraft, they still could not save it in the end!
Standing in front of the sand table with a sullen face, no one knows what he is thinking!
It took a long time before he spoke: "Chief of Staff, have all the losses been calculated?"
"Hi!"
The chief of staff lowered his head and did not dare to look at the army commander. It took him a long time to answer bravely!
"The biggest losses were in Laiyuan and Guangling counties. All the garrisons were destroyed!"
"It includes 2,100 people from the Imperial Army and 2,500 people from the Imperial Alliance Army!"
"Then came the blockade. A total of 29 small and medium-sized strongholds were captured by the garrison, resulting in the loss of more than 2,300 imperial troops!"
"As for the Imperial Alliance Army, because we had just formed 10,000 new troops before the garrison counterattack, their losses were huge!"
"There are more than 8,000 people in total, all of whom were killed or captured. Most of them are new recruits of the newly formed Imperial Alliance Army!"
"In addition, we have three large strongholds that have not been captured by the garrison, but like Laiyuan and Guangling, which have been lost, they are all in the area occupied by the garrison and are surrounded by heavy troops!"
"Baga...bang..."
The commander cursed loudly, and slammed his fist full of anger on the sand table in front of him!
Time seemed to have stopped suddenly. Everyone looked at the commander with dumbfounded expressions.
The already solemn atmosphere became even heavier at this time, making everyone almost breathless.
The chief of staff hesitated for a moment and comforted him: "Sir, although we have suffered heavy losses, as the attacking party, the losses of the garrison are also not small!"
"Especially last night, several retreating troops relied on favorable terrain and fought to the death with the garrison. The battle was very fierce!"
"Although the garrison has equipment advantages, in the face of terrain that is favorable to us, those heavy weapons have no room to use, so the garrison paid a huge price to capture them!"
"Our preliminary judgment is that the garrison lost at least 3,000 people in this battle!"
"The total strength of the garrison is more than 6,000 people. In one battle, more than 3,000 people were lost, which is equivalent to more than half of the casualties. It will definitely be very difficult to regain strength!"
"Once the independent mixed brigade is in place, we can take the opportunity to rush into their base and kill them!"
The commander's face did not change and he asked with a stern face!
"Chief of Staff, are you trying to trick me into thinking I don't understand military matters?"
"If the advantage in heavy firepower was so easily offset, the imperial army would not have been able to occupy most of China so smoothly under the cover of aircraft and artillery!"
"Every attack by the garrison is equipped with mountain artillery, heavy mortars, light mortars, and their own production of thunder cannons. They can advance, attack, retreat, and defend. They have enough ammunition!"
"Even if the imperial army occupies an absolute advantage in the terrain, it will be difficult to take advantage in the face of powerful firepower!"
"So you said that the garrison has suffered more than 3,000 casualties in the past two days. I am the first to not believe it!"
"I judge that their casualties would be as high as 2,000 people!"
"And the casualties I'm talking about also include the lightly and seriously injured. Many of them can return to combat after a period of recovery, so their direct losses are less."
"In addition, you said that it will take a long time for the garrison to regain its combat effectiveness. We can take the opportunity to kill them after the independent mixed brigade is in place. I don't agree with this view."
"We have been fighting with the Eighth Route Army for so long, and we have a thorough understanding of the Eighth Route Army. But you actually said this, which disappoints me so much!"
"It shows that you still don't understand our opponent!"
"The reason why the Eighth Route Army can get stronger and stronger on the battlefield is because of the support of the people and the support of the people. Those Imperial Army troops also played a big role!"
"The Imperial Association Army has combat effectiveness. Once it is captured and joins the Eighth Route Army, it will quickly develop combat effectiveness without even having to train!"
"In many battles, the Eighth Route Army had 10,000 people before the war, and suffered considerable losses during the battle. However, after the battle, the total strength did not decrease, but actually increased a lot!"
"The role of the Imperial Alliance Army here is irreplaceable!"
"We lost more than 10,000 Imperial Army soldiers in this battle. With the Imperial Army's combat effectiveness and fighting will, at least 80% of them were captured, which means at least 8,000 people!"
"With the mobilization capabilities of the Eighth Route Army, there is no problem at all in encouraging five thousand Imperial Army troops to join them!"
"At least two thousand people here are veterans who have been trained by the imperial army for more than half a year. They can directly supplement the troops and form combat effectiveness!"
"Having them join the army will not only ensure that the main force of the garrison is fully staffed, but there will even be extra prisoners to further expand the new army!"
"Also, the garrison regiment killed more than 10,000 of us in this battle, and all the equipment of these troops fell into their hands!"
"Coupled with the grain and other materials they seized, the garrison needs guns, men, and ammunition. It would be a blessing if the overall strength does not expand. If it is weakened, how is it possible!"
After a series of rhetorical questions, the chief of staff became speechless and embarrassed!
But he quickly recovered and continued to report after hesitating: "The intelligence department also suffered heavy losses!"
"In order to find out what happened in Laiyuan and Guangling the night before yesterday, all our intelligence personnel lurking in the garrison base were dispatched. In just one day and night, nearly one-third of the intelligence personnel were captured by the garrison!"
The army commander suddenly interrupted with a sullen face: "Bagh Yalu, I only want the result, don't tell me the process!"
"I don't care how many people they lost, I just want to know what happened in Laiyuan the night before yesterday?"
"What tactics did our opponents use to hit us hard?"
The chief of staff immediately replied: "After investigation, it was found that the Eighth Route Army that surrounded a dozen strongholds on the blockade the night before yesterday was not the main force!"
"They are all new recruits and newly formed cavalry units that have been strengthened by the garrison with a lot of heavy weapons!"
"The Eighth Route Army stationed outside Laiyuan and Guangling City did not leave, but hid!"
"After the troops stationed in the two counties attacked, they set up an ambush on the road they must pass and wiped out them all. Then they pretended to attack and broke up, pretended to open the city gates, and took advantage of the situation to occupy Laiyuan and Guangling!"
The commander suddenly realized and replied: "So that's it!"
But soon his brows knitted together again, and he frowned and said to himself!
"No, there's something wrong here!"
"According to intelligence, the garrison has only deployed one reinforced battalion outside Laiyuan and Guangling City, with a total strength of no more than a thousand people!"
"How could this small number of troops kill so many of our troops in a short period of time, and they were killed without even having a chance to send a telegram!"
There was an obvious heaviness on the chief of staff's face before he answered!
"Sir, speaking of the two ambush battles, I just want to say one thing: We once again underestimated the strength of the garrison!"
"Not only are they powerful in combat, but they also have very good engineering talents, and they have even developed electric detonation devices!"
"They planted a lot of explosives on the ambush battlefield in advance, connected wires and detonators, and then suddenly detonated the explosives when the imperial troops arrived on the battlefield!"
"In just a few seconds, the imperial army suffered a devastating blow!"
"Then the Eighth Route Army set up an ambush and came out again!"
"The troops were defeated before they could counterattack, let alone send a telegram!"