At the same time, in Nanjing.

Although at this time, the Battle of Xuzhou had not really ended, but the invading Japanese army was already preparing in advance for the next stage of the Battle of Wuhan.

For the Japanese army, there was no doubt about the launch of the Battle of Wuhan!

Because of the Battle of Xuzhou, the Japanese army failed to achieve its pre-war intentions.

Before the war, the Japanese army base camp had great expectations for the Battle of Xuzhou, believing that even if it could not force the Nationalist government to surrender, it could at least eliminate the main force of the Nationalist army in the Xuzhou area.

However, judging from the actual combat results now, neither of these two goals has been achieved.

First of all, the main force of the national army in the Xuzhou area has withdrawn from Yixian and is rapidly advancing in the direction of Dabie Mountain, while the Japanese troops who have been reinforcing the past from the north and south have not yet arrived, unless a miracle occurs, the tactical concept of encircling the main force of the national army in the Xuzhou area near Xuzhou will definitely come to naught.

Second, forcing the Nationalist Government has become a big joke.

To this day, the Nationalist Government shows no sign of surrender!

In view of this, launching the Battle of Wuhan has become an inevitable choice!

After the 77 Lugou Bridge Incident, the reason why the Japanese army base camp was desperate to escalate the Sino-Japanese war was to force the Nationalist Government to surrender.

Therefore, it is an inevitable choice to launch the Battle of Wuhan!

Since we want to launch the Battle of Wuhan, the first thing to do is to determine the direction of the main attack! Is it along the Pinghan Railway to the south? Or is it tracing the Yangtze River westward?

The Japanese base camp delegated this decision to the Central China Front, which had just changed its line.

At this time, the Central China Front Army had undergone great changes in both composition and personnel.

First of all, the candidate for the commander, the original commander Matsui Ishine has died of illness, and he was replaced by an old devil named Shunroku Hata, this old devil not only has a higher prestige in the army than Matsui Ishine, but also has a far greater ability and vision than Matsui Ishine, and can be said to be a very powerful devil general.

Second, there have also been changes in the composition of the Central China Front.

The previous Central China Front Army was under the jurisdiction of the Shanghai Dispatch Army and the Tenth Army, but now, the number of the Shanghai Dispatch Army and the Tenth Army has been revoked, and it has been newly organized into the Eleventh Army, which is specially used to attack Wuhan, with Okamura Ninji as the commander of the Eleventh Army, and in addition, the Second Army of the North China Front Army has been transferred to the Central China Front.

The commander of the Second Army is no longer Nishio Shouzo, but has been replaced by another royal son, Higashikuri Tsukihiko!

Compared with his elder brother Hatohiko Asakanomiya, Higashikuri is not only younger, but also more powerful, at least he is far more familiar with Western military affairs than his elder brother.

At this time, Shunroku Hatata, who had just arrived, summoned the commander of the Second Army, Higashikurehiko, the commander of the Eleventh Army, Okamura Ninji, and their respective chiefs of staff to his headquarters.

The former commander Matsui Ishone, who had died of illness, liked to convene all the staff officers of the headquarters to open a meeting of the bureaucracy, but Shunroku Hata, who had just arrived in office, did not like too many people to gossip about the meeting, and he liked the cabinet meeting even more.

Therefore, Shunroku Hahata only summoned two commanders and three chiefs of staff.

"Gentlemen." Toshiroku Hata's cold gaze swept over the faces of Okamura Ninji and the others who were present, and said in a deep voice, "The Battle of Xuzhou did not achieve its intentions, so the initiation of the Battle of Wuhan is inevitable, but there are two routes to attack Wuhan, and the base camp lets us choose by ourselves, I want to hear your opinions." ”

After Shunroku Hata finished speaking, there was a moment of silence in the conference room.

Not long after working together, Okamura Ninji didn't want to express his opinion hastily, in case he disagreed with Shunroku Hata and offended his boss, then he would have a hard time in the future.

Higashikuru didn't speak out immediately, he didn't care about offending Shunroku Hatata, but he was thinking about another thing.

Seeing that Okamura Ninji and Higashikure were silent, Shunroku Hatatake frowned and turned his gaze to Shozo Riverside.

Kawabe Shozo, who had just arrived as chief of staff of the front army, saw Toshiroku Hata's eyes sweeping over, and stood up.

Kawabe Shozo said: "Your Excellency, I think it is better to attack along the Yangtze River, because attacking along the Yangtze River can not only get naval support, but also make logistics and supplies more convenient. ”

The chief of staff of the Second Army, Machijiri Liangji, immediately retorted: "The problem is that, according to the information provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Shina Army has set up three river defense fortresses along the Yangtze River: Madang, Tianjiazhen, and Gedian. ”

After a slight pause, he continued: "Moreover, the terrain on both sides of the Yangtze River is complex, and there are very few flat lands that are convenient for marching, but there are many rugged and difficult mountains, so I think I should go south along the Pinghan Railway!" And along the railway line to the south, logistics supplies can also be guaranteed. ”

"I'm afraid not." Kawabe Shozo said, "I used to serve in the North China Front, so I know some news that Machijiri-kun doesn't know, in fact, due to the large-scale infiltration of the Communist Eighth Route Army, the security in the whole of North China has been very bad, and the logistics troops of the Imperial Army have been attacked, which happens almost every day. ”

Machijiri said, "A group of dirt roads, can you still cut off the supply lines of the imperial army?" ”

Kawabe Shozo said: "Machijiri-kun has never been in North China, so he lacks understanding of the Communist Eighth Route Army, in fact, the combat effectiveness of the Eighth Route Army is very strong, and what is even more troublesome is that the Eighth Route Army's willingness to take the initiative to attack is very strong, and it is attacking the Imperial Army all the time, so if you go south along the Pinghan Railway, whether it is supplied from the Longhai Railway or from the Pinghan Line, you will be disturbed by the endless attack of the Eighth Route Army, which is very troublesome!" ”

Shunroku Hata frowned and said, "The security situation in North China is already so bad? ”

"Hello!" Kawabe paused three times and said, "It's really bad. ”

"Yaga." Shunroku Hata said angrily, "What is the North China Front doing?" ”

At this time, Higashikure suddenly said: "Your Excellency, General, in fact, the route of the march or something is not a problem at all, and this matter is easy to solve." ”

"Oh?" Shunroku Hata asked, "What is your high-level opinion?" ”

Dong Jiu Er said with a twist: "Since the Pinghan Railway and the Yangtze River have their own advantages and disadvantages, then we should simply divide the troops into two routes, one along the Yangtze River, and the other along the Pinghan Railway. ”

Shunroku Hata suddenly moved.

Okamura Ninji immediately said, "I completely agree with His Highness's opinion. ”

(End of chapter)