The most critical thing in front of us is the thousands of people in Lashio, the loss of Lashio is not terrible, the terrible thing is that the materials hidden in the cave of Tiger Wolf Mountain were found by them, which is a month's logistics supply for six divisions of the two armies of the Northern Front of the Imperial Army, and the consequences are unimaginable once lost. Therefore, no matter what the cost, the airborne brigade in Lashio must be annihilated to ensure the safety of supplies and logistics channels.

Although the Iguchi Wing and the Abe Wing lost their troops, they must have brought great casualties to the Airborne Brigade, which itself was only five or six thousand people, and now it is remarkable that half of them can be left, and of course, they still have more than 10,000 Burmese rebels.

It can be said that the passive situation in front of the imperial army is completely caused by these rebel forces, even if Lashio loses for a while, if they do not mutiny, more than 10,000 people plus the remnants of the two wings, rush up to deal with the airborne brigade that is also a lost soldier, no matter how it is, it can be reversed, but who knows that this kind of thing happened, the reason can only be handed over to the special high school to investigate, and the key at hand is how to solve the problem.

Tada Jun immediately decided that the remaining wing of the 8th Division in Wan Town, as well as the cavalry wing, artillery wing, and engineer wing directly under the division headquarters, all went to Lashio.

The remnants of the wellhead wing north of the original Lashio immediately went to Tiger Wolf Mountain to ensure the safety of supplies.

The remnants of the Abe Wing, south of the former Lashio, gathered all their forces and built a defensive line on the perimeter to prevent the airborne brigade from breaking through to the south.

The cavalry wing of the 22nd Division immediately set out from Ruigu and advanced towards the Lashio attack, and a large group of troops was drawn to follow it.

At the same time, he immediately requested support from the Southern Army Command and requested that a unit be sent to supplement the Abe Wing, so as to prevent the Airborne Brigade from breaking through and entering the rear of the Imperial Army, which would become a permanent aftermath of the logistical supply line.

The order was given, and the cavalry prepared to set off, but at this moment, good news came from the telegraph room, and the radio station, which had been unable to be contacted, was finally restored to normal.

This is undoubtedly good news, all urgent orders can be issued, otherwise it is not known when the cavalry will arrive. There was a brief cheer from the headquarters, which seemed to them to be a good sign that the time had come for the Imperial Army to counterattack.

But Tada Jun obviously didn't think so, with a slightly pale face and a frown.

On the west bank of the Inovady River, bridgehead, temporary headquarters of the expeditionary force.

Jiang Haoran clasped his hands in front of his chest, stood at the observation post, and looked at the Irrawaddy River in front of him with a calm face.

And just above the roaring Inovady River, more than a dozen thick steel cable flying frames have been extended to the east bank, and countless prefabricated steel bars in the middle have fixed the steel cables together, and the prototype of the bridge has been shocked.

Countless cables on both sides straightened the steel cables, and the bridge body of several hundred meters did not have much arc, and extended almost straight to the east bank.

On the west bank, the sappers have begun to lay planks on the steel cables, and have paved dozens of meters of bridge deck, and from a distance, there is no obvious shaking of the bridgehead.

Chief of Staff Huang Jie walked into the command headquarters with a happy face, and began to shout as soon as he entered the door: "General seat, this Mao Gong is really a god, pull up such a big steel cable bridge overnight, and you can't see too much arc, I just went up and walked for a while, the whole bridge deck does not move at all, it is amazing, at this speed, I think the large army can drive across the river in the afternoon." ”

Jiang Haoran didn't look back, and looked up at the sky, where a Mustang fighter was passing over the Inovady River.

Today's weather is good, with clear skies, which is a rare good weather in a month during the rainy season.

"Yes, the progress is very smooth, I don't know if the devil will cooperate with us?" Jiang Haoran replied casually.

"What do you mean?" Huang Jie stepped forward, looked at Jiang Haoran's face, and then looked at the sky outside, as if he saw some signs, and said, "Are you worried that the Japanese army will come to seize air supremacy with us?" ”

"It is certain that we will seize air supremacy, and preventing our expeditionary force from crossing the river is the only chance for the Japanese army to win."

"But judging from yesterday's air battle, Ye Zhaofeng and the Fourteenth Air can completely block the enemy's planes on the periphery?"

"Yes, if it were just the enemy's army aviation flying group, maybe they could continue to do it today, but I am afraid that the Japanese naval carrier-based aircraft will swarm today and overwhelm us with absolute superiority in numbers. From the Battle of Wuhan to yesterday's air battle, both our 40th Army Flying Group and Chennault's 14th Air Force have suffered heavy losses, and the attrition of pilots and fighters is a huge number, and it is difficult to guarantee that they will be able to complete this arduous mission. ”

Huang Jie's face also became solemn, sighed lightly, and said: "Yes, I read Ye Zhaofeng's report yesterday, counting all their fighters, there are less than two hundred, the Fourteenth Air Force is better, but it is only more than two hundred, compared to the Second Flying Division and the Fifth Flying Division of the Japanese Southern Army, it is slightly inferior, if you add the Japanese Navy's carrier-based aircraft, it is really dangerous?" ”

The two stood side by side, silent for a while, and Huang Jie said again: "Didn't you say that the Pacific Fleet of the United States can contain the combined fleet of the Japanese army?" ”

Jiang Haoran said: "There must be no problem for a while, didn't the Japanese navy not move yesterday?" But after a long time, the Japanese army will definitely react, and the Pacific Fleet of the United States is just trying to contain them. ”

"Then hurry up and send a telegram to Stilwell, so that they don't make a show, and press up to fight the Japanese Combined Fleet?" Huang Jie was anxious.

Jiang Haoran smiled bitterly: "I have already sent the telegram, but the effect will not be very good, Stilwell can't call the shots in this matter, and besides, fighting a large-scale naval battle is not as simple as the army, and all aspects involved are too wide, and it is impossible to prepare for a month, and the United States is obviously not ready, so it is a little difficult for them to force them to attack, it depends on whether Roosevelt, a dead lame, is willing to sacrifice himself to support the Burma battlefield." ”

"Then what to do, if we really let the Japanese planes fly over us, it will be a mortal threat to the troops crossing the river, such a long bridge, there is nowhere to hide, a dive strafing may cause casualties are very amazing, what is even more terrible is the Japanese bombs, in case the bridge is blown up"

Huang Jie clutched his chest, a little unable to speak, looking at the more than a dozen steel cables on the water, his eyes were full of pain, and rows of soldiers seemed to appear in front of him being strafed by the enemy's machine guns, and one after another aerial bombs set off monstrous waves in the river, and the entire bridge appeared and disappeared in the waves.