Jinan. Headquarters of the North China Front of the Japanese Army.

Okamura Ningji's mood at this time was neither good nor bad, and the battle reports he read every day in his headquarters were also dull, and the Chinese army was as he expected, and its forward troops were very strong, and the progress was very smooth. Although the Imperial Army did not fight with the Chinese army in accordance with the strategic plan formulated by the headquarters, many troops did not perfectly implement the retreat strategy due to the hatred of the Chinese people. However, even the imperial army put up some resistance, but it was still unable to resist the attack of the Chinese army, and several county towns near Dezhou, which originally belonged to Hebei, were soon occupied by the Chinese army.

Reports

"Come in"

"Report to Your Excellency Commander, the 300th Division of Han Yunhua's headquarters suddenly appeared in Majiagou in the northwest of Gucheng County this morning, and in a very short period of time all the imperial strongholds on the periphery of Gucheng County have been cleared, and now it has surrounded the defenders of Gucheng County, please instruct Your Excellency Commander," said Major General Umeko Yamaguchi, head of the intelligence agency and commander of the Military Police Command of the North China Front.

"Nani? What's the matter with that idiot Morita, didn't I instruct his brigade to retreat to Shandong after a little resistance? How could he be surrounded by the Chinese troops in such a short period of time, Yaga "Okamura Ninji was furious, he couldn't imagine that the defenders of Gucheng County were surrounded by Chinese troops at this critical juncture, which seriously affected his strategic plan.

Umeko Yamaguchi opened his folder and looked at it and said: "Your Excellency, Morita Shaosa did not retreat according to your instructions, but built a large number of permanent fortifications in the old city and county, and asked the headquarters for a large amount of ammunition two days ago, he was going to fight a defensive battle with the people in the old city area, and then retreat, and his telegram had just been sent to the division headquarters of the 21st Division. ”

"Yaga, this is simply a stupid pig-style command, Morita, this bastard is not worthy of being the commander of the empire at all, he has no strategic vision and no sense of the overall situation, bastard" Okamura Ninji said angrily.

Yamaguchi Umeko thought for a while and said: "Your Excellency, then what should we do now, the Shina people have surrounded Morita Brigade in the old city, for the glory of the Imperial Army, we must send troops to rescue Morita Division, otherwise it will be a complete infantry brigade will be erased from the battle sequence of the Empire." ”

"Yo Xi, Yamaguchi, what you said makes sense to work, the people of China are no longer the people of China three years ago, they are also learning in the war, half a division chasing more than 30 infantry divisions of China has passed, and we can no longer achieve a decisive victory in a short period of time in the duel with the people of China. This battle with the Chinese people was originally not intended to have a strategic decisive battle with the Chinese people, on the one hand, because the imperial army was not well prepared, and it was not enough to have a strategic decisive battle with the Chinese army. In addition, the people of China will not have a decisive battle with the imperial army, because they have eaten so much territory of the imperial army, and what they need most now is time to digest the results of the battle. The Imperial Army surrounded an infantry regiment in China, forcing the Chinese to go to war with the Imperial Army, but the scale was manageable. The initial plan of the front army was to use the Shina infantry regiment as bait, and then kill and injure a large number of Shina people's living forces in the following battles, so as to boost the current low morale of the imperial army, and also lay the foundation for future wars. But due to the destruction of that idiot Morita, now we have to change our plan, and God is not as good as God," Okamura Ninji said with a wry smile.

Umeko Yamaguchi said, "Your Excellency, are you worried about the safety of Morita's department?" According to the information obtained by our intelligence agency, the Chinese people are now stationed in the front line with more than 300,000 troops, and at the same time there are at least 600,000 Chinese troops in Hebei. ”、

"Yamaguchi, your land is too small Han Yunhua's work, this battle was originally a battle between me and him to use each other's needs, he needs to use the threat of the imperial army to deter the Jiang government's persecution of the Communist Party of China, so as to achieve the goal of occupying Hebei for a long time. And I need a past record that can be explained to stabilize the morale of the army and improve morale. As for the battle between the two sides, no matter how it is fought, our army will be the only winner, and even if it is defeated, it will be the winner in name. ”,

"Nani, why is that?" Umeko Yamaguchi asked in confusion.

Okamura Ninji said mysteriously: "Because whether it is Han Yunhua or myself, we need the victory of the front." ”

After all, Umeko Yamaguchi is also an excellent graduate of the Japanese Army University, and her military literacy is still good, and after thinking about it for a while, she knows what Okamura Ninji is referring to.

"The Lesser Snee (so it is) people are indeed very cunning, is there no other way? Does the front army have to cooperate with Han Yunhua? ”。 Umeko Yamaguchi asked helplessly.

"No, no, no, we have never cooperated with the Chinese army, it's just that we are using each other, and in the end it is not certain who suffers, once the two sides are warring on the battlefield, they will not show the slightest mercy, and if they can annihilate each other, they will definitely not be defeated, but before we used the infantry regiment in China as a threat, to occupy a certain initiative. But now the people of China have also surrounded an infantry brigade of the imperial army, and both sides have their own considerations. ”

Yamaguchi Meizi said regretfully: "Hey, it seems that we still underestimated the strength of the Shina troops, and the Shina infantry regiment surrounded by the imperial army this time was a lucky escape. ”

Okamura Ninji sneered: "Yamaguchi, what you said is not right, now the whole earth is at war, and the war has burned the entire planet red, from the British Isles in the west, to the African continent in the south, to Northern Europe in the north, and to the Pacific coast in the east. The desert areas of North Africa, the great plains of Western Europe, and the islands of Southeast Asia are full of warring troops, and the death or wounding of 1,000 Japanese soldiers in a small county town is not a big deal, but there are just a few more names on the wall of the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. As long as the battle requires the Morita Brigade to be loyal to His Majesty the Emperor, then the Morita Brigade must all be crushed to thank the Emperor for his kindness. Yamaguchi, if Morita's brigade is all broken, then is there any chance that that infantry regiment in Shina will survive? ”。

Okamura Ninji's cold words knocked Yamaguchi Umeko down, as an officer with the rank of major general, Yamaguchi Umeko was already qualified to access some confidential things in the army. Coupled with the peculiarity of Yamaguchi Umeko's work, she knew a long time ago that in the eyes of some high-ranking officers of the empire, ordinary soldiers were consumables, as long as necessary, let alone a brigade, even if it was a complete infantry division. But neither Shouichi Terauchi nor Binyama Gen ever said anything like that before, so Umeko Yamaguchi always thought that such rumors were just rumors.

But today Umeko Yamaguchi finally knew that the rumors were true, and even a general like Okamura Ninji could say such things, which shows that even a famous general like Okamura Ninji does not take the lives of ordinary soldiers seriously. Although Umeko Yamaguchi also knew that Okamura Ninji had a point, as a soldier of the Imperial Army, he should always be ready to sacrifice himself for His Majesty the Emperor for the Great Japanese Empire. However, when she was personally involved in such a thing, Umeko Yamaguchi still couldn't accept it.

Looking at Yamaguchi Meizi looking at himself blankly, Okamura Ninji smiled and said: "Yamaguchi, take your time, you will get used to it after a lot of experience, isn't there an ancient saying in Shina called "Ci is not in charge of the army, righteousness is not in charge of wealth", which means that a qualified commander must have the determination of a strong man to break his wrist, isn't it an infantry brigade, if my life can be exchanged for the realization of the common prosperity of Greater East Asia, in exchange for the victory of the holy war, I will not hesitate to sacrifice my life." Whether it is you, Yamaguchi, or I, the commander of the front army, we must be prepared to dedicate ourselves, and maybe one day the people of Shina will besiege us in this city as they besieged His Excellency Tada, then you and I will have to be mentally prepared for this. ”

Okamura Ninji said very slowly, he knew that Yamaguchi Umeko was actually a girl who hadn't grown up, and if it weren't for the existence of a great god, she would not have been able to climb to the high position of major general commander in such a short period of time.

"Hay Pass has been taught by His Excellency Commander, so how should we call His Excellency Tsuchihashi back?"

Okamura Ningji thought for a while and said: "Order the 21st Division to immediately stop attacking the Shina troops in the encirclement, for that Shina infantry regiment, you only need to send troops to surround it, don't rush to destroy it first." In addition, don't send troops to support Morita's brigade, because the people of China won't do anything with his infantry brigade, and scaring and scaring the imperial army will be the end. The 47th and 48th Divisions were ordered to immediately enter the Linqing area, and the main force of the 21st Division was withdrawn to Dezhou to prevent that person from sending a small force to attack Dezhou City. At the same time, all the troops immediately stationed their own defensive lines, as long as the troops dared to set foot on the land of Shandong, then they must not give an inch. Our task is not only to hold Lubei and Shandong, but also to do our best to annihilate any Chinese troops that dare to offend the face of the imperial army, including Han Yunhua's headquarters in Saibei. ”,

"Hail"

As Okamura Ninji said, although Han Yunhua has also received a telegram from Yang Chengwu's subordinates, he can't order the annihilation of the surrounded Morita Brigade, because the Second Regiment is still in the hands of others, and there is no way. Moreover, the purpose of this attack on Lubei is no different from what Okamura Ningji said, in fact, it is to stay in the Beijing-Tianjin area. So Han Yunhua didn't care about how many Japanese troops he destroyed, his strategic goal was not here.

However, as a star unit, Han Yunhua's every move is highly valued by the people, and it may be nothing if other troops lose the battle, but if the troops of the Inner Mongolia Military Region lose the battle, let alone a rare fiasco, even a small and medium-sized defeat will be infinitely expanded, and its impact and consequences will be very serious. Therefore, in this battle, Han Yunhua must play a technical role, which can not lead the Japanese puppet army to make a big move, and cannot disappoint the Chinese people.

When Han Yunhua's troops attacked Lubei, they were most concerned not about the Party Central Committee, but about Chairman Chiang and his staff who were far away in Chongqing.

Chongqing. Chiang Mansion.

"Yunong, is it true that Han Yunhua's department of the Communist Party is fighting with the little devil again?" Chiang Kai-shek asked in a thick Jiangsu-Zhejiang accent.

Dai Li, who was standing on the side, said in a deep voice: "President, according to the telegram sent by our intelligence officers, an infantry regiment of Han Yunhua's department has been surrounded by little devils in Luquantun for more than a month, and Han Yunhua's department has gathered more than 400,000 troops to attack Lubei this time in order to get out of this infantry regiment, and the little devils are now also arrogant, according to the news from our internal line, the little devils have transferred five infantry divisions to defend Lubei at once, and there are two other infantry divisions as reserves, ready to support the war in Lubei at any time, So there is no doubt about it. ”

"An army of 400,000? Niang Xipi, isn't there only a total of two infantry divisions in Han Yunhua's department, who gave him the right to expand the army, and the communist bandits are the communist bandits, I will say that sooner or later they will be the henchmen of the party-state. Chiang Kai-shek was really taken aback by Han Yunhua's army of more than 400,000.

Now the number of Kuomintang troops has also increased a lot, from 2 million at the beginning of the war to nearly 4 million, and the rapid expansion of the strength of the Central Army of Chiang Chiang is even more unexpected by everyone. The Central Army annexed a large number of local troops through mergers and reorganization, whether it was the previously powerful Jin Sui Army, or the Sichuan Army, the Yunnan Army, and the Hunan Army, which had complex factions, they were no longer the opponents of Chiang Kai-shek's Central Army.

Originally, Chiang Kai-shek was often proud of this, but when he heard that a small military region of the Communist Party had dispatched 400,000 troops to participate in the war at once, this made him embarrassed as the chairman of the committee.

After all, Dai Li was born in intelligence, so his mind has always been very calm, and as soon as Chiang Kai-shek's words were spoken, Dai Li said: "President, the Communist Party is not that army is developing as rapidly as Han Yunhua's department, the weapons and equipment of the vast majority of the troops of the Eighth Route Army are still very rubbish, and the ammunition of many troops cannot support a slightly larger battle, only Han Yunhua's department has only now developed to a point where it is enough for anyone to step sideways." ”

"Well, Yunong, I have long said that it is enough to have a political party in China, and if you want to fight outside, you must first settle inside, and we will fight to the death with Little Japan, and only the Communist Party will benefit. Think about the fact that in 36 years, the Communist Party only had more than 40,000 people in three divisions, and its combat effectiveness could not even defeat the two big horse bandits in the northwest, and several regiments were completely annihilated in the northwest. Look at the present, Han Yunhua's department alone accounts for three and a half provinces, and one army is 400,000, hey, Zhang Xueliang is short-sighted, misunderstood me and misunderstood the country" Chiang Kai-shek was annoyed when he talked about the Xi'an incident four years ago, although four years have passed, and whether it is Zhang Xueliang or Yang Hucheng, who launched the war, is either exiled or imprisoned, but Chiang Kai-shek is still angry about this matter.

"President, the Communist Party is now expanding its strength rapidly, but it is not completely beneficial to the party-state, the Communist Party is sharp, especially Han Yunhua's arrogance and aggressiveness, obviously this is contrary to the strategic thinking of Taoguang Yang, look at the current Japanese army continues to increase troops in North China, it can be seen that the Communist Party at this time is already a big problem for the Japanese, even if we don't deal with them, little Japan will not let the Communist Party develop. It can be seen that the Japanese army has sent heavy troops to besiege Saibei many times in a row, whether it is Terauchi Shouichi or Tada Junzai or the current Okamura Ningji, they are eager to peel off Han Yunhua and the entire Communist Party. In addition, the internal development of the Communist Party is also extremely uneven, and Han Yunhua's unit is the dominant one, and the number of troops under its control accounts for more than half of all the armed forces of the Communist Party, and in fact a situation has been formed in which the tail cannot be defeated, and if the Communist Party does not handle the internal contradictions well, then the crisis of split will always exist. Therefore, I don't think we need to do anything now, we just need to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight. Dai Li's thinking is very clear, because he has a lot of confidential information, so the agent has a much longer view than others. ,

Chiang Kai-shek thought for a while and asked: "Yunong, now the relationship between the Communist Party and the Japanese and the party-state is very complicated, and the little Japan will not die, and the idea of the Communist Party falling to me has long existed, so the party-state has now reached the most critical moment, and we dispatched more than 800,000 troops in the big war last month, but the benefits obtained are extremely limited. Although the whole of Shanxi has been recovered, it is Yan Xishan's territory, and Yan Laoxi has made the biggest profit. And we have only recovered a very small piece of territory in southern Hebei, so the Beijing-Tianjin region, as well as the whole of Hebei and even Rehe, we must belong to the Nationalist Government. ”

Chiang Kai-shek was already a little hysterical when he said this, and Dai Li's hideous face frightened, he had followed Chiang Kai-shek for twenty years, but there were really not many characters who could make Lao Chiang so jealous and hateful.

"What does the president mean?"

"Let's wait and see, Okamura Ninji is a terrible Japanese commander, and Okamura Ninji knows more about how to deal with the Chinese army and the Chinese now than Terauchi Shouichi and Tada Jun, so we must have a pathfinder. If Han Yunhua's troops won this battle, then Wei Lihuang's 150,000 troops would immediately enter Hebei and take over the defense of the Beijing-Tianjin region. But if Han Yunhua's troops are defeated, then we don't need to lie in that troubled water, you must know that even the elite of Han Yunhua's troops is not the opponent's troops, and it is definitely not something that those miscellaneous soldiers in Wei Lihuang's hands can resist. Chiang Kai-shek thought for a while and then said.

Dai Li actually did not agree with Chiang Kai-shek's intention to recover North China, or did not approve of recovering North China now, you must know that the Communist Eighth Route Army will fight with the little devils at all costs in order to protect the so-called anti-Japanese base areas. If there were no bases, there would be no way to defend the territory against the enemy.

Moreover, if the party-state recovers all the Hebei region, then the territory of Han Yunhua's department will be separated from the territory of all the Japanese puppet army in the Guannai, and with the party-state as a buffer zone, then the territory of Han Yunhua's department will be more stable and rapid development, which is not much different from not restricting the development of Han Yunhua's department.

However, Dai Lian did not express this concern in the end, because he was very familiar with Chiang Kai-shek's character and temper, and Chiang Kai-shek was angry at this time, and if anyone persuaded him not to quarrel with the Communist Party, then the end would be very miserable......

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