"Your Excellency, Commander, please take care of yourself... The air force that had just reinforced Ezhou had already sent a telegram. The city wall of Ezhou has been broken through by the Eighth Route Army, and at this moment, the defenders of Ezhou City are engaged in fierce street battles with the Eighth Route Army entering the city... In addition, the aviation unit, when it was dropping bombs at low altitudes on the Eighth Route Army, was suddenly ambushed by a large number of anti-aircraft guns concealed by the Eighth Route Army in advance. A total of 7 light bombers, in the course of the engagement, were shot down by the anti-aircraft fire of the Eighth Route Army... According to aviation reconnaissance, at present, the Eighth Route Army has occupied two-thirds of the entire Ezhou area. The remnants of the Imperial Army soldiers, relying on the headquarters, are making the last resistance. If nothing else, in two hours at most, the remaining Imperial Army troops will be annihilated under the fierce attack of the Eighth Route Army..."The chief of staff replied cautiously while looking at the uncertain face of General Tada Jun..."The cunning Eighth Route Army, the cunning reading division....Now that Ezhou has been occupied by the Eighth Route Army, the passage of the main force of the Eighth Route Army to Pingjin has also been opened, and the entire Pingjin area has been completely opened to the troops of the Eighth Route Army... Chief of Staff, what do you think our army should do in this terrible situation? "Tada, who has only been in office for less than a few days. Not only did I not receive any good news, but I received one bad news after another... No matter how calm Tada's heart is, at this moment, he doesn't have the confidence and sharpness he had when he first came... Instead, sadness and helplessness... There was no way for him to once again set his eyes on the chief of staff in front of him.

"Report to Your Excellency the Commander. Judging from the current situation, the Reading Division has an absolute advantage in the entire Pingjin region compared with the troops of our Imperial Army. Therefore, at present, the urgency of our army's delay is not to consider how to eliminate the reading division of the Eighth Route Army. Instead, they considered how to keep the entire city of Beiping from being occupied by the Eighth Route Army. After all, the distance between Beiping and Tianjin, if you march in a hurry, you can reach it in a day. What's more, at this moment, in the entire city of Beiping, there is only one infantry wing left plus other directly subordinate troops, almost 5,000 imperial soldiers. If the Reading Force Division takes the opportunity to launch a general attack on Beiping, we will definitely not be their opponents..."Although his own words were very demoralizing to the imperial army. However, in the face of the facts and the life and death of the North China garrison army, the chief of staff had to tell the truth..."Nani, attack Beiping, chief of staff, you mean that the main force of the Reading Division will attack Beiping..." However, after rethinking the analysis of the chief of staff just now, everyone's beams immediately turned into frightened looks. Because at this moment, they have already made it clear that the words of the chief of staff just now have a very feasible surname.

"Hi, Your Excellency, Commander... With the fall of Ezhou, the main force of the Reading Division will become the county seat of Ezhou, and it will drive straight into the Pingjin area. At that time, tens of thousands of troops of the Eighth Route Army would gather in the entire Pingjin area. And the troops of our Imperial Army, because of the huge losses last night, at this moment, are less than 10,000 people... In front of the Eighth Route Army, it no longer has any advantage. Therefore, he had the audacity to suggest that His Excellency the Commander immediately order the city of Beiping to impose martial law on the whole city. At the same time, all the expatriates in the city should be armed at once and prepare to defend the city to prevent a possible attack by the troops of the Eighth Route Army..."Looking at everyone's changing faces, the chief of staff replied affirmatively.

"What, armed diaspora ... Wait a minute, Chief of Staff, let me think about it. If we do not have to do so as a last resort, we must not use the armed expatriates without authorization..."After listening to the chief of staff's answer, the eyebrows of the commander, General Tada, twitched clearly. Then, I slowly fell into contemplation... However, as soon as his words fell, a communications staff officer who hurriedly rushed into the war room woke him up from his contemplation..."Yaga, what happened to you, what kind of system did you panic in..."Looking at the communications staff officer in front of him with a frightened look, the commander General Tada Jun raised his head and shouted with a dissatisfied face..."Hi, please forgive me, Your Excellency the commander, here is the urgent military information I just received, the urgent military information... The Air Force reconnaissance aircraft reported that in the area around Beiping, a large number of armed forces of the Eighth Route Army were found... These Eighth Route Army armies were rapidly encircling Beiping City in companies. In a day at most, the entire city of Beiping will be surrounded by the heavy troops of the Eighth Route Army..."Facing the commander with an angry face, the communications staff officer couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat that broke out on his forehead, and hurriedly reported..."Nani, what are you talking about, say it again...."After listening to the words of the communications staff officer in front of him, the commander, General Tadajun, immediately raised his head as if he had been injected with a stimulant. A pair of eyes, staring at the communications staff officer in front of him, asked in disbelief... He did not expect that in less than a few minutes, the language of the chief of staff would be realized.

"Hi, Your Excellency, Commander. According to the report of the Air Force reconnaissance aircraft, in the area around Beiping, a large number of armed forces of the Eighth Route Army were found... At most, before dark, the entire Beiping area will be surrounded by the heavy troops of the Eighth Route Army... In addition, because the Eighth Route Army marched in a scattered manner as a company, the air force could not launch an effective attack on it..."Under the gaze of Commander Tada Jun, the communications staff officer did not dare to slack off, and quickly replied..."Eight Grid Yalu, the cunning Eighth Route Army... The chief of staff immediately mobilized all the armed expatriates in Beiping City to assemble in the barracks in the shortest possible time. Distribute weapons and ammunition, and then be responsible for the defense of the city walls and patrols within the city... In addition, send a brigade of troops to strengthen the garrison of the airfield ... In addition, martial law should be imposed on the whole city immediately to prevent the intelligence personnel of the Eighth Route Army in the city from taking the opportunity to launch large-scale sabotage and harassment..."At this moment, General Tada Jun no longer has any doubts. Facing the chief of staff in front of him, he ordered affirmatively.

"Hey, Your Excellency Commander, I'll go and give an order right away..."The chief of staff quickly took the order and left..."Yours, immediately inform the imperial soldiers in the barracks of all the strongholds around Beiping, immediately abandon their strongholds, and assemble in Beiping City. Tell the commanders of the various units that they must all assemble in the city of Beiping before dark, otherwise, military law will be carried out..."With the departure of the chief of staff. Tada Jun looked at the communications staff officer in front of him, and then ordered... With a series of orders, it reached every corner of Beiping from the headquarters... The little devil expatriates living in Beiping City immediately changed into military uniforms under the call of the headquarters, and quickly assembled to the barracks in small teams... In less than half an hour, almost a company of armed expatriates was assembled and climbed the city walls... Of course, the build-up of a large number of armed expatriates, it is impossible to hide it, hidden in the city of Beiping, intelligence officers of various countries... Just as armed expatriates who had just received their weapons began to shuttle back and forth through the streets, conducting patrols. These excellent intelligence officers immediately discovered the strange performance of the army in Beiping City at this moment....

In this way, in such a mysterious atmosphere, an intelligence officer began to get the information he wanted through his own channels... When I learned that the Reading Division of the Eighth Route Army under the leadership of [***] had actually sent troops to occupy the entire Tianjin area, and sent a large number of troops, and was about to completely encircle Beiping, where he was located. The intelligence officers of various countries can hardly believe their eyes ... However, they still sent a telegram about the latest information to their higher authorities at the first time... Suddenly, the eyes of the whole world, because of this action, at the same time, all eyes were on the Beiping area, which has always symbolized the capital of China, but has been occupied by the army for several years... Similarly, the base camp of the Yue Army, at the first time, got the news that made people almost want to commit suicide... Facing the eyes of the countries of the world, facing the heads of European and American countries waiting to see their own digestion... The entire diplomacy of the book is under tremendous pressure. Even Emperor Hirohito himself, at this moment, is under tremendous pressure from world public opinion ... In the face of an increasingly bad situation, the only way to save the face of the empire is to keep Beiping and firmly control the city of Beiping in the hands of the Imperial Army... Therefore, in order to make the commander of the North China Garrison Army, General Tada Jun, more clearly determine the goal of this campaign, Emperor Hirohito personally sent a telegram to General Tada Jun, who had just taken office....

"Report to Your Excellency Commander, the domestic base camp is in an emergency. A telegram from His Majesty the Emperor himself..."Just when the commander, Senior General Tada, was sitting in his own office at the headquarters, he was referring to the city defense map of the entire city of Beiping and dispatching troops... A communications staff officer pushed open the door of the war room and said with an eager expression, "Nani, His Majesty the Emperor, send me a telegram quickly..." The commander, Senior General Tada, quickly got up from his seat. He quickly put down the map in his hand, snatched the telegram from the hand of the communications staff officer, and began to read it seriously... In less than half a minute, Tadajun's face slowly showed a look of excitement....

"Your Excellency Commander, I don't know what new orders His Majesty the Emperor has for our troops stationed in North China..."Seeing the commander General Tada Jun with an excited face holding the telegram, the Chief of Staff asked curiously..."Chief of Staff, I really didn't expect that our current arrangements for Beiping City would be the same as His Majesty the Emperor's request... His Majesty the Emperor ordered us, no matter what, to concentrate our forces and hold the city of Beiping... His Majesty the Emperor said that even if he lost the whole of North China, he would not be able to lose the city of Beiping, which symbolizes the capital of China...."The commander, Senior General Tada, said excitedly..."Hi, Your Excellency, Commander, now I have the support of His Majesty the Emperor. I believe that we will be able to achieve the final victory in the battle and hold the city of Beiping, please rest assured, Your Excellency the Commander..."The chief of staff also replied with a happy face..."Yo Xi, Chief of Staff, are all the troops in place now? In addition, have the reconnaissance troops that went out of the city to reconnoitre, as well as the reconnaissance planes in the air, already figured out the specific number of the surrounding Eighth Route Army and their weapons and equipment? With Emperor Hirohito's support, Admiral Tada's face once again regained a confident look. Returning to the map of the city defense, he asked the chief of staff in front of him..."Report to Your Excellency Commander, because of the large number of armed expatriates joined, so far, all the city fortifications have been stationed with a large number of Imperial soldiers. In addition, in our hands, we have an elite imperial army of infantry brigades and fifteen hundred armed expatriates, which can be reinforced at any time...", the chief of staff replied affirmatively.

"Yo Xi, Chief of Staff, you're doing a very good job. I believe that the city defense troops, under your command, will be able to repel the attack of the Eighth Route Army. By the way, Chief of Staff, did the reconnaissance unit that was sent out send back the latest information, how many troops of the Eighth Route Army were around us... In the Chinese Art of War, it is said that only by knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent can one win a hundred battles..."General Tada Jun nodded with satisfaction and continued to ask..."Hi, Your Excellency Commander. After several hours of reconnaissance by reconnaissance planes, there were about 5,000 troops of the Eighth Route Army around Beiping, and these units of the Eighth Route Army carried about one artillery regiment of heavy equipment. At their current marching pace, they will be able to make contact with the periphery of our army before six o'clock in the evening...", said the chief of staff... As for why the total strength of the Guards Brigade suddenly increased by a third ... That is, on the way to the march, the guard brigade constantly ordered the local guerrillas and militia units of the Eighth Route Army that Yatu encountered to join the ranks of the march. So, the whole army, in the process of marching, was like a snowball half, and the size became larger and larger... As for the dozens of extra artillery pieces in the troops, it was the brigade commander Bruce Lee, in order to create the illusion that the troops were preparing to attack the city, and to create the illusion that our army was huge, he specially looked for people, and used a tree trunk with the thickness of the mouth of the bowl and two wheels to make a fake cannon, which was specially used to blind the eyes of the little devil's plane... Of course, the commander of the little devil, General Tada, could not have known about this situation. As soon as the chief of staff finished speaking, General Tada Jun breathed a sigh of relief very obviously, and then continued: "Yo Xi, five thousand people. If nothing else, these 5,000 troops of the Eighth Route Army are the Eighth Route Army that saw all my reinforcements last night... And this unit of the Eighth Route Army is the vanguard of the Reading Force to guide me in the Pingjin area in advance..."

"Hi, Your Excellency Commander. I think so too... I don't know if Your Excellency the Commander has any thoughts on this forward unit of the Eighth Route Army...."The chief of staff said.

"Yo Xi, it seems that the Chief of Staff and I have come together, and I do have a little idea about this forward unit of the Reading Division... I don't know if the chief of staff has been in China for so long, and has ever heard of a saying: "The best defense is to attack..."Looking at the chief of staff in front of him, the corner of the mouth of the commander General Tada Jun showed a hint of a smile and said, "Hi, Your Excellency the commander, I have heard this sentence. Although the combat effectiveness of this Eighth Route Army is very strong, they have gone through the battle last night, plus today's rapid march. As long as we concentrate our forces, we will definitely be able to take the Eighth Route Army by surprise, completely defeat the forward troops of the Eighth Route Army, and occupy a certain initiative for our army in the next defense..."The chief of staff replied affirmatively..."Yo Xi, chief of staff, you said very well, I completely agree with your idea. Now I order, the General Staff immediately follows your ideas and draws up a detailed operational plan for a local counteroffensive ... The troops were asked to enter the predetermined offensive positions before the forward units of the Eighth Route Army arrived. After the arrival of the forward troops of the Eighth Route Army, they immediately launched a counteroffensive and caught the Eighth Route Army by surprise..."General Tadajun's face immediately showed a smile that he had not seen for a long time. Facing the chief of staff in front of him, he ordered with a confident face.

"Hey, Your Excellency Commander, I'll arrange it right away, and I will put a complete battle plan in front of you within an hour..." Just when the army in Beiping City, surrounding the guard brigade led by Bruce Lee, was preparing to fight a local counteroffensive to boost the low morale of the imperial army at this moment. Bruce Lee, the commander of the guard brigade, is rapidly marching to Beiping, which is still about 10 kilometers away, under the protection of an infantry battalion..."The latest information sent to us by the brigade commander and the underground party comrades in Beiping City shows us. Now the entire city of Beiping has been put under martial law, and thousands of expatriates in the city have also been armed... It seems that the army already knows our plan to besiege Beiping..."Just as Bruce Lee was marching rapidly, the chief of staff chased after him and reported..."The communications platoon immediately dispatched all the correspondents, and each unit was two kilometers away from the county seat, immediately assembled, and built fortifications on the spot to prevent a possible counterattack by the army... Now that the little devil already knows our every move, we have to guard against it..."Bruce Lee frowned for a moment and ordered to the chief of staff... In this way, a trap carefully prepared by the army for the guard brigade was successfully solved because of Bruce Lee's cautious quilt... The 5,000 army, under Bruce Lee's order, began to build fortifications two kilometers away from the outer positions of the army, quietly waiting for the arrival of darkness....

(To be continued)