It is located in the Xingshan area of Tsuruchi County, which is being built by the Japanese army. On a hill with dense vegetation on the periphery of the main position of the Xingshan fortress group, which is more than 20 kilometers long on the line from Qingling to the Xilu River, under the strict protection of a guard squad equipped with submachine guns, Liu Changshun and Ma Chunsheng, who had not taken any rest and moved forward to grasp the first-hand enemy situation, were carefully observing the enemy situation.

Heli is an important coal mining area in North Manchuria, not only producing a large amount of high-quality coal that is extremely important for military production, but also an important part of the so-called Northeast Manchurian defense line of the Japanese army. For Yang Zhen, there are a large number of various laborers who he regards as supplementary soldiers.

Yang Zhen set Liu Changshun's first goal in the northward march was the Xingshan Fortress under construction. It's just that Yang Zhen knocked out this Japanese fortress project, not just because of those laborers. More importantly, the geographical location of this fortress is extremely important, like a roadblock, just to curb Yang Zhen's northward passage. It is a great threat to Yang Zhen's future plans.

If this fortress is not destroyed, even if you open up a straight line with the Soviet Union, it will be difficult to ensure that this transportation channel is unblocked. And Yang Zhen also had the idea of moving the base camp to Xingshan. The base of Qunce Mountain has been exposed, and the location is also a little southerly, and it is too close to Jiamusi.

According to Yang Zhen's strategic plan, the front line of Qunce Mountain should only be used as a strategic support point. If Liu Changshun can take the Xingshan Fortress smoothly, the straight-line distance is not far, and the two places connected by the mountains can respond to each other and support each other.

Although the first battle of Qunce Mountain achieved a great victory, it also exposed the problem of the concentration of troops in one place and the lack of strategic support points, especially the lack of strategic depth, and the danger was undoubtedly exposed.

For Yang Zhen, the strategic depth he wants is not a simple room for maneuver. It is more important to lay the foundation for future development. In this case, the small Xing'an Mountains in the west, which are high and densely forested, and are sparsely populated, will naturally not be a suitable choice.

If he can take the Xingshan Fortress smoothly, it will not only have one more strategic support point for Yang Zhen, but also take Luobei north of Xingshan as his strategic depth. Moreover, there is also an additional reliance on the front line of the Qunce Mountain, and the scope of the troops' activities is much larger.

It was precisely because of such a strategic intention that Yang Zhen chose the first target of the northward advance to Xingshan Fortress, which was almost completed by the Japanese army. According to the history known to Yang Zhen, although this Xingshan fortress was close to completion at this time, the Japanese army had not yet begun to garrison. Its so-called Fourteenth Border Garrison will not be formed until next year.

If you don't take advantage of the lack of troops at this time, there is only a small number of Japanese garrisons to guard laborers and a small number of puppet Manchu military police, and the rare opportunity to take this large Japanese garrison fortress. After the Japanese army is officially stationed, it will be difficult to take it because it lacks effective means of attacking fortifications.

And once the Japanese army is officially stationed, it will also be a great threat to open up the communication line to the north. The Japanese troops stationed here could move west or north at any time to cut off their intended lifeline. On the other hand, if he takes the fortress of Xingshan, this strong fortress group will provide himself with a southern defensive barrier.

After receiving his first order to go north, Liu Changshun did not dare to take it lightly. Although the reconnaissance battalion that had infiltrated first had already provided some necessary information. But before launching the attack, Liu Changshun and Ma Chunsheng thought about it again and again, and decided to go to the front to observe it again.

It's just that as soon as the two of them arrived at the periphery of Xingshan Fortress, they were stunned by this large-scale fortress group. The mere exposure of the mountainous ground and the semi-underground military installations meanders for several kilometers. And how many buildings are underground can only be carefully surveyed after the battle is over.

Liu Changshun and Ma Chunsheng observed very carefully, and even the number of guards on the construction site in the telescope, whether they brought guns or not, and how many machine guns they had, repeatedly observed several times.

At their side, Dong Ping also introduced to them the situation that had been detected: "We once captured a local man who was delivering food to the mountain, and we got some information from his limited confession. It's not much, but there are some things that can be inferred. ”

According to him, the local residents who were forcibly conscripted by the Japanese army and delivered grain to the construction site estimated that there were more than 20,000 laborers in the entire Xingshan area every day, most of whom were recruited by fraud or prisoners of war from the Guannai, and a small number were the so-called anti-Manchu anti-Japanese elements captured locally. He had seen men in tattered military uniforms come to fetch food. ”

But he didn't know exactly how much, what was going on inside, and he didn't even know what it was about. He only knew that there were Japanese troops stationed in the mountains in this area, and he didn't know anything about why these Japanese troops were stationed here. ”

"The Japanese army was extremely vigilant about this place. Locals can only deliver food to the blockade line in the south. After crossing the blockade line, the Japanese army itself organized labor transportation. If a localis enters without permission, he will be killed. This number, he only roughly estimated from the amount of grain. ”

Moreover, the Japanese army was extremely cunning, and the rice for the Japanese soldiers to eat was specially transported from Jiamusi by truck, and was never collected locally. As a result, no one knows how many people the Japanese garrison was. All they could deliver was sorghum rice and acorn flour for the laborers. ”

The most valuable part of his confession is that the food was delivered from different locations, which means that the laborers were not held in a centralized manner. Instead, depending on the location of the construction, all the laborers were held in several areas. ”

"Except for a few special workers who were called stubborn by the Japanese army, most of them were locked up in caves for fear that they would be detained near the Xingshan Police Station on Xingshan Street."

"I've been circling around here for a week with a company of scouts, but I still haven't figured out how big this place is. Small-scale infiltration reconnaissance operations were organized, but they were too big. If you only touch the linden tree spring, you can only return. I just found out that all the Japanese overseers lived in Lime Spring. There are also no mines on the periphery of the area, except for three barbed wires. ”

"However, one thing is for sure, since the 1st Division of the 37th Wing of the Fourth Division, which was originally stationed in Xingshan Street, was concentrated in Jiamusi, there were not many Japanese guards stationed here. It was mainly the Japanese military police stationed in Xingshan Street and some puppet Manchurian police. ”

"Among them, the internal guards were Japanese personnel from the Japanese army and the puppet Manchurian police. The so-called Manchurians and Koreans in the puppet Manchu police could only serve as perimeter guards and blockades. The interior is also absolutely not allowed. Once discovered, they will be punished as gangsters, and they will also be killed. ”

"However, where the Japanese army in Dongshan dumped the corpses of the laborers, we rescued a laborer who was thrown alive by the Japanese army to the mass grave because he was too sick to work. He was a prisoner of war, so he gave us some information to use. However, due to the scope of his activities, he can only provide a place for his work shed and forced labor. ”

That is, from the number of detainees in his mouth, we deduced that the number of Japanese guards in the entire project was not too large. The construction site where he worked was the largest in the entire construction site, with only more than 50 Japanese guards and more than 100 recruited Japanese civilians as overseers for the construction site of more than 3,000 people. ”

"The Japanese guards and supervisors were very strict with these laborers. Workers at different construction sites are not allowed to talk to each other even if they meet. If they were found to be talking, no matter who spoke, both of them would be killed with bayonets or beaten to death with sticks. ”

"Judging from this situation and the size of this fortress, the number of Japanese guards here should not be too large, and it will also be very scattered. After all, it's not just their construction site. Many of the workers he belongs to are workers who have been transferred from other places. ”

However, there is one thing that must be noted, he personally said that the proportion of light and heavy machine guns among these Japanese guards is very high. More than fifty guards alone were armed with two crooked-handled machine guns. ”

After listening to Dong Ping's introduction, Liu Changshun put down the binoculars in his hand and said to Ma Chunsheng beside him: "Old Ma, no matter how many Japanese guards there are, since the commander has already issued an order that this fortress must be taken, we will carry it out." And you can also see the terrain here, once the Japanese army is stationed in heavy troops, even if we open up the communication to the north, we will be blocked by the Japanese army at any time. ”

Regarding Liu Changshun's judgment, Ma Chunsheng frowned slightly and said: "We have to fight, but we have to discuss how to fight." The most important thing for us now is to find out exactly where the Japanese guards are stationed. How to fight if you can't find the enemy's position? With such a huge project, an area of dozens of square kilometers, we can't look for it everywhere. ”

After thinking for a while, Ma Chunsheng picked up a branch and drew a simple fortress map on the ground: "In this way, I just took a general look at the distribution of the projects here. At present, its main projects are concentrated on the line from Position Mountain to Dajiazi Mountain, which is the section in front of us. ”

"In my observations, I found that most of the laborers are concentrated in this section. In other places, only a small number of laborers are active. Perhaps elsewhere, the Japanese had already moved the project underground. But at least on the surface, it seems that the Japanese army is now putting its main energy here. ”

"We're going to fight here, and we're going to lay ambushes in other directions on both sides. As soon as the Japanese reinforcements elsewhere are reinforced, we can wipe them all out in one fell swoop. In this way, the battle can be ended in the shortest possible time, and it can also prevent the Japanese army from poisoning the laborers in order to keep the secret because of the defeat. ”

After that, Ma Chunsheng threw the wooden stick in his hand and said, "Since we can't find them, then let them come to us." Lead the snake out of the hole, reunite and annihilate it. ”

Regarding Ma Chunsheng's battle plan to lure the snake out of the hole, Liu Changshun thought about it for a while and then nodded in agreement. It's just that he added a point: "Since you have decided to do it, let's do it here at the same time as Xingshan Street." The Japanese army is now concentrating most of its forces on the Xingshan fortress project, and there will not be too many troops on Xingshan Street except for the puppet Manchurian police. ”

Regarding Liu Changshun's addition, Ma Chunsheng nodded: "I think it's okay." However, there are many coal mines in Xingshan Street, where in addition to the ordinary puppet Manchu military police, there are also a large number of armed mine protection police. Although these mine guards are generally equipped, most of them are old-fashioned rifles, and there are no heavy weapons such as machine guns. But combat effectiveness must not be underestimated. ”

"I have had some contact with these mine protection police, most of these ** are the former Northeast Army veterans who were recruited by the Japanese army after the occupation of Xingshan and the beards in the mountains and forests, and their combat effectiveness is very strong. Not to mention the black hands, the marksmanship is also very accurate. It turned out that the anti-United Nations forces operating in this area suffered no less at their hands. ”

"And in order to win them over, the Japanese give them very high treatment. One month's salary is worth twice that of ordinary puppet Manchurian policemen, and other salaries are much higher than those of ordinary puppet Manchurian policemen. Even, each person is given five catties of rice every month. This treatment is not available anywhere else. ”

"Because of the high salary, these people are desperate to work for the Japanese. When attacking Xingshan Street, you must be wary of these people. ”

Regarding Ma Chunsheng's reminder, Liu Changshun pondered for a moment and said: "In this way, we will divide the three of us when we go back later." Political Commissar Wang Xiaoming took a battalion with four mountain guns to attack Xingshan Street. He is a man with a good brain, and he has many years of experience in guerrilla warfare. Xingshan Street handed it over to him, it's totally okay. ”

"And you and I will take the main force to fight this Xingshan fortress. We move in both directions at the same time. We concentrated our forces and tried to take it in one fell swoop. ”

Regarding Liu Changshun's troop arrangement, Ma Chunsheng cannot deny it. Since he has already taken it out, how to arrange the troops is the business of his military commander. As the temporarily transferred chief of staff, it is better not to interfere. What's more, he understands the troops of the Second Regiment, and he is far inferior to this guy in front of him. The matter of troop distribution is still up to him.

Wang Xiaoming is also a simple person, and he did not express any different opinions on the division of labor that Liu Changshun had set, even if he expressed his support. Only a slight modification of the battle plan was proposed. He believed that Dajiazi Mountain should be abandoned, and instead adopted the tactics adopted by Yang Zhen when he seized the secret warehouse of the Japanese army in Qunce Mountain, and concentrated the main force to attack the position mountain first with the cooperation of Dong Ping's reconnaissance company.

It can be seen from the simple structural diagram brought back by Dong Ping that the position mountain is the core position of the entire Xingshan fortress. As long as the position mountain is laid, the Japanese army in the entire Xingshan area will inevitably be desperately reinforced, so that the whole game of chess will be alive. If two fronts attack and attack Dajiazi Mountain and Position Mountain at the same time, the forces will be scattered, which is not conducive to concentrating forces and setting up ambushes.

Regarding Wang Xiaoming's suggestions for improvement, Ma Chunsheng thought for a long time, opened the distribution map of the Japanese fortifications that he had redrawn by himself, and said: "I think it can be revised according to the opinions of the political commissar and put the main troops on the position mountain. However, we must cut off the connection between the main peak of the Position Mountain and the Dajia Mountain in the shortest possible time. ”

"You see this is the Position Mountain, and after careful observation, apart from the road below the mountain, there is only a low ridge between them on the surface. But it's never that simple. Position Hill was the main defense point of the Japanese army, and it was also the main support point of the entire Xingshan fortress. The Japanese army would not fail to notice the wartime reinforcements to the position hills. I think the Japanese army must have built an underground passage or a large number of communication trenches between the two mountains under these two mountains, so that they could be quickly reinforced in wartime. ”

"So I want to use Dong Ping's reconnaissance battalion to quietly touch it in the middle of the night, try not to shoot, and solve the problem with bayonets. After Dong Ping completes the task, we must find out the configuration of the Japanese fortifications in the mountain at this position as quickly as possible. ”

"We don't have to worry about the other directions, we just need to find out the passage between the position mountain and the other hills. In addition, the linden tree spring must also be taken down. It was in the blockade area of the Japanese army, and Dong Ping had infiltrated it to reconnoitre. Although there were not many Japanese defenders stationed there, most of the Japanese overseers lived there. I think there must be a structural diagram of the entire Heungsan Fortress. If we take it and get the structural diagram, our next battle will be much smoother. ”

Speaking of this, Ma Chunsheng looked at the watch on his wrist, raised his head and looked at Liu Changshun and Wang Xiaoming and said, "Except for Dong Ping's reconnaissance company that infiltrated in advance to respond, I think we will attack at two o'clock in the middle of the night?" ”

Regarding Ma Chunsheng's arrangement, after Liu Changshun and Wang Xiaoming glanced at each other, they both nodded slowly and agreed.