As soon as the 1st Brigade of the Japanese Tank entered Baoding City, it was targeted by the scouts sent by Chen Hanzhang. In accordance with Chen Hanzhang's request, the air force has significantly increased its ground support. As soon as the light was released the next day, four squadrons were dispatched southward, and all 96 Il-2 attack planes flew straight to the Baoding battlefield.

Just after the first brigade of the Japanese tank left the city, it was assembled in the north of Baoding. With the cooperation of the main force of the 221st Wing of the 35th Division, an infantry brigade of the 219th Wing, four squadrons of the 35th Artillery Wing of the 35th Division, two squadrons of the Engineer Wing, and an armored vehicle squadron, they were prepared to force a counterattack on the Cao River to Chen Hanzhang's headquarters on the north bank of the Cao River.

As soon as the Japanese tank group and infantry group left the city, they were targeted by the scouts who had been lurking in the north of Baoding City and the Anti-Japanese Alliance. Just when the Japanese army was assembled on the front line of the Taibao camp in the north of Baoding City, they were preparing for the opportunity to cross the river. Ninety-six Il-2 attack planes that took off from the Qingxiling Field Airfield in Yixian County in the western part of Mancheng converged over the county seat of Mancheng County and swooped down along the riverbed of the Cao River.

Although the Japanese army was ready to be attacked by the ground forces of the Anti-Japanese Union when it was assembled in this operation, it was not prepared for the arrival of these air killers. The Japanese tank clusters assembled on the north bank of the Cao River put on a posture of dense defense and ready for battle at all times, but their anti-aircraft firepower was quite weak.

When the anti-union aircraft group pounced, the Japanese army also regarded it as their own covering aircraft group, and they didn't take it seriously at all. Because just yesterday, Lieutenant General Yasu Sakai had clearly told Major General Ano Yasuri, commander of the 1st Tank Brigade, that the new fighter group of the Imperial Army Air Force had arrived in the vicinity of Jizhong, and that his 1st Tank Brigade would receive favorable support from the Imperial Flying Eagle in this operation.

Therefore, when the attack aircraft group of the Anti-Japanese Federation arrived on the south bank of the Cao River, hundreds of tanks of the 1st Brigade of the Japanese Tank were not disturbed by any artillery fire. As if they were being inspected, they were neatly lined up in a deep area less than 15 kilometers from the riverbank. Waiting for the infantry to open a breakthrough for them, and waiting for the sappers to clear mines and build bridges for them.

Just thinking about the quarrel with Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai the night before about the direction of the next strategic main attack, and then looking at the silent opposite bank of the Cao River in front of him, this Major General Ano Yasuri had a faint feeling of uneasiness in his heart. I always felt that the enemy position, which was now quiet and scary on the other side of the river, would be a black hole that would swallow up all his troops.

However, at this moment, Major General Ano Yasuri, who was sitting in a car behind the entire position, could not figure out a clue and could not figure out where the uneasiness in his heart came from. Is it that after arguing with Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai last night, he can only act according to his intentions, and he is not optimistic about Lieutenant General Sakai's plan, or something else.

On the night of the previous day, Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai, commander of the 17th Division garrison in Baoding, in addition to assuring him that he would receive the strictest air protection for the entire duration of the operation. He also severely reprimanded Major General Anri Anri, the 1st Tank Brigade of the 1st Tank Brigade, which had newly arrived to reinforce the 17th Division and was under his full command.

Reprimanded him for not having the idea of attacking Gaoyang along the Baoding-Gaoyang highway in the direction of the next main attack. On the line from Gaoyang to Hejian, the main forces of the two armored divisions of the Anti-Japanese Union are now assembled, as well as a large number of infantry and heavy artillery. His 1st Tank Brigade is the only tank unit of the Japanese army on the entire Pinghan Line.

This force should be used where it is critical, where it should be used where it is a knife. And he shouldn't go to fight the enemy army hard, and be wasted by him, Major General Ano Yasuri. The enemy's tanks were so good that even the best tanks of the Imperial Army were no match for them. His main force is still the 1st Brigade of the Old Type 1 and 97 Modified Tanks, and there will be opponents.

We should not waste our energy and strength to compete for credit with friendly forces that have already reached the south bank of the Hutuo River. Chariot units should be used for deep penetration, and should not be wasted on fighting with the infantry. Moreover, the enemy forces on the front line of Gaoyang are bound to be ready, and the attack on Gaoyang will definitely encounter a counter-assault by the enemy's armored forces.

His 1st Tank Brigade was supposed to use the enemy's main force and deploy at the confluence of the Cao River and the Tang River east of Baoding, up to the line between Gaoyang and the river. The enemy army north of Baoding had only one infantry division and a small number of tanks, and its strength and firepower were insufficient. Its infantry suffered considerable losses in the battlefield north of Baoding, especially the insufficient number of tanks and artillery.

A cavalry brigade operating south of Baoding and trying to block the Baoding-Shimen section of the Pinghan Line was defeated by the 1st Tank Brigade and two infantry wings. The total number of troops deployed on the front line of Baoding is quite limited, and it can even be said that the overall situation of Baoding is alone, and the enemy army north of Baoding is defeated first.

Two infantry wings of the 17th Division and three tank wings fought hard north of Baoding for three days. Of course, in addition to the more than 500 remnants of the defeated generals who escaped sporadically, the main force was completely wiped out. The more than 200 tanks of the three tank wings that participated in the battle were all wiped out.

However, the hard fighting of the 17th Division on the battlefield caused considerable casualties to the enemy, as evidenced by the large number of destroyed enemy tanks on both sides of the Cao River. A cavalry brigade operating between Baoding and Wangdu was defeated by the 1st Tank Brigade. The enemy's troops on the battlefield of Baoding were already quite insufficient.

The Baoding Battlefield is now a salient formed by the North China Front Army on the flank of the enemy army in central Hebei. As long as this salient is used well, it is possible to turn the tide of the war in the whole of North China, which is already quite difficult for the Japanese army.

As long as the 64th Division and the 62nd Division can be used, they have already reached the south bank of the Hutuo River and are about to launch an attack on the enemy forces on the front line of Hejian and Suning. At least it can contain the opportunity for the enemy's main force to move westward, and first defeat the enemy army that is already small in the battlefield north of Baoding. Make final preparations for the front's upcoming full-scale counteroffensive.

If the progress of the battle against the enemy army north of Baoding goes well, then all the chariots can be concentrated to cooperate with the infantry, bypass Baiyangdian from Baoding, avoid the enemy's blocking line on the Gaoyang line, and go straight to the Renqiu line. It can cooperate with the two divisions on the south bank of the Hutuo River to form a two-sided flank attack on the enemy troops on the Hejian and Gaoyang fronts, and completely get rid of the current passive situation on the battlefield in central Hebei.

If the 22nd Division can cooperate with the 1st Division of the 32nd Division of Cangzhou, it can defeat the enemy forces around Cangzhou, seize Dacheng and seize Renqiu to the west at the same time. Then it is even possible to encircle and completely annihilate the enemy's four infantry divisions and two armored divisions on the north bank of the Hutuo River.

Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai believed that the enemy's tanks were indeed superior to the Japanese, and that even the two tank brigades combined were no match in terms of the number of tanks. But as long as Renqiu is seized, its supply lines can be cut off. When the time comes, without the support of fuel and shells, no matter how good the enemy can fight, no matter how good the performance of the tank is, will it be a pile of scrap metal?

The two wings of the 1st Tank Brigade and the 35th Division had no idea what their plans were. But now, since it has been unified under the command of its own 17th Division in accordance with the orders of the front army, it is necessary to obey its own plan. Directly cross the Cao River to the north and defeat the enemy army in the north of Baoding first. As for their own operational ideas, it is better to put them aside for the time being.

The most important thing is that in the view of Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai, the Baoding battlefield is not just a salient formed by the Japanese army on the entire front of the enemy. Moreover, the Baoding front line is also the hub of communication between the enemy army in central Hebei and the so-called base areas of the North China Communist Army in the mountainous areas of western Hebei, and it is also a channel for communicating with each other, and it is also covering the flank of the enemy army on the entire front line between the rivers.

Completely defeating the enemy army north of Baoding can cut off the connection between the central Hebei battlefield and the mountainous areas of western Hebei, and completely isolate the enemy troops on the central Hebei battlefield. And it's far more cost-effective to start with their relatively weak flanks than to pay for a head-on fight.

Since a salient has now been formed on the Baoding front, it is necessary to make good use of the position of this salient on the enemy's front. Break their flanks and cut them off from the mountains of western Hebei. Cut off all lines of its supply and isolate it completely.

As for the Goyang and Kama fronts, there were enough newly arrived Imperial Army units. I don't need the 1st Brigade of the Chariot, and then I go there to grab the credit with the divisions of the 15th Army that are in the water towns south of the Yangtze River and whose bones are almost boiled. As long as you break the flank of the enemy army, it is the first thing to go behind it.

This lieutenant general Sakai Yasui can be said to be full of confidence in his plan, and his attitude is unusually tough. In the face of this old man's unusually tough attitude, Major General Ano Yasuri, commander of the First Tank Brigade of the Japanese North China Front, knew that his plans were a little inappropriate, but he could only obey orders.

When there was no way to mobilize the 1st Tank Brigade, the North China Front Command gave him an order that all actions of his 1st Tank Brigade would be under the command of Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai, commander of the 17th Division. At present, for the Japanese army, Xia Keshang has long been a thing of the past. Regardless of Lieutenant General Sakai's orders, he must carry them out if he wants them or not.

In fact, as for Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai's judgment, Major General Ano Yasuri does not think that everything is correct. At least in some ways, it's still true. But he really couldn't accept this Lieutenant General Sakai Yasu, and asked his 1st Tank Brigade to devote all tanks, artillery fighting vehicles, and motorized infantry wings to the counterattack north of Baoding, which was a bit too desperate.

And for Major General Ano Yasuri, he hates Lieutenant General Sakai's gambler mentality very much. Yes, Lieutenant General Sakai Yasushi is too confident, regardless of the actual situation on the battlefield, and does not even leave a reserve. In the eyes of Major General Ano Yasuri, it is a gambler's mentality.

At the same time, Major General Ano Yasuri believed that the commander of the enemy army, who could fight from the Pingjin line to Baoding hundreds of kilometers deep in a short period of time, was certainly not the kind of straw bale commander. At present, the enemy army has only retained a reinforced infantry division north of Baoding, and even when the 1st Tank Brigade has arrived south of Baoding, it has not mobilized any reinforcements.

This shows that the enemy army must have a countermeasure against its own tank brigade. Otherwise, no commander would be so careless about his flanks. If the enemy set up an ambush circle for himself on the north bank of the Cao River, then waiting for the results of his 1st Tank Brigade would definitely not be good for Lieutenant General Yasushi Sakai.

Tanks against infantry are indeed very powerful. But that was an encounter with enemy infantry, or against light infantry lacking anti-tank guns. If you encounter an enemy army with strong fortifications or favorable terrain to rely on, and equipped with a large number of anti-tank guns, the result may not be as overwhelming as he Sakai Yasushi imagined.

It's not impossible to get bitten by the enemy. Even if you break through the enemy's defense line, then your own tank 1st brigade will be greatly damaged. In that case, the follow-up operations of the entire Pinghan Line will lose the spearhead of the breakthrough. On the contrary, the Imperial Army itself was made to lose its ability to sustain combat on the Pinghan Line.