The loss of the fortress of Xingshan. The speed with which the Japanese army reacted was almost everyone's surprise. Even Yang Zhen, who was already prepared in his heart, almost didn't expect it. When he received the report that the vanguard of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, which had rapidly reinforced all the way north from Jiamusi, had already made contact with Wang Xiaoming's unit at Guanmenzuizi Mountain, and had started a fierce battle with a wing of the 104th Division of the Japanese Army that arrived later, Yang Zhen's heart almost immediately hung in the air.

After glancing at Guo Bingxun, who was also shocked, Yang Zhen immediately opened the military map. When Wang Guangyu's current marching speed was compared with the distance of the stone temple where the Xingshan Fortress was located on the map, he couldn't help but gasp in his heart. According to the speed of Wang Guangyu's march, and the distance between him and the stone temple now, he will not be able to arrive at least midnight today.

Wang Xiaoming said that it was the strength of a battalion, but after being rescued, the laborers who almost had no strength to run had to be left behind to take care of them, but there were only two companies deployed on the front line of Guanmenzuizi Mountain. Even if those improvised independent companies can withstand Wang Guangyu's arrival, Yang Zhen really has no bottom in his heart.

Yang Zhen threw away the red and blue pencil in his hand, rubbed his bloodshot eyes that had not slept all night, and said to Guo Bingxun beside him: "Inform Wang Guangyu to speed up the march and be sure to arrive at the front line of the stone temple before dusk today." Liu Changshun was ordered to immediately stop his northward advance and return to the division to reinforce the Xingshan fortress. ”

Guo Bingxun shook his head and said, "Wang Guangyu, they are now on the march, and they can't set up a radio station at all. According to the regulations, it was impossible for them to set up a radio station before 5 p.m. And according to the time of their departure, even if they send cavalry messengers to chase after them, I am afraid they will not be able to catch up. In other words, now we can't get in touch with Wang Guangyu at all. ”

What Guo Bingxun said, Yang Zhen, as the supreme military chief, is naturally very clear. It's just that because of a moment of anxiety, I forgot about it. Wang Guangyu, who was on the march, could not be contacted, and Liu Changshun and Ma Chunsheng, who were also advancing to Hebei, could not be contacted. Yang Zhen suddenly realized that at least until five o'clock this afternoon, Wang Xiaoming could only be in a situation of fighting alone.

For the rapid response of the Japanese army, Yang Zhen also scratched his head a little. He couldn't figure it out that Xingshan Fortress and Xingshan Street were taken down at almost the same time. Judging from the telegrams of Liu Changshun and Wang Xiaoming, almost all the Japanese puppet troops in the two places were annihilated or captured, and almost no one could escape out.

The Japanese army was well-trained, and its reaction speed was always much faster than that of the Chinese army, which was procrastinating. Judging from the speed and progress of the Japanese army's march, these Japanese troops were dispatched in the early morning. In other words, it didn't take long for the Japanese army to know about the Xingshan fortress being taken down last night.

There were no soldiers to send at hand, and Yang Zhen, who was a little worried about Wang Xiaoming's situation, knocked his fingers on the table from time to time. Although his face seemed calm, judging from the chaotic sound of finger tapping, Guo Bingxun could still hear the anxiety in his heart.

As for the reason why Yang Zhen was anxious, Guo Bingxun was very clear in his heart. But Guo Bingxun, who also knew the situation that there were really no troops to send at hand, could only pray in his heart that Wang Guangyu could speed up the march and reach the front line of Shimiaozi before the main force of the Japanese army came up.

The unit consisted of three infantry regiments and one supplementary regiment. The first regiment was on its way to the stone temple, and the main force of the second regiment was on its way north to carry out the task of opening up the distance. However, the third regiment suffered heavy losses due to the first battle of Qunce Mountain, and it was still in the process of being reorganized, and it was far from regaining its combat effectiveness.

Most of the strength of the supplementary regiment has been filled into three infantry regiments as supplementary troops, and in fact, the current supplementary regiment, except for a few recruits who have not yet been fully trained, has almost become an empty shelf. In other words, the entire army, except for the guard company around Yang Zhen, is no longer able to send a single soldier.

Unless the guard unit of the arsenal was drawn, but both knew that this was impossible. The arsenal is now the top priority of the whole army. Even if communication with distant places cannot be opened, the troops can survive temporarily. But if the arsenal was lost, the troops would have lost almost a supply of ammunition except for the capture. The guard units of the arsenal can only be strengthened, and it is absolutely impossible to reduce. This is the consensus that Yang Zhen and the commander-in-chief have already reached.

Not to mention that there are no soldiers to send, even if there are soldiers to send, both of them know it. Even if the troops are dispatched now, no matter how fast they march, it is impossible to rush to the front of Wang Guangyu and rush to the front line of Shimiaozi. Now both Yang Zhen and Guo Bingxun know that at least for now, they can only pin their hopes on Wang Guangyu being able to rush to the front line of the stone temple in advance.

But even if Wang Guangyu can arrive at the front line of the stone temple on time, can the two of them rest assured? One of Wang Guangyu's main battalions and Liu Changshun's second regiment formed a northward detachment, which was advancing towards the Luobei front. Can Wang Guangyu, who only has two battalions on hand, cooperate with Wang Xiaoming to repel the Japanese attack?

Yang Zhen could conclude that the troops of the Third Brigade of the Japanese Cavalry that appeared on the front line of Guanmenzuizi Mountain at this time could only be the vanguard. Their follow-up troops, which should still be on their way at this time. It's just that they will send those troops to reinforce them, is it still from Jiamusi's Fourth Division?

Yang Zhen, who couldn't figure out why the Japanese army learned the news of the Xingshan Fortress so quickly, didn't know that the reason why the Japanese army learned about the Xingshan Fortress so quickly was because of his battle at Qunce Mountain.

After the 4th Division failed to strengthen the 11th Division, and instead lost the 44th Wing, which had strengthened an infantry brigade attached to the 11th Division, in order to exterminate this fierce anti-Japanese element as much as possible, so as to give an account to the Tokyo base camp.

Kenkichi Ueda, who could no longer hold his breath, ignored the opposition of Ryosuke Isoya, chief of staff of the Kwantung Army, and within half a month that Yang Zhen left for the second regiment for training, he transported the 104th Division directly under the Kwantung Army to the Jiamusi line as quickly as possible.

If it weren't for the large-scale clash between the 23rd Division and the Soviet Army on the Nomenhan Line at this time, of course, the scale of the battle between the two sides now is far from the scale of the battle, and it can only be called a conflict. Ueda Kenkichi, who almost felt that the sword of the Tokyo base camp was almost about to slash into his head, would not give Yang Zhen half a month's rest.

Although the distance between the first line of Qunce Mountain and the Xingshan Fortress is not close, it is really not far. The 4th Division, which was closest to the fortress of Xingshan, was badly damaged and was designated by the General Staff as the first batch of reinforcements in the event of the expansion of the conflict in Normenhan. The 104th Division is still assembling and transporting to Jiamusi, and the northeast Manchurian region is empty.

In order to ensure the safety of the Xingshan Fortress, which is known as the No. 1 Tianzi Project of the Kwantung Army and the largest fortress built by the Kwantung Army on the Sino-Soviet border. After the retreat of the 4th Division to Jiamusi, Ueda Kenkichi first ordered the Xingshan Fortress to report the situation three times a day.

The prescribed reporting time was set by Kenkichi Ueda himself. I don't know that he has the wrong string in his head, and he has given up the most vulnerable times such as early morning and midnight. The times were selected as 8 a.m., 9 p.m. and 2:30 a.m. respectively. Perhaps, in Ueda's view, these three times are the easiest times for opponents to launch night attacks.

At 2:30 a.m., after receiving the loss of radio contact at the Xingshan Fortress, the staff officer on duty who had been specially explained did not dare to delay and immediately woke up Ryosuke Isoya, the chief of staff of the Kwantung Army, who was asleep. And Ryosuke Isoya, who received the report, also felt that something was wrong, and it was estimated that he would not be rude at night and wake up Kenkichi Ueda.

Receiving reports of the loss of contact with the construction site of the Xingshan Fortress, the blow has been a little numb by the successive unfortunate news these days. Ueda Kenkichi, who almost refused to listen to a bad report, was thrilled this time, and his first feeling was that something was wrong there.

As the No. 1 Tianzi Project of the Kwantung Army, Kenkichi Ueda, as the commander of the Kwantung Army, naturally knew the importance of the Xingshan Fortress. Once the Kozan Fortress was lost, Ueda Kenkichi knew that even if the emperor saw that he had worked hard for many years, he would give himself a way out. But the Tokyo base camp will definitely not spare itself.

In a fit of rage, despite being woken up overnight and rushing back to the secretary and adjutant of the Kwantung Army Headquarters, he grabbed the phone overnight and directly called Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada, commander of the Fourth Division of Jiamusi.

Although most of the 104th Division had arrived in Jiamusi at this time, its division commander, Lieutenant General Kizaburo Hamamoto, was seriously injured due to the plane crash and had to return to Xinjing to recuperate.

Under the circumstance that the commander of the 104th Division was unable to take up his post for a long time, Ueda Kenkichi ordered the 108th Wing and the 170th Wing of the 107th Brigade of the 104th Division, which had already arrived in Jiamusi, and the 137th Wing of the 132nd Brigade to be in charge of Major General Fukutaro Nishiyama, commander of the 107th Brigade, and temporarily under the command of Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada, commander of the 4th Division.

Since the 104th Division has arrived in Jiamusi, and the troops are now temporarily under the command of the 4th Division, if something happens, it is natural to find Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada.

Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada, who was woken up by the ringing of the phone at midnight, was naturally quite dissatisfied. But in the face of his boss's boss, even if he is not satisfied, he has to endure it. It's just that after hearing Kenkichi Ueda's call, Shigeru Sawada's deep sleepiness was swept away in a very short period of time.

For this large-scale fortress project to be built in his own jurisdiction, Sawada Shigeru is naturally very clear. When he heard the news that the Xingshan Fortress had lost contact, after the battle against Qunce Mountain, the distribution of troops in the area under his division's jurisdiction was naturally very clear, and Sawada Shigeru's first thought was the same as Ueda Kenkichi. I'm afraid something happened to the Xingshan Fortress.

After perceiving this for the first time, Sawada Shigeru didn't care about what time it was, and immediately called Nishiyama Fukutaro, who was currently in charge of commanding the 104th Division's troops arriving at Jiamusi, and Major General Naoda Yoshi, commander of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade.

Before he even had time to draw up a battle plan, he ordered Major General Naoda Yoshi's 3rd Cavalry Brigade to set off immediately. At the same time, all the trucks that could be assembled in Jiamusi City were mobilized as quickly as possible, and all the 108th Wing, the vanguard of the 104th Division, was converted into vehicles. Attack the north, the fortress area of Heungsan with all its might. The main force of the 104th Division followed.

After receiving the order, Major General Naoda Yoshishi and Major General Nishiyama Fukutaro, who knew the seriousness of the situation, did not dare to delay in the slightest, assembled overnight, and immediately set off as a team. Due to the bombing of the Songhua River Bridge, railway transportation was interrupted, and it took time for cars to cross the river, so the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, which was light and did not have high requirements for the marching route, naturally set off first.

It was only after two consecutive defeats at Qunce Mountain and Jiamusi, although it was not completely wiped out like the 44th Wing, but it also suffered heavy losses, and the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, which had not yet begun to reorganize, could actually dispatch only three cavalry squadrons and one cavalry artillery squadron.

The battle of Gunce Mountain brought a deep impression to Major General Naotayoshi. Faced with the small number of troops at hand and even a little embarrassed, Major General Naoda Yoshi, who clearly knew that his cavalry was not suitable for mountain combat, couldn't help but beat a little drum in his heart.

After learning that the 108th Wing, which was supposed to go hand in hand with him and use trucks to transport them on the Songhua River Bridge, was blown up, he could only rely on a ferry temporarily drawn from Harbin to cross the river. After a large number of trucks crossed the river, it took a lot of time, and after crossing the river by himself, he was able to wait for a while in order to go hand in hand with the 108th Wing.

However, under the strict orders of Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada, who was anxious to rescue the Kozan Fortress, and even the commander of the Kwantung Army, General Ueda Kenkichi, they had to set off first.

It's not that Lieutenant General Sawada Shigeru didn't know that cavalry was not good at mountain warfare, and it was not suitable for attacking fortified positions. But he knew the importance of this Hemsan fortress to the Kwantung Army, and even to the overall deployment of the Tokyo base camp.

Sawada Shigeru, who had inspected there and knew that the fortifications there were strong, knew that if he could not take advantage of the opponent's high probability to take the Xingshan Fortress and quickly regain the Fuxingshan Fortress without gaining a foothold, then what would be waiting for him would be a sea of corpses and blood of imperial soldiers.

Even after the somewhat reluctant Rear Admiral Naoda Yoshichi set out first, Sawada Shigeru, who had already anticipated that retaking the lost fortress would cost the Kwantung Army an unbearable price, was still secretly praying in his heart that the garrison of the Kozan fortress was still resisting.

In fact, knowing that it had been stationed in the Sanjiang area for some time, and even many troops had taken turns to serve as guards for the Xingshan Fortress, the Fourth Division was more suitable for this operation. However, after the battle of Qunce Mountain, Sawada Shigeru, who was already disappointed in the Fourth Division, did not dare to use his descendant Fourth Division no matter what. Rather than braving the criticism of the outside world, he sent the 104th Division to participate in the battle.

Lieutenant General Shigeru Sawada did not know that if he waited for the 108th Wing to converge, he would certainly delay for a while before rushing to Shimiaozi to participate in the battle. However, the opponent with only one battalion, even if he borrowed the geographical advantage, could not resist the impact of a wing of the Japanese army in any case.

However, in the case of his gradual increase in troops and the tactic of adding fuel to the battle, although Wang Xiaoming fought almost the whole army, the two battalions of Wang Guangyu's regiment also suffered heavy losses. But the three cavalry squadrons of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, which were the first wave of attackers, were also wiped out. The 108th Wing also lost its combat effectiveness.

By the time the main force of the 104th Division arrived, the battle situation had already been decided. In the face of the strong fortifications built by himself, with the cooperation of Yang Zhen, who had already exhausted all his troops to reinforce, and Liu Changshun, who returned to the reinforcements as quickly as possible, the 104th Division, which was second-rate in its own combat effectiveness among the Japanese army, was no longer able to recover.