North China.

Baoding.

Inside the headquarters of the Japanese army.

Yamamoto sat on a chair and looked at the staff officer in front of him:

"Where have the vanguard units of the Eighth Route Army arrived at the moment?"

After running away from Shijiazhuang, Yamamoto retreated all the way to Baoding with his troops, and then continued his mission - training recruits, collecting resources such as fuel and food, and training his special squad.

The little days are very leisurely.

Of course, Yamamoto did not forget that Li Yunlong had already taken Shijiazhuang and was currently leading people to continue to advance eastward, preparing to reclaim the entire territory of North China.

You can't beat it.

I'm afraid I can't fight in this life.

At present, there are only one and a half divisions and regiments under his command, with more than 19,000 people, one of which is a newly formed division and the other is an old brigade.

So Yamamoto is ready to run away at any time.

Anyway, the recruit training camp was arranged by him in the Yellow River Delta region, and his retreat had little impact, not even the collection and transportation of materials, if it wasn't for intelligence gathering, he would have retreated to the coastal area a long time ago.

Thinking of this, Yamamoto was immediately relieved.

Major General Kotaro Ito, whom he dug up, is indeed capable.

In just a few months, this person completely integrated the imperial merchant group in North China, and with the help of the influence of the imperial army, he formed a group, which greatly improved the efficiency of material collection.

After his evacuation from Shijiazhuang, the efficiency of fuel and grain collection in North China increased instead of decreasing.

A steady stream of heavy oil, grain, cotton, and other materials were transported to the Bohai Bay by rail, and then transported to the mainland by sea, which greatly alleviated domestic contradictions.

Heavy fuel oil also allowed the Imperial Fleet to run at full speed, and when the U.S. Navy retreated, the safety of the Southeast Asian shipping lanes was guaranteed, and various resources could reach the local factories from Southeast Asia.

The empire seems to be getting better.

Moreover, after the independent regiment occupied Shijiazhuang, although it continued to attack, the speed was significantly reduced, and Baoding is still very safe at present.

"The forward unit of the Independent Regiment is currently staying in Anji Village, fifteen kilometers outside Dingzhou, about an armored battalion."

The staff officer immediately replied:

"Instead of continuing their offensive to the east, they are clearing out the routs and bandits around Shijiazhuang, maintaining law and order, and recruiting laborers to build roads and railways."

"Anji Village."

Yamamoto quickly found Anji Village on the map.

Anji Village is located in the southwest of Baoding, ninety-seven kilometers away from his headquarters.

This made Yamamoto breathe a sigh of relief.

This distance, it is very safe.

The world is wonderful right now.

In Europe, Germany suddenly counterattacked, not only suppressing the landing from the Atlantic, annihilating hundreds of thousands of landing troops, but also blocking the counterattack of the bear in the north, which surprised the whole world.

Is this the real strength of Germany?

It's just that the allies have a deep background, and these two defeats cannot be said to be unscathed, but they are still far from breaking their muscles and bones, and I believe that it will not be long before a new round of attacks can be organized.

Is Germany coming back to the past, or is this its true strength? What kind of support will Chen Fan provide to Germany?

And also.

Although the Americans withdrew from the Asia-Pacific region, a series of covert actions, supporting Shancheng and relaxing the suppression of the empire, were obviously aimed at the strange forces that suddenly appeared in Taiyuan.

plus the mysterious Chen Fan.

No one can predict how the situation in the Asia-Pacific region will develop in the future and what will happen to the empire in the future.

In such a wonderful world, Yamamoto didn't want to die.

"Order the 118th Division to strengthen the defense in Dingzhou, dig multi-layer anti-tank positions, increase the depth of the position, arrange the troops at large intervals, and be ready to retreat at any time."

"Order the 15th Brigade to be stationed on the flank of Baoding."

Yamamoto commanded.

According to the experience of Taiyuan and Shijiazhuang, the attack of the independent regiment is generally a three-way pincer experience, outflanking on both flanks, breaking through in the middle, and the two flanks are the main forces, although the middle is not weak, but the advance speed is slow.

So he put the veteran 15th Brigade from the Kwantung Army, which had strong combat effectiveness, on both wings.

"Hey."

The staff officer went to deliver the order.

······

Dingzhou.

Receiving Yamamoto's order, the 118th Division immediately began to work on building a defensive line.

The 118th Division was originally a C division, but because the large-scale expansion of the army began in Ping'an County, this division was formed much earlier than the original, and it is now an elite division in Yamamoto's hands with rich combat experience.

The commander of the division was also a person brought out by Yamamoto, who had experienced the Battle of Ping'an County, was well versed in the horror of the independent regiment, and perfectly executed Yamamoto's orders.

Multi-layered anti-tank trenches, defensive positions in large depths, wide and wide deployment of troops, and most importantly, the preparation to run away anytime and anywhere, the kind that can complete the retreat of the whole division within an hour.

During this period, the division commander has been patrolling the front line, for fear of a little chaos.

And at this time.

Outside Dingzhou.

Three figures in tattered clothes burst out of the dense forest.

"It's finally out."

Looking at the imperial army position in the distance, Maeda Jili breathed a long sigh of relief, and the whole person collapsed to the ground.

The other two devils were not much better, and collapsed to the ground in the same way, gasping for air.

After the three of them escaped from Shuangfeng Town, they originally wanted to join the large army, but their luck was really bad, not to mention getting lost, they encountered the armored patrol of the independent regiment several times, and they could only run all the way in the mountains and forests.

The three of them do not know Chinese, and there are eight roads in almost every village, and there are guerrillas, county brigades, district squads, and village militia teams everywhere.

So the three of them could only avoid the village and the crowd along the way, and made a difficult progress.

When they are hungry, they eat wild fruits, and even insects, and when they are thirsty, they drink water, and even livestock and wild animals grab water to drink. Sleeping in the mountains and forests at night is due to the fact that it is summer, otherwise you will freeze to death, but you will also suffer from mosquitoes.

It seems that there is still a hint of luck in the dark.

After going through many difficulties and dangers, the three finally ran to Dingzhou by coincidence and came to the position of the 118th Division.

"Yaga, who?"

The trio were soon discovered by a patrol of the 118th Division.

"I am the leader of the 3rd Squadron of the 5th Brigade of the 4th Infantry Wing of the 62nd Division."

Maeda Jili hurriedly reported his identity and took out the identity nameplate for dead protection.

"Sixty-second Division?"

Because the position has not yet been built, safety work is very important, so at this time, the person responsible for leading the patrol is a captain, and he is also a devil who escaped from Ping'an County.

At first, the captain of the devil brigade was extremely nervous, afraid that it was the artillery observation post of the independent regiment, etc., but he relaxed when he found that it was three dirty people who were not carrying weapons approaching.

Hearing the name of the unit reported by Maeda Jiri, his pupils immediately shrank.

The 62nd Division is a type C division stationed in Taiyuan, in the Taiyuan Campaign, this division was surrounded and annihilated by the independent regiment, and the Taiyuan Campaign, a month has passed since now.

So...

Without even looking at the nameplate handed over by Maeda Jiri, he waved the katana in his hand and ordered loudly:

"Grab it!"

Suddenly, more than a dozen devils tied up the three of them.

"We are the Imperial Army, we are Imperial Samurai, not spies..."

Maeda Jili only reacted, and he was being used as a spy again.

But he was greeted by the butt of a rifle in the face, and then the whole person fell into darkness, and when he woke up, he was already in a cell—the rancid smell of swill in the air, and the mosquitoes flying around, the damp stacks of rice, and the cockroaches crawling around.

The scene is familiar.

Two of his subordinates were also being held next to him.

"It's time to eat."

At this time, a devil walked in and gave Maeda Jili food to eat-

A bowl of rancid boiled buckwheat okara, which was for pack horses, and a bowl of somewhat cloudy and smelly water, which also seemed to be for the livestock, Maeda Jiri suspected—this was scooped up from the livestock basin.

"Yaga."

Maeda Jili suddenly wanted to cry without tears.

The investigation took a week, and he had to live another week of hard life.

······

Dingzhou left flank position.

"Yaga, damn Yamamoto."

The commander of the 15th Brigade, Major General of the Imperial Japanese Empire, Tanaka Ken walked back and forth in the underground bunker, cursing and swearing.

Although he rarely fought with the Independent Regiment, he was a dignified major general, how could he not know that the two flanks of the Independent Regiment were the most violent.

In order to quickly complete the encirclement, the armored troops of the independent regiments on both flanks charged very violently, often dozens of tanks rushed in together, and the tank guns directly slammed his face, so that he had a brigade on both wings, didn't this put him on the fire and roast.

His total strength now stands at just over 7,000 men.

When the time comes, in the face of the attack of more than 300 tanks, 300 artillery pieces, there are still dozens of planes in the sky to cover, and heavy bombs are falling like raindrops, this is a fart.

Even if he was evacuated as soon as possible, he would have to lose at least one brigade due to the terrifying artillery fire of the Independent Regiment, and the attrition rate would be at least 8 percent.

"No, we have to find a way."

Tanaka sat down in his chair and fell into deep thought.

Fighting with the Separate Regiment is the most loss, there is no one.

The gap in weapons and equipment between the two sides is too great, and the soldiers of the independent regiment have rich combat experience, and the commander is steady and steady, and no matter how hard he struggles, he has no chance of winning.

The only thing he can do is to dig more positions, block the opponent's speed, and then retreat as soon as possible, the slower he retreats, the greater the loss of the troops.

Afterwards, he had to suffer insults from his superiors and reproaches from the base camp.

He has no background, no background, in order to climb to the position of brigade commander, he paid a considerable price, once there is a problem, such as huge losses in battle with the independent regiment, if it is not good, he will lose his military power, and even become a wing commander.

The current Great Japanese Empire lacks grassroots officers, and even the captain of the Shaozuo Wing, but there are really a lot of major generals, and they catch a lot of them.

It's just that after thinking about it for a long time, Tanaka Qin couldn't think of a good way.

He can't disobey Yamamoto's orders, this person has won the trust and attention of the base camp, and he is cautious, and it is also very dangerous to make small moves under Yamamoto's hands, and one accidentally has to cut his stomach.

He didn't want to be loyal to the Japanese Empire and the Emperor, he served in the army because the army brought power and wealth.

Just as Tanaka was struggling, a captain sneaked in.

"What's the matter?"

It seems that someone is coming, Tanaka's tone is kind.

"General."

The captain handed Tanaka a secret letter:

"This is a secret letter from Major General Ito."

"Ito."

Tanaka Qin nodded, his tone a little expectant.

Kotaro Ito, like Yamamoto, is also a celebrity in the base camp, and in less than a year, Nakasa has become a major general, and there is even news that he is about to be promoted to lieutenant general.

Of course, that's not the point.

The point is that Ito and he are business partners, and the two sides have a deep connection of interests, and in the cooperation with Ito, Tanaka's pocket has swelled more than ten times. Every time we get in touch, it's good news.

It's a pity that Ito can't solve his current predicament.

With expectations and regrets, Tanaka Qin opened the secret letter:

"Ito-kun actually..."

Scanning the secret letter, Tanaka's first reaction was wide-eyed, full of horror, as if he was shocked by the content of the letter, but soon, the corners of his mouth were hooked, a smile appeared on his face, and he couldn't stop nodding:

"Yo Si."

"That's great news."

folded the secret letter, hid it closely, and called one of his henchmen, the captain of the wing, who was also a business partner. He needs to change his current defensive strategy to match the 'allies'.

"Your wing moves to the left flank position..."

Tanaka slowly uttered his order.

······

Meanwhile.

Shikazhuang.

The original headquarters of the Japanese army is now in the front command post of the independent regiment.

"All armored battalions suspended the offensive and stationed themselves in place, paying attention to strengthening vigilance to avoid devil attacks."

Zhang Dabiao gave the order:

"All infantry battalions have strengthened the clearance of public security in the surrounding area, eliminated bandits and other remnants as soon as possible, and protected the safety of the construction brigade."

"Yes."

The staff officer quickly gave the order.

"Keep attacking time."

Zhang Dabiao looked at the map:

"It's going to be a week away."

Although the devils in Dingzhou were building a position, and it was a multi-level and large-depth position, Zhang Dabiao was not in a hurry at all, and still followed the orders of the regiment headquarters, fought steadily and steadily, and did not rush forward.

It's not that he brags, the devil's little bit of civil engineering and fortifications is not to be feared at all, his army presses up, the firepower covers a wave, and the position is automatically broken.

And...

Looking at a secret report from the political commissar on the table, the corners of Zhang Dabiao's mouth hooked, and a gloomy smile emerged.

This time, he has another task - to make allies!

"The new infantry battalion will continue to train."

Zhang Dabiao did not forget and capture one of the most important tasks of the lost territory, training new soldiers.

After the staff officer left, Zhang Dabiao called a battalion commander:

"Deputy Commander, your name is Ju?"

The battalion commander who came was a senior battalion commander, who served in the Independent Regiment during the Kong Jie era, and was the platoon commander at that time, and was a proper veteran officer of the Independent Regiment, who had been following Zhang Dabiao.

Therefore, at present, this battalion commander is actually the same as Xu Husheng, nominally the battalion commander, but is actually responsible for the command of five battalions.

"A confidential mission for you."

"A week later, you led the team to attack the left flank of Dingzhou... Drop fifteen tanks and retreat! ”

"Yes."

The battalion commander nodded.

······

Meanwhile.

Cherbourg.

The largest port in the north-west of France.

It's sunny today.

The previous violent storm has disappeared, but at this time, a different kind of storm is playing out here-

Dense heavy artillery shells crossed arcs, rose from the fleet in the distance, and then fell into the harbor, and similarly, dense heavy artillery shells also rose from the harbor and crashed into the fleet more than 20 kilometers away.

Dense heavy artillery shells, and rising columns of water.

A storm of artillery fire.

During the intervals of the artillery storm, hundreds of bombers and attack planes flew over Cherbourg in turn, dropping bombs one after another - falling like raindrops, and huge fireballs rose on the ground.

Storm of bombs.

On the ground, in the circular fortress group, a 4-in-40 mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun spewed out fierce fireworks, and 88 anti-aircraft guns also burst out with fireworks - nearly 200 anti-aircraft guns, more than 500 barrels were piled up, gunpowder smoke was everywhere in the sky, and shrapnel flew sideways.

In particular, more than 100 four-barreled 40 anti-aircraft guns, under the simultaneous firing, the dense shells were like a drizzle, even in the daytime, it was visible to the naked eye.

During this period, one plane after another fell, one after another.

The battle lasted all day.

"Retreat."

With a loud but unwilling, pure American English order, the fleet departed, and the last wave of planes returned one after another.

"Repair positions."

Marshal Long, who commanded at the front, gave the order:

"Move the wounded to the rear hospital."

Although there are heavy reinforced concrete fortresses and ample ammunition, the troops still suffer heavy casualties, and the power of the ship's guns is not covered, not to mention that many of them are capital ships, and the main guns have a caliber of more than 380.

On top of that, the reinforced version, with armor plates attached to the outside, has not yet been built to defend against the battleship's main guns.

And the other side.

The situation with the retreating fleet was also very bad.

Many warships were covered in black smoke, and their bow or stern was completely submerged in the water.

Of course, the number is also nearly a third less than when it came.

Although the battleship is the crystallization of a country's technology, because of the ocean, the shooting accuracy is inferior to that of the shore defense artillery, coupled with the reinforced concrete fortress several meters thick, it is normal to suffer.

After the fleet arrived at the port, the fleet casualties were also counted, and then sent to the command.

"Have you counted all the casualties?"

Inside the headquarters, the commander asked.

His tone was full of dissatisfaction.

The superiors rejected his proposal to suspend the landing, hold the current positions, and then use bomber groups to bomb northern France.

He was also required to take Cherbourg as soon as possible, because the troops needed a stable port to provide logistical supplies for the follow-up troops, and even ordered him to take it at any cost.

Otherwise, he would not have had to order the fleet and shore artillery to bombard each other for so long, and let the ground forces cooperate, as well as the aviation forces to forcibly bombard Cherbourg.

The result was almost a complete failure, whether it was an aerial bombardment, a ground offensive, or a support fleet, all of which were heavy losses.

"The casualties of the fleet, the wing, the US Eighth Army, the British ground forces are counted."

The staff officer replied.

"Send it back to China now."

The general snorted coldly.

With the sound of a telegram, a war report, including the whole of northwestern France, was sent back to the United States, and arrived at the white palace.

I actually have a recommendation for this book·····

Tomorrow, that is, the 8th, there will be a shift in the evening and a watch in the afternoon.

All are four thousand.