After breaking away from the pursuit of the Fifth Corps, Li Qiufan led the troops to Liuba County again, but by this time all the troops stationed here had been transferred away by the old fox.
When the Fifth Corps discovered something was wrong, they had already chased them for dozens of kilometers. This was observed by a few ordinary soldiers.
The commander of the Fifth Corps completely calmed down. After confirming that he had been deceived, he sent a telegram to the old fox in despair.
At this time, the 18th Corps and the newly formed 7th Corps, which were responsible for supporting, had been following them. After learning that the number of targets to be pursued was about 10,000 people at most, these two corps were so angry that they almost surrounded and annihilated the 5th Corps.
The old fox became even more angry. He immediately dismissed the commander of the Fifth Corps and arranged for someone to escort him back.
Then the old fox got a headache, because now he lost the whereabouts of the People's Liberation Army.
Li Qiufan on the other side had already led his troops to Foping County and sent out scouts to investigate the situation in the Daba Mountain area.
He had transferred out all three of Old Fox's corps. At this time, only the enemy's 16th corps was stationed on the second line of defense in northern Sichuan.
After finding out the approximate strength of the 16th Corps, Li Qiufan immediately decided to take action against it.
Because all the main force of Old Fox is in the northwest side of Chengxian County, it will take several days of urgent marching to reach Daba Mountain.
The enemy troops closest to Daba Mountain are also in the Wushan area, where the three armies of the 14th Corps are stationed, with a total strength of only more than 40,000 troops.
Even if the 14th Corps reaches Daba Mountain with reinforcements in time, the two corps combined will only be able to support about 90,000 people. Li Qiufan is confident that he will wipe out the old fox before he comes back.
The strength of the 16th Corps stationed in Daba Mountain and the 14th Corps in the Wushan area are almost the same, with more than 40,000 troops each.
The troops of the 16th Corps were stationed in Chengkou and Zhenping counties of Daba Mountain, respectively guarding the two main roads going south.
After deciding to attack the 16th Corps, Li Qiufan led his troops to the Ankang area on the north side of Daba Mountain.
"This time we are going to attack the enemy's 16th Corps. Although the 16th Corps only has more than 40,000 people, the opponent occupies a favorable terrain!"
"For the sake of safety, although we have a strength advantage, I decided to choose a main attack direction to encircle the enemy and provide reinforcements!"
After arriving in Ankang, Li Qiufan immediately convened a meeting with commanders and fighters at all levels to discuss the plan to attack the 16th Corps.
"Which one should we fight, Chengkou County or Zhenping County?"
After hearing what Li Qiufan said, Li Yunlong was the first to ask him.
"From a location perspective, Chengkou County is obviously more suitable as the main target than Zhenping County."
"Because the back of Zhenping County is Wushan, where there are more than 40,000 members of the enemy's 14th Corps."
"If we don't eliminate the enemy forces in Zhenping County in time, we won't have to fight until the 14th Corps arrives with support!"
"The terrain of Daba Mountain is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Although we have hundreds of thousands of troops, we don't have more people than anyone else!"
After hearing Li Yunlong's inquiry, Li Qiufan immediately told everyone about the situation in Zhenping County.
"What if we attack Chengkou County, but the enemies in Zhenping County can't get out?"
After hearing Li Qiufan's analysis, everyone nodded in agreement, and then Heizi raised another question, that is, what to do if the reinforcements don't come out if the reinforcements don't come out.
"That's okay. If the enemy troops in Zhenping County don't come out, we will only eliminate 20,000 enemy troops. At worst, we can directly enter Sichuan through Chengkou County and continue to consume the enemy in the hinterland."
Li Qiufan waved his hand towards Heizi. Their purpose in the early stage of entering Sichuan was to consume the enemy and eliminate the enemy's effective strength without suffering heavy casualties.
As for whether the enemy troops in Zhenping County support Li Qiufan, he doesn't care at all. He will destroy them when they come out. If they don't come out, they will enter central Sichuan to fight other troops.
"Next, we will arrange combat missions. The 2, 3 and 4 Army will be responsible for the main attack mission in Chengkou County!"
"The First Army went to Dong'an Town between Chengkou County and Zhenping County, and set up an ambush at Lijiaba on the northwest side of Dong'an Town. This is the only way for the enemy troops from Zhenping County to reinforce Chengkou County!"
"The Fifth Army, as the general reserve, rushed to Heyu Township in the southeast of Chengkou County, ready to provide reinforcements to the two battlefields at any time!"
Li Qiufan directly arranged for three armies to attack Chengkou County, and only sent the first army to ambush Zhenping County reinforcements.
This is entirely because the terrain of Daba Mountain is complex and the enemy troops occupy a favorable position. Li Qiufan can only use his absolutely superior force to bite this hard nut.
As for the reinforcements to ambush Zhenping County, the First Army was completely sufficient.
The First Army is an all-armored army with a strength of about 30,000 people. Coupled with the ambush, it is no problem to deal with 20,000 enemies, and it may be easier to fight than the three armies in Chengkou County.
In addition, the Fifth Army is in Heyu Township as a general reserve force and can quickly support the First Army, so there is no need to worry.
After a day of preparation, the troops started heading towards Chengkou County the next day.
The enemy forces in Chengkou County have two lines of defense. The first line of defense is set up at Dashuling and Tiaoyutan.
These two places are adjacent to a river called Banhe, and the enemy's position was built on the south bank of Banhe.
If Li Qiufan wanted to launch an attack, he could only attack from the north bank of Banhe River.
This is why Li Qiufan used three armies to attack Chengkou County. The opponent's position advantage was too great.
After arriving at the north bank of Banhe River, Li Qiufan asked the soldiers to start making rafts from local materials in preparation for the cross-river attack.
After making enough rafts, Li Qiufan issued the order to attack, and then the mortar regiments of each army launched artillery bombardment on the enemy positions on the south bank.
After being bombarded, the enemy troops on the south bank of Banhe River were stunned for a moment, and then they reacted and began to counterattack.
They never expected that this place would be attacked, let alone that the People's Liberation Army would come to Daba Mountain.
While counterattacking, the enemy troops on the south bank also sent a telegram to the top brass, reporting that they had been attacked by the main force of the People's Liberation Army.
The news was reported directly to the old man. After learning the news, the old man immediately contacted the old fox and gave him a civilized education.
After that, the old man gave the old fox an order to eliminate the People's Liberation Army in Daba Mountain, and at the same time personally notified the 14th Corps in the Wushan area to come for support.
The old fox was very angry at the old man, and at the same time he became even more hatred towards Li Qiufan.
Then he mobilized all his troops, together with the two armies of the 15th Corps, and rushed towards Daba Mountain.
