Historically, the entire battle to defend the capital did not last long. The Japanese attacked on multiple fronts and launched many battles. In the end, only more than 3,000 people died and more than 9,000 were injured. This massive battle was won at a small cost.
The National Army invested 180,000 troops, and in the end the battle only caused more than 10,000 casualties to the Japanese; in the end, the number of captured troops was actually close to 100,000. What kind of commander could accomplish such a 'feat'?
Wen San joined in, and his independent regiment destroyed a lot more Japanese than all other troops combined. Annihilate a regiment, a full brigade, and cripple a Japanese division.
This does not mean how powerful Wen San is, but it shows how much the various departments of the national army stretch their hips!
Their confidence was shattered, and they could no longer withstand continuous retreats even after slight battle losses. The command from the top was even worse. They had no determination to fight to the death with the Japanese. They just shouted slogans loudly.
Wen San is very depressed, now only the middle line can be defended.
If the Japanese from other directions rushed into the capital, how useful would it be for them to hold the center line? Should the capital fall, it would still fall, and the horrific massacre would still occur.
"No! Changes must be made this time, at least to save most of the people." Wen San let out a low roar.
He is not a savior, but a patriot through and through. In order to accomplish this important goal, it is worth it even if you kill the last person in your hand!
Facing Wen San, who was roaring like a lion, Wang Mazi was also startled.
"There is news from the committee, asking us to find an opportunity to break out." Wang Mazi quickly added.
"Break through? Break out of the siege! Everyone knows how to escape, how can we fight this battle?" Wen San said angrily, attracting many people over.
"Immediately summon all combat officers above the battalion and company level and hold a pre-war meeting immediately!" Wen San was very angry. He understood that he did not have much time left for him.
A few minutes later, all commanders above the battalion and company level came running over.
Wen San had already laid out the combat map and immediately started talking about the current situation.
It only took a few minutes for Wen San to explain clearly the corrupt situation in the battle to defend the capital.
"Pang Dun, please tell me the specific location of the rest of the 13th Division!" Wen San finally calmed down. The first thing he had to do was to completely control the center line.
The remaining troops of the Japanese 13th Division had just approached, with more than 12,000 people. There are more people than a full brigade, equivalent to two damaged brigade groups.
"They did not move and were blocked about five kilometers outside the 66th Army's defense line. Preliminary judgment is that after the Japanese failed to support the 16th Division, they wanted to use this force to block the central defense line to prevent a large number of national troops from breaking through from the central front."
Pang Dun's judgment is very accurate. The capital is in danger. As long as the senior commander escapes, the ministries below will be in chaos. In the absence of ships, a frontal breakout is a relatively reasonable choice. At least the 66th Army and the 83rd Army were ordered to breakout from the front.
Other ministries rushed to Xiaguan along the Yangtze River, hoping to retreat by water. There are no ships at all in Xiaguan, so many people are crowded together, and there are countless stampedes. In this chaotic situation, it was impossible to retreat from Xiaguan. Their fate, other than fighting to the death, was to be captured where they were.
In the next few days, many senior commanders were thinking about how to escape the capital in advance. The mentality of the army commander was not firm, and the fighting will of the soldiers also dropped significantly. Many times the soldiers retreated from the defense line as soon as the Japanese opened fire.
It really echoes the old saying: a defeat is like a mountain!
Although Chief Tang is still insisting, it is basically a meaningful insistence. At this time, not many people were willing to listen to the orders he issued. The senior commanders wanted to run away, but the low-level commanders were unable to make reasonable arrangements. In other words, his orders had little effect at all, and frequent missteps only caused further confusion in the command system.
Commander Tang was simply unable to control this complicated situation, and his command ability was visibly declining. There is air leakage everywhere, and even if you want to block it, you can't stop it.
There are only a very small number of army commanders who are truly determined to resist to the end, and they basically have no effect. After the Japanese lied about not killing them, many troops chose to surrender.
A lot of relevant information flashed through Wen San's mind, and he understood that the battle to defend the capital had reached its most critical moment. In the next five or six days, the entire front will show an avalanche-like situation.
"How are the enemy's defenses doing?" Wen Sanxi asked.
"Three lines of defense have been built, with a reasonable mix of firepower, and there are forward sentries to perform warning tasks at any time. However, the area of their defense lines is not wide. I guess they should wait for the Japanese 16th Division to be replenished after resting. The two divisions will jointly increase the area to be blocked." Pangdun marked the location of the damaged 16th Division again.
"After the 16th Division was crippled by us, it has retreated 30 kilometers away. At present, the remaining troops are only more than 10,000. It is led by the commander of the division, Nakajima Imago, and there is no new movement yet. It is estimated that It won’t take a day or two to adjust.”
The reliability of Pang Dun's intelligence is still very high, and the scope of activities of the reconnaissance company is very large. When others are resting, they are not idle. They are active in the surrounding areas. Brought quite detailed military intelligence to Wen San.
"Each battalion immediately took action and moved behind the 13th Division's garrison. We launched an attack on the Japs in the unit at three o'clock in the morning. Even if they cannot be eliminated, we must drive them out of the center line. Everything here must be firmly under control. In our hands.”
Wen San didn't want to wait any longer, because he couldn't afford to wait anymore. Unless he retreats directly according to the commission. But Wen San rejected this idea immediately.
The focus of the defense line established by the Japanese was against the 66th Army on the opposite side, and a lot of energy was invested in this direction. Then there is their right wing, mainly to prevent surprise attacks by independent regiments.
The left wing also made corresponding defenses, but it was much weaker. As for the rear, except for outposts in front, not even a trench was dug.
It's not that the Japanese didn't want to dig, it's that the time they came over was too short and they didn't have time to mount a comprehensive defense. We can only focus on the key points first and establish a line of defense in the direction where enemy troops may invade.
Wen San's troops have been operating in the central area, and it can be said that they know the terrain of the central area well. Tonight, the focus of his unit's attack will be on the Japanese's weakly defended rear and left flank.
Due to the urgent time, we did not make too many detailed arrangements. We could only make targeted adjustments based on the reaction of the Japanese at that time.
Fortunately, the number of troops in Wen San's hands has exceeded 4,000. Excluding some wounded soldiers who are unable to fight, the number of troops that can be deployed is at least 3,000.
