In fact, Masato Hirota mistakenly blamed the officers of the Kwantung Army headquarters. They were not new to the war, so how could they not understand the benefits of rotational operations?
But they can't adjust it!
You must know that the September 18th Incident, the Battle of Jehol and the attack on the Great Wall were all unilateral actions of the Japanese Kwantung Army and were not authorized by the Japanese Cabinet and the Japanese Military Ministry.
The Japanese cabinet during this period actually did not want to expand the war with China, because Japan was also affected by the world economic crisis, and the overall national economy suffered a major decline. If it went into full-scale war with China now, it might face the financial system. Collapse situation.
Moreover, they have not yet noticed the weakness of the Western powers. After all, the remaining power of the past hundred years is still there. Japan is also afraid of being sanctioned by the Western powers and sending troops to interfere. Just like the Republic of China government, it also pinned its hopes on the Sino-Japanese dispute. It is the same psychology as the Western powers’ mediation.
They did not know that after World War I, the British Empire, which once dominated the world, had been emptied of its body and became increasingly weak. And France, known as Europe's largest army, is even more powerful on the outside and capable on the inside.
At this time, the United States was still digesting the benefits of the First World War. They were accustomed to following the British Empire to pick up the remaining bones. They did not have a clear understanding of their own strength and potential, and they were intoxicated by the consequences of the Neutrality Act. In the dream of being independent from the world.
It was not until a few years later that a German mustache poked a hole in the fig leaf of false prosperity in Western countries, making little Japan realize how ridiculous their previous cowardice and cowardice were, and allowed them to Realize what a paper tiger is.
But now, the little Japan is still very timid. They only dare to bully the weak Republic of China. When facing any Western powers, they have to lower their pig heads that are not tall enough and swallow big mouthfuls of air.
Therefore, the Japanese cabinet does not currently support what the Kwantung Army is doing. Not to mention the deployment of troops and reinforcements, even as it was originally promised, the deployment of an additional air wing of aircraft has also been delayed.
Therefore, although the Japanese Kwantung Army has now established a flying group army, claiming to have 4 flying wings, the total number of aircraft is only more than 150, and most of them are deployed in North Korea and Heilongjiang to defend against the Soviet army and can be sent to Jinzhou for support. There were only more than 50 aircraft operating on the Great Wall, including several squadrons of reconnaissance aircraft and fighter jets. There were less than 20 bombers used to support the front line.
Therefore, on the entire Great Wall defense line, the Japs could only devote their limited aviation forces to the Gubeikou battlefield, which they considered the most important.
However, the commanders of the Little Devils are all very selfish people. Lieutenant General Masaemon Sakamoto, the division commander of the 6th Division responsible for the Kifengkou and Lengkou defense lines, does not think that the area he is responsible for is secondary. battlefield.
In his opinion, since the Chinese army is defending the hundreds of kilometers long Great Wall defense line with a long snake formation, there may be loopholes everywhere. As long as a pass is opened, the entire line of defense will be self-defeating. Where can there be primary and secondary battlefields?
Especially after two consecutive defeats in Lengkou and Kifengguchi, the commander of the Sakamoto Division had realized that the Chinese army he faced was different from the past, and he hated the 13th Regiment Captain Ryo Suzuki for disobeying orders. Gritting teeth.
The commander of our division has warned you, but you still have to disobey the order and launch an attack, so that's okay. What's even more annoying is that the captain of the Pig Head Regiment did not strictly follow the provisions of the infantry drill to deploy his camp, and his troops were too dispersed. This led to a surprise attack by the Chinese army, and he actually defeated a regiment of imperial troops and fled in panic. In the end, only more than 1,000 people survived.
Sakamoto Masaemon didn't care too much about the death of nearly two thousand imperial soldiers. There is no immortality in war. From the day they join the army, these loyal and brave imperial soldiers must be prepared to die in battle and be proud of it.
However, a regular regiment whose flag was personally awarded by His Majesty the Emperor was actually beaten by the Chinese army and almost burned the flag. This was a bit embarrassing, and it not only lost the face of the Japanese Kwantung Army, but also the Japanese Kwantung Army. His Majesty the Emperor's face.
If the tens of thousands of Chinese troops who launched the attack at Xifengkou had not suddenly withdrew inexplicably, it is unknown whether the remnants of the 13th Regiment trapped on several hills could have escaped. Burning the military flag was inevitable. If that's the case, Masaemon Sakamoto doesn't even know how he can explain to General Ueda, the commander-in-chief of the Kwantung Army. Will the general allow himself to commit seppuku?
If Suzuki Ryo, the pig-headed captain, was still alive, with such shame and guilt, the first thing Sakamoto Masaemon would do when he saw him was to slap him into a pig face, and then, immediately, immediately, on the spot , asking him to commit seppuku and not even mention the wrong person.
Although Sakamoto Masaemon, who placed all the blame on Ryo Suzuki, escaped punishment from the Kwantung Army headquarters, it also made him wary of the Chinese defenders at Kitaguchi and Lengkou.
This is not at all the thin troops of the Northeast Army that we encountered before, but the elite Chinese troops who are as brave and tenacious as the imperial army.
Therefore, he was surprisingly calm and stopped his two brigade commanders from furiously issuing letters of challenge demanding that the shame be washed away as soon as possible. Instead, he quietly waited for the supplies from the rear to arrive.
Some people here may ask, why are the Japanese army's supplies so slow? Hasn't the Sixth Division been waiting for almost two weeks and still hasn't finished its supplies?
As mentioned above, the Japanese rear was very dissatisfied with the Kwantung Army's self-initiated offensive behavior, so it did not provide any assistance to the Kwantung Army from within the country. Therefore, the supplies for the two Japanese divisions currently attacking along the Great Wall must be mobilized from storage warehouses in Shenyang and North Korea. Not only is the journey relatively long, the railways and highways also pass through Jehol Province, where there are currently a large number of Chinese resistance armed activities. , the transportation channels are not smooth.
The priority for replenishment is the direction of Gubeikou, which the Kwantung Army military headquarters considers to be the most important, so the 6th Division's supplies can only be ranked behind the 8th Division.
This is also what makes Sakamoto Masaemon particularly unhappy with the Kwantung Army headquarters.
However, he was not happy anymore. He no longer dared to underestimate the Chinese army on the opposite side, and he no longer had the arrogant idea that a regiment or a brigade could easily break through the Great Wall defense line.
Since supplies are coming slowly, we need to be patient, have a careful plan, and conduct a detailed analysis of the Chinese defenders at these two passes.
This time, he planned to gather all his troops and use the power of Mount Tai to attack Xifengkou and Lengkou at the same time, completing his victory in one battle.
Therefore, within the next week, the logistical supplies he was waiting for were finally replenished for the entire division.
At the same time, there were two strategic weapons that were crucial to him.
