To the south of Yicheng, to the east of Jiangxian County, and in the 15th Army Defense Area, shouts of killing occurred one after another, and the sound of gunfire could not be heard.
More than 30,000 soldiers from the Japanese 37th Division and the 41st Division launched a fierce attack on the defense area of the 15th Army. The 15th Army responded hastily and was at a disadvantage in terms of strength and weapons. It suffered heavy losses under the attack from three sides by the two Japanese divisions.
The 15th Army is affiliated to the 14th Group Army. It is one of the two group armies that defends the Zhongtiao Mountain area and has jurisdiction over the 64th and 65th divisions.
The origin of this army was the bandits and local stubborn armed forces in the western Henan region of the Central Plains Province, also known as the "Suppressing Song Army".
In the First Northern Expedition, the "Suppressing Song Army" defected to the Northwest Army.
During the Central Plains War, the "Suppressing Song Army" defected from the Northwest Army and joined Zhongcai, becoming a miscellaneous member of the Central Military Department.
The 14th Group Army has four corps: 15, 98, 9, and 93. Only the 15th Army is stationed outside Zhongtiao Mountain and is disconnected from the other three armies of the main force;
The defense area of the 15th Army is located exactly at the junction of Taihang Mountain and Zhongtiao Mountain. It is very close to the defense area of the 78th Army and is a barrier to the left wing of the 78th Army.
Due to Zhao Sihu's star effect, the 78th Army is under the direct jurisdiction of the theater;
This army is the product of Chuxiong's butterfly effect. It was formerly the 78th Division. It was formerly Zhao Sihu's puppet army. It was upgraded to the 78th Division because of the killing of Lieutenant General Chaoxiang. This time it was upgraded to the 78th Army because of the integration of Yan Haoyu of the Eighth Route Army. The organization Different from other armies, there are only 3 brigades.
If the Japanese want to cut off the connection between Taihang Mountain and Zhongtiao Mountain and complete the siege of the Zhongtiao Mountain area, they must defeat the 15th Army and drive them deep into Zhongtiao Mountain.
In order to complete this strategic concept, Xiao Zhuoyinan used two divisions. This was not something that the 15th Army could handle alone. Under normal circumstances, one division was more than enough.
At the 15th Army Headquarters, Commander Wu Tinglin and the Chief of Staff were worriedly watching the war situation. It had only been two days of fighting, and the entire front was already in a state of emergency.
In another time and space, Commander Wu was considered a real famous general in fighting Japanese invaders. In 1944, during the defense battle of Mudan City, he led a total of 18,000 soldiers of the 15th Army and the 94th Division of the 14th Army (Sichuan Army);
Without foreign aid, they carried out tenacious resistance against 50,000 Japanese soldiers. From May 5th to 25th, they held Mudan City for 21 days, killing and wounding 20,000 Japanese soldiers.
Of course, there is a certain amount of moisture in this number, but with this battle alone, he can bear the title of a famous general in fighting the Japanese.
The Japs in 1941 and the Japs in 1944 are not the same in terms of combat effectiveness. The 15th Army clearly lags behind the two second-class Japs divisions in terms of strength, weapons and combat effectiveness;
Not to mention his own army, even the entire 14th Group Army may not be able to defeat it. It is very rare to be able to withstand two days without collapse.
"Military seat, the position of the 65th Division has been breached by the Japs several times. After two days of hard fighting, ammunition is also running low. They requested to retreat to the Zhongtiao Mountains for another echelon of defense;
This time the Japs are not like a small fight, they are bound to win. Our army alone cannot hold the existing defense area at all. Do you want to ask the commander for instructions to withdraw into Zhongtiao Mountain and move closer to the main force? "
Major General Cao Wanji, Chief of Staff, suggested to Commander Wu.
Commander Wu thought for a while and said:
“Our defense area is right between Taihang Mountain and Zhongtiao Mountain, and it is the barrier of Zhongtiao Mountain;
This time the Japanese not only attacked our troops, but also dispatched the 36th Division to attack the 27th Army in Guling. This was to clear the perimeter of Zhongtiao Mountain;
Once our 15th Army withdrew into Zhongtiao Mountain, the passage between Zhongtiao Mountain and Taihang Mountain would be cut off by the Japanese, and the main force would be exposed to the Japanese.
Hold on for another two days, send electricity to the main station, and ask for reinforcements——"
"Buzz buzz..."
"Boom boom boom..."
More than a dozen planes flew over the military headquarters and dropped a long series of bombs. Fortunately, they didn't know that the 15th Army's military headquarters was below, and Commander Wan and others escaped.
"Military seat, enemy plane, let's evacuate immediately!"
Commander Wu patted the dirt on his body and said to the Chief of Staff:
"Brother Cao, why are you panicking? The bombs that can hit me haven't been built yet.
Quickly send power to the main station and request reinforcements! "
In the middle of Shu, at the Military Commission Command Center, there are many old men gathered. Anyone who hits them with a bamboo pole must be at least a lieutenant general or above.
The command center changed the relaxed atmosphere before, and everyone felt as if they were facing a powerful enemy, catching the government by surprise.
After a while, the master Zhongcai hurried in, his steps a little flustered.
Everyone stood up to pay tribute to Zhongcai. He waved his hands casually and said:
"The Japanese suddenly had three divisions with more than 50,000 troops attacking our 15th Army and the 27th Army on the outskirts of Zhongtiao Mountain. This is very different from the strategic direction previously announced by the Japanese. What do you think? What is the true intention of the Japanese?"
Zhongcai no longer cared about fake imitations and went straight to the topic.
No wonder Zhongcai and others were anxious to get angry. On the one hand, the Japanese launched attacks on the 15th Army and the 27th Army on the outskirts of Zhongtiao Mountain. On the other hand, they released various smoke screens, vowing that their target was the Eighth Route Army in the Taihang Mountains;
Cutting off the connection between Zhongtiao Mountain and Taihang Mountain was to prevent the Central Army from supporting the Eighth Route Army and completing the encirclement of the Eighth Route Army.
The lice on the bald man's head are already obvious, but some still have illusions and are still speculating on the Japanese's true intentions.
Because the matter was so important, the Japanese's intentions were not yet obvious, and the big bosses were afraid of guessing in the wrong direction, so no one took the initiative to express their opinions.
Zhongcai immediately became angry when he saw it, and directly named General Chen. He was still used to listening to him on important matters, after all, he was a small person!
Admiral Chen could only bite the bullet and said:
"Zhongcai, since two years ago, the Japanese have not considered the government as their main target. Except for the Zaoyi Battle last year, they have not launched a decent attack on the government for a long time;
On the other hand, the Hundred Battalions War launched by the Eighth Route Army, although not many Japs were annihilated, did anger the Japs, and it was reasonable to organize a retaliatory attack.
The government's actions in the Huanghuai area are strategically consistent with the Japanese. There is no reason for them to fall out with the government at this time. Isn't this helping the Eighth Route Army?
Besides, the Japanese only dispatched three divisions this time. We have nearly 200,000 Central Army elites in Zhongtiao Mountain and have huge terrain advantages. Even if they attack Zhongtiao Mountain, they can only do the same as the previous thirteen attacks. Return in vain! "
Admiral Chen's words were a bit ambiguous, as if he had said it, but also as if he had not said it. Anyway, in the end, it had to be decided.
After hearing this, Cai Zhong nodded, but this time it was really important, so he couldn't just listen to Admiral Chen. He still had to listen to Xiao Zhuge on strategic issues. Yu turned around and asked Admiral Bai:
"Jiansheng, what do you think?"
Little Zhuge was eager to jump out and refute General Chen. He and General Chen had always been at odds with each other. Seeing that Cai Zhong finally chose his general, he quickly stood up and said:
"Zhongcai, the enemy's intention is just like the lice on a bald man's head. Even a fool can see it. Their target is Zhongtiao Mountain!"
Blame him for not being lovable. He scolded two people with this sentence. The corner of Zhong Cao's eyes twitched, but he still held it back. He also used his eyes to signal General Chen to calm down. Now is not the time for a verbal dispute.
Xiao Zhuge did not notice anything unusual about Zhongcai and continued:
“If the Japs were targeting the Eighth Route Army, how could they possibly mobilize two divisions from the Central Plains Province?
This is obviously an east-west pincer attack on Zhongtiao Mountain. If we add the two divisions that are being secretly mobilized by the Central Plains Province, the Japanese have assembled 5 divisions in Zhongtiao Mountain, nearly 100,000 people!
The enemy has sharpened his sword, but I am still leaderless in Zhongtiao Mountain. Junru is still reporting on his duties in Yuzhou. I decided to let Junru return to the war zone immediately to take charge of the overall situation. "
Although Zhongcai was more inclined to General Chen's analysis, he had to take Xiao Zhuge's words seriously. That was the Central Army of 200,000 people. They were all thorns in the side and could not afford to lose, so he would rather believe it and decided to use General Bai. opinions and take necessary measures.
But he didn't plan to let Wei Junru go back to Zhongtiao Mountain. He was already seven and a half, and if he let Junru get mixed up with the Eighth Route Army, he would really become an Eighth Route Army!
This time Wei Junru disobeyed the order and couldn't stop thinking about it. Thinking of this, he had an idea in his mind. Wei Junru was not the only one in the government who could command Zhongtiao Mountain. The 200,000 troops there had to be placed in the hands of a trusted person before they could rest assured.
Thinking of this, he looked at General He beside him with expectant eyes, which made his excited heart almost jump out of his chest after he had not led troops in several years;
Sure enough, I heard what he expected:
"Jingzhi, Junru's affairs here are not finished yet. Why don't you go to the First War Zone to take charge of the overall situation as the chief of general staff?"
Xiao Zhuge immediately stood up and objected:
"Zhongcai, changing generals before the battle is a taboo for military strategists!"
