Seeing how powerful the new group was, Okamura Neji also had the idea of ​​strengthening the first division.
A regiment of the Eighth Route Army has tens of thousands of people and is equipped with first-class weapons. It can actually have such strong combat effectiveness.
So.
If a division of the Locust Army has 40,000 to 50,000 men, is equipped with first-class weapons, and has powerful firepower, will it be able to produce stronger combat effectiveness?
Isn't it possible that a strengthened Class A division can't deal with a regiment of your Eighth Route Army?
Mitsuo Nakazawa also looked proud.
The current First Division is second to none among all divisions in terms of military strength and firepower.
Not even the Fifth Division, which had just completed its mechanized reorganization, could compare.
A division has four artillery regiments, two of which are heavy artillery regiments. The firepower of this artillery regiment alone is already stronger than four.
Since some troops of the First Division participated in the coup during the February 26 Incident, the First Division was not reused.
Deployed in Manchuria, under the command of the Kwantung Army, it guarded the northern border of Manchuria against possible Soviet attacks.
Due to the rise of the Eighth Route Army, especially the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army, and the Soviet-German war in full swing, Japan and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact.
Therefore, the First Division was sent to Shanxi by the Japanese headquarters to deal with the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army.
Mitsuo Nakazawa was full of confidence. If he had no military exploits, he might have stayed as the commander of the first division for two or three years before being promoted to the commander of a certain army.
But if his military exploits are sufficient, he can be promoted to commander of a certain army in just one year at most.
If you gain some more military exploits and perform well enough, you may even be promoted to general, serve as commander of a certain front army, and reach the pinnacle of your life...
Although after the outbreak of the Pacific War, the elite troops of the Kwantung Army were gradually mobilized.
However, the Japanese base camp is preparing to use the Kwantung Army as the strategic general reserve of the Japanese Army.
Seeing that Mitsuo Nakazawa was confident, Okamura Neji felt more and more satisfied.
"Nakazawa-kun." Moritake Tanabe asked, "When will the personnel and weapons and equipment of the First Division arrive in North China?"
Okamura Neji also looked at Mitsuo Nakazawa with expectant eyes and expressions.
The new regiment of the Eighth Route Army in northwestern Shanxi is like a bomb that can explode at any time.
Li Yunlong basically has no rules or rules when it comes to fighting. Every thought comes up, and Okamura can't guess his next move at all.
Only after the First Division arrived in northwestern Shanxi to watch over the New Regiment, the Japanese including Okamura Neji could breathe a sigh of relief.
Mitsuo Nakazawa said: "Within five days, all personnel and weapons and equipment can arrive in Peiping."
The personnel and equipment of the First Division first entered the customs by train and arrived in Peiping.
Then start from Peiping and go to Datong along Pingsui Road via Zhangjiakou and other stations, and then go to northwest Shanxi.
"Hey!" Okamura Neiji looked at Arisu Seizo and said happily, "Arimao-kun, I will leave it to you to arrange the reception of the officers and soldiers of the First Division's Locust Army."
Once the First Division attacks, it will be subordinate to the North China Front. In this regard, Okamura Ningji will naturally have to do a good job.
"Hi!" Youmo Jingsan lowered his head, "General, please rest assured that I will do a good job of entertaining the soldiers of the First Division."
Mitsuo Nakazawa added: "I'm not worried about this. I'm worried about whether my artillery unit can reach northwestern Shanxi safely."
Last time, the 3rd Infantry Regiment and the 5th Heavy Artillery Regiment of the First Division were completely wiped out in Miaoergou. To say that Mitsuo Nakazawa had no fluctuations in his heart would be a boast.
He also heard that the last time the 3rd Infantry Regiment and the 5th Heavy Artillery Regiment went to northwestern Shanxi, the route and time were personally operated by Okamura Neiji.
The situation in North China is much worse than Nakazawa Sano imagined.
The Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Army, Michichi Miyano, was bombed while riding on a large armored train in North China, and Lieutenant General Hisao Fururu was shot down while riding in a plane in North China...
The water in North China is very deep.
Mitsuo Nakazawa did not want his heavy artillery brigade to be killed by the Eighth Route Army on the way before it reached northwestern Shanxi.
"Nakaze-kun, please rest assured." Tanabe Moritake said with a slight smile, "In addition to your first division, the 21st and 35th divisions directly under the front army will protect the 3rd heavy artillery brigade when it reaches northwest Shanxi."
If the 3rd Infantry Regiment and the 5th Heavy Artillery Regiment had arrived in northwestern Shanxi, the outcome of that battle might have been very different.
If the five divisions attacking northwestern Shanxi at that time could be equipped with 240mm heavy artillery, their attack capabilities would be exponentially increased.
In addition to the tunnel fortifications that the Eighth Route Army could barely withstand, the thickened reinforced concrete bunker could not withstand it at all.
Unfortunately, the 5th Heavy Artillery Regiment and the 3rd Infantry Regiment were killed halfway.
Mitsuo Nakazawa did not want the 6th Heavy Artillery Regiment and the 7th Heavy Artillery Regiment to follow in the footsteps of the 5th Heavy Artillery Regiment.
After all, the heavy artillery regiment is also a strategic-level unit in the Japanese army and will not be used easily.
"Yo Xi!" Mitsuo Nakazawa nodded with satisfaction.
There is a division garrisoned in Datong in northern Shanxi, plus the 21st and 35th divisions, as well as the first division, to protect the 3rd Heavy Artillery Brigade when it reaches northwestern Shanxi, then there will be no problem.
"In addition," Okamura Neiji also said, "in half a month, the 1,000 Type 100 submachine guns and 5 million rounds of submachine gun ammunition shipped from the mainland will be given priority to equip your first division."
"Oh? Thank you, General." Mitsuo Nakazawa's eyes lit up slightly. In this way, not only the artillery firepower, but also the infantry firepower of the First Division will be much stronger.
Originally, Mitsuo Nakazawa also believed that Japanese soldiers should be equipped with bolt-action single-shot rifles, allowing soldiers to practice marksmanship and achieve maximum results with the least ammunition.
However, in the battlefield in northwestern Shanxi, the Japanese troops were frequently taught a lesson by the powerful firepower of the Eighth Route Army.
Some senior Japanese military officials, including Okamura Neiji and Nakazawa Mizuo, began to reflect on whether the Japanese military's philosophy was wrong.
Soldiers in European and American countries have long been equipped with automatic firepower, while Japanese soldiers still use bolt-action rifles from the First World War.
Although the Japanese army has developed hundreds of submachine guns, it does not have a large amount of equipment.
In order to deal with the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army, Okamura Neiji worked very hard.
Okamura Neiji continued: "Nakazawa-kun, after your first division arrives in northwest Shanxi this time, you can attack the new regiment appropriately, but you must be cautious and focus on defense. I have determined the defensive tactics for you.
We will use reinforced concrete bunkers and gun towers as supplements and tunnel tactics as the main defense to defend the new regiment."
"Oh?" Nakazawa Mizuo's expression changed, "Tunnel tactics?"
Before coming to North China, Mitsuo Nakazawa met with the commander of the 10th Division, Jiro Ishikawa.
Ishikawa Jiro spoke highly of the tunnel tactics. When he learned that the First Division would be transferred to North China, Ishikawa Jiro specially reminded Nakazawa Mitsuo to be careful about the Eighth Route Army's tunnel tactics.
Therefore, Mitsuo Nakazawa was deeply impressed by tunnel tactics and studied them.
Moreover, Mitsuo Nakazawa knew that the last time five divisions attacked the Eighth Route Army in northwest Shanxi, the reason why the Eighth Route Army was able to defeat the strong with the weak was related to the use of this tunnel tactic.
While in Manchuria, Mitsuo Nakazawa and Jiro Ishikawa and other officers of the Kwantung Army used weapons to rehearse the battle of the 10th Division's attack on Dagu Town.
The results were surprising. With the Eighth Route Army's artillery firepower crushing, sufficient ammunition, and infantry firepower crushing it, even if it cost 10 times the cost of the Eighth Route Army's defenders, they still could not capture the Dagu Town position.
He thought to himself that Commander Okamura Neiji seemed to be trying to retaliate with others, using a combination of tunnels, bunkers, and gun towers to counter the new regiment.
"That's right, it's exactly tunnel tactics!"
Okamura Neiji raised his head and said:
"I'm not worried about the combat effectiveness of the First Division. The only thing I'm worried about is that the First Division suffered a lot of casualties in the confrontation with the Eighth Route New Regiment."
"The soldiers of the First Division are all warriors of the empire, the elite of the empire."
"Using this tactic can not only effectively curb the development of the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army, but also greatly reduce casualties and kill a large number of the Eighth Route Army's effective forces."
Okamura Neiji was very good at studying tactics. He was also extremely interested in the tunnel tactics used by the Eighth Route Army in northern Shanxi to defeat the Japanese army.
This time, Okamura Ning wants to use magic to defeat magic.
Moreover, Okamura's combat style is bold in decision-making, tenacious and fanatical, which is consistent with the Japanese army's combat style.
This time the main task of the First Division was not to attack but to defend, so Okamura Neji also prepared to use tunnel tactics.
Mitsuo Nakazawa sounded worried: "But in the last battle, the 10th Division also used tunnel tactics but failed. It was defeated one after another under the attack of the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army. Even Major General Saburo Miura was shattered."
"The reason why the 10th Division's tunnel tactics failed." Okamura Neiji pushed up his round glasses and said, "On the one hand, it was due to insufficient experience in tunnel tactics, and on the other hand, there was insufficient time."
"The fully-equipped First Division and the new Eighth Route Army regiment will definitely not be able to defeat it."
"Major General Tadamichi Ribayashi, commander of the 1st Cavalry Brigade of the Mongolian Army, is an expert in tunnel tactics. He will send someone to your 1st Division's Engineer Regiment to provide tactical guidance in this area."
"In addition, I will deploy some steel bars and cement to build more thickened bunkers and gun towers in northwestern Shanxi, and use tunnel tactics to completely block the new regiment."
"Yo Xi!" Mitsuo Nakazawa nodded heavily, "In this way, our First Division will be more confident in trapping the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army."
"It is only temporary to trap the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army. When the locust army frees up its hands, it will definitely eliminate them completely and eliminate them regardless of the cost."
To be continued...