Ishii Haraichi is a general whom Yoshio Shinozuka, commander of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi, values very much.
The elite of the Ishii Regiment is no less impressive than the Sakata Regiment that fought in the Battle of Cangyunling that day.
...Anyway, that’s what Japanese commander Haraichi Ishii thinks.
Naturally, he would not admit that the troops he commanded were inferior to those commanded by Nobutetsu Sakata.
But in fact it is still different.
The Bantian Regiment in the Battle of Cangyunling that day belonged to the Japanese Fourth Brigade, and this Japanese Fourth Brigade belonged to the Japanese Second Division, which was the brigade under the Sendai Division.
The order of battle of the Japanese invaders, from the 1st to the 20th division, all belonged to Category A divisions, which were the strongest combat divisions of the Japanese army.
In other words, the Sakata Regiment is indeed an elite Japanese army, and it is the combat force of the Class A Division.
As for the Ishii regiment in front of us, it is part of the combat unit of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi.
The Japanese First Army in Shanxi is still quite strong so far.
There are also the 36th Division, the 37th Division, the 41st Division, which are independently mixed into the 3rd Brigade, independently mixed into the 4th Brigade, independently mixed into the 9th Brigade, and independently mixed into the 3rd Brigade.
The 16th Brigade and other departments, in addition to a large number of directly affiliated and affiliated troops.
The total strength exceeds 100,000.
This is also the reason why the First Army is able to maintain public security throughout Shanxi and also launch large-scale raids on the Eighth Route Army base areas in the occupied areas from time to time.
As for the Japanese 21st Division to the 49th Division, these divisions all belong to Category B divisions.
The Ishii Regiment is a combat regiment under the 36th Division of the First Army.
As far as firepower configuration is concerned.
As Shinozuka Yoshio's favorite player, Ishii United is no less impressive than Sakata United.
In addition to the infantry brigade under its jurisdiction, the Ishii Regiment also has an artillery squadron directly under its jurisdiction, equipped with four 75mm mountain cannons, four 37mm rapid-fire artillery, and six Type 92 infantry cannons.
A machine gun squadron carries more than thirty heavy machine guns.
In addition, each of the three brigades under its jurisdiction also has an artillery squad equipped with two 70mm Type 92 infantry cannons. Each squad is equipped with two light machine guns and two grenade launchers.
The entire regiment can be said to be armed to the teeth.
If Yoshio Shinozuka hadn't considered that starting with the Ishii Regiment's destruction of the Independent Regiment, and then launching a large-scale sweep of the Eighth Route Army in the Taihang Base before planning for the Shannan Campaign, the previous actions should not be too large, and the Ishii Regiment would even be equipped this time.
Part of the tank unit.
Finally, Haraichi Ishii said:
Our unit and the special agent team fought together to eliminate a small independent regiment of the Eighth Route Army. We should put weapons like tanks into the follow-up sweeps!
Xicun, Zhangjiazhuang, and Niukou Village are located in mountainous areas and do not belong to plain terrain. In fact, it is not easy to launch a tank offensive.
In addition, Ishii Haraichi and Sakata Nobutetsu have some connections. Ishii Haraichi has never believed that his regiment is inferior to Sakata Regiment, even though Sakata Regiment is an elite force affiliated with the Class A Division.
He believed that the Sakata Regiment was able to win consecutive battles and achieve fruitful results in its initial battle against the Chinese army simply because those who were closer to the water were the first to win.
In frontal battles with the national army, the Ishii regiment has not had many opportunities to participate.
In this way, Ishii Haraichi originally thought that he had no chance to prove that his team was no worse than Sakata United.
Then the bad news of the Battle of Cangyunling came.
The wisest Colonel Sakata was actually killed by Tubalu with one shot.
Even the Bantian Regiment was defeated by the joint efforts of Tubal Road and Jinsui Army.
In the Battle of Cangyunling, after the news of the disastrous defeat of the Bantian Regiment came back, the First Army was shocked.
The Japanese army couldn't believe it. The dignified Sakata Regiment, the elite unit of the Class A Division, was the flower of the Imperial Army. Commander Sakata was a general who had experienced hundreds of battles. His military literacy and practical experience were all among the Japanese military officers.
There are elites.
How could such an imperial force be defeated by a mere Tuba Road?
The Japanese army mostly believed that General Sakata made a mistake because of his own mistakes, which led to the regiment's disastrous defeat.
Then, Kong Jie, the leader of a small independent regiment of the Eighth Route Army, jumped out and slapped the Japanese army hard in the face.
It started to emerge from the Battle of Cangyunling.
Then they used cavalry to surprise Qu County, which was a shocking move.
Later, they captured the Yangquan stronghold, defeated the Yamamoto special forces many times, blew up the Mingbao Airport, destroyed the Yamazaki Brigade, went straight to the security army arsenal, triggered a wave of robbery, and destroyed the surrender of the 251st Regiment...
One after another, one by one, the Independent Regiment of the Eighth Route Army quickly rose to prominence. At the same time, it also made the Japanese army realize that the defeat of the Sakata Regiment in Cangyunling might not be accidental.
This small independent regiment of the Eighth Route Army has shown considerable tenacity, tenacity, and unexpected combat effectiveness and destructive power.
As Yamamoto Kazuki often said, little people change the situation of the war. A small independent group almost triggered subtle changes in the entire confrontation between China and Japan in Shanxi...
Under the torment of the Independent Regiment of the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese army that was originally targeted by the front and destroyed everything seemed to be less terrifying in the eyes of all forces.
Until this time, Ishiihara realized that his biggest opportunity had come.
The Eighth Route Army Independent Regiment, which killed the Bantian Regiment Headquarters, defeated the Bantian Regiment, and struggled all the way until now, has become the focus of the entire northwestern Shanxi Province, as well as its commander Kong Jie.
This has undoubtedly become a thorn in the side of the Japanese army.
As long as the independent group still exists, Kong Jie will still exist.
The humiliation of Sakata United's disastrous defeat is still fresh in my mind.
Qu County was attacked, the Yamazaki Brigade was destroyed, and the airport was bombed. It seems like yesterday.
At this juncture, if Ishii Haraichi can lead his troops, he will annihilate the Independent Regiment of the Eighth Route Army in one fell swoop and eliminate Kong Jie, the leader of the independent regiment.
Then the Eighth Route Army Independent Regiment, all its dazzling glory for more than half a year, can only become a stepping stone for the rise of Ishii Regiment, adding luster to Ishii Regiment's fame.
Therefore, when Shinozuka Yoshio gave the order for the Ishii Regiment to join forces with the Special Agents this time to destroy the Independence Regiment in one fell swoop.
Even Haraichi Ishii, who has a calm personality, was so excited that he didn't fall asleep completely until late at night.
This is the best opportunity for his Ishii United team to become famous in one battle, and even surpass the glory of Sakata United team that day.
If this battle can be won successfully, Ishii Haraichi can fully predict how much glory will come to him.
……
Ishii Haraichi, who was leading the team, was a little distracted for a while thinking about these problems. It was not until the sky turned white that he woke up.
Ishiihara calmed down, called his adjutant, and ordered: "Inform the two captains that although the team walking in front are wearing the uniforms of Imperial soldiers, in fact, the ones who are going to perform for the Eighth Route Army who are secretly investigating are Imperial soldiers.
Xie Jun’s true identity.”
"So try to follow the pace of the Imperial Army, and don't move too neatly."
"Hi!"
After the adjutant went to make arrangements, Ishii Haraichi continued to check for leaks and fill in the vacancies. This involved whether he could win the greatest honor of a soldier in battle, and he did not dare to be careless at all.
In order to achieve the purpose of paralyzing the judgment of the Eighth Route Army.
For the troops heading to Nishimura on the other side, Ishii Haraichi even ordered a few trucks to follow behind the troops.
He also deliberately dragged an infantry gun on the back of the truck.
It seems that they want to tell the Eighth Route Army secretly that our trucks are full of artillery!
And how could a force with such a large number of artillery be a feint attack force?
As for the attack on Zhangjiazhuang led by Ishii Haraichi.
Ishii Haraichi made a special arrangement to put the troops carrying light weapons at the front, while the heavy weapons were hidden at the rear of the team. As for the artillery, they were not even brought at all, but were hidden in the follow-up trucks.
After Ishii Haraichi and his team approached Zhangjiazhuang, the transport trucks quickly departed from the nearest stronghold and arrived to deliver the artillery needed for the battle...