Chapter 420: Great Victory at Zhongtiao Mountain Please subscribe
October 24, 1940.
Under the personal instruction of Jiang, the huge autumn offensive commanded by the commander of the First Theater District came to an end.
The Nationalist Army in Zhongtiao Mountain launched a three-front attack. With the cooperation of Hu Zongnan on the other side of the Yellow River, the Nationalist Army on the western front recaptured Fenglingdu, which was occupied by the Japanese army, and captured Yongji, Yuxiang, Jiexian, Ruicheng, Pinglu,
Xia County and other places destroyed the Japanese Yuncheng Airport.
At the beginning of the battle, the Japanese army concentrated its forces near Yuncheng and heavily protected Anyi County and Wenxi County along the Tongpu Railway going north. The Chinese army could not capture it for a long time, and Japanese reinforcements were close at hand, so they had to retreat in the end.
The Chinese army on the northern line first cleared the Japanese strongholds along Hengyuan Avenue, and then captured Henglingguan, the bridgehead for the Japanese attack in the Zhongtiao Mountain area. The Chinese army on the other line went north to capture the Dongfeng sealing town, and captured Yangcheng in one fell swoop.
The Japanese army finally withdrew towards Qinshui.
The national army on the eastern front captured the important towns of Jiyuan and Mengxian, and then attacked some Japanese strongholds on the Daoqing Railway.
At this point, the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain can be regarded as an unprecedented victory for the Chinese army to regain lost territory since the Anti-Japanese War.
Not only did it expand the strategic depth of the Zhongtiao Mountain area to the north, but it also connected the counties in the southwest of Yuncheng, opening up a channel with Shaanxi Province on the other side of the Yellow River, and to the east it captured two bridgeheads for the Japanese attack on Zhongtiao Mountain.
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The great victory at Zhongtiao Mountain undoubtedly opened up the dilemma for the national army trapped here. From then on, if there were no major mistakes, the national army entrenched in Zhongtiao Mountain could compete to the end.
Once the Japanese army shows signs of fatigue, it can wait for opportunities to launch a counterattack.
After the news reached the rear, Chiang immediately ordered the China Daily and Ta Kung Pao and other private newspapers to publicize it, and for a time the anti-Japanese enthusiasm of the people across the country surged.
Jiang was even touted by China Daily as a military strategist with strategic vision.
There are many reasons for the great victory at Zhongtiao Mountain.
As for the Japanese army, various units of the Japanese 41st Division in Changzhi, east of Zhongtiao Mountain, were annihilated by the Eighth Route Army one after another. The main force of the 37th Division in Yuncheng, in the west, was deployed to encircle and suppress the Eighth Route Army troops, and the force was at an extremely weak stage.
As for the National Army, Jiang knew that the National Army needed a victory to boost morale and silence some of the capitulationists within the army.
The combat order was suddenly issued, and the combat plan was formulated in a hurry. The Chinese troops participating in the war were not prepared in advance. Correspondingly, the arrogant Japanese army did not expect that the Chinese army would take the initiative to launch an attack.
As for the national army trapped in Zhongtiao Mountain, some of the national army generals had foresight in military strategy and understood that this was an excellent opportunity to counterattack and regain lost ground.
Under Jiang's strong pressure, all the ministries in Zhongtiao Mountain were placed under the command of the chief of the guard. The officers and subordinates of each department no longer preserved their strength. The soldiers fought against the odds and achieved the great victory in Zhongtiao Mountain today.
In the battle within the territory of Changzi, with the addition of the 8th Preparatory Division of the Central Army, with the combined efforts of the Eighth Route Army in the north, the Central Army in the east, and the Shanxi-Sui Army in the south, they launched an offensive from three sides. The Japanese Independent Tenth Mixed Brigade
With nearly half of the main force suffering casualties, more than a thousand Japanese troops were routed to Anze in the west.
At this point, the Japanese army's large-scale mopping up plan against the Eighth Route Army base areas was shattered, and they lost ground one after another.
The words are divided into two parts.
During the past few days of the battle between the Chinese army and the Japanese army, Zhou Weihan led his troops to stay in Pingshun. The battle was over, but there were countless tasks that needed to be sorted out.
Taking advantage of this gap, the 28th Regiment was in Ludongnan, the 2nd Regiment was in Pingshun, and the guerrilla brigade led by Zhang Hao was in Linbei, and they successively carried out encirclement and suppression of the remaining Japanese and puppet forces in the territory.
The three counties are completely connected. On the surface, there are neither Japanese forces nor traces of the National Army in the territory, and they have completely become the base of the Eighth Route Army.
Inside the headquarters, Xing Zhiguo is reporting on today's work progress.
"Old Xing, I hear what you mean. The 22nd Regiment can't go back, and the organization has been divided into the Taihang Military Region?" Zhou Weihan was slightly surprised after hearing this.
"Ding Wei's telegram said that the 22nd Regiment is responsible for northwest Lu, northwest Li and other places. Lao Zhou, don't have any ideas!"
"What can I have in mind? The 22nd Regiment is an old unit led by me, and Liu Tianming is my old partner. It's good to have someone to look after me if we are next to each other!" Zhou Weihan shook his head and said.
This kind of troop mobilization is normal within the Eighth Route Army. The headquarters and division heads must consider the overall situation. From a grand strategic point of view, the Japanese army's defense is empty. At this time, a main force regiment is really needed to occupy the northwest of Lu and the northwest of Li.
Ding Wei's 28th Regiment and Li Yunlong's New Regiment were separated from the two places by the Han Chang Highway. Zhou Weihan and Xing Zhiguo discussed this. It would be easy to capture the two places, but the defense areas of the two regiments could easily be divided into east and west parts.
, this is a taboo for military strategists.
The Japanese army's defeat in the Changzhi area was only temporary, and they would definitely march along the Handan-Changchang Highway in the future. In this way, the New Regiment and the 28th Regiment would easily become living targets in front of the 27th Army.
How could Zhou Weihan do such a loss-making business?
Therefore, Zhou Weihan ordered that the 28th Regiment and the New Regiment only occupy the towns in southeastern Ludong and southeastern Li, far away from the county seat and highway lines.
"What happened to Li Yunlong?" Zhou Weihan asked.
"After the new regiment returned to southeastern Lebanon yesterday, today it will launch a clearing campaign against the remaining Japanese and puppet forces in the surrounding area. It won't be long before good news comes!"
"Old Li is really a hard worker. The new regiment has fought enough this time, but the casualties are not small!"
"The Fourth Regiment has already resettled the people who migrated from Changzhi!" Xing Zhiguo said one after another.
"That's good. Since all the preparations are almost the same, I will go to the headquarters tomorrow and report the frontline defense plan to the chief. Lao Xing, you stay and take charge of the land reform work in each county!" Zhou Weihan finally said.
The Tainan Military Region's battle around Changzhi had brilliant results, but the casualties of each regiment were also high.
Among them, Li Yunlong's new regiment suffered the most heavy casualties, including the bloody battle at Weizi Town, the blocking battle on the Handan-Chang Highway, the annihilation of the Japanese transport troops on the middle road, and the blocking battle on the Lintun Highway.
In just a few days, the new regiment fought in many places.
The new regiment originally had four full-strength main battalions, one under-strength five-battalion, plus the teams directly under the regiment headquarters, totaling more than 3,000 soldiers.
Before the war, Li Yunlong was very arrogant among the regiment commanders in the Taihang base area, and every regiment commander would brag about him when he met him.
However, after the war, there were no major casualties except for the four battalions that stayed in northwest Lebanon and cooperated with the special agent regiment to guard the arsenal.
More than half of the participating battalions suffered casualties. According to the casualty statistics reported by the new regiment, there were more than 800 sacrificed soldiers and more than 300 lightly wounded.
Within the independent detachment, apart from the Li Dabeng garrison that participated in the battle in Lijiagou earlier, the cavalry regiment suffered the most heavy casualties.
The casualties of the cavalry regiment were mainly concentrated in the melee at Weizi Town and the Battle of Tunliu. There were more than 800 people before the war, but only just over 400 remained after the war.
The casualties of the remaining regiments were within controllable limits.