Facing the menacing Japanese army, Zhou Weihan naturally did not dare to take it lightly.
Therefore, the two main regiments of the First Regiment and the Third Regiment of the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Region and the two mountain artillery batteries of the artillery battalion directly under the military region were transferred to Tainan by Zhou Weihan.
When the troops were transiting through Ci County, they were worried about the change in attitude of the local Japanese troops with whom they had a good relationship, so the troops took advantage of the darkness of night to pass through various strongholds in Ci County in batches.
At the same time, after the commander of the First War Zone convened a combat meeting with all ministers, the Hu Zongnan First Army located in southern Shaanxi quickly moved westward to reinforce the Zhongtiao Mountain area.
In order to ensure the security of Changzhi on the flank in the Zhongtiao Mountain area, the First Theater Command mobilized the 47th Army of the 36th Group Army of the Sichuan Army stationed along the line from Xin'an to Tongguan, led by patriotic general Li Jiayu to go north.
The old man personally ordered the 13th Army, a direct line of Tang Enbo's 31st Group Army stationed in Nanyang, to go north for reinforcements.
July 9, 1941.
More than 10,000 Kwantung Army troops arrived at Handan in military trains, accompanied by more than a dozen heavy artillery pieces brought from Peiping.
Handan train station outside the city.
Terauchi Isamu had already received orders from Okamura Neiji, so naturally he did not dare to neglect and went to the train station to greet him personally. A group of Japanese officers who came down from the military column were headed by a major general, and the rest were with the rank of young left-winger and middle-lefting officer.
"Imada-kun, welcome to Handan, I have prepared a banquet for you!" Terauchi Isamu said enthusiastically.
The Japanese army has a strict hierarchy. In terms of seniority, the Kwantung Army is the boss. In addition, this time it was because the North China Expeditionary Force failed to fight well that the Japanese base camp sent the Kwantung Army into the country. Therefore, all the Kwantung Army officers were very arrogant.
The two men had similar military ranks and positions. Yukio Imada was the commander of the infantry regiment of the 29th Division of the Kwantung Army. Faced with Isamu Terauchi's humble and humble attitude, Yukio Imada showed a smile of satisfaction on his face.
"Terauchi-kun, I heard General Gangcun say before in Peiping that there is an independent detachment of the Eighth Route Army in your defense area. They are extremely arrogant. They have fought against the imperial army many times and even captured the city of Handan. I wonder if this is true.
What's the matter?" I don't know how Imada Yukio's brain circuit is developed. They say that hitting someone will not slap someone in the face, and scolding someone will not expose their shortcomings. However, Imada Yukio exposed the shortcomings of Terauchi Isamu in just one sentence.
After hearing this, Terauchi Yong gritted his molars, but he did not dare to complain at all, and explained in a grumpy voice: "It is true that this happened, but it happened before I took office!
"
"Don't worry, after we capture Changzhi and deal with the national troops in Zhongtiao Mountain, the surrounding Eighth Route Army will be the next target. All the Eighth Route Army troops around Changzhi will be wiped out by the imperial army's front!" Yukio Imada was arrogant.
He said, and the Japanese officers accompanying him all agreed, completely ignoring the host Isamu Terauchi.
After the reception banquet that day, Si Nai Yong thought about it and felt that he couldn't swallow it.
According to the order given to him by Neji Okamura, after the war, the first group of the Kwantung Army will be organized into an independent mixed brigade to be stationed in Changzhi. The remaining brigades will concentrate on encircling and suppressing the Eighth Route Army in Tainan, and then station in batches.
In the surrounding counties of Tainan.
Okamura Neiji gave a death order, and his purpose was very obvious. Isamu Terauchi wanted to hand over the control of the 104th Brigade in Tainan.
Over the past year or so, Terauchi Yong has made a lot of money, and he just wants to take it when he sees fit. Originally, Teraui Yong had already compromised and was planning to give up his business in Tainan, target Jinan as his next sales channel, and start a new business.
However, Yukio Imada's behavior made Isamu Terauchi instantly feel unbalanced.
Isamu Terauchi was hiding alone in the house, thinking over and over again, thinking about something that happened during the day, and he became so evil that he decided to give Imada Yukio some color.
Immediately, Temple Yong made a direct call to Zhou Weihan's office in Yamawang Mountain. At the same time, Zhou Weihan and others were still following the interception plan against the Japanese army, and all the regiment leaders were present.
Everyone present was a heavy smoker, and the conference room was filled with smoke.
"We have an advantage in fighting in Tainan. The Handan-Changchun Highway is winding and long, and there are many places suitable for ambush. It gives us ample room to display. The soldiers are familiar with the terrain and can give full play to their advantages!"
"I suggest that we first send a small group of troops to test the quality of this group of Kwantung Army, and a large number of blocking troops will block them one by one along the Handan-Changchun Highway!" said the chief of staff, Xing Zhiguo.
Zhou Weihan nodded after hearing this: "Well, if you are not familiar with it, you have to try it first, but the troops are divided into two areas or even three areas to fight!"
"Furthermore, the combat order issued by the headquarters this time is to block the Japanese army at all costs and wait for an opportunity to annihilate one or two Japanese brigades. The blocking along the way is not painful to the tens of thousands of Kwantung Army, and the blocking troops may even accidentally kill
You will be made into dumplings!”
As Zhou Weihan spoke, he reached out and pinched the empty cigarette box on the table. Seeing this, Li Daben quickly took out an unopened box of cigarettes from his pocket.
"Captain, our cigarette factory produces it, it tastes pretty good, you can try it!"
Zhou Weihan looked at the Tainan brand cigarettes written on the cigarette box, glanced at Li Dajing, and couldn't help but said: "You are the first to get the most from the water, and you usually hide private goods, right?"
"No way, even if I usually go to the abacus to get some, there is a fixed amount!" Li Da capable explained.
Zhou Weihan didn't say much when he saw this. In short, the army managed the cigarette factory distributed across the street, and it was normal for internal supply.
"Come on, you two should try it too!" Zhou Weihan first took one in his mouth, and then walked around in the direction of Jing Dagang and Wu Qin.
"Go on, let's talk about the three combat areas. The first combat area will be in Wu'an and Shexian County. Our Tainan Military Region has a deep foundation in these two counties. At the same time, it has sufficient strategic depth from south to north!"
"There are many Japanese soldiers and the march will be long, which gives us a chance!"
"Li Daji, your fifth regiment will fire the first shot in Wu'an territory, and wait for an opportunity to lure a Japanese army to break away from the main force and move towards Wuyi territory. The first and third regiments will choose favorable terrain to launch an ambush and eat this group of Japanese troops!" Zhou Weihan
said.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "Shen Fang, the Shexian County Cadre Group is located south of Shexian County, in the Xiangtangpu area!"
"Yes!" Shen Fang stood up and responded.
"What about our 29th regiment?"
"Lao Guo, your 29th Regiment will follow the headquarters and act as a reserve. If the 1st Regiment or the 3rd Regiment becomes anxious, the 29th Regiment will be there at any time!"
As soon as Zhou Weihan said these words, Guo Huaiwu was immediately satisfied.
"Ding Wei, Lucheng, and Licheng are the second areas, which are under your full command. In addition to your 281st regiment, the first division's core regiment, the 22nd regiment directly under the division headquarters will cooperate with you!"
"Xu Dali, the troops of the second division must be the final mobile force to launch a flank attack in the north of Changzhi when the Japanese army attacks Changzhi! The supplementary regiment must leave a part to monitor the movements of the Japanese troops in Anyang at all times!"
As soon as Zhou Weihan finished speaking, a phone rang suddenly, and Zhao Gang on the side reminded: "Old Zhou, this is the phone number in your office!"
"I'll answer the phone, you continue!"
After Zhou Weihan finished speaking, he walked quickly to the office. Looking at the phone that was still ringing in front of him, Zhou Weihan was not in a hurry to answer it. Instead, he was thinking about the purpose of Terauchi Yong's call.
"Hey, are you the Lord of the Temple?" Zhou Weihan asked tentatively.
"Mr. Zhou, it's me!" said Isamu Terauchi on the other end of the phone.
"Haha, Terauchi-kun, we haven't seen each other for a long time, and we haven't talked on the phone for a long time!"
"Well, Zhou Jun, you know that I'm so busy with affairs that I can't do anything about it!"
In the initial exchange of greetings, the two of them had their own plans, and there was inevitably a hint of embarrassment in their words.
"Mr. Zhou, I have important information to reveal to you. General Gangcun has deployed thirteen infantry brigades from outside the Pass to capture Changzhi!"
"I already know the situation!"
"You know?" Terauchi was stunned.
"Of course, our Eighth Route Army intelligence officers are not just for show!"
"Then do you know that General Gangcun has strengthened a heavy artillery regiment for these guys from outside the customs?"
"What? Heavy Artillery Regiment?"
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Weihan's heart was still ups and downs. After returning to the conference room, Zhao Gang and others were also shocked when they heard the news.
"It seems that this time the little devil is really determined to take down Changzhi in one fell swoop, even using heavy artillery?" Zhao Gang said with a frown.
"Twelve Type 96 150mm howitzers and twelve Type 92 105mm cannons!" Zhou Weihan said slowly.
Japanese artillery can be roughly divided into four categories: operational suppression artillery, tactical suppression artillery, battlefield support artillery, and infantry accompanying artillery.
The Japanese army's campaign-level artillery organization mainly consisted of field heavy artillery brigades under the "army". Before the July 7th Incident, the Japanese army had already established five heavy artillery brigades, four of which were immediately deployed on the Chinese battlefield.
tomato
For example, when Central China dispatched troops to attack Jinling, it had the 5th and 6th Heavy Artillery Brigades under its command.
Each heavy artillery brigade has two heavy artillery regiments, equipped with 36 Taisho 7-type 150mm heavy cannons, 20 Type 90 240mm heavy cannons, and 12 Type 96 150mm heavy howitzers. Some heavy artillery brigades
It is also equipped with 6 Type 98 320mm mortars.
The 2nd Heavy Artillery Brigade assigned to the North China Expeditionary Force was originally under the jurisdiction of the First Army, but was later transferred to the direct jurisdiction of the Front Army. The Japanese army has never used campaign-level artillery easily.
The reason is very simple. The Japanese army's tactical-level artillery organization, that is, the division-affiliated artillery regiment or the independent artillery regiment, is sufficient to cope with the large-scale battles that occurred on the Chinese battlefield, and formed an overwhelming advantage over the National Army and the Eighth Route Army.
"The total combat weight of the Japanese Type 96 150mm caliber howitzer is as high as 4.1 tons, and each shell weighs 31.1 kilograms. The 105mm caliber cannon is also bulky. It is also very difficult for such a heavy artillery to be towed by multiple mules and horses.
Yes, you basically need to use a special artillery tractor!"
"We can barely drive along the Handan-Changchang Highway. Once the Japanese army starts to pursue us and is led into the trail, let alone whether the tractor can walk. Even if it can walk, it is not as flexible as two legs. Although the 105 mm caliber cannon
The range is as high as 18 kilometers, but our ambush position is bound to be surrounded by mountains. Heavy artillery is far inferior to infantry artillery. Mountain artillery is easy to use!
"Chen Feng on the side obviously has a deep understanding of Japanese artillery.
Zhou Weihan nodded after hearing this. This is also the reason why the Tainan Military Region rarely uses two 105 howitzers. Before each use, the marching route must be planned in advance.
Faced with emergencies, the Japanese army obviously did not have such conditions.
"So, each front-line ambush unit must be flexible, not to fight with the Japanese army, and use the mobility of both legs to score points!"
"The Japanese army will rest in Handan for two days and send out troops early on the 12th. We don't have much time left, so prepare now!" Zhou Weihan finally said.
After the meeting, Zhao Gang had someone report the information obtained from Terauchi Yonna to the Eighth Route Army headquarters.
When I came back, I saw that Zhou Weihan was still sitting on the stool in the conference room, thinking about it.
"What are you thinking about? Let me guess, are you thinking about these heavy artillery pieces of the Japanese army?" Zhao Gang said with a smile.
Zhou Weihan did not reply directly, but said to himself: "Actually, we still have an advantage. These thirteen Kwantung Army brigades were drawn from different divisions and are not familiar with each other. Although they are nominally under the command of a major general-level officer,
, but the little devil’s bad temper will never convince each other, and there will even be quarrels between two adjacent divisions. This is our opportunity!"
"Well, what you said makes sense!" Zhao Gang first expressed his agreement, and then continued: "The atmosphere of the meeting just now was not very good. You put too much pressure on the comrades. It is not a good thing for a commander to go to the battlefield with a burden on his heart.
!”
"After all, we are just playing supporting roles. It is the National Army that is fighting the Japanese army head-on, so compared to the National Army, the pressure on our Tainan Military Region is much less!" Zhao Gang comforted.
"To be honest, I'm not worried about our troops. If we can't fight, we will withdraw. The troops will not collapse anyway. The national army in the Changzhi area is different. Take the 27th Army as an example. The Japanese heavy artillery regiment has been shelling several rounds.
Come down, can the defenders withstand it?"
"There is also the New Fifth Army in Lingchuan. To say it is a regular army is to promote Sun Dianying. It is just a bunch of rabble. If the Japanese army puts some pressure, I am afraid..." Zhou Weihan said and shook his head.
The topic became a little heavy for a while, and both Zhou Weihan and Zhao Gang fell silent.
Today, although the National Army has deployed five armies in the Changzhi area, including two direct line armies of the Central Army, especially the Thirteenth Army, Tang Enbo's fortune army, is not weak in combat effectiveness, and its weapons and equipment are almost the same as those of the Japanese army.
However, based on the past performance of the National Army, Zhou Weihan could not see the slightest hope that the National Army would win in the Changzhi area. After all, only a short time had passed since the Battle of Xingkou.
"I would say you are thinking too far. Just take it one step at a time. Our war with the Japanese army will be a protracted war!" Zhao Gang said.
"Old Zhao, this time we fight the Japanese army, the casualties among the soldiers are small. Please communicate with Wang Ying and organize the local armed forces and militia to do auxiliary work. The stretcher team must transport the wounded down the line of fire as soon as possible!" Zhou Weihan