At the 16th Brigade Headquarters in Shangqiu City, everyone had a smile on their face and spoke in a slightly higher tone.
The reason is very simple. The name of the Kwantung Army is so loud that everyone has a stone in their hearts. This battle really boosted the morale of the commanders and soldiers of the 16th Brigade.
Worried that the Japanese army would launch a raid at night, Li Yunlong deliberately moved the dinner time forward. Before dark, the soldiers of the 16th Brigade had dinner.
"Tie Bing, after you finish eating, go and talk to the logistics department. You must add more oil and water to your future meals. Don't be reluctant!"
Li Yunlong paused and then added: "Including the militiamen under the Shangqiu District Committee, food must be provided, don't treat them differently!"
"Brigadier Commander, based on our army's current material reserves in Shangqiu, the food is enough to feed 20,000 people for a month, but if you eat meat, eggs and other food with an open stomach, you can only last for a week!" Xin Tiebing replied.
Li Yunlong glared: "Just follow my orders, and I don't know how many people will die tomorrow!"
"Today is just an appetizer. The Japanese army is not familiar with our situation, so they let us take advantage. As the chief of staff, stay awake at all times and don't let the temporary victory go to your head!"
"Yes!" Xin Tiebing responded.
Yucheng, headquarters of the Hebei, Shandong and Henan Column.
"Commander, the 16th Brigade is calling!" Yang Bo walked in with a telegram.
Zhou Weihan glanced at the time, it was 6:15 in the afternoon, and did not rush to receive the telegram. Instead, he looked around at everyone: "Do you think Li Yunlong sent this telegram to take credit, or to pour out trouble?"
Luo Benzhong looked at the confident look on Zhou Weihan's face and already had a guess in his mind: "I have been working with Lao Li for a long time, and I still know a little about him!"
"Today is the first day of the match between the two sides. According to Lao Li's temperament, even if he suffers a big loss, he will break his teeth and swallow it in his stomach, so he is definitely not here to pour out his bitterness!"
"You have a good idea of Li Yunlong's thoughts!" Zhou Weihan said with a smile, and then Yang Bo nodded.
"In our first confrontation with the enemy, our troops successfully destroyed the enemy's howitzer positions, blew up 37 tanks, and wiped out more than a thousand infantrymen..."
Since the communication was via telegraph, the content was extremely brief, but the reported achievements lifted everyone's spirits.
Zhou Weihan thought a little after hearing this: "Call back to the 16th Brigade. Your unit's victory in the first battle is worthy of congratulations, but you must continue to maintain a calm and calm attitude. You must not blindly counterattack because of the temporary victory!"
"If future battles can separate the Japanese offensive forces from the air defense forces, we can call for air support at any time!"
All current strategic deployments are centered around Shangqiu. Whether the 16th Brigade can hold on in Shangqiu is the key. Zhou Weihan had to give a few more instructions.
"Commander, will there be any setbacks in the raid of the 13th and 14th brigades tonight?" Chief of Staff Zhao Bingzhang reminded.
"Do you think today's confrontation in Shangqiu will alert the Japanese army and strengthen their defenses?"
Zhou Weihan lit a cigarette for himself. He had not thought of this just now. The Japanese army was not a puppet army. Even if they encountered a surprise attack, they would not be defeated at the first touch, and the battle would most likely fall into a stalemate.
Both sides gathered heavy troops, and obtaining battlefield information was the most important. Why did Yamashita Fengwen suffer a loss? Although he had heard many times that the Hebei, Shandong and Yu column was extraordinary, he still thought that the Eighth Route Army was a bumpkin.
Even though they knew that the Eighth Route Army had an established artillery force, they still despised the Eighth Route Army's use of artillery, thinking that the Eighth Route Army's artillery force was not worthy of the spotlight, and ultimately suffered a loss.
At present, the Japanese army has regained control of the railway line from Shangqiu to Xuzhou. During the day, it can detect the movement of Japanese troops through aircraft. However, once it gets dark, the Eighth Route Army cannot figure out the movements of the Japanese army.
The lives and fortunes of tens of thousands of soldiers and the future of the entire Hebei, Shandong, and Henan bases were in Zhou Weihan's hands. He couldn't help but think more about it. Everyone was waiting for Zhou Weihan to make a decision.
Until the cigarette burned out, the burning sensation from his fingers woke Zhou Weihan out of his chaotic thoughts: "The arrow has to be fired when it is on the string. Not only the head of the headquarters, but also the heads of Yanzhou are paying attention to the direction of this battle!"
"The attack order does not change, and the 16th Brigade is called again to use artillery to bombard the Japanese army's position after dark. It is not necessary to cause much damage to the Japanese army, but it must create momentum!"
"In a word, the main force of the Japanese army must not be allowed to transfer in from Shangqiu. We must buy time for the 13th and 14th brigades to annihilate the partial divisions of the Japanese army!"
"yes!"
The battle report of the 16th Brigade's initial victory was reported step by step and soon reached the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army. It happened that the brigade commander came to the headquarters to report on his work.
A group of people were having dinner, and the director of the telecommunications department from the headquarters ran in excitedly, shouting as he ran: "Boss, good news, telegram from the Hebei, Shandong and Henan Military Region!"
As Zhou Weihan said, all forces within and outside the party are paying attention to this battle. The Battle of Longhai will be the support point for the Eighth Route Army's future counterattack. Although many leaders from the headquarters and Yanzhou did not visit the battlefield in person, they were still under considerable pressure.
The boss put down his bowl and chopsticks and took the telegram. After reading the contents of the telegram, he immediately beamed with joy and praised one after another: "Okay, okay, Li Yunlong typed well, take a look!"
"Chen Geng, you brought out a great general!"
The brigade commander felt sour in his stomach when he heard this. He thought that whether it was Li Yunlong's new regiment or Zhou Weihan's new second regiment, they came from behind with their own development and became the face of the 386 brigade.
With these two main regiments, the brigade commander didn't have to worry about it himself, and could harvest a batch of weapons and equipment from time to time. However, the good days did not last long. Not only did the new second regiment set aside the 386th brigade organization, but even Li Yunlong's new regiment
They were all abducted.
Of course, this is the inevitable result of the continuous growth of the Eighth Route Army.
The brigade commander smiled and said: "Boss, you can't praise him too early. This guy Li Yunlong has a lot of clever ideas in fighting, but he also has a lot of shortcomings. Sometimes you praise him a few words, but it doesn't take long for him to stab him!"
"That's not to say that you, Brigadier Chen, love your subordinates and always make mistakes!"
"Hey, I should go back early today. I'll leave as soon as I have dinner!"
Everyone who saw this scene burst into laughter.
"The drama in the Hebei, Shandong and Yu base areas has begun, and other base areas cannot fall behind. Chen Geng, your burden is not light either!"
"The Jinsui Army took the initiative to move south and seems to have the intention of recovering Yuncheng. This is a rare opportunity for your Taiyue Military Region. Although the two sides do not fight jointly, no matter what, the Jinsui Army will contain some Japanese troops!
"It would be great if your troops could achieve something in Zhongtiao Mountain. Of course, the Central Army in the Changjin area will not remain indifferent either. You must take more precautions!"
"I understand!" The brigade commander nodded. He came to the headquarters this time to report the matter in person.