Having said this, the commander thought for a while and said: "Among the three troops of our army currently in Western Manchuria, it seems that Wang Guangyu's unit is fighting alone and is the unit farthest from the rear, but in fact , the Japanese army knew very well that Wang Guangyu’s troops were the most difficult to attack. In addition to equipment and combat effectiveness, they had an innate advantage in fighting with Outer Mongolia on their back."
"Once the combat situation is unfavorable, they can retreat to Outer Mongolia to rest and recuperate at any time, or withdraw to their base areas through Outer Mongolia. Unless the Japanese army wants to completely break up with the Soviet Union, they cannot enter Outer Mongolia to fight. In addition to the shortcomings in supply, they actually We are in an ideal position where we can advance, attack, retreat and defend.”
"But all their operational intentions are achieved with the actions of Du Kaishan in the north and Chen Hanzhang in the northeast. With the support of these two units, the main force of the Kwantung Army cannot go all out to reinforce the Linxi front line. No one, especially Du Kaishan's troops, can turn a blind eye to such a force that can go south at any time."
"But for now, compared to Du Kaishan's headquarters who are still on the line between Nanxing'an and Wangye Temple, the focus of the entire Western Manchuria battlefield and the one that provides the greatest support to Wang Guangyu is Chen Hanzhang's headquarters. If they are surrounded by the Japanese army, Wang Guangyu's department has truly lost a strong support."
"Although the advancing army headquarters is the least well-equipped among the three rings, once the Japanese army is besieged on all sides, our army can withdraw to the south of the Great Wall at any time. In terms of the combat expertise of the Guanneri troops, even if the Japanese army completes the attack on our army, Being surrounded on all sides, it will be difficult for the Japanese army to capture the main force of our army."
"It seems that Chen Hanzhang's unit, which among the three units has the closest connection with the main force and the base area, is actually the unit that is most likely to be captured by them. Whether Chen Hanzhang's unit will be stuck by the Japanese army is not a very important thing. The most important thing is that there is too much space behind them, and a considerable gap has been opened between them and your troops in Nong'an."
"I took a look at your entire battlefield situation. It seems to be in full bloom, but the focus is still on Western Manchuria and Northern Manchuria. As you said, the troops east of Xinjing only serve to attract and disperse Japanese troops. However, the troops north of Xinjing are currently entangled and are actually unable to move westward. Du Kaishan's troops behind them are held back by the 71st Division. Once they break into the Tongliao line, their supply lines will be It will be extremely long and will all be exposed to the Japanese army."
"Chen Hanzhang's unit is highly mechanized, and all of them are automatic weapons. This kind of equipment does have a firepower advantage in combating Japan, but on the other hand, it has high requirements on the safety of the supply line. Once the supply line is cut off, the entire unit will be destroyed. It will lose all combat effectiveness. At this time, it should be the time for the Japanese army to counterattack with all its strength. Their real target should not be Ma Chunsheng's headquarters north of Xinjing."
"As for the bombing plan they came up with, I feel that it is indeed a practical operation, but it should be more to attract the attention of our army and draw our army's main attention in the direction of North Manchuria to cover their real attack. For the purpose of combat, the Japanese army deployed several divisions south of Xinjing, relying on the advantages of the railway, which made it very convenient to carry out counterattacks either in the direction of Western Manchuria or north of Xinjing."
The commander stopped talking when he said this. He looked at the dark mountains outside the car and pondered for a long time. It was not until the car stopped that he raised his head and seemed to be asking Yang Zhen, but in fact he was asking himself: " You said that the significance of Xinjing to the Kwantung Army is only superficial. Have we overestimated the importance of Xinjing to the Kwantung Army?"
"Except for Xinjing, which is a transportation hub in the Zhongmanchu area, but it is not irreplaceable, the rest is at most a symbol of the Kwantung Army's rule of the Northeast. If our army poses a real threat to Xinjing, then the Japanese army will really defend it This city has invested too much troops."
"The Japanese have always been very shrewd in their calculations. They would invest so much troops and equipment for a city that is not irreplaceable. They would even invest most of the Kwantung Army in it. Although Xinjing is a transportation hub in the Central Manchuria area, hub, but if Ximan is lost, the importance of this transportation hub will be greatly reduced."
"There are other direct railway lines from Dongman to Fengtian. In addition, Siping south of Xinjing can completely replace Xinjing's function. The railway from Siping to Meihekou, as well as the Fenghai Railway and Jihai Railway can completely replace Xinjing. Regarding the railway transportation from Beijing to Tumen, unless you seize Jilin and completely cut off the Japanese army’s railway transportation to East Manchuria, the Japanese army can completely replace the original railway line through Xinjing through other directions.”
"As a symbol of the Kwantung Army's rule in the Northeast, the loss of Xinjing also means the defeat of the Kwantung Army's rule in the Northeast. This is probably just wishful thinking on our part. For the Japanese army, for an isolated city with almost no danger to defend, Moreover, the city is not irreplaceable. It is not worthwhile to pay such a high price and tie down a large number of troops. Therefore, the Japanese army mobilized this division to enter Xinjing. I think you should carefully consider their true intentions."
"And your deployment, I can't understand it now. With your ability, you can't see the danger Chen Hanzhang is in. If your intention for this battle is just to use a quick word, that is, When you say you want to end the war in Western Manchuria before the Japanese army figures out our army's true combat intentions, your way of thinking is not that simple, and your vision is even less likely to be so short-sighted."
"You have been dealing with the Kwantung Army for so many years, and you are still very clear about the combat effectiveness of the Japanese army. It is impossible to place all your hopes on a quick victory and defend Qian'an to Qianguo with less than two regiments of troops. , the Changling line is such a long distance, and with your ability you shouldn’t make such a mistake.”
"No matter how strong the combat effectiveness of these two regiments is, it is impossible to defend such a long defense line. If you want to protect the security of Chen Hanzhang's entire rear route, you must at least deploy two divisions on the Qian'an line. In this way, you Only in the two directions of Xinjing's true north and northwest can we form a whole, instead of fighting separately like now."
"And now that the main force of the 71st Division has been wiped out and the remaining troops are no longer hindering the overall situation, you have not moved Du Kaishan's troops southward, but have allowed them to do nothing on the line from Ulan Hada to Wangye Temple. Could it be that you deliberately set this trap for the Japanese army? The emptiness behind Chen Hanzhang's troops is an illusion you deliberately created."
Hearing the commander's question, Yang Zhen did not answer him immediately, but smiled and got out of the car. He asked the combat staff to take out a map from the backpack behind him, opened it, and asked those around him, including Zhang Zixiong, to turn the lanterns to the brightest , after placing it on a stone by the roadside, all the guards including it stepped back before opening the map in their hands.
After opening the map, Yang Zhen pointed to the front line of Qian'an and said: "What the old leader said is right. I did set a trap for the Japanese army on the front line of Qian'an. Although this weak point was not left intentionally by us, it is indeed We plan to use this place to set a trap for the Japanese army."
"Chen Hanzhang's troops went south with all their strength, but our troops made slow progress on the Nongan front line that originally protected their flanks. Although the Japanese troops have been compressed to the junction of Xingjing, Changling, and Nongan, they were unable to immediately go south to seize Changling, and Although the Japanese army did not invest the main force in this direction, they relied on the continuous reinforcements from Xinjing and resisted tenaciously. Under such circumstances, the gap can be said to be unintentional and became wider and wider."
"In other words, the gap behind Chen Hanzhang was not formed consciously, but was opened unintentionally during the battle. From Umezu Yoshijiro's perspective, he would not fail to see this gap. For the Kwantung Army, , this is an obvious loophole. Judging from the capabilities of the Japanese commanders at all levels, they will not fail to seize this opportunity."
"But for the Japanese commanders, this gap is not big enough. This is because Ma Chunsheng's troops have already reached Jiutai, which is very close to Xinjing, and the Japanese troops in Nong'an and eastern Changling have not shrunk their forces and will stand out. The main reason why our troops have withdrawn and are still resisting desperately."
"For the Japanese army, Changling and the Nong'an line are the most important barriers to the west of Xinjing. If Changling is lost, the Japanese army will have no danger to defend west of Xinjing. If our army is determined to capture Xinjing, it can directly If they want to defend Xinjing, they must defend the Changling line to the death."
"In addition to this reason, they are also consciously holding back our troops in this direction, preventing them from going south, protecting Chen Hanzhang's flanks, and further widening the distance between Chen Hanzhang's troops and other troops to ensure that they Counterattack can be successful in one go."
"We discovered this problem as early as when the progress in the Nong'an direction was slow. The reason why it has not been solved is to lure the main force of the Japanese army, which has been slow to move after the battle started, to come forward. The Japanese army is now heavily concentrated south of Xinjing. The long and medium-sized railway line remains motionless, which is like a thorn in our backs."
"The two regiments protecting Chen Hanzhang's retreat are both upgraded from the original local armed forces. Not only are their forces far weaker than the Japanese troops who may counterattack, but they are also troops drawn from the reserve force. Although these two regiments are not poorly equipped, , all have a full set of Polish-made weapons, but the new troops, not only lack heavy equipment, but also seriously lack combat experience."
"Furthermore, after the lessons learned from last year's battle, no matter which direction the Japanese army launches a counterattack, they will no longer disperse their operations. They will concentrate their forces in one direction, that is, choose our seven-inch all-out counterattack. Chen Hanzhang's troops and our troops around Xinjing will The distance between the army and the army is getting wider and wider, which undoubtedly gives them this rare opportunity."
"When I'm fighting, I don't always like to passively respond to battles. For me, instead of passively waiting for the Japanese army to take action, it's better to choose a direction to proactively fight and give them a big blow. Since we have been exposed on the battlefield, There is a loophole, so why not take advantage of it."
"It's just that when placing this bait, you must carefully consider it. The weight cannot be too light. If it is too light, the Japanese army will not be willing to spend money. The concealment and timing must be chosen correctly. Otherwise, the Japanese army's sense of smell will not detect any abnormalities. Come, so after discovering this gap, we secretly adjusted our deployment."
"An armored brigade, a cavalry brigade, plus a fully motorized reinforced infantry division, plus the encirclement of Chen Hanzhang's troops, may cause a subsequent chain reaction. The weight of this bait is enough for the Japanese army to be fooled. With the Japanese army I will never turn a blind eye to this vulnerability."
"Just as the old leader said, if Chen Hanzhang's troops are encircled, our army's entire campaign in Western Manchuria will be a complete failure, especially Wang Guangyu's troops who broke in alone. Once the Japanese army takes advantage of Chen Hanzhang's troops and loses their ability to respond, Under the full counterattack of the Japanese army, it would be very difficult to escape unscathed, so I say that this bait is heavy enough."