Only compared to the base camp that was trying every means to raise reinforcements for the North China Front. At this time, all the aviation department, tanks, anti-tank guns, 80% of the heavy artillery troops, and almost all the mobile forces of the Chinese dispatched troops had been exhausted.
, even if they tried their best to squeeze out some troops and barely mobilized four infantry brigades, they were no longer able to mobilize any reinforcements to Okamura Neiji and Lieutenant General Uchiyama Eitaro.
Unless the more fertile occupied areas in Central China and East China are abandoned, the Chinese dispatched troops are really powerless at the moment. In order to rescue the currently collapsed North China Front Army, the dispatched troops have repeatedly asked the base camp to abandon Shanxi and withdraw the First Army to
Hebei joins the war.
Although the dispatched troops were reluctant to make this decision. However, when the battle reached this situation, the headquarters of the dispatched troops, which had lost much confidence, had to consider the worst. First, the battlefield in central Hebei was in urgent need of reinforcements.
Even if the two divisions arrive in Jizhong safely and smoothly, they may not be able to turn the tide of the war.
Under such unfavorable conditions on the battlefield, if more reinforcements are invested, the certainty will naturally be greater. Moreover, the Japanese army has always been a gambler. They will not bow their heads easily unless they lose all their capital. With this kind of character
Therefore, on the battlefield, it is natural for Han Xin to have more troops, the better.
As for whether all the capital will be lost, that is another matter. What if more troops are invested, maybe the war situation can be saved? Anyway, the First Army is in a very bad situation now. Instead of being short of food and ammunition on the Shanxi battlefield,
If it's such a waste, it's better to mobilize to the Hebei battlefield to strengthen the strength of the Hebei battlefield.
Another one is probably related to the entire North China war situation. If the Jizhong battle fails, the entire Hebei will be lost. The First Army, which is already surrounded by enemies on three sides, will become a lone army hanging behind the enemy.
Could it be that the Japanese army has become a piece of meat for the Chinese army?
Rather than taking the risk of losing the entire First Army to save face, it is better to withdraw it to the battlefield in Hebei and increase the number of troops invested in the direction of Jizhong. Once the First Army can successfully evacuate Shanxi, it will leave from southeastern Shanxi
Taihang Mountain, when the time comes, the communist army on the battlefield in Hebei will be in a situation of being attacked from both sides.
By then, the development of the entire war situation would actually be beneficial to the Japanese army. After weighing the pros and cons, the Chinese dispatched troops finally chose to abandon Shanxi and withdraw the entire First Army to the Hebei battlefield. Although this decision was difficult, the current situation worsened
The speed was so fast that Shunroku Hata had to carefully consider whether there was much significance in the First Army staying in Shanxi.
After several studies by General Hata Toshiro and the Chief of Staff, they finally chose to evacuate most of the First Army in order to ensure control of the Taiyuan and Shotai Railways to contain the Shanxi Communist Army and the Chongqing Army and advance eastward.
Shanxi. Considering that the entire First Army was also facing the same difficult situation, the dispatched army headquarters in Nanjing even proposed a plan.
The base camp, which also could not mobilize many reinforcements, finally lowered its head and approved all the plans to dispatch troops. It ordered all the units of the First Army stationed in Shanxi to abandon the entire Shanxi except the Zhengtai Railway from Taiyuan to Shimen.
All control areas.
Including the various divisions stationed in Yuncheng and southern Shanxi, the entire army took alternate cover to forcibly break away from the entanglement of the Communist forces in the Shanxi battlefield, and fully evacuated to northern Hebei and southern Hebei. After completing the reinforcements, it entered the battlefield in central Hebei. As for the specific evacuation methods
, formulated by the North China Front Army and the First Army.
All the overseas Chinese in Shanxi were temporarily concentrated in Taiyuan and Yangquan. After the battle, they gradually evacuated to other directions. However, although the base camp agreed to Hata Shunroku's request, it also made a clear request that Shanxi must not be handed over.
Give it to the Communist Army, let alone the Central Army in Chongqing.
After receiving the secret order from the base camp, the commander of the First Army, Lieutenant General Yoshimoto Teiichi, breathed a sigh of relief and immediately sent a senior combat staff officer to secretly contact and negotiate with the Second Theater. The Second Theater must ensure that the Second Theater
Once the First Army safely withdraws from Shanxi, the First Army can transfer all its current control areas except Taiyuan to the Second Theater.
But he also warned the Shanxi king in the World War II zone that after the First Army completed its contraction and evacuated, except for southern Shanxi, only his Shanxi-Sui Army was allowed to be stationed in the rest of Shanxi, and Chongqing's Central Army was not allowed to be stationed.
At the same time, the World War II zone must cooperate with the actions of the First Army so that it can get rid of the endless entanglement of the Communist army and complete the contraction and transfer of the entire army.
And ensure that after the main force of the First Army withdraws from Shanxi, Taiyuan and Zhengtai Road will not be attacked. And ensure that the Zhengtai Railway will not be attacked after the main force of the First Army withdraws from Shanxi. If the Second Theater allows the Central Army to enter, Japan will
The army will regard it as a breach of contract and reserve the right to attack.
The man who regarded the army as his life, even though he had taken a large amount of equipment, still did not want to take action in order to preserve the little strength he had left. At the moment, Chongqing was repeatedly demanding that he counterattack the southeast of Shanxi, and he was having a headache.
The King of Shanxi was indeed ecstatic at first about this pie falling from the sky.
The Japanese army proposed to withdraw on its own initiative and transfer its control areas in southern Shanxi, southwestern Shanxi, and northern Shanxi back to its World War II area. For him, it was a great blessing to be able to restore his original territory without losing strength.
.Although Taiyuan is still under its control, after all, most of the territory has returned to its own hands.
This not only reduces the pressure on Chongqing, but most importantly, it can also restore his territory. With the territory, he is now quite dilapidated. Although the entire army still has eight army numbers, its strength is no longer less than twelve.
The Jinsui Army, which numbered ten thousand, had a chance to regain its strength. At least the replenishment of troops and funds no longer had to depend on Chongqing's face.
Since the fall of most of Shanxi, the once glorious Shanxi-Sui Army has become an old lady celebrating the New Year, and every year is worse than the previous year. It has lost its main territory, and only the Shanxi-Sui Army in the southwestern corner of Shanxi is left. Although light weapons and ammunition are
Relying on a batch of machines and raw materials rushed out before the fall of Taiyuan, we can barely sustain ourselves for the time being.
However, it lost its main territory and the Taiyuan Arsenal, which was once the largest arsenal in the country. For soldiers, funds, and main ammunition replenishment, we can only rely on Chongqing, which is not very reliable. Although Chongqing is not as stuck as the motley army without a backing
It's great. But it's also intermittent and it never meets the demand.
The most important thing is whether people want to give it or not. If they don't give it, they just stare and do nothing. The Jinsui Army, which suffered heavy losses after several battles, has never been able to recover. It turns out that the artillery, which is one of the best in the country, also lost sufficient supplies of artillery shells.
Part of it became a decoration for the ears of the deaf.
The king of Shanxi became angry when he mentioned the replenishment of soldiers and equipment. Only a little more than half of the equipment promised by Chongqing for this battle was delivered. Some of the promised beautiful weapons were missing and were all Italian goods. The ammunition was replenished.
Only one-third of the promised quantity has been given, and the rest has been delayed again and again. As for the recruitment of new recruits, there has been no sign of it so far.
At present, two elites of the Central Army in the Eighth War Zone have entered Shanxi, and one army has been stationed opposite Fenglingdu along the Yellow River. However, after entering the defense area of the World War II Zone in southwest Shanxi, it has not taken any action. This approach of Chongqing
, which made this wily and scheming former King of Shanxi very wary.
The Central Army entered its only territory in southwestern Shanxi and put on such a posture. Is this for fighting or for supervising the war? At present, the strength of the Jinsui Army is greatly damaged, and it is also severely divided and disintegrated by Chongqing. What if?
The Central Army attacked him, but he had no power to fight back.
The Japanese army proposed to retreat without fighting at this time, which was undoubtedly taking advantage of his heart. If the Japanese army withdraws and hands over its original defense area to itself, then it will also have an excuse to prevent the Central Army's follow-up troops from entering Shanxi. Shanxi is the second
Since the battle has not started on the territory of the theater, the Central Army of the Eighth Theater naturally has no excuse to stay on the territory of the World War II area.
But let him send troops deep into Changzhi in southeastern Shanxi, as well as southern Shanxi and northern Shanxi to escort the Japanese troops to evacuate.
Going down to the Shanxi battlefield situation, fishing in troubled waters and reaping the benefits, he was quite reluctant and cautious.
The current situation on the Shanxi battlefield is that the Japanese army is fighting fiercely with the Eighth Route Army around various strongholds in Shanxi and on both sides of the railway lines. The Japanese army's strength on the Shanxi battlefield is divided into pieces by the troops of the 18th Group Army who have changed their equipment.
.Cooperating with the Japanese army to fight at this time is undoubtedly a move to stir up a hornet's nest.
Not only would the Communist Army not let him go, but they would also find an excuse for Chongqing to deal with itself. The highest authority in Chongqing, the enemy in his eyes, was not only the Japanese and Communist armies, but also local powerful factions like himself. If the Eighth Route Army
The Central Army who entered the Jin Dynasty in the war zone dealt with themselves in the name of traitors. The Jinsui Army, currently short of major generals, did not have much room to fight back.
The most critical thing is that there was a conflict with the Communist Army at this time. Even the most well-equipped Northeastern Communist Army was entangled in the battlefield in central Hebei and could not move westward. In Shanxi alone, the equipment was equally well-equipped. In the past, their equipment
Worse, when they were short of guns and ammunition, their Jinsui Army was no match. Now that they have changed their equipment, I am afraid that I am even less of a match.
If both he and the Communist army lose, and the Japanese break the contract as quickly as turning a page in a book, what can he do to them? Not only will his strength be damaged, but also all parties will completely extend their hands into the remaining territory of Shanxi.
Opportunity. Moreover, he also gained the reputation of being a traitor by engaging in friction and cooperating with the Japanese army in combat.
The king of Shanxi, who was born in a pawnshop owner's family, thought that if he agreed to the Japanese army's conditions, he would probably lose more than he gained, so he clearly refused the request to assist the First Army in evacuating. He only agreed that if the First Army evacuated from Shanxi
, his World War II zone will definitely not fish in troubled waters at this time. Obviously, he does not want to wade into this troubled water.
Not only did he reject the request of the First Army, but he also ordered the Central Army of the Eighth Theater Command to enter Shanxi in the name of the commander-in-chief of the World War II Zone to immediately launch an attack on the enemies of Yuncheng. And he mobilized two armies to take advantage of the Shanxi battlefield that was already underway.
It became like a pot of porridge, and they kept testing the South-Tongpu Railway.
But he also gave an order to his two confidant commanders: once the Japanese army blocked the attack, they must not easily fight the enemy. The most important thing was to preserve the vitality of the Jinsui Army. At the same time, try not to cooperate with Shanxi as much as possible.
If there is a conflict between the army and the army, you must not get into trouble. The Central Army must be used, but it must be guarded against.
What he is thinking more about now is how to take advantage of the current situation on the battlefield in Shanxi, including the situation after the Central Army joins, and he can take advantage of the situation. For him, the Japanese army in Shanxi, the Communist army, and the Central Army joining Shanxi
, it doesn’t matter who wins in the end. But after such a big battle, it will inevitably lead to a loss for all three parties. I can just take the opportunity to restore the territory and replenish a certain amount of strength.