(It’s Chinese New Year, it’s Chinese New Year, Lao Du is here to wish you all a Happy New Year, may everything go well, be healthy, have a good wallet, may the whole family be happy, congratulations,,)
Okamura Neiji originally thought that Ouyang Yun's big fanfare in Anqing was just to use offense to replace defense and completely destroy the imperial army's previous strategic layout. However, when the news of the destruction of Anqing Airport came, he realized that the emotional people The ultimate destination is Anqing Airport and the Second Aviation Corps. The Second Aviation Corps was originally Okamura Neji's trump card against the cadet army. Now this trump card is suddenly gone. The old Japanese is anxious and angry, and he even wants to vomit blood.
The Yangtze River water below Madang Fortress is completely owned by the Japanese. The Yangtze River Fleet, the Second, Third, and Fourth Fleets have completely blocked the Yangtze River from Madang down. In this case, the Xuebing Army wants to Crossing the river was actually quite dangerous, but they were well prepared and took advantage of the opportunity to cross the Yangtze River when the Yangtze Fleet left the water in Anqing. In this way, they actually succeeded in crossing the river.
Bad news came one after another. A quarter of an hour after Tokugawa Yoshitoshi's telegram was sent, the Japanese army at Dawang Temple sent another telegram, saying that a large number of Chinese tanks were found southwest of Dawang Temple. Accordingly, the defenders of Dawang Temple learned that He deduced that the Xuebing Army's combat operation against Anqing was long-planned and had a major strategic purpose. He once again requested support and hoped to temporarily retreat to Anqing City and defend the city.
After reading this telegram, the muscles on Okamura Neiji's cheeks were beating non-stop. At that moment, he had the intention of drawing a sword and killing people. Now, he finally knew why Ouyang Yun wanted to destroy the Second Aviation Regiment at all costs. Because the more than 200 fighter planes of the Second Aviation Corps were the biggest threat to its tank troops, I still underestimated Ouyang Yun and the Xuebing Army. I originally thought that one regiment would be enough to defend Anqing Airport. , who knew that Ouyang Yun would dispatch three divisions at once in order to achieve his goal? Ouyang Yun was ruthless, even though he knew that Madang was far more important than Anqing, even if he knew that this would allow him to quickly seize it. Madang had no chance, but he still wanted to sneak attack Anqing and destroy the fighter plane that was the most threatening to the tank troops.
Okamura Neiji always thought that the rapid rise of the Xuebing Army was due to luck, but now he had to admit that although Ouyang Yun was still a young boy, he saw the overall situation and thought further than himself. The soldiers are indeed very difficult to deal with.
Because of the emergence of this latest situation, and considering that the Second Army currently does not have the corresponding arms that can compete with the Xuebing Army's tank troops, Okamura Neji had to re-examine Ouyang Yun's strategic intentions. He couldn't help but ask himself: The Chinese What do they want to do? Is the Xuebing Army's attack on Anqing really just to destroy the Second Air Corps? No, if this is really their purpose, sending out two divisions at most is enough. So, what is their real purpose?
For the Battle of Hankou, Anqing's strategic position was not important. However, as a lesson from past history, Okamura Neiji did not dare to draw any conclusions. After Anqing Airport was destroyed, it would no longer make sense to shrink the defense. However, Taking into account the large military strength of the Xuebing army and the fact that Dawang Temple is not a particularly dangerous terrain, the Japanese army's choice seemed a bit difficult. Should they continue to shrink or even abandon Anqing directly, or stand firm and wait for reinforcements, Okamura Neiji could not make up his mind for a while. , the Xuebing Army tank unit was the last to cross the river, but was the first to successfully cross the river. Since this amphibious tank successfully landed, even if the Yangtze River Fleet arrived immediately, it could only look at the shore and sigh.
Although the Japanese base camp deliberately concealed it, Okamura Neiji still heard many times about the brilliant achievements of the military tanks against the imperial tank troops. He realized that once the military tanks participated in the battle, So there is no doubt about the outcome of the Battle of Anqing. Ouyang Yunxia's move seems to have been carefully planned, so he has a complete grasp of the situation of the Anqing defenders. At this time, if he wants to support the defenders of Dawangmiao, he will definitely It's too late, but now there is still a problem, that is, the defenders at the airport, what should they do?
"Sir, what should we do now?" a staff officer asked,
Okamura Neji looked at the map with a tense face, feeling more and more that Anqing was not a simple place. He really couldn't figure out what Ouyang Yun wanted to do in Anqing, and it gave him a headache. In the end, he simply gave up. He thought to himself, it doesn't matter what you do. What, I just have to do my best, so he suddenly said: "Telegram Zhongdao Qingcun and ask him to carefully check the situation of the Chinese Army in Hukou immediately. If what I expected is correct, the Chinese Army is doing something in Hukou." All the actions he took should be illusions."
"Hai, sir, what should we do in Anqing?"
"Instruct all front-line combat troops to hold on and buy time for the aviation troops of the Second Aviation Regiment to retreat safely."
Once the order to stick to it was issued, it would also be a death sentence for the five Japanese troops in Anqing. At this time, although the Japanese army had not yet invented the cruel special attack tactics, because the highest state of the bushido spirit advocated by the Japanese was the fearlessness of life and death, Therefore, if the Japanese army in Anqing resolutely carried out the order and defended it, the entire army would be wiped out.
The communications staff officer on duty went to execute the order. The remaining Japanese officers looked at me and I looked at you, their hearts hanging on their heads at the same time. They were all undoubtedly shocked by this cruel order. If it were the Chinese from other factions who were attacking Anqing now. They may not be so worried about the army, but now their opponent is the Xuebing Army. Although the Japanese are unwilling to admit it, in the minds of most people, the Xuebing Army has become a taboo term. A topic that they don’t want to touch on. In fact, many Japanese people can’t understand why the Xuebing Army, which looks no different from other Chinese armies, fights so fiercely. Why does the Imperial Army, which has been victorious in China, fail to do so? What is the hurdle of learning from the army?
Okamura Neiji decided the fate of the Japanese army in Anqing with one word. He had no mercy at all. The reply from the 106th Division had not yet been sent, but he had already begun to mobilize troops to resume the offensive against Pengze this morning. , His reason is this: Xuebing Army raided Anqing with three divisions, and Peng Ze only has two divisions left. We now have a total of three and a half divisions, and more than a hundred battleships of the Yangtze River Fleet. , If we attack Madang and Hukou at the same time, we can definitely defeat them in one go. As long as Madang is captured, even if the Xuebing Army's troops in Jiangbei gain a firm foothold, there is only one fate waiting for them, and that is to be surrounded and annihilated. Jun, the Imperial Army has failed too many times at the hands of the Xuebing Army. Now, it’s up to us...
Mobilizing the direct subordinates of the headquarters, Okamura Neiji and the division commander of the 11th Division Yamamuro Sotake, the division commander of the 106th Division Nakajima Seimura, and the division commander of the 112th Division Yamada Joji and Kobayashi, the captain of the Botian detachment, called each other and asked them to devote themselves to the Pengze battle with great enthusiasm. They must seize this opportunity to seize the Madang Fortress in one fell swoop and fully grasp the initiative in the Hankou battle. What happened to Nakajima Qingcun? He didn't believe it when he heard that the Xuebing Army was using troops aggressively against Anqing, because according to his estimate, there were nearly two divisions of the Xuebing Army in Hukou. If the Xuebing Army sent out three divisions to sneak attack Anqing, then Madang would be Is there no guard power left?
"This is exactly what I suspected, so I asked you to investigate carefully. However, according to my estimation, the student army in Hukou will not exceed one division at most. The extra division is most likely set up by Ouyang Yun. Suspect, Nakajima, I know you have a nickname called 'Long Island Fox'. Now, please use the cleverness of 'Long Island Fox' to help the imperial army seize Madang. Can you do it?"
Okamura Neji didn't care at all about Nakajima Seimura's false report of military information, but instead entrusted him with the important task sincerely. The latter was immediately moved and bowed repeatedly on the other end of the phone, while expressing his determination: "Your Excellency, I have failed to live up to your expectations. , but please believe that I will faithfully implement your orders and strive to capture Hukou within two days. Your Excellency, please wait for the good news from our 106th Division."
Okamura Neiji hung up Nakajima's phone, sat and thought for a while, then called Hata Shunroku, briefly describing his combat plan, and adding a postscript at the end of the plan: "Once our army captures Madang, then The student army in Anqing will become a lone army. If your Excellency, General, wants to completely eliminate this army of students, you can dispatch your troops now."
Shunroku Hata was the commander-in-chief, not the chief officer, so the time to get the latest information from the front line was relatively short. It was not until 6:30 in the morning that he received the telegram forwarded by Tokugawa Yoshitoshi. When he learned that Anqing Airport was attacked by the Xuebing Army It was destroyed and almost all the fighter planes of the Second Air Corps were destroyed. The responsibility was naturally attributed to Neiji Okamura. He believed that it was because he was too conceited that it led to the current consequences, "How many times have I told him Now, the Xuebing Army is not easy to mess with. He must be careful and careful, but what has he done?" He complained when talking to the commander of the Kwantung Army, Umezu Yoshijiro, that the base camp let Okamura Neiji serve as the commander-in-chief. The commander of the 2nd Army is really unclear about his appointment.
Umezu Yoshijiro had dealt with the Xuebing Army and Ouyang Yun for many years, and was disgraced every time. Naturally, he was deeply impressed by the Xuebing Army. He immediately gave Hata Shun six instructions: "Sneak attack on the airport with a small group of elite troops is the right thing to do." It is the specialty of the Xuebing Army, the fang of the Xuebing Army, but it is no weaker than the military police force of the Imperial Army's most elite Guards Division. Old friend, listen to me, the most correct thing to do now is to avoid its sharp edge, and then Let the Xuebing Army extend the front and then slowly plan it. If the Xuebing Army does not follow and pursue it, it means that their target is the airport. In that way, you can capture Anqing at the minimum cost."
Shunroku Hata and Yoshijiro Umezu are good friends. The latter has accumulated considerable experience in many battles with the Xuebing Army. Shunroku Hata called him to inform him of the matter with the intention of asking him for advice. Hearing what he said, I thought carefully about the map for a while and decided to follow his advice.