At dusk, the three main divisions of the Eighth Army, Li Pinxian, Ye Qi, and He Jian, under the command of the commander, General Tang Shengzhi, broke through the loose defense line of the defenders in the direction of Yueyang, and forced the defenders to evacuate Xiangyin without any fierce fighting.
, escaped across the Miluo River, and organized defenses from Chutang to Tianjing on the north bank.
An Yi's Second Division was stationed in the small town of Gupei, a few kilometers behind the main force of the Eighth Army. After dinner, the division commander Liu She convened his subordinates to discuss the war situation and deduce the situation.
An Yi and Yin Jinan led several brothers from the third company and the third platoon to the headquarters in advance. Based on the map and auxiliary information provided by Chief of Staff Hu Shusen, they quickly made a two-meter-square sand table to deploy the terrain and troops of Yueyang and its surrounding areas.
Express it intuitively.
Sand table production is one of the basic training subjects for the platoon leader of Anyi's third company squad. With detailed information, he is naturally familiar with the road and progresses quickly. It only took thirty-five minutes to complete the strategic points and areas within the 80 kilometers east, west, north, south, and south of Yueyang.
The military situation was displayed, and the 800-mile Dongting Lake to the west of Yueyang was also vividly represented by Cai Guangqing, the leader of the third platoon, with a piece of blue homespun cloth.
The generals of the Second Division gathered around the sand table and sighed. An Yi, who was quite satisfied, saw that his work was done, so he reported back to Hu Shusen and led the brothers back to their station.
As soon as he walked out of the headquarters yard, An Yi was caught up and stopped by Liu She's adjutant, saying that the division chief and chief of staff ordered An Yi and Yin Jinan to attend the seminar.
An Yi asked Cai Guangqing to bring the brothers back. After the explanation was completed, he and Yin Jinan returned to the sand table again. They thought that such a good opportunity should not be missed. At least they could learn about the unfolding of the entire battle situation through the seminar, and they felt confident.
.
Chief of Staff Hu Shusen began his speech at Liu She's signal. He picked up a wooden stick more than one meter long and just pointed it at the sand table when he heard An Yi's low voice reminding him. Only then did he remember that the sand table, which was mainly made of lime paste, was not dry.
, smiled slightly and began to explain:
"Due to the rapid action of the Seventh Army and the Fourth Army on the right wing of our Central Route Army, they have already pressed to the south of the enemy's defense line of more than 80 kilometers in the Pingjiang-Wukou section, leaving the enemy's Hubei Song Dapei 1st Division and Yu Yinsen's 10th
The Seven Mixed Brigades, defeated by the 1st and 4th Divisions of Ye Kaixin's Hunan Army in Changsha, and Wu Peifu's Hunan-Hubei Border Defense Forces, formed huge pressure, forcing the enemy to place the center of gravity of the battlefield on the north bank of the Miluo River, using the trenches built in half a month.
Bunkers, barbed wire and other tight fortifications confront our army on both sides of the Miluo River. Below, we will mainly discuss the battle situation of our left column and predict and deduce the full-line offensive that will launch at dawn tomorrow. First, let me introduce to you our current situation.
The corresponding situation between the enemy and ourselves..."
Hu Shusen explained in great detail, and more than twenty generals and commanders were listening attentively. How could An Yi and Yin Jinan, who were passionate about this, give up this rare opportunity?
After listening to Hu Shusen's explanation, the two people immediately made quick calculations in their minds, compared the opinions of the regiment and battalion commanders with their own ideas, and repeated the calculations without pausing for a second.
Half an hour later, the division commander Liu She summarized everyone's opinions: "Very good, most of the opinions are very insightful. Now I will summarize the basic consensus. As everyone said, once the general offensive is launched, the enemy on the opposite side of our army will
Unable to withstand the numerous and highly motivated officers and men of the Eighth Army, especially now that the water conditions of the Miluo River are very favorable to me. Most sections of the river can be forded across the river without building bridges. The enemy's defense line on the north bank is too long and full of loopholes.
The main force of the army was mobilized to Yueyang the day before yesterday in an attempt to defend this important town. As long as our army breaks through a little bit, the enemy's army will be shaken across the board, and the Eighth Army can pursue it bravely without giving the defender a chance to breathe. According to the military meeting between me and General Tang Shengzhi
After the conversation, we learned that the Eighth Army was indeed as we expected. As soon as it broke through the Miluo River defense line, it would immediately advance. The first, second and third divisions of the Eighth Army respectively arrived at Nangang in the south of Yueyang City and the Jinfeng Bridge line in the east. Liu Xing's No. 1
More than 8,000 officers and soldiers of the Fourth Division penetrated Meixi north of Yueyang, trying to cut off the retreat of the enemy defenders in Yueyang in one fell swoop. Yueyang City was open on three sides, with one side covered by water. Seeing that the enemy's retreat route was cut off, the defenders would definitely lose their morale. There was no other way but to surrender. In addition, Yueyang City was open on three sides, with one side covered by water.
An important reason is that most of the enemies defending Yueyang are the Hunan Army, and General Tang Shengzhi has sent people to sneak into Yueyang to secretly recruit surrender. Therefore, the battle at Yueyang is almost a victory. Now let’s discuss how our two divisions should coordinate, feel free to say whatever you want.”
Jiang Dingwen laughed: "Master, everyone, I'm afraid General Tang Shengzhi no longer needs our cooperation. Please see, the enemy in front of our left column is about three divisions, and the enemy in Yueyang City is about four divisions. In addition, we are afraid of revolution.
If the local powerful armed forces scrape together two divisions and a total of 50,000 people become a turtle in the urn, even if half of the dead and wounded escape, the remaining half will still be two armies! On the other hand, our army has just over 10,000 officers and soldiers.
Half of them are still led by Commander He and remain on the front line of the Fujian-Guangdong border. The First Division is still guarding the headquarters in Changsha. Our Second Division begged my grandfather and grandma to supplement it all the way. So far, it has barely reached 4,000 officers and soldiers. If the Yueyang Battle cannot seize the opportunity, it will be over.
If it is possible to expand our strength, wouldn’t we miss a good opportunity?”
All the generals and commanders echoed this, demanding that we follow up closely to capture more prisoners and do everything possible to strengthen our revolutionary power.
An Yi and Yin Jinan looked at each other and smiled. They both knew what all the eldest brothers were thinking, which was to expand their strength and replenish personnel as soon as possible. As long as the number of people reached a certain level, each eldest brother would be promoted to the next level, the battalion commander would become the regiment commander, and the regiment commander would be promoted.
Teacher, this inducement is much more realistic than any revolutionary principles or great ideals. But everyone tacitly understands this, and all they talk about is "the need for revolution" and other grand slogans, each shouting louder than the other.
Liu She, Hu Shusen, Xu Tingyao and others looked at each other and smiled. Hu Shusen stretched out his hands to signal everyone to be quiet:
"We understand your mood. Tonight's seminar has ended. The teacher will telegraph your opinions to the Commander-in-Chief. Please feel free to go back and prepare yourself and wait for the next instructions."
"yes!"
The generals quickly left the headquarters. An Yi and Yin Jinan ran away as soon as they were discharged from the hospital. The company headquarters back to the east immediately got into the tent. Under the organization of Huzi, all the squad and platoon leaders had started a discussion around the sand table on the ground. Brother
When they saw An Yi come back, they all stood up.
An Yi told everyone to feel free, looked at the sand table and turned to Cai Guangqing: "Guangqing did a good job. This sand table is exactly the same as the one at the division headquarters. None of us can match your memory."
"It's all the result of the joint efforts of several brothers. Besides, it's very simple to repeat it just after we finished it for the division. In more than a month, we have done fifty-seven such sandboxes and we are all proficient." The smart Cai Guangqingle
Hehehe smiled.
"Okay! Brothers, let me repeat to you the main content and plan of the seminar just now..."
An Yi briefly explained the opinions of the generals and the officers at the meeting, and then raised the wooden stick next to him and pointed it at Yue Yang:
"It seems that the defenders can't escape. Based on my understanding of Tang Shengzhi, this person will never be willing to let a single soldier fall into the hands of our Second Division, let alone weapons and ammunition. And I heard that the Eighth Army's staff officer
Liu Wendao is not good at fighting, but he is a master at conspiracy. Liu Wendao, who is mostly bald on his forehead, graduated from the first class of Baoding Military Academy. Our teachers have to call him "senior brother" when we see him. Moreover, this man even traveled east to Japan.
, obtained a diploma in political economics from Waseda University in Tokyo, and obtained a doctorate in law from the University of Paris in France. When he came back, he became the governor of Hunan Province, Gao Shen. He definitely belongs to the category of extremely smart people. It's not easy! I guess he was recruited secretly.
The ideas and actions of the Yueyang garrison were planned by this person, and I also think that as long as the Eighth Army progresses smoothly, our Second Division may not even be able to take a sip of soup."
"What should we do?" Second Platoon Leader Chen Kan asked anxiously.
An Yi smiled bitterly: "If there is a way, why are you in such a hurry? Everyone, I estimate that tomorrow the divisions of our division will be closely behind the divisions of the Eighth Army. Look at the sand table, the first division of the Eighth Army is here...here is me
The Fourth Army Regiment... I can’t believe it. His Eighth Army can do a perfect job in such a high-speed pursuit! There must be fish that slip through the net and things that cannot be taken into account! I wonder if you have ever seen fishing? Those who have never seen it before
The fish that jump out of the big net and the fish that hide under the net against the mud or the river bed are often the cunning big fish or the most powerful fish. Catching a few of these fish is more valuable than several baskets of fish in the net.
It’s worth it, it all depends on our abilities. I can’t think of any good way now. Everyone talks and brainstorms. I always believe that the wisdom of brothers is infinite..."
At dawn the next day, the general offensive across the entire front started as scheduled. The battle situation in the left column was exactly as expected by the generals of the Second Division. After two hours of fierce fighting, the enemy defenders on the north bank were finally unable to stop the crazy attack of the Eighth Army soldiers. Ye Qi's division took the lead in breaking through.
The enemy defense line occupied the north bank position. The enemy troops were shaken across the board, and then fled in panic towards Yueyang. The divisions of the Eighth Army pursued them without making any stops, but never forgot to leave one unit behind to clean the battlefield, and followed them closely.
The troops of the Second Division were very depressed, watching helplessly as they happily packed up all the light and heavy weapons abandoned by the enemy and occupied them. Thousands of hopeful officers and soldiers had nowhere to vent their grievances and had to obey the order of the former enemy commander-in-chief General Tang Shengzhi to bury them.
The corpses of our and enemy officers and soldiers killed in battle.
The next two days were the same. The main force of the Second Division was extremely disappointed. Even An Yi and his brothers from the Third Company, who were fully prepared to formulate various response plans, found nothing. They followed the Eighth Army in frustration and
Yueyang City is surrounded on three sides.
What puzzled the general of the Second Division was that no attack was launched for two consecutive days of siege. Liu Zhi and others asked Tang Shengzhi, who patiently and kindly explained: Yueyang ancient city has many scenic spots, and the children of Xiaoxiang cannot bear to be destroyed in one day. They are ashamed of their hometown.
Intense surrender negotiations are in progress, and a breakthrough has been achieved. Taking Yueyang with one shot is just around the corner!
At this time, the good news from the right column came like a snowflake:
The Fourth Army broke through the 30-kilometer defense line of the Miluo River in one fell swoop, occupied Pingjiang, and was pursuing a rapid northward pursuit. The Seventh Army's four brigades, including Li Mingrui and Hu Zongduo, commanded by General Li Zongren, forcibly crossed the Miluo River from Huashitan and occupied Zhangjiapai and
On the Wukou front line, nearly 10,000 enemy troops were eliminated and captured, and countless artillery pieces, light and heavy weapons were seized. The main force of the Seventh Army was pursuing a large number of defeated troops who had fled into the northern mountains.
Just when the soldiers of the Second Division of the First Army were impatient, General Tang Shengzhi suddenly issued an order for a full-scale attack on the city. After a sparse round of gunfire, all three divisions of the Yueyang City garrison surrendered to the Eighth Army.
After raising the flag of Tang Shengzhi, they transformed themselves into a revolutionary army. Only the Second Division of the Hunan Army, which was loyal to Wu Peifu, fought desperately to break out of the encirclement and fled to the northeast.
At this point, the war in Yueyang was completely over. Although General Tang Shengzhi did not fire a single shot, he gained the most. General Tang quickly reported the good news to the Changsha headquarters and asked for credit. At the same time, he went to the city to patrol around the city to comfort him and accepted the praises of the Yueyang gentry and celebrities from all walks of life.
He expressed his love for him, and then with a stroke of his pen, he distributed huge rewards to the divisions under his command and the newly attached ministries. For a time, the whole army congratulated him in a scene of joy.
An Yi, who was eleven kilometers outside the east city, looked at the map in frustration and said to his brothers: "Grandma's Tang Shengzhi is not as stingy as an iron rooster. He doesn't even shake out a hair. It's amazing!"
Yin Jinan didn't seem to hear An Yi's words. He pointed to the right army's attack route on the map and said to An Yi:
"Brother, look, General Li Zongren is amazing. Not only is his progress rapid, but his results are brilliant. Although his officers and soldiers are small and thin, they all come from the mountainous Guangxi. Walking on mountain roads is like walking on flat ground. The enemy troops who fled into the mountains may not be saved. Still.
Huang Qixiang and Ye Ting of the Fourth Army have already reached this position. Look... they have crossed the mountainous and hilly areas and entered a relatively gentle area. Looking at the current momentum, the Fourth and Seventh Army are simply fighting like crazy. I estimate that within two days
We will attack the line from Xianning to Zhaojiaqiao."
"Yes, the 4th and 7th armies are indeed brave. It is not surprising at all with their tyrannical fighting power."
Huzi nodded, agreeing with Yin Jinan's analysis.
An Yi looked at the smile in Yin Jinan's eyes and suddenly realized: "My Japanese ancestors... No wonder why I said the Eighth Army did not attack the city for two days and took Yueyang but did not follow up. It turned out that they wanted to wait for the command of General Li Zongren
The 4th and 7th armies arrived south of Zhaojiaqiao and cut off the retreat of more than 30,000 enemy troops from Yueyang to Yanglousi, so that they could catch turtles and pick peaches in a bigger jar... Excellent! A master among masters..."
"Report: It was discovered that a large number of enemy troops were fleeing toward the Shiwan Reservoir in the northeast, about 4,000 people, in a chaotic formation. Strangely, there were no pursuers." Su Tieming, squad leader of the fifth platoon, came to report.
An Yi was overjoyed: "Tietou, can you see clearly?"
"Our observation post in Beigao had a clear view. It was only about two kilometers away from our company. I guess it was the defeated army that had escaped from Yueyang City, because I didn't see them carrying heavy weapons, and they seemed to be relatively tired."
Tietou answered affirmatively.
An Yi ordered loudly: "Jinan, leave three rows to look after the house, and assemble the team immediately! Huzi and I will go and have a look. I don't believe that this division can slip out of our hands!"
"yes!"
In the division headquarters two kilometers southeast, Liu She and other generals were in a low mood, sighing and cursing that Tang Shengzhi was nothing, and even Yueyang wouldn't let us get close.
Just hearing the rapid sound of horse hoofbeats, everyone stopped talking and looked out the window. An Yi and Hu Hu had already strode forward.
"Division seat, four kilometers to the northeast, a group of about 4,000 defeated troops was found. I guess it was Ye Kaixin's Second Division of the Hunan Army. Only the Second Division, which had been confronting General Tang Shengzhi, was unwilling to accept the reorganization and was defeated.
There was no pursuer behind the army. The subordinates estimated that the Eighth Army must have taken a train to the south of Wulipai Station in the northeast, blocked the retreat of the defeated army, and set up a position, ready to wait and wait. The division seat
, this piece of fat is brought to your mouth, why don’t we take a bite?" An Yi reported cheerfully.
"More than just one bite? I'll swallow it in one gulp! An Yi, I'll take credit for you when I come back!"
Liu She was overjoyed and immediately issued a series of orders. The commanders and battalion commanders of each regiment rushed out of the headquarters as if they were flying. In the blink of an eye, the lifeless camp was filled with cars roaring, horses roaring, and dust and smoke rising everywhere.