Beacon starts from the departure of a strong man

Chapter 421 New Changes
Liu Changqing saw the change in Yu Hua's expression and said, "What's wrong? What did the message say? Your expression changed so quickly!?"

"Good thing!" Yu Hua smiled happily: "I received a message from the Second Route Army Headquarters, adding that our group army's troops have now arrived in Hankou."

"Guo Xunqi, Rao Guohua and others are leading the troops out of Sichuan this time. Our Sichuan army has no shortage of soldiers now."

A great thing, Liu Changqing is also very happy, this is indeed a thing that is beneficial to the Sichuan Army!

"Old Liu, since the strength of our Sichuan army has changed, I have to change this battle plan."

"Just follow the arrangement. Anyway, I am following your command." Liu Changqing just wanted to lead his troops to fight.

As for the army's campaign planning, overall planning and dispatching, he felt that Hualai could arrange it, so it didn't take much thought.

In view of the fact that the Sichuan Army was about to add three divisions to the 22nd Army, Yu Hua made fine adjustments to the campaign to attack the airport.

Zhang Yungang's regiment has many recruits and poor combat effectiveness. Yu Hua plans to practice the courage of this army first and conduct a small-scale attack on the airport.

When Zhang Yungang learned that his troops were going to attack the airport, was he a little confused? !
"Sir Yu, our regiment is going to attack the airport, but we lack artillery for attacking?"

For Zhang Yungang, the Sichuan Army has so many Type 105 infantry guns and Type [-] mountain guns, as well as [-]mm howitzers.

It's quite easy to hit the airport. Just set up artillery positions and bombard the little devil's airport. It's guaranteed to blow up the airport to pieces!

Why are they still sending their regiment to attack the airport now? Isn't this a pure waste of troops? !

You know, the troops of Zhang Yungang's regiment are now attacking the airport, and most of them are new soldiers. This is a bit like throwing an egg against a stone.

In response to Zhang Yungang's question, Liu Changqing on the side explained: "Captain Zhang, don't worry, we are asking your group to attack the airport this time. This is a feint attack to attract Japanese firepower and train troops by the way!"

Now the 22nd Army has been replenished, and the newly formed First Army of the 27th Army has also been replenished.

In the Anqing area, the Sichuan Army's military strength can compete with the Little Japanese's Sixth Division and Botian Detachment.

With the strength of the troops, Yu Hua's confidence is sufficient. This airport is very important to the Japanese army. He wants to send a guy here for the little devil to hurt it!

After Liu Changqing finished speaking, Zhang Yungang stood up straight and saluted Yu Hua: "I'm sorry, sir... I misunderstood."

"fine!"

"Next, tell some officers in the regiment that this attack on the airport was led by officers from our Sichuan Army."

"In this battle, we don't expect any major results. We just want to train our troops, annihilate a group of Japanese troops, and allow the Japanese who surrounded Anqing to return to the airport."

"Yes!" Zhang Yungang said forcefully, "I will prepare now. In 10 minutes, we will launch an attack on the airport on time."

After Zhang Yungang left, he summoned his subordinates and held a pre-battle mobilization meeting for them. Under his operation, many grassroots officers of the 26th Group Army said that they would definitely listen to the command of the Sichuan Army veterans this time.

In the Central China Front Army, Hata Junliu received news from Inaba Shiro that the Sixth Division and the Hada Detachment have joined forces and have now captured half of Anqing City.

The defenders in the city could not hold out for two days. Inaba Shiro told Hata Shunroku that after taking Anqing, the Sixth Division immediately deployed troops as a fortress to clear obstacles for the imperial army to advance! !
"Yoshi!" Shunroku Hata was very happy!
Shiro Inaba and Juichi Namada acted very quickly, especially the collapse of the 26th Army so quickly, which the Central China Front did not expect at all.

In order to make himself stand out in the Battle of Wuhan, Shunroku Hata also gave Shiro Inaba and Namada a heavy order to deal with the Sichuan army with caution.

Because the Sichuan Army is really hard to figure out. Just like the New Fourth Army and the Eighth Route Army in Lu and Jin Provinces, as well as Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the imperial army is particularly bad at dealing with some harassment battles.

The Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army specialize in fighting if they win. If they can't win, they go into caves. I won't fight you head-on. When you get tired, I will come out from the mountains to harass you.

During the Battle of Xuzhou, the Eighth Route Army in Jin Province and the New Fourth Army in Jiangsu and Zhejiang were not idle. They made many attacks, ambushed Japanese transport teams, pulled out gun towers and strongholds, etc.

In addition, the 36th Group Army of the Sichuan Army in the southern part of Shanxi Province once took the initiative to attack and directly defeated the Japanese 20th Division. Even Yan Laoxi took the opportunity to mobilize the Shanxi-Sui Army to counterattack the Japanese army.

In the south of Jin Province, the Sichuan Army, the Jinsui Army, and various departments of the Eighth Route Army cooperated to recover Puzhou, Lucheng, Pinglu City, Yuncheng, Hejin, Wenxi and other areas.

The main force of the 20th Division had no choice but to flee to places such as Quwo and Houma. At that time, the Central China Front Army and the Pingjin Front Army were fighting against Xuzhou with all their strength. When the 20th Division was encircled, Juichi Terauchi and Shunroku Hata were beyond their reach.

Because the main force has been invested in Xuzhou, the 20th Division is stationed in the two places above and can only wait for the Ping-Tianjin Front to send troops for rescue.

Due to the tall walls in places such as Quwo and Houma, it was a good defensive area for the Japanese army. The 36th Group Army of the Sichuan Army, the Eighth Route Army and the Jinsui Army did not take the initiative to attack. Everyone sent the 20th Division Surround them and consume the little devil's food and grass.

The 20th Division was besieged for ten days, and the food and grass were exhausted. Juichi Terauchi had not yet sent reinforcements. Kawagishi Bunzaburo had no choice but to ask Juichi Terauchi to let the Army Air Forces airdrop food to the 20th Division.

However, it rained heavily for a week in Jin Province at that time, and Japanese planes only airdropped food twice, which still failed to completely solve the 20th Division's food and grass problem.

The 20th Division had no choice but to forage for local wild vegetables and leaves to satisfy their hunger!It wasn't until the battle of Xuzhou was completely over that Terauchi Shouichi dispatched the independent and mixed 4th Brigade, the 14th Division, and the 108th Division to rush to Quwo and Houma.

The arrival of these three groups of Japanese troops completely resolved the 20th Division's predicament!
In view of the defeat in the Xuzhou Battle and the poor performance of the 20th Division of Shanxi Province, the Japanese base camp reorganized the Pingjin Front Army.

The division commander of the Fifth Division, Itagaki Seishiro, was transferred back to the country, and Ando Toshiyoshi was appointed as the division commander of the Fifth Division.

The commander of the First Army, Kozuki Kiyoshi, stepped down and Umezu Yoshijiro became the new commander.The post of Chief of Staff of the Second Army led by Suzuki was also replaced by Machjiri Yuki.

Shinozuka Yoshio succeeded Isoya Rensuke as the head of the Tenth Division.Genjiro Taniguchi succeeded Kumaya Shimomoto as division head of the 108th Division.

Ushijima Minoru succeeded Bunzaburo Kawagishi as the division commander of the 20th Division!

Shunroku Hata was afraid that he would end up like Seiji Kozuki, so he deliberately asked Inaba Shiro to attack Anqing City calmly and not to be dazzled by the momentary victory.

After sending the message to Inaba Shiro, Shunroku Hata asked his adjutant: "Where are the 2nd Army and the 11th Army now?"

"Report to Your Excellency the Commander!"

"The Second Army of Prince Higashikaru Miyazaki and the 11th Army of Neji Okamura are still being assembled. Their leading troops have already set off and are expected to arrive in three to four days."

This time, in order to capture Wuhan, the Japanese assigned the Second Army, which was originally affiliated to the Ping-Tianjin Front Army, to the Central China Front Army.

At the same time, the newly formed 11th Army was also assigned to the Central China Front Army. After the Battle of Xuzhou, the 10 newly formed and trained Japanese divisions were now gradually added to the Pingjin and Central China areas.

In the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese army attacked very fiercely and captured many areas. However, the Chinese army counterattacked in the Battle of Xuzhou and the Jin Province area, as well as in the Third and First Theaters and other places.This caused heavy losses to the Japanese army, especially now that they needed to both attack the Republic of China troops and maintain the occupied areas, and the number of troops was far from insufficient.

The ten divisions newly organized and trained by the Japanese this time were specially prepared to deal with the Battle of Wuhan and the Battle of Guangdong.

The numbers of these ten divisions are: 15th Division, 17th Division, 21st Division, 22nd Division, 23rd Division, 27th Division, 104th Division, 106th Division, and 110th Division, 116th Division.

Today, the size of the little devil's divisions has changed from 17 permanent divisions to 34 divisions.

There are also some independent mixed brigades compiled and trained by the Japanese army. The total strength of the Japanese army is 34 divisions and six independent mixed brigades.

The total strength was approximately more than 90. At that time, 82.5 were all in China, accounting for 90.00% of the total strength of the Japanese army.

In addition, the Japanese army continued to replenish soldiers from the country, and the various divisions of the Little Japanese Army were also replenished, whether it was ordnance or food and grass.

The Japanese army used so many troops this time just to defeat the Republic of China government in one go.

Many senior Japanese military leaders believed that as long as they captured Wuhan, sent troops south to capture Guangdong, and cut off foreign aid from the Republic of China government, the war would be almost over.

From a historical point of view, ancient China basically lost the Central Plains region. Coupled with the loss of Wuhan, it already lacked the opportunity to aspire to the Central Plains.

In addition, Wuhan is located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. If the Japanese army occupied Wuhan, Hubei Province, a major grain-producing province, would be gone. The economy of the Republic of China government would become more difficult, and the Guangdong-Hankou Railway would be cut off.

The economic and military strength of the Republic of China government suffered a devastating blow. Even if the Jinling Command moved to Sichuan Province, the influence of the Republic of China government in these mountainous areas was very weak, which was equivalent to becoming a local government.

As long as the Japanese army properly supports President Wang's new government and strengthens its control over the occupied areas, allowing this new regime to take control of the country, the Japanese army is mainly trying to induce surrender, hoping to completely end the war.

"Yo Xi!" Shunroku Hata smiled happily: "Give me the order to have the 2nd Army and the 11th Army speed up their march."

"At the same time, contact the naval forces and ask them to try their best to cooperate with Inaba Shiro and Botian detachment. If the operations in Anqing City and Madang area go smoothly."

"I am willing to give most of my rights and interests to the Navy!!"

"Hi!" Hata Shunroku's adjutant nodded.

Shunroku Hata looked at the large map on his wall. This time, his Central China Front Army was very strong. With so many troops, he had to achieve results.

With a total strength of more than 40 troops, no commander has been able to command so many troops in the previous few battles.

Just as Hata Junliu was enjoying himself, a communications staff officer hurried up to him.

"Your Excellency, Commander, we received an emergency message from Ttech."

"The message is marked urgent. Please ask the commander to review it so as not to delay the military situation."

"Nani!?" Shunroku Hata was stunned, "Read the emergency message."

"Hi!" The Japanese military communications staff read the contents of the message in general.

"Prince Daxiong, what do you think of this information?"

Seeing His Excellency the Commander staring at him, Pingyuan Nobita stood up and lowered his head: "Report to His Excellency the Commander."

"Since Major Meiling has concluded that more troops from Sichuan Province have entered Wuhan, this must be reasonable, especially since the Imperial Air Force has previously investigated several routes out of Sichuan Province."

"There are traces of marches on the roads. Although imperial planes bombed many roads, the Chinese people repaired them in a short time."

"This must be Sichuan Province's emergency aid to Wuhan!"

Shunroku Hata nodded: "Yoshi! Your analysis makes sense. The imperial army suffered such high casualties in the bloody battle in Xuzhou. According to the one to five casualties, the Republic of China army will definitely not be much better."

"The casualties of the Sichuan army are definitely not small, and now we need to replenish our troops!!"

Shunroku Hata looked at Nobita Hirahara, "Mirei Sonoda was transferred from the Heijin Front Army to our Central China Front Army. You have been working for some time."

"Shouichi Terauchi praised this woman very much. What do you think of her abilities?!"

"Your Excellency, Commander, Sonoda Meiling is not only beautiful, but also capable. She understands the dialects of many areas of the Republic of China, and she personally leads soldiers who understand the Republic of China dialect deep into the enemy's rear."

"This time, Major Meiling reported that the Sichuan Army replenished from Sichuan Province to Wuhan consisted of at least three divisions. He guessed that the enemy generals were probably Guo Xunqi, Rao Guohua and others who had slipped away from the 23rd Group Army before."

"Rao Guohua, Guo Xunqi and others fought bloody battles at Taihu Lake in the Seventh Theater and fought many times with the imperial army. They are very difficult generals."

After hearing Nobita Hirahara's words, Shunroku Hata also became somewhat interested in this major named Mirei Sonoda.

"Oh!" Pingyuan Nobita slapped his head, "By the way... Your Excellency, Commander, Major Meiling also initially predicted that the Sichuan Army's 22nd Army may also be secretly transferred to the Ninth Theater."

"Among them, the Independent Brigade of the Sichuan-Kangkang Appeasement Office is in the 22nd Army. It has a very strong combat effectiveness. This army is good at attacking. When she was conducting reconnaissance in Wuhan, she met the brigade commander."

"Major Meiling reminds us that the imperial army is currently attacking Anqing City. We must be careful of the Sichuan Army of the Independent Brigade attacking the imperial army, especially at the airport outside Anqing City. We must not be careless."

After hearing this, Shunroku Hata came to the map and checked the Chinese troops around Anqing City.

Judging from the map, there are currently only the 26th Group Army and the 27th Group Army in the Anqing City area. The 26th Group Army has been overwhelmed by the Sixth Division and Botian Detachment.

The 27th Army lacks troops and is currently on the defensive.

"Pingyuan Daxiong, are there any Chinese troops rushing to help in Anqing City?"

Shunroku Hata looked at the communications staff officer with burning eyes.

Pingyuan Nobita is responsible for the communications and intelligence of the Central China Front. Since a major who went deep into the enemy's rear for reconnaissance made a suggestion, coupled with the appreciation of Juichi Terauchi.

This makes Shunroku Hata still have to consider the other party's suggestions. Once someone's words are true and he fails to take measures, it will be a stain on the command.

(End of this chapter)