People are shining their swords, secretly helping the Iron Triangle in Northwest Shanxi

"Tang Paopao?"

"Is he confident that he can stop the Japanese attack even if they cross the Yellow River?"

"Come on, I think he will run faster than anyone else!"

On February 16, Chen Ziyun received a telegram from the headquarters of the First War Zone.

Watching Jiang Mingsan relaying the Deputy Commander-in-Chief Tang Keqin's solemn remarks, Chen Ziyun shook his head and sighed.

There are currently quite a few troops in the First War Zone, but these troops have many problems.

Tang Keqin was eager to expand his troops, and he continued to recruit bandits while forcibly annexing miscellaneous troops.

On the surface, these troops do seem to be numerous, but in fact most of them have ulterior motives.

When there is no threat, they naturally have no problem, and Tang Keqin can also unify the command.

But once threatened, these troops each had their own ideas and the situation became a complete mess.

Others may not know, but Chen Ziyun knows it clearly. The Japanese's number one operation is the final blow that kills their struggle.

The commander of the 12th Army, Seiichi Kita, was from an intelligence background and was not good at commanding operations.

For this reason, the Japanese immediately replaced him and replaced him with Uchiyama Takataro as the army commander.

Considering that most of the troops under the 12th Army were garrison divisions, the Japanese assembled field divisions from various places to strengthen their combat capabilities.

For this reason, even the only tank division in the interior was sent to the front line to fight.

At the beginning of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, dozens of Japanese tanks caused great headaches for the defenders.

In order to destroy these tanks, suicide squads had to be sent in to use explosive packs and cluster grenades to destroy themselves along with the tanks.

Up to now, although some weapons have been strengthened, the 3rd Tank Division still has hundreds of tanks!
And up to now, the Japanese have reaped huge rewards from their battles southwards.

The number of vehicles in each division has increased significantly compared to before.

Comparing the two sides, the Japanese still have the advantage.

Chen Ziyun doesn't think things are as simple as Tang Paopao thinks!
At noon, Chen Ziyun contacted Chu Yunfei, Li Yunlong and others directly.

They gathered in Jincheng in southeastern Shanxi and began to discuss the current situation.

"The meaning of the deputy commander of the First War Zone is very clear. Even if we can't defend Zhongtiao Mountain and let the Japanese from Shanxi Province cross the river from here, he has a way to deal with it."

"The attitude of the First War Zone Headquarters is unclear for now, but the Japanese are well prepared and want to completely wipe us out."

"If we don't prepare early here, I'm afraid we'll become the scapegoat later on."

"We must hold on to Zhongtiao Mountain, and even a part of northern Henan."

"The Zhongtiaoshan Guerrilla Command has the authority to command the Third Brigade. As long as we explain this to the First War Zone Headquarters, Commander Jiang will definitely not refuse."

After seeing Chu Yunfei and Li Yunlong, Chen Ziyun showed a serious expression on his face and spoke directly.

"Hey, it's such a simple thing. He said he can hold it. Why don't we just disperse and fight guerrilla warfare and let him hold the river defense position?"

"We should clear the land and clear the roads, so that the Japanese can directly engage in battle with the river defense forces. This way, we can seize the initiative."

"Brother Ziyun, please send a telegram to the First War Zone Headquarters to explain the situation and clear yourself in advance, then there will be no problem."

"I heard that the Japanese are coming with bad intentions this time and they have a lot of troops. If we resist them head-on, we will definitely be in a passive position."

"If we let them cross the Yellow River and attack the river defense forces on the south bank, we will be able to seize the initiative in an instant and find a way to eat up these little devils."

When Li Yunlong heard this, he smiled and said.

"Brother Yunlong, do you believe that Deputy Commander-in-Chief Tang can hold the river defense position, or do you believe that I am Qin Shihuang?" Chen Ziyun shook his head speechlessly and asked Li Yunlong.

"Hehe, then I would rather believe that you are Qin Shihuang." Li Yunlong replied with a smile.

"We must be prepared to defend Zhongtiao Mountain. At least we cannot let the Japanese break through here."

"Also, before the Japanese launch a full-scale attack, we need to apply for some supplies from the headquarters."

Chu Yunfei said hurriedly with a serious expression on his face.

After some discussion, Chen Ziyun and Chu Yunfei jointly sent a telegram to the headquarters of the First War Zone.

After receiving the telegram, Jiang Mingsan directly allocated combat supplies and transported them to Zhongtiao Mountain.

Of course, they also called back Yan Laoxi and said that they would make adjustments based on the situation on the battlefield.

In fact, they also knew that if they brought the troops to western Shanxi, it would be tantamount to giving up Zhongtiao Mountain without a fight.

In this case, both Chen Ziyun and Chu Yunfei will be in a passive position.

In the next few days, the First War Zone continued to transport combat supplies.

By February 20th, General Okamura Yasuji issued the combat order.

The Japanese troops in the north and south echelons launched combat operations, and the first to act were the southern echelon.

The 52nd Division's Lieutenant General Etsujiro Kono personally commanded the troops, and more than troops from the Ejima and Furukawa detachments set off first.

These two detachments have four infantry regiments and two artillery regiments, and their overall strength is very strong.

Torao Ejima and Masao Furukawa were hit in the previous battle, which made them angry and humiliated.

After getting the opportunity to fight this time, the two people attached great importance to it.

Starting at eight o'clock in the morning, the Japanese began to attack Liang Ruxian's Third Brigade on the west bank of Qin River.

The Third Brigade has now returned to full strength and its overall strength is not weak.

This is the Whampoa Military Academy's direct line of troops, so Jiang Mingsan will naturally give priority to replenishing them.

Facing the attack of the Japanese troops, the 7,000-man army relied on their positions for defense.

The troops of both sides continued to fight fiercely, and both sides suffered casualties.

Within one day, the Third Brigade held its position on the west bank of the Qin River and blocked the attacks of two combat detachments of the Japanese devils.

Of course, the Japanese had the advantage in manpower and artillery, and the Third Brigade also suffered casualties.

On the evening of the 52th, Etsujiro Kono commanded the main force of the nd Division to begin a roundabout maneuver.

His goal was clear: he was ready to completely annihilate the Third Brigade.

However, at twelve o'clock midnight, Chen Ziyun received the news.

When he learned about the situation the Third Brigade was facing, Chen Ziyun gradually issued orders, requiring the Third Brigade to move to Kejing Town, Chengliu Town, and Potou Town for defense.

At the same time, he transferred the First and Fourth Guerrilla Regiments directly under the Zhongtiao Mountain Guerrilla Command to Jinmiaopu Town, south of Jincheng.

Jinmiaopu Town is located south of Jincheng and north of Hanoi County.

The Third Brigade abandoned Hanoi County and moved westward. Chen Ziyun deployed two guerrilla regiments in Jinmiaopu Town, naturally ready to move southward at any time to attack the Japanese troops from the flank.

By six o'clock in the morning on February 52, the nd Division and other troops crossed the Qin River one after another and gathered here in Hanoi County.

Kono Etsujiro, who was in charge of commanding the operation, immediately sent a telegram to contact the northern echelon to inform them of the progress of the operation. (End of this chapter)