Age of Rebirth

Chapter 530 Rensuke Isotani's Scheme

On the first day when the Japanese invaded Henan, Tang Enbo’s Eighth Army lost thousands of miles and lost four cities in a row. Especially the fall of Zhengzhou was like setting a nail in the chest of the Yellow River defense line. The Japanese army gained a firm foothold in Henan. The direction of attack can be chosen arbitrarily, and the situation becomes extremely dangerous.

Tang Qiuli, who was in the headquarters of Guxian County, Shanxi Province, has been up all night since he received the news of the fall of Zhengzhou. The Japanese army is a great threat to the frontline troops regardless of whether they are attacking in the east or west. Attack Xi'an.

To make matters worse, the Zhengzhou intelligence station, which has been transferred underground, sent back the latest information. Two divisions of Japanese reinforcements have arrived in Zhengzhou this morning. Tang Qiuli was silent. The Japanese army's strength in Zhengzhou has reached 13. As much as this force, no matter in which direction it is projected, it is a deadly threat.

The Japanese army moved troops from the Datong battlefield on the western front to strengthen the direction of Henan. For the Jin army on the Datong front line, not only the pressure dropped sharply, but there was also the possibility of a full-scale counterattack. The troops under the frontline headquarters took advantage of this opportunity to carry out a comprehensive counter-offensive, striving to annihilate the Japanese army, or at least defeat the Japanese army. [

The troops he deployed in the east-west direction, Yuan Jinghao's Shaanxi garrison, Sun Zhenbang's Yellow River garrison, Zhou Yushan's transportation corps, and Su Jingfeng's Yellow River and Henan garrison defenses, were all second-line troops. They are not as good as the dozen or so field brigades of the Independent Division, and their strength is at a disadvantage.

If Yan Xishan's troops on the western front can free up their hands and go south to defend Tongguan, his pressure will be relieved a lot. Yan Xishan called, and the Japanese army in Datong started a new round of offensive. In addition, heavy artillery that had never been used before was used, and most of the positions were destroyed. Not only could the Jin army's troops fail to complete the order of the commander-in-chief to counterattack, but they were still on the defensive. He had ordered Zhao Chengshou to put all the reserve troops on top.

The Datong battlefield has been fiercely fought for many days, and its strength is far weaker than that of the Jin army's Japanese army. Their morale has been frustrated, the soldiers are exhausted, and a division has been transferred away. Tang Qiuli doubts whether he still has the ability to initiate an attack. However, It was true that Yan Xishan didn't want to use up all his wealth, and he didn't want to put the troops next to the independent division. It was a pity that he had the opportunity to break the Japanese army all the way. Tang Qiuli could only shake his head regretfully.

On December [-]th, the Japanese army stayed in Zhengzhou, busy organizing and preparing supplies, unable to judge the direction of its next attack. Tang Qiuli ordered the troops to prepare for the battle with fear. He himself was also judging the direction of the Japanese army. The direction of the attack, not long after, Yan Xishan called, and the Japanese army in Wuxiang started a new round of attack.

Tang Qiuli was startled. The intention of the Japanese army was obvious. The possibility of attacking Xi'an from the west was the greatest. He immediately ordered the troops deployed in Tongguan and Shangluo to prepare for battle. At the same time, he called Feng Jiwu to ask Feng Jiwu if he could transfer two or three brigades of Niangziguan's first-line troops to the west to form a second line of defense outside Xi'an.

After the telegram was sent out, Tang Qiuli laughed bitterly at himself. This is a typical way of tearing down the east wall to make up for the west wall. He commanded the battle by himself. When did he fall to this level? The idea of ​​military expansion.

Xiangyue Qingji felt even more uncomfortable, he was blocked, and he was drinking and having fun, so he said goodbye to Zairen. After he came out, he immediately rushed back to the headquarters of the dispatched army. Although the boss was unwilling, who would dare to disobey the emperor's order , unless he wants to rebel, the cold wind blows, the alcohol surges up, his stomach is overwhelmed, and he just can't spit it out. He really wants to throw the rake and quit, but how can he have the courage, so the driver who has followed him for many years has become a bad luck , was scolded by His Excellency the Commander with the most vicious language, and his eyes were full of stars.

After arriving at the headquarters, Xiangyue Qingsi, who was still angry, gave the two unlucky little staff officers a few big mouths, and then sent a telegram angrily, asking if the newly formed First Army in Zhengzhou After the formation was completed and all the preparations were in place, after receiving a definite answer, he issued an order to the commander of the First Army, Isoya Rensuke, to attack Xuzhou in the east and then go south to the Songhu area.

After the order was given, Xiangyue Qingji couldn't tell what it was like in his heart, as if his beloved woman had been abducted by others, the sense of loss in his heart was lingering, he was the only one in the huge office, sitting on the table. There was only one desk lamp on, and the dim light made his face even more gloomy.

Kazuki Kiyoshi always believed that the battle plan of Emperor Hirohito and the base camp to attack Xuzhou was extremely stupid, but these words could only be rotten in his stomach, and he could not say it to anyone, who coveted his position as the commander of the China North China Dispatch Army, There are not a few who clearly know that it is a bastard and a brain-dead decision, but they can't say that this kind of depression has washed away the joy brought about by Henan's victory.

Isotani Rensuke, who received the order, was not so depressed. Isotani Rensuke, who had long been looking forward to showing his talents in the China battlefield, had never had a chance to fight, and was placed in Beiping by Your Excellency the Commander. Now, the opportunity finally came. He came, not only that, but he was also promoted and became the commander of the theater alone. This is the first theater unit formed by the North China Dispatch Army.

The high-spirited Isoya Rensuke looked around at the standing generals on the left and right, and gave an order succinctly. At [-]:[-] a.m. on December [-], the troops belonging to the First Army, led by the Yamazaki Chariot Regiment, immediately dispatched troops to Kaifeng. His purpose is very clear, go out of Zhengzhou, capture Kaifeng, and then go down to Shangqiu, and the soldiers will point directly at Xuzhou. This is his battle plan. Isotani Rensuke has a reason to do this. It is heavily guarded, almost like a march.

At the same time, he issued another order that puzzled all the commanders of the First Army. The Yingzuo Cavalry Regiment, attached to a brigade of infantry, departed from Zhengzhou at ten o'clock tonight, and marched westward to attack Xi'an in Shaanxi. It is emphasized that Yingzuo's cavalry must assume the posture of being the vanguard of our First Army and not entangle with the Chinese army along the way.

After the Japanese commanders dispersed, the chief of staff asked him inexplicably, Your Excellency, Commander, the dispatched army headquarters gave us an order to march eastward to occupy Xuzhou, why did you send troops westward to capture Xi'an?Doesn't this run counter to the command of the command?Once you track it down, it will be difficult for you to explain to Commander Xiang Yueqing.

Isoya Rensuke smiled cunningly, and said with an inscrutable posture: "There is a book of Sun Tzu's Art of War in China, one of which is to strike the east and strike the west. Chinese people, look at how the generals of our Great Japanese Empire use their troops!"

Looking at the still blank gaze of the chief of staff, Isoya Rensuke was even more proud, "This can achieve two purposes. One is to let the Chinese army that may be chasing our army be concentrated in the direction of Shaanxi, so as to relieve my worries. The second is to hide the real intention of our department, paralyze the Chinese army in the direction of Xuzhou, and be negligent in guarding against it, understand?"

The chief of staff suddenly realized that he looked at his superior with admiration and admiration on his face. This made Rensuke Isotani very useful. That general doesn't want to be admired by his subordinates?He added another sentence, "By the time Tang Qiuli, who is known as the Devil of China, understands, my soldiers have already appeared in the city of Xuzhou. By then, haha!" The laughter was full of complacency and arrogance.

Sure enough, the Yingzuo Cavalry Regiment, which left Zhengzhou to the west, landed at the Zhengzhou intelligence station, which was always monitoring the movements of the Japanese army. In the eyes of the secret agents, they immediately sent the information back to the division commander. Tang Qiuli secretly rejoiced that he asked Feng Jiwu to transfer troops to Xi'an The arrangement came in handy, and I am afraid that my troops in the Taihang Mountains will also have to be pulled over.

On the morning of the [-]th, an urgent report stunned Tang Qiuli, who was about to lead his troops south to Xi'an, "At [-] o'clock this morning, the main force of the Japanese army left Zhengzhou and rushed straight to Kaifeng. The Japanese cavalry troops who marched westward last night , is a suspected soldier, please report it to the division commander immediately." [

"Damn it, the little devil played me a trick of attacking west and hitting east. It's really capsized in the gutter!" Tang Qiuli cursed angrily. He didn't expect the Japanese commander in Henan to do this to him. All his thoughts were thrown away. Putting it in the direction of defending Shaanxi, the intention of the Japanese army is obvious. It will take Xuzhou directly through Kaifeng and open the gateway to the Songhu area.

Kaifeng was defended by Su Jingfeng's troops from the Yellow River Henan Defense Line Defense Corps. Tang Qiuli immediately informed Su Jingfeng that the main attack direction of the Japanese army was in the east and that Xuzhou was the final target. He ordered him to block the Japanese army in the Kaifeng area for 24 hours. , to gain time for arming along the way.

He knew very well what this order meant to the Henan Defense Line Garrison Corps with less than 13 troops. More than [-] people have left Xuzhou and are marching towards Zhengzhou.

Tang Qiuli really had no troops to mobilize. Neither Su Jingfeng's troops nor Zhang Zizhong's troops could stop the Japanese army from taking Xuzhou. After thinking twice, he sent a telegram to Chairman Jiang in Nanjing, requesting the military The committee quickly mobilized no less than 15 troops from the southern battlefield to deploy defenses in the Xuzhou area.

This was the last thing he wanted to do, but he had to do it. He could not wipe out Su Jingfeng and Zhang Zizhong's troops along the route of the Japanese army's attack, right?

In the telegram, Tang Qiuli did not mention the reasons for the fall of the Henan defense line. He hoped that Generalissimo Jiang would give him a satisfactory answer. After all, the Eighth Army was the old man's army, and Tang Enbo was one of the old man's most trusted One, because of his direct lineage troops, such a crisis in Henan has occurred, affecting the entire northern battlefield, and it is unreasonable not to give himself an explanation.

(To be continued)