The Republic of Heroes

In Jinan, Shandong, it rained heavily for half a month, and the drought that was originally expected would turn into a flood in the blink of an eye. In this way, the Jin army's idea of ​​crossing the river from Hebei to attack Jinan was cut off.Wang Jingguo's 37th Division also withdrew from Changqing to the west of Anshan, because the 32nd Army was wiped out, and the record of the capture of the commander Shang Zhen was too shocking.Wang Jingguo felt that he was far behind Shang Zhen, so he hurriedly retreated westward along the Yellow River overnight, so as not to be encircled by the Shandong army and follow Shang Zhen's old path.

Wang Jingguo didn't know that the Shandong Army's armored brigade was at the end of its strength at this time, and the entire fuel reserve in Shandong was exchanged for the victory in Feicheng. The brigade's tactics had no experience in confrontation, so that the only remaining 32th Division of the 67nd Army was defeated and fled in a confrontation.Shang Zhen was not ready to retreat at all, and was captured by the armored brigade that raided into the headquarters. After that, the 32nd Army was no longer able to fight, and was completely divided and eaten until it was wiped out.

The Shandong army became famous in the first battle. Since then, no one in the country dared to underestimate Wu Xiaoliang, and Wu Xiaoliang's record in Suidong was once again revealed by the media from all over the world. Only then did people from all walks of life suddenly realize that it was him!

Chiang Kai-shek in Nanjing had no idea that he was just a dead horse as a living horse doctor, but now he has become the key to the outcome of the battle. Shandong alone has attracted five armies and one division to hundreds of thousands of troops for the Central Army.

The commendation orders were handed out in dozens, and he needed Shandong so much at this time to be nailed between Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang like a nail.The attitude of Zhang Hanqing in the Northeast is ambiguous and vacillating, and it is absolutely difficult to get him to send troops to support without bloodshed.

Wu Xiaoliang's current situation is no longer as passive as it was at the beginning of the Great War. At least Jinan has avoided the possibility of directly facing the flames of war. Only the two armies entering the Shandong border from Henan pose a certain threat, but they are deterred by the complete annihilation of Shang Zhen 32 In the name of the army, they did not dare to go deep, for fear that someone would accidentally follow in Shang Zhen's footsteps.

The 57th Division stabilized the defense line of the provincial capital, and Li Zejun returned to Jinan to return to the military meeting held by Wu Xiaoliang.

In private, Li Zejun was very envious of the armored division, and proposed more than once to equip the 57th division with an armored brigade.

"If the 57th Division can equip an armored brigade, I, Li Zejun, dare to guarantee that it will never be a problem to sweep Henan!"

Wu Xiaoliang laughed out loud at first, then his smile faded, and he said solemnly: "Qianting, you were born as an infantry soldier, and you haven't received any training on the combat thinking of the armored force. If you want to take charge of the armored force, you should go to Germany to study for two years. An armored brigade and even an armored division will be entrusted to you!"

Li Zejun still looked disapproving. In his opinion, what is the difference between armored troops and infantry?It's just fast speed and thick armor. Is it worth going to military school for two years?Wu Xiaoliang naturally saw Li Zejun's disapproval, and decided to test him, so he asked:

"Qian Ting said, this armored brigade is entrusted to you to command, what are you going to do?"

"pass it to me?"

Li Zejun looked at the battle map in front of the table, pondered for a while and said: "I will use the speed and firepower advantages of the armored division to go around the flanks of the Jin army on the front lines of Chengwu and Dingtao, and use powerful firepower to defeat their morale, and then the army will follow up. It must be won."

Wu Xiaoliang smiled wryly and shook his head. Sure enough, although Li Zejun favorably used the armored troops as infantry supplementary forces, he also regarded them as a strengthened version of cavalry.Considering the speed and firepower advantages of armored forces, only blitzkrieg is king.

In this regard, Guan Bingyan played the most vividly in the Feicheng victory. It can be said that he is the first general in the world to apply blitz warfare to actual combat, and his armored brigade is also the first unit to verify the success of blitz warfare.

"If the armored brigade is really handed over to you, it will be a waste of money. This time I call you back to discuss the issue of the main force of the [-]th division and the independent brigade stranded in Henan. Whether to stay or withdraw, now The military council is very divided, and I want to hear your opinion."

Li Zejun pondered for a while before saying:

"It is not appropriate for the troops in Henan to withdraw. They are staring at the hinterland of Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang like nails. Yan and Feng will have some scruples and dare not invade Shandong. The most urgent task now is to defeat the Jin army blocking the Longhai Road. Only in this way can we make us invincible."

Wu Xiaoliang nodded and said: "Qian Ting's intention coincides with mine, I called Nanjing today, and proposed that Shandong does not want money, guns, but diesel oil, as long as the armored brigade can be activated again, and the two will be wiped out." No Shanxi Army is not a problem."

Li Zejun immediately clapped his hands and said: "If these two armies are wiped out, we will have no resistance from Jinan to Kaifeng in the south of the Yellow River. At that time, we can advance and attack, retreat and defend. Who can do anything to us?"

Wu Xiaoliang has always admired Li Zejun, who was born as a guard. Although he is reckless, he has a superior strategic vision.

Indeed, Wu Xiaoliang's idea was based on this idea. The Hebei Jin army did not dare to go south on the Yellow River. After all, the Northeast Army was squatting behind them. Xu Yongchang was not a fool. Shanxi is mountainous and easy to defend and difficult to attack, so reinforcements will be sent in a steady stream, but he and Feng Yuxiang will fight against Chiang, so he will naturally focus on containment, which gives Shandong an excellent opportunity to breathe.

Wu Xiaoliang understood Yan Xishan's intentions. The reason why he no longer beat himself to death was because he was gambling.As long as he and Feng Yuxiang defeat Lao Jiang, how can his overwhelmed egg be complete again?Therefore, if Yan Xishan didn't come to attack him, but he wanted to attack Yan Xishan, the two armies guarding Longhai Road at the junction of Shandong and Henan had to be destroyed.

Zhu Wusheng is also amazing. Within a few months, he even formed another division. The Nanjing Laojiang has not yet given the number of this team, so Wu Xiaoliang temporarily named it the first division of Shandong Temporary Organization. This division is already preparing to take over in secret. The 57th Division has defense lines everywhere, and Li Zejun's 57th Division will be transferred to southern Shandong to participate in the encirclement and suppression of the Jin army.

Hearing Wu Xiaoliang's thoughts, Li Zejun slammed his fist on the table excitedly, "Hey, I've been thinking about this for a long time. I've been watching the rain by the Yellow River all day, and the birds are almost fading out of my mouth. This time Tell Yan Laoxi that those troops in Henan never come back!"

Wu Xiaoliang laughed and said: "Don't draw the bow too full, if someone escapes, I will ask for you!"

After all, the two laughed.

Three days later, in the middle of the night, the 57th Division secretly headed south to Tai'an on Yanjinpu Road in a tank truck.