Age of Conquest Reborn

Based on his judgment of the battle situation, Prince Zai Ren believed that the time had come to close the net. Originally, it could have been more prudent and allowed the Kwantung Army troops and the surprise troops on both wings to organize several more powerful offensives to further consume and exhaust the Soviet Far East.

The strength of the front army and the fish in the net still have the strength to jump. After all, it takes more effort and it will be easier to catch them when they are exhausted.

However, the Soviet Trans-Hinggan Mountains Front Army and the Baikal Lake Front Army were blocked by troops deployed by Tang Qiuli on the line from Chita to Irkutsk. Unexpected variables appeared in Prince Zairen's flawless plan, and

This kind of change made Prince Zai Ren feel uneasy, so he decided to close the net in advance, at least more than a week earlier than expected.

After issuing combat orders to the Far East Front Army and the Korean Garrison Army, Prince Zain took matters into his own hands and drafted a telegram, and sent it to the Commander of the Far East Expeditionary Force, not through the radio station at the Far East Campaign Headquarters, but through the radio station carried by the prince's attaché.

Lieutenant General Norigoro Ono and General Tanaka Shinichi, commander of the North Korean garrison, each sent a top-secret telegram. The content of the telegram was about how to deal with Soviet prisoners of war.

The total strength of the Far East Expeditionary Force and the North Korean garrison troops combined far exceeds that of the three Soviet army groups. Moreover, they adopt a surprise attack method. There will definitely be many Soviet soldiers captured. Prince Zain said in the telegram,

There are only a few words, "The final stage of the Far East Campaign is about to be implemented. In order not to affect the general attack on the main force of the Soviet Far East Front, all Soviet prisoners of war captured in this battle will be disposed of on the spot!"

The content of the telegram was not bloody on paper, but it determined the lives of the Soviet soldiers who were about to be captured. Prince Zai Ren took it for granted that if too many Soviet soldiers were captured, in order to guard these Soviet prisoners of war,

potential

It will definitely involve a large part of the energy of the two armies. There are not enough manpower. Keeping these Soviet prisoners of war will be a big trouble. If too many men are left, it is obviously not in line with His Royal Highness the Prince's intention to devote all his efforts to annihilating the Soviet Far East Front.

original intention.

In terms of strength comparison, the combined strength of the three armies of the Imperial Japanese Army is not much greater than that of the Soviet Far Eastern Front. In other words, the strength does not hold a decisive advantage, so why disperse the strength for some prisoners of war?

On the other hand, Prince Zai Ren believes that if there are too many Soviet prisoners of war, material supply will also be a big problem. The Japanese Empire does not have excess food to supply Soviet prisoners of war, so a once and for all solution can be found to save manpower.

It also saves food, the best of both worlds. Of course Prince Zai Ren will adopt it. As for the bullshit "Geneva Convention", go to hell, in the heart of His Highness the Prince, he only has his own code of conduct.

After Prince Zain's order was issued, the Japanese Far East Expeditionary Force and the Korean Garrison Army, with more than one million troops, were divided into three lines and pressed head-on against the 15th, 18th, and 21st Group Army units of the Soviet Far East Front, as well as the front logistics units.

Go up, but these three Soviet army units still know nothing about the upcoming battle, and still carry out defensive battles in accordance with the orders of the front army headquarters.

On the evening of May 4th, the wind blowing from the direction of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk already had a slight breath of spring, and the weather was not as cold as the previous few days. During the day, you can already smell it on the slopes where the sun shines.

There is a faint smell of green grass. The vanguard division of the First Army, which belongs to the 15th Army of the Soviet Far Eastern Front, is rushing to the east bank of the Aldan River to build a position in accordance with the orders of the Army Headquarters.

On the rolling mountainous grassland filled with the afterglow of the setting sun, the marching column of Soviet soldiers was like a thin black line, winding towards the Aldan River, behind the vanguard division of the First Army, about thirty kilometers away

, is the main force of the First Army, and behind it is the main force of the Fifteenth Army, about 120,000 troops.

There was no wind, and there was a hint of warmth in the air. The flaming clouds in the western sky were like burning flames and as red as blood. Leaving the battlefield in the Far East with heavy artillery fire undoubtedly made the Soviet soldiers feel a lot more relaxed. Those soldiers riding in the truck would feel a lot more relaxed from time to time.

To the comrades on foot,

A sharp whistle was blown, which provoked the soldiers who were working hard on their own two feet to curse viciously. From time to time, artillery carts towing artillery rumbled past, bringing up smoke and dust all the way, and the tired-looking Su

Army soldiers, shrouded in a choking dust!

Neither Zhukov nor General Asilov, the commander of the Fifteenth Group Army, knew in which direction the encircling Japanese troops were. Therefore, the battle defense posture of the Fifteenth Group Army could only be roughly based on the Aldan

The river is the boundary, and it stretches along the east bank of the river.

On the east bank of the Aldan River, four divisions with more than 100,000 troops belonging to the Third Army of the Japanese Far East Expeditionary Force are already here, waiting. The Japanese army occupied the position on the east bank of the river more than a day earlier than the Soviet army.

On the shallow hills and on the plain between the two mountains, there are very clever fortifications, firepower points, communication trenches, shelters and artillery positions dug and hidden by Japanese soldiers everywhere.

Regarding the formation of troops and the establishment of positions with their backs to the river, the four division commanders under the Third Army were full of opinions. Is this against the most basic common sense? A last-ditch battle, no matter what, is not a suitable battle plan.

The Aldan River is only more than a hundred meters wide at its widest point. However, the river is quite deep. Only for this reason, troops should be deployed on the west bank. All the equipment of the imperial army can cover the east bank of the river.

Within fire range.

The troops can make dangerous moves, but they will not give up the favorable terrain conditions of advancing, attacking, retreating and defending. If the Soviet army comes with more than two army groups and is difficult to resist, how can the Third Army ten

Are tens of thousands of soldiers going to jump into the Aldan River?

In the previous operational meeting, the four division commanders expressed their opinions and clear objections to the commander of the army, Lieutenant General Haruhiko Taichi, "Your Excellency, Commander, we object to your arrangement of troops in this way. We must consider that if

The strength of the Soviet army,

What should we do if we are far ahead of us? Have you ever considered that more than 80% of the soldiers of our Third Army are recruits entering the battlefield for the first time. How can their combat effectiveness be compared with the first-class divisions on the front line?

What if we can’t hold on?”

"Also, according to your order, only two divisions are left to face the Soviet army in the front, and the other two divisions are detouring on the left and right wings. This is even more dangerous. You can ensure that with only two

Can a division of troops be able to stop a Soviet army group with more than 100,000 troops? A river of Aldan can put the imperial army in an invincible position where it can advance and attack and retreat and defend. We

I really don’t understand what the Commander’s real intention is for such deployment?”

It’s no wonder that these four senior division commanders questioned Lieutenant General Haruhiko Taichi, the commander of the Third Army, so aggressively. The Far East Expeditionary Force was originally composed of local reserve forces. In other words, more than 80% of them were

The soldiers are all on the battlefield for the first time

The new recruit, Lieutenant General Haruhiko Taichi, commander of the Third Army, had no experience in directly commanding troops before. He was airborne from the General Staff Headquarters, and these four division commanders were all transferred from front-line field troops.

, has very rich combat experience.

In their view, Commander Haruhiko, who was no more than a new recruit, regarded it as child's play to deploy troops in this way, and did not take the lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers of the Third Army seriously. Originally, if the four division commanders were commanding, it would be long-term.

For veteran divisions that have experienced battle formations, such problems do not exist at all. They may even push their positions forward dozens of kilometers, or they may not even build fortifications. When they see the Soviet troops, they will charge hand-to-hand.

It can also resolve battles.

However, the soldiers in hand were not enough, and the division commanders had no choice but to play it safe. The four division commanders did not want to have a verbal spat with their superiors face to face in the third army's first battle.

, although I look down on this rookie army commander, there is still a sense of respect for superiors and subordinates. However, when the lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers in the Third Army are at stake, it is inevitable to have an argument with the commander.

The mission of the Third Army is to enter the Aldan River line according to the order of the Dispatch Army Headquarters and block a Soviet army group coming in this direction. As long as the Soviet army does not cross the Aldan River, the mission will be completed. As for the

The encirclement and annihilation of the Soviet Army will be carried out by another army of the Expeditionary Forces. Presumably, the Expeditionary Forces Headquarters also considered that the Third Army is purely a newly formed unit with many recruits and its combat effectiveness ranks last among the Far East Expeditionary Forces.

Therefore, the opinions of the four division commanders should be correct. Building a position on the west bank of the river is enough to prevent the Soviet army from taking a step over, and it can also ensure that the position will not be attacked by the Soviet army.

Breakthrough, a river more than 100 meters wide is a natural barrier, but the commander wants to make a mistake. Isn't he overestimating his capabilities and looking for trouble?

The four veteran division commanders spoke one after another, each one more excited than the other. They listed their reasons one by one, and they were well-founded. They also combined their own actual command operations to demonstrate the dangers of such a deployment. In the final analysis,

Your Excellency the Commander's deployment of troops on the east bank of the Aldan River was an extreme risk. Of course, there was some subtext, probably to save some face for the Commander-in-Chief and not to embarrass the Lieutenant General too much, so he did not say it out loud.

However, the contempt in words and expressions could be seen by all the officers participating in the meeting. Their eyes could not help but secretly glance at Lieutenant General Haruhiko Taichi. The Lieutenant General wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses and had a thin face.

He is fair-skinned, and if it weren't for the two shining gold stars on the collar badge of his general uniform, one would almost think that Lieutenant General Haruhiko, who commanded more than 100,000 troops, was a university professor.

When the four division commanders under his command expressed their opinions impassionedly, the Commander's face remained calm and no change in emotion could be seen. However, the officers closest to him seemed to see that the Commander's

A few glimmers of cold light flashed across his eyes.

(To be continued) (To be continued..)