Age of Conquest Reborn

Chapter 669: Targeting Taiyuan

After capturing Tianjin, the battle situation in North China appeared to be absolutely favorable to the army. They could attack at will without any worries. Tang Qiuli, who had a deep strategic vision, did not set his eyes on the isolated city of Peiping or Zhangjiakou.

They were targeting the hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops who were beaten dizzy by six brigades of the Sulu Mobile Corps in Xianxian and Suning areas.

It is unbelievable to say that the six brigades of the Sulu Mobile Corps only have a strength of more than 80,000 people, while the Japanese army on the opposite side has 130,000 people and is in a state of hard defense. This is also the commander of the Sulu Mobile Corps.

Tang Qiusheng made a dangerous move. He bet on taking over Tianjin quickly before the Japanese army could react. Tang Qiusheng won the bet. After the war, even Tang Qiuli was careful about using troops, and he was calm and confident.

Brother Qiu Sheng was impressed.

The Kwantung Army did not go south in time. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Of course Tang Qiuli would not miss it. On the day the Tianjin Campaign ended, Tang Qiuli issued an order to the troops to immediately carry out the Xianxian and Suning campaigns, freeing up the troops.

Quickly moving south and outflanking the Japanese army, hundreds of thousands of troops surged towards Southern Hebei like a torrent.

The Battle of Tianjin was not even a scratch for the participating troops of the ** Division. The soldiers with high fighting spirit, carrying the residual power of the Battle of Tianjin, were eager to fight. I heard that there was going to be another big battle, and there were still hundreds of thousands of them.

Little devil, all troops are deployed

In a fast marching competition, the brigade that arrived on the battlefield first was the main attacking force. The more than 40,000 new recruits from coal miners recruited by Yu Guanghan in Jidong were also added to various units, and the strength of the Sulu Mobile Corps was also added.

Several brigades were added.

There was no way, Huangyadong was clung to by Okamura Neji, and the distance between the two sides was far away. For the first time, Tang Qiuli violated his principles and used untrained recruits. Let them be trained in actual battles. He used

Going south to Xian County, Suning's ruthless move was a heavy blow to Okamura Neiji, and he

I don’t believe that Okamura Neji could watch hundreds of thousands of his troops being wiped out without doing anything, and still insisted on clinging to the Huangyadong base. This time, Tang Qiuli underestimated Okamura Neji, and what happened later

The development was completely unconventional and far beyond Tang Qiuli's expectations.

The fall of Tianjin in less than twenty-four hours was completely beyond Okamura Neiji's judgment. According to his plan, as long as Tianjin held on for three days, the Kwantung Army's southward troops would appear at Shanhaiguan. Tang Qiuli only had two

The first choice is to withdraw from Tianjin immediately, and the second is to fight the Kwantung Army southward in a decisive battle around Tianjin and use Tianjin to attract Tang Qiuli's main force. This is also part of Okamura Neiji's plan.

No matter which option he chooses, it will be extremely detrimental to Tang Qiuli's troops gathered around Pingjin. This is one of the reasons why he did not rush back to Pingjin. The other reason is that it is beyond his reach. Waiting for him to rush back to Pingjin, I am afraid that

Tang Qiuli's troops had already retreated triumphantly with their spoils of war.

But now, all judgments are biased. The root of everything is in Tianjin. The Kwantung Army's southward troops are gathering. Ono Ichiro's farewell telegram is already more than a thousand pounds in the hands of Okamura Neiji, "Commander

Your Excellency, the city of Tianjin is about to be defeated. The shouts of killing by the Chinese soldiers can be heard clearly. They tried their best despite their humble duties and failed to ensure that Tianjin is safe. They have fulfilled the great trust of the commander and sent electricity to you. A fierce battle was taking place outside the headquarters building."

"Reviewing the gains and losses of this Tianjin battle, our army's weak garrison and improper command should be the main reasons. However, your Excellency, the commander, sent heavy troops to sweep the Taihang Mountains, while ignoring the foundation of our empire in North China.

, It is actually a major mistake on your part. With the fall of Tianjin, Peiping will be an isolated city. Zhangjiakou, which hangs alone in northern Hebei, will also be unprotected. The strategic rear area of ​​North China will be lost. Your mistake will endanger the fundamental interests of our Empire of Japan."

"The little savage spoke softly and spoke from the bottom of his heart. I hope your Excellency, Commander, will think twice about trading the desolate Taihang Mountains for our rich land of Pingjin. There is no need to say more about which is more important. The fall of Tianjin is irreversible. The responsibility for losing the city and the land is extremely difficult.

Shirking, Ono had no choice but to commit suicide to apologize. Long live the Empire of Japan, His Majesty the Emperor, Ono’s masterpiece."

Okamura Neiji read this telegram many times. Every time he read it, his heart felt like a heavy hammer. The war situation in North China has deteriorated to this point. Who is responsible? The Kwantung Army? The rescue south was not timely, Ono? It is not good to hold on to Tianjin.

, yourself? You insist on going your own way, insisting on the strategy of sweeping the Taihang Mountains, and insisting on attacking Huangya Cave, and it seems that no one is responsible.

From the beginning of April, when the troops entered the Taihang Mountains, Tang Qiuli's two moves disrupted Okamura Neji's steps. First, he avoided the reality and turned to the weak. He did not fight heavy Japanese troops in the Taihang Mountains and did not send troops to solve the problem of Huangya Cave.

During the siege, the second wave made a false attack. The troops sent out to Jingxing Pass, captured Shijiazhuang, and marched directly to Baoding to Tianjin. Okamura Ningji only managed to capture a Huangya Cave, but he could not capture it for a long time. He lost his troops and generals, and was in a dilemma.

On the other hand, the troops of the ** Division galloped around Pingjin, and the autumn wind swept away the Japanese forces in North China like fallen leaves. They fought in Jingxingguan in the first battle, Shijiazhuang again, and Tianjin in the third battle. They annihilated 150,000 to 60,000 Japanese troops. In this way,

Okamura Neiji

After a big attack, all the rear areas in North China were lost. He no longer dwelled on Huangyadong's reasoning. He followed the normal approach and immediately returned to Pingjin, joined forces with Xianxian and Suning front lines, recaptured Tianjin, and relieved the crisis in Peiping. He restored

The situation in North China.

Not only Tang Qiuli, but also all the generals of the Japanese Army thought so. Therefore, Tang Qiuli ordered the Japanese troops on the front line of Xianxian and Suning to be surrounded, and they should take no more than five days at the latest to deal with hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops on the spot.

Then, the entire army immediately turned to the Jidong area, preparing to fight the Kwantung Army's southward troops.

Five days is the fastest time for the Kwantung Army's southward troops to reach the outskirts of Tianjin. As for Okamura Neji's troops in the Taihang Mountains, they will not be able to climb back to Tianjin in less than ten days. First of all, Sun Zhenbang's regiment and the Eighth Route Army troops will not be able to return to Tianjin.

Tang Qiuli now had 14 infantry brigades and nearly 180,000 troops in his hands to completely annihilate the Japanese troops in Xian County and Suning. He was fully capable of allowing the Japanese troops to escape easily.

After solving this Japanese army, Okamura Neiji had no large-scale heavy force group to use in North China. The troops also deployed their forces according to this plan. Tang Qiuli, like Okamura Neiji, used the forces in his hands to the limit.

, none of which can be adjusted

Therefore, the time when the Kwantung Army's southward troops entered the pass was the key to Tang Qiuli's victory. By seizing this time gap, it might not be impossible for the troops to gain a foothold in the Pingjin area. Tang Qiuli even optimistically estimated that

Best case scenario.

Tianjin was lost, 50,000 troops were lost, and the war situation in North China was completely passive. Okamura Neji suffered the first defeat in his military career. Although it was not a complete defeat, it was irreversible. For someone who had thought that the Japanese Empire would expand its territory and serve the emperor all his life,

For Neji Okamura, the blow was not unbearable.

The attack on Huangya Cave is still the same as before. The results of each attack have made him numb. The scorched earth around Huangya Cave seems to be laughing at his incompetence. Unfavorable rumors about him have been secretly circulating in the headquarters.

All this made Neji Okamura feel exhausted mentally and physically, and he couldn't even think about it for the time being.

Returning to Pingjin like this, with Okamura Neiji's character, he absolutely cannot return empty-handed. Another worrying issue is that the hundreds of thousands of troops fighting hard against the ** division troops in Xianxian and Suning front lines, according to

According to intelligence, Tang Qiuli has already commanded the attack on Tianjin.

The hundreds of thousands of troops rushed south in an emergency, with the obvious purpose of eating up the last of his capital in the Pingjin area. Okamura Neiji cannot afford to lose this, and he cannot lose it. If he loses these hundreds of thousands of troops, Okamura will

Neiji Murura probably had no choice but to run to Manchuria to seek refuge.

Okamura Neiji locked himself in the tent and did not allow anyone to disturb him. All night, the senior staff gathered outside the tent. They were worried that the Commander would lose his mind and commit suicide by caesarean section. When it was daybreak, the Commander came out.

He and his staff discovered that he had a few more gray hairs on his temples and seemed to have more wrinkles on his face. No one knew what Okamura Neji was thinking or doing that night.

I just saw that Okamura Neji's eyes were shining with a cold light as fierce as a lone wolf. He was a man with a typical gambler's character. He thought hard all night to find a way to solve the current crisis. The huge military map of North China

, magnified infinitely before his eyes, Huangya Cave, an insignificant black dot on the map, once again stung his heart. All passivity started from here.

Taiyuan fell into his eyes, and he was shocked. It was like a ray of sunshine shining through the gloomy sky. This was the only point to solve the current crisis. Tang Qiuli's main troops were all in the Pingjin area, Taihang Mountain and even the entire Shanxi Province.

, only the Jin army, for Yan Xishan's Jin army, Okamura Neiji did not pay attention at all.

Gambling, this is a typical gamble, ignoring Pingjin and sweeping the troops in the Taihang Mountains, and marching north to attack Taiyuan. The combat effectiveness of Yan Xishan's Jin army cannot stop the attack of hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops. After taking Taiyuan

, go eastward along Yangquan, Niangziguan and Jingxingguan,

Recover Shijiazhuang and Tianjin, join the Kwantung Army's southward troops, and encircle Tang Qiuli's main force in the Pingjin area. Tang Qiuli has only two ways to go. One is to fight decisively with the main force of our imperial army in the Pingjin area, and the other is to retreat to the Taihang Mountains. In this way,

Later, he not only occupied Shanxi but also recovered Tianjin.

This is the key point of the Shanxi campaign plan that Okamura Neji formed after a night of hard thinking. He was betting that Tang Qiuli's troops would not be able to rush back to Shanxi in time. The Kwantung Army moved south and entered the pass quickly. This was his biggest gamble.

With his capital, Okamura Neiji decided to make a bet and reverse the situation of the war in North China. The odds of winning were extremely high. In his plan, annihilating or defeating the Jin army was just a sideshow.

Seeing that almost all his subordinates were looking at him worriedly outside the tent, Okamura Neiji bowed slightly: "Gentlemen, I have made you worried." His tone was modest and infinitely apologetic. The Japanese generals breathed a sigh of relief.

At least for now, it seems that the commander is in good mental condition and has no intention of committing suicide by disembowelment.

(To be continued)