Rise From Eight Hundred

 Chapter 1478 The Last Effort (Part 2)

"It's not that Tanzhou can't be defended, but that we should trade space for time, retreat back, and have more time. We can also take the opportunity to consume the enemy's strength until the enemy's strength is exhausted, and then we can launch a decisive battle in our theater.

As for the location of the decisive battle, if I had to choose, I would choose Hengyang. Look at Hengyang, a city that is neither big nor small. It can accommodate three to four infantry divisions. The position is compact and strong. These are advantages that Tanzhou does not have. .”

The young and energetic Lieutenant General Chief of Staff pointed at the map and became more and more excited as he talked. He didn't even notice that his superior's face turned livid for a moment.

It's not a question of whether Hengyang is suitable or not, but the 10th Army stationed in Hengyang is simply a stubborn donkey. They transferred all the army commanders. These guys are still looking for trouble for him. When Hengyang is mentioned, he thinks of those **** things. guys.

The majesty of his theater commander actually hit a wall with those guys. In the past few days, he has been thinking of ways to solve this matter.

"Okay, Zili, the reasons and reasons you mentioned seem to be very tenable. Let's not talk about the lack of Japanese troops on the domestic battlefield. I will only talk about the most important point. The situation of the war is different from the situation two years ago. It's very different.

Now that air supremacy has been transferred to our hands, without air supremacy, can the Japanese still brag about using an infantry brigade to defeat my infantry division?

Zi Li, today is different from the past. The air force is the key factor that determines the outcome of the war. Hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops are fighting thousands of miles on the ground. American planes are bombing their heads every day. They march long distances, fight day and night, and transport large quantities of troops. Logistics supplies, aren’t they looking for death? "General Xue turned back to look at the Lieutenant General and Chief of Staff, whom he relied heavily on, with a cold light in his eyes.

Zhao Zili could already feel the impatience of his commander-in-chief, but the young general who was born in Huangpu remembered that he had asked him when he had a chat with Tang Dao: "Why do you want to offend that person?", and Tang Dao replied: "You I, the Chinese soldier, do not fight for anyone, but only for the country. It is just that we have different paths and do not work together!"

Thinking back to the fact that if Hunan Province falls, it will only be a trivial matter if the huge amount of money invested in construction over the past few years is destroyed. Millions of people in Hunan Province will live in dire straits under the Japanese rule. That is what he, the defender of Hunan Province, wants to do. The last thing you want to see.

Finally, he mustered up the courage to continue: "But the intelligence from the military intelligence station shows that Japanese military transportation is frequent on the Yangtze River, and warships shuttle back and forth."

"Zi Li, you are the commander of the military, what? What kind of person is Director Chunfeng? Do you know better than me? By doing this, the Japanese are trying to attack the east and west, and want to continue to mobilize elite divisions from the domestic battlefield to Southeast Asia. Pretending to be on the battlefield? Have you and I seen less of these clever tricks played by the Japanese in recent years?

Our 9th Theater is the first barrier against the Japanese invaders moving south, and is also the vanguard of future counterattacks going north. Every move in our theater is vital to the overall situation of the national war of resistance. People across the country are very concerned. Is it just because they heard that the Japanese are transporting goods everywhere? , Laf everywhere, do we want the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs to mobilize all the troops from Jiangnan for expedition? Then should we bring back all the seven infantry corps of the expeditionary force? Should we also transfer a few group armies from the Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces?

Do you think that was a joke? If the Japanese make the slightest move, we will be frightened into confusion. How can we fight this war to defend our country? The supreme commander might as well just sit in the military commander's office every day and wait to read the intelligence and decide where to deploy troops. What use are we theater commanders for?

Zi Li, as the Allied forces are victorious in the Pacific and European battlefields, the war has developed in a good direction. We may not be able to help much at this time, but it is better not to cause trouble! "

General Xue directly interrupted Zhao Zili's words, and fired like a machine gun, full of energy, which knocked the young lieutenant general and chief of staff speechless.

Seeing that although his chief of staff did not speak, his eyes were still somewhat unconvinced, General Xue also softened his tone and continued: "Zili, it has been almost five years since you came to our war zone in 1938. You I know his temperament and research on military affairs very well. He can be called a military theorist, so you should be familiar with the "theory of war"!

It is said in "On War": War is nothing more than a continuation of politics! In essence, military affairs must be subordinated to political needs, and strategy must also be subordinated to political strategies.

The American fleet has severely damaged the Japanese navy in the Pacific. Strong ships and powerful artillery are about to arrive at the doorstep of the Japanese. The Japanese are now thinking about the Pacific battlefield and our Chinese battlefield. Thank God that they can maintain the status quo. Well, who gave them the courage to launch a large-scale attack on our domestic battlefield?

Of course, when you say that the Japanese want to connect the entire East Asian continent and transport materials and personnel to the battlefields in Southeast Asia by land, I cannot arbitrarily say that it is impossible, but the possibility is very low.

If the Japanese base camp really designed this strategy to save the endgame in the Southeast Asian battlefield, then I can only say that this idea is too naive and childish.

Not to mention whether it can be opened, even if it is really opened, so what? With their current military strength, it would be good to be able to defend the city on the transportation line. Do they have enough troops to protect the long railway line?

I won’t say that they, who have lost air supremacy, can hardly stop the smooth transportation of thousands of kilometers of railway lines by aircraft. Just saying that on the ground, any army-level unit can blow up dozens of meters by sending out an infantry platoon and using explosions. Even hundreds of meters of rails.

how? The 80th Army in North China can use night raids to cause endless damage to the railways. Are our troops in other theaters just useless losers?

Let me tell you! People who hold this kind of idea are just wishful thinking and talking on paper!

And that Tang Dao you mentioned, this guy is a good fighter, but he can't see the situation clearly, and he is a mess politically. I advise you to stay away from him in the future, so as not to implicate you. You are one of the youngest generals in our war zone, with a bright future. Even after the war is over, with your ability and qualifications and my recommendation, it is not impossible to stay in Hunan Province and govern the province. "

General Xue is worthy of being a famous general from a big family. His words are both from a grand strategic perspective and a detailed analysis of the current war situation in China, showing that he is not blindly confident and proud that the Japanese army will not launch a large-scale attack. It also directly pointed out the point that he was dissatisfied with just now.

It's not that he can't listen to different voices, but the friends Zhao Zili has made have wrong political stances. He doesn't want the people around him to have too much contact with the 'scourge' of Tang Dao, especially when the war is about to end. Year.

General Xue's eyes are no longer just on the Patriotic War. He has already begun to plan for the future. His goal is not only the commander of the theater but also the top minister of the Ministry of Military Affairs.

War belongs to generals and soldiers, but in peacetime, it belongs to civilian politicians. General Xue, who is well-read in historical classics, knows this very well.

From a personal point of view, you can’t say he is wrong! However, he has obviously forgotten the most important point. The war is still going on, and he is still a major general commanding an army of 300,000 people. Once the pace of imagination is too big, it will also be nonsense.

It's just like some ordinary people who, as soon as they give birth to a son, start to worry about how the son will marry a wife, ask for a house, a car and a betrothal gift when he grows up. What, are you giving birth to a son or an ancestor?

Or, have you ever thought about whether your newborn son needs these?

Therefore, the smarter a person is, the more he will make some unreasonable mistakes!

Zhao Zili was blushing when he was criticized by General Xue. If he were an ordinary person, he would probably have stopped and bowed his head and said yes.

However, the young general is obviously also a stubborn person. After pondering for a while, he still chose to defend: "Sir, I don't know how the Japanese plan or think, to be honest, but they are mobilizing their troops to prepare for the attack. It is a real fact! It is precisely because the enemy is at the end of his rope that we must prevent them from jumping over the wall in a hurry! It is not a bad thing if we are cautious!"

"Brother Tang Dao, I have tried my best." After Zhao Zili said these words, he also let out a long sigh in his heart.

Just as General Xue understands him, he also understands the temperament of his immediate boss. He only warned him not to have more contact with Tang Dao until now, which is already an extremely high level of tolerance for him.

How could a pure stubborn donkey serve as a lieutenant general's chief of staff in a war zone at the age of 36?

However, for the millions of people in Hunan Province, the young lieutenant general chief of staff still made a last-ditch choice.

Sure enough, seeing that his lieutenant general and chief of staff was still so stubborn and stubborn, General Xue's face became visibly gloomy: "The Japanese army just wants to come and fight! Then just come here. Don't worry, I'm here." In the 9th War Zone, the Japanese will never be able to overthrow the enemy. If Yokoyama Isamu is unwilling to give up, let’s practice in the furnace of ‘Heavenly Furnace War Technique’. I want to see if he is Sun Wukong!”

General Xue returned to his seat, picked up the hot tea, and made a gesture of seeing off the guests. "Okay, it's useless to talk more. Xiang Province is not Yu Province, and I, Xue Yue, am not his Jiang Dingwen. That's it!" Zhao Zili could only shut up.

If that were the case, the young lieutenant general chief of staff might not have completely offended his theater commander.

The key is that in the following days when Tanzhou's defense plan was formulated, Zhao Zili and General Xue started the bullfighting mode.

In the third Battle of Tanzhou at the end of 1942, General Xue used one army to defend Tanzhou. This time he planned to use another army to defend Tanzhou. Zhao Zili clearly expressed his opposition.

Zhao Zili also made a very accurate calculation for the generals present. Except for Yuelu Mountain, which faces the Xiangjiang River in the east and does not require too many troops to defend, the other three sides of the north, west and south are about 13 miles wide. One regiment is responsible for the defense of 2 miles. , and considering leaving enough reserves, then Yuelu Mountain alone will require an army of troops, not to mention the urban area of ​​​​Tanzhou?

However, General Xue insisted on using one army for defense, believing that after three Tanzhou battles, the position was already perfect and the defenders were experienced enough, so there was no need to deploy too many troops in Tanzhou.

This saying that the defenders are very experienced actually has a profound meaning.

The so-called experience is just the 10th Army used in the Third Battle of Tanzhou. General Xue’s mind is spinning very fast. If your 10th Army doesn’t listen to me, then continue to defend the city for me this time. Well, it is best to win. If we lose, don't blame me for chopping off everyone's heads according to the wartime order.

But General Xue didn't want to say this himself, but wanted the Lieutenant General Chief of Staff, who was in conflict with him, to mention it.

As a result, Zhao Zili, who had always been sober, pretended to be confused at this time. In addition to opposing his commander's defensive tactical deployment, he refused to take up the issue until the commander called and ordered the 10th Army to continue to defend the Hengyang area. Only then did he give up the idea.

However, the relationship between General Xue and the young chief of staff also dropped to a freezing point.

On May 5, after the deployment of the Tanzhou Defense Conference, Zhao Zili was called to the office of General Xue.

Without any unnecessary politeness, General Xue just had a cold look on his face: "Since Zi Li you are so worried about the Japanese army's large-scale attack on our Hunan Province, and even Tanzhou's defense is so cautious, I thought about it carefully and I can't act too arbitrarily." , you will lead the Second Division of the General Staff in Hengyang, responsible for coordinating the 10th Army and other units to fight against the incoming Japanese invaders. If you need anything in the future, you don’t need to ask me, just contact Xu Benchang of the Operations Division!"

No matter how stupid Zhao Zili was, he knew at this moment that he had completely angered this courageous and conceited commander.

This military order was clearly intended to remove him as the chief of staff of the war zone and send him to Hengyang in the rear.

Who in the theater doesn’t know the current situation of the 10th Army?

The relatively well-organized 190th Division is still hundreds of miles away in Changde. The remaining 3rd Division and the 10th Preparatory Division suffered heavy losses last time in the Third Battle of Tanzhou. They have not yet recovered their strength, and their number of soldiers is not as high as before. Three-fifths, the two divisions combined have only 15,000 men.

This is not the most terrible thing. The most terrible thing is that the two infantry divisions in Hengyang signed a joint statement a few days ago to refuse the appointment of the new commander. This is a completely leaderless situation.

As the chief of staff who was sent to the "frontier", he was probably not only offended but also offended.

"Yes! I will work hard to defend Hengyang!" The young general who had been standing still for a while finally bowed his head and accepted the order. He gave a military salute to the cold-faced General Xue and turned to leave.

Standing at the window and watching the somewhat forlorn figure of the lieutenant general and chief of staff whom he once relied on so much as he left, General Xue's face remained calm.

Zhao Zili once did very well and contributed a lot to the 'Heavenly Furnace War Technique', but this time he went too far. He questioned his decision over and over again, but he didn't act according to his own mind. This is something he absolutely cannot tolerate.

Just like Fang Xianjue, so what if he can fight? After several visits to the 9th Theater, the commander of the group army did not regard him as the leader? Even the 27th Group Army of the Sichuan Army had expressed its loyalty to him several times?

Only the 10th Army, which has no factional roots, refused him several times to send people to join the army and always focused on internal promotion. It simply did not take him as the commander of the theater in the eyes, so Fang Xianjue had no choice but to leave. .

"In order to prevent the Japanese army from attacking Hunan and Guangxi, Zhao Zili, the chief of staff of the theater, will arrive in the Hengyang area in two days to take charge of the Hengyang army and form a defense line!" General Xue rang the summons bell and called his adjutant, and gave the order coldly. .

The adjutant kept silent and carefully recorded the first military order issued by General Xue before the war.

For a moment, the top brass of the 9th Theater were collectively dumbfounded. At this moment when the Japanese troops showed their strength, General Xue actually cut off one of his arms and sent the Chief of Staff of the Theater whom he relied on most to a place hundreds of miles away. Hengyang.

But no one would have thought that this failure would later be called the most exciting foreshadowing of the tactics deployed by General Xue in the Battle of Hunan and Guangxi.

In Hengyang City at this time, there were mayor HY and the commander of the security, as well as the first unit of the 3rd Division entering the city. The 3rd Division had already started war mode at its division headquarters and station according to Fang Xianjue's arrangements before leaving. Organize engineers and soldiers to prepare for war.

Mayor Zhao, who was more concerned about people's livelihood and focused on orders from the theater headquarters, believed that the 3rd Division was using the war situation as an excuse to cause trouble in the city. The two sides often quarreled over the troops' excavations and even the demolition of residential buildings.

In other words, Fang Xianjue and Zhao Junmai had a pretty good personal relationship, and the two sides did not really get into a tense fight, but there was no doubt that the city's defense matters were not going as smoothly as Tang Dao thought.

Zhao Zili, who arrived in Hengyang with the 'Shang Fang Sword', was already in charge of the battle. His position was above that of Mayor Zhao and Master Zhou, who often supported others. As long as he said it, everything would fall into place.

Before Fang Xianjue returned, compared to the past time and space, Hengyang in this era actually had a person who meant what he said.

The month that Tang Dao fought for for the entire Hengyang was finally not wasted.

This should be regarded as a typical case where the east is not bright and the west is bright.

At dawn on May 8, the Japanese troops on the east route launched the attack first. From that night to the next day, the Japanese troops on the middle route and the west route also launched attacks one after another.

Most of the generals in the 9th Theater and General Xue still had a sense of luck at this time. It was not until the Japanese army broke through the first line of defense, the Xinqiang River, and reached the third line of defense, the Miluo River, that General Xue realized that this time the Japanese army was It's time to get serious.

The 9th theater finally has preparation time for all theaters!

But at this point, it's too late.