Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Chapter 229 Chu Yunfei's audacious battle plan; Chiang Kai-shek gambles his political career (subscription required)
Luowang Station.

Xue Yue didn't expect that Chu Yunfei would actually leave his command post.

I came here to meet him just to explain this audacious plan.

Xue Yue was obviously extremely surprised, and Chu Yunfei couldn't understand what he said in Hakka dialect even if he guessed.

He had no choice but to look to the adjutant beside him for help.

"Captain Xue feels that it is already extremely difficult to encircle and annihilate the 14th Division. If the Japanese army's westward advance group is really allowed to enter the encirclement, it is very likely that it will not be the so-called encirclement and annihilation, but the central attack that the Japanese army likes to use the most."

Chu Yunfei's attitude remained firm: "Captain Xue, the Japanese army seems to be gathering heavy troops to advance westward. Once Kaifeng falls, the National Government will inevitably choose to break the Yellow River to stop the Japanese army from advancing westward."

"I have received news that many generals have already held relevant views and believe that the flooding trend can stop the mechanized forces of the Japanese army."

"Commander Xue, please forgive Yun Fei for speaking frankly, but the Chairman urgently needs an unprecedented victory!"

"We must not let him down!"

Chu Yunfei's tone was sonorous and powerful, and his loyalty was unparalleled.

There was a slight daze in Xue Yue's eyes when he looked at Chu Yunfei.

Nima!

Doesn't Chu Yunfei, who is so loyal, know that Gu Yongqing is Chiang Kai-shek's favorite general and is highly appreciated by He Yingqin?

This matter was enough to give Xue Yue a headache. Chu Yunfei's battle plan could not only be described as bold.

It's simply audacious.

However, Chu Yunfei believed that the time had come.

He reorganized the various troops and obtained American weapons and military supplies from the Second World War zone.

Very strong.

Even if he had to confront the 16th Division's westward support forces, Chu Yunfei was confident that he could defeat them.

However, Chu Yunfei, who was well aware of the strength of the friendly forces, did not think that the 16 divisions of the friendly forces could annihilate the 14th Division of the Japanese Army.

Actually.

The 14th Division is not the 20,000-plus people that the public is familiar with.

It is a reinforced division with nearly 30,000 troops.

This is also the reason why the 71st Army, the 74th Army and other units had such a hard time fighting.

The Third Battalion of the Tenth Artillery Regiment brought by Hu Zongnan was known as the Divine Artillery Battalion.

In the defense battle of Tongguan, the Japanese were defeated.

They also performed quite well in this battle.

In addition to the 74th, 71st, and even the 64th Army of Li Hanhun of the Guangdong Army and the 27th Army of Gui Yongqing that was killed by Chu Yunfei's order, they were all equipped with a large number of artillery.

Including the Eighth Army led by Huang Jie, which was also equipped with a large number of mortars.

In terms of heavy weapons firepower, Chiang Kai-shek can be said to have given his all and emptied out his family's wealth.

The Battle of Xuzhou started off well but ended badly, which also made Chiang Kai-shek's position in the party precarious.

As a result, the reputation of Li Zongren, the direct commander of this battle, suffered a certain degree of damage.

If it is said that the War of Resistance against Japan brought Chiang Kai-shek's reputation to its peak.

Then with the fall of the capital Nanjing, the front battlefield suffered a continuous defeat.

The people's trust in the Nationalist government has been declining as they have been winning and losing battles one after another.

The chairman's prestige has been damaged again and again and has reached rock bottom.

The Battle of Lanfeng was fought to give an explanation to the people.

It has been five days since the encirclement and annihilation campaign began.

On the third day, Chu Yunfei helped wipe the butt.

This prevented the situation from becoming so corrupt.

The progress of the various troops and the casualties of the Japanese army have not yet met expectations.

The Japanese army's current losses number only more than 10,000 people, one-third of which are casualties.

It's still a long way from total annihilation.

The war has come to this point.

Xue Yue was actually under a lot of pressure.

After all, Chiang Kai-shek himself had high hopes for him.

Xue Yue, a famous general in the Northern Expedition, was the commander-in-chief of the front line of the three war zones.

He was taken over by a special plane and served as the commander-in-chief of the Henan East Corps in the First War Zone.

He also commanded powerful armies such as the World's No. 1 Army and the Flying Tiger Honor Division.

If we can't win the battle of Lanfeng.

Wouldn’t Xue Yue then become a laughing stock for all eternity?
An army of two hundred thousand surrounded and annihilated the 14th Division.

If they can't be annihilated, what's the point of such an army existing?
Of course.

This does not mean to deny the efforts and sacrifices made by middle and lower-level officers.

Like the 88th Division, Long Muhan's troops now have less than a brigade left.

As for the rest, some of them died on the way to the attack or were injured and lost their combat effectiveness.

In the battle to attack Luowangzhai.

The attacking troops were all Guangdong soldiers who had been trained by Li Hanhun for about seven years.

This group of young men with strong firepower wiped out all the Japanese troops in Luowangzhai.

The vast majority of the Japanese soldiers in the 15th Infantry Regiment were wiped out.

They also seized the command sword of Kenji Doizo, the commander of the 14th Division of the Japanese Army, and fought a very exciting and beautiful battle.

But what is the price to pay?
The person in charge of the main attack this time was the commander of the 463rd Brigade, Tan Shenglin.

The assisting forces were the 3th Division, the rd Infantry Regiment under Chu Yunfei, and a regiment under Hu Zongnan.

The 64th Army suffered 4,500 casualties and 2,700 sacrifices in one battle.

Brigade Commander Tan Shenglin, who commanded the operation, was also injured and sent to Guangzhou Army Hospital for treatment.

Lieutenant Colonel Chen Gongren, the regimental commander, died in battle (the younger brother of the division commander Chen Gongxia)

This battle brought tears to the eyes of Chinese and foreign journalists.

Li Hanhun shed a lot of tears.

You can imagine how brutal this battle was.

These are all elite troops of the Guangdong Army that have been trained for seven years and are the apple of Li Hanhun's eye.

And this does not include the casualties of the assisting troops.

Moreover, this was an attack with the full support of Chu Yunfei's artillery units.

The casualty ratio of both sides was barely close to 1.5:1
To put it bluntly, this is such a bad terrain.

Let Chu Yunfei's elite troops go to fight.

The damage ratio will also be very ugly.

Otherwise, why would Kenji Doihara give up a county town like Lanfeng and occupy these villages?
It was just a bad risk.

This resulted in him and the 14th Division's eastern troops being separated on the battlefield, which was even more disadvantageous from a strategic point of view.

However, from a tactical point of view, Kenji Doi's approach was the only feasible option for him after he was in danger.

Only in this way could he maintain his low morale.

Places like Luowangzhai and Sanyizhai are very different from the battles in Tengxian and Linxian.

The county towns of Teng County and Lin County had previously been bombarded by the Japanese army, and there were commanding heights on both sides of the county towns.

Occupying the commanding heights is equivalent to taking the initiative in the attack.

The Japanese army used the same tactics when they attacked.

In the attack on Teng County, Chu Yunfei fired nearly ten thousand artillery shells.

After the war, the casualty ratio between the two sides was close to 1:1.
It is conceivable how difficult it is to fight this kind of encirclement and annihilation war.

However, places like Luowangzhai and Sanyizhai are not villages.

These earthen villages near Lanfeng.

In fact, they are a series of solid earthen fortresses.

The terrain outside the castle is open and easy to defend but difficult to attack.

It is somewhat similar to Taierzhuang.

There are also a number of small strongholds scattered around, where troops can be stationed.

After occupying these small strongholds, you can build up crossfire.

If the infantry units charge forward recklessly, it will naturally cause heavy casualties.

If you want to take down these small strongholds, the best way is to use direct artillery fire, followed by heavy artillery bombardment.

Xue Yue sighed: "But do you know that just to annihilate a part of the main force of the 14th Division, the generals began to blame each other?"

Chu Yunfei shook his head: "Commander Xue, forgive me for being blunt, but you are in danger and personally supervising the battle on the front line, which is actually not as good as the chairman going to Kaifeng to supervise the battle."

This is actually quite straightforward.

Xue Yue knew it in his heart, but it was really hurtful to say it out loud.

This group of proud disciples of the emperor did not submit to Xue Yue, even though Xue Yue killed Gui Yongqing and made his attitude clear.

The current commander of the Henan East Corps is equivalent to holding the Imperial Sword.

But what if you have the Imperial Sword?

Can it suppress the factional struggles within the National Army and resolve the long-standing conflicts within the National Army?

Obviously not.

But once one person arrives at the front line, everyone will fight desperately, even if it is a battle that has no hope.

This person is Chiang Kai-shek.

The 14th Division of the Japanese Army was actually less than 100 kilometers away from Kaifeng City.

To put it bluntly, once the main forces of the Japanese army gathered together, they marched westward to Kaifeng.

Chiang Kai-shek, who had just arrived in Kaifeng to supervise the battle, was very likely to be surrounded by the Japanese army.

Although this is not the first time this has happened.

But before this, he had put himself in danger on his own initiative, not passively, and he had prepared a plane to leave in advance.

Kaifeng Airport doesn't have a special plane for you to escape if something like this really happens.

Xue Yue and Chu Yunfei naturally could not afford it either.

Seeing Chu Yunfei's determined eyes, he still insisted.

Xue Yue had no choice but to get up and walk to the phone.

He looked solemn and hesitated for a few minutes before picking up the phone line.

It's done!

Fuck it!

Rather than becoming a sinner for all eternity and being nailed to the pillar of shame, Xue Yue would rather win the war and be shot!

"I am Xue Yue, Chairman."

[The chairman has just gone to bed.] "It's important."

After a moment, a rustling sound was heard.

"Commissioner, it's Commander Xue."

A voice with Fenghua accent rang out: "Hello, is that Bo Ling?"

"Chairman, it's me. The enemy situation is changing rapidly. The Japanese support troops have appeared in the eastern suburbs of Lanfeng and have been detected by our army. Considering the current changes in the enemy situation..."

[You want to retreat? I tell you that this is absolutely not possible. I strongly disagree.]

Xue Yue waited in silence for Chiang Kai-shek to scold him.

【Are you listening? 】

"Chairman, I am not advocating retreat. Instead, I want to let the Eastern Route Army of the Japanese 14th Division enter Lanfeng and let it join the main force of the 14th Division. In this way, we can completely annihilate the Japanese 14th Division within our encirclement, rather than just annihilate part of it."

Xue Yue continued to emphasize the current situation between the enemy and us according to the idea that Chu Yunfei had previously persuaded him to do.

And he once again brought up the issue of so-called air support.

In Chu Yunfei's opinion.

To convince Chiang Kai-shek, there is no point in saying anything else.

This stubborn old man seems to live in his own world forever.

The most crucial point to convince Chiang Kai-shek is numbers.

The way He Yingqin persuaded Chiang Kai-shek to tolerate the Japanese was to list numbers in the most intuitive way.

The opposition, led by Wang Zhaoming, took advantage of the defeat in the Battle of Xuzhou and pressed forward step by step, clamoring for a review of the major strategic mistakes against Japan, the serious consequences of the ten-month armed war of resistance, etc., forcing Chiang Kai-shek to bear the major responsibility for the military defeat.

What they used were the casualties, the material consumption, the lost land area, and the consumed money and food!

Furthermore, no matter when you are engaging in any debate or expressing your own views.

Numbers are the most intuitive.

The battle involved 200,000 Nationalist troops against 30,000 Japanese troops. The Nationalist army had far more troops than the Japanese army, so this was a victory!
Moreover, the number of our artillery pieces is 187 versus 70, which means we win twice!

Our army surrounded the enemy and blocked its logistical supply routes, preventing its mechanized forces from fully exerting their power. This is the third victory.

Our soldiers in the battle shared a common hatred of the enemy, fought bravely, risked their lives, and had the attacking spirit of "I am invincible as long as I am alive, and I am powerless as long as the enemy is alive". This is the fourth victory.

Our army won four victories while the Japanese army won none.

In that case, what else is there to say? The advantage is mine!
Chiang Kai-shek on the other end of the phone fell silent.

Obviously, Chu Yunfei's words to persuade Xue Yue made Chiang Kai-shek realize what it means to fight a battle without preparation.

The pie Xue Yue drew for him was bigger than the one Chu Yunfei drew for him
It is true that the soldiers in the battle shared the same hatred for the enemy, and it is also true that they bravely killed the enemy without regard for their own lives.
But Xue Yue refused to let the front-line generals blame each other. In Xue Yue's view, this kind of problem could be solved by letting Chiang Kai-shek personally command the front line.

Chiang Kai-shek was moved.

Although I am old.

But he always recalled the high spirits of the Northern Expedition.

That state of thriving vitality and flourishing everything is still before our eyes!
The leaves of the Chinese begonia are now badly damaged under the iron hoofs of the Japanese invaders.

As a military chairman, he personally commanded the Battle of Lanfeng. If he could really destroy the 14th Division.

For him, it will not only effectively enhance his reputation within the party.

It can also suppress capitulationists like Wang Zhaoming!

So what are you hesitating about?
Just as Chiang Kai-shek was about to agree to Xue Yue's plan, he asked, "Yun Fei, is he at your corps headquarters?"

"Report to the Chairman, yes."

"Did he come up with this plan?"

Xue Yue glanced at Chu Yunfei, then admitted openly: "Yes."

"So after he convinced you, he asked you, the commander-in-chief of the Henan East Corps, to convince me, the chairman?"

Xue Yue was silent for a moment.

"In other words, Yun Fei is very confident of winning this battle?"

"Yes."

There was no emotion in Chiang Kai-shek's tone.

Moreover, Chiang Kai-shek's Fenghua accent and Zhejiang Mandarin made it easy to make two or three individual words unclear.

It's hard to guess what's in his mind.

Just when Xue Yue thought that this fantastic battle plan would be rejected.

Chiang Kai-shek unexpectedly agreed, "In my opinion, this plan is feasible. The details of the plan need further discussion. You should leave for Kaifeng immediately. I have already arrived at the Kaifeng Command Headquarters."

"Yes!"

Xue Yue hung up the phone, and turned to look at Chu Yunfei beside him as if relieved: "The chairman agreed, but the specific details of the plan need further discussion. Before the plan is officially confirmed, Lanfeng City still needs to be defended."

"Yes, please rest assured, Commander Xue!"

Chu Yunfei saluted and didn't waste any time.

Leave as soon as the work is done, without staying for even a quarter of an hour.

The fighting situation on the front line is tense.

It took him two hours to make this trip, which wasted a lot of time.

But he has to do this in person.

Otherwise, Chu Yunfei would not be sure to convince Xue Yue over the phone.

after all.

The phone call is not the same as meeting in person.

Otherwise, Chiang Kai-shek, Li Zongren and their ilk wouldn't have summoned generals at every turn.
Kaifeng.

The former headquarters of the commander of the First War Zone.

It is now the headquarters of the East Henan Campaign.

Chiang Kai-shek put on his military uniform again and summoned his staff and senior commanders of the First War Zone.

Put forward the battle plan drawn up by Xue Yue.

It was immediately opposed by a number of senior generals.

Especially Liu Fei and Lin Wei.

The opposition from these two was the most vehement.

In the past, they might have followed Chiang Kai-shek's lead.

But what is the situation now? A dozen divisions are besieging the main force of the 14th Division with 8,000 to 9,000 people, and the situation has turned out like this.

The generals at the front line all thought it was not their problem and that they had contributed.

It’s because the friendly forces are not strong enough.

Under such circumstances, we must open a gap to allow the main force of the 14th Division to join us, and then encircle and annihilate them.
This is not a so-called whimsical plan at all.

But it's so bold!
Chiang Kai-shek still has some mental problems.

The more others objected, the more he felt that he was right.

Moreover, Lin Wei, Liu Fei, and even Cheng Qian, Yan Xunfu and others raised these issues for Chiang Kai-shek.

It seems that as long as he takes charge, everything can be solved.

His eyes were lost in thought.

He seemed to recall the first time he commanded the Whampoa Military Academy Army and marched eastward to Tamsui City.

Danshui is an important town in Huiyang County. It has tall and strong city walls, deep and wide moats, and open terrain, making it easy to defend but difficult to attack.

When Hong Zhaolin, the leader of the "Guangdong Rescue Army", learned that the revolutionary army was about to besiege Tamsui, he quickly mobilized troops stationed in Huizhou, Haifeng and other places to provide reinforcements.

The school soldiers had just left school and went to the battlefield with real guns and real bullets. They lacked practical experience and heavy weapons. In addition, the city was strong and the defenders were numerous, so the student soldiers suffered heavy casualties. But in the end, didn’t they win the first battle of the Eastern Expedition under his command?
And now, he will personally take charge and command the "Whampoa Military Academy Army" to fight again.

We are bound to achieve the final victory in this battle.

Chiang Kai-shek's stubbornness was, at least at this moment, fully demonstrated.

The Battle of Lanfeng was led by him alone.

The Henan East Corps in the First War Zone was actually fighting with its back to the river.

They are protecting the safety of millions of people behind them with the determination to fight to the death.

however.

In fact, this style of fighting was opposed by many high-ranking generals of the National Army and even the Kuomintang.
Just take the Yellow River bursting as an example.

Many people have made suggestions many times.

Rather than saying that it was a brilliant idea that Chiang Kai-shek came up with himself...
In fact, it was the product of the "collective wisdom" of the top leaders of the National Army, and the decision was made by Chiang Kai-shek.

As early as 1935, the Wuhan Headquarters had similar discussions and put forward relevant proposals.

For example, Yan Xunfu, Chief of Staff of the First War Zone Commander's Headquarters, when he took office as Chief of Staff of the First War Zone.

He and Deputy Chief of Staff Zhang Xuxing had already proposed this plan to breach the Yellow River dikes to Cheng Qian. Cheng thought it was feasible, so he applied to Chang Kai for approval, and Chiang Kai-shek replied with a telegram to approve it.

On April 1938, 4, Chen Guofu suggested to Chiang Kai-shek that the Wuzhi dike should be breached: "The great victory of Taierzhuang has made the whole country jubilant. The future of the war of resistance may turn for the better from now on. However, the south bank of the Yellow River is thousands of miles long and is not easy to defend. During the flood season, we are afraid that the enemy will breach the dike to attack us. If we can hold Wuzhi and other counties, we can counterattack the enemy with water at any time..."

In addition, Feng Yuxiang and Bai Chongxi had also suggested to Chiang Kai-shek that the water from the Yellow River be released to defeat the enemy.

Having said that, these are the thoughts of these staff members and senior generals in the First War Zone.

It can no longer influence Chiang Kai-shek at this moment.

He ignored everyone's objections.

He firmly adopted Xue Yue's strategic plan.

He immediately ordered the commander of the war zone and everyone in his headquarters to work out a detailed combat plan.

Liu Fei and others knew very well that they could not persuade Chiang Kai-shek at this time.

We have no choice but to do our best under the established premise.

Formulate and complete relevant battle deployments to ensure that the battle to encircle and annihilate the 14th Division can go more smoothly.

Chiang Kai-shek himself is also very clear about this.

If the Battle of Lanfeng fails, the mechanized corps of the Japanese army in North China will head straight for Zhengzhou and Kaifeng.

Once Zhengzhou and Kaifeng fall, the Japanese mechanized forces will be able to attack Tongguan unhindered on the plains.

Without strategic locations to defend, Xi'an, Xiangfan and Nanyang will surely be lost.

The Japanese army will threaten Sichuan, the southwestern rear area, and at the same time send troops to attack Wuhan along the Huai River to the north of Dabie Mountain;
Together with the Japanese troops in East China attacking along the Yangtze River waterway, they formed a pincer attack from the north and the south.

This put the Nationalist army in an extremely unfavorable situation during the Battle of Wuhan, and the Chinese War of Resistance was bound to fall into the most dangerous situation.
This battle was of great significance to the Henan East Corps, the First War Zone, and even to Chiang Kai-shek.

It's a battle that must be won.

Now Chiang Kai-shek has actually gambled his own political career to fight this battle. If he loses, the consequences will be unimaginable!

The National Army's false information about the 14th Division having 20,000 troops was false.

In essence, it is a reinforced division of 30,000 people.

Moreover, the author has examined the Huayuankou incident in detail.

The breach occurred during the non-flood season, and the Kuomintang senior officials, including Chiang Kai-shek, were worried that the water level was not high enough.

The number of casualties caused directly by the flood reached 380,000. (A new study on the death toll of the Huayuankou dike breach by Li Fuzhong, Zhang Yan, and Zhang Dongsheng)

As for the 1 people, the statistic is wrong. It counts 2. the number of people who fled, 3. the number of people who died in the local anti-Japanese war, 4. the number of people who were massacred by the Japanese army, and . the number of people who died of natural causes.
One more thing to mention is that after the Japanese bastards breached the Huayuankou dike, they also breached the Yellow River once, digging a new gap to the east, which the locals called "East Gate". By 1944, it merged with Huayuankou, and the width of the breach at Huayuankou eventually reached 1460 meters.

The story of Yan and Cheng Qian, Chen and others is an article he narrated himself. You can find it directly on Baidu. I won’t post the information. Those who have read the relevant general history should have seen the description.
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(End of this chapter)