You are ordered to support the War of Resistance against Japan; China enters Level 1 combat readines

Zhongtiao Mountain.

The 21st Division was stationed on a high ground, with the Zhongtiao Mountain battlefield, which they had just trampled underfoot, just below.

The battle had ended almost a month ago, but the battlefield was still not cleaned up. Occasionally, the smell of decay could still be smelled in the gullies, but no one found it disgusting.

That's the taste of victory.

It's the taste that Imperial warriors earned with bayonets and cannonballs.

The barracks were noisy as soldiers were cleaning their guns.

In the battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, we captured a lot of weapons from the Chinese army. Although they were broken, they were still good for practice.

Several veterans were squatting by the door wiping a Type 24 heavy machine gun. It was water-cooled and the barrel was covered in rust. They were wiping it very carefully, cursing the Chinese for not knowing how to maintain their weapons.

A new recruit came over, squatted down and watched for a while, then suddenly asked, "Senior, I heard the military is going to transfer us to fight in Jinan?"

The veteran cleaning his gun paused for a moment, then looked up and grinned.

"Attack Jinan? Is that what you call attacking? That's called picking up scraps."

He continued cleaning the gun, rubbing away the rust on the barrel bit by bit.

"There's a plague outbreak over there with the Eighth Route Army. If you get it, you're just waiting to die. Their tanks and artillery are all dead. We're going there to bring them back."

The recruit's eyes widened: "Really?"

"Of course, the orders from the military have all been issued."

Another veteran chimed in, "Those idiots from the 33rd Division are scared stiff, but the 35th Division is eager, though. Are they as fast as us?"

"Who conquered Zhongtiao Mountain? It was our 21st Division. Naturally, we should be the first to pick the good stuff from Jinan."

The veterans all laughed.

The laughter was loud and echoed throughout the barracks.

The 21st Division certainly had the right to be arrogant.

They fought in the Zhongtiao Mountains for twenty days, and they were the main force.

They were the ones who charged ahead, and they were the ones who tackled the toughest challenges.

They finally captured it, killing and capturing nearly 100,000.

Morale is high at this moment!

More importantly, they had never suffered losses at the hands of the Eighth Route Army.

They had heard of the Eighth Route Army's tanks and armored vehicles, but had never seen them.

But no matter how powerful those things are, can they be more difficult to conquer than the bunker complex in Zhongtiao Mountain?

Could it be more difficult to fight than the Chinese army of hundreds of thousands?

"I heard from the 33rd Division that those tanks of the Eighth Route Army can't be penetrated," a new recruit said cautiously.

"Can't break through? You just haven't found the right spot!" the veteran said, scoffing.

"The bunkers in Zhongtiao Mountain are made of reinforced concrete, aren't they tough enough? We bombarded them with heavy artillery and explosives, and they still broke through, didn't they? No matter how tough a tank is, can it be tougher than a bunker?"

The people around chimed in, "That's right! Besides, the Eighth Route Army is almost wiped out. The tanks are just sitting there with no one driving them; they're just a bunch of lumps of iron."

The new recruit was stunned by what he was told, scratched his head, and then laughed.

Outside the barracks, several officers were gathered together smoking.

A major leaned against a tree trunk, holding a telegram in his hand. After reading it, he handed it to the person next to him.

The man glanced at it, a smirk playing on his lips. "The military is really generous this time. Whoever gets to Quancheng first gets to take it. We're the closest; isn't this practically handing us a freebie?"

The major flicked the cigarette butt away, and a spark traced an arc in the night sky.

"We can't be careless. Although the Eighth Route Army is plagued by an epidemic, there are still some who haven't fallen yet. Even in their dying struggle, they can still bite someone."

"Bite someone?" The lieutenant colonel next to him chuckled, a very soft laugh.

"What are they going to bite with? They can't even hold a gun steady, let alone bite people!"

"Besides, who has our 21st Division ever been afraid of? We still managed to take down the 100,000-strong Chinese army in Zhongtiao Mountain, didn't we? Those remnants of the Eighth Route Army are not even as good as the Chinese army in Zhongtiao Mountain."

Everyone laughed.

The laughter was low, but very confident.

It's as if I can already see the city walls of Jinan, the tanks parked in the city, and myself sitting in the driver's seat, driving that metal lump forward.

The lieutenant colonel stubbed out his cigarette, turned and walked towards the barracks, but after a few steps he turned back and said, "Tell the soldiers to hurry up, don't let those guys from the 35th Division get there first."

"yes!"

The 21st Division was ready and immediately assembled.

They marched down from the Zhongtiao Mountains and into the heart of southeastern Shanxi!

……

Meanwhile, the 35th Division's garrison was also in an uproar.

This division is also a unit directly under the army. Like the 21st Division, it is well-equipped and its members are arrogant.

"Move quickly! Assemble! All troops, assemble!"

"Headquarters said, whoever grabs it first keeps it!"

"Don't let other divisions beat you to it!"

"Invincible heavy tank! We're going to have an invincible heavy tank too!"

"I'm going to drive one back to Tokyo, so my family back home can see it!"

"So what if they drive to Tokyo? Let's drive to Chongqing, let's drive to Yan'an, and see if they still dare to oppose the Imperial Army!"

"Hurry! Hurry! Set off before dawn, don't let those guys from the 21st Division steal the credit."

A soldier ran up, panting, and asked, "Sir, can we really get our hands on a tank?"

The veteran patted him on the shoulder: "Yes! Why not? The Eighth Route Army is almost all dead from the disease. The tanks are just sitting there waiting for someone to drive them. If we run fast, they'll be ours."

The soldier chuckled, turned around, and ran back to continue moving ammunition.

My pace quickened considerably, almost to the point of jogging.

Soon, the 35th Division also completed its assembly and headed straight for Jinan along the Zhengtai Railway.

At the same time, the 33rd and 41st Divisions of the First Army also began to advance from Taiyuan toward Jinan.

……

Eighth Route Army Headquarters.

"Report!"

A communications officer strode inside.

"Report! Reconnaissance troops report that the 33rd and 41st Divisions are assembling in southeastern Shanxi from the Taiyuan direction, the 35th Division from the Zhengding direction, and the 21st Division from the Zhongtiao Mountains direction!"

After the communications officer finished speaking, there was a few seconds of silence in the command post.

The pencil in the deputy commander's hand froze in mid-air, as if someone had acupunctured him.

The chief of staff was bending over to look at the map, but he stopped halfway down and froze.

Another boss was holding a teacup, raising it to his lips but not drinking any water; he just held it there.

"How much?" the vice president asked first, as if afraid he had misheard and wanted to confirm it again.

"Four divisions, encircling from three directions, with a total force of approximately 100,000 men." The communications officer's voice was steady, but a layer of fine sweat had already seeped from his forehead.

The deputy commander put down his pencil.

It was placed very lightly, but the crisp sound was exceptionally clear in the quiet command post.

"One hundred thousand!"

"That old geezer Okamura, he's really willing to go all out."

The leaders guessed that the Japanese were going to make a move, but they didn't expect the move to be this big!

The main force of the Japanese army alone consisted of four divisions, totaling nearly 4 troops.

If we add in the puppet troops and others, the number would probably be close to 200,000!

That's almost half of the total military strength in North China!

"He calculated that we wouldn't be able to attend to both ends," the chief of staff sighed.

"When the plague broke out, the army suffered casualties, and the people were filled with fear. It was the most critical time, and he risked everything he had."

"Oh dear! What are we going to do!" the bosses sighed.

One hundred thousand Japs!

Extremely urgent!

Dangerous!Dangerous!Dangerous!